Chapter 34
Uzushiogakure.
A few weeks after Haruto's birthday.
On a quiet, mundane morning, long before the sun had even begun to rise.
Inside Medori's compound was a sparsely decorated room holding only a bed, a wardrobe, and a study table. Scattered across the desk were various origami birds—some perfectly folded, others crumpled with mistakes. In one corner sat a neat stack of fūinjutsu talismans, freshly painted with ink and brush.
On the bed lay a breathtaking, white-haired beauty with a delicate beauty mark resting just below her left eye. A deep frown marred her features; she was trapped in a nightmare.
"Hiyuki, do you wish to become a Miko?"
In her dream, she saw an outstretched hand. Two small Kagura bells were tied around the wrist of the woman offering it.
Then, her vision violently shifted. A burning temple. A lone woman fighting desperately within that blazing hell. And finally… a lifeless, bloodied hand, still bearing those exact same bells.
"Hiyuki, my wish is that 'Let there never be another Miko of the Flaming Sakura'."
Hiyuki violently sprang up in bed, gasping for air. She took several deep, shaky breaths to steady herself, aggressively rubbing her face with her hands.
"It's just a dream…" she murmured, desperately trying to comfort herself. "She is still alive… waiting for me. Those visions were just of a different future. Gyokuro is safe. She is waiting for me."
She glanced out the window. The sky was still pitch black.
Still in her nightgown, she slipped out of bed and walked to the bathroom. After finishing her morning routine, she stepped naked beneath the showerhead.
Another beauty mark, slightly larger than the one on her face, rested perfectly on her right shoulder.
She reached out, touching the metal shower pipe, and instantly flash-froze the exterior. This world's technology had not yet developed a proper temperature control system, especially not for showers.
Because Hiyuki was not of this world. She hailed from Solaris—more specifically, the grand nation of Ashinohara. A vastly more advanced civilization.
As the freezing, ice-chilled water soaked her skin, she finally began to relax. The biting cold grounded her, washing the lingering dread of her nightmare away.
Half an hour later, Hiyuki stepped out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around her body.
Opening her wardrobe, she stared at the multitude of beautiful dresses hanging inside. Hiyuki was, at her core, a simple girl. As an orphan, she had been taken in by the Miko of the Flaming Sakura—her older sister, Gyokuro—and eventually inherited the mantle of a Miko herself. Because of her strict upbringing, she rarely indulged in frivolous spending or luxuries.
All of these clothes were gifts from her new family.
'Family, huh?' She didn't quite know when she had actually started thinking of them that way. Was it because of their constant care? Their fierce overprotectiveness? Or was it their deep understanding? An understanding so profound that, despite having countless questions about her mysterious origins, they had never once pushed her for answers.
They simply loved her as a sister, as a daughter, as a disciple, and as a child.
If she wasn't bound by her sacred duties as the Miko of the Flaming Sakura, she might have gladly stayed here with them forever. Far away from the apocalyptic threat of the Dark Tides and the Threnodian.
Her fist tightened around the wardrobe's wooden handle. Now, she finally understood what Gyokuro's true wish had meant. 'Let there never be another Miko of the Flaming Sakura.' She wanted to ensure no other soul would ever be chained to such a tragic, self-destructive fate.
Hiyuki made a silent promise to herself: she would be the very last Miko. She would save Ashinohara so that Gyokuro could finally just be Gyokuro, unburdened by duty. And maybe, just maybe, the two of them could live a normal, ordinary life together in this peaceful shinobi world with her new family.
Sighing, she loosened her grip on the handle and began sorting through the racks for some simple, everyday clothes.
She reached for a plain kimono, but her hand froze inches away as her eyes locked onto a very specific outfit tucked in the back.
She had it custom-made during a mission in the Land of Fire's capital. It was a traditional Miko outfit.
Her fingers hesitated slightly before she let out a soft breath, reaching in and pulling out the shrine maiden attire.
It had been quite some time since she had practiced her duties.
Now fully dressed in the red and white garments, she stared at her reflection in the full-length mirror mounted on the inside of the wardrobe door.
Instead of her usual practical ponytail, she let her hair fall loose. Her long, silver-white strands cascaded well past her waist, with straight, immaculate bangs covering her forehead and distinct, sharply cut side-locks framing her pale cheeks in a traditional hime cut.
She then reached down and opened a hidden compartment of the cabinet. Inside sat a single, small red wooden box.
She stared at it for a long moment before slowly opening the latch. Resting on the velvet cushion were two small Kagura bells, tied together by a woven red cord meant to wrap around the wrist. It was the Sentinel Legacy Talisman: Suzu.
