Listen to the Medic-nin

The first time Shisui met Akari, it was in a bar after a mission. He was chatting with a friend when he noticed a familiar melody on the piano. It was jarring to hear something that originated from your old life appearing so suddenly. He turned around, and saw a drunken girl playing with people chanting the lyrics out.

He didn't even realize that he was staring until his friend teased him about it, saying something about a crush. This was when he learnt that her name is Uchiha Akari. He brushed his chakra against hers later on, and felt the familiar life force of an old friend.

Uchiha Shisui is an unfortunate being. He was cursed to forever wander in worlds that were thought to be fiction and change to another when his life ended in one of those worlds. For him, so many things are prone to change. He changed so many names that he forgot what his first was, he changed so many parents that he forgot his first parents' faces, and he himself changed so much that he forgot what he once dreamed of achieving.

The only thing that will not change is the friends he made on the way. Every time, they will be reborn alongside him, even if sometimes they turn out to be his enemies, they are the one constant in his life, the only thing keeping him afloat.

They will sometimes be reborn as one of the original characters, already in the show, with their personality slightly influenced by their existing personas. But sometimes, they'll be reborn as a new person with nothing influencing them, so they turn out to be just like their old selves.

The first time he meets up with Akari, alone, he hopes that she remembers him, prayed that he doesn't need to bear the burden alone any longer. A futile hope, when no one in so many worlds did before.

Please remember, just once. Please.

The girl shifts, on guard, and asks for his name. He tells her the name he used when she last met him, in a world of medieval wonders and mysterious magics. When he was a wielder of the staff, and her a wielder of the sword. When they went on a wonderful journey, crossing the harshest continent present in a six-sided world, bowing down to no one.

When the world witnessed a magician and swordmaster's rise to fame. When they were saints, then kings. Then finally, emperors, only one step behind dragon gods and demon gods. When he was reborn as the right hand of one who dared defy the entire world, and her, the left. A mage on the same level as a demon god, and a swordswoman on par with the Sword God.

She grins. "That can't be a real name, eh?"

Exhaustion is once again placed on his shoulders. He carefully doesn't react, and does not cry even if it feels like needles are stabbing into his heart. How naive of him, to still hope for a miracle at this point.

He forces a smile on his face and pushes aside the bittersweet memories in his head. It is alright. After all, he will always remember everything for all of his friends, old or new. He will always remember enough for all of them.

He looks into Akari's eyes and introduces himself with the name given to him in this life. "My name is Shisui, Uchiha Shisui. It's nice to meet you!"

____________________________________________________________________________

Since their first meeting, he bumped into Akari a couple dozen times, with him always bribing her with food to talk about clan affairs. To tell the truth, he was just using them as an excuse to talk with her. Most of the time, talks about clan problems became casual chats about the weather, or pointless gossip. They complained about their Genin teammates sometimes, even! He'd like to think Akari warmed up to him.

Recently though, he can sense that dark forces in this village are starting to move, with Danzo at its center. He tried to ask for her help, and she did help, in her own way. But with the way things are going, it won't be enough.

Then she had to go and get herself injured, worsening the tension between the clan and the village. If she died, Danzo might have taken that opportunity to cite an uprising from the inside of the clan and kill the remaining members. As bad as it sounds, he really doesn't care too much about his family outside of Itachi and Akari, the former being the only one who can keep up with him and preventing him from going to an early grave several times. And the later, someone who had been by his side for centuries. Comparing them to the rest of the clan, it's easy to pick who to condemn and who to save.

He might be too late to save Itachi from his fate, but he can at least try to give Akari a chance of living a good life, before following him to the next one. The massacre is nigh impossible to be prevented, so at least he can try to increase her chances of living if she survives the ordeal.

He looks at the bento box given to him by Akari, and starts writing in a language only they know, hidden in an illusion that only the Mangekyou sharingan can break.

This is a gift to Akari Uchiha.

To her, who always stayed by his side.