Chapter 12: Mythos of the Tailed-Beasts
He was having another late night at the office. It was becoming a regular occurrence since he was assigned the Akatsuki project. The company's financials were solid, but there was still much left to be desired about their construction practices. He put his pen down and sighed, taking a break to sip from his now cold cup of coffee. He hardly reacted when he saw Sasuke barge through his office door and slam his hands on his desk.
"Itachi, I need your help!"
"Good to see you little brother. What can I do for you?"
"I need to know what you've done so far on the ICHA project to acquire the land around the Kyuubi Mountains."
"Ah, that." Itachi swiveled in his chair and opened a filing cabinet to pull out a thick manila folder. "Here's the file with everything you need to know about ICHA's finances and the Kyuubi Mountain properties. Is there any reason why you need this?"
Sasuke glanced at Itachi as he scanned the file. "Naruko wants me to do what I can to save the mountains from Akatsuki's purchase."
"How noble of you," Itachi smirked.
"There aren't any additional loans that ICHA can apply for?"
"ICHA's trying their best to stay in the black. Until they can come up with a viable patent or product from their research, they're relying primarily on loans for their operating expenses."
Sasuke grunted, scanning the files some more. "What about the city? What's their stance on the sale?"
"The listing is in the back of the file. Currently, the city has no stance one way or another. It's pretty much first come, first served. I was able to at least buy ICHA some time by purchasing the land that their facility rests on."
"Where did they get the funding for that?"
"My trust fund," Itachi answered coolly.
Sasuke looked up at him briefly, trying to hide the shock. He shook it off and regained his composure. "All your notes on the matter are here?"
"In chronological order. Do you need anything else?"
Sasuke closed the file and shook his head. "I'm just going to borrow this for a while. Thanks Itachi."
Itachi didn't even have time to say anything before Sasuke left his office, not even bothering to wave good-bye. He was somewhat startled and proud of Sasuke's attitude. He had never seen him so motivated before. It looked like his younger brother was growing up "Good luck, Sauske."
It was one of her busy days on campus. She would either be in class, in a lab, or studying. Like the studious person she was, she had already read up on the lesson for next class and had some time to kill. Since the weather was nice, she decided to take a walk around campus. Several professors were teaching class outside. She noticed that one of them was a favorite from her undergrad years. His class was just finishing up and Sakura decided to be polite and have a word with him.
"Hello Professor Sarutobi, how are you today?"
The old man's face brightened in recognition. "Ah, Sakura! How are you?"
"Doing well. Thank you. Still teaching Literature?"
"As well as Ancient Mythology. I just finished with that class before you came. I'm disappointed that you never enrolled. You were such an astute student, I thought the subject would have greatly interested you."
"Sorry Professor, but there were so many prerequisites for my Biology major, I just didn't have the time." Sakura looked down and noticed the book that he was holding had a picture of a nine-tailed fox on the cover. "If I may ask, what's that book about?"
Professor Sarutobi held the book out in front of him. "Ah, this? This is a book about the different legends and myths of the tailed beasts."
"The tailed beasts?"
"Yes, they're mythical creatures that were said to have roamed the land many years ago."
"Wow, can you tell me more about them?"
"Ah, you're interested in a lecture then?" the old man laughed.
"Well, only if you're free."
"But of course! Let's just gather my things and we can head back to my office."
Sakura and Professor Sarutobi entered his office, which was situated in the top floor of the oldest academic building on campus. It was filled with books, ancient manuscripts, and paintings. Several pipes and a box of tobacco rested on the mantle of an iron-wrought fireplace. A large wall-scroll depicting nine beasts hung over the mantle. It was a beautiful painting done entirely in black ink. The painting showed the beasts from the one-tail all the way up to the nine-tails. Sakura's eyes remained on the nine-tails, noticing the elongated ears and fearsome canines. She couldn't picture Naruto ever looking like that. The Naruto that she knew simply wasn't the fearsome creature depicted in the picture.
"So you like the painting of the tailed beasts?" The old man asked.
"Yes. It's very interesting. What's the story behind them?"
"The myth behind them is that long ago when the world was still very young, a single creature ruled the land. He was created from the life energy of the earth. All creatures bent to his will. He had ten-tails that stretched from one end of the world to the other and the power to create life or end it. He was called the Juubi. As the creatures of the world grew, so did the responsibilities of the ten-tailed beast. It almost became too much for the Juubi to handle.
"Then one day, a man came to the Juubi telling him that he should divide his power to maintain control and balance over nature. The Juubi listened to the man and did just that. He used his powers and ripped his body apart into nine different parts. His arms became the one and two tails; his legs the three and fourth; his head the fifth; his stomach the sixth; his lungs the seventh; his sexual organs the eighth; and his heart the nine tails. The creatures were all special to him because they were born from his body: his children. He gave each child a portion of his powers according to their tails. The nine-tailed beast was the strongest, but even he didn't have nearly the strength of his father.
