Chapter 1
October 10th, Year 60 of the Hidden Villages, 09:25 PM
An otherwise calm Autumn night was being punctured due to the cries of a woman in labor, steadily rising into a crescendo.
"Aaahhhhhh!!!"
If any unsuspecting person could hear her, the woman's suffered screams would be most likely dismissed as the melodramatic antics of a first timer. But this wasn't a regular labor. In the darkened cave she was giving birth, the midwives assisting her had no access to painkillers whatsoever, so she was experimenting the full pain of pushing a baby through her channel.
And of course, there was the fact that she was the current Nine-Tails Jinchuuriki, so she was giving birth at the same time she had to use every surplus bit of strength left to retain the Demon inside her.
She arched her body in pain, the veins in her wrists bulging against the ropes made of Seals that were keeping her near immobile. She had begged to get allowed to be in her hands and knees instead of on her back, to make the birth easier and faster, but the ropes holding her were more effective if the trapped person was in a vulnerable position. And since those ropes were also helping to keep the Beast in its place, there were no other options.
The blonde man next to her was looking at her in a worrisome way. Not matter how much support and comfort he wanted to bring to her, at the end the birthing process was on her shoulders alone. The best he could do was to hold her hand and whisper sweet nothings to those distressed ears of hers.
Time rushed by, and it was until the eighth hour when the real pain started. She could felt herself getting more dilated, and as the pressure in her back increased in intensity, so did her screams. But when the pain finally disappeared and she heard the baby's first cry, she knew it had all been worth it.
Her beloved had moisty eyes. The baby was ugly, with swollen shut eyes and cramped legs, but it was his. He watched with a wan smile how a midwife. a young but diligent girl, was busy fussing over her wife, while the other, older midwife,-the wife of the former Village leader herself-, was busy cleaning the baby (his baby, he thought with a proud smile) with warm water taken from an old clay crock.
He wanted to take the baby in his arms, and he tried, only to be stopped by the elder lady's harsh voice-
"Don't touch her! The right to see the baby first belongs to the mother!"
He almost wanted to get offended at her words, but he was way too happy to be so, and besides something else caught his attention.
"Her?"
They had been expecting a boy.
With a serene smile, the youngest midwife looked at him. "Seems like your obstetrician did a mistake with your baby's sex. Happens in one out of ten births. It's not that uncommon" the girl completed with a soft smile.
But the explanation didn't appease him. The midwife didn't know, but aside from the standard check-ups and ultrasounds, his wife had also been subjected to amniocentesis and non-invasive prenatal tests.
He looked at his wife, to see if she was thinking the same as him, but she wasn't paying him any mind, instead choosing to stare at the baby with her mouth slightly agape and an expression he had never seen in her face before. It was so full of adoration and awe, that it promptly took his breath away...
But he needed to focus in his thoughts, so with no small amount of reluctance, he tore his eyes away from such a pretty sight.
Honestly he didn't care at the slightest if the baby was a boy or a girl. But all those tests had been carried out for a reason, and the idea of them being faulty somehow did nettle to his cautious nature. Because if they had made a mistake with something as obvious as the baby's sex, what guarantee was there that far more delicate details hadn't also been overlooked?
But his wife looked so happy...and their baby seemed good and healthy as well, five toes and fingers in each foot and hand. At first glance, it didn't seem like there was anything wrong with her. But he knew that in case there was something wrong, he and his wife would face that head on and fearlessly, as they had always done. For now, eveything seemed all right, and he should just enjoy this moment.
And when the ominous sound of bodies falling to the ground was perfectly heard throughout the cavern...he no longer had time nor mind to freet over such an inconsequential mistake...
/Little did he know, that what he thought of as a mistake in reality was not mistake at all, but a very deliberate change brought by Forces unknown to them. Like a peeble thrown in the middle of a sea and producing ripples because of it, such a change would bring so many other changes later on. Some minor, some major, and some of them starting that very same night.../
October 10th, Year 60 of the Hidden Villages, 11:20 PM
She was dying. Slowly but surely.
