Chapter 54 - Arc VIII: Death of the Flesh- Chapter 4

The Land of Trees was a lonely place, as it turned out. Very tall and very old trees of all shapes, sizes, and varieties stood proudly against the sea landscape that was beyond them. The place was overgrown, and largely deserted of all human life. Only a small outpost town about 5 miles from their place of exile was populated by humans. The place Yuji, Uzume, and Shoki were to live for the next three months was a cabin -really barely a shack -in the middle of a particularly deep forest. The rundown cabin was half hidden by trees, but even then you could see that the wood was rotted and the place was desperate for maintenance. But it was nice in a rustic sort of way. Certainly not the worst place in the world for an exile. Considering that no one believed in exile was necessary, the state of luxury was almost expected.

“Looks like we’ll have to rebuild the place,” Yuji said, not sounding disappointed by the prospect. “We should probably gather firewood, food, and water after we get settled.”
Yuji raised an eyebrow at Shoki. “This is a good place to further your training. We’ve certainly got the time.”
- - -

The inside of the cabin was in better shape than the outside. It had been abandoned for years, and had been left to rot. But the windows and doors kept out of the worst of the elements and insects, and the inside was actually laid out in a good way. There were two small rooms on the bottom floor, a large open sitting area\kitchen furnished with a big oak table, and a narrow staircase that led to a loft. A large stone hearth sat in one corner of the room, along with a great for cooking fish and meat. The rest of the furniture would need to be purchased or made. It was times like these that Yuji wished he had abilities like Yamato-senpai.

“Are you showing us emotion, Yuji?”

Uzume had caught him. So Yuji owned up to it.

“I’m trying not to. I’m just miserable, but I don’t want anyone to worry about me. So…yeah. Stupid, I know, but…”

“Not wanting your friends to worry about you is admirable,” Uzume told him. “But, let’s just get back to our current situation. Since I’m not ‘Uzume’ anymore, please call me ‘Miko’.”

“Miko? As in, a priestess?” Yuji asked, confused. (a ‘miko’ is a Shinto priestess.)

“No. As in ‘Crimson Truth’. Different kanji. It was my name before I inherited the Uzume title.”

Somehow, it had never occurred to Yuji that Uzume had a name before inheriting her title. Her name seemed very fitting, different kanji aside. Yuji’s had heard that the name given to a person held a lot of power. If someone with a goofy name like ‘Naruto’ could become so powerful, it made Yuji doubt that sentiment.

Shoki, meanwhile, had taken to exploring his new home. He was displaying the most excitement Yuji had ever seen from the boy. He darted from room to room, peered into corners, and gave a broad smile whenever he found something of interest.

It had already been decided that Uzume and Shoki would take the bedrooms downstairs, leaving Yuji the loft. Of the three he required the least amount of privacy. As Uzume was Shoki’s prime caretaker, she needed to be close to him.

“Yuji, could you step outside for a bit? I need to tell Shoki something… About him and I.”

“Of course,” Yuji responded graciously. He had been planning to investigate the surrounding area as well as the town. It was always good to find hiding places and escape routes in your surroundings, not to mention see what kind of people were around. Were they nosy? Helpful? And the town- was it well stocked? What were the local authorities like? There were a great many questions to be answered before Yuji could settle down here even remotely.
Beyond that, there were things he needed to take care of in private himself.
--

Shoki sat down obediently at Miko’s request. He was not immediately disturbed by the request, due to his lifestyle. He trusted Miko to the fullest extent. Whatever it was she had to say couldn’t be all that bad.

Miko had been sitting still for a few minutes now, phrasing things. At the end of it, she gave herself a small self-depreciating smile. The obvious way to tell him was just that- to TELL him.

“Shoki, I’m going to say this, and I’m going to say it frankly because I don’t know how else to do it.”
Taking one more fortifying breath, Miko made her voice stay strong as she said:
“I am your half-sister. The second Uzume was our mother. My father died of a disease that spread through his here at one time. Our mother stopped the disease using some of the abilities of the Uzume line, but was unable to save her lover. He…forbade it, actually. As her power waned, he insisted that she focus on quelling the epidemic and healing the others. When she was done, she had power enough to only heal one person. And my father insisted that she heal herself.
For eight months after that, she was distraught. I’m told that she felt better upon my birth. Suitors were arranged once her good favor returned. The only one to make it past her judgement was your father- Ryunosuke Doumeki. As if the name wasn’t ironic enough (‘Domeki’ meaning ‘hundred eyes demon), he was a member of Heat Devil village, and a follow of Jashin. But he renounced those beliefs to wed our mother.
But then he was murdered savagely by his former Jashin congregation, leaving our mother alone and pregnant yet again.
Then came the attack…
-Flashback

Crossbows launching fire arrows set many buildings on fire. The clang of weapons was heard non-stop. As the destruction reached the Daimyo’s property, one woman set out, alone.
Clothed in the white top and red hakama of a shrine maiden, holding only a naginata for a weapon, she became incredibly fast using what we now understand to be chakra. It was unheard of- a priestess using ninja abilities. But she weaved her way in and out of the fray, forcing herself to dispassionately kill the fifty leaders of the rebellion, knowing that the ensuing chaos would force the enemies to surrender with little further bloodshed.

