Enchantress
Chapter 15 – The Emblem of Sacred Province
Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of mangaka (comic artist) Masashi Kishimoto. This story implies nothing about the characters nor does the plot of the story have any effect on the manga volumes (or the anime) themselves. This story is pure fiction.
A/N: 10 reviews equals new chapter, as promised. This quota shall be carried over for chapter 16 as well.
——†——
Once the brightness had faded away, Minako opened up her eyes and found herself staring at the front of a very old fashioned but beautifully crafted stone-and-wooden house. The most fascinating thing about her surroundings was that rather than being situated on solid ground, she was instead standing upon a low wooden bridge which seemed to connect the platform that the entire house was supported on to what seemed to be other structures of a similar design. In fact, Minako noticed that after taking a longer look at her surroundings she found that she was situated within an entire village that was completely supported on an entire network of low bridges situated just above a large expanse of crystal clear water (estimating to be only about knee-height in depth) complete with countless lotus flowers floating on the waters' surface, schools of fish swimming beneath the surface and the majestic statures of numerous willow trees scattered about the entire area for as far as her eyes could see (1).
Despite being night-time, Minako was able to observe the entire village with surprising clarity, which was primarily due to the bright shine of the full moon that illuminated the darkened land. Dark as it may be, the blonde was once again filled with an overwhelming sense of tranquility and calmness much like her previous experience during her time in that old village from before. But just then, she had a thought.
"Wait a minute…"
And sure enough, Minako found herself reverted back into her male form, fully clothed in the same pure white garments as before.
"Another one…" Naruto scanned his surroundings one last time before resting his gaze on the fairly large house that he stood in front of ever since his arrival. "Hmm…I wonder what awaits me this time."
Naruto figured that if this was a second one of those episodic dreams or visions (or whatever they were) much like with what happened with Koki/Masato less a day ago, then logically, he should be able to perform the same feats as he did last time such as walking through solid objects for example. Naruto took a few steps into the home in front of him and sure enough, he passed right through it as if nothing were there.
"Surprise, surprise…"
Upon his entrance, Naruto found himself standing in what appeared to be an all wooden room, lit only by the glowing embers of torches, candle light, and a large circular opening in the ceiling which let in a perfectly cylindrical beam of moonlight. No other decorations were observed to be present. Situated on a small island in the direct center of both the room as well as within the beam of moonlight was a beautiful altar which consisted of an elegantly carved stone pillar and a shallow but wide bowl which sat at the very top of the structure. The bowl, which looked more like a giant and appropriately sculpted oyster shell, was nearly filled to the brim with water (2).
Around the base of the altar was a perfectly circular donut-shaped hole which peered down into the shallow waters below the very building that Naruto was situated in. Interestingly enough, the hole perfectly outlined the outer most rim of where the moonlight ended from its trajectory within the room. A sole figure, a woman to be specific, stood directly on front of the altar and peered down into the water's reflective surface. Naruto recognized the woman as one of the maidens who inhabited that ancient-looking village from the previous vision that he had watched from before. She wore an elegant and formfitting white robe along with a beautiful headdress which adorned her already regal features. A sudden knock on the door from the opposite side of the room immediately grabbed both Naruto's and the woman's attention.
"Enter…" said the woman.
"Chizuru-sama, I have brought Michiko-hime to you as requested."
Naruto's gazed upon the sight of a young blonde girl, who looked no older than six, dressed a robe of a vivid scarlet hue, stepping into the room and accompanied by another older miko. A few close thoughts had clicked in realization.
So that girl was Michiko! There's no doubt about it! Naruto glanced over at the almost queen-like woman to his right. Judging by the notable differences in status and general presence between the two females, Naruto assumed that the woman was probably the young girl's superior, leader, or perhaps even an elder – but this was all just simple speculation at this point. Nevertheless, he quietly sat down on the wooden floor beneath him and began to watch the scene before him unfold.
"Thank you Emi…you may leave us."
The other miko obediently bowed and left the room in silence, quietly shutting the door behind her in progress.
"You needed to see me, mother?"
Naruto's eyes widened. They're related?! Upon immediate observation, Naruto could not for the life of him see the resemblance that was shared between the so called "mother-daughter" pair in front of him. The woman, with whom he remembered was named Chizuru, had much more defined features which included fair skin, high cheek bones, sharp dark brown eyes, and hair of the deepest black (3). Michiko on the other hand, despite being barely a toddler, had a lightly tanned complexion, bright blue eyes and her signature golden blond locks. But then again…they could just be related by name only. Naruto kept this thought in mind as he continued watch on in interest.