The Sentinels were beings of unfathomable, god-like power. In her home world, they were the majestic entities that protected and preserved human civilization. Acting as guardian deities.
Suzu was one of the five divine Legacy Talismans forged by the Sentinels themselves. And it was the very source of the title, Miko of the Flaming Sakura.
The talisman allowed its bearer to perceive and physically utilize "certain possibilities" from their own future. Essentially, it effectively lets the user borrow devastating power from a potential, alternate timeline of themselves.
But such power came at a cost. The futures that could be drawn upon were strictly limited, and continuous use of Suzu literally burned away the bearer's mortal lifespan.
This was the grim fate that every single Miko of the Flaming Sakura eventually succumbed to—turning to ash and disappearing from the battlefield forever after drawing too much on their future.
Hiyuki still didn't fully understand why Gyokuro had forcefully given the talisman to her, alongside those cryptic parting words: 'Do not let Suzu bind your fate. Go seek a future of your own. Let fate guide you to your destiny... until then, I will hold the line here.'
Hiyuki bit her lips and gently closed the wooden lid shut.
"Just a few more years, Sister," she whispered to the empty room. "Just a few more years. After that, I will be strong enough to end it all."
She was strong. Vastly stronger than she had been on Solaris, and that was without even tapping into Suzu's power.
She hadn't used the talisman once since arriving in the Elemental Nations. Even without it, her innate frequency and chakra allowed her to effortlessly flash-freeze entire landscapes.
But it was still not enough. It was nowhere near enough to fight against Threnodian. She needed more. Much, much more.
Suddenly, the image of Haruto's soft, smiling face flashed into her mind. Her heart immediately clenched with a wave of guilt. She hated herself.
A thin layer of frost began to rapidly spread across the surface of the wooden box beneath her trembling hand.
She took a slow, steady breath, forcing her heart to calm down. Haruto was one of the primary reasons for her monstrous growth.
During that incident with Tenka's spatial outburst, it was Haruto's words that had saved her life, forcefully rewriting her physical limits and granting her this terrifying new potential.
But the cost of that miracle had nearly been his life. They had come so terrifyingly close to losing him forever.
She would honestly rather die than ever put him in that position again. Relying on him to boost her power would be taking the easy path.
Besides, this new world had already given her a profound gift—a secondary energy system with essentially unlimited potential and versatility. Chakra.
It was a completely different metaphysical framework from her own native abilities. It had nothing to do with frequencies. Instead, it was the pure, harmonious union between physical stamina and mental, spiritual energy. And beyond that, there was even Senjutsu—the elusive Natural Energy.
She had so much to learn and so very little time. She hadn't even scratched the surface of mastering fūinjutsu, a mystical art that seemingly had no upper limit—ranging from mundane storage scrolls all the way to her Sensei's terrifying ability to physically rewrite the laws of reality.
Gyokuro had been right. Fate had guided her here—to the exact shinobi village that housed multiple grandmasters in this reality-bending art.
Her icy gaze shifted back to the frosted red box. She knew exactly what would happen if she ever activated Suzu now. With her newly evolved body and chakra network, her "future possibilities"—which were already numerous back on Solaris—would now be truly unlimited.
She sighed deeply, finally breaking away from her heavy, depressing train of thought.
She looked outside the window, the sun had begun to peek through the darkness.
****
As Hiyuki walked downstairs, she heard faint noises coming from the kitchen.
She looked across the dining room. Medori was softly humming to herself as she prepared breakfast.
A small smile grazed Hiyuki's lips, and she quietly slipped out of the house.
As she stepped outside, a crisp morning breeze swept against her skin. She walked past the large garden toward the dojo located on the left side of the compound.
She gently slid open the dojo's doors and stepped inside. Her gaze swept over the various weapons hung on the walls; katanas were neatly placed on their stands, and longbows rested perfectly on their racks.
Hiyuki stood in the middle of the polished wooden floor. She allowed her body to relax, calming her mind and steadying her breathing. Slowly, she lifted her hands in front of her chest.
In her right hand, frost began to gather. It wasn't just ordinary ice, but pure, blue crystalline ice that rapidly molded into the shape of a beautiful folding fan. From the pivot point at its base hung a single, delicate Kagura bell.
The grueling training she had endured to achieve this level of absolute elemental control was anything but easy.
Then, she began her ceremonial dance to the heavens. Her Kagura.
She took one deep breath, stepping forward, and the ambient winds immediately stirred.
Flowers wither. Flowers bloom.
She chanted inwardly.
Thus I rise. Speak your wish.
