Side Story: The Stuff of Legends - Complete

[KageYuuki]

A figure approached Yukari in her apartment. He would easily be set apart from others in everything about him she could sense. He sauntered instead of walking, his rhythmic steps lightly brushing across the ground, yet his hips moving much more than was necessary. A medley of perfumes would hit at the same time, smelling much like a rose garden. It’d make him easy to find long before he actually knocked.

“Ah, is one Yukari -Redacted- here?”

He’d barely finished knocking when the door slid open. Given she’d been spending the day alone, Yukari’s face wasn’t wrapped. “Yes, though I don’t believe we’ve met.”

“Well, Ms. Redacted, there’s good reason for that, I assure you. Namely, you weren’t ready. I’m Susumu.”

“I see. Please, just call me Yukari.”

“You do? Now, the Hokage has a mission for you specifically. I’d give you the file to read, but considering circumstances, I will read the mission aloud:

‘Yoshitsune Tenjin was chunnin that recently killed his team and has gone rogue. We have sent teams after him, but he managed to escape into a cave, Ama no Iwato. The teams have been unable to follow him inside due to the cave’s unique structure. The rocks are unaffected by chakra, making earth users useless, the echoing effects mess with the best sensors we have, and chakra is reflected inside. We need you to hunt him down.

Yoshitsune is a taijutsu and sealing specialist.’

So, would you perhaps be willing for a such a mission? It's rather dangerous and you’re likely to get yourself killed, but we’ve thrown everything else at it, why not a blind girl in a cave? Then again, your abilities are quite interesting, I must admit. Any questions?”

A low hum in thought, though the faintest traces of a smile hung on her lips. Sure, it was a dangerous mission, incredibly so, but she was needed, that’s all that mattered right then. “I see a lot more than people seem to give me credit for. Seals though, they aren’t exactly my specialty. Anything known about the seals Yoshitsune uses? By the way, is that Pea de Rose de la Reine you’re wearing?”

“Good nose, though I wear an eau de toilette as opposed to your eau fraiche. I might recommend upgrading, it costs a bit more, though not as much as a parfum, and for day to day wear is much better as it lasts. So few people notice the little touches I put into my appearance. Anyways, on his seals, I’d recommend not getting touched myself, Yoshitsune likes to wear ink on his palms to press it on you mid combat, and use chakra to change the pattern as he fights. He’s got a variety of them. Some for summoning an object through you, some for turning you into a summon, some for draining chakra, some for chaining chakra to your muscles to render them worthless. Oh, and a variety for murdering teammates in their sleep. Well then, happy hunting. So glad your not anosmic, that’d be worse than blind I believe.”

“Hmm, I just might after this mission, though I did hear they’re coming out with a new scent soon... Regardless, I’ll gather my things and head out then.” Seals meant to work with taijutsu though… interesting. If only she could still block tenketsu.

 

[KageYuuki]

The cave was about a day’s journey away. Descending into it, the air became to be much colder, and the walls seemed to be made of crystal the entire way through. The crystal felt smooth to the touch, and the layout of the cave seemed to make spirals downward, with few shafts.

The man of the hour himself was at the bottom of one such shaft, supplies were scattered around him, and he muttered to himself continually.

“They had it coming… they had it coming.”

The acoustics were such it would sound like his voice was above Yukari.

Yukari focused her chakra in her hands and feet as she walked, one hand sliding along the wall of the path. It didn’t take long to feel out where the rogue chuunin was hidden. The way sounds traveled in this place, she wondered if it would throw even Mai off. Perched on the wall of the mineshaft, the kunoichi pointed a clawed finger at him.

Snake Killer

The man started breathing faster and faster as he held his hands together, and right as Yukari aimed at him, he clapped his hands together and formed a snake handseal. A tag was summoned detonated.

Concussive tag

He was thrown as the claws would have reached him.

“I killed my own teammates. My friends. You think Imma hesitate over you? I am king of this cave! Come, let me feast!”

He held out one hand at Yukari, and after a small delay, a jet of ink shot at her. He didn’t seem to have any issue finding her in the dark.