"I do." There was a slight pause. "Michiko…the time has come for you to learn of your role within our noble society. For generations, the Yata clan has observed countless successions of shrine maidens dedicated to contributing their efforts towards the greater good of the community as well as upholding our heritage with pride and honour. The three primary occupations that a Yata-clan maiden can be bestowed with include: the priestess, the healer, and the seer. Each occupation has been pre-ordained to them by birth and is only revealed to them through the waters of the Lunar Well that you see before me."
Michiko simply nodded in silent obedience.
"Normally, this occupational ritual is performed on the night of the first full moon shortly after a maiden's tenth living year. However, due to the dreams that I have been receiving for sometime, all of which have only vaguely illustrated the impending future that awaits you, I believe that it would be in our best interests if we determined your responsibility as a maiden sooner rather than later."
"Yes mother."
Naruto was continuously surprised by how obedient the young Michiko was. The girl was tiny; she barely looked a day over five or six years old. But of course, Naruto had never known what it was like to be a clan member of any sort so he wasn't entirely familiar with the concept of noble upbringings. Hmm…perhaps this was the kind of communal structure that Sasuke had to deal with when he was younger? But then again, being in the presence of a highly revered individual like Chizuru – Naruto had a brief thought of the old bat while he was on the topic of intimidating women – would make anyone second guess what their next actions should be when in direct conversation with such a person.
"Now…I trust that you have a perfectly unmarred white lotus bud in your possession?"
"I do."
Naruto watched as Michiko pulled out a small black wooden box from within the folds of her robe and made her way over to where Chizuru stood. The young girl opened the box before her mother with the latter giving a curt nod in return.
"Well done."
Michiko carefully pulled out the lotus bud – which also had a small lily pad at its base – out of the box and walked over to the altar in the middle of the room (Naruto vaguely remembered that the structure was formally named the "Lunar Well) and gently placed the flower down on top of the water's surface. Shortly following, Chizuru made her way over to the other side of the altar so that she directly faced her daughter detached the paper fan that was strapped to the cloth belt around her waist and held it out in front of her so that the wide ends were facing left and right. From there, the elder woman closed her eyes and began to chant with her beautiful and sultry voice.
Izanami, holy mother of all creation, beseech the call of your human children and impart onto us your divine wisdom.
From the earthbound world of mortals, doomed to walk among the forsaken unless redeemed, I offer to you a new soul to become honoured into your highest abode of heavenly followers.
Governed by our matron goddess of spring and earthly life, Konohana-Sakuya, knight your hallowed sword down upon this offering and forever grant this maiden of ours the gift of sacred province.
In one final move, Chizuru rotated her fan so that the wide ends were now facing up and down causing the object to shine in a brilliant electric blue. She then lowered the fan down so that it hovered just above the top-most petals of the lotus bud.
"Place your hand over my relic Michiko."
The young blonde did as she was told. From there a narrow pillar of white light shone down from the moon through the circular opening in the roof until it reached the back of Michiko's hand. Upon closer inspection, Naruto noticed that the beam of moonlight had actually shone straight through the girl's hand and even through Chizuru's ceremonial fan, ultimately residing within the shell bowl which held both the lotus flower and the water that it sat upon. Once the moonbeam had faded away, Michiko and her mother brought their hands down to their sides as the ghostly image of a large circular crest appeared above the bowl before vanishing completely after a few seconds. Shortly following, the bowl miraculously emitted and retained a heavenly rainbow-colored glow. Naruto found it impossible to look away.
"Upon dawn's arrival, the Lunar Well shall reveal the maiden duty that has been rightfully bestowed on to you since the moment of your birth. I shall send someone to retrieve you once the results have been confirmed."
"Yes mother."
And just like that, Michiko took her leave. Given all that he had seen for the last little while, Naruto had somewhat expected this little episode to end if there wasn't anything else for him to see. However a quick bright flash of white revealed the exact same room before him but the signature orange light of the sun that shone through the roof opening obviously indicated the next morning. Chizuru was found standing in front of the Lunar Well with a stern expression while two other maidens obediently stood some distance away behind the head priestess.
"Have the heavens revealed Michiko-hime's call of duty, Chizuru-sama?"