She rotated gracefully on her toes.
The seasons turn, the heavens bless.
She swept the fan down from above her head, bringing it before her chest as she bowed with profound grace.
Before them now, I offer this dance.
Then, she began the true sequence with deliberate, sweeping motions, physically offering her dance to the heavens.
We pray for warmth, that life may rise.
Her calm red eyes now held a mesmerizing, ancient depth to them.
We pray for rain, to cleanse the long night.
With a flawless twirl, she spun on one leg.
We pray for moonlight, to guard the harvest.
With a fluid, sweeping gesture of her arm, she rotated again, her ice fan leaving behind a lingering, bluish-white trail of light in the air.
We pray for snow, to blanket spring beneath.
Her footwork was masterful as she twirled and glided across the floor.
As she danced, the bell attached to her fan chimed a pleasant, rhythmic melody with each of her movements, deeply soothing the surrounding atmosphere.
All around her, small, crystalline snowflakes began to spontaneously manifest from the moisture in the air. Her spiritual energy gently spilled outward, quickly blanketing the entire dojo in a serene chill.
Hiyuki danced in a pure trance. Her movements were ethereal, her swings soft and gentle.
When the first rays of the morning sun finally pierced through the thin paper walls of the dojo, it created a truly mesmerizing spectacle. Hiyuki danced like a goddess bathed in the dawn's light, the floating ice crystals reflecting and scattering the sunbeams throughout the room.
Outside the dojo, the winds began to visibly stir as Hiyuki's chakra flowed through the compound's garden. The trees and flowers swayed in perfect rhythm, as if dancing alongside her.
In the kitchen, Medori paused her chopping, a small, knowing smile touching her lips before she lightly shook her head. She could clearly hear the soft, rhythmic chiming of the bell carrying through the quiet morning air.
"Is Hiyuki in the dojo?" Tenka asked, stepping up beside Medori. "It seems she had a bad dream again."
From time to time, Hiyuki would do this—slipping into her "Miko mode." By this point, everyone in the household knew that Hiyuki had been some kind of sacred priestess in her past.
"Let the girl have her space," Medori said softly as she resumed her work. "Everyone has scars they don't like others to see." Her words carried the quiet, heavy wisdom of her own life experiences. "Here, help me with this."
She handed Tenka a paring knife and a basket of vegetables to peel.
"Yeah, yeah. I understand, Mother. Not everyone likes their past being poked around in," Tenka nodded, diligently getting to work.
****
Back in the dojo, the atmosphere had drastically changed.
A thin, perfect layer of ice now coated the wooden floor. Above it, Hiyuki still danced, heavily shrouded by a freezing fog. At some point her once delicate folding fan had morphed into a lethal war fan with sharp, jagged icy edges. The gentle ceremonial dance had evolved into a breathtaking, deadly display of martial power.
One life. Two lives. A thousand lives without end.
Her once-soft turns became violent, powerful swings that audibly sliced through the air, leaving behind thick, bluish trails of frozen energy.
Her footsteps, previously light and graceful, were now heavy, firm, and undeniably deadly.
If the gods offer no aid…
If the dance before had been a peaceful plea to the heavens, this was a dance of absolute destruction.
I shall end the line of mikos myself.
Her red eyes sharpened with predatory focus. With a devastating swing of her arm, she unleashed a massive crescent blade of ice that tore straight through the fog and cleanly cleaved a solid wooden training dummy in two.
As the severed halves of the dummy fell, the wood rapidly froze over, shattering into countless icy splinters the moment it impacted the frozen ground.
Hiyuki finally stopped, standing still as a light sheen of sweat marred her brow. She took a long, deep breath, letting the icy mist fade as she calmed her racing nerves.
Hiyuki stood perfectly still, her chest heaving as the adrenaline slowly began to recede.
The pure blue crystalline war fan in her hand fractured, dissolving into a fine, shimmering mist that swept across the frozen floor before vanishing entirely into the morning air.
"Remarkable control, Hiyuki."
Hiyuki turned toward the voice. Saki stood at the entrance, leaning casually against the doorframe. Her keen crimson eyes assessed Hiyuki.
"Your control over your bloodline is some of the best I have ever seen," Saki said with a hint of pride as she walked inside.
Saki was in her training outfit. She wore a dark, form-fitting, sleeveless crop top with a central zipper. Beneath it was her standard fishnet mesh armor. Her lower half consisted of dark, loose-fitting shinobi pants.
Saki was returning from her usual morning run around the village when she had felt the entire garden blanketed in Hiyuki's unique chakra.
