Blood of the Broken, Scars of the Spiral (there are whirlpools in our veins)

Chapter Fourteen

'Now all you can do is wait. It must be hard for you, but there is a right time for everything. Like the ebb and flow of tides. No one can do anything to change them. When it is time to wait, you must wait.'

-Haruki Murakami, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle

//

Naruto remembered Kurama's words before they had sent him back and was doing his best to spend more time with the fox.

When the sun was beginning to slip beneath the treeline and stars started to litter the night sky, he closed his eyes and reached the way Kurama had instructed. It was as if he was falling backward deeper into his own mind, falling and falling until he found himself in front of the wooden cage that had grown somewhat familiar.

"You're here," Kurama rumbled, "good."

"I hafta be," Naruto replied, seating himself outside the prison of vines, "I owe ya a debt after all."

Kurama tilted their head. "Careful, little fox kit," they warned. "Promises and Debts are serious things, especially to Beings such as I."

"And here we are, I still owe you a debt." Naruto said firmly and Kurama dipped their head in an acknowledgement that shivered along Naruto's bones, sinking deep into the marrow. He pushed aside his unease to focus on the more pressing issue. "So," he said, "Now first we gotta see what's stoppin' you from gettin' outta here and how to getcha out."

He paused, an issue that should have been brought up before taking up the forefront of his mind.

"To start, I know how ta write, but that's about it. I don't know shit about sealing, and I don't got no one to teach me."

"That is a... very discouraging start ," Kurama said, and he could hear their agitation.

"Yeah, but nothin' we can't work with," he tries to be positive, "It'll just take a little time."

Kurama snarled, leaping to their feet where they towered over him as they angrily paced from one side of their wooden cage to the other. It made Naruto's heart ache to see them trapped, and it made him angry to know that it was him who was their jailor, however unwilling he might be.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "It's not fair. But I'm committed to this and I'm gonna free you."

Kurama stopped pacing, instead turning back to look at him. They crouched down again and looked at him. "Yes," They said. "You are. And you will." They sighed, as hot as a gust of summer wind. "We'll start with the basics then." They lifted a massive claw and gestured to the cage where the inked paper stood. "That," They said, "is the seal trapping me inside you."

Naruto frowned as he looked at it. Like last time, looking at the lines and swirls of ink was irritating, like looking at a piece of embroidery with a thread loose, or tasting ramen that had something missing.

He missed the taste of ramen.

But anyway, back to the issue at hand.

"Last time you said no true Uzumaki would have made it. You called it 'clumsy'. What did you mean?" He asked and Kurama snorted.

"I meant exactly that," They said scornfully. "It's a display of brute force where a delicate touch was required. No finesse at all. Mito or Kushina would never have crafted such an insult." They snarled, spiteful in their praise before their face bled into amusement, "Oh, I'm sure the Yondaime was a very impressive killer and talented enough at the flashy battlefield seals, but this type of work requires precision."

"That's great then," Naruto said, remembering the countless hours he'd spent slaving over his sewing and his kanji, until his fingers bled and calloused and the muscles in his hands ached and cramped, "precise work is what I do best, dattebayo!."

"Of course it is," Kurama said. "You're an Uzumaki. It's in your blood."

Naruto smiled up at them. "Maybe," he agreed. "But I put in lotsa work too, ya know."

"I'm sure you have, Fox Kit." Kurama bellowed,amused.

"Believe it!" He grinned.

"I do Kit, I do."

And for the first time since Aiya died, it really felt like someone did.

//

That night, Naruto dreamed.

He dreamed of a woman, ivory fair with hair as red as blood piled atop her head in two rolls secured by hairpins from which hung two sealing scrolls. The woman's hands were splattered with ink and blood and she knelt before a massive figure.

"Forgive me Shinigami-sama," the woman said, "I had no choice"

"We always have choices," the shinigami replied, "you chose to let them bind you in chains of your own making."

The woman bowed her head. "I know," she whispered. "I know." The Shinigami sighed, leaning forwards to hold her face with a bony hand.

"Oh Mito-chan," they said, "We cannot forget and it is not Our place to forgive, but We ask you now– what will you do?"

The woman– Mito– was silent for a long moment, before she finally lifted her head. "I will not rest," she said, "until my mistake has been undone."

The death god made a churring sound. "Do you give your Word, Uzumaki Mito, that this is true?"

Uzumaki Mito raised her chin high. "I give my Word, Shinigami-sama."

"Then let it be done."

A/N

Helloooo mythology and worldbuilding!

I always believed that Kishi should have done more with myths and folklore, especially fox folklore.

If you couldn't tell, Nart's a bit different from the manga/anime. I wanted to give him more of a shinobi mindset. The shinobi world is awful, but we're viewing through the eyes of the most oblivious ninja ever.

Honestly, that child should have a hell of a lot more mental issues than what canon gave him.

I'm trying to have him still be a sweet golden summer child without making him naive and blind to how the world works. Kid is also probably gonna have a few psychological problems.

Look, in this household we take canon out back and put it out of my misery.

So anyway, how have y'all been.

I'm tired and sick and for some reason I'm still going to school. I swear, sometimes I contemplate finding the nearest cliff and ending it myself.

But anyhow, what do you think of Mito and the Shinigami's introductions? How do you think they're gonna affect the story? Also, WHERE IS KAKASHI?!

*eyes Danzou again*

I really should bring him back soon, and I will, I'm just lazy.

Welp, I'm tired and about to go [try to] take a nap.

Stay happy, stay healthy, and have a good day/night faeries ♥♥♥

Luv y'all! ♡

Disclaimer:

I do NOT own the Naruto series, it belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I own only my original characters and the plot.