Chapter 46 - ArcVII: Still Human- Chapter 1

The Land of Waves had clearly prospered since the ‘Great Naruto Bridge’ had been completed. They still resisted having a shinobi force, no doubt thanks to images of Zabuza and Haku still in their heads. Instead, they settled for a civilian force toting makeshift weapons and a few swords that had been bought from mainland visitors.

Azami stopped for just a moment to look at the bridge. Her father had been an archeologist of sorts, and as a result she’d seen tombs and other ancient structures that had been built to last. Looking at the details, she decided that this bridge would remain standing for quite a while, barring any freak accidents or battles.

“Hey, little lady! How ‘bout keeping us company, eh?”

Azami rolled her eyes. The men calling her were over thirty and grubby looking. Stubble due to not shaving, an offensive odor due to not showering, and breath that could stun the nine-tailed fox from drinking were the first attritbutes that Azami picked up on.
Great. The town drunks. Stupid perverts.

“Hey, don’t ignore us, baby! We’re lonely!”

A hand grabbed Azami’s bottom. She flushed a little bit, but that didn’t last long as she punted the drunken loser across town. She could vaguely hear the man scream:

“Ahhh! Not again! It’s just like that pink-haired girl!”
(Somewhere, Sakura sneezed)

Doing her best to turn off her intimidating look, Azami went into ‘innocent traveler’ mode. She spent a little time just wandering, looking at the various culinary delicacies and trinkets that were for sale. The food interested her a little bit- something else her father had taught her; she had never known something from another land could taste so good until he’d made her eat spicy gyoza from the Land of Eddies.

“Excuse me!”

Another pervert? Damn it. This place is infested!

But it wasn’t. It was a boy of about 14. He had a wooden crossbow slung across his back, and thick brown hair that seemed to fall all over the place.
“You must be a traveler, right? My name is Inari; I can guide you if you want.”

Azami debated for a moment, and decided ‘nothing ventured, nothing gained’. If things went south, she was pretty sure she could mop up this entire village’s civilian army.
“Do you know a lot about the history of this place, Inari? My name is Azami, by the way.”

Inari grinned. “I sure do! My Grandpa is the man who built the ‘Great Naruto Bridge’! He’s told me all about the history of this place. What are you looking for, exactly?”

Now, Azami was forcing herself to hold back here. Her old self would have gone into ‘sexy’ mode, and wrapped this kid around her finger. But she wasn’t that person anymore. Well, except with Ryouko, maybe, because he was so fun to tease. She decided to give him a straight answer. But before she could, she saw someone run up in a flash and reach for the boy’s pocket. Extracting his hand, the robber found a wallet.

“Hey!” Inari shouted. The crossbow was off his back in a second. He shot an arrow off, managing to shoot the arrow in between the robber’s legs, tripping him but not hurting him beyond that. As the robber tried to recover from the faceplant, Inari snatched his wallet back. He looked at it for a moment, shaking his head sadly.
“The bridge is both a blessing and a curse. Just look at this place.”

Thought Inari was talking to himself, Azami did look around. And what she saw made her cringe. While she never pretended she wasn’t a murderer, no matter if it was the scum of the earth she was killing, she could see certain people making a living by that thinking. As a criminal of sorts herself, she found it intolerable.

“Inari,” she said quietly. Black-clad, shifty-eyed people everywhere, making no mistakes about broadcasting their identity. “Do you think anyone will object if I remove some of the human waste around here? I’m on a mission to save someone’s life…but I know this person well enough to know that she and her people would ask me to clean up the cesspool that’s coagulated here, first.”
--

“So it’s decided, then. Congratulations to all of you.”

Shinmaru looked to each of the temporary guardians. A Jinchuuriki, a medical shinobi, a retired Guardian, a lazy shadow-user, and a melancholy boy with a tattoo on his face.

“They’ll need some training, Shinmaru. How about Naruto, Sakura, and Shikamaru go up against you? I know you’ve already fought Ryouko, and you and I don’t need to go another round…”

Shinmaru and Asuma exchanged a quiet grin. Shinmaru’s ability was surprising your first time going against it. Naruto would have a hard time of it, no doubt. His impulsiveness would work against him heftily if he didn’t figure out how to counter this ability.

In the back corner, Ryouko lay quietly, watching silently. His hair was matted down in the front thanks to the water he had splashed on his face in an attempt to wake up, causing his bangs to be mostly covered. He was peering through them as a result, apparently not going to bother pushing the bangs out of the way. He hadn’t said anything since his reassurance to Naruto. He didn’t seem to be ‘here’, per say. He was out of it, for some reason. The others knew better than to ask. They had gotten together and agreed to support Ryouko quietly. Approaching him only caused him to push himself farther away.

To Shinmaru’s trained eye, however, there was more to Ryouko’s apparent ‘trance’, if you will. He could see right through that, no matter how strong of a defense the boy put up around himself.
He’s much too young for that discipline. But perhaps he IS world-weary and jaded enough to handle it. Which will it be, Ryouko? Will you quit? Will you go mad? Or will you succeed? Interesting.
--

Ryouko saw nothing but the flame in front of him. Concentrating on it, he reached his hand out to touch it. Flames licked his fingertips, but he felt nothing. It spread to his palm, but still not a sound of pain passed his lips. Even as he started to put his face in the flame, nothing.

Then, slowly, the pain began. It started as a tingle in his hand, but quickly spread to the rest of his body. He continued to stare at the flame, growing more and more antsy, however. Finally, a moan escaped his lips. Though it was quickly silenced, his chief objective had been destroyed.
His secondary objective, however, could still be obtained.

The flame molded to his body first. Then it began to sink in. This was painful, but not nearly as excruciating as it could have and should have been.

Uzume and Azami’s instructions had been separate, but they could produce desired results. Ultimately, it was a matter of disciplines. Uzume’s was a mental discipline- one she had resisted bestowing upon Ryouko. It was only out of pity for him that she finally consented to allow him to learn her most difficult discipline:
The removal of the ‘world’ from the ‘self’.

Azami’s ‘discipline’ had begun in Ryouko long ago. Since she had first started training him…no, since his own chakra had first singed his skin. THAT was when it began. The physical discipline:
The addition of the ‘element’ to the ‘self’.

Yin and Yang. Light and Dark. Female and Male. Opposites that would not exist without the other. Together, they gave power and understanding. If he was to fulfill his mission, and to make his life validated, Ryouko would need both.

BAM!

That was felt in Ryouko’s reality and the real reality. Tempted to ignore it, Ryouko knew otherwise. He forced himself from his trance and away from the tantalizing notion of finally realizing what it was Azami and Lady Uzume had told him about.

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