My name is Shinoko Aburame, and I am going to tell you a story.
You see, my name wasn't always Shinoko. If you asked anyone around
me, they would tell you that I have always been 'Shinoko'. They could
take you to my twin brother, or my parents, and they would tell you
'yes, that's Shinoko. She was born in Konoha Hospital on the 23rd of
January. I should know, I was there'.
And its true. I was born Shinoko Aburame, daughter to Shibi and
Asami Aburame, younger sister to Shino Aburame by thirty minutes.
But I was someone else before that.
Tentatively, I'll say I was reincarnated. Even now, I'm not sure I
believe it. Maybe this is just some illusion that my mind has cooked
up - either before or after. I don't know. What I do know, is that it
feels real. So I decided to live as though it was. If it's
fake, then I have lost nothing.
As far as reincarnations go, well, I can't tell you if it's a step
up or a step down. The violence and conspiracies seemed closer to the
surface here, but less desperate than before.
I mean, in the stories, bad people are always reincarnated as ants
and then stepped on, right?
I don't know. I also don't know why I remembered. But I
have suspicions. I was hardly an average person. I left outstanding
legacies but had committed unutterable crimes. When I died, I don't
know how many people mourned to sighed in relief. I'm not the kind of
person people would have liked to rely on to save the world. Maybe some
god up there has a weird sense of humour. Maybe it was just an
accident.
I wish I could believe that explanation.
But like I said before, I was born to Shibi and Asami Aburame in
the Konoha General Hospital on the 23rd of January as the younger of
twins. It sounds so amazing when said like that. A spiritual miracle.
The truth was, at the time I had no idea what was happening. I was
twisted and squeezed and the comforting darkness in which I had
rested was torn away. There was pain and cold and terror. There was
immediacy. Things that hadn't seemed important were suddenly at the
forefront of my mind; what had happened; where was I; was I alive or
dead, hurt or injured; what was going on? I could feel the insects
around me, but the sensation was strange and control slipped through
my grasp.
I was scared. Terrified. I didn't know what was happening. I could
hear, yes, but not understand what was being said. Had the shots
given me brain damage? Did I have aphasia? The thought worried me.
Being trapped with no method of communication to the world around me
would be a solid B on the terrifying fate scale.
But even that didn't explain everything. I was lifted and carried.
I've always been tall and even brute strength wouldn't explain the
ease with which I was lifted or how I was being carried. I suppose I
must have been held in the crook of someone's arm, but I could make
no sense of the sensations at the time. It didn't fit.
Of course, just when I was beginning to regain control of my body
and get used to the strange insects around me, That Event happened. I
was nine months old when the Kyuubi attack happened. It was nameless
and faceless to me, and that only made it worse. It was like the
devil had opened the gates of hell and breathed terror into the air.
It was a sensation I was all too familiar with.
Endbringer.
You see, my name wasn't always Shinoko. If you asked anyone around
me, they would tell you that I have always been 'Shinoko'. They could
take you to my twin brother, or my parents, and they would tell you
'yes, that's Shinoko. She was born in Konoha Hospital on the 23rd of
January. I should know, I was there'.
And its true. I was born Shinoko Aburame, daughter to Shibi and
Asami Aburame, younger sister to Shino Aburame by thirty minutes.
But I was someone else before that.
Tentatively, I'll say I was reincarnated. Even now, I'm not sure I
believe it. Maybe this is just some illusion that my mind has cooked
up - either before or after. I don't know. What I do know, is that it
feels real. So I decided to live as though it was. If it's
fake, then I have lost nothing.
As far as reincarnations go, well, I can't tell you if it's a step
up or a step down. The violence and conspiracies seemed closer to the
surface here, but less desperate than before.
I mean, in the stories, bad people are always reincarnated as ants
and then stepped on, right?
I don't know. I also don't know why I remembered. But I
have suspicions. I was hardly an average person. I left outstanding
legacies but had committed unutterable crimes. When I died, I don't
know how many people mourned to sighed in relief. I'm not the kind of
person people would have liked to rely on to save the world. Maybe some
god up there has a weird sense of humour. Maybe it was just an
accident.
I wish I could believe that explanation.
But like I said before, I was born to Shibi and Asami Aburame in
the Konoha General Hospital on the 23rd of January as the younger of
twins. It sounds so amazing when said like that. A spiritual miracle.
The truth was, at the time I had no idea what was happening. I was
twisted and squeezed and the comforting darkness in which I had
rested was torn away. There was pain and cold and terror. There was
immediacy. Things that hadn't seemed important were suddenly at the
forefront of my mind; what had happened; where was I; was I alive or
dead, hurt or injured; what was going on? I could feel the insects
around me, but the sensation was strange and control slipped through
my grasp.
I was scared. Terrified. I didn't know what was happening. I could
hear, yes, but not understand what was being said. Had the shots
given me brain damage? Did I have aphasia? The thought worried me.
Being trapped with no method of communication to the world around me
would be a solid B on the terrifying fate scale.
But even that didn't explain everything. I was lifted and carried.
I've always been tall and even brute strength wouldn't explain the
ease with which I was lifted or how I was being carried. I suppose I
must have been held in the crook of someone's arm, but I could make
no sense of the sensations at the time. It didn't fit.
Of course, just when I was beginning to regain control of my body
and get used to the strange insects around me, That Event happened. I
was nine months old when the Kyuubi attack happened. It was nameless
and faceless to me, and that only made it worse. It was like the
devil had opened the gates of hell and breathed terror into the air.
It was a sensation I was all too familiar with.
Endbringer.