Mikoto used all her shinobi stealth as she exited her son 's room. Without making a sound, she closed the door, and only then did she let out a careful sigh. At last, her dear firstborn Itachi was asleep.

It has been a long six months since the boy saw the light of day. He grew not by the day but by the hour. Already he started babbling sounds and actually sounded like he was making sense. She was a proud mother.

A proud mother that now scrubbed the dishes, wondering how did it come to this. She, a high-ranking shinobi, stuck at home while her comrades fought a war.

Clan obligations and duty, that 's how. She was not a regular shinobi anymore. No, she was a matriarch to one of the most powerful clans in the land. Uchiha. And she said the name proudly. Yet she sighed now, wishing to stand in battle again.

'Darling, ' a whisper in the night ghosted over her shoulder. She smiled, feeling her cheeks color.

'Fugaku, ' the woman whispered, turning around from the sink to look at her beloved husband. There was still some blood on the man 's cheek, sweat, and dirt on his armor. Ah, he looked extremely attractive. Or maybe it was the weeks of staying apart speaking.

He leaned to kiss her gently. Mikoto responded by weaving her still wet hands around his neck, not at all disturbed by the blood and whatnot. Quickly the flames between the two ignited as if they were never apart.

Stumbling yet making no sound whatsoever, the pair found their way to the kitchen table. They couldn 't make it to the bedroom.

'Honey, maybe we shouldn 't? ' Fugaku rasped between the kisses.

'Hmm? ' what in the world was he talking about. Her forehead scrunched.

'Well ' it hasn 't been that long since Itachi ' are you sure it 's okay? '

The stupid man worried about her! And that is why she loved him till the last drop of the ocean. The woman chuckled.

'Oh please, Fugaku, my love, it 's fiiiiine. What 's the worst that could happen? '

He smirked in response. Indeed, it has been way too long since their last union. Pregnancy did things to the body, no woman enjoyed. But their passion was too strong. Plus, the healers in Konoha cleared Mikoto a week ago. So decisively, she tugged on his pants.

'Wicked Eye Fugaku, if you do not take me now, I swear to Madara, I will burn the village down! ' she didn 't have to ask twice. Soon enough her legs were parted and she felt him right where he belonged. Inside of her.

When people look at Uchiha, they think of words such as 'proud ', 'stoic ', 'rule abiding '. No one would think of them as people who could so casually fuck on their own kitchen table. Those people were idiots.

Uchiha clan head could, would, and did just that. Their passion shined brighter than the will of fire.

'We won the war, ' the man grunted victorious as he took his wife.

'Ohhh Fugaku! ' she gasped feeling the ferocity behind his thrusts. This was a blessed day. Not only did Konoha prevail, but Mikoto finally got laid again.

??????????

It was five weeks later when Fugaku and Mikoto suddenly awoke in full alert. There was something wrong. Both of them sensed a presence. A beating heart that just suddenly disturbed the night.

Fugaku stood with a kunai and his sharingan blazing as he looked around the darkness of their bedroom. Mikoto was on her feet as well ' with a battle axe '

They looked at each other both confused as they could not spot the intruder. Mikoto being the better sensor of the two carefully extended her chakra.

'Oh ' ' she gasped as the axe fell down from her hands. The woman 's eyes were wide as she took in the sensation.

'Mikoto! What 's the matter??! ' in a blink he was by his wife 's side.

'Fugaku.. I.. '

'What is it?? ' he demanded.

'I.. am pregnant ' ' her hand instinctively hovered over her flat belly. There she felt the faintest of hearts beating. This is what awoke them in the night. A new life that blossomed within her.

Fugaku dropped to his knees and hugged her with an ear placed on her belly. He could feel it now too. Strong heart. Strong chakra. His child.

??????????

As much as Fugaku and Mikoto wanted to wait before announcing the good news to the clan, shinobi among their peers already sensed it. You really couldn 't hide anything from shinobi. There were fond smiles directed at the two as they walked around.

Some complimented the clan head with clear admiration and pride of their leaders ' capabilities. Producing an heir was the utmost important task for the Clan Head of the Uchiha. And Fugaku was delivering.

The man hid the blush well, behind his stone face. Yet his heart boomed with pride and ego. Yes, he was 'da man '. Mikoto blushed for the both of them.

'Maaaan, Mikoto-chan, you 're soooooo lucky!!! ' Kushina boomed as the two met in the marketplace two months in her pregnancy.

'Kushina! Please! I wanted to tell you myself! ' Uchiha pouted as her hands rested on the small bump on her belly. Kushina, all of 15 years of age, the spicy redhead was already her close friend.

'Please yourself! I 'm a sensor, ya know! And that chakra inside you is fierce! ' Uzumaki announced leaning in as if she could look right through the flesh. Mikoto herself was over 18 years old, but she has seen war enough to make her mentally older.

'Aww, thanks? ' the woman blushed harder as if to match Kushina 's hair.

'Soooo? Do you know who it is yet? '

'Not yet. '

'Ah, I bet it is a girl! Fierce like a dragon! ' as to further her point, the young Uzumaki let out a rawr that yes, could very well be a sound that a dragon made.

'Shhh! People are looking, Kushina-chan! ' Mikoto tried to calm her friend with no luck.

