Crossover Fan Fiction / Naruto Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ K a z o k u ❯ Of ninjas, monks and terra mikos ( Chapter 2 )

Chapter 2: Of ninjas, monks and terra mikos

My sincerest apologies to Square Enix and Aerith of FFVII for the inspiration for the miko plot.

December 21 - 23, 2006

 

In a private meeting hall in the Hokage Tower, the surviving highest ranking shinobi in Konoha murmured to themselves as their Yondaime gave a detailed report of what happened. The council elders, heads of clans, the Sandaime, the highest ranking squad leaders, and even two of the Densetsu no Sannin were all present. Nobody knew where Orochimaru was at the moment, so they held the meeting without him.

 

Jiraiya was exceptionally silent, observing the scene with sharp eyes and not asking a single question since his arrival. His primary purpose was to show his support to his former student. Yes he was curious about the events that transpired, but he knew he could always get the juicy details out of his former student later, without the formalities and stuffy atmosphere the oldies were emitting.

 

“… So the way how the jutsu works is that you have to feed the shinigami your soul in exchange for the power to seal your target's soul into a living vessel,” the Yondaime finished his long explanation of what jutsu he used on the Kyuubi last night.

 

“You could've died,” Tsunade said, flabbergasted, not understanding why a lot of people close to her were willing to throw their precious lives away for the sake of the village. So much like her deceased loved ones. Ever since she examined both children she was quiet, answering only to questions directed at her and no more but her befuddled eyes hardly ever left the infants and she was the only one, aside from Arashi, who would make the effort to calm down one of the fussing infants once in a while.

 

“Yes,” blue eyes clouded at the admission “but I had no other choice. I knew of no other way to defeat the Kyuubi and I was running out of time and chakra.”

 

“But you didn't,” the head of the Hyuuga clan, Hiashi, was both curious and wary at the same time. “Explain to us again, for the sake of those who didn't get it the first time, how you escaped the clutches of the God of Death.”

 

Fugaku, the head of the Uchiha clan, known to be not in good terms with Hiashi and was seen as the natural opposition to anything the Hyuuga head approved of, in a rare show, sat forward to hear the Yondaime's explanation again.

 

All the adults eyed the Yondaime closely. He grimaced in his head and allowed a hint of frustration in his voice. “I already told you, I don't understand it myself.” He continued before anyone could protest. “I could barely make out something on top of the Kyuubi when I arrived on the scene. I asked Gamabunta if he could see what I saw; I thought I was hallucinating. We didn't think we weren't seeing things until she cried,” his eyes softened when his gaze fell on baby Kagome, “so I made a split second revision to my first plan. It was a little difficult” and deprived me of more chakra than I originally thought, he added silently to himself, “but I grabbed her from the Kyuubi before doing the jutsu.”

 

He paused; hesitating for a moment before he decided it wouldn't hurt to share his speculations.

 

“It almost seemed to me like the Kyuubi was just protecting its young or a family member when our shinobi engaged it in battle.”

 

He couldn't fault Fugaku for raising an eyebrow in disbelief, “How could you say that?”

 

He shrugged, “I have no concrete evidence, I am just saying what I observed… and felt.”

 

“Are you saying that the girl is Kyuubi's young?” Hiashi asked, wearily shooting a look at the crib on one side of the room.

 

The new father of his new self-proclaimed set of twins was reluctant to bring his newborns to the council meeting, but he had no one to babysit for him and the council demanded that Tsunade-hime, the best medic nin in the village, examine the babies herself. They were suspicious of the circumstances and mystery that surrounded Kagome's adoption into the village and they were also concerned of the Kyuubi getting loose from Naruto.

 

“No,” he answered truthfully. “I'm not saying that she's the Kyuubi's young or that she's demonic at all. What I'm saying is that I felt like the Kyuubi was fighting to defend its family when I engaged it in battle. It truly felt like the Konoha shinobi were the once encroaching upon the Kyuubi's territory.”

 

No one said it out loud, but he would bet a whole year's worth of salary on what they were thinking. He didn't care, didn't expect them to believe what he said; he just wanted to lay the cards on the table.

 

Sarutobi looked thoughtful. “It could be possible.”

 

Jiraiya looked thoroughly unconcerned. “Or she could be a miko,” he even yawned and watched the sparks fly.

Council member and village elder Utatane Koharu, former teammate of the Sandaime, struggled to form words. “That's absurd!”

 

“Preposterous!” Council member and village elder Mitokado Homura, their other former teammate, agreed.

 

Even the reclusive Danzo, who was almost never in agreement with any of the other elder council members and most especially the Sandaime, goggled at Jiraiya's nonchalant comment. “A miko? That's insane!” He could never trust or side with any of Sarutobi's former students, Legendary Sannin or not. In fact, the only reason why he was in attendance today was because he hoped to persuade the council and heads of clans to dispose of the Kyuubi vessel as soon as possible, son of the Yondaime or not. It was a pity that even Koharu, who didn't seem as fond of the new Kyuubi vessel as the vessel's father was, glared at him when he suggested it. “Mikos are just myths, they are not real.”

 

“All myths are based on reality, in some shape or form,” Jiraiya pointed out, enjoying Danzo's darkening face.

 

“He could be right,” Tsunade calmly interrupted when all the high-ranked shinobis talked at the same time, arguing if the appearance of a miko was even possible at this day and age.

 

This caught the attention of everyone. Not only was Tsunade a part of the Densetsu no Sannin, she was also the most skilled medic-nin in the village and the only granddaughter of the great Shodaime.

 

“Would you care to elaborate, Tsunade-hime.” Uchiha Fugaku asked curiously.

 

“I cannot describe it myself, but if I were to put it into words, I would say that the baby's chakra looks and feels a little different. The only word I could use is `holy'. Also, something really curious happened to me earlier when I was examining them.” They eyed her curiously when she pulled out a kunai.

 

“What are you doing?!” A council member gasped when Tsunade made a clean cut in the middle of her palm.

 

“Watch,” Tsunade instructed as she replaced the kunai in her pouch and held it towards baby Kagome who was sleeping peacefully, Naruto curled up against her side. She was careful not to bleed on the infants.