Yukari started falling back, figures he can find me just fine… Feeling something leave his palm her own snapped forward and let out a concussive blast of chakra. Moving through a short series of handsigns, strands of her hair broke off and shot down into the opening below. Hardened and as sharp as needles, they carried about as much power as senbon would.

The ink would still go forward, but parted at her vacuum palm, hitting on either side of her on the cave wall. The man paused for a second, taking until the hair was close to respond, he summoned another concussive tag to blast them away. The ink on the wall started to pull towards the center, towards Yukari.

Climbing further up wasn’t looking to be an option, she could faintly feel the ink that had spattered above blocking her path. “Damn,” Yukari didn’t want to get overly close but it didn’t look like she had much choice. Even with the jump, the kunoichi still landed with a light step.

The man didn’t immediately leap after her. Instead, he faced one palm slightly to the side of her, and one palm opposing it in the opposite direction. A squelching sound could be heard as the ink on his palm rearranged itself. Yukari probably couldn’t read it, though it read ‘human’ on it.

A clawed finger dug into her thumb, drawing blood before she moved through a series of handsigns.

As the man felt Yukari attack herself, he moved, recognizing the jutsu.

Skywheel: Unending Self-Summoning

Suddenly, a dozen copies of the man were felt, moving in a straight line from where was to straight behind her, only started to fade a moment later, leaving the one behind her. The squelching sound was heard as he tried to palm her mid summon.

Contract Cancel

He’s fast, though this wasn’t the natural speed Mai always relied on. His hand made contact with her just as her own touched the cave floor to finish the summon. The air around her distorted and for a moment, it felt like the ground had dropped out from under her.

The blind young woman fell for a moment before she landed upon something rather soft and warm, and very large at that. The softness was almost breathtaking when compared to the rush of a battle before, the sounds from before were gone and replaced by some flickering of flames and…

The... Soft purrs of cats?

“Myurrr? Who lays upon me-ow? I feel one upon my fur nyah.” A soft, yet somewhat loud voice came upon as something moved in the shadows of Yukari’s perception. “A flea? A mouse? A fleeing Mouse? Nyah.”

The strange softness of her landing was likely the only thing that kept the wind from being knocked out of her. Though it did little for her confusion, the fluff and rumbling purr filled in her “vision.” Yukari slowly sat up, she’d clearly landed on a Nekomata. She didn’t think they could get this big. Hikari sure as hell wasn’t.

Idiot, the file even said he could mess with a summoning jutsu… The kunoichi scolded herself, “My apawlogies, nyah. My summoning contract was tampered with in the middle of battle. I’m Yukari, a student of Koma and kunoichi of the Hidden Leaf.”

“Mew-kari nyah? I’ve purread of you, Koma’s second little kitten nyah. I smelled the leaves on mew, so you are not lying.” The immense nekomata swished its tails, looking down upon the person who was currently on the mid center of its belly.

“An accident hmmm~! And here I thought I told Hikari to send mew to me-ow… or was it more food?

...No… it was mew… Wait that was months ago nyah!!!”

The large Nekomata almost reminded Yukari of Koma in a way, maybe it was a yokai thing. She paused, “Hikari’s never said anything about this.”

“...Well, Purrr-fect. At least you're here now…And in a spot of trouble, I see… Want to expurrr-ain?”

“Ah, well,” Yukari rubbed the back of her neck. “I’d been sent to track down a ninja that had gone rogue. I eventually found him, we got into a fight. He specializes in fuuinjutsu, and when I went to summon Hikari I was hit with a seal and,” she made a sweeping gesture with her hands, “here we are.”

The nekomata nodded. “Nyah, what an odd situation. Seems he has you beat. For now at least, would be hard to deal with seals nyah.” The nekomata shifted a bit as its tails took to the air, swirling about. “Nya-ow, tell me. Do you believe in fate at all? That things are to be as a nya-asty plan?”

Yukari quietly chuckled, “Few years ago I would’ve scoffed at the idea. Though meeting Koma-Sensei changed that and a lot of other things.”

“Why do you think he chose you out of the bunch nyaa? Because you were Hyuuga?”