"Once the ten-tailed beast split, his children scattered into different parts of the world to maintain order and balance. But what the Juubi didn't know was that the man wanted the Juubi to divide his powers in order to be able to take those powers for himself. He set out on a journey to try and collect the tailed beasts so he could become the most powerful man in the world.
"Of course what the man forgot was that the Juubi was a careful and wise creature. When he split himself up, he told his children to be wary of man; that trust had to be earned. He also gave his children the ability to communicate with their minds so they could let each other know when they were in danger. With this warning in mind, the man was never able to capture any of the tailed beasts and they were able to rule over their lands peacefully. It is said that the man never gave-up his quest to find the beasts and that his ambitions still live on to this day. But that's all conjecture.
"And so time went by and the tailed beasts staved off any threats to their lands, protecting the natural energy and spirits around them. They knew their duty and did their best to maintain the balance of nature. This has been the way for eons, at least according to some sources. Some myths say that the tailed beasts would often take human form. They would mingle amongst men to educate and prepare themselves to better learn how to anticipate any threats. A few argue that the beasts only started taking human hosts to strengthen their power and that the beasts themselves don't turn into humans.
"Some myths have them taking a human partner, such as the famous tale of the six-tailed beast, Utakata, and the maiden Hotaru. There are also some myths that describe how the tailed beasts have died off after mankind discovered technology. Some theorize that their disappearance is because mankind no longer believes in the natural or spiritual ties to plants and animals, or the tailed beasts. There are many other different myths about them, but that's the brief synopsis," Professor Sarutobi explained.
"Wow, that's fascinating. So do you think that the tailed beasts ever existed?"
"Possibly. They weren't physical creatures like dinosaurs or other extinct animals. They were manifestations of natural energy. There is evidence of different ancient shrines throughout the world dedicated to certain animals that were said to represent the tailed beasts. For example, the Uzumaki Shrine in the Kyuubi Mountains was built to protect the foxes and fox spirits in the woods. In all depictions of the nine-tailed beast, he is pictured as a large fox-like creature. The mountain range is even named after the tailed beast, though no one is certain whether or not the tailed beast named the mountains or if it originated from the tribal clans that were founded in Konoha."
"Do you think anyone can see them? Or that maybe people have met one and never known?"
Professor Sarutobi laughed. "That's quite possible. I can't say that I've ever seen one, but I do believe that they existed. My colleagues and I are among the contingency that thinks the reason the tailed beasts aren't seen by man today or that we don't hear about them is because as a society, we've stopped believing. I'll admit that part of the reason for why I enjoy teaching this class is in the hopes that one day I'll teach enough students about the tailed beasts and they'll eventually reappear."
"You want to see them?"
"Why yes. They're the protectors of nature. The entire reason why the Juubi split into nine creatures was to maintain balance in the world. He couldn't do it by himself. It was simply too much for one creature to handle. At least, that's what I'd like to think. There are even some theories that the nine creatures have changed hands over the years and that when a tailed beast dies off, another is reborn in its place. This is how they try to explain certain natural disasters or other events. The great floods that shaped Water Country were said to be caused by the death of the three-tails. Of course, those are all theories based on the literature and history of our world. My son complains that I'm getting too old and starting to get senile, but I guess that's what old men like me are good for; telling stories."
Sakura laughed. "I don't think you're senile. And I actually found the information very interesting." Though she wasn't going to admit the fact that her interest stemmed from wanting to know more about Naruto.
"I'm glad that you enjoyed the lecture. You should read the myth about Utakata and Hotaru. It's actually a more romantic love story than a myth. The girls in my class always enjoy it."
"I'll keep that in mind."
Professors Danzo, Koharu, and Homura entered the office and interrupted their conversation. The three had come to remind Professor Sarutobi about the staff meeting that was about to start. Sakura had had all three as professors in college and liked all but one. Professor Danzo was the only professor to give her a "C." It was the only blemish in her undergrad career. The strict bastard was impossible to please and was notorious for being the hardest professor on campus. The professor once stated that if he took his own class, he would only get a "B;" that's just how much of a hard-ass he was. She would have never taken his class if she didn't need a government prerequisite.
Professor Sarutobi nodded to his colleagues and gently pat Sakura's back. "My apologies Sakura. It looks like I have a meeting to attend. I hope you enjoyed our chat."
"I did, thank you. I'm glad I was able to chat with you."
"Anytime Sakura. Feel free to drop by again if you have any questions."
Sakura took her leave and headed to the library to check out the myth he had referred to. It was fortunate she talked with Professor Sarutobi. There were things that she already knew, but also things that Naruto could have never known. She wondered how Naruto became a tailed beast and whether there was anything in the mythology that would hint at that. The more she knew, the more curious she became; the more curious she became, the less likely she could keep Naruto at arms length. It was a slippery slope, but she didn't seem to care if she fell off the edge.
A/N: Next chapter we get to see Sakura's dreams, or at least one of them.
