Hikaru sat upright on the seat, giving Nao the attention of all her remaining senses. She had come across the clinical definition of a Jinchuuriki in passing during trips to the library, and there had been a handful of patients at the Byoin with malevolent spirits reportedly sealed in them. Experiencing it firsthand, however, was a completely different perspective- everything she thought she knew took on a new importance, as selfish as it seemed, now that she was a host herself.
That there existed another blind jinchuuriki was both a shock and a comfort to her. As she began to think more about it, she remembered her father mentioning the Hashigaki clan’s innate ability to control spirits… if there was someone with the same circumstances as her, maybe she could learn from them how she was supposed to live her life this way.
“No, that’s an mportant topic! Can you tell me any more about this Izumi? Is there somewhere I could meet with him?”
The young woman nodded as Nao continued. His description was lining up with her father’s- her mother had died when she was young, which would have been when the spirit was resealed within her. The part about her chakra naturally adapting was odd, since the Kaiku had felt distinctly foreign to her when it revealed itself. Hikaru didn’t raise any more questions, however, as she listened intently to the Sennin’s next words. A weakening seal, forceful extraction, and childbirth… none were good options. The first didn’t appear to be the case when she spoke with the Kaiku, the third wouldn’t be happening anytime soon, and the second… one of the few things she had known beforehand about being a jinchuuriki was that separating human from spirit improperly resulted in the host’s death. That was the reason she had fled from her father: after everything in her life he had revealed to be a lie, she didn’t trust him with a life-or-death procedure.
Confronted with that thought, Hikaru reasoned uncomfortably that she’d have to make a choice between a risky extraction and life as a jinchuuriki forever. She went silent as the world slowed around her. Almost unconsciously, she found herself traveling back to the image of the shaded balcony in her mind. The bright blue of the Kaiku was nowhere to be seen; instead, only the robed humanoid figure stood before her (colorless as the world of her spirit was, it didn’t require working eyes to perceive).
Strangely, it felt almost laughable to open her mouth and say something to it. This was likely what Nao had meant about adaptation and familiarity- although she had felt nothing like this with the Kaiku spirit, standing beside this other being seemed like the most natural thing in the world. It was a nearly tactile feeling of implicit comfort, like falling into bed or petting an old cat. She didn’t have to speak. Instead, Hikaru simply wondered the question aloud in her mind-
“What are you?”
The spirit heard her, she could tell, though no answer came. Undeterred, the Medical Chief walked forwards and reached out her hand to touch it. As she did so, she asked another question,
“Will we be able to live conjoined like this forever?”
The response was immediate- and, she could tell, unconscious. The Sennin’s room spread itself out around her as she stood, back in the real world. It was as if her earlier blindness was only a distant memory: every detail, every sharp trace of light appeared to her in perfect clarity as she gazed around her, registering the sudden shock on her cousin’s face. As she caught an image of her reflection in the glass wall beside them, she saw her eyes.
They shone a fierce, luminescent blue, pierced in the centers by a ring of amaranth; a harsh departure from her previous brown color. Startled, she shook her head, opening her eyes again only to find them unchanged. With much more mental effort than normal, she dove back into her headspace, only to be greeted by the azure figure of the Kaiku.
“Hello once again, Miyazaki Hikaru. I am the spirit Kaiku- it is my name, not a disambiguation as your father seems to believe.” It paused for a moment.
“Thank you for not acting on his wishes. Though it may be foolish of me to tell you this, the power you contain within your body is easily capable of ending my life.”
Hikaru opened her mouth to speak,
“Why are you here? I thought you had left my body…”
“No, although I will have to soon. I am here to explain the role of the Seer to you- while it is true that you chose neither your father nor your duty to the clan, your rejection of the former seems to indicate an openness to the latter. Or so the elders believe.”
The young woman frowned, but said nothing. Kaiku continued,
“The Seer’s role, for now, is to foster the development of both themselves and their jinchuuriki spirit. Your spirit,” it pointed to the robed figure,
“is dormant, unconscious. Capable of a few things, but still in its early stages of evolution. The process by which these spirits grow is unique for each host, but I will tell you what I do know: I have facilitated the sealing of every Amari clan jinchuuriki since the first. Your spirit- Ukabu, as you have named it- is unlike any other I have seen. However, you have adapted to it, and have the capability to control it. Take the advice of those around you, Hikaru.”
“I will speak with you again, on behalf of the clan. For now, though, I cannot stay here.” With its final words, Kaiku faded again, leaving the young woman with the robed figure that was her jinchuuriki spirit. She sorted through its words for a few moments. Then, more decisively, she reached out a hand in the same motion as before.
The cozy room appeared again, gray and receding as she assumed her eyes were returning to normal. What was ‘normal’ was changing quickly… it meant she was blind now, except she could see by using Ukabu’s ability. Realizing she was still standing, Hikaru sat, feeling like she owed the group an explanation.
“I think I have more control over my jinchuuriki spirit,” she continued her train of thought aloud.
“That was what those eyes were, I think, and I can sense the world much more accurately while they’re active.”
-
Teru listened carefully to Nao’s explanation as well, despite her attention being outwardly directed towards the boy. She wanted as much information as she could get about jinchuuriki- she couldn’t help but feel partially responsible for her clan’s practices, even if it was just in her unknowingness. She watched intently as Hikaru closed her eyes and was silent for a while, but took the time to greet Toshi with another smile,
“Nice to meetcha. We really appreciate it- I won’t be staying, so no worries about that, although the sleepovers sound great! We’re both Leaf Shinobi, yep,” she answered his question.
“Really, this place sounds great. Thank you both for taking her in.”
Her eyes widened when Hikaru stood up suddenly, two icy spheres burning in her head. This was the first outburst like this- what was she supposed to do? Teru rose too, ready to try and contain her cousin if she needed it. As she did, however, the girl screwed her eyes shut again, and she stood back to give her space.
The bright blue faded once she opened her eyes again. Teru fixed her cousin with a look- if there was any question about the complexity of the situation, there was the answer.
“As long as you’re okay? I’d say don’t scare us like that, but you probably can’t control it.”