Hello everyone, hope you've been well ~KB
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or KH
[this will also be the last time I put a disclaimer, I think you get the idea by now ;) ]
Ch 25: Liquid Fire
The clash of blades filled the night sky.
She flew through the sweeping motions she'd practiced for years, her master meeting each one with ease.
Both were relentless in their attacks, neither giving nor gaining ground. A particularly tough blow had Manami skirting backwards a few yards.
Before she could charge forward, a long black tendril snaked from the ground and seized her wrist, immobilizing her use of the Keyblade. Manami's eyes widened and snapped towards her master. His body lay lifeless on the cobblestone, surrounded by swirls of Darkness.
Not again.
Manami yanked at the tendril, she had to help him but another black tendril wound around her leg. Glancing back, she saw a hoard of Heartless emerge, separating her from her master. Shadows and Neoshadows rose from the ground while Possessors, gaseous looking creatures of Darkness, hovered dangerously close.
A raging cry tore from her lips as Manami struggled to be free. She twirled the Keyblade around in her hand and slashed at the tendril grasping her wrist. It dissolved into thin air and Manami made quick work of the other one around her leg.
Dashing forward, Manami lifted her Keyblade to strike the nearest Heartless but was abruptly knocked back off her feet. She flew through the air and landed harshly against stone. Shaking her head clear, Manami stood up to see what hit her and was met with an Invisible facing her.
The Invisible's purple and blue horns were menacing and the cobalt tinged blade did nothing to help. Yellow eyes stared her down, daring her to attack. The pointed claws on its feet and curved, bladed tail scratched against the cobblestone, regardless of the small wings keeping it afloat. Manami griped the hilt of her Kingdom Key tightly and charged.
She lunged at the black creature and her blade sliced across it front. Seemingly unaffected by the attack, the Invisible pulled its weapon back and slashed at Manami. She avoided the blow and attacked again, swinging overhead this time. As the Keyblade came down to meet its mark, it shattered into tiny fragments of light.
Manami stumbled from the sudden change and was knocked aside again by the Heartless. Lifting her head from the concrete, Manami realized she could no longer see her master.
"No," she muttered, trying to lift herself off the ground. A glance to the right told her that the Invisible was approaching quickly.
Mustering up her strength, Manami willed her Keyblade to reappear. Her eyes widened when nothing happened.
"No." she whispered breathlessly. She tried to summon the Keyblade again but her hand remained empty.
A shadow fell over her and Manami looked up to see the Invisible baring its blade. Manami pushed up but fell back over instantly, gripping her arm that seared with pain. She tried to locate her master, only seeing Heartless around the courtyard.
"Master Eraqus!" she cried in distress. A string of No's followed her plea. Everything was a mass of black from all the Heartless. This couldn't be happening.
A shift next to her caught her attention. The Invisible had its arm raised, blade ready to strike.
Her eyes widened. "No."
Light glinted off the blade as it came down.
"NO!"
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Manami lurched forward in her bed with a shout, panting. Blinking in confusion, Manami regarded the darkened space around her. She was in her room. It took a moment for her to realize how badly she was shaking.
*knock-knock*
Manami jumped at the soft sound behind her. She whipped around to the head of her bed but couldn't find the source.
"Manami?" called a soft voice through the wall.
Inching closer, Manami asked back, "Hello?"
"It's me, Izumo."
"Oh!" Manami replied in shock, "uh, hi?"
"I heard you shout, wanted to make sure you were okay."
Manami bowed her head.
No. No, she was most certainly not okay.
"I'm fine," she replied weakly. "Just a bad dream."
There was a small pause, "Alright. Just let me know if you need anything."
Manami nodded before she realized he couldn't see. "I- I will. Thank you."
"Night."
"Night."
Manami sat there for a moment before lying back down. She stared at the ceiling, too shaken to go back to sleep so quickly.
She had to get back.
In all of the rush to blend into the ninja community, Manami almost forgotten that she was supposed to be looking for ways to repair the Gummi Ship. Not that I can do much without the Keyblade, she thought. At least there aren't any Heartless in this world… so far.
And if there were?
I have to get back. Soon.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Inhale. Exhale. Manami opened her eyes and focused on the little white "X" chalked on the floor. Controlling her breathing, Manami flipped through the hand seals once again.
"Bushin no jutsu!"
*Poof*
Nothing. Absolutely nothing. It was Wednesday, five days after her first attempt at the Clone Technique and Manami had yet to produce a duplicate of herself. She was beginning to get frustrated at the lack of progression.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Iruka asked.
"I'm fine," Manami replied sharply, "like I said earlier, it's nothing."
Manami ignored his frown and tried the jutsu again. She growled when the result didn't change and slumped to the floor in exhaustion.
Iruka set the papers he was grading aside and rummaged through a drawer. "Let's try something else." he stated.
Manami grunted in affirmation and stood back up. Tired didn't even begin to describe how she felt. After the dream, Manami had continuously tossed and turned throughout the night. Now she was additionally drained from the various attempts at the Clone Technique.
"Take this," Iruka instructed, handing Manami a small vile. It was clear with a goldish looking liquid in it.
Manami eyed the bottle warily. It's not like she didn't trust Iruka, but there was something about the liquid that made her cautious. "What is it?" she asked.
"It'll help open your chakra pathways," he replied, motioning to the bottle. "I'm thinking that your chakra pathways are blocked because they've never been used before and trying to do jutsu caused excess strain on your body."
"I see." That made sense; Manami uncapped the vile and sniffed. A pungent odor flooded her nostrils and caused Manami to recap it as she fell into a coughing fit. Recovering, Manami commented, "That's some strong stuff, huh?"
