Warmth enveloped Kazumi like a cocoon. Her mind drifted through a haze, caught between sleep and wakefulness. Something felt different - wrong, yet not threatening. The sensation of floating disappeared, replaced by the press of soft fabric against her skin.
Her eyelids fluttered open. The world swam into focus, but everything appeared strange. Colors blazed with impossible intensity. Shapes stood out in sharp relief, each edge and shadow crystal clear despite her confusion. The ceiling above held patterns she'd never noticed in wood before, swirls and whorls that drew her gaze.
Kazumi tried to lift her hand. Her arm responded with a jerky, uncontrolled motion. Fingers that seemed too small curled into a tiny fist. Panic fluttered in her chest as she struggled to coordinate movements that should have been simple.
The room around her was unfamiliar - warm woods and cream-colored walls. Strange symbols decorated scrolls hung between windows that let in streams of morning light. A mobile spun lazily overhead, little metal shapes catching the sun and sending rainbow reflections dancing.
Her breath came in short gasps. This wasn't her apartment. This wasn't her body. The goddess, the machine, the crash - memories crashed over her like a wave.
She opened her mouth to speak, but only a gurgle emerged. Her tongue felt clumsy, unable to form words. Fresh fear gripped her as understanding dawned - she wasn't just in a new world. She was an infant.
Movement caught her eye. A tall figure approached, features hidden behind a dark mask that covered the lower half of his face. Silver hair defied gravity, sweeping up and to the side. One eye remained hidden behind a metal plate with an etched leaf symbol, but the other crinkled in what seemed to be a smile.
"Good morning, little one." His voice was deep but gentle. "Did you sleep well?"
Kazumi could only stare, her enhanced vision taking in every detail of the man who must be Kakashi Hatake - her new father. Her mind raced with questions she couldn't voice, trapped in an infant's limited capabilities while her adult consciousness struggled to process this new reality.
As Kazumi's still trying to get used to things around her.
The world shifted, and Kazumi's enhanced vision exploded into a kaleidoscope of colors and patterns she'd never imagined possible. The air itself came alive with swirling threads of blue energy - chakra, her mind supplied. It danced and flowed like underwater currents, visible only to her new eyes.
Her father's form blazed like a bonfire. White-blue energy coursed through his body in intricate pathways, concentrating around his hidden eye and gathering in his hands. The sheer intensity forced her to look away, but everywhere she turned, more patterns emerged.
The walls pulsed with residual chakra, likely from protective seals. Even the plants on the windowsill held thin threads of natural energy, connecting them to the earth below. Her infant brain struggled to categorize the overwhelming influx of information, causing her to whimper.
Kakashi leaned closer, his chakra signature flooding her vision. "What's wrong, Kazumi?"
She squinted, trying to dim the sensory overload. The effort triggered something within her eyes - like adjusting the focus on a camera. The chakra signatures dimmed to manageable levels, allowing her to see both the physical world and energy patterns simultaneously.
Her own body contained a surprising amount of chakra. It flowed through her tiny form in steady streams, concentrated heavily around her eyes. Unlike the cool blue she observed in others, hers held a peculiar silvery tint.
"Your eyes..." Kakashi's voice held a note of surprise. He reached down to lift her, his chakra signature fluctuating with concern. "They're changing."
Kazumi felt the power in her eyes pulse in response to his proximity. Each beat of his heart showed as ripples in his chakra field. The complexity of the energy networks overwhelmed her underdeveloped mind, and tears welled up in her eyes. Her body, unable to handle the strain, did what babies do best - she began to cry.
"Shh, I've got you." He adjusted her position, cradling her head against his chest. The steady thrum of his heartbeat provided a counterpoint to the swirling chakra patterns.
Through tear-blurred vision, Kazumi watched the energy flows change as he moved. His hand glowed brighter as he brushed her cheek, checking for fever. The touch sent a spark through her own chakra network, causing her eyes to flutter.
"Such unique eyes." He traced the edge of her face. "Not quite the Sharingan, but something different. Something new."
The mention of Sharingan triggered a flutter of recognition in Kazumi's mind, though she couldn't place why it seemed important. Her crying subsided as curiosity overtook discomfort. She focused on controlling her new vision, experimenting with different levels of chakra perception.
A knock at the door sent ripples through the ambient chakra of the room. Another signature approached - smaller, but dense with energy that sparked like lightning.
"Come in, Pakkun."
