Turning Swallow

Summary:

OR, One morning, four-year-old Sasaki Kojiro remembers a life not yet lived, and decides to do something about it. History changes. SI!Sasaki Kojiro. Expect general lightheartedness, but dark topics when the time comes.

CH. 32 START

As Chiyome began to chant, Kojiro darted back in an attempt to avoid the roiling pulse of power that radiated from the woman's chanting form. Each pulse was a sickly reddish-black thing that whipped the air around it up into a frenzy, and when they crashed into him, they sent Kojiro stumbling back. After roughly a minute of waiting, unable to get closer due to the power that was forcing him backward, the woman fell silent. The waves of power holding him back disappeared, and though his first instinct was to take the opportunity to attack, Kojiro stayed still. Some instinct screamed at him to run, and while he didn't obey it, without knowledge of what was happening, there was no point in risking himself. This gathering of supernatural might could be for any number of purposes. Was a creature going to be summoned? Had some dangerous spell been prepared? Had some illusion been woven around him?

Soon enough, Kojiro got his answer. Reality seemed to crack as a body began to form itself out of the floating particles of mana. The roof broke and the walls bulged as the creature fully manifested itself, the Imperial Palace unable to contain it. Eight serpentine heads stretched towards the night sky, while eight tails adorned a large and draconic body. Scales the size of Kojiro's head adorned the beast's body, and as it roared at the sky, Kojiro's mind finally processed what he was seeing. This was the Yamata-no-Orochi, a Dragon God, summoned straight from the pages of myth and legend. It could be nothing but. And yet, for all the divine might that pressed down on him, he still managed to notice the invisible power that seemed to be tearing at the God. Where the Yamata-no-Orochi's flesh met air, there seemed to be a sort of blurring, as if the world was trying to force away the God. Whatever magic had brought it here, it seemed, was flawed. The God's body was being formed and ripped apart, before reforming, judging by how the creature's magic was being sucked into it. The waves of power were gone, and rather than throwing around mana, it was sucking it in. An imperfect summoning meant that it could be killed.

Kojiro wasn't fighting a God, not really. He was just engaging it for long enough for the world to kick the Yamata-no-Orochi back from where it came. That was fine. He took a deep breath, trying to call upon that state of focus, before using it to address the situation before him. There were several matters of importance, and the very first, was that the Yamata-no-Orochi was a very, very big creature. More than likely, its scales were tougher than any human creation could be reasonably expected to pierce. That brought up the second point, Kojiro's weapons. The fact was that his blades were not only too short but lacked any significant cutting ability. The wakizashi was a perfectly adequate weapon, at least when dealing with humans, but he wasn't exactly fighting a human, was he? The chance that his blades would break before even scratching the Yamata-no-Orochi was less a chance and more a certainty. There was no time to go and fetch his odachi from Nobuanga's care, for in the time it would take him to get there, the city of Kyoto would be all but destroyed. Even then, for all its' quality, his odachi was just a well-crafted sword. There was nothing special about it. Given that he was in the Imperial Palace, there was probably a chance that he could get his hands on one of the Imperial Regalia, hopefully the Sword, but the time it would take to locate it, if it even was here, made that plan a no-go.

What Kojiro needed wasn't a human weapon, but something beyond it. Only an armament with magical properties could even hope to stand a chance. He had precisely no magical weapons, but even still, despite his instincts screaming at him to leave, Kojiro really didn't want to. Beyond the fear, the nerves, and the anxiety was something beyond ecstatic. Part of him desired combat like no other, memories of the various duels that he'd had with Seigen over the course of his training filled his head, memories of being so utterly outmatched, and the joy he'd felt in overcoming each of Seigen's challenges for him. For five long years, Kojiro hadn't landed a scratch on Seigen. No. There was still something left to give. Just like Seigen's Embodiment had summoned the image of a tiger, granting him the courage, strength, and fierceness that was required to avenge his clan, Kojiro needed his Embodiment to allow him the power to cut through the scales of a God. This state of focus was just the beginning, and the moment that thought materialized, so too did a feeling deep within his soul. It was the image of a blade, waiting to be drawn. Kojiro tugged on it with his mind, and with a soft, yet terribly loud, click, the blade came loose.

