Yuzuki knelt before the cave's gawping maw, the darkness within impenetrable, even to the all seeing eyes of the Hyuuga; reverently the midnight head bowed before the darkness, arms stretching forwards to deposit a glistening silver box at the entrance and bringing her palms, face up, to rest on its either side. The harsh staccato of hundreds of legs upon stone filled the silent forest, emanating from the cave, getting closer. The feeling of splotchy sunlight upon Yuzuki's back disappeared, as the forest once again fell silent, not even the birds dared sing. The rough sound of metal scraping across uneven stone and loose gravel, grated on Yuzuki's delicate hearing, but she didn't twitch. Even with a sense of foreboding bearing down upon her from the silent forest. The box was returned, with that self-same awful scraping, to Yuzuki's outstretched arms.
"Why are you disguised, child?" The voice was low and rough; it was hypnotic. "Are you disgusted with your body like so many others? Do you shun my gifts?"
"Forgive me, Master." In a rush of wind, hundreds of thousands of butterflies took to the air, blocking out the sky and the forest, surrounding them in a white bubble, revealing Yuzuki's back to be covered in an intricate pattern of lines and spirals, culminating in a single open space.
"Look at me child" eyes opened over Yuzuki's body, blinking slowly in the new light, she looked at her master. She didn't raise her head. "You have grown." The pair of pale blue eyes on her out stretched palms sparkled in happiness. "Such a beautiful child deserves a beautiful pair of eyes." Long finger-like claws, bleached bone white from years with no sun, reached out, "Give me your hands child." Yuzuki did as she was told, raising her hands, palms down, to present her master with the smooth skin. His mandible clicked in thought as he twisted his segmented body around and around, searching for just the right color. "Here." it felt as if her hands were being crushed, Yuzuki nearly cried out from the pressure of nerves and blood growing in and through the bones of her hands to the newly implanted eyes. "Yes, those will do nicely." Her master turned from her, his many legs carrying him away into the darkness.
"Thank you, master" Yuzuki stayed prostrate before the cave mouth until the sound of crunching bone was not longer audible.
She stood somewhat shakily, new eyes always made her disoriented, and cradled her hands to her chest, moving them would be difficult for the next few days, her fingers would be stiff and slightly swollen and the base of her hands would scream in protest as soon as she tried to do anything. Anything near bone hurt like a bitch (well for her, anyway), the new nerves and vessels would grow straight through any previous tissue, and bone was the most uncomfortable. Yuzuki stumbled as she tried to walk towards the village, resting against one of the many trees around her she willed the eyes on her body to close and called her butterflies back to her skin to form a protective shell around her body, making sure to cover her extra-sensitive eyes in thicker layers; only slightly steadier on her feet now that her eyes were closed, Yuzuki henged back to 'Naruto'. Praying as she stumbled back to her house, listing off every deity she knew – even some of the demonic ones- asking, pleading, them "Don't make me use my eyes." She received no response. With a sigh Yuzuki fell into a restless sleep; a blue butterfly flicked its wings, opened closed opened closed, much like the blue eyes resting in Yuzuki's palms.
A.N. I would love your response to this story and any ideas would be welcome if you wish to throw them my way. Thank you so much.
