Naruto : Shisui Uchiha & Gacha in multiverse

SWISH SWISH SWISH

Shisui darted from branch to branch, leaves whispering past him as he vanished into the dense canopy. The rustling wind trailed behind his swift movements, but he paid it no mind. He had already left Kusagakure.

As he expected, a routine check had revealed the absence of the two redheads. However, his shadow clones had managed to delay pursuit long enough. That brief window of chaos was all he needed to disappear without engaging in battle, just as he had planned.

"Did you detect anyone?" he asked without looking back, landing lightly on the next tree.

A voice responded in his ear from behind. "No shinobi detected within a two-kilometre radius."

Shisui wasn't surprised. He had left behind enough traps and chakra interference patterns to keep Kusagakure's shinobi preoccupied. It was more than enough to keep them off his trail for now.

"Where are you taking us?" came another voice, softer, yet laced with tension.

He felt the arms wrapped around his neck tighten slightly, but there was no killing intent—only anxiety.

"I haven't decided yet," he replied calmly. It wasn't exactly a lie; he truly hadn't chosen their next destination.

Currently, they were in a minor nation wedged between four larger territories: the Land of Fire, the Land of Earth, the Land of Rain, and the Land of Waterfalls.

Each option was problematic.

The Land of Fire and the Land of Earth housed two of the Five Great Hidden Villages—Konoha and Iwagakure—both too dangerous for someone in his position to approach.

The Rain village was infested with a shadowy organisation composed of S-rank missing-nin, the Akatsuki. And while Takigakure, the Village Hidden by a Waterfall, lacked the sheer scale of the Five Great Nations, it was still formidable in its own right.

Both the Lands of Rain and Grass had served as battlegrounds in the previous Great Ninja War, yet Takigakure had never been fully invaded. Why? Because the Village Hidden by the Waterfall possessed its own tailed beast—Chōmei, the Seven-Tails.

While Shisui doubted that the village could monitor the entire nation, he wasn't willing to gamble on that uncertainty. Not yet. Not when he no longer had his eyes.

Still, no matter what direction he took, he would eventually have to pass through one of the surrounding nations. There was no avoiding it. Sooner or later, he'd find himself stepping into one of their borders, even if only for a short time.

Thinking that, his brow furrowed in quiet frustration.

"Are you not going to your village?"

Shisui almost laughed.

He wanted to—but Karin was asleep in his arms, her breath soft and steady against his chest. He didn't want to wake her. So instead, he merely exhaled through his nose, the hint of a smile tugging at his lips before it faded.

Both mother and daughter were being carried by him. Karin lay cradled in his arms, while her mother clung to his back, arms wrapped around his shoulders and legs loosely crossed at his waist for balance. The weight wasn't the issue. He could handle it.

But it was inconvenient. Slowed him down more than he liked.

Still, he wasn't willing to waste chakra creating more shadow clones.

Every ounce counted now. With his vision gone and his enemies unknown, even the smallest reserve might be the difference between escape and death. So this awkward, mildly uncomfortable arrangement would have to suffice.

Before his memories had returned, he might not have thought much of it. After all, he had done something like this countless times with his teammates.

But now?

Now that he remembered everything—his past life, his former world, and the awkward boundaries of decency—he found himself far more aware than he wanted to be.

Specifically, of the B-cup-sized pressure pressing lightly against his back.

Small… but noticeable.

Effective.

He exhaled sharply, as if trying to release the thought along with the breath.

This was not the time to be distracted.

"Why do you think I'm from a village?" he asked flatly, radar still scanning the treetops ahead.

A beat of silence passed before the woman on his back answered, her voice low but composed.

"Because shinobi like you don't come out of nowhere. While there are many rogue ninja and wanderers without village affiliation… someone your age moving with this level of precision? That's rare."

Shisui gave a small nod. He couldn't exactly deny it.

Yes, there were countless shinobi who had no allegiance—mercenaries, missing-nin, drifters who honed their skills through battle after battle. Some grew strong through sheer willpower, others through cruelty. But there was a difference between being lethal and being refined.

He wasn't just strong.

He was trained.

ANBU trained.

He had been moulded to operate in silence, trained to complete missions with minimal chakra expenditure, in the shortest time possible, leaving behind not a single trace of his presence. He had been taught to think ten steps ahead, to create diversions, to ghost through enemy lines unnoticed. To manipulate people, escape traps, destabilise battlefields, and when necessary, to kill with frightening precision.

Of course, he wasn't arrogant about those skills.

Not anymore.

Before his memories returned, he truly believed no one in the village was his equal. Especially after awakening his Mangekyō Sharingan, he saw himself as the strongest in Konoha. He acknowledged that the Third Hokage still had a few hidden techniques, and the Sannin weren't weak by any measure. But beyond them, he thought no one stood on his level.

And that arrogance?

It had nearly cost him his life.

Even after Danzo attacked him, Shisui hadn't been vigilant enough. He believed he would always be in control. That was his mistake.

Only after recovering his memories did he truly understand how naïve he had been.

The world was far bigger than he'd ever imagined.

There were secret techniques beyond comprehension, shinobi far more powerful than he could have imagined back then. There was a race known as the Ōtsutsuki, beings who existed outside the normal boundaries of chakra and mortality. There were multiple universes—entire dimensions beyond his own. Realms of outer space and alien power structures.

Now, for the first time, Shisui could feel it deep in his bones.

How small he truly was.

How fragile even the strongest shinobi could be in the face of the unknown.

And because of that… he would never let arrogance blind him again.

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