 

The room was silent and everyone saw as Kagome unconsciously reached a chubby little hand to Tsunade's cut. The legendary sannin's hand glowed pink for a moment and when it stopped, she lifted her hand for all to see.

 

“She healed it,” Council elder Koharu was surprised. “A baby could heal just as good as a medic-nin.”

 

“And she wasn't even awake!” Council elder Homura added, just as amazed.

 

“She didn't do it using her chakra,” Hiashi had activated his byakugan when Tsunade's hand started glowing pink out of curiosity. His byakugan didn't lie.

 

Tsunade nodded, thankful that his byakugan could back up her theory. “I was only speculating before, but now I am more certain than before. When Arashi recalled the events that happened when he rescued the baby and sealed the Kyuubi to me while I was giving him a check-up, I wondered what could have saved his life from such a dangerous jutsu. He described what he felt when he made the exchange with the shinigami, and he used the word `heal'. He said he felt `healed' when the exchange was made and I suspected something of the baby. I wasn't entirely sure if that was true; that was purely conjecture on my part and frankly, I was very doubtful that my suspicions would be proved right.”

 

Tsunade paused to see if they were with her so far.

 

“When I went to give the babies a health check-up, I accidentally scratched my finger on the side of their crib,” she pointed to a small reddish spot on the hand-woven crib. “It was only a nick and I had already forgotten about it when Kagome grabbed my finger and healed it just like we all witnessed earlier. I wondered if that was just a side effect of the exposure to the Kyuubi or some other reason, but all the signs point to one thing.”

 

Tsunade turned to the Yondaime, “When you made the exchange with the shinigami, you said that you felt as if your soul was being pulled out of your body.”

 

Arashi nodded.

 

“You also said that it felt like there were two entities pulling at your soul.”

 

He nodded again.

 

“I think you're a great shinobi, but I don't think that even a Hokage has enough chakra to escape a deal made with a God of Death or fend it off by himself.”

 

“I don't know how I did it myself,” the Yondaime responded.

 

“I've read that holy people fight supernatural beings,” Tsunade continued. “Unlike us ninja, they use spiritual powers and tap into the power of their souls. The bigger their soul, the greater their power is. I read that if trained properly, a holy person can even take on hordes of demons in one go. It is even believed that these holy persons - monks or mikos - can not only tap into their own spiritual power, but also into the spiritual powers of other beings around them.”

 

“I have read and heard of that as well,” Council elder Koharu affirmed. “The tradition of monks and mikos has long been forgotten and the scrolls telling such myths are extremely old and very rare. Only old temples and shrines keep those kinds of records nowadays and there is only a handful in our village's library. I'm surprised you've read them, Tsunade.”

 

“Grandfather had a friend who was a monk in an old shrine,” Tsunade smiled.

 

“This is all fine and dandy,” Danzo interrupted, sarcasm dripping from his voice, “but I don't see the relevance of your gossip to our current discussion.”

 

Several sets of eyes narrowed on the rude old man.

 

“Do you know that shinobi exploding tags are only pale replicas of the spiritual sutras that monks are known to use? Our healing jutsus are also based from their healing techniques.” Tsunade said sickly-sweet with an underlying venom in her voice. “Of course, our tags could only explode when infused, triggered or activated by our chakra. Monks can not only make their sutras explode, it is believed that they could perform a lot of other variety of attacks including, but not limited to: subduing, stealth, invisibility, transformation, exorcism, protection, barriers and a lot more.”

 

“I believe that's because they use spiritual energy and not chakra,” Council elder Koharu added.

 

“Yes,” Tsunade agreed, “but their specialty, especially in mikos, is healing and purification. Mushin-sama, a monk friend of mine, says that healing and purification are as normal to mikos as breathing.”

 

“So you're saying that if not for things like assassinations and war, monks and mikos could easily replace shinobi or vice versa?” Jiraiya questioned. “Is there even a difference between the two? It's as if you're saying that mikos and monks are just high-ranked shinobi.”

 

“No, that's not what I meant at all,” Tsunade shook her head. “Shinobi skills can be learned through practice and training. We can all learn taijutsu and even though not all people have the same stamina, inherent bloodline limits or chakra reserves, our skills as ninja are limited to our chakra. Monk and miko powers are tied to their souls. There is a huge difference.”

 

Jiraiya wasn't the only one who looked confused so Tsunade continued, “The Sharingan can copy any jutsu and allow the user to use that jutsu for his or her own, but only to the capacity of the user's abilities. A random Uchiha can use his or her Sharingan to copy Arashi and Jiraiya's Rasengan but only Arashi and Jiraiya can perform the Rasengan because only the two of them know how to execute it properly, have enough chakra to do it, and are air-type jutsu compatible. The same goes if an Uchiha copies a technique that far surpasses his natural speed. The Uchiha clan is known for their fire jutsus, but the Uchihas aren't the only ones who can perform fire-based techniques. In the history of Konoha, only my grandfather was able to use wood-type jutsus; no one can copy that even with Sharingan. Wood manipulators are very rare. A shinobi who can control all the elements is even rarer. Do you even know of or have heard of a shinobi controlling all the elements?”

 

Tsunade waited for the murmur of negatives before nodding. “That's because shinobi techniques are chakra-based. If it's not compatible with your chakra, you can't perform it. Holy men and women can bypass the chakra requirement; they can manipulate any type of element as long as their spiritual powers are strong enough.”

 

Elder Koharu nodded. “Everyone has chakra, not everyone has strong spiritual powers to be considered a holy man or woman. You can train your body to gain more stamina and in turn improve your chakra reserves but you have to be born with strong spiritual powers; you can't train for your spiritual reserves. You either have it or you don't.”

 

“Like a bloodline limit,” Hiashi said.

 

“Yes, that is a good comparison,” Tsunade agreed. “It is believed that they are inherited through blood, thus the reason why shrines are handed down from one generation to the other.”

 

“It's like a bloodline limit that could control all elements and more.” The implications of that statement were making his head reel. “Why haven't we heard about all this before? Having such a weapon would place one hidden village above all others!” The gears in Danzo's mind were already turning at the possibilities.

 

Arashi scowled at Danzo for calling his daughter a weapon.

 

“We haven't confirmed if the child is a miko or not yet,” Council elder Homura reminded everyone, putting a stop to the assembled shinobis' excited chatter.