??????????

Itachi was now one year old and a few months, when Mikoto was rushed to the hospital. Her husband paced relentlessly in the hallway cradling his son.

It was too quiet. He recalled how the first time he heard his son 's cry over the walls and rooms. The shinobi paranoia in him was simmering. Fugaku wanted to be there, but medics refused. After long years of practice, they all have learned that it is best to have as few people as possible when a shinobi is giving birth.

With all the chakra and lack of control breaking of walls and jutsu crashing on people was a common occurrence. And on top of that, they were Uchiha. Meaning that sharingan could very well go untamed if the mother is provoked.

So he waited until a doctor finally emerged.

'Congratulations, Uchiha-sama! ' he said with a smile. Instantly, the man felt relief flood over him all while Itachi curiously watched the exchange between the adults. 'You can now come in. '

Not waiting for a second longer, the clan head entered the room with his wife and child. His sharingan was already activated, just like Mikoto 's. He stopped by her bed and looked over the little bundle in her lap.

'It 's a girl, dear, ' Mikoto smiled at him. Both of their eyes drank the sight of their little angel. And the baby looked right at them. Piercing dark eyes were open and as if studying the two. The girl wasn 't crying. She was incredibly calm.

'Is she ' frowning? ' Fugaku mused. Itachi in his hold was getting restless.

'I think so, ' Mikoto chuckled with admiration. 'The doctor said that he has never seen such a calm newborn before. '

'She 's a true Uchiha, ' Fugaku nodded and now leaned closer so that little Itachi could take a better look at his new sister.

'Itachi, baby, this is your new sister. You 're a big brother now, ' Mikoto cooed.

Itachi reached with his chubby hand and ' oh... The little girl reached back at him. Their tiny hands touched. Fugaku knew then, that his children would always protect each other. The Uchiha bond was as strong as ever. He felt blessed.

'How do we call her? ' the man asked.

'Ryoko? '

'Ryoko?... Like a dragon woman? ' he mused.

'Mmm, her chakra feels strong and fierce. She needs a fierce name to go with it, ' Mikoto smiled remembering what Kushina had said to her.

'Ryoko Uchiha it is, ' he gave a nod of approval.

??????????

Over her short life, she felt lots of a different kind of pain. Stabbing. Being shot at. Hell, she was even choked that one time. Yet nothing could compare to that first inhale of air.

She wanted to be back in that warm bubble of water again, but her time was up. Muscles all around her spasmed and pushed her towards the light. This is it, she thought, finally she will be dead.

As it turns out, it was far from death. Her eyes opened to the brilliant white of the room she was in. She wanted to say 'what the fuck ' but the only thing that came out of her mouth was a gargle of incoherent sounds.

'It 's a girl! ' she heard a masculine voice announce.

You bet your ass I am!

she puffed out her cheeks earning some awws and ohhs from nurses around her. But the worst part was being passed around like a sack of potatoes.

She wanted to walk. To run. To get away from wherever the hell she ended up. But as it turned out - she was now a very small and fragile little being.

A permanent frown settled on her face. She was not pleased. The logic in her brain could not explain how one minute, she was laughing, taunting her prey, then got shot, and then appeared in some woman's belly.

It was all the fault of that detective ' he found her out ' elbow deep in some man's guts. And he didn 't believe her when she claimed that it was art.

Fine. Yes, she may or may not have been a psychopath serial killer, but hey, everyone has their own hobbies? Hers is just more bloody than most '

'Is she ' frowning? ' some man spoke above her. She didn 't particularly dislike his tone, but she kept her suspicions about his intentions. It probably would not go well for her if she admitted being far older than a baby they assumed her to be.

The woman holding her smelled nice. In a way, she was thankful to her, for giving her life. Again.

I guess, that 's my mother now?

she thought staring up at bright red eyes. The woman was pretty and her gaze was hypnotic. She definitely has not seen those kinds of eyes ever before.

'Itachi, baby, this is your new sister. You 're a big brother now, ' the woman chirped.

She, being a newborn, could not really turn or lift her head much, but the adults still presented her to this Itachi person. Ah, it was a child. Dark eyes just like the man 's who was holding him. Dark hair just like the woman 's ' her mother ' his mother?

I ' have a brother?...

the woman in the baby's body mused trying her best to reach for the little boy. She wanted to check if he was real. Their tiny hands touched. Shit. He was real. So everything around them was also real.

Before all this, she was a single child. With a single parent. A very damaged and hurt man. He taught her everything she knew. From Chopin to the best way of snapping one 's neck. From Italian cuisine to the best way of dismembering a body. He was an

artist

and she wanted to make him proud with the art of her own.

She couldn 't stop thinking, what was this new family of hers like? They looked happy. Normal. Except for the weird eyes that somehow turned to black. Will they ask her to kill people too? She could do that ' she was good at that '

'Ryoko Uchiha it is. '

Ryoko cocked her head to the side evaluating the new name. It was acceptable. Actually, she couldn 't really remember the name she had before. Maybe because the last bullet splattered her brains out on the wall '

Either way, this was her life now. This was her mother, her father, and her brother. Ryoko was determined to make them proud by any means necessary. Her eyes fluttered close as she felt tiredness wash over her body. It was time to rest.

??????????