Yukari pressed her lips together in a tight frown, “I don’t know. I mean I was the only one that actually took an interest in this world and the life that came with it.”

“Mmmmhmmmmm, And you took to it like a fish to water nyaa, a tasty, tasty fish murrr… Have you ever stopped to question why was he introducing all this to you? Or do you simply accept it all without question nyaa? Awfully sheepish of you, I thought you more catty~!”

Yukari sighed, “He wants me to take over his responsibilities in this world, doesn’t he?” Her shoulders slumped at the thought, it would make for a good explanation on why the jounin continued showing her more and more in the realm of yokai.

“Every man has a right to retire nya, but he ain’t leavin’ yet I’d say. He can see things that normal humans can’t. And at that, he has an eye for talent. Why he knew to set mew up with Hikari. Wherever that kitten is.” It took a moment to look around before continuing.

“Thing is, we’ve been... Looking for someone… Meow hear us out, it may seem odd. But how much do you know about the sages.”

The kunoichi gave a light hum, trying to recall what hazy details she had. “Not….much. Aside from the legend of the Sage of Six Paths, that he created the foundation for all ninjutsu.” Yukari’s brows knitted together in thought, “I don’t recall ever hearing of a modern day equivalent to him.”

Unless Koma was one? Would probably explain a few things now that she thought about it.

“Well, that’s because it’s up to me-ow and other spirits to make em nyaa. Hasn’t happened in a while really.” The cat rose it’s eyebrows at the young woman, hoping it would get SOME sorta reaction, like seriously would it kill this girl to be excited for once?

Yukari swallowed, “And… you want to make one, don’t you?” The power of the Sage, it was the stuff of legends. The same kind of thing that bastard Daisuke was after, forcing her to destroy her own eyes in an act of desperation. She’d tasted its power, was it really something she could even handle?

“....The hell is that face for Nyaah!? I say you have the chance to become a fucking sage and you wiffle and waffle!?! Kids these days nyaa!!”

“Why the hell wouldn’t I hesitate?” Yukari sneered, “it’s thanks to some asshat after the same power that I had to destroy my own eyes!”

“You could even think about replacing Koma with that nyaattitude!?”

“Koma has nothing to do with this!” Yukari was on her feet without even realizing it, baring fangs that weren’t there.

“Bullshit you dumb mouse! Look at yourself, in the metaphysical sense mind, you have been through things nyyaaaa- body could even begin to imagine.

And I tell you, tell mew! That you c-nyan be a legend and you…

NYAAAA!!!!!

LIVE A LITTLE!!!!

I can tell you now you can’t take that man’s damn place and he ain’t telling yea to!

WHAT IS HE!? IS HE YOUR FUCKING DAD!?

MEOOWWWWW!!!

YOU GOTTA BE KITTEN ME!?! HIS OWN DAUGHTER CAN DO IT IF SHE GOT OFF HER LAZY ASS!

Hell, he isn’t giving her this chance, she’s probably gonna end up like her mother! Though that woman nyohohoho~! Koma’s a lucky man there~!”

“Nyaa hey here's a chance to be a legend. Nah that ain’t for me.” the large cat kind of went nuclear in anger. It rolled over and let Yukari slip to the ground as it stood up and began moving.

“Fine, you wanna let it slip? Sure! Sink further and let that Fox pamper you to death, be some idle waste nyaa. Roku would turn nyea into a fox is she could.”

Yukari landed on her feet easily enough, the solid earth giving her a better picture of the nekomata’s sheer size. Her whole body trembled from a barely suppressed rage. “Idle waste?” Sharp claws shredded the silk around her face. “If that’s all I was, I would’ve quit being a shinobi the moment I lost my eyes you stupid cat!” The deep scars on her face and sunken remains of her eyes were in plain sight now. “I would’ve given up when I lost my name, my birthright; when I had fucking everything ripped out from under me!”

The cat paused and craned its neck around to look at her. “Oh? Is that so? Then tell me what have you done since then? From what I've heard you’ve been cooped up and staying quiet. Have you even reached out to your friends? I wonder if they even remember you Nyaa.” The cat continued to press, like having its paw on a struggling mouse.