"What answers does the well present you with, Chizuru-sama?"
A few moments of silence passed between the three women.
"In all my years dedicated to the life of the Yata clan's Head Priestess…maidens…for once, I am at a loss."
The other maidens shared looks of curiosity and slight shock.
"W-what are you trying to say Chizuru-sama?"
"Come forth…and observe for yourselves."
The two maidens did as they were requested to which Naruto additionally followed out of curiosity and convenience. All four individuals directed their gazes upon the water filled bowl which now held a fully blossomed lotus flower.
Wait…wasn't it only a bud the night before? Thought Naruto.
The previously white lotus had now been colored a charming bright golden yellow – the flower looked like it was producing its own luminescent shine – where as the water had strangely darkened to an intimidating black hue. Upon closer inspection, Naruto noticed that the outer-most sides of the flower had black-colored waves streaked across the length of each petal. Naruto couldn't help but stare in confusion.
"W-what does this mean, your grace?"
"A-an omen…perhaps?"
"This ritual was not meant to foretell the future; only to determine the role that my daughter was meant to uphold and carry with dignity in our clan." Chizuru simply stared down at the flower with the same grim expression.
"B-but…how is this possible? O-only the flower was supposed to undergo a moderate change in its coloration. How is it that the water had transformed too?" said one of the mikos.
"A-and furthermore…how is it that the flower did not change into any of the three expected colors?" (4)
A few moments of silence stretched on before one of the maidens spoke up again.
"P-pardon my interruption Chizuru-sama but did you manage to observe the symbol that should have appeared on the back of Michiko-hime's hand as well?"
"T-that's right! I mean if the Lunar Well had presented us with such unexpected results, surely the sacred mark of a Yata-clan maiden would tell us otherwise, right?"
Chizuru let out a heavy sigh.
"I have my loyal maidens; I had done so only moments ago while she was still asleep. And much like the well, the glyph on the back of Michiko's hand was something that I have never before encountered in all my years of loyal servitude."
There was a pregnant pause.
"My daughter…was not meant to be an ordinary Yata maiden, my children. My belief is that from what the well has shown us on this fateful morning…Michiko was meant for something far greater than our clan has ever seen before."
"S-something greater, my lady?"
"Yes…" Chizuru finally averted her eyes away from the well but looked back to her two subordinates with sadness gracing her lovely features. "But at a price which I don't think any of us, not even myself, could possibly even hope to pay…"
"Chizuru-sama…"
Naruto saw something move from the corners of his eyes. While it was barely visible even from his position, Naruto had immediately recognized those familiar strands of long blond hair peaking from the small opening in the door on the opposite wall.
She heard…
And before he had the chance to acknowledge it, Naruto's vision was overcome with another flash of white light but this time, the intensity of the shine was both unbearable and prolonged.
——†——
"Ungh…"
Minako raised a hand to her forehead in an attempt to alleviate the slight dizziness that followed.
"Oh good. You're awake."
Minako spent a few moments rubbing out the blurriness from her eyes until she was finally able to focus on the figure that had addressed her.
"T-temari?"
The other blonde nodded. "You nearly gave me a shock there." Minako brought her upper body up to a seating position and finally noticed that she was actually on a hospital bed, specifically on the one to the right of Kakashi's.
"Are you feeling better?"
"Y-yeah…yeah. Now I am."
Temari smiled. "That's good. I hope you don't mind but I've got a few questions that I would like to ask of you."
Minako's eyes were on the verge of widening but a little bit of incredibly quick thinking had allowed her to look back at the other blonde with a raised eyebrow instead. Temari noticed the odd look that the medic was giving to her but she decided against questioning it.
"Q-questions…?" Minako asked with a slight hitch in her voice. What did she see? How much did she see?
"Yes. First of all…where did you manage to find this cute little guy?"
"H-huh?"
Minako took a closer look at Temari and noticed that she was gently scratching the area behind Koki's ears, the latter of which was found to be seated adorably on Minako's bed just next to her right knee. The fox pup seemed to be lapping up the attention quite gratuitously as he had his head tilted towards Temari's direction while one of his hind paws began to tap against the bed in approval (5).
"O-oh, him? He's my uh…pet."
Temari looked back at Minako while she continued to lightly scratch the fox pup all around his head.
