Chapter 2: Circles in the Dark
"Sometimes, forgetting is the only way the mind protects what's left of the heart." — Unknown
I ate slowly.
The tray was still warm when the man left, like he'd only just brought it in before I stirred. Steamed rice, miso soup, some pickles. Nothing extravagant. But it was good. Soothing, in a way. Something about the quiet and the warmth made it feel more like medicine than a meal.
I was still hungry when it was gone.
The room stayed quiet.
I didn't know where I was, or who I was, but I could understand the man earlier. His words hadn't been in English — I was sure of that. The sentence structure, the way it sounded, it was definitely Japanese.
Only… it didn't feel foreign. I understood it.
Effortlessly.
That should've bothered me more. It should've felt wrong. But at this point, everything was off the rails anyway, so what's one more uncanny thing?
Eventually, the man came back.
He didn't say anything. Just walked over, tossed a sheet of paper on the floor beside me, and turned to leave.
"You'll be joining the Academy tomorrow," he muttered. "Hokage will assign you housing. You'll be leaving."
Then, quieter — like an afterthought not meant for me: "Finally. Peace at last."
I didn't answer. I just watched him go.
I picked up the paper. Plain. Old. Some kind of registration form, printed in neat lines, everything written in Japanese.
But I could read it.
Clear as day.
Name: Enmei Kozuki
Age: 5
Parents: Unidentified
Clan: None
Sex: Male
Blood Type: AB
So I'm Enmei now.
Alright.
I set the paper aside. Sat for a while in silence, back resting against the wall.
My mind didn't wander.
It spiraled.
My thoughts weren't thoughts. They were loops. Scribbles. Like some mentally ill child had taken a crayon to the inside of my skull — drawing meaningless circles in pitch blackness and humming a tune only he understood.
I guess I'm that kid now.
I didn't know what to think. Didn't want to think. The paper said things — names, facts — but they felt like labels slapped on a box that didn't belong to me.
Enmei.
Fine. Whatever.
Eventually, I stood up and opened the door.
There was a hallway. Wooden floor, slightly warped, the kind that carried footsteps loud and clear. I found a staircase leading down and followed it.
As I got closer to the bottom, I heard laughter.
Children.
Outside, a dirt yard stretched wide, patchy with grass. A few kids were playing — tossing a ball, chasing each other, screaming in joy like nothing in the world could ever go wrong.
I stood near the entrance, not stepping out just yet.
I looked up.
Above the roofs and trees, carved into the face of a mountain, were three giant stone heads. Faces.
Something about them struck me. Familiarity crawled up my spine — the kind that prickles your skin when you almost remember something.
I knew them.
Or… I almost did.
A memory flickered. Bright. Sharp. Then gone again, like a dream slipping through my fingers the moment I reached for it.
Blackout.
My mind was a sketchpad of scribbles again. That kid with the crayon still humming.
"Hey," a voice said.
I turned.
A girl stood there. Maybe my age. Short hair, dark eyes, curious expression. She grabbed my hand without warning.
"Come play!"
Before I could speak, she was dragging me into the yard.
We played.
I didn't know the rules. Didn't know the names. But it didn't matter. The other kids didn't ask questions, and neither did I.
The sun crawled low. Turned red. The shadows stretched.
The girl stayed beside me most of the time.
At one point, when we were sitting by the fence, watching the sky, she turned to me.
"You're leaving tomorrow, right?" she asked. "Will you still be my friend?"
That word hit me like a stone.
Friend.
And suddenly, everything cracked.
For a second — a blink — her face warped. Not physically, but visually. Like a hallucination. A flicker.
A black spiral where her eyes should be. A grin stretched too wide. Not joyful — hungry.
The other children too — all of them — their faces twisting into the same smile. Silent. Watching.
It wasn't real.
I shook my head — fast, like a dog shaking off water.
The faces snapped back. Normal again. Laughing. Chatting. Oblivious.
The mentally ill child in my head had drawn it. I was sure. Scribbled it over every person I've ever trusted. Everyone I ever called friend.
"…What's your name again?" I asked her.
She looked at me. Just for a moment.
Then stood up without a word and ran back to the others.
I sat there alone, watching the sun disappear behind the stone faces.
Somewhere inside, the crayons started scribbling again.