“The day has finally come.”
The cage door squeaked slightly as Kouta set the tired Raven into the enclosure. The bird had been carrying the words the aging medic had been both dreading and praying for. Now that it was finally time, he almost couldn’t figure out how to go about what he was about to do. But then, he had waited far too long, his family had waited far too long, for this day to come again. He would handle this right, not the way his father had. It all seemed like such an undertaking, but in reality it was really going to be as simple as Kouta made it.
Without further hesitation, the aging man hurried home. Judging by the peace, the ‘brat pack’ as Kouta had begun to think of them as, weren’t all there.
This meant Ai probably was.
“Ai!” He called out, listening for his youngest boy’s rapid footsteps. Sure enough, the sound of leather on wood greeted him just before the image of his son. Kouta took a moment to look his son up and down. ‘How he’s grown. That look in his eyes, the set chin. Ai is truly his mother’s child.’ Why his son had shaved his head, Kouta couldn’t fathom. He had been doing it for three years now, and every day his father wondered when, if he ever, he would let it grow back. ‘Such a different look from his brothers. It’s no surprise though, really. After all…’
Ai was nothing like his brothers.
“Father.” The boy murmured, head bowed gingerly. His heart raced as his mind raced with possibilities. Why was his father suddenly addressing him? This was maybe the third time that Ai could recount in the past year that he had spoken to his father, and it rarely ended well. It wasn’t that he and his father didn’t get along; it was just that Kouta was a stressed man. Where Ai was tactful and quiet, his brothers were loud and downright rude. But in this rare opportunity, the two were alone. Despite himself, the boy’s heart swelled. This was such a rare occurrence; Ai couldn’t help but be excited, and terrified.
“Come with me son. There’s something I have to show you.”
Following his father through the house and up the stairs to his study, a room the student had only peeked into on a few occasions, the boy did his best to keep his face composed and his mind focused. This was no time to reflect on his childhood, his father’s expression spelled that out loud and clear.
“I’m not sure where to begin boy. This is possibly the most important conversation we are ever going to have. Your entire life, I’ve been watching you, closer than your brothers. As you know, you are different from them, you have been from birth. You have more control over your mind, and your chakra, than even Tama. Your metabolism is unnaturally high, which is why you are thinner than your brothers. You’re a bright lad, I’m sure you’ve noticed these and many more differences, and wondered why you are so different.”
Pausing for a moment, the grizzled man locked eyes with his son, trying to read him. Instead of the confusion he expected, there was excitement and fear, but overall it was curiosity that his eyes portrayed. ‘That shouldn’t be a surprise. The boy would have made a hell of a scholar.’ Mentally steading himself, Kouta took in a deep breath and prepared himself. This is where things got tricky.
“Well, son… Our family hails from the fire country. Over a century ago, the Tanaka’s were simple fishmongers in a village on the coast. But your great grandfather, Tanaka Aiko, bedded with a Shinobi from the nearby village in the leaves. Their son, the bastard of a noble shinobi, was treated like a black mark on both families honor. The mother spent only one night with her newborn son, your grandfather, before giving him Aiko with orders to leave the country and never be seen again. And so, like that, our family was moved the Lightning country. But my grandfather brought something more than my father and our name with him.” Kouta paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts before continuing.
“Your grandfather carried with him the blood of an ancient clan, and something else with it. That same blood passed to me and through me to you. The day you were born, I implanted in you a gift. The gift of our blood.”
Stepping forward, Kouta bent to one knee in front of his youngest son, palm extended upwards.
“Fa-father?” Ai stammered out, his eyes darting from his father’s eyes to his up turned hand. At first he was confused, but within moments his confusion turned to shock.
Tiny dots were pouring from his father’s sleeves, dozens turning to hundreds turning to thousands in the blink of an eye. No, not dots.
Bugs.
Fascinated, Ai leaned in closed, much to his father’s surprise and admiration. ‘That boy is definitely his mother’s son.’ Kouta thought with admiration, remembering his late wife’s fearlessness in the face of his creepy crawly… condition.
“These are the Kikai. They are bonded to me by the blood that runs through my veins, the same blood that runs through yours. We are descendants of the Aburame clan, a line of Shinobi who share their bodies with the Kikai in a mutual relationship. We provide for each other, and are reliant on each other. Without them, we would die, and vice versa. I say we because, well son…”
“…They live within you as well.”