"Really? How come I've never seen him before? The only animals that our village has readily available as pets are falcons and lizards. We aren't particularly known for selling or providing mammals to our patrons or even our own villagers for that matter so there's no possible way that you could have recently purchased him from one of our retailers."
"W-well…" Think fast, think fast! "The truth is…he's actually a stray."
"Is that so?" asked Temari in curiosity.
"Y-yeah. I mean." Minako cleared her throat. "I found the poor guy injured on a dirt path during target practice in one of Konoha's training grounds. I heard a faint whimpering noise near one of the dummies and lo-and-behold I found the little guy a few meters away collapsed on his side and gasping for air." Minako couldn't help but smile at Koki who continued to enjoy the attention that Temari continued to give him. "I couldn't just leave him there considering how small he was at the time so I nursed him back to help and kinda kept him as my own ever since." Minako then had a brief thought of the young pup's life up until now. "He's probably been through a lot…so I think it's about time that he deserved some good company from now on."
Koki looked back at Minako in surprise. Mina…
"Ain't that right, ya little puffball? You're stayin' with me whether you like it or not."
Temari noticed the very attentive response that the pup was giving to his supposed master and ceased her petting. Shortly following, the animal padded his way over to the other blonde and sat down on her lap, to which Minako responded by embracing him in a light hug. Minako, while quite impressed at how believable her lie was and how convincing Koki was able to act like an ordinary animal, held her animal companion with gentleness and compassion. Unknown to the two girls, Koki was filled with the overwhelming urge to cry. Mina…Temari smiled earnestly at the sight before her.
"Pardon my interruption Minako-san but I do have one other question that I would like to ask of you."
Minako released her hold on Koki and gently moved him so that he sat beside her.
"A-alright…" Minako cleared her throat. "S-so…what's up?"
Temari took a quick breather before looking back at the other blonde.
"I came in not too long ago to drop off a small present for Kakashi-san."
Minako raised an eyebrow. "A present?"
Temari nudged her head towards the night stand located in between Minako's and Kakashi's hospital beds. Minako felt somewhat incompetent for completely overlooking the beautiful flower arrangement – which was composed of desert lupines, ghost flowers, and cave primroses (6) – until now.
"O-oh…!"
"It was meant to be a sort of 'thank you' and 'get well soon' combination gift for your leader after all he had been through with my brother and I during our last mission. However, upon my arrival, I noticed that you were in the room, along with your animal companion, tending to Kakashi-san…or at least that's what it looked like from my position." (7)
Minako had a feeling that something like this would come up, she just hoped that her suspicions were wrong.
"I couldn't exactly observe what you were doing since your back was facing the door but regardless, all I saw was a strange pale shine resonating from your frontside, and assuming towards Kakashi-san, for sometime. And then all of a sudden, you just collapsed to the ground shortly after."
Minako gulped as she hastily attempted to devise yet another lie to explain her weird occurrences.
"And you'll have to forgive me if this sounds a little unusual but I think I also heard your animal companion shout your name in worry."
Koki made a little yipping noise.
"Now talking animals aren't exactly a rarity as I know many other shinobi who are also in possession of such partners so I won't ask any further on it however, that doesn't explain how you managed to somehow restore Kakashi-san back to normal when the medical reports from his assigned physicians had diagnosed him as a terminal patient?"
"K-kakashi-sensei was terminal…?" Just then, something clicked. "W-wait…back to normal?!"
Temari gave a curious nod. "I immediately sent for Dr. Takahashi to assess your condition after your sudden collapse. Thankfully he was already on his way over here for his usual check-up with Kakashi-san so it wasn't too long of a wait. Takahashi-sensei found that there was nothing immediately wrong with you; you appeared to be asleep rather than knocked unconscious. After carefully moving your body onto this bed as no further inspection was required, Takahashi-sensei then proceeded to conduct another check-up examination on your Jounin leader to track and record his progress. To his astonishment, he found that Kakashi-san's breathing patterns and rapid heartbeat had been lowered down to much safer rates and that he no longer perspired while he slept, but that was just on the surface."
"O-on the surface?"
"Yes. Takahashi-sensei ran a few tests on Kakashi-san to pinpoint just what exactly could have caused his body to miraculously recover on its own when given the long list accumulated health risks held against his well-being. After finding no scientific proof of this phenomenon, Takahashi-san came up with the ludicrous conclusion that all of Kakashi-san's medical anomalies had simply left his body without a trace, claiming as if he had been cleansed or purified or some other nonsense like that."
