THINGS WE LOST IN THE WAR
Author's Note: Hello, and thank you for giving my story a click! Just to further explain what is going on here, this is going to be a slow burn Naruto/OC fanfic. It will be enemies to friends to lovers, and I plan on it spanning over part I and II of the show. If you guys are interested enough, I would consider making a Tumblr for this story where I can post further aesthetics and graphics, as well as answer any questions. Let me know if this is something you'd be interested in! For now, you can find some aesthetic/moodboards on my weheartit account, /simplyethereal/collections! Enjoy!
CHAPTER ONE—
The hot sun hung high in the afternoon sky was mercilessly blocked out by canopies upon canopies of thick, forest leaves. Trees sprouted from the ground in every which way, coming together to make a large rainforest just east of the Land of Hot Water and south of the Land of Lightning. It had been a long journey for the Kanroji family, having spent days traveling away from their home in Konoha.
"This is a lesson," the matriarchal head of the family announced upon arriving at their destination, "follow closely Tsugumi."
Standing at just four feet tall, Tsugumi followed her mother into the maze-like rain forest. Followed closely behind the child was her father, his hand carefully kept behind his daughters back in slight apprehension. There had been plenty of tales of people getting lost in this forest and he were not about to allow his family to become one of those cautionary warnings.
"Kinoko, dear," he started, "are you sure this is a wise idea?"
She scoffed, "please. My mother took me here when I was of age and I made it out just fine, didn't I?"
With the final ruling, Kinoko's husband backed down and allowed his wife to lead on. The trio didn't stop until they were a good hour into the foliage. Tsugumi's chestnut hair clung to the back of her neck with sweat as she attempted to catch her breath— this was the longest she had travelled on foot, and the weather did little to help. How could it be so hot, yet so wet at the same time? The only thing that kept the little girl from going mad with boredom and exhaustion was the chance to watch the monkeys swing vine to vine, following the family along their way.
"This is far enough," Kinoko said upon entering a clearing. "Today, Tsugumi, I will be teaching you about a new fungi: Ophiocordyceps."
"O-Ophi… Ophiocord—" Tsugumi struggled to pronounce the word.
"Cordyceps, for short. There are over one hundred and forty different types, and they specifically infect insects. Unlike other fungi who prey on already dead animals and plants, cordyceps targets the living."
As Kinoko went on with the lesson, her husband Asahi laid out a picnic blanket. Tsugumi, so focused on her mother's words, absentmindedly allowed her father to guide her to the blanket to sit. She admired her mother so much and had been such a hard worker from such a young age that she often neglected the world around her. All that mattered was showing Kinoko that she could keep up.
"Once infected, the insect will be… controlled, in a sense. Let's say for example, an ant is infected. It will begin to act erratic, straying from its main goal. It is under the cordyceps influence and will in turn, do what the fungi requires it. It'll find a suitable place, anchor down and be killed from the inside out."
"Controlled?" The eight year old tilted her head to the side, "like a puppet?"
"More like a zombie— like in those comics your dad is always showing you." Kinoko proudly made note of her daughters amazement, "once dead, cordyceps will sprout from the body and the spores will be released to keep the cycle going. WIthout this technique, the cordyceps will no longer be able to live on and spread their spores."
Tsugumi's tiny arm shot up and before even being granted permission to ask, she pressed on, "but mom, can you do that?"
"That's exactly why I brought you here, in person. To understand and be in the type of environment that fosters such a fungi. It is important to know the mycology behind our Kekkei Genkai, so you may build upon it. Now Asahi, if you'd please."
"Of course dear," Tsugumi's father let out a nervous laugh, "though I will be honest— even this one still creeps me out a bit. Remember when we were both in the Chunin exams and you pulled this out of your sleeve? Akimichi-san couldn't even keep up!"'
"W-wait!" Tsugumi jumped up and tugged her father back towards the blanket, "you can't use it on dad! I don't want him to die and sprout spores!"
"Don't worry dear, that won't happen. Just like in the last lesson I taught you: the spores that our family are able to recreate and bend at our will are much more complex than the original cordyceps. Like a strand of its own, ours will infect our opponent and will influence them in such a way that they do what we need them to do."
"Remember your chi though, Tsugumi," her father butted in, "the more chi put into this trick, the longer it will affect your opponent. If you're too low on chi, you won't be able to do it at all."
"Without enough of your own chi to supplement enough spores to keep the infection spreading, it will die off. It's why cordyceps can't naturally harm humans. Sure a bug is easy enough, but humans are not as weak and need a much more powerful parasite to infect them," Kinoko tacked on.
"So if I don't have enough chi to keep supplying spores, will the genjutsu just... stop?"
"Exactly, which is why this move relies on short bursts. Now, watch daddy and I so you can get a better idea."
Without waiting any further, the couple stopped just a few feet away from each other. Kinoko wasted no time bringing her hands together in front of her chest. Faster than Tsugumi's young eyes could track, her mother performed several hand seals before finishing on the wind release sign.