"Sensei, good morning," Hiyuki greeted her, quickly composing herself. "Do you need the dojo?"
"No. I was just finishing my run when I felt your chakra, so I came to check on you," Saki said softly. "You know, you are my second strongest student in terms of raw power."
"Second?" Hiyuki asked instinctively, her competitive edge flaring.
Saki raised an amused eyebrow.
"What, not satisfied?" Saki chuckled. "Child, you are still far from defeating Sakuko. Especially after she learned the Eight Inner Gates from me."
After the invasion, Sakuko had poured everything into training herself. She was now strong enough to force Saki to take her seriously in a spar.
"Eight Inner Gates?"
"Mhm. It's a technique I managed to awaken during the invasion. Normally, a person can only use about twenty percent of their body's full potential—it is the brain's way of protecting the muscles from tearing themselves apart through overexertion. But the Eight Inner Gates allow you to forcefully remove those limiters."
Saki was reciting what she had read in the Uzushio archives.
After the invasion, she had begun researching the strange new seal she had experienced, but found nothing on it directly. Instead, she had stumbled upon an ancient archive mentioning the Eight Inner Gates.
That was how she realized the sensation of a "dam breaking" inside her wasn't entirely her fūinjutsu; rather, her seals had helped her artificially break past her physical limits to forcefully open her inner gates.
But those files hadn't mentioned how to actually open them. Saki had been forced to figure out the exact mechanics herself before passing the knowledge down to Sakuko.
"Can I learn it?" Hiyuki asked, her eyes filled with sudden determination.
"No," Saki rejected flatly. Before Hiyuki could get any wrong ideas, she elaborated. "You are not compatible with this technique. It takes years of extreme physical conditioning just to safely open the first gate. Most importantly, you need an incredibly sturdy physique to handle the sheer physical backlash. Even someone like me almost died from it."
Saki didn't add the other contributing factors—like the fact that she had been actively poisoned by two of the Tailed Beasts' chakra during her first time using the technique blindly.
"Besides, you already have more than enough on your plate. In terms of raw destructive power, you are at a high-jōnin level, bordering on Kage. What you lack is combat experience, which you are only slowly gaining."
Saki's crimson eyes sharpened as she began bluntly listing out her student's flaws.
"Your ninjutsu, genjutsu, taijutsu, and fūinjutsu are miserable compared to your mastery over your bloodline limit and your kenjutsu. What you need right now is not more power, but refinement."
Seeing Hiyuki lower her gaze and bite her lip in frustration, Saki let out a soft sigh.
"Hiyuki." When the girl looked back up, Saki's expression had softened. "Seeking strength is important, but do not let yourself get blinded in its pursuit."
Saki reached out, affectionately ruffling Hiyuki's white hair.
"Take this advice from someone who has already walked the exact path you are walking right now. Blindly chasing strength will never be enough; it will only leave you feeling hollow, and you will eventually end up loathing yourself."
Saki offered a warm, genuine smile.
"What I am trying to say is that sometimes it is better to just stop and look around you. Look at the people and the friends you've made, and truly appreciate them." Saki then gently placed her hand against Hiyuki's chest, right over her heart. "Sometimes, the greatest strength is already inside you. You just need someone or something to protect—something you hold so dearly that you would willingly fight against the entire world for it."
Hiyuki's red eyes widened. An image of Gyokuro flashed in her mind, followed quickly by the smiling faces of the other girls. Finally, the rapid succession of images stopped entirely on a crimson-haired boy whose smile could light up her entire world.
Hiyuki's heartbeat instantly began to race. Her face flushed bright red, and she nodded hurriedly. She quickly took a step back, terrified that her sensei would hear her pounding heart—which, of course, Saki absolutely did.
Saki blinked in utter confusion, watching the deeply flustered girl try desperately to calm her own racing pulse.
Saki simply shook her head and straightened her posture. She didn't press the issue or ask the girl exactly who or what she was thinking about.
"Well, just keep my words in mind. I don't know the full extent of your situation or your responsibilities, and for all I know, this advice might not even be helpful to you," Saki said as she turned and walked toward the exit. But just before she crossed the threshold, she paused and looked back over her shoulder.
"However, if you ever truly feel that you still need to learn that technique... I will teach you, as your sensei."
Hiyuki took a deep breath, finally bringing her erratic heartbeat under control, and gave a firm nod.
"No, I think you are right, Sensei. I am trying to bite off more than I can chew right now. I should focus on improving my foundational skills first."
A small, approving smile touched Saki's lips. She nodded once and stepped out into the crisp morning light, leaving Hiyuki alone in the dojo.
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