A small pug padded into the room, his chakra network unlike anything Kazumi had seen so far. It twisted and coiled in strange patterns, marking him as something other than human.
"The little pup's awake?" Pakkun's gruff voice carried notes of concern. "I felt her chakra spike from outside."
"Her eyes are developing faster than expected." Kakashi's chakra swirled with what Kazumi interpreted as pride mixed with worry. "She's seeing things none of us can."
Pakkun hopped onto a nearby chair, bringing his face level with Kazumi's. His chakra signature pulsed with curiosity. "Those eyes... they're reading chakra patterns clear as day, aren't they?"
Kazumi reached out with uncoordinated fingers toward the talking dog, fascinated by the unique energy flowing through him. Her own chakra responded, silver threads extending from her tiny hand.
I stared at Pakkun, desperate to communicate. My mouth opened, but only a string of "ga-ga" sounds emerged. Frustration bubbled up inside me as my tongue refused to form proper words. Here I was, a grown woman trapped in an infant's body, reduced to babbling like... well, like a baby.
"Ba-pa!" I tried again, focusing all my mental energy on forming coherent speech. My father's eye crinkled with amusement at my attempts. If only he knew the complex thoughts swimming behind these useless vocal cords.
My tiny hands clenched into fists. The chakra threads I'd unconsciously extended retracted back into my skin. Everything about this body felt wrong - too small, too weak, too uncoordinated. And now I faced years of pretending, of acting like a normal infant when my mind was anything but.
Pakkun tilted his head. "She's trying real hard to say something."
You have no idea, I thought, letting out a defeated gurgle. The talking dog was right there, and I couldn't even ask him how he learned to speak. Questions about chakra, about this world, about my eyes - all locked away behind an infant's limited capabilities.
"Ah-ba!" Another failed attempt. My father bounced me gently, probably thinking I was getting fussy. I forced myself to relax, to accept the reality of my situation. Fighting against it wouldn't speed up my development.
Fine. If I had to play the role of a baby, I'd be the best damn baby this ninja world had ever seen. I'd babble and coo and hit all those developmental milestones right on schedule. No one needed to know about the adult consciousness plotting and planning behind these strange new eyes.
I let out a theatrical yawn, earning a chuckle from both Kakashi and Pakkun. Might as well start practicing my act now. Years stretched ahead before I'd be able to speak my mind, but at least I had time to observe, to learn, to understand this world I'd been dropped into.
Days blurred together in a haze of feeding, sleeping, and struggling with her enhanced vision. But beneath the mundane rhythm of infant life, Kazumi felt something stirring. The silvery chakra she'd observed in herself wasn't just visible - it was tangible.
It pooled in her core like liquid moonlight, dense and heavy. When she focused, it felt like pressing against an ocean contained within her tiny frame. The power thrummed through her pathways, begging to be used.
During one of her afternoon naps, Kazumi lay in her crib and reached for that well of energy. The chakra responded eagerly - too eagerly. It rushed through her system like a flood breaking through a dam. Her muscles seized, tiny fingers clenching into fists as power overwhelmed her underdeveloped channels.
The surge lasted only seconds before exhaustion hit. Her body went limp, sweat beading on her forehead despite the minimal effort. The chakra settled back into its reservoir, as boundless as before, but she lacked the capacity to direct it.
"What did you do?" Kakashi appeared above her crib, his visible eye narrowed with concern. He must have sensed her chakra spike from another room.
Kazumi blinked up at him innocently, frustrated by her lack of control. The power was there, vast and willing, but her infant form couldn't handle even a fraction of its potential. Each attempt left her drained, like a battery too small for the current passing through it.
Still, she tried again the next day, and the next. Small pulses at first, learning to feel the flow without forcing it. Sometimes the chakra moved like syrup, other times like lightning. But always, always, it exceeded her ability to contain it.
Pakkun found her after one such attempt, curled up and trembling from exertion. "The pup's pushing herself too hard," he muttered to Kakashi. "That chakra's too dense for someone so small."
But Kazumi couldn't stop trying. The power called to her, promising capabilities beyond her current limitations - if only she could master it.
Through the nursery window, Kazumi watched shadows dart across rooftops - figures moving too fast for normal humans. Their chakra signatures blazed like shooting stars against the backdrop of civilian energy patterns that dotted the village below.
A group gathered near a building with a distinctive red roof, their voices carrying up to her window. "The mission to Sand went sideways. Three-man squad needed for backup."
