Chapter Ten
Glimpses of Darkness
Author: shattered-words
Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, it’d be called ‘Gaara’. So, isn’t it a shame that I don’t own it? (The verse belongs to M.e.Tello)
Summary: The Kakurezato are on the brink of war and certain events leave several lives hanging in the balance. Meanwhile, what’s the fire wielder’s fate, and who is the deadly Oto Oinin that has suddenly appeared? (AU, Sequel of "Glimpses of Fire")
AN: Not much to say on this piece. I felt that a bit of history was in order. Thank you and enjoy.
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Legends are meant to be spoken,
remembered until they turn to myth.
The truth is concealed within lies,
so whats false is often truth.
~*~*~*~*~*~ Chapter Ten: A Legend ~*~*~*~*~*~
In history there is a legend that tells of four guardians that once protected the heavens and earth alike. For in ancient times, the Nine Tailed Beasts roamed the earth and wreaked havoc on mankind. Some of the gods grew tired of hearing the pleas of humans to help them in their pitiful struggles against the demons and turned a deaf ear to them. Others had compassion for them, and they erected one guardian for each of the directions, north, south, east, and west.
Genbu, the black tortoise-snake represented water, and protected the north. Suzaku, the vermilion of fire stood to the south. Seiryu, the azure dragon of air reigned to the east. And Byakko, the white tiger of earth watched over the we They were the Fukei Yottsu, and held the powers of the gods.
The four guardians kept the biju under control and protected the humans from them. Over time, some of the demons were contained within elemental shrines or human hosts that were sacrificed in order to protect the rest of man kind. All was well for a time, but the humans, in their ignorance and cowardice, began to fear the Four Guardians and the power they held.
The very people that had been protected started to plot against them, and decided that they were much too powerful to be allowed to roam free. They wished to be free of the immortals that had regulated their activities for their safety for many years now.
Using ancient texts provided to them by the Four for sealing the biju, they were able to seal the Guardians into the flesh. Only, they weren’t actual jinchuriki. The immortals were channeled into four willing human women and they used chakra and the Four’s teachings to make them be reborn into mortal children.
Their powers were sealed into the nexus of their souls, or where they would have one. However, the Guardians had no souls of their own, so they were empty vessels. A carbon copy of life with no joy or sorrow. When they had children, they would wither away and die as all their power went into the next generation, so only one child ever existed at a time.
Over time, the four descendants of the immortals were forgotten, and were scattered through out the lands that would one day become the five great shinobi nations of Lightning, Earth, Wind, Water and Fire.
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Ryohei watched Harukaze tear out of the playground and sighed softly. He wanted nothing more than to be able to go and comfort his sister, since he had realized through his interactions with the Hunter that Arisa was very important to her. However, to do so would blow his cover as their informant.
Since this decision had been made, it was inevitable that he would be forced to one day hunt down the kunoichi, but not if they managed to get Gaara into the position of Kazekage. To do that, however, they would have to work hard to appeal to the people of Suna that he was a changed man, and that wouldn’t be easy.
It wasn’t to say that he hadn’t changed, he had. However, at the moment he was almost like the walking dead. He stalked the training grounds, playground and Arisa’s house in repetitive cycles. Now that he thought about it, the scarlet haired shinobi should have been here, but he hadn’t seen him since he’d arrived. Perhaps he had been there earlier.
The apprentice flinched as the sand moved around him and he suddenly found himself encased in a cocoon of earth. He didn’t try to get free because he knew it would be no use against Sabaku no Gaara. His element was all around him and he had no doubt that he’d be able to decimate Suna itself if he tried.
"Tell me what you know," a voice demanded. There was no pressure from the sand itself but his tone was enough to indicate that his patience was thin. It was actually surprising that he was asking instead of forcing the information out of him.
"Why do you wish to know?" he asked him instead, trying to see how much he could find out about the red head that they wanted to make leader of Suna. The Erizawa had never really interacted with the Genin but he had heard the horror stories from his fellow shinobi. He wasn’t sure how much of it was true, but he had to know. After all, he’d never serve a blood thirsty monster.
Gaara stepped out of the shadows, the wind picking up the ends of his blood red hair that touched his shoulders now, and the black lines around his eyes made him appear more menacing. However, as he came face to face with the older ninja, who was wearing the standard Jonin uniform, he saw something in the older ninja’s eyes that disturbed him.
There was no fear there that was always in his victims’ eyes when his sand held them and crushed their bodies. At the moment he only glimpsed determination burning like an unholy light in those blue-green orbs. For some reason, he knew that his answer would mean more than had been asked.
The red head didn’t know why the older male wanted to know his reasons, but there was no reason to lie to him. There was only one important thing to him right then. "Because I wish to have Eizan at my side once more," he responded truthfully.
This particular answer peeked Ryohei’s interest and he seized the opportunity, since it seemed that the jinchuriki was caught off guard by his earlier question. "What is she to you? Is she important?" he asked, not letting anything show on his face.
Harukaze had expressed that he was also wary of letting the red head become Kazekage. Most likely, the Hunter had been witness to his gruesome behavior in the past. However, he had also explained that most of the Suna-nin he had murdered, had originally been sent to take his life. Although, most of his actions couldn’t be excused, at least most of the ninja he’d killed could be explained as self-defense.
Gaara hesitated and he saw that he was struggling with his words. The fact that he was actually thinking of an answer was enough to reassure him. "She’s my constant," he carefully explained, not quite sure how to identify her importance to the other Suna-nin. "She’s alone. Just like me."