Unknown to the two girls, Koki tried his hardest to fight down his excitement. I…I think it's all starting to make sense now!
"So he's safe…w-wait, a few tests? How long was I out?!"
Temari looked over at a nearby clock. "Nearing half-an-hour."
"R-really?" Temari ignored the Minako's puzzled expression and continued to push on.
"So tell me Minako-san…what exactly did you do to revitalize Kakashi-san? Like all of us, he is a human, and as such his body can only recover injuries or ailments to a certain degree, naturally."
"W-what did I do?"
"Yes." Temari's impatience began to kick in. "One of our village's teams of highly trained medics were only able to alleviate his symptoms, not completely obliterate them. Tell me, how is it that a junior-level medic, even one whose mission members of identical ages had years of prior experience, was able to accomplish a feat that even licensed medical professionals were unable to achieve?"
"U-um…" Minako knew that she was backed up into corner. There was very little that she could do to lie her way out of this interrogation, if any.
Don't worry, Mina…you can leave this to me…
Minako's eyes widened at the sudden sound of Koki's voice speaking to her from within her head. She glanced over at the fox pup who sat with his body facing the fan-wielder and his eyes completely shut.
Shield your eyes. Now! Minako did as she was told without hesitation.
While left unseen by his master, Koki shot his eyes open as two identical flashes of light emerged from his irises. Temari recoiled back in shock as the blue jewel on the pup's forehead reappeared momentarily and blinked in a single strobe.
Alright, you are free to look now…Minako removed her arm from across her face and noticed that Temari was staring at nothing particular with a vacant expression. (8)
T-that was fast…
Quickly, continue the conversation that you had about me before she brought up your Jounin leader's condition.
R-right!
Minako cleared her throat before clumsily easing back into idle chit-chat. "A-and uh…t-that's how the two of us met! He's been with me ever since!"
Temari looked back to the other blonde. "O-oh! R-right, of course. Um, sorry but what were we talking about again?"
Well…at least she almost bought it. "This little guy, remember?" Minako gently rested her hand down on Koki's head to which he replied back with a happy yip. "Are you…feeling alright Temari…san?" Minako almost missed her chance to correct her speech.
The other blonde raised a hand to her forehead. "Y-yes. Yes I'm fine, thank you." Temari scanned her surroundings. "Um, well I guess I should take my leave for the night."
"Have a pleasant evening, Temari-san."
"You too Minako-san. And try not to worry yourself too much. I have faith that Kakashi-san will be able to make it out of his clinic just fine."
Koki sensed his master's confusion. She doesn't recall that he's back to normal now, remember?
Oh, right!
"I-I'll try. And thanks…"
——†——
After one final nod between the two girls, Temari departed the clinical ward in silence. Once the other two were certain that they were left alone, with the exception of a certain sleeping Jounin, Minako let out a heavy sigh of relief.
"Whew…that was close."
Koki didn't bother to verbally agree with his master's statement but he did so silently nonetheless. The pup turned around until he was directly facing the blonde medic and got right down to business.
"Did it happen again?"
Strangely enough, Minako immediately knew what her little fox friend was talking about without even thinking about it.
"Y-yeah."
"What did you see?"
Minako spent a few moments to herself trying to remember the events that her last vision held for her.
"It involved…Michiko, her mother, and something about determining what her role was, or something like that. Her mother performed some weird ritual of some sort which would apparently determine what her job as a shrine maiden would be…I think."
Koki spent a few moments taking in all that her master has said.
"Is there anything else that you can recall?"
"Hmm…well it was night time; I uh, started off in a weird village that was entirely supported by a network of low bridges and stilts built above shallow water, and something to do with Michiko's job results being an omen or something. I think that's basically it."
A few moments of silence passed between the pair as Koki began to mentally piece together the events that unfolded ever since he met up with Minako.
"Um…w-what do you think of all this Koki?"
"Hmm…well judging by what you have told me thus far, I'm thinking that the vision that you just saw…was actually a memory."
Minako raised an eyebrow. "Uh…a memory?"
"I believe so. I tried to recall the last one that you told me about, you know, the one where you mentioned a 'union assembly'?"
Minako gave a slow nod. "Y-yes…"
"I have a few assumptions that I would like to have confirmed. Minako if you will, we will be venturing inside your mind once again."
