A/N: Some may think this chapter is cheesy but bear with it, also chapter 47 is gonna be two chapters ( there's meant to be chapter 47 and 48 , now its gonna be 47.1, 47.2 and 48 ). Also if you spot any errors please notify me. Ciao!
----------------------------------------------------------
Every power has a price.
[ DAY ONE IN FOREST OF DEATH, EVENING ]
[ JINICHI WATARU ]
Within a hollow tree.
Jinichi and Aoi were currently pleading with their leader for forgiveness.
"Come on Kisukeeeee. It's not my fault that this barbarian over here can't control her own strength. We're sorry please forgive ussss." Jinichi gestured toward Aoi.
"Ohhhhh?!Now you're afraid to call me gorilla?? Did you suddenly gain a few brain cells from the beating I gave you?"
"Nah, being around your stupid ass forced my evolution into a superior being, one that your feeble mind can't comprehend."
" So you are agreeing that you were a dumbass before!! And what's with you switching outfits anyhow? Can't stick to a single style?
First, it was the outfit that made you look like a hobo, now you just look like you're a dance instructor, what's next are you going to suddenly wear a kimono as your next outfit?"
Then a haughty smile grew on her face, as she covered her mouth in mock laughter.
"Or are you just too stupid to get a fashion sense?"
Gasp!
'How dare she!!??'
"Hey!! I'll have you know that this is perfectly appropriate shinobi wear. PERFECTLY APPROPRIATE! Plus! My clothes are an acquired taste!! Acquired. Taste!! Something you wouldn't know shaggy hair!!" Jinichi retorted.
Shiver
A sudden chill went down Jinichi's spine, as the mood around Aoi shifted as her glare grew fiercer than normal.
"Oh? you got something to say about my hair freckles?"
'I probably should stop provoking her, wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of her headbutt of terror.'
Jinichi shuddered at the thought.
"Nope! none at all! Nada! It's a rather lovely hair style, give my regards to your hairstylist."
'More like animalistic!'
Aoi clicked her tongue, but had a satisfied look on her face.
Jinichi turned his focus to the still brooding Kisuke, the boy's blonde hair covering his blue eyes as he continued to patch himself up.
'Is he really that pissed??'
"You're killing me man! At least say something!!"
Aoi turned to Kisuke, a conflicted look on her face.
"Look Kisuke, I'm sorry, we, yes, we are both sorry, I'm sorry for reacting that way, I just don't like being touched so abruptly. Sooooo what can we do to make it up to you? We'll do anything."
"Yeah, yeah, what she said!" Jinichi said, nodding his head in agreement.
Kisuke who was still applying the bandage finally looked them in the eyes.
And stared at them with a blank look on his face and bandage placed on his jaw, although right now it was just a red bump.
Although his face was blank his right eye twitched uncontrollably, signifying that he was rather annoyed.
"...."
"...."
'This is awkward.'
Jinichi thought silently, as he and Aoi began to glance at each other uneasily.
Kisuke's expression changes. A smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes blooms on his face.
'I don't trust that smile.'
"Alright then…tomorrow we'll cover five kilometres instead of four."
'I KNEW IT!!!!!F*******K!!!'
"Wait,wait,wait,wait. Don't you think that's a bit too much??!!" Aoi asked in bewilderment.
"You're the ones that said you'll do anything for my forgiveness. That's how you're going to earn it." Kisuke shrugged.
"…Remind me never again to piss of Kisuke." Aoi whispered to Jinichi.
"For all our sakes I will keep that in mind."
Rustle.
Rustle.
!!!
Kisuke's head snapped to the entrance of the tree shelter.
'An enemy?'
Jinichi and Aoi draw out their kunai's, standing guard, ready for anything to happen.
A hand reached into the entrance of the tree, followed by a familiar brown curly head, although the hair was dishelved and had a few leaves in it.
"A little help please?" the person whispered frantically, the familiar sound of Jinichi-one's voice broke the tension. Everyone sighed in relief.
'Oh!!'
Jinichi reached out to the clone who was dangling on the tree.
"Why didn't you just tree walk?"
" I'm a clone you idiot. My reserves are half as yours, meaning less chakra to use stupidly!" the clone whispered aggressively.
"Alright, alright, I get it, no need to be a d**k about it." Jinichi responded before extending a helping hand.
"Okay up you go."
Hup!
the clone entered the tree, a make shift jacket bag full of various items in hand.
He handed it over to Jinichi.
"Here."
"Thanks." Jinichi said as he gave the bag to Kisuke who began riffling through them.
"I keep forgetting just how crass you are sometimes." Kisuke said while searching through the various stuff the clone foraged.
"Damn if even you think that, I've really got to change my voca-"
!!!!!!!!!
[ *POOF* ]
[ *POOF* ]
Jinichi-one and the makeshift bag disappear in a puff of smoke, confusing Aoi and Kisuke.
"Ack!Agggh!!!" Jinichi fell down to his knees, clutching his head in pain.