 

“I can send a summons to Mushin-sama to help us in this matter,” Tsunade offered. Sarutobi walked to the window and gave the instructions to a masked ANBU who appeared on his summon. Tsunade then talked to the ANBU and gave him the directions to the monk Mushin's temple. It was located only a few minutes away from the gates of Konoha, it could even be considered part of the hidden village since the Shodaime helped Mushin's grandfather build it when he built the shinobi village. Tsunade was sure they would find it easily.

 

“What about the Kyuubi?” Danzo asked.

 

“What about it?” Arashi felt a little protective and stepped closer to his babies out of instinct. There was no mistaking the way the old man was looking at his son. “My son is not the Kyuubi. He is merely a vessel in which the Kyuubi is imprisoned in. He is a hero of the village.”

 

“Yes,” Danzo didn't sound like he honestly agreed with the Yondaime. “So you say but how secure is it.”

 

“The seal is very unique and the first I've seen of its kind, but I can assure you that it is very secure.” Tsunade interrupted before any violence erupted between the new father and the cranky old man. “I see you've done it so Naruto can tap on the Kyuubi's chakra in the future. That's very wise of you, Arashi. Not a lot of people can do that.”

 

“That's a very difficult jutsu to accomplish,” Fugaku acknowledged the Yondaime's skills.

 

“Are there any adverse effects?” Hiashi asked. “Aside from the whiskers on his cheeks,” he added after stealing a glance at the crib.

 

“I can't say for sure right now but we should keep a close eye on him as he grows up,” Tsunade answered.

 

“Is it safe to keep it alive?” Danzo couldn't keep his mouth shut.

 

“That `it' you are referring to is my precious son.”

 

“What reason would we have to kill an innocent baby?” Sarutobi asked.

 

“What if it's a security risk to the village?”

 

It took all of Arashi's self-discipline not to plant his fist on the old guy's face. The village elder was very straight to the point and didn't sugar-coat his words with diplomatic tones or politeness. The Yondaime decided he didn't like the man, he was calculating and unfeeling. While they waited for the monk to come, all he did was hint upon how they should dispose of the Kyuubi as inconspicuously as he could. He didn't necessarily say that they should kill the baby outright, but that was what he implied. Thankfully, none of the others were as cold blooded as him and were appalled at the suggestion of murdering an innocent, even if it was the vessel of the nine-tailed fox demon. He was but a child, they argued. He was of no risk to the village, yet, and he could be a great asset to them in the future. Danzo was eventually overruled and he would never admit it to anyone else, but he did see the potential benefits of having the Kyuubi vessel as a valuable weapon in the future.

 

Sarutobi couldn't help but wonder what fate might have befallen the young Naruto if his father had perished from his fight with Kyuubi instead.

 

There was a knock on the door.

 

Arashi was grateful for the interruption. “Come in!”

 

The door swung open and two ANBUs entered as they flanked a bald monk who had prayer beads on one hand and a satchel on the other. The monk's chinky eyes lit up, “Ah, Tsunade-hime! It has been a long time.” Tsunade bowed respectfully at the old man and was promptly enveloped in a hug. “There is no need for such formalities; I've known you since you were but a baby!” The old monk admonished fondly.

 

“Thank you for coming, Mushin-sama.” Tsunade hugged him back and made the introductions after the ANBU left and closed the door behind them.

 

Arashi gratefully stepped forward and thanked him as well. The situation was then briefly explained, after reassurance from both Tsunade and Mushin that any sensitive issues will be kept a secret by Mushin. Tsunade told them that the monk and his family have been keeping village secrets for as long as she could remember and that was good enough for the current Yondaime and retired Sandaime.

 

The old monk was flabbergasted for a moment, unwilling to believe that a miko finally appeared after all this time. “So that's why you instructed them to tell me to bring the things we use to determine another holy monk in the family!”

 

Tsunade nodded.

 

“It's been a few years since I've performed the ceremony but I can assure you it is one hundred percent accurate,” Mushin assured. “My grandson has to be the most gifted monk our line has ever produced so far,” his eyes twinkled recalling the little brat. “He's turning three this summer. You should visit again soon, Tsunade-hime.”

 

“Yes,” Tsunade agreed even though she could still remember her last visit. The baby had a definite attachment to her boobs for some reason. “I'll stop by to say hello to little Miroku when I have the time, Mushin-sama. And thanks again for coming today.”

 

“Don't mention it,” Mushin's friendly face suddenly morphed into a more serious one and he went through the ministrations of preparing what he had to do. The shinobi took that as a hint for silence and they cleared out of his way, opting to stick close to the walls and corners as they kept a close watch on what was about to unfold.

 

Arashi gathered the sleeping Kagome to his arms and woke her gently, cooing to her softly when she fussed from having her nap disturbed. When she settled down, she was handed over to Mushin who laid her on top of a blanket in the middle of the room. Arashi checked on the sleeping Naruto one more time before he devoted his full attention to the monk.

 

“Hmmm…” Mushin's actions confounded the Konoha shinobi, but they quietly observed the scene and didn't do anything to interrupt him. Arashi was a little nervous at first, which was understandable, but he was able to hold himself back from jumping at the old man and shaking him to demand what the hell he was doing. He didn't understand it either, but it didn't look like he was hurting Kagome so he allowed the old man to do his thing.

 

Several items were presented to the baby, two at a time, and Mushin made sounds on the back of his throat each time the baby chose one. Soon there were two separate piles on the floor: one for the items that the baby chose and the other for those she discarded.

 

Next he performed what looked to Tsunade like a standard check-up, but it wasn't anything a medic-nin normally did from her experience. The monk chanted something none of them knew or recognized first before he poked eerie glowing fingers at the baby. It worried Arashi for a moment, but when he saw no signs of discomfort from his daughter, he forced himself to relax. When Mushin was finally satisfied, he began another round of tests.

 

Fugaku noticed that Hiashi was watching the monk with an activated byakugan, so he too activated his sharingan, not to be one-upped by his fellow clan leader. Neither of them understood what the monk was doing and both of them were certain they wouldn't be able to imitate it even if they tried, but neither was willing to deactivate their kekkei genkai. Disabling their bloodline limits would mean admitting that they had no idea what they were witnessing and they were both too prideful for that.