Kinoko took a deep breath of air and as she exhaled into her husband's direction, a burst of wind rushed past him. It was a familiar technique that Tsugumi had seen her mother perform several times now— one that appeared solely as a wind ninjutsu, but was in fact spreading the spores that would later lay a sensory effect over the victim.
The older ninja braced for the impact, his feet anchored into the grass below. It was only as he inhaled the air around him afterwards that his emerald eyes turned hazy and his usual smile was wiped off. Without saying anything, he readjusted his stance into a slacker one and turned his face obediently downwards.
"The main goal of cordyceps is to live and spread. That is why it takes control and eventually kills its target, Tsugumi. As the spore originated from me, this strand of cordyceps is specialized in keeping me alive and well, otherwise I cannot supply more spores for it to continue to spread."
Tsugumi's mother dropped her arms to her side, "let's say our teams were against each other in battle. If I were to use this on him, he would turn and attack his own teammates. As there are no hostiles attacking me right now, he is in a state of compliance."
"How long does it last?" Tsugumi asked, uneasily eyeing her father. She didn't like how unlike himself he appeared, "will daddy be back to normal soon?"
"With my chi reservation strong, this genjutsu will last five minutes. If you are mid fight it will last a shorter amount of time— two or three minutes max. Even that is enough to catch your opponents off guard. To have your own teammate suddenly turn and attack you, especially when they have no idea what is going on?" Kinoki turned to face Tsugumi, "it's a mind game."
Just the idea of it scared young Tsugumi. She shuddered and sunk back into the picnic blanket. To have her own friends suddenly change their mind and attack her? She wouldn't know what to do. Tsugumi wanted to do anything but attack her own friends.
"I don't think I like that very much…"
"Do you not find it fascinating?" Her mother pressed.
"I like learning about spores and stuff but this one is scary. It sounds sorta like cheating."
"Perhaps, but when you are older you will possibly be put into positions where this can save your life. It is why I'm showing you it now. To learn more, and appreciate that this is in fact, a move that you can call upon in the most dire of situations. Do you understand?"
"I suppose…"
"Now while your father is recovering, could you please summarize what I have taught you this afternoon?"
With a bit of help from her mother, Tsugumi was able to summarize the cordyceps fungi and its primary use when it came to their use of it in their Kekkei Genkai. It wasn't the first time she had seen her family's ability be used in tangent with a specific fungi— ever since she had turned seven Tsugumi's mother and grandmother had taught her a handful of different techniques. Sure she was still too young to actually use and physically learn them, but reviewal and research went greatly into their abilities.
Mycology by far, was the most important thing to her small clan. With their bloodline only affecting the women of their family, it was their job to learn about different fungi and their uses. Whether it was their incorporation in genjutsus or how they could be used in poisons and medication, it was up to each girl in their family to start their education young.
The Kanroji family was famous in Konoha for being the best shop to purchase different poisons and antidotes. While the women of the Kanroji family tended to go on to become great ninjas, their Kekkei Genkai was specifically useful in several different Allied Shinobi Forces, depending on the specific individuals specialization. Meanwhile, the men of the family went on to manage the stores in which they sold their homemade wares.
By the time Tsugumi had finished her review of what she had learned today, the cordyceps hold on Asahi had been released. He interrupted his wife and daughters chat with a sputtered cough, falling onto his knees. Tsugumi instantly ran to her side and patted his back as he leaned over and threw up into the dirt.
"M-mom, is daddy okay? He's sick!"
"He will be fine. Some people have an adverse reaction to the cordyceps, especially if it is as strong as the dose I gave your father."
Kinoko reached into her bag and pulled out a water flask. Her husband gratefully took it from her and chugged the contents before falling back onto his rear, paying not a single piece of mind to the mossy and mud underneath.
"T-Thanks," he barely got out, still winded and trying to catch his breath.
"Could you describe to Tsugumi how you felt while under the influence of cordyceps?"
He nodded brisky, "it leaves you feeling an overwhelming amount of… confusion. Like getting lost and not knowing which way is home, I felt like I had been dropped in a random piece of the world. The entire time my stomach was churning and I was just so… paranoid. It felt like at any moment, something disastrous would happen."
"You see, Tsugumi," her mother went on to explain more, "the confusion is what plays the biggest role in battle. If your father was the enemy and had a partner that helping to attack me, his mind would be so clouded that he'd be confused on what he was doing in the first place. His own will and senses would tell him that he would have to keep me safe, thus attacking his partner. Given there was no enemy, it just made him feel out of touch with reality."
"Sorta like golden cap mushrooms?"
"Not exactly. Golden cap mushrooms cause audio and physical hallucinations. Cordyceps, in a sense, rewires a person's own free will."
"Woah…. When can I learn how to do it?" Tsugumi's eyes strayed from her father and towards her mother eagerly.
Kinoko chuckled, "not till you're much older. Now, why don't you go grab your basket? While we're here we should stock up on some ingredients for the shop."
"I bet I can find more than ya!"
"Oh yeah? You're on, kid."