"WHAT THE HELL!!" Aoi said in shock.
"Jinichi!!"
Aoi and Kisuke rush to help him.
'IT FEELS LIKE SOMEONE IS DRILLING INTO MY SKULL IN!!'
A flood of information enters Jinichi's mind at a rapid pace, so much that he becomes overwhelmed by it.
His eyes blow wide and bloodshot, veins throbbing at his temples. The sheer pressure behind his eye's fractures something inside, and a dark trail of blood begins to drip from his nose, staining the bark of the hollow tree.
He squeezes his eyes shut, but he can't block out the visions. Flashes of events that he had not personally encountered himself swirled in his mind like a storm that did not want to end:
Jumping through the forest with Jinichi-one.
Splitting up.
Dodging and evading the other teams.
Almost getting killed by traps and animals.
The snake.
Ribbon head.
The snake sage.
The Oni-blood.
My father.
The fight against the snake.
Naruto.
Team 7.
Flashes of events that he had not personally encountered himself, swirled in his mind like a storm that did not want to end.
Aoi and Kisuke's voice falling on deaf ears as Jinichi was drowning in his own mind.
The phantom pain from being stabbed in the chest lingering for a brief moment as he touched his chest to confirm if he was still alive. In the midst of all this one thought stuck out from the rest in his mind.
'My father is alive.
My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive. My father is alive.'
Cold sweat began to gather on Jinichi's back, his body shaking, as a tumultuous mix of emotions surged through him in a single moment;
Shock. Confusion. Hurt. Anger. Hope. Disappointment. Fear. Confusion. Confusion. Confusion. Hurt. Hurt. Hope. Confusion.
Twelve years. Twelve good years, twelve years spent, believing that he was the only family member that survived the nine-tails attack. Twelve years spent alone with no one to call family. Twelve years spent with no one to call my own.
Twelve years of loneliness.
'Orochimaru could very likely be lying. Don't get your hopes up.'
Jinichi thought to himself. But something was telling him that may not be the case.
'But how else would he know so much of the Oni-blood? I've never heard of a clan that had Oni-blood in this world.'
'Why would my father work for Orochimaru, why would he be his student???
Is he being controlled? Yes that has to be the reason! He must have put him under a ge-'
!!!!
Jinichi felt his heart drop to his stomach.
'That's right…Genjutsu doesn't work on those with Oni-blood.'
A memory flashed in his mind; yellow reptilian eyes, pale skin and a sinister smile looked at him. Mocking him in his mind.
Jinichi breathing grew more frantic. His heart hammering in his chest.
Ba-dump.
'WHY IS HE WORKING FOR OROCHIMARU??!!!'
Ba-dump.
'WHY DID HE LEAVE THE VILLAGE???!!!
Ba-dump.
'WHY DOES FATHER HAVE ONI-BLOOD??!!'
Ba-dump.
'WHAT HAPPENED TWELEVE YEARS AGO??!!'
'I NEED AIR!'
Jinichi abruptly gets up surprising Kisuke and Aoi who have been calling out to him for the past few minutes and he didn't respond.
"I-I need air. I need s-space." He mutters as he begins to walk to the entrance of the tree to catch his breath.
"What? Its already dark out, none of us can go out anymore. We'd just give away our position." Kisuke said as he stood in front of Jinichi.
Jinichi was too lost in his mind to hear him. He walked past Kisuke and continued to the entrance.
Kisuke's hand reached out as he grabbed Jinichi by the arm and pinned him to the wall.
"Didn't you hear what I said?? we can't give away our position,
His grip tightened.
We don't know what's lurking out there right now we can't take any unnecessary risks."
Jinichi's mood shifted, his swirling emotions began to coalesce into anger, as his demeanour changed and his fingers began to twitch.
Aoi sensing the tension tried to diffuse the situation.
" You guys should calm down, let's talk this out." Aoi said walking towards the two.
"….Let g…"
" What?" Kisuke asked confused.
" I SAID LET GO!!" Jinichi lashed out in anger as his body moved before his mind could process it.
Bam!
Jinichi punched, his fist connecting cleanly with Kisuke's face.
Thud!
"Ack!"
Kisuke grunted in pain, the force of the blows slamming him into the tree bark.
Blood trickled out of Kisuke's nose. The silence in the tree was deafening, save for the sound of Jinichi's breathing, nothing else made noise.
!!!
'SHIT!'
"Shit! S-sorry Kisuke I didn't mean to do that!!"
WHY AM I APOLOGIZING!! IT'S HIS FAULT FOR GETTING IN OUR WAY!! a voice said in his mind.
The anger in his chest continued to fester.
"Woah! Woah! What's wrong with you Jinichi!??
Aoi says as she gets in between the two boys. Her back to Kisuke.
"You need to calm-"
She gasps in shock, taking an unconscious step back away from Jinichi.
" Y-your eyes!! they've changed, they're purple!!"
!!!!!
"Damn it!!"
'The Oni-blood must be reacting to my emotions!! Shit!! I need to calm down!!'