With that, Kojiro awoke. The sword coming loose had been like a splash of freezing water in his face. Sudden and startling, but ultimately refreshing. It was as though he'd been walking through a world completely absent of color, thinking that black and white were the two hues in existence, only to abruptly become aware of red, yellow, and blue. That was how stark this difference was. This was true Embodiment, not just the state of heightened focus, but something beyond. It was a manifestation of an aspect of the very world, calling back to the sword arts of the Nen-ryu, which sought to unite all aspects of nature into a single sword style. Now, Kojiro understood why his adopted father had forbidden him from practicing the whole of the Toda-ryu. Just like Seigen had cautioned, learning it would have held him back and hurt his progress. The movements and techniques of the Toda-ryu sought a single thing, complete emulation of how a tiger moved and behaved. Power in every movement, boldness of action, and a furious strength in every strike. While this style was certainly powerful, Kojiro needed none of these aspects.

What Kojiro needed wasn't bravery or strength, but a blade that would allow him to slay both the mystical and the magical, something to lay low the raging God in front of him. A sword of the soul, to slay something beyond the comprehension of normal men. He stretched his hand out, wakizashi gripped tightly within, and now that the mental sword had been unsheathed, it answered his call. Kojiro could almost see the blade form, coalescing into existence before his very eyes. It was of admittedly sloppy construction, in the rough shape of his odachi, sized to match one of the Yamata-no-Orochi's heads. A handle formed around the handle of the wakizashi, doubling the length of the wakizashi in its entirety, while from the tip of the wakizashi, extended a hefty blade. Sized to match one of Orochi's heads, the blade was roughly eight feet long, with a nasty curve to it.

Chiyome's voice said something, probably a threat of some sort, but Kojiro couldn't really make out the words, caught up in the feeling that this not-quite-physical blade was giving him. It was as if Kojiro wasn't just fighting with his body, but with his very being. The extra was tossed to the ground, unnecessary and now an active hindrance. Then, the fight began. One of the Yamata-no-Orochi's heads shot toward him, faster than the bullet that Nobunaga had shot at him during their very first meeting. To Kojiro's new senses, it seemed slow and easy to dodge. He slipped to the side, two steps carrying him just out of danger before the head buried itself into the ground right next to him. The crunching of wood and the mulching of stone greeted his ears, but before the head could withdraw itself from the hole, Kojiro's blade cut down. It cleaved through the air, and a certainty entered him, as the blade neared scale. This strike would sever this head. It did so, cutting clean through cleaved through divine scale, biting into the flesh of a God, and severing the bones of a dragon. The edge of the odachi bit into the wood too, cutting through the solid planks like they weren't even there. Relief poured into him, and at the same time, a faint sense of exhaustion filled his mind. He cursed bitterly, of course; something so powerful wouldn't be so cheap to deploy.

There were seven more heads, and he wasn't sure that he'd be able to cut the rest of them without collapsing. Kojiro grit his teeth, throwing himself out of harm's way. Two more heads slammed into the place he'd been just a moment before, and he had to turn away to avoid the spray of debris. Three more heads, seeking to take advantage while Kojiro was looking away, burst forth, and this time, rather than dodge, Kojiro made to cut them. Of the three heads, the one closest received a sword to the jaw, as Kojiro took advantage of the God's flinch of pain in order to cut again, this time cutting away this head from the Orochi's main body. The other two heads that'd been attacking went limp, as a signal of blinding pain was sent to the remaining six heads. While the beast was thrashing, Kojiro struck twice more, taking advantage of the fact that two of the creature's heads were still buried in the floor. The God's desperate rolling forced Kojiro into a desperate stumble, but when he recovered, he was close enough to the two buried heads that they were both sliced open with a single swing. The Dragon God, still reeling from the pain, was nothing more than a bigger target right now. The God was failing to manifest any divine powers, or even fire, as most dragons liked to do. Perhaps whatever was holding it back was also preventing their use?