 

“Hmmm…” Mushin was now looking at the baby with bewildered eyes. The baby blinked at him and tried to reach for her father. “Hmmm…” Mushin continued to hum, oblivious to his captive audience. He was too engrossed in his tests, unbelieving of the results. It was currently his third try, and he gasped when the conclusion remained the same. “I can't believe it!” He wheezed out in excitement.

 

“Believe what?” Arashi asked nervously. He didn't have any idea what was going on but he was trying to find comfort in the excited look on the monk's face. “What's wrong with my baby?” He asked again when he was ignored.

 

Mushin continued to ignore him, or, more accurately, didn't hear any of the questions posed because he was too ecstatic. The tests lasted a total of an hour at most, but it felt like forever to most of the shinobi in the room. Some of them were dying with curiosity and the Yondaime was starting to worry.

 

Arashi didn't realize he'd been holding his breath until Mushin gave his daughter back. He immediately smelled that the little girl needed to have her diaper changed. Fugaku and Hiashi deactivated their bloodline limits when the monk finished, though they remained quiet and observing. The only sounds in the room were the ones Mushin was making while he placed his things back into his bag and baby Kagome blowing raspberries at her father. Baby Naruto was still in dreamland.

 

Mushin started talking while Arashi changed Kagome's diaper. “Well, I can tell you for sure that this is truly a miracle!” The old monk looked like a giddy little schoolgirl. “Would you mind if I also examine your son, Yondaime-sama?” The question startled Arashi, but he reluctantly agreed.

 

The old man didn't take as long with his examination this time; only a few pokes and prods here, there and most especially in the belly and cheeks. Nothing too intruding yet it was enough to wake baby Naruto who bellowed his displeasure at having his sleep disrupted.

 

“Oh my,” Mushin was immediately contrite. “I'm sorry little fellow, I didn't mean to interfere in your slumber.” He tried rocking the tyke back to sleep but Naruto had other ideas.

 

Arashi was a little fearful that the holy man was going to proclaim his son the spawn of the demon to explain his tantrum, so he quickly snatched Naruto and rocked him with his free arm. Kagome started sniffling on his other arm, visibly unhappy that her brother was crying. Naruto eventually settled down when his sister grabbed his chubby hand in hers and their father couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Maybe the holy man wasn't going to say that his son was an evil spawn after all.

 

Mushin smiled, seeing the babies' interaction. “This is incredible!” His smiled turned into a wide grin. “I can't believe I'm blessed enough to see one in my lifetime!” He looked a little speechless.

 

“Uh, see what exactly?” Jiraiya was dying of curiosity. He was ready to throttle the monk for some answers.

 

“Oh,” Mushin grinned sheepishly, “I'm sorry, I tend to get a little carried away when I get too excited.”

 

“No kidding.” Jiraiya rubbed his ribs from the jab that statement earned from Tsunade.

 

“Is it safe to assume, Yondaime-sama, that you sealed the Kyuubi inside your son?” The Konoha shinobi were surprised at the man's question. Upon their agreement, when the events were explained to him earlier, no one mentioned to whom or where the Kyuubi had been sealed. All he was told was that the Yondaime performed a jutsu involving a deal with the shinigami sealing the nine-tails and that was it.

 

“How did you know that?” Council Elder Homura demanded.

 

“True holy men can sense youki,” Mushin replied. “I could sense the demonic aura from the time I stepped through the gates, and I was able to pinpoint the source when I entered the room.” Arashi looked a little disturbed that Mushin was able to discern as much. “Don't worry,” Mushin smiled kindly at him, “the seal is the best one I've seen in my life. I doubt I could have done one as good as that and your son is very healthy from what I could tell.”

 

“Do you know if he's going to suffer any side-effects from housing the Kyuubi, Mushin-sama?” Tsunade, ever the medic-nin, asked.

 

Mushin shook his head. “Not that I'm aware of, but I'm fairly certain he'll be more than a few steps above the rest of us ordinary humans.” He counted off each speculation with his fingers, “Advanced healing, top-notch immune system, and the ability to tap into the Kyuubi's chakra from the looks of the seal are just a few of what I'm guessing he'd be able to do. It really is impressive,” he complimented the Yondaime once again. “In time, if he could tame the fox, he could probably manifest fox-like qualities if he wanted to.”

 

Not a lot of shinobi in the room were sure if that was a good idea.

 

“Is that wise?” Danzo inquired.

 

Mushin didn't mince with words or lie to them. “He may have berserker capabilities which could prove devastating, considering,” the alarmed gasps were understandable so he hurried to explain, “BUT nothing we can't control. The Shodaime was known to have the ability to control bijuu and jinchuriki.”

 

“That ability is no longer available since the Shodaime is dead,” Danzo said. Tsunade, his only remaining descendant, didn't manifest that kind of power either.

 

“Yes, but it's not to say that it's impossible. I can teach you the art of making sutras that are specially designed to calm berserker bijuu.” Mushin never lost his smile. “It's not impossible, but it is a little known fact since not a lot of monks or mikos know about it, and those who do are reluctant to share the knowledge outside their own temples.”

 

“What's the catch?” Council Elder Koharu was suspicious. “Why are you willing to share this information with us if it's this important?”

 

Mushin didn't take offense to the air of mistrust in the room. “One, although my family might not live inside the hidden leaf village, we still feel like we're still part of it. Two, I want to help. Three, I'm hoping that you will allow me to monitor the babies and perhaps offer my tutelage for the future, but only if you're willing,” he said to Arashi in particular, “Four, it is my sacred duty as a monk. And five, I would be honored to provide my services to the miko and her family.” He finished his speech with a reverend bow to Arashi who was still holding his children.

 

Blue eyes widened at what the monk just said. “So my daughter really is a miko?”

 

“Yes,” Mushin paused for a second, “I feel really blessed that I was able to meet one in my lifetime. Although there are monks aplenty, some with more spiritual powers than most, mikos are very rare. The last recorded miko in history existed over a thousand years ago.”

 

Danzo's eyes weren't the only ones that lit up in wonder and something else. It made Arashi clutch his daughter more tightly.

