In a vast, desolate expanse of the Misty Forest on the outskirts of Kirigakure, a silent assembly of onlookers gathered. Their attention was fixed upon an old man bound to a rock table, encircled by a large sealing formation with ceremonial rocks placed meticulously.
The old man, appearing to be in his 70s, lacked any remarkable presence. His smooth scalp, wrinkled face, and small stature made him seem harmless. Beside him, a very young girl, no more than 11 years of age, shared the same fate, bound to the rock. While determination marked the old man's face, the girl gazed blankly at the sky.
Both figures' upper bodies were bare. The old man bore an intricate seal in the form of the kanji letter 'iron' (鉄) at the center of his chest. The seal emitted a blue glow, occasionally vibrating like a knock on a door.
The onlookers, positioned a distance away, surrounded the ceremonial rocks. All eyes were fixed on the old man, a sense of respect evident in their gaze. The reason? He was Matsori Kurikagi, one of the first-generation of the Seven Swordsmen, a council elder, and the current jinchuriki of the Three-Tails.
Among the people gathered were the current generation of the Seven Swordsmen, their gazes fixed on the duo at the rock table, prepared to act at a moment's notice.
Behind them stood the current Mizukage and the former patriarch of the Kurogane clan, Isamu Kurogane. He was a relatively tall man, towering above everyone except the Hoshigakis and the current wielder of Samehada, Suikazan Fuguki. The Mizukage sported long black hair with pearl-shaped objects encircling his head.
Wearing a standard Kirigakure attire complete with pinstriped arm and leg guards, he looked the most relaxed among the group. His perpetually half-closed eyes betrayed a hint of weariness. On his left stood his sister and the current matriarch of the Kurogane family, Kizuki Kurogane, while on his right was his best friend, the patriarch of the Hoshigaki clan, Katsuo Hoshigaki, accompanied by his two sons, Kisami and Masaru Hoshigaki.
On the other edge of the sealing formation, another group assembled, including the current ANBU head, Yagura Karatachi, the head of the Hozuki clan, Kurogetsu Hozuki, and the current matriarch of the Mizu clan, Michiko. Behind them were the nephew of Hozuki’s patriarch and the current academy principal, Shigashi Hozuki, with the princess of the Mizu clan and the current academy vice-principal, Ayame.
A few from the Anbu were also gathered around the perimeter while most were spread out, patrolling the area to not let anyone pass in.
Within the sealing formation, alongside the old man and the child, stood a lone figure—an elder with long, tied-back black hair, a distinguished mustache, and piercing grey eyes. Adorned in a kimono with orange accents, a purple vest, and a grey scarf, indicative of the Mizu clan's style, he was Harusame—the village and Mizu clan elder, and the sole Seal Grandmaster of Kiri.
****
Breaking the heavy silence, Harusame spoke with a grave voice, "I am about to initiate the ritual. Stay vigilant, everyone."
This immediately caused the already tense atmosphere to thicken, like a heavy fog settling over the gathering, shrouding each person in a cloak of anticipation and unease.
Unbothered by any of this Harusame slowly moved forward, within seconds he was before the duo bound in the stone table. He slightly nodded upon seeing the determined look on the elder's face, who nodded back but frowned on seeing the girl’s blank look.
With a faint sigh, he addressed the girl in a soft tone, trying his best to offer comfort, "Child, why the vacant expression? Shouldn't you revel in the fact that your existence will finally serve a purpose? Your once inconsequential life will now hold more value than that of most people around you. Even the esteemed village elders might find themselves compelled to sacrifice to shield you. So, do grace us with a smile and embrace your destiny, for you are destined to become one of the most formidable assets of this village."
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This immediately brought about a collective nod of agreement from all the people gathered around, including the elder lying just beside her. However, the girl seemed even more afraid, tears forming under her eyes.
Seeing that his attempt failed to calm the girl down, Harusame just shook his head and calmly took out a brush and a small bottle of ink, placing it right beside the duo. He then picked up the brush, calmy dipped it in the ink bottle, and brought it before the girl.
Suddenly chakra started circulating along his hands, and along his fingers, making the brush tremble with faint blue light. With a blur he imprinted the kanji word “iron” (鉄) on the naval area of her bare skin, identical to the one on the chest of the elder beside her.