Four heads were gone, and with a moment to breathe as the God stumbled back in agony, Kojiro again took notice of the exhaustion floating in his mind. It was becoming physical, as if he'd carried a hundred pounds all this time, despite the sword itself being weightless. While it made cutting easier, he actually rather disliked it. After all, weight created force. Weight was what made Kojiro's favored type of blade so dangerous. A badly blocked swing could result in the odachi cratering your armor or cleaving off one's arm. Without a sense of weight to balance him, he was liable to just swing too wide, leaving himself open. Whatever magic he'd inadvertently called upon, he needed to somehow make it so this spiritual weapon had weight.

The God pulled back, and that, more than anything, convinced Kojiro that whatever this creature was, it wasn't a truly divine being. The title of God was appropriate still, but if this was a God, it was the lowest of low Gods. It bit out with caution and when Kojiro cut at it, the biting head was withdrawn, only for a completely different head to attack. Trickery, from a God? Was he so threatening that even a God couldn't deal with him honestly? Kojiro forced down his arrogance. No. Seigen had taught him that an opponent was still dangerous as long as they were alive, so any boasts could wait until this God was dead.

He'd learned long ago how to deal with an unwieldy blade, so as the jaws of Yamata-no-Orochi descended, Kojiro aborted his previous downwards strike by pulling his sword to the side so that the blade was behind him and his wrists were crossed. Then, he brought his sword right back up, the entire process having taken barely a second. The edge of the blade bit into the lower jaw of this head, and he pulled the foot he'd extended to make the very first downward slice back, before raising his sword over his shoulder to cut down once more. The neck of this head went limp, and only three heads remained. Now, the creature was well and truly desperate. It was, of all things, beginning to run, but before it could turn around to flee, Kojiro was already by the chest, and with a single overhead chop, cut down the last three necks at their base. The body collapsed, and all parts of the God began to dissolve into black and red particles of mana before they were absorbed into Chiyome. He raised his odachi to cut her down as well, but the moment he tried to do so, whatever energy had been buoying him and fueling the magic of his sword went dry. Exhaustion filled him, but before the sword could completely vanish, he sheathed it mentally. Some lightness returned to him, just enough to allow Kojiro to raise himself into a standing position. Unable to run or even move, he waited there, a single, meager wakizashi clutched in his palm. Was there to be a third stage in this fight? If there was, he was already dead.

Chiyome began walking towards him, and he raised the wakizashi to ward her away.

At his actions, the woman chuckled weakly, a wan smile on her face, as she said, "There's no need to be so cautious. You've dealt with Orochi once and for all. I'm in control of my body again."

Even as he questioned her motives, Kojiro was already looking carefully at her and weighing his options. If Chiyome wanted him dead, he would be dead. Not only was she faster and stronger, but given how tired he was, there was no chance of victory. He was far from his best, and the sheer mental exhaustion told him that if he tried to draw the sword from his mind again, he'd suffer greatly for it.

Eventually, he asked, "What do you want?"

"With Emperor Ogimachi dead, the Koga Clans, who I represent, need to align themselves to a new master, lest we face Oda Nobunaga's wrath. With how this event has gone down, I have no doubt that she'll be wanting to get rid of the royal family." Chiyome answered.

That was a half-answer, all sorts of evasive, so he asked again, "Mochizuki Chiyome, what do you want?"

"I…don't know," she admitted, after staying silent for a couple of seconds, "my bloodline, that of the Koga Clan, is cursed. Every generation, the Curse of Yamata-no-Orochi takes over a person and drives them mad. I was chosen, three generations ago. For the first time in my life, the pain that's always been there is gone. I feel freer than ever before, but now, I don't know what to do."

Kojiro looked her in the eyes, watching carefully for any sign of deceit. The Koga Clan. Ninja. Fifty-three clans of shinobi were a powerful force, no matter how small each was individually. Chiyome had great influence over each of them, judging by her earlier words. Obviously, she wanted something from him. The question was how he was going to take advantage of it.