Yukari’s lips curled into a snarl, “I had to relearn everything, even something as simple as walking. To say nothing of fighting again,” Her claws dug into her clenched fists. “And they didn’t forget, Mai would never forget…”[/color]

“You think you’d rather this opportunity be left to another? Somebody stronger? Well girl, those others just aren’t ready for it, they haven’t been through what you have, and what you have been through has made you a purr-fect vessel for this chakra.

...Well not purrfect, you still could die I have to let you know that.

But you could die in any job, what’s so different about this?”

“Ever since becoming a genin I’ve barely done anything without running that risk.” Yukari pointed at the cat, a large amount of chakra built up in the tip of her finger, “I never said no to this. Now, are you show me? Or am I going to have to make you?”

“NYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA-

Oh wait you're serious.

Lemme laugh harder.

NYAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

Okay, kitten yea got it, hold tight and don’t let it kill yea. Fast and quick let's go!” And within the blink of an eye, the twin tails of the gigantic cat lashed out like a scorpion’s stinger, smacking Yukari with its twin tails and injected the chakra, forcing the sage transformation.

“Worst part nyah! Then the training begins!”

The cat paused “...Which also kinda sucks. Honestly, sucks to be you nyaa.”

“Eh?” Wait, that actually worked? Then what the hell was all that about back there? Yukari didn’t have much time to dwell on it before a wave of power washed over her. Chakra both familiar and foreign overflowed from her body, the power was… overwhelming.

“Nyaaugh,” Yukari fell to her knees, “Some expurr-nation would’ve been nice, asshole!” Why was she even talking like that? This was not the time to be fussing over matching the way Nekomata speak. Her teeth grew sharper, almost fang-like.

“Expurrain?” The old cat was fully facing her once again, “Simple, either mew make this power yours or die, nyah.”

Patches of dark fur had haphazardly appeared across Yukari’s body, “Damn… fleabag…” She dug her claws into the cool earth. She could just let go… why continue fighting it?

Too weak to make a stand against the people she’d once called family. Too weak to be of much use to the village as a shinobi. Would anyone even notice if she didn’t come back?

Just let go… it’d be so easy...

What did she even have to fight for?

“Man… Yukari, you ever wonder why we keep going? I mean, by all means neither of us should be ninjas anymore. Couple of broken birds, and we ain’t even adults yet. What keeps you going?”

“I… I’m really not sure… I lost everything I was fighting for. Maybe I’m just running on momentum at this point….”

“....I wanna see what’s true, what’s not. I wanna make my own opinion. I mean, I’ve been told so many things…. Well… I’m just going to walk my own path and see where it goes. Don’t think anyone really trusts me, but... Well, I guess that’s fine.

….Anyways… thanks Yukari. I mean, don’t think you’ve ever not trusted me. Means a lot…”

“I’ve always got your back.”

There! A small spark, dim as it may have been, floated in front of her.

”....but … I cannot bear the thought of you being hurt. There has to be another way…”

Another spark, this one almost…. Fluffy in appearance.

"Hey, kid…” A familiar voice reached out from the Magatama she wore, “I know I'm an asshole, I know that we haven't had much time to simply chat and speak and build and form a friendship or relationship beyond I'm your boss and sensei and source of pain.

But... You're alright kid. I owe you a great deal and I'll be honest you've done miraculously despite the odds.

I knew you would come through, I knew you'd be able to.

But having to force myself not to help... Especially after all this shit, well, it hurts. It really does. Once you get back from this I'm going to reward you properly. Don't give up kid, show this sage shit who’s boss."

A third spark; fourth, fifth… there were several of them now, all familiar, all precious. And all waiting on her to come back.

Yukari gritted her teeth and stood. Her body shook from the effort needed to force her stiffening muscles to move. “I’m not… dying here!” She could feel the chakra from the sage running rampant throughout her body. The bastard had said she needed to make this power her own…

Practically roaring from the effort, Yukari seized the wild chakra and swarmed it with her own, forcing the two to blend. For a brief moment, it felt like time had stopped, the only thing she could hear was her heart pounding in her ears.

Was this how Mai felt in a fight?