"I heard they spotted rouge nin near the border-"
"Keep it down. ANBU's handling that mess."
Kazumi absorbed these fragments of conversation, piecing together a picture of this strange society. Everything revolved around missions, training, and power structures she couldn't quite grasp. Even the civilians walked with awareness of the ninja among them, stepping aside when uniformed figures passed.
The marketplace below her window bustled with activity unlike anything from her old world. Vendors sold weapons alongside vegetables, treating deadly steel with the same casualness as fresh produce. Children played with rubber kunai, mimicking the moves of their ninja parents.
A woman walked past, hands flowing through signs that made water float from a fountain. No one batted an eye. A man repaired his roof by walking straight up the wall. The extraordinary had become ordinary here.
Through her Six Eyes, Kazumi saw how chakra infused everything - the barriers protecting buildings, the seals strengthening walls, even the plants cultivated for their healing properties. This wasn't just a different culture; it was a fundamentally different reality where the laws of physics bent to human will.
The stark contrast to her previous life hit her anew. No cars clogged the streets, replaced by roof-hopping shinobi. No phones or computers, yet information moved quickly through summoning animals and hand-delivered scrolls. Even the air tasted different, thick with chakra that her old body would never have detected.
A few days passed and I'm leasing in my dad's arms.
Kakashi cradled Kazumi against his chest as he sat in the worn armchair by the window. The afternoon sun cast long shadows across the room, warming them both. His fingers traced idle patterns on her back, his chakra a steady, comforting presence.
"Your mother would have loved these quiet moments," he murmured, his mask brushing against her fine silver hair. "She always said the best part of any day was just... being still."
Kazumi's Six Eyes picked up the subtle shifts in his chakra - ripples of bittersweet emotion threading through the usual calm blue. She reached up with tiny fingers, patting his masked cheek. The fabric felt rough against her palm.
"Getting curious about the mask, are you?" His eye crinkled in amusement. "Maybe when you're older, I'll tell you the story."
He shifted her position so she could watch the village below. His chakra flowed in gentle waves, syncing with hers naturally. The sensation reminded her of sitting by the ocean, waves lapping at the shore.
"See those buildings? That's where I work sometimes, teaching young ninja." He pointed to the academy, its windows gleaming in the sunlight. "Though I might take fewer missions now. Someone needs to keep an eye on you and your special eyes."
Kazumi snuggled closer, inhaling the scent of pine needles and something distinctly electric that seemed to follow him everywhere. Through her enhanced vision, she watched their chakra signatures dance and intertwine - his cool blue mixing with her silvery streams where they touched.
His hand came up to smooth her hair, pausing when she yawned. "Tired already? You've been practicing with your chakra again, haven't you?" His tone held no judgment, only fond understanding. "Just like your old man - always pushing limits."
I lay in my crib, watching moonlight filter through the window. Three months had passed since my rebirth, and my enhanced vision had become less overwhelming. The chakra signatures no longer blinded me - instead, they painted the world in layers of meaning I was learning to interpret.
My tiny fingers curled around the blanket as I focused on the silvery energy flowing through my pathways. Each day brought more control, more understanding. Where once the power had rushed like a broken dam, now it moved with purpose when I called it.
Through my Six Eyes, I watched the chakra networks in my muscles strengthen, my pathways expanding to handle more energy. My body was developing faster than a normal infant's, though I kept my progress hidden. No need to alarm Kakashi - or "Dad" as I was learning to think of him.
I pushed a small amount of chakra to my hand, watching it gather in my palm like liquid starlight. The drain was minimal now, nothing like the exhaustion of my early attempts. Progress, slow but steady.
A breeze carried voices through my window - ninja discussing missions, training schedules, village politics. Each conversation added pieces to my understanding of this world. The more I learned, the more certain I became this was no curse or cosmic joke. This was an opportunity.
I might not know what challenges lay ahead, but I had advantages few could claim. An adult mind, these extraordinary eyes, and power that grew stronger each day. I would not waste this second chance.
Rolling onto my side, I stared through the bars of my crib at the village beyond. Chakra signatures dotted the landscape like stars, each one representing someone training, fighting, and living in this world of shinobi. Soon enough, I would join them.
My eyes reflected in the window glass, glowing with subtle power. I didn't need to fake the baby-smile that spread across my face - I felt genuine joy at the possibilities ahead. Whatever this world had in store, I would be ready.