The memory of Orochimarus face flashes in Jinichi's mind once more.
'BUT HOW CAN I REMAIN CALM WITH EVERYTHING THAT'S HAPPENING??!!!'
You can't. a sinister voice whispers in the back of his mind.
'YES! I CAN NOT BE CALM! NOT NOW! NOT WHEN THAT SNAKE FACED BASTARD STILL HAS MY FATHER IN THE PALM OF HIS HAND! HE WILL DIE FOR HIS CRIMES!
HIS ENTRAILS MUST BE SPILLED BEFORE ME!HE MUST BE GUTTED LIKE THE ANIMAL HE IS!!! HIS BONES CRUSHED TO DUST WITHIN MY GRASP!!'
'No no no I need to calm down!! I can't lose control now!!!'
Control is a farce. An imaginary leash used by weaklings who fear their true selves.
The anger in Jinichi continued to fester in an indescribable rage as his chakra began to take a more violent nature, dark and malicious. His normal blue chakra began to change to a dangerous shade of purple.
The mood around him turning deathly cold, the pressure in the tree suffocating Aoi and Kisuke.
Boooommm!
His body began to twitch as his muscles began to coil dangerously. He clenched his teeth as they clattered from the strain of his inhumane mutation. He fell to the ground and clawed at the tree bark as his claws had begun to sprout.
"J..in..ic..hi.." Aoi croaks out as she falls to her knees and struggles to reach him.
"Grr…gg..r.rrr.rrrh…r..uu..nn.."
The black inked heart seals placed on Jinichi's chest begins to produce a blue glow.
Shing!!!
"Grrahhh!!"
Jinichi's chakra coils felt like they were injected with magma causing the slightly feral Jinichi to howl in pain as the oni-chakra that in his system begun to be purified.
But how can one suppress the expression of one's blood.
The first seal blue glow began to fade out as a purplish glow gave way.
Crack!
Drip!
Drip!
The first seal broke in a spray of ink and dripped onto the boy's clothes like acid.
'NO NO NO NO NO!! NOO!!! STOP DAMN IT!!'
The second seal began to glow with a blue light, going through the same purification process, but its blue colour faintly draining to purple.
'There's only one more seal stopping me from going on a rampage, I need to calm down!!'
'I Don't want to hurt them!! please not them!! Please!! No!! I don't want to hurt anyone!! I-'
'I DON'T WANT TO BE SEEN AS A MONSTER!!'
They already see you as such, why do you deny your heritage!!!
Aoi who is being held down by the weight of his bloodlust crawls to him, one inch at a time, one centimetre at a time before she's able to finally reach him.
A single tear trickles down from his purple eye.
Falling on her hair.
Forcing herself up, despite every cell in her body screaming against it she forces herself off the ground.
Clasp.
Her hand grabs his wrist. Her warm hand grabbing against cold armoured hand.
As she looks at him with a somber expression.
"S..omething…happened…in….the….forest…right? You don't have to tell us just know that we…a..re….here..for..you….team…thirteeen..for….li…fe right?"
Her fractured words cut through the turbulent voices in his head.
Team Thirteen for life.
The phrase struck Jinichi's fracturing consciousness like a physical blow.
Do not be fooled!! She merely wishes to blind you from your true purpose!! Do you not wish to kill the snake!!!??
'Not if it puts my friends lives at risk!'
The sinister voice shrieked in frustration, trying to bury Jinichi's heart under another wave of suffocating rage.
But the warmth of Aoi's hand around his wrist was too real. It was an anchor. It was a promise.
Shing!!!
'Orochimaru will get what's coming to him but I will not let my emotions destroy me in the process. So be gone with you evil blood!'
The second heart seal reacted to the sudden surge of his own true willpower. The fading blue light roared back to life, blazing with a blinding, brilliant intensity. The toxic purple chakra that had been coiling dangerously around his muscles began to hiss and shrink, physically forced backward by the sudden purification process.
"Arrrgghhh!!" Jinichi let out one final, agonizing cry as his chakra coils violently flushed out the corrupted chakra.
The brutal pressure inside the hollow tree suddenly vanished. The deathly cold air dissolved, replaced by the heavy, exhausted silence of the night.
Jinichi's body went completely limp. His newly sprouted claws receded back beneath his fingernails, and his muscles uncoiled, leaving him trembling and utterly spent. The purple hue bled rapidly out of his eyes, returning them to their normal blue colour just before his eyelids fluttered shut.
He collapsed forward, his forehead resting heavily against Aoi's shoulder as his breathing finally slowed to a ragged, exhausted pace. He was unconscious, but the second seal over his heart remained intact, pulsing with a faint, stable blue light.
Aoi collapsed back onto her knees, catching his weight as she let out a shaky, trembling breath.
Behind them, Kisuke's kunai slipped from his numb fingers, clattering loudly against the wood floor. He fell back against the tree bark, staring at the two of them in stunned, terrified silence.
You may deny your nature now boy, but you can only hold out for so long..