Her muscles freed up then, many of the other changes quickly falling away as well. Yukari’s entire body was cloaked in a layer of chakra. Her breaths were heavy, ragged. The kunoichi swaying slightly.

The cat stared down at the young woman it’s feline mouth curled up into a sharp grinned smile. “Well well well~! Looks like you pur-vived! You’ve done the impaw-sible!” The cat flicked its tail about and sat down in front of her. “You must be exhausted but there is much to be done.

Rest, have a little cat nap, let the chakra seep into your body… Then… I’ll teach you how to use it…”

 

[KageYuuki]

Yukari stood at the mouth of the cave, feeling the cool air drifting out. The local Tauki had said he was still inside despite her spending a couple weeks training under the sage. “Ready, nyah?” Hikari asked from her perch on the kunoichi’s shoulder.

“Yeah, time to go home already.” Yukari propped her new staff against the cave entrance and started inside. The old cat had said it marked her as a “kitten” sage among the other spirits, though it felt more like sticking a bell around her neck. Thing even jingled as she walked!

The cave itself was the same as ever, smooth crystal and jagged breaks lining it. However, this time, one thing had changed. A strange echo came from every direction. It never stopped.

As Yukari went deeper, the voice became more and more clear.

“Crazy? I’m not crazy, I did what any reasonable man would do. They mocked me every day. Oh, I’m half-assed? Well, you’re dead! HA! Hahahaha! The food was the last straw. We’re ninja, not chef’s. Why don’t you come back so I can kill you again!”

Oh good, he’s gone completely batshit. Yukari flowed more chakra into her feet as she walked, getting a broader sense of the cave’s layout. It didn’t take long to find a shaft above where he hid. Weaving a few quick handsigns, she made her voice sound like it came from in front of him. “Maybe I will.”

A scream echoed through the cave, followed by mad laughter. The man slammed his hand forward, grabbing a rock in front of him, picking it up, and literally running it into the wall.

“I’ll kill you as many times as I have to Izumi, you whore!”

His heartbeat quickened as the hair on his arms prickled.

That… actually worked better than she expected. Yukari could feel the nekomata on her shoulder tense slightly, it would take a moment for her to gather enough natural energy. Taking a breath she threw her voice again, aiming in a different part of the tunnel. “But did you even succeed? Or did you just half ass that too, Yoshitsune?”

“LEAVE ME BE SPIRIT!”

And with that, he picked up the rock, the ‘body’, and threw it as hard as he could down the passage. The entire cave shook, and the sound of gems shattering echoed throughout, leaving crystal shards all over the floor.

Looks like he isn’t going any further down the path. “Leave you be?” Swiping her clawed fingers, arcs of chakra shot down towards his back. “They aren’t leaving until you pay for what you did.” Yukari finally dropped down, attempting to land as far from him and the mess of shards as she could.

Slapping his palm down on the ground, he released a seal:

“Repulse.”

He was shot away perpendicular to the swipes.

“Pay? I only did what you deserved. You don’t deserve life!”

Hold his other palm towards Yukari, he fired a blob of ink off his palm, which quickly formed the word ‘attract’.

“Have a tomb.”

Yukari gritted her teeth, she’d hoped that landing was far enough from him. She quickly spun, chakra emitting from her entire body. The spinning shell of chakra kicked up several of the small crystals on the floor.

Eight Trigrams: Palms Revolving Heaven

Shards of crystal left several cuts in Yoshitsune, who screamed as they left gashes, though at this point it was debatable if it was physical pain casing the screaming. His ink splattered across the walls.

“That’s it, killing you now.”

He held his palm forward, chakra building as the ink changed shape in his palm.

Yukari took a breath, letting everything fall away. The metallic tang of blood in the air, Yoshitsune’s screaming and the squelch of his ink. She’d never actually used this in combat, but… since when wasn’t it sink or swim? “You hear them, don’t you? Your teammates calling for your head.”

She gritted her teeth, her stance shifting to all fours. A pause before her chakra surged, coating Yukari’s body in a brilliant shroud. To have murdered his own teammates… the reasons she heard made it far from justified.

Or forgivable.