 

“I would be honored if you would teach her about her spiritual powers when she's old enough to understand Mushin-sama, but I'm a little fearful of allowing her to venture out of the village.”

 

Mushin nodded in understanding. “I can sympathize, Yondaime-sama. I too am strict about letting my grandson out of the shrine grounds for safety purposes. Once she's old enough, you can send someone to summon me and perhaps I can make a special house call. I would do anything to be the mentor of the miko.”

 

Arashi smiled. “Thank you.”

 

“She is also another reason why I don't think we have to fear much from the Kyuubi taking over your son or going berserk,” Mushin added. “Your seal is very sturdy to begin with, and I do have high hopes for…”

 

“Naruto,” Arashi added for his benefit.

 

“Yes, Naruto-kun,” Mushin nodded, “I have high hopes that Naruto-kun will be able to manipulate Kyuubi no Youko's chakra as if it were his own if he is trained enough, and if he does go berserk, I'm sure that…” he looked at the baby girl…

 

“Kagome,” Arashi came to his rescue again.

 

“Yes, Kagome, thank you. I'm sure that Kagome-chan will naturally purify his youki and make it harmless like she did when you fought the nine-tails.”

 

Arashi's eyes widened. “Is that what happened? She purified the” he was now only getting used to the word “youki?”

 

“I can't say for sure because I wasn't there in person, but that is my hypothesis. I believe that her miko powers reacted to your jutsu and the Kyuubi's youki.”

 

The shinobi were now listening carefully. Some of the older ones unconsciously found a seat to sit on while most of them just leaned on something for support while standing up, paying full attention to the monk.

 

“Tell me, Yondaime-sama, do you notice or feel anything when you're holding Kagome-chan?”

 

Arashi looked thoughtful. “I do feel safe and calm when I'm near my children, but I think it might be only because I'm their father and wish to be near them to ensure their safety.”

 

Mushin smiled a bit too much. “I'm sure it's because you're their father, but that doesn't explain the same feelings others have probably been feeling too. Am I right?”

 

None of the big strong macho shinobi wanted to admit it out loud so Tsunade was forced to answer this one. “I was wondering why that was. I thought it was a little abnormal but I figured it might have just been my imagination.”

 

“Mikos' auras are packed with love and nurturing. In the future, she will learn how to control her emotions and mask it, but until then we are all susceptible to her uncontrolled aura.”

 

Danzo tried to narrow his eyes at the baby girl but failed. He couldn't even conjure feelings of irritation towards the baby. He could feel mistrust towards the boy Kyuubi vessel, but his hatred didn't have time to take root before they were also washed away. No doubt by the miko's “uncontrolled aura”. He felt a little frustrated.

 

Mushin's face lost its jolliness all of a sudden. “There are some people who would want to take advantage of this and probably attempt to taint the miko. Others have tried before and I don't doubt that they will try now. As I've already said before, mikos are rare. It would be wise if no one else outside this room finds out about her true nature until she learns how to defend herself properly,” he gravely advised.

 

“I will protect her with my life,” Arashi promised.

 

Mushin looked him in the eye for a full minute before he finally nodded in satisfaction.

 

The old monk answered more questions from the council members before the meeting was adjourned, but Arashi felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders when it was done because he felt safer for his son. His daughter's safety was another cause for concern, but he decided to not let them both out of his sight until they turned thirty to solve all the problems. He had been given a new chance at life and he'd be damned if he didn't enjoy it.

 

All of them had been sworn to secrecy and none of the sensitive information discussed in the chamber was ever to be talked about again unless it was of dire importance. It was a pity Orochimaru missed all of it; he wasn't going to get any second chances since his teammates were prohibited from telling even him.

 

It was dark by the time the council disbursed. The Yondaime didn't pay much mind to Fugaku's or Hiashi's too-friendly suggestions for `play dates' for their children. He was too tired to notice the glares the two heads of clans and fathers threw each other when he wasn't looking their way. He barely caught what the two clan heads were saying. He could see their mouths moving and was sure they were forming words, but he was too exhausted to listen.

 

Something like Hiashi had a fine nephew (his twin brother's son, he shared proudly) Arashi was sure to like and Fugaku having not only one `puny nephew' but having two healthy, strapping sons. He didn't pay attention to which genius Fugaku was talking about was when he nodded in agreement to whatever the two were asking of him. He was currently too tired to pay attention to clan politics and his arms were going numb from holding on to his babies all this time. Still, he refused to hand them over to anyone, even his trusted sensei, so he bobbed his head in agreement to whatever Hiashi and Fugaku were telling him. It worked, and the two clan heads went home smiling.

 

Arashi then offered his home to the old monk to stay for the night and Mushin gladly accepted, eager to spend more time with the fledgling miko. He stated outright that he meant to go down in the history of monks and mikos as Kagome's sensei, earning a laugh from Arashi. At least the man was honest. Tsunade also opted to come along, as well as Jiraiya. Tsunade wanted to talk more with Mushin and Jiraiya felt his presence would make his former student relax adequately to have a good night's sleep tonight. After all that's been revealed, he knew his student too much to know that the father was going to be worried enough to stay up all night to guard his children if needed. Not that he would admit it to anyone but Jiraiya didn't want his former student to get sick with worry. Arashi was already showing signs of an overprotective father and the previous days' activities were starting to take a toll on the man. He had bags under his eyes and he was acting too clingy to his babies. The man was also still mourning the recent loss of his wife.

 

The Uzumaki house wasn't overly large, but it had enough rooms to accommodate the three guests, two babies and their father. He and his two children were the only people left in his clan right now, but as all clan houses went, there was a spacious courtyard in the front, a fair sized dojo to train in, an ample backyard for the children to explore, several bedrooms and all the other rooms that came standard with the other houses. He never really noticed the size of his home until he came home to it without his wife there to greet him. He guessed his babies would want separate rooms in the future, but sharing the master bedroom with him with their crib beside his bed put his worries at more ease for now.

 

Mushin was given a brief tour of the house and saw an opening that he immediately took advantage of. “Would you mind if I placed spiritual wards around the house, Yondaime-sama?”

 

Arashi shook his blond head, “No, not at all. Thank you, Mushin-sama.”