"Um, sure."
Even though Minako was informed ahead of time for another one of Koki's 'mind trips' it still did nothing to ease her anxiety in the event that she would have to undergo a second emotional revelation. Minako closed her eyes and prepared herself. A quick flash was all it took.
——†——
It wasn't long before Naruto and Koki found themselves standing within the strange circular room of Naruto's subconscious once again. The pair glanced towards the three famed mirrors that were mounted on the nearest wall but intently focused their gaze upon the central circular mirror, which was presumed to belong to Michiko. Naruto looked towards the mirror in confusion while Koki looked on in understanding.
"I was right…"
"W-what do you mean?"
"My prediction was that the two memories that you have experienced ever since our first encounter only days ago, are ones that belonged to Michiko while she was alive during her time period."
Naruto did a double-take. "Wait, what?!"
"Now this is all just speculation since it is still too early to determine whether or not I am actually right in the matter. But regardless, I have a good feeling that my thoughts are headed in the right direction."
"Um…care to explain?"
"Naruto. In spite of the different memories that you have witnessed up until now, both times have more-or-less affected you in near identical manners. You may not know this but when you received Michiko's first memory, a black shard of glass – not unlike the one that had appeared from Kakashi's body – was found hovering about your unconscious form before phasing back into your body."
"Wait…you saw that?!"
"I did. In addition, you were immediately placed under immediate sedation after acquiring the memory; both times had lasted for about thirty minutes. But the most prominent piece of evidence above them all involves that central mirror behind you."
Naruto turned his head to look at the mystical object.
"When we first entered your mind, that frame was in possession of only piece of Michiko's sacred mirror. But as you can clearly see, the frame now holds two of them."
Naruto continued to stare at the object.
"Assuming that the remaining pieces of the mirror, wherever they may be, are of a similar size and shape as these two, it would appear as though we would still need to obtain…," Koki envisioned what the mirror would look like when it was whole and silently counted his way around the frame, "about seven additional pieces in order for it to reach completion."
"For a total of nine…" Naruto added in a soft voice.
After assuming that Naruto was not going to comment on his analysis, Koki simply continued on with a few final points.
"Much like Kakashi, I watched on as the mirror fragment removed itself from my human form before making its way down to you. It was from there where I was able to revert back into my original appearance at will."
Naruto's eyes widened. "Wait, wait, wait, wait, hold up! You mean to tell me that that first fragment or whatever came from you?!"
Koki nodded. "Now that I think about it even further, I have begun to believe that the piece that had inhibited my body was responsible for the seal on my transformation capabilities, my extended lifespan and my specified time of expiration."
Naruto was left too speechless to add anything else.
"One discovery can evoke hundreds of unanswered questions." Naruto watched as the fox pup padded his way over to where the blond stood and sat down next to his feet. "Why is it that both of these pieces had inhabited other life forms before their true existences were revealed? Why is it that they initially appear black as opposed to right now? And what will happen once it's all finished?"
The two shared a short silence before Koki continued on.
"As strange as it sounds, I believe that we're on the right track to finding our answers Naruto…I can feel it."
——†——
Upon their arrival back to reality, the blond looked over at her loyal companion with a renewed expression. While she found it somewhat difficult to understand through her own eyes, Minako had this indescribable feeling that Koki was right about the pup's resolve. Even though all of the subject matter regarding the concepts of reincarnation, magic, and memories continued fly by her head faster than she could comprehend, pretty much any lead, no matter how illogical it sounded, with regards to her apparent "destined duty" was considered fair game in her eyes. Minako directed her gaze towards Koki with the intention of getting a few burning questions answered for her, only to leave them unasked due to the very human-like raised eyebrow that the pup had on his small features.
"W-what? Is there something on my face?"
"I beg your pardon Mina but, what's that on your hand?"
"H-huh?" Minako looked down at both of her hands with widened eyes.
Located on the backside of her left hand was a strange circular crest which flickered in an out of existence as if it were a light bulb on its last few minutes of life. She stared at the mystified marking in silence until Koki's sudden shout made her jump slightly in surprise.
"IMPOSSIBLE!"
"W-what?! WHAT?!" Minako used her right hand to clutch her rapidly beating heart.
"T-that emblem! That's the symbol that appeared on the back of Michiko's left hand every time she used her powers!"
Minako was speechless. The symbol on the back of her hand...like in the memory!
