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Blood waters (Chapter 17)
🕑 Added 2023-08-08 15:31:47 +0000 UTCChapter 17
It was a brief moment Utakata had to rest. But even one day of good rest and deep sleep didn’t recover his fatigue. He didn’t even know how he managed to fall asleep when he returned to the village, as he feared that one of the survivors from the previous mission would have rattled him out about using Kazaki Hosuki as a trap to escape, but it seemed they kept their mouths shut.
Utakata had reported the details of the mission and its success to his superiors, even if it had cost them quite a few lives. After receiving his reward, Utakata spent the day relaxing and eating excellent meals. Getting these kinds of missions, Utakata wasn’t worried about money, as he was paid enough to buy anything in the village.
The next day, Utakata’s master Harusame checked him to see if he was injured and ensure the seal was safe. He was surprised that Utakata didn’t use six tails beast chakra. Yet, not all was good. Harusame told Utakata that the Seven Swordsman of the Mist had lost in battle against Leaf shinobi. Four of them have died, while the three remaining were disgraced.
It was terrible news for the Mist. The Seven Swordsmen were considered the village's most vital military asset. If they lost, the village’s morale in the war would plummet. But Utakata could count himself lucky as he only faced Leaf shinobi once, and they were just a patrol group. Utakata would rather not meet some of the Leaf shinobi, especially the Uchiha.
“The Cloud will hear of it soon,” Harusame commented. “The village leaders must send more shinobi to the frontlines to show their strength. The village has to show that they won’t lose out even without the Seven Swordsmen.”
“How much time do I have?” Utakata asked, realizing that it meant he would be sent to face Cloud shinobi.
“I managed to get you two weeks to prepare,” Harusame answered. “You must learn to some extent to use the six tails chakra. The village wants the Cloud to realize your presence to deter them from pushing us too far.”
There was nothing new to Utakata. At least he had some time. He might manage to get to one-tail mode if he is lucky. But Utakata feared that the Cloud would send their jinchuriki to counter him, and they would be better than him. Of course, he couldn’t decline the village’s wishes; all he could do was prepare for such a scenario.
…
Chakra control was the only way Harusame could advise Utakata how to control the tail beast’s chakra. Utakata knew that his master had no idea what to do. Before Utakata, there was only one jinchuriki, and she was before Utakata’s and Harusame’s time. She didn’t tell anyone how she did it. So, in the end, Utakata could only try and force the tailed beast’s chakra through the seal.
“It isn’t working,” Harusame commented. “We only have one week. At the rate we are going, there is no way we will accomplish anything.”
“I could try to communicate with the six tails,” Utakata replied.
“For the nth time, no,” Harusame instantly denied. “As I have said before, it is too dangerous. We don’t know how it will affect you or what the six tails will do.”
“Do we have other options?” Utakata asked. “I have to show off my power before Cloud shinobi. If I look too weak, they will kill me instantly. I rather risk it with the tailed beast here with you, master, than out there with the enemy shinobi aiming for my neck.”
Utakata didn’t care about Harusame. If his master weren’t always present, Utakata would have tried to communicate with six tails long ago. Neither he nor his master knew how to control the tailed beast’s chakra. Utakata wished to gain an advantage on the battlefield, so he had to take certain risks. Even if he knew it wouldn’t harm him.
“Fine, but I will pull you out of your mental plane if I feel something amiss.”
Utakata nodded, sitting in a lotus position next to his master, and he started to concentrate. He didn’t know when or how, but he found himself before a massive and magnificent waterfall. As the water fell to Utakata’s feet, it turned into bubbles and floated toward the top of the waterfall. Behind the waterfall, Utakata saw the six tails trapped and unable to go through the water.
“My name is Utakata of the Mist,” Utakata didn’t know in what tone he should speak to the tailed beast, but he thought introducing himself first would probably be the right choice.
“I know who you are,” Utakata could feel the colossal being looking down on him. “A new weapon for the Mist to use against its enemies. I know what you want too, my power. But no matter how much I give it to you, it won’t be enough for you, as it was never enough for your village.”
“Yet I needed it,” Utakata stands in the tranquil clearing, uncertainty still evident in his eyes as he gazes upon the massive figure of the Six-Tails, yet he refuses to turn his eyes away or waver. “We will need to work together to survive. As you are trapped in me, you will disappear for a long time if I am killed.”
“I can feel your desperation, little vessel of mine,” The beast chuckled in amusement. “Does your village want to use my power once again? To lay devastation? To kill someone?”
“Probably both,” Utakata replied truthfully. “But I don’t care for what my village wants. They might make me a weapon but they must earn the right to use me. I need your power to protect myself.”
“Hehe,” The beast chuckled. “You are similar to the previous little vessel of mine. So defiant, so willful. But even I can see that you are nothing but a child now. When she needed me, she was a grown woman in her prime. So, it wasn’t difficult for her to handle my power, but you? You can’t handle it.”