The apprentice wasn’t completely satisfied with the answer but he could live with it for now. At the moment, he didn’t see the bakemono that everyone thought him to be. The Erizawa saw a young boy, deprived of affection, coming to terms with the fact that he cared about another human being. That he could actually care for someone else.
Ryohei nodded as he smirked slightly. "So dess ka?" he muttered. The sand shifted and he felt his feet touch the sandy ground beneath him. He found it surprising that the red head had let him down. Now he turned to face the younger shinobi, whom he towered over by a good foot and nodded. "Wakarimashita. Tsuitekite kudasai, and I will explain everything."
The other actually hesitated but then he let his arms drop to his sides as he nodded. "Aa," he merely responded. When the Erizawa turned to walk out of the playground, the sand wielding ninja followed.
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A man came upon the legend purely by accident. During the time, there was much war between the ninja nations. The Leaf, Cloud and Mist were in a fierce struggle, since Kumo and Konoha had never really been anything but enemies, and it was only a matter of time before Stone joined the battle. For the smaller villages, it could and would mean their destruction, since they didn’t hold enough power to remain afloat.
The Rain village had always been neutral in these confrontations, especially after its bloody history with Takigakure. For this very reason, the leader of the Waterfall, which wasn’t even recognized as Kage by the five great shinobi villages, knew he had to produce strong warriors in order to keep his people from dying out.
When he found the scroll, he also found the means to identify the descendants of the immortals, which housed the power of the Guardians. The carriers had no idea what they were and even if they did, when they birthed a child their power would transfer over and the previous host would wither and die, and the cycle would start over again.
The leader of Taki at the time was the fifth generation of a powerful clan, and strived to search for the hosts but his duties prevented him from traveling. His oldest son was sent out in search for a person that held the markings on their face to indicate that they were the descendant. Many years passed and he lost his son, so he sent his daughter, since his younger son would have to inherit now.
She was successful, sending back news that she had found a human child with the kanji for "nan" on her forehead. Ibuki immediately sent out a team of elite ninja to retrieve the girl and with them they brought back the injured young woman, but Ibuki left her to the care of the medic-nin and concentrated on the vassal for the powers of Kami.
He found that he had no way of exploiting the host’s abilities, and he could do nothing but hold her there and train her in the ancient practices that had been taught to them by the immortals. It had been sealed away long ago, since they feared that they would inadvertently release the Guardians.
Ibuki didn’t fear this and realized that by using the scroll to teach her, he’d have the ultimate weapon under his control. He also used the techniques within to genetically alter his own clan to become better. There were many tragedies and several of the children were still born and the mother’s bled to death from miscarriages or other complications during child birth.
However, there were some children that survived, but their remaining parents fled with them, since they feared the madness that drove Ibuki. He even experimented on his own children. His daughter’s first child died moments after being born. His son’s two children lived, and his daughter’s next two children also survived.
The changes didn’t start to appear until after he died, and in his great-grandchildren existed the fruits of his depraved labors. They were more skilled, with sharper senses and thus the village of Takigakure started to prosper. From there, the Morisue line that exists today, stemmed and grew.
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Orochimaru entered the examination room after he had visited the cell but found that she was nowhere to be seen. The Hunter had killed the subordinate he’d sent to keep an eye on her, and he had found him interacting with the girl. If it had been anyone else, he would have been furious beyond belief. However, it worked out according to plan that she found out about Hitori.
He lifted an eyebrow as he saw Kabuto in the room, but not the girl. Before he could speak, the gray-haired ninja seemed to realize he was there and immediately stood. The Sannin waved him off when he would have bowed or knelt. "Where’s the girl, Kabuto?" he said in his naturally sensual voice.
Kabuto stumbled with his words, so he knew that he might not like the answer he gave. "He took her with him after he thoroughly throttled me," he explained. "Orochimaru-sama, are you sure you can trust that brainwashed slave?" He pushed back a few strands that had fallen over his face. "Today’s actions should show that he’s not trustworthy."
Orochimaru gave a slight smile and almost looked like he might agree with his subordinate. However, he needed control of that boy’s mind and soon it would pay off. "Spare me your whining, Kabuto," he told him. "I can safely assume that she hasn’t been broken, correct?"
The medic-nin flinched as his lips pressed into a thin line. "I will have her under your command within a matter of days, but its not easy, Orochimaru-sama. Her mind is stronger then I realized."
The Sannin fixed yellow orbs on the younger ninja. "Dono kurai kakari-mass ka?" he demanded.
Kabuto didn’t want to say anything in case he was wrong, but he couldn’t stand the prospect of telling him that he wasn’t sure he could do it. He’d simply have to increase the harshness of his treatment in order to get her to be cooperative. "Soon, Orochimaru-sama," he responded, and if the snake heard the lie in his voice, he didn’t give any indication as he nodded and left the room.
He pushed his glasses higher up his nose and sighed. His fingers wiped the blood that had run from the wound on his neck that had already healed so not even a scar remained. Kabuto needed to find that girl and get her away from the Hunter, and then he’d have his fun breaking her.-
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Translations:
1. Fukei Yottsu: Four Guardians
2. So desska: Is that so?
3. Wakarimashita: I understand
4. Tsuitekite kudasai: Follow me, please
5. Aa: yes
6. Nan: south (Also: minami)
7. Dono kurai kakari-mass ka: How long will it take?
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End, Chapter Ten