{Iron Armour Seal}
Right after forming the seal, Harusame dropped the brush as blue chakra began to flair around fingertips, without a pause he sunk his fingers straight into the old man’s seal-embedded chest.
{Unsealing Technique: Tailed Beast Extraction}
This immediately caused a red bubbling chakra to leak out of the old man seal, and then his mouth, eyes, and nose. Despite feeling an excruciating amount of pain, he just twitched for a bit before calmly letting the scorching red chakra flow out of his orifices. Despite already having his eyes and tongue burnt out, he was still awake.
Before the red chakra could move too far, Harusame slammed his hands on the ground while shouting, “Now!”
{Sealing Technique: Tail Guidance}
Immediately a few ANBU from around the perimeter moved forward and slammed their hands in the ground providing chakra to the seal, causing it to glow blue.
Blobs of blue chakra began floating out of the seal, encapsulating the red chakra leaking out from the old man. Harusame controlled the mass of blue to connect with the “iron” (鉄) seal he had imprinted on the girl, effectively guiding the red mass of chakra into her.
The girl, who was already too afraid after seeing all this began screeching as soon as the red chakra came into contact with her body. Unfortunately for her, before she could faint from pain, Harusame pasted a sealing paper on her forehead, preventing her from doing just that.
{Seal of Dark Serenity}
Unbothered by the girl’s screeching sound, Harusame looked towards the elder, who was constantly expelling the red chakra; still awake. As if sensing Harusame’s gaze the elder “looked” in his direction and nodded.
Seeing his old mentor’s plight, Harusame just sighed and shook his head. Although he had some hope, he knew that the old man could most likely not make it. And even if he somehow made it he would probably commit suicide out of shame for being too old and weak.
Matsori Kurikagi outlived all six of his peers, who together were once known as the Seven Swordsmen of Mist. Four died on duty while two, who were couples committed suicide just half a decade ago upon realization that they were no longer useful to the village. They had outlived their lives as a tool. Matsori too would have done the same if not for the fact that he was the jinchuriki of the Three Tails.
Harusame turned his back to look at the ANBU’s constantly supplying chakra to keep the seal active. He could see that within minutes a few of them had started sweating. Frowning a bit, he commanded, “Exchange and rest for a moment, and rotate every ten minutes with other groups. We may have to sustain this for about six hours.”
The ANBU members turned their heads towards the captain, Yagura Karatachi. Upon seeing him nod, they immediately began separated into groups and began a drawn-out “battle” against the tailed beast.
Unbothered by that, Harusame just slightly adjusted his spectacles and turned to his back to monitor the formation. Everyone seemed eerily unfazed by the constant groans of pain from the little girl, her throat too sore after her initial screech.
****
Seeing the spectacle before her, Ayame slightly frowned and whispered into her mother’s ear.
“Mom, will my brother have to go through the same pain during his beast transfer ritual?”
Hearing her daughter’s doubt, the matriarch’s face immediately contorted in anger, “Do you think of my son as any less than a no-name orphan? If she can go through a single tailed beast transfer then my Utakata can go through tens of these. Just wait for him to grow up a bit.”
Upon saying the last sentence she glared at Kisame, the little prodigy of the Hoshigaki clan who immediately glared back at her. Prompting his father, the patriarch of the Hoshigakis; Katsuo Hoshigaki to defend his son.
“Who are you glaring at, bitch? Come at me if you wanna fight. Why glare at my son if you can’t bear a proper kid from that little cunt of yours.”
This immediately caused the Mizu clan matriarch, Michiko, to fly in rage. Before she and the Hoshigaki could jump at each other, they heard a loud bark from within the formation.
“Shut up you two! Can’t you see I’m working? I can unleash the Three-Tails for you if really wanna fight!” It was Harusame.
This caused two of them to immediately cool down, causing a few other elders to sneer. Despite being higher than him in general hierarchy, he was the only Seal Grandmaster of the village. There was just too much to lose.
As the perpetrator of all this, Ayame just blankly stared at her mother. Too embarrassed and dumbfounded to say anything.
====>Chapter 6: An Elder’s Death<====