 

The Uzumaki household didn't have any servants, so Tsunade prepared their dinner while Mushin placed the protective wards around the house. They were very effective against evil spirits, miasma, evil jyaki and ill intent just to name a few. Jiraiya went to help Arashi give the children a bath. The two men were visibly exhausted and dripping wet when they finished. They learned the hard way that two babies, when rubbed with soap, were as slick as greased piglets. The little rascals enjoyed flailing about before escaping their grasps and going underwater, scaring the wits out of the fully grown shinobi until they were able to fish the babies out. The twins made it into a game and Jiraiya could swear it was just to torment them.

 

After dinner, Mushin asked if they could have a private discussion between the four adults now that the house was `secure'. They gathered in the living room and spoke in hushed voices because Arashi was giving his children their last bottle of milk before bed. Mushin's attitude was a bit curious and they found out why when he spoke.

 

“When you performed the jutsu, I believe that you should have died.” Arashi didn't disagree with him. He nodded honestly. “I didn't want to say this in front of the council because I didn't want to put the miko in a bigger risk that she already is and I need to brush up on my scrolls for more information. I can tell you right now that I think both of your children are special.”

 

“Of course they are,” Arashi agreed. His children were special regardless of all the circumstances surrounding them right now.

 

“Yes,” Mushin agreed. “But what I'm saying is that we have a legend among monks… truly powerful spiritual mikos are rare and far in between because it is believed that their souls are reincarnated.”

 

Tsunade was trying to figure out if that was a good thing or a bad thing, “Reincarnated?”

 

“Yes,” Mushin nodded. “That's why each miko is said to be more powerful than the previous one. Their souls gather more spiritual powers as they grow through the years. The spiritual powers are inheritable, but it's not always guaranteed to have monk and miko descendants from mikos. Stronger chakra reserves and everything a shinobi could hope for, yes, as well as desirable things like improved or new bloodline limits, but no definite guarantee for spiritual strength. Miko lines are more unpredictable than monk lineages.”

 

“How come?” Jiraiya asked, leaning forward.

 

“The reason why miko lineages are mostly unrecorded is because - I have no other way to say this but I think you'll understand - they tend to pop out of nowhere.”

 

Arashi felt like he was missing only a few more pieces of the puzzle. “I first saw her with the Kyuubi and it was acting like we were the ones intruding on its territory and not the other way around like everyone believes.” He was starting to feel perturbed from the excitement the monk was showing. It didn't just look right coming from an old guy.

 

“One more legend surrounding special mikos is that they are believed to be borne out of the earth, or by the earth herself.”

 

Jiraiya thought he didn't hear right. “What?” He forgot all his questions about new bloodline limits or improving them.

 

Mushin was too excited to repeat it to him. “That's why they could easily tap into the powers of the elements and everything else around them. They are one with nature, one with everything. Even though it is normal to think that demons and mikos are natural enemies, special mikos borne out of the earth are special cases. Most earth-borne mikos are normally raised in the wild by animals or whichever species gets to them first. It has been a subject of long debate in my circle but I firmly believe it to be true and the main reason why records of them are so scarce. Only those who are found and raised by humans are recorded.” He leaned forward to whisper even further, “I think that Kagome-chan is one, based on the events you described. I think that the Kyuubi was the first to detect the terra miko and was going to be the species to raise it when fate led you to intercept them.”

 

Arashi didn't know if the old monk was taking illegal drugs or if he was just pulling his leg. A glance towards Tsunade made him think he was serious; she looked really fascinated by everything that he said.

 

“I thought those stories were just fairytales.” Jiraiya has never seen Tsunade so excited before. “Grandfather used to tell us stories about different fairytales to put my brother and me to sleep when we were younger and one of his stories was about what he liked to call a Terra Miko.”

 

“He might have heard that story from my grandfather.” He could remember the Shodaime's love for nature and he remembered the first Hokage's fascination with his grandfather's stories about how mikos could be one with the environment.

 

Jiraiya was a little slow but not that slow. “You're saying that she's literally a child of nature so does that mean she's not really an orphan since she didn't have any parents to begin with?”

 

Mushin shook his head. “I beg to differ, Jiraiya-sama. We could say that she was borne out of mother earth and her father is Arashi-sama. The fates have chosen him and that is as good as any blood-relation. I'm even going as far to say that if we were to perform a paternity test, Arashi-sama would undoubtedly be the father.”

 

Jiraiya barked a laugh. “What is that - reverse immaculate conception?”

 

Tsunade glared at him for that one but Mushin took it in stride. “That's one way of putting it. Terra mikos are known to adapt to their situations and are one with their environment, always remember that. Arashi-sama has claimed her as his daughter and that is what she will be. I would also confidently say that already Arashi-sama is feeling overtly parental towards her, feeling no different as he would for little Naruto-kun. It started when he performed the sealing jutsu. Instead of eating his soul, he bonded with his daughter and his daughter's spiritual powers warded off the shinigami from devouring him. The Kyuubi sealing then made the bond with Naruto-kun and completed their family.”

 

“Interesting,” Jiraiya acknowledged.

 

“I have other theories but I am not one hundred percent sure about them, so I'll save those for another day.”

 

“You talk about me like I'm not even in the room,” Arashi shook his head and followed Tsunade's instructions to burp Kagome who has finished her bottle. Naruto was still suckling his, though his eyes were starting to droop sleepily. He still wasn't sold on the idea of his daughter being this so-called ultra-rare miko Mushin was talking about and he was too tired to have one more thing to worry about.

 

“It would be best for your family if no one else finds out about what has been said here,” Mushin advised. All three shinobis nodded in absolute agreement.

 

After he finished burping Kagome, it was Naruto's turn and Mushin wisely called it a night, seeing the exhausted parent. Jiraiya was too curious to go to sleep so he and Mushin stayed up longer and talked about what the monk meant when he mentioned improved or new bloodline limits. Tsunade helped Arashi tuck the babies in for the night and returned to the living room to participate in their conversation.

 

Arashi dreamt of foxes, shinigamis and dogs that night.