[Word Count: 939]
The cage door squeaked slightly as Kouta set the tired Raven into the enclosure. The bird had been carrying the words the aging medic had been both dreading and praying for. Now that it was finally time, he almost couldn’t figure out how to go about what he was about to do. But then, he had waited far too long, his family had waited far too long, for this day to come again. He would handle this right, not the way his father had. It all seemed like such an undertaking, but in reality it was really going to be as simple as Kouta made it.
Without further hesitation, the aging man hurried home. Judging by the peace, the ‘brat pack’ as Kouta had begun to think of them as, weren’t all there.
This meant Ai probably was.
“Ai!” He called out, listening for his youngest boy’s rapid footsteps. Sure enough, the sound of leather on wood greeted him just before the image of his son. Kouta took a moment to look his son up and down. ‘How he’s grown. That look in his eyes, the set chin. Ai is truly his mother’s child.’ Why his son had shaved his head, Kouta couldn’t fathom. He had been doing it for three years now, and every day his father wondered when, if he ever, he would let it grow back. ‘Such a different look from his brothers. It’s no surprise though, really. After all…’
Ai was nothing like his brothers.
“Father.” The boy murmured, head bowed gingerly. His heart raced as his mind raced with possibilities. Why was his father suddenly addressing him? This was maybe the third time that Ai could recount in the past year that he had spoken to his father, and it rarely ended well. It wasn’t that he and his father didn’t get along; it was just that Kouta was a stressed man. Where Ai was tactful and quiet, his brothers were loud and downright rude. But in this rare opportunity, the two were alone. Despite himself, the boy’s heart swelled. This was such a rare occurrence; Ai couldn’t help but be excited, and terrified.
“Come with me son. There’s something I have to show you.”
Following his father through the house and up the stairs to his study, a room the student had only peeked into on a few occasions, the boy did his best to keep his face composed and his mind focused. This was no time to reflect on his childhood, his father’s expression spelled that out loud and clear.
“I’m not sure where to begin boy. This is possibly the most important conversation we are ever going to have. Your entire life, I’ve been watching you, closer than your brothers. As you know, you are different from them, you have been from birth. You have more control over your mind, and your chakra, than even Tama. Your metabolism is unnaturally high, which is why you are thinner than your brothers. You’re a bright lad, I’m sure you’ve noticed these and many more differences, and wondered why you are so different.”
Pausing for a moment, the grizzled man locked eyes with his son, trying to read him. Instead of the confusion he expected, there was excitement and fear, but overall it was curiosity that his eyes portrayed. ‘That shouldn’t be a surprise. The boy would have made a hell of a scholar.’ Mentally steading himself, Kouta took in a deep breath and prepared himself. This is where things got tricky.
“Well, son… Our family hails from the fire country. Over a century ago, the Tanaka’s were simple fishmongers in a village on the coast. But your great grandfather, Tanaka Aiko, bedded with a Shinobi from the nearby village in the leaves. Their son, the bastard of a noble shinobi, was treated like a black mark on both families honor. The mother spent only one night with her newborn son, your grandfather, before giving him Aiko with orders to leave the country and never be seen again. And so, like that, our family was moved the Lightning country. But my grandfather brought something more than my father and our name with him.” Kouta paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts before continuing.
“Your grandfather carried with him the blood of an ancient clan, and something else with it. That same blood passed to me and through me to you. The day you were born, I implanted in you a gift. The gift of our blood.”
Stepping forward, Kouta bent to one knee in front of his youngest son, palm extended upwards.
“Fa-father?” Ai stammered out, his eyes darting from his father’s eyes to his up turned hand. At first he was confused, but within moments his confusion turned to shock.
Tiny dots were pouring from his father’s sleeves, dozens turning to hundreds turning to thousands in the blink of an eye. No, not dots.
Bugs.
Fascinated, Ai leaned in closed, much to his father’s surprise and admiration. ‘That boy is definitely his mother’s son.’ Kouta thought with admiration, remembering his late wife’s fearlessness in the face of his creepy crawly… condition.
“These are the Kikai. They are bonded to me by the blood that runs through my veins, the same blood that runs through yours. We are descendants of the Aburame clan, a line of Shinobi who share their bodies with the Kikai in a mutual relationship. We provide for each other, and are reliant on each other. Without them, we would die, and vice versa. I say we because, well son…”
“…They live within you as well.”
[Word Count: 939]