The chakra surged and lashed out wildly, bathing the area in a blue. It grew more stable, coalescing around Yukari in the form of a cat. A forked tail stretched out from the cloak, flicking in anger. Yukari bared her fangs at the man in front of her.

Sage Transformation: Form of the Nekomata

At the chakra glow, Yoshitsune’s muscles relaxed.

“You’re not Izumi! Ha! She’s far gone. So is Naru. Wait… I thought I killed you too, weeks ago. Well, I’ll kill you again! And again! And ahaha, maybe again. DON’T YOU LOOK DOWN ON ME! Don’t tell me there’s someone who gives you zero respect that you wouldn’t take down in an instant if given so. That’s it! You’re coming after me because you're jealous! You want to do what I did! KILL the people looking down on you! You should have just said so. I have no quarrel with you, go with my blessing! Do you want my aide?”

The madman set his hands on the floor, his ink spreading out in a seal on the ground.

“Or I can introduce you to Izumi, to Naru.”

“There are plenty of people I’d love to knock down a few pegs. But the dead feel no fear.” Feeling him press his hands to the floor Yukari lunged, clinging to the wall with chakra to avoid whatever seal he was preparing as she closed the gap for a slash.

The man held his hand to the side, and again, dozens of Yoshitsunes appeared as he summoned himself from one palm to another. The ground started to shake where he had sealed it, the crystal shards clattering on the ground like a 1,000 chimes.

The closer she got, the better she could feel his movements. Yukari wasn’t going to let this end like the last time. The wall cracked as she kicked off, claws reaching for his throat.

The man gasped as he saw where she was going, and ducked slightly as she slashed at him, her claws grazing his forehead, leaving a long slash across it. Blood flowed quickly over his eyes.

“You fool! You’ll kill us both!”

His seal exploded, sending out a shockwave, and tons of shards of crystal at both of them. Yoshitsune braced his hands over his face to protect what he could, though the blood over his left eye made things much more difficult.

Yukari gritted her teeth as landed, skidding a few feet. As his seal detonated, her palm snapped forward with a blast of chakra at the incoming shards.

With Yukari's blow deflecting the shards in their direction, the man took advantage of the lack of death headed his way. He dropped his hands over his face, and rushed Yukari, trying to palm her.

Yukari tensed, ready to spring backwards and out of his reach. Before leaping away, she pointed at his right eye.

Snake Killer

Considering the locomotion of the average human body is a helluva lot faster going forward than backwards, Yukari still had a very angry Yoshitsune on top of her as she went backwards, his palm raised, falling towards her. It stopped about an inch in front of her face, with Yoshitsune stopping completely in front of her, a splatter of blood falling against her own face, his breath expelling on Yukari. And then he fell, a hole drilled straight through his head from his right eye.

Yukari kicked Yoshitsune away before he could fall on her, letting out a shaky breath. Her hands trembled slightly, “Come on, Hikari, let’s… let’s get out of here.”

As Yoshitsune’s lifeless corpse hit the wall of the cave, his final seal pressed against it. Suddenly a massive pull in the cave pulled at everything. Rocks flew at his body, gems, shards, crystals, and if a certain kunoichi wasn’t careful, her as well. They started to pierce his body making a tomb out the cave itself.

“Shiiiit!” Yukari scrambled to bolt away. She was nearing the limit on her cloak and her chakra supply as a whole. Though the whisker-like whisps of chakra were her only way of sensing the airborne shrapnel. Though even with the Nekomata’s boosts, razor shards of crystal managed to pierce her shoulder and arm. Another tore into her side.

Focusing what chakra she could spare in her hands and feet, the kunoichi desperately clung to the floor of the cave as she worked towards the shaft she’d jumped down earlier. Finally, she pulled out of his seal’s reach and collapsed on the floor of the upper level, gasping for breath. Her entire body felt heavy as the cloak flickered and finally faded, plunging the tunnel into pitch darkness once again.

“Come on, nyah,” Hikari stretched, padding towards the exit, “let’s get mew home.”

“Yeah…” Yukari struggled to stand, swaying as she walked, “Roku’s spring sounds pretty good about now…”