 

The next morning, Mushin left early in the morning. Arashi thanked him repeatedly for his help and the old monk reminded him of their agreement for the miko's training just as many times. He also promised to visit again soon with his grandson. Tsunade cooked them breakfast before taking off, and Jiraiya decided he was going to crash in his former student's place for a while longer to help out a bit. He would never tell Arashi that he was worried about what was going to happen to the babies once his short reprieve from Yondaime duties ended. The new father didn't look like he was open to the idea of getting babysitters and the twins were certainly a handful, based from his experience with them last night.

 

His internal musings were interrupted by a knock on the door. The people on the other side were as surprised as he was when he opened it.

 

“Hiashi, Fugaku! What are you two doing here?” was his friendly greeting.

 

“Jiraiya-sama, what a surprise to see you here. Are you staying with Yondaime-sama now?” Hiashi asked.

 

“No, no,” he brushed the Hyuuga clan head's question off with a wave. “I'm just helping out for now. The little tykes might be too much for him to handle. Come in, come in. Arashi, visitors!” He bellowed.

 

Fugaku and Hiashi regarded each other coolly before they followed the Sannin.

 

A disheveled Arashi bottle-feeding baby Naruto yawned into his hand emerged from the doorway. “Who could it be so early in the morning?” He hadn't even eaten breakfast yet; the babies woke him up for a feeding and he had just finished with his daughter when Jiraiya shouted for him. “Hiashi-sama! Fugaku-sama! What a surprise!” He goggled at his early-morning visitors. They were both toting what looked like diaper bags and there were three children with them. “Is there any problem?”

 

The two clan heads looked at him expectantly. “We're here for the play date,” Fugaku told him.

 

“The what?”

 

“The children's play date we agreed upon yesterday,” Hiashi reminded him. He was carrying a sleeping baby in his arms. “I was telling you about my brother's fine young son and we talked about letting him meet with your daughter. His name is Neji.”

 

“My eldest is only six but he's already the top student at the academy,” Fugaku didn't want to be outdone. “This is Itachi,” he introduced a rather stoic child. “This is his little brother Sasuke if the slight age difference bothers you.”

 

Jiraiya turned his back from the scene and his shoulders shook as he tried his best to muffle his guffaws with his hands.

 

He was a little slow this morning but the situation finally dawned on Arashi. His blue eyes widened and his grip on Naruto tightened. “Uh…” He couldn't find the right words to say in a situation like this, it was too weird for him. “This is Naruto,” was all he could think of saying.

 

“Is your baby girl awake?” Fugaku was every bit the Uchiha clan head even with a baby in his arms, a diaper bag on his shoulder and a toddler at his feet.

 

“I'll go get her,” Jiraiya generously offered, shoulders still shaking. He returned just a moment later and dumped the wide-eyed baby girl on her father's arms, then sat on the sofa to watch the show.

 

Fugaku broke the silence. “When your daughter marries into my clan, she won't have to worry about things like joining the main or branch family.”

 

Hiashi frowned at Fugaku's use of `when' instead of `if'. “Surely your daughter would want to marry into the best clan in Konoha instead of a second rate one,” he asked a bewildered Yondaime. Fugaku narrowed his eyes at the Hyuuga head for what he implied about his clan.

 

“My daughter is only a baby, she's not thinking of marriage yet,” Arashi told them. What have these clan heads been drinking?

 

“Yes but as her father, you have the right to pick a fiancé for her. I have two marriageable sons you can choose from,” Fugaku proudly presented his boys for inspection. Little Itachi stood in Arashi's room bravely, unaware that his father was making a sales pitch in behalf of him. Little Sasuke was absolutely oblivious; he sucked his thumb quietly as he slept. Their mother Mikoto was surprised their father had arranged a play date with the Yondaime's children, and she had no clue what her husband's true plans were regarding their boys.

 

Hizashi, Hiashi's twin brother and Neji's father, was properly informed of what his twin wished to happen. He didn't have any objections and was even glad that he was eager to offer any of his and his son's services to further his twin's agenda. The Branch House lived to serve the Main House.

 

“I have obtained permission from my brother to agree upon any future union regarding Neji's future and I consider him my own son, since he is my twin brother's child. It were as if he was my own son,” the last part wasn't exactly true; he had only first met his nephew today when he picked him up from his brother, but the Yondaime didn't need to know that. He needed to have the daughter marry into his clan by any means possible. It was a pity that he only had a daughter, but at least his brother came through and produced a son. The Hyuugas were the ones who would benefit from what the miko could add to a clan and not anyone else.

 

“I…” Arashi was speechless for a moment. “I am not going to interfere with those affairs in my daughter's life. I wish to let her choose her own partner in the future, allowing her the same freedom I had. If she comes to fall in love with anyone when she is of the right age, I will assess the man's quality but I refuse to make the decision for her.” Arashi smiled kindly at the both of them. He never thought being a father would be this hard, his daughter wasn't even in swaddling and yet she already had suitors knocking on their door. How would he handle this when his children grew up into teenagers? “I hope you understand,” he bowed his head in apology.

 

He knew that political marriages had its advantages, but he just wasn't willing to subject any of his children to that. He wanted them to marry for love and not for political gain.

 

Fugaku nodded. He was confident that the Yondaime's daughter was eventually going to marry into the Uchiha clan; he had two sons that would ensure that.

 

Hiashi was just as sure with his nephew. If the child grew up to look anything like his father (who was his identical twin), then he would have no problems wooing the miko in the future to make sure that she joined their clan and not anyone else's.

 

“Then allow my sons to get to know your daughter better. If you need someone to look after them when you are busy, my wife would be more than happy to take care of them,” Fugaku offered.

 

Arashi wasn't sure if he was going to take that offer in the future or not but thanked him anyway.

 

“The Hyuuga house is also always open to you and your children, Yondaime-sama. I have a daughter who is near your daughter's age and I am sure she wouldn't mind having a playmate over.”

 

“Uh, okay. Thanks.” He felt awkward.

 

Jiraiya looked a little disappointed that things ended the way they did but it did amuse him, however short the `show' was. Staying at the Uzumaki house afforded him ringside seats to where the action was and the visits from Fugaku, his sons, Hiashi and his nephew became a weekly occurrence. Arashi was able to politely skirt away from the issue of leaving his kids in the Hyuuga or Uchiha households while he worked since he was finally able to work out a schedule that involved Jiraiya, Tsunade or Kakashi as sitters. Kakashi was an accidental sitter but became a regular when Kagome fell in love with his nin-dogs. She showed great interest in his one sharingan eye and often spent a lot of time looking at it. When all three were unavailable he would just bring the children to work. The Chuunins on duty and his assistant would take turns cooing and helping him take care of the babies when that happened and the system worked pretty well for him.