"You are free. Free to go, given that I'm too exhausted to do much to stop you. You want something from me. What is it?" Kojiro demanded, seeking an answer.

"I came to the Imperial Palace for a single reason, to seek the Emperor's aid in purging my bloodline of the Yamata-no-Orochi's curse." Chiyome explained, saying, "Yet, it was not him that cured me. It was you and your blade. You cut down a God, and in doing so, something happened to the Curse. It is gone, transmuted into something more benign by some divine mercy, but you are the root reason why. Something tells me that my place is to be at your side."

A wry smile, like she knew exactly what that something was, but wouldn't say. The woman was speaking strangely too. Divine mercy? Given that a Dragon God had been here moments before, it was likely that the 'something' that was speaking to Chiyome was Orochi itself. Why? Did it want revenge? That didn't make sense, given that the woman already had him dead to rights. Kojiro needed to be aware that it wasn't just Chiyome asking him for something, there was a God involved in this matter as well. Denying a deal might just piss the Orochi off more, now that it wasn't being restrained. Even if it was in some other realm, Kojiro had no doubts that the God had some way of extracting its dues. Risky, either way. He came to a decision.

Kojiro took a deep breath, then opened them again, declaring, "Mochizuki Chiyome. Become my shadow for the remainder of your days. In turn, I swear to you two things. I swear that the Koga Clan will not suffer from past actions. I swear that your loyalty will be repaid with loyalty of my own. Swear yourself to me."

She looked at his extended hand and slowly reached out to grasp it. The moment Chiyome grabbed his hand, it was as if the God had returned once more before the presence of the deity gradually faded away.

"That…sounds alright." she said, once the God was gone, before pausing and asking, "Ah, before that. What's your name? I can't keep referring to you as 'boy.'"

"It's Sasaki Kojiro. Nice to meet you, now that you're not trying to kill me," he answered.

She nodded in embarrassment, replying, "Yes, it's, uh, good to meet you properly too. Sorry for trying to hurt you."

"Apology accepted," Kojiro responded, "now, we need to get our stories straight before Nobunaga comes back with her whole army. Yamata-no-Orochi's appearance will have alerted everyone, even the armies beyond Kyoto's walls. If anything's off about your alibi, she'll try to kill you on the spot, especially once she finds out that you're Koga."

Chiyome responded, "Understood, Lord Sasaki."

She began to walk, before she stopped, once she realized Kojiro wasn't coming with her.

With as straight a face as he could muster, Kojiro said, "I'll need you to help me to the front gates as well, Chiyome. I can't really walk right now. And call me Kojiro. We're going to be working with one another for a long time."

"Understood, Lord Kojiro." she answered with a hint of a smile on her face, even as she moved to aid him, saying, "Now, what I was thinking is that while you were trying to kill the Emperor…"

As they walked to the gates of the Imperial Palace at a glacial pace, Kojiro and Chiyome discussed their alibi, and when Nobunaga came marching up with her army and a wild look in her eyes, Kojiro managed to answer her worried questions with little issue.

A/N:

We've crossed 300 favorites and 350 follows. I can't thank you guys enough. Here's the list from last chapter, filled in with some of the correct guesses. Also, as a heads-up, Kojiro's not actually on this list, as the main character, he's more free floating and will dabble in most of these abilities. 1 denotes primary class in the story, while other numbers denote all possible classes. All of the classes will be filled with a separate character, repeats/2's don't count as separate.

Also, shoutout to Holix25, who somehow guessed exactly what the plan for future chapters was by commenting, 'looks like the human side of things is just about wrapped up and already there are major steps heading towards the mythical side now.' How tf did you peek into my notes?

Ruler: Oda Nobunaga(1)

…

Saber: Toda Seigen(1), ?

Archer: Oda Nobunaga(2)

Lancer: ?

Rider: N/A

Caster: ?

Assassin: Mochizuki Chiyome, ?

Berserker: Toda Seigen(2), ?

Edited Chapter 32 on 12/31/2022 for Spacing and Minor Spacing Errors.