Chapter 4 - Flames of Renewal

“Hana,” called Kawaii from where she knelt on the wooden floor, a rag in hand and washing the away several years worth of dust, “bring me a new bucket of water.”

“Already coming, Mother,” the ten year old called back as she walked around the corner of the hall, using both hands to carry a large wooden bucket. She walked over and set the bucket down next to Kawaii, then grabbed the nearly empty one that Kawaii had been using.

“Thank you, dear. How are things going downstairs?”

“Iruka says we’re nearly finished. We only have a few more rooms to clean then we’ll be moving up here,” Hana said with a proud smile.

“Wow, you all are moving quickly,” said Kawaii, “I’ll have to pick up the pace.”

“No, mom, don’t worry,” Hana said quickly, “the only reason we’re going so fast is because some of the ninja from here in the village have come by to help.” She smiled at the thought. “You should see Lee and his teacher scrubbing floors while walking on their hands, it’s a funny sight.”

“Oh, is that it,” replied Kawaii.

“Yeah, and don’t worry, Sakura, Hinata, and Tenten are getting ready to come up and help you up here.”

“Hey, Hana,” called Iruka’s voice from downstairs, “come here, I have something to show you.”

“Coming, Mr. Iruka,” Hana called down, before turning back to her mother, “well, got to go, I’ll be back up here in a little while, Mom.” And with that, she turned and headed back towards the stairs, humming as she went. Kawaii smiled.

*So the leaf ninja not only helped us find this inn, they’re helping us clean it up so we can get back on our feet,* she thought happily to herself. *And I’ll bet that some of the others are helping Meikou and Mikon at the shop as well. Meikou can’t wait to get back to his glass-blowing and now that Mikon is going to be working with him and they have a permanent workshop, their work can only get better.* She smiled to herself again, thankful for the warm welcome they were receiving in Konoha.

“How is everything going, Aunt Kawaii?” Kawaii looked up as Akai came around the corner that Hana had just left around. “I just finished checking in with Lady Hokage and she told me to stay and help around here today. Apparently we don’t have any missions for unteamed shinobi right now.”

“We are making progress,” Kawaii replied, “it’s still early, and if we keep up the pace, we could have this place open by tomorrow.”

“I thought as much. I checked at the shop on my way here. Taka, Kiba, Shikamaru, Choji, and Naruto are all over there with Mikon and Uncle Meikou, so they’re actually almost ready to open.”

“That’s good,” replied Kawaii, excited by the good news, “but what about Izumi? Wasn’t she there as well?” Akai gave his aunt a puzzled look.

“No, she wasn’t, they told me she was here,” he said, getting worried.

“I haven’t seen her all morning,” replied Kawaii, also worried, “I thought she left early with Meikou and Mikon.”

“I’m going find her,” said Akai quickly, turning around to head back downstairs. Hinata, Sakura, and Tenten were standing there.

“You don’t have to worry,” said Sakura, having overheard Akai and his aunt, “she’s out in the courtyard. I found her there when I arrived and she said she wanted some time to think, so she was going to clean it up so she could plant a garden.”

“Okay,” replied Akai, relieved, “I guess gardening is her favorite hobby. I still think I’m going to go check on her.” He made to continue on down the hall toward the stairs, but Tenten put out a hand to stop him.

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea. I think you should just give her some time to herself, let her think things through.” Akai glanced at the stairs, apparently still wanting to go check on his sister.

“I guess you’re right,” he said reluctantly, “I’m just worried about her. I hope she’s alright.”
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Outside in the courtyard, Izumi was pulling weeds from around the base of a cherry blossom tree. She was on her knees, grasping the individual plants and pulling hard at the base until the roots came out of the moist ground. Then she would place the weeds in a basket she had beside her, so she could dice them up later and use them to fertilize the yard as mulch.