“I must,” Utakata replied. “No matter how hard it might be, I must do anything to survive. And I had already used some of your power before, even if it was for mere minutes.”
“Hah, it was nothing but tendrils of my power, but I suppose I could help, but you're so weak right now,” Utakata could tell that the six tails didn’t take him seriously and looked down at him. “Even taking part of my power, your body will not be able to handle it. You will feel your bones break, but my power will repeatedly mend them. Your skin will burn off, but it will regrow just as fast over and over again. Your insides will melt, but don’t worry. They will heal. Knowing this, do you still wish to try?”
“Yes,” There was no hesitation in Utakata’s voice.
“Very well then,” The six tails amusement was gone now.
Utakata looked at the six tails and waited until a bubble emerged from the waterfall and floated towards him. The air around him started to shimmer as the bubble neared him. Utakata clenched his fist and readied himself. Utakata could feel immersive power within the bubble before it hit him. And then it started.
…
Harusame was worried for his student. If only he had more power within the village, he might have been able to convince the leaders that Utakata was too talented to be used like this. The village should let Utakata’s talent bloom rather than force him into these difficult missions. There weren’t many shinobi Harusame saw that possessed water affinity like Utakata did.
If Utakata had ten years to train, Harusame believed he could make Utakata one of the strongest shinobi in the village. Ten more years and Utakata could be one of the best in the world. The boy was more mature than his age could indicate. His affinity with water chakra let him learn water jutsu effortlessly. And he already had excellent proficiency in using weapons.
But the world wasn’t fair, and the Mist was even more unfair. The village won’t give Utakata more time. Maybe the village didn’t see the talent in Utakata as Harusame saw, or perhaps they feared that talent. It wouldn’t be surprising if those self-centered bastards on top of the village’s rule saw Utakata as a danger to them. So, they would rather use Utakata now for what he was worth before disregarding him.
Harusame could do nothing but watch it happen. Still, he refused to give up on Utakata. The boy deserved all his attention, so Harusame decided to teach him everything he could and watch over him as he grew to be his kind of shinobi. Still, Harusame felt ashamed that he couldn’t protect Utakata and had to let the village do as they wished.
Harusame turned his focus back on Utakata as he started to twitch while sitting in the lotus position. Harusame was preparing to intervene at any moment, but Utakata opened his eyes before he could. Then, from within Utakata, powerful chakra exploded, knocking Harusame a few steps back. As a red chakra cloak covered Utakata, Harusame looked in horror as Utakata screamed in pain.
The boy’s body convulsed painfully. Harusame heard his student’s bones cracking and breaking. The boy's skin started to burn. Quickly mending his chakra, Harusame tried to strengthen the seal on his student’s body to suppress the chakra. But it took time, and with each second, Harusame could see that Utakata was increasingly more in pain.
When Harusame finally managed to stop the tailed beast’s chakra, Utakata collapsed. His bones were already mended, and his skin started to regrow. After a few minutes, it looked like there had been no damage to Utakata, and the tailed beast’s chakra was gone entirely. Yet, Harusame could never forget what kind of torturous experience his student went through.
…
When Utakata opened his eyes, he found Harusame looking over him. Utakata felt weak. His body hurt, and he remembered why it would be like this. The six tails didn’t lie. Utakata couldn’t handle its chakra yet. But what other choice did he have but to try? Just remembering the pain made Utakata shiver in fear, but he decided to try it again anyway.
“You are awake,” Harusame commented.
“How long was I out?” Utakata asked.
“For too little,” Harusame answered. “Not even a day. You will need more rest after what happened yesterday.”
Utakata could tell his master was angry, probably because Utakata had failed once again. Haruusame probably felt pressure from his superiors, so if Utakata failed, so did Harusame. But it didn’t matter. It wasn’t Harusame who would be fighting on the frontlines. It would be Utakata. He would risk his life for the village, while Harusame would wait for Utakata’s demise or success.
“I feel fine,” Utakata said, standing up from the bed.
“Are you mad!” Harusame was furious. “Your body broke down yesterday, and you are saying you're fine?”
“Am I not?” Utakata asked, stretching his limbs while ignoring the pain, showing his master he had no wounds.
“You little food,” Harusame seemed frustrated at Utakata’s actions. “You think I can’t see you twitch at every movement you do? Even if your body is healed, the pain still lingers. You can’t hide that from me, boy.”
Utakata was confused. Why would Harusame care that he was in pain? All it mattered was that his body was fine, so he could continue training. Isn’t that what the village wanted? Or did they expect him to give and beg for leniency? Well, Utakata never would do something like that. Part of him hated the idea of lowering his pride for it. Another part knew that the village wouldn’t care anyway.
No, maybe the village would look more favorably at Utakata if he went to his knees and begged for more time to rest and train. It would show that Utakata has accepted to be always under the village leaders. But as he has said to the six tails, he might become the weapon for the Mist, but underserving hands won’t use him. So, Utakata never saw himself lowering to any of them.