"Mina, that marking on your hand proves beyond a reasonable doubt that you are indeed the true reincarnation of Michiko. If this doesn't prove the truth to you, then nothing will." (9)
"Reincarnation…"
As she gazed upon the faded glowing emblem that was emblazoned on the back of her left hand, Minako simply sat frozen in her spot. The truth had finally crashed down upon her entire being…and it was heavy. She felt burdened and yet now determined more than ever that she would finally be able to see an end to this meddlesome life puzzle and return to her normal life in her original body.
"We now know what we must do, Naruto, at least for the time being." Minako looked back at Koki in surprise at the use of her real name. "I believe that it is our duty to go out into the world and retrieve the remaining seven, or so, pieces of Michiko's mirror and restore it to its original state. Only then will we be able to determine what our next move should be."
Minako gulped down the lump in her throat.
"We can do this Naruto, I know we can. But above all that, I know that you can do it too. And I will be right beside you every step of the way. Will you help me…help you?"
With a heavy breath, she chose yes.
TBC
——†——
A/N: Meh…a so-so chapter in my opinion. Hope I didn't bore you guys too much with this one when compared to the action-filled livelihood of the previous chapter. Keep those reviews coming and I'll keep in touch!
For all of those readers confused about the chapter title, it is derived from both the chant that was recited by Chizuru near the beginning of the chapter as well the mark on the back of Minako's hand in the conclusion. The word 'province' in my story is not used in the common definition (i.e. an administrative division within a country or state) but rather from another definition relating to an individual's "sphere or field of authority or activity."
(1) It was incredibly hard for me to incorporate the imagery that I had in mind into words with this particular passage. The best way for me to provide a more accurate representation of this village would be to picture the village of Kilika for those who have played Final Fantasy X or better yet, the city of Yafutoma for those that have played Skies of Arcadia – the latter fictional town was the one that I was trying to describe in the story.
(2) I slightly derived the appearance of the altar from the stone basin that appears on the back cover of the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince book, UK edition but of course a lot less demonic looking.
(3) I pictured Chizuru – Michiko's Mother – to closely resemble that of Syaoran's mother, Yelan, from the first CardCaptor Sakura movie. A very beautiful woman but her hands are the size of a 10-year-old's head!
(4) In my mind, the colors that the maidens were talking about for the results of the occupation ritual for this story are as follows: an orange lotus for a seer, a purple lotus for a priestess and a pink lotus for a healer. What does a golden lotus flower represent? Tune in next time!
Oh and as for the Yata-clan maiden glyphs that I mentioned a little bit after the lotus flower section, I'll just give you all a heads up with what I have in mind in terms of their appearance. For all of you Final Fantasy X or X-2 players out there, the three normal Yata glyphs are envisioned to look like the symbols belonging to the three Magus Sisters summon: Sandy's symbol (seer), Cindy's symbol (priestess), and Mindy's symbol (healer).
(5) Does any one know a better way to word this? It's basically that super cute foot thing that most dogs do when you find their "scratching spots." My dog does this but it's normally when someone scratches him under the chin or on his belly where he does the foot thing. As for the ears, he only tilts his head in the direction that he's being scratched. I love my dog…well…all dogs for that matter but mostly my dog.
(6) Desert Lupines, Ghost Flowers, and Cave Primroses are all wildflowers most commonly found in the American desert.
(7) Now given what I have written in both this chapter as well as the previous one, some of you might think that my story has hinted at a possible relationship between Temari and Kakashi. This is strictly not the case. While the context may say otherwise, Kakashi and Temari are strictly conducting each other in a platonic and professional working relationship. Nothing romantic going on here.
(8) Kind of like that "memory-zapper" thing in Men in Black. I kind of backed myself into a corner when I wrote this passage so I just needed a quick and convenient way to get out of this potential writer's block before I continued on with the rest of the chapter.
(9) Just sort of continuing on with the second half of footnote number 4, the symbol that I had in mind for the emblem on the back of Minako/Michiko's hand is the crest belonging to the Valfor summon from Final Fantasy X. I originally wanted keep it as the symbol for the Shiva summon – because Shiva rules anything and everything and you need to bow down before her! – but in the end I thought that I should remain consistent with the whole wind-element reference of both Michiko's and Naruto's origins in my story by sticking with Valfor instead. It just seems so much more meaningful and symbolically correct this way.