As she placed the last weed in the basket, she stood up and looked about at her work. Without stopping once, other than the short breaks to have some water, she had transformed the large courtyard from a dense thicket of weeds and untrimmed trees into a presentable escape. The large pond, previously hidden by the tall weeds, was now visible again, and the small dock on it was still in good shape, despite its years of disuse. The two cherry blossom trees had been trimmed of their overly long branches and now offered gentle shade from the early morning sun. Izumi had taken the yard from wild and untamed to neat and serene in only two hours, all because she didn’t want to think.

Now that the work was done, the thoughts that Izumi had tried to keep herself from thinking surfaced, as unavoidable as thunder in a storm. She thought about how the Leaf Village had been able to help her family. In the three days since the Seishou Clan was founded, they had helped Kawaii and Hana find an inn to run, something the two had dreamed of for years but were never able to because of the Kajihana Clan’s travels. They had helped Meikou find a shop for his glass blowing, a permanent setup in a place where glass items often had to be traded for from other places. Mikon had taken apprenticeship under Meikou and would be helping him in the shop, aside from being the new clan’s leader. It seemed as though the village had been able to help everyone except her achieve their dream. Even Akai’s dream of being a shinobi had been granted by Konoha, but she had nothing.

She couldn’t help but think that being a demon-host might have something to do with it. She didn’t want to think that the people of Konoha, who had so far been very kind, could be like her old clan in that way, but she could think of no other reason. It seemed like she was being left out.

*No, that’s not it,* she thought to herself, *if that was the case, they would not even be allowing me to be here right now. There must be some other reason.* She struggled with her thoughts, trying to find some meaning to her worry, her concern, her fear. *Is it just because all I’ve ever done was work in the café with Mina? Do they think I have no potential for anything else?* The more she thought about it, the more she came to believe that this was likely the truth. She closed her eyes with grief. *Am I really that worthless?*

*No, you are not.*

Izumi opened her eyes at the sound of the different voice, the thoughts that were not hers but that were in her head none the less. When she did, however, she was no longer in the courtyard, but rather in a completely dark abyss, something she could only equate with empty space. She stared into the darkness before her, but she saw no one. It was not until she turned in fear that she noticed a verdant green light radiating from behind her. She turned around and let out a gasp of awe as she laid eyes on the source of the light.

Standing on a large pool of water that was surrounded by many flowers and trees, was a kirin, a mythical creature that Izumi knew was supposed to be spiritually connected with nature and the attribute of luck. Its body resembled that of a deer, but covered in sage green scales rather than fur. It had a horse like mane running down the back of its neck, sky blue in color, and a matching ribbon like tail that extended at least six feet. There was a single horn-like antler in the middle of its forehead and a glowing green dot on the outside of each eye. But it was the creature’s eyes that captured Izumi’s gaze. They were filled with anger, fear, sympathy, concern, and power all at once, and Izumi knew immediately where she had seen them before, in the midst of a swirling mass of energy that had hovered above her in that moonlit cave five days earlier. She fell to her knees, her heart pounding from a combination of fear and awe.

“Y-You’re the demon inside of me, aren’t you?” she said fearfully, eyes wide. The kirin’s eyes flashed as if in anger, and Izumi flinched involuntarily.

“I am no demon!” the kirin replied angrily, stomping a hoof on the surface of the pool. Izumi did not hear the words as much as feel them in her head, like she had before. The kirin’s anger was felt through every fiber of her being, and she bowed her head low in fear, shaking all over. After a moment, though, the feeling of anger was gone, replaced by one that Izumi could only describe as regret. Still shaking, she looked up to the kirin still standing there, only this time the light radiating from it was not so bright, and its head was lowered as if in apology. When it looked up at Izumi’s face again, some of the light returned, but it was nowhere near its previous intensity. “Indeed I am inside you,” said the kirin, far more gently than before, leading to Izumi to realize that its was a girl and probably no older than she was, “but I am no demon.”

“Then may I ask what are you?” asked Izumi politely, still somewhat fearful.

“I am Morijittai, a guardian spirit of the forest.”

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