 

His children were mostly well-behaved and rarely ever pitched any tantrums as long as he showered them with lots of love and attention. Kagome seemed to be a calming influence on the more energetic Naruto, able to calm him down from a temper tantrum with just the touch of her hand or her mere presence. It was another thing all together when the little girl was the one feeling frustrated though, because when she cried, Naruto cried with her and it was hard to calm two hysterical babies at the same time.

 

Still, they were little angels most of the time and the only time when his babies pitched the mother of all tantrums was when, he recalled, the reclusive third member of the Densetsu no Sannin paid them a home visit.

 

Arashi was a little reluctant about his children going near Orochimaru since the guy made the hairs on the back of his neck stand, but Tsunade made them a great dinner and threatened physical harm to anyone who didn't want any part of it. He assumed his discomfort with the Sannin was picked up by the emotion-sensitive Kagome who started wailing when the snake Sannin approached her and refused to be in the same room as the man. Naruto was greatly upset that his sister was throwing a tantrum and threw one of his own and the adults had a pounding headache by the time Arashi was forced to put his babies into bed early.

 

Orochimaru wasn't aware about the real circumstances of Kagome's origin and was only trying to make small talk to ease the awkward silence that was left after the babies were put to sleep when he pointed out how Kagome's eyes were blue like Arashi's and his son's yet her hair was a pretty black. As far as he knew, Kagome and Naruto were born as biological twins from the same father and mother and he was curious as to how the abnormality happened. Thankfully, Tsunade saved Arashi from answering and told Orochimaru that Arashi's wife, if Orochimaru could remember, had dark black hair and it wasn't uncommon for fraternal twins not to have absolutely identical features.

 

The snake Sannin accepted the explanation as fact and soon his questions turned to focus on Arashi's baby boy instead. If Arashi didn't have the headache pounding on his head, he would have noticed the alarm bells going off instead. They answered Orochimaru's questions throughout dinner, enough to satisfy his curiosity yet never revealing anything confidential the Sannin missed when he failed to attend the council meeting that fateful day.

 

Arashi never was on great terms with his former sensei's teammate, and the gap between them increased exponentially when he was named as the next Hokage. He could tell that the snake Sannin wanted the title badly, but they remained friendly because of they had a lot of common friends. Looking back, the Yondaime felt like he should have known something wasn't exactly right when Orochimaru came to dinner. He asked about how Arashi's former student Kakashi was doing and how he was coping with his new sharingan eye and their conversations centered on the Uchihas, bloodline limits and the Kyuubi. When asked about what he was up to these days, he merely answered “Oh, you know, the usual, experimenting in the lab and such.”

 

The reason for Arashi's discomfort became clearer months later, when Orochimaru's illegal laboratory was discovered and he left the village to become a missing nin. The other two remaining Sannin took the blow hard. Jiraiya took it the hardest, since he attempted to bring his renegade teammate back to the village and came home beaten near to death. Tsunade and Jiraiya spent a lot of time holding Kagome, for her comforting aura, if Arashi were to guess, and it took months before either of them looked and acted like their normal selves again.

 

Tsunade was the first to bounce back, concentrating on her work and improving medical jutsus. Mushin was extremely helpful in this area and soon, Konoha was known throughout the world as the hidden village with the best medics and medical jutsus. Jiraiya bounced back by putting his spying on women's bath to use. He wrote the first book in the Icha Icha Paradise series and earned a life-long fan in Kakashi.

 

Life in Konoha was not perfect, but it was slowly going back to normal.

 

Years passed and the children grew up steadily. Itachi graduated top of his class at the academy at age seven and kept his weekly visits in the Uzumaki household. His little brother seemed to enjoy the company of the odd twins and he silently admitted to himself that they entertained him as well. The boy Naruto-kun was a bundle of joy who had a big personality and the girl Kagome… well he couldn't really explain it but he felt things when he was around her. It was strange, but not unpleasant. He mastered his sharingan at age eight, much to the pride of his father, and Kagome, for some reason, was extremely fascinated with his sharingan. Kakashi, their frequent babysitter, told him it was normal. He noticed she was fascinated with the Hyuuga's white eyes, too. She spent just as much time looking at Hinata, Hanabi and Neji's optical devices.

 

There was a small incident when he was nine and that Hyuuga boy Neji came to their weekly Uzumaki meetings with a curse seal on his forehead. Hinata and Hanabi were absent that week. Naruto and Sasuke took turns poking Neji's forehead, thinking the drawings on it were cool. Neji didn't appreciate their attention.

 

Kagome didn't appreciate the curse seal on Neji's forehead.

 

She took one look at it and started crying; not even Kakashi or his army of nin-dogs could calm her down. When Kagome cried, Naruto cried; she refused to let go of Neji and he ended up spending the night with the Uzumakis with the twins clinging to him. The next day, he overheard his father telling his mother that `the curse seal from that Hyuuga boy's forehead has been purified'. It was the talk of the town and his fellow genins, especially his bestfriend Shusui, who knew about his close relationship with the girl and her family. He was hounded with questions for several days and his father wanted to know what exactly happened.

 

He didn't know what exactly happened, he explained to his father, and his father told him to ask about it, but things were normal as usual in the Uzumaki house. He didn't know when it happened, but his weekly visits with the Uzumakis were the one routine in his life he didn't feel apathy with. Graduating to Chuunin at age ten added more burdens to his role in the clan, and the only place where he felt like he could relax was when he was with the little kids who were half his age. There was just something regarding the blue-eyed girl that made him feel at ease.

 

In fact, no one was the wiser but it was the only thing that was keeping him sane.

 

Yes, even though things weren't exactly perfect, life was currently good in Konoha. Itachi was promoted to captain of his own ANBU squad at thirteen. Neji, without his curse seal, was now on his second year at age eight. Hiashi was never able to mark him again; there was some kind of force preventing him from it. At the same time, the Yondaime's twins, age seven, started their first year at the ninja academy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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