However, she was wrong. The previous Fire Daimyo, angered at the affront to his power, ordered all of the prisoners executed.
The final death toll was never tabulated. The prisoners themselves were disregarded; even said to have never existed.
[/i]

“…our mother gave up her title, shamed at what had happened. She had tried to end this with the only blood being shed on her conscience. But instead, her actions gave way to untold slaughter.
After that, she passed the Uzume title onto her sister- our aunt- Hitomi. Another ironic name (Hitomi means ’pupil of the eye). Your father had the Issekigan. Despite the fact he never came into contact with our aunt, she had somehow begun to acquire the traits of Issekigan. They never had an affair, or anything of the sort. The only words they ever exchanged were at the first o-miai (arranged marriage) meeting between our mother and your father. That’s why it’s believed the Issekigan can be ’learned’. It is considered a kekkai-genkai because it’s only ever manifested itself in your bloodline.”
Uzume closed her eyes, taking a long breath.
“I spent years researching any possible ways our sides of the family could have intersected with the Issekigan. But I’ve never found anything.”

Shoki sat back, stunned beyond belief. He had always felt a connection to Miko, but he never would have guessed that she was his half-sister! Or that he had come from such a line of powerful people.

“Is that why…I get it?” he asked, more timid than usual for him. “Ninjutsu, I mean?”

Miko stood up, made handsigns, and then took a stance. A beam of light- was it light?- shot across the room and shattered a cup left behind by the previous occupants.
“Light Style: Light Archery,” she intoned, holding her pose. “My personal style of ninjutsu. I’ve always had the ability to command chakra, Shoki. Both mine AND other people’s, when the right conditions are met.”

Shoki thought back to Itachi Uchiha’s Amaterasu attack activating itself. Then he thought back to all the techniques he saw Miko use when she was still ‘Uzume’. Once his thoughts were less jumbled, he started a question:
“Then why…”

“Why didn’t I teach you ninjutsu myself?” Miko finished. She looked out the window, seeing Yuji chopping wood. “Because that boy needed it. The way I needed you for family, that boy had need of an apprentice. He’s more powerful than I when it comes to ninjutsu, despite his hardships. But more importantly, were he left alone with no one after the prophecy shattered his sense of self…he would have perished. And that…I could not allow to happen.”

Shoki looked out the window, watching Yuji chop wood. There was a faraway look on the boy’s face. Comparing it to his previous mental images, Shoki could guess he was thinking about Naruto and Sakura again.

“My big brother…and my older sister…I have real family. … I’m not sure what to think of that. Is that…okay?”

Miko smoothed Shoki’s now completely gray hair. “It’s natural. You’re confused; possibly even angry at me for not telling you this sooner.”

“I’m not angry. I don’t feel angry, anyway. You and Yuji have protected me…you’ve raised me; Yuji’s taught me how to defend myself; and you both told me that I don’t HAVE to do what I was born to do. I don’t need to be a weapon against the bad guys. I’m allowed to be the person I want. I owe you both a lot. I’m going to work hard- I’m going to train so hard, I’ll be as strong as Yuji! No, stronger! I’ll be so strong that he won’t have to fight to protect me anymore! So strong that I can help bring peace without being a weapon!”

Shoki ran to his room and changed as quickly as he could into his training clothes.
“I’m going to go outside to train! I’ll bring the firewood, too! I’ve gotta get stronger!”
-

As he ran off, Miko felt a swell of pride she knew she didn’t deserve. She hadn’t raised Shoki- at least not completely- so she didn’t feel she had the right to value his happiness like that.

He adores Yuji…that means a lot to me. And to Yuji, too. He glows when he can instruct and pass on what he’s learned. I wish that I could give Shoki a stable family…but perhaps this kind of adversity will give him the strength he’ll need. I hope I’m wrong, but I don’t foresee his life being an easy, carefree, healthy existence.

And Yuji…I‘ve never seen such a clouded future. What lies ahead is almost indeterminable. Could it be the “Ten no Kishootsu” power?

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