"Unfortunately," Iruka replied, leaning against his desk. "I recommend you knock it back like a shot glass. Sends it straight back without bothering your senses too much."
Manami nodded in agreement and took a deep breath to brace herself. Uncapping the vile, she tossed her head back and swallowed it in one go. She fell into another fit of coughing, this time much worse. The stuff burned. Her throat felt like she just swallowed a flaming sword. I wonder if this is how dragons feel after they breathe fire? she thought briefly.
"Water," she croaked out before coughing again.
If Iruka responded, Manami didn't hear it. Instead, she found herself doubling over and kneeling on the ground. It felt like a volcano just erupted in her stomach; intense heat curled and pooled in her core.
Then it moved.
Manami cried out in pain as the internal flame began to slowly spread throughout her body. Liquid fire was seeping from her core alongside her veins, following the flow and igniting her insides. Manami screwed her eyes shut and fell over on her side, no longer able to hold herself up from the pain.
She writhed in place on the floor, screaming her throat raw as it continued to spread. She could feel every path it took: up and down her limbs, wrapping around each organ, from the tip of her toes to the top of her head.
As the heat spread around her throat, Manami began to panic when it felt like she was being suffocated. She scratched at her collar, trying to pull it away so she could breathe. Something cool touched her wrist and Manami grasped on to it. It was a small lifeline as she continued to thrash about.
The intense heat engulfed her completely for what felt like hours before it finally began to recede. It retracted to her core, leaving a numb feeling as the pain began to ebb away. Manami fell limp against the floor as the heat finally dissipated, her breathing labored as a result.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Iruka's nails pierced into the palm of his hand. He had half a mind to just walk out of the classroom.
But he couldn't. I can't just leave her here, he thought solemnly.
He walked behind his desk to put some space between them but walked back in front almost immediately. It was hard for him to see his pupil- no, Manami was more than that to him by now- his friend, put through so much pain. A pang of guilt shot through him at the fact that he was the cause for her suffering.
Manami was special, he could feel it. It was that same impression he got with some of his students- stores of unlocked potential just waiting to be discovered. There was so much more to her than what meets the eye. He knew that if Manami could master chakra control she would be promoted to jounin in no time.
Iruka tried to distract himself by organizing his desk. The stories he heard from previous takers of the Chakra Cleanser weren't pleasant ones. They mentioned the pain caused from the serum cleaning the chakra pathways, the feeling of liquid fire moving through the body. I just hope she doesn't hate me for doing this to her.
His heart clenched as pained screams echoed around the room and he rushed backed to Manami's side.
She was clawing at her neck and Iruka was afraid Manami was going to injure herself. He knelt beside her and touched her wrist gently. She latched onto his hand and Iruka thought he was going to lose circulation from the firm grip. Iruka grit his teeth and pushed through it. Manami was going through a lot worse and he wanted to help as much as he could, even if was only being able to hold her hand.
"I'm so sorry," he whispered softly.
After a little while, Manami calmed down enough for Iruka to wriggle his wrist out of her grasp. He walked back to his desk reluctantly, not wanting to leave her side even for a moment.
Grabbing the water bottle he prepared, Iruka poured a little bit onto a spare (unused) cleaning rag and crouched beside Manami.
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"Here."
Manami winced at the soft voice, but cracked an eye. She took the rag Iruka offered, hands too shaky to accept the water. She sighed as she wiped the rag across her face and neck; it was so cool against her burning skin, Sweet relief.
"I'm sorry you had to experience that," Iruka continued. He shifted to sit next to Manami, who continued to catch her breath. "I was hoping you'd be able to figure it out, but after nearly a week I saw how frustrated you were getting. I've never tried it myself, but I've seen it used before. Sometimes someone's chakra would get poisoned or blocked in combat and the nurses can't always clear the pathways. They developed this serum to help instead."
Manami listened silently from her position on the floor, grateful that Iruka had come to her and wasn't expecting a reply. Sitting up slightly, Manami took a sip from the water bottle. The cold liquid was refreshing and Manami felt much better from it. As she continued to sip, she realized that Iruka had gone silent.
Manami threw him a questioning glance, throat still too raw to speak. Iruka frowned and lowered his head, muttering softly, "I really am sorry. I didn't want to put you through this, especially after last night."
Manami choked on her water. How does he know about last night?! she thought frantically.
"Izumo told me," Iruka replied. Manami threw him another glance and Iruka chuckled. "It was written all over your face."
Manami sighed and sat up completely as Iruka continued. "He told me that he heard you scream on our way to work this morning. I didn't want to pressure you into telling me, but I could definitely tell something was up. I want you to know that the three of us will always be here for you- Kotetsu, Izumo, and me."
Tears gathered at the corner of Manami's eyes as she stared at him in disbelief. Here she was completely new to the village but these people were so welcoming to her. When she was in the Land of Departure, she didn't have any friends from always training and Master Eraqus was the only one that treated her like a person. The servants were always professional in their work and Master Xehanort- Manami shuddered. She didn't want to think about him.
"Thank you," she rasped out. Her voice sounded like a cat used it for a scratching post but she didn't care. Manami couldn't thank Iruka enough for all he was doing for her.
Iruka smiled at her and stood up, holding out a hand for Manami. She took it, almost falling flat on her face as Iruka hoisted her up. He held her steady for a moment then commented, "Come on, let's get you home."
"What about-" Manami began to ask.
"No," Iruka interrupted firmly. He flung her arm around his shoulder and held her up by the waist. "You've had enough for today. Now, you are going to go home and rest. We can always continue later."
Manami nodded her head in submission. She didn't have the strength to argue as Iruka guided her home.
FIN
Hope you enjoyed! Let me know you're thoughts and/or concerns, they're greatly appreciated! ~KunoichiBlade