But in spite of all the pain she had been through the whole night, she was still breathing and on her feet. She had always felt blessed with her strong life-force and extremely durable body. And yet she still didn't think she had ever felt more thankful for such gifts as of now.
Those gifts were the only thing giving her time to have a few extraneous moments with her baby.
"My baby..."
Behind her, she could hear her beloved's harsh breathing while he quietly invoked one of his most loyal summons. An orange and black toad with markings, with a grave voice and a strange and expandable torso. For the time being; that toad was going to have the cardinal task to be the keeper of the Seal Key of the Shiki Fūjin.
When she saw the messenger toad place its hands together, as if in a prayer, getting ready to leave, her heart became prey of a near irrational panic. An idea had just popped into her mind, and if the summon dissapeared right then, the possibility of making it a reality would be lost forever.
"Please don't leave just yet!"
"WAIT!!!"
Her sudden cry stopped the Summon on its tracks but alarmed her beloved as well. His cold hands gripped her arms tightly as he gorged her with questions.
"What?! What's it?! What's wrong?!"
"Nothing! I'm fine!" she snapped with mild exasperation. She was half-dead already, so why worry about her well-being? It was absurd and meaningless.
He didn't seem to believe her. The tight grip on her arms lessened, but the anxiety in his caerulean eyes remained.
She looked at the Summon " I-I just need a huge, huge favor from Toad-Sama. May I?" she asked while doing a polite twirl with her hand.
For all the politeness with which the request was crafted; the Summon could see clear as daylight the hope disguised as wariness in those purpureus eyes.
Feeling indecisive, the toad looked at its Master for guidance. Nevermind how friendly Summons were to others, their loyalties belonged to their summoners, first and foremost.
Its Master's response was firm, expected and resolute.
"Anything the lady asks it's like I'm asking myself."
Not needing to question its master any further, not after his very unwavering response, the toad just wordlessly turned on her direction, doing a shallow bow in sign of acceptance.
"Okay Ma'am, tell me what's your petition and I'll do it."
She, who had watched their interaction with trepidation and fear of rejection, felt as if a heavy weight had been lifted from her shoulders, and a sense of relief wrapped her up, but there was not time to bask on that feeling.
"Thank you" she whispered almost reverently.
The blood in her mouth was making it difficult for her to speak, but such a small thing wasn't going to hinder her. As she spoke in short and almost whispered words, she sensed the growing curiosity the messenger toad felt towards her. She could also felt her beloved's intent eyes on her, but she ignored him and instead keep her own eyes locked with the summon's.
"Anything else?" the summon asked once she was done with her petition.
She blinked, pleasantly surprised and touched by its generosity "No...that's all."
The toad nodded solemnly, just once, and disappeared as quickly as he appeared.
Once the toad had left, she eyed from her peripheral vision at her husband, whose eyes were still intent on her.
"What is it?" she asked him discomforted. The man sighed and stared at her.
"Why did you do that? Our daughter isn't going to be alone. She will grown up knowing her inheritance. You should know that."
"Maybe, but..."
She trailed off and closed her eyes. She loved her husband dearly, but she hadn't told him her whole history, the history of her clan. She had kept her most inner thoughts and opinions zealously concealed from him as well. Her daughter was not only going to carry the burden of being the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, but she was also going to be coveted for her inheritance. Without any parents around to guard her.
A sole sorrowful tear slided across her dirty cheek.
Her beloved lowered his head and rubbed it against the back of her shoulder, in a signal of support and apology.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't asked anything."
"No, it's okay. It is just a question. Look, the truth is-"
"Shhh, you don't have to explain me anything."
They remained a few seconds like that, finding solace in each other's silence.
She broke the peaceful silence first. "I'm scared" she admitted in a sad whisper.
"I know," he muttered back "So I am."
Unprompted, he pressed his mouth to hers in a kiss that was pleasant at the tact, but had bittersweetness tainting it. And knowing that it would most likely be the last kiss they would ever share only added a tad bit of resigned despair to it.
Once they separated, they turned to look at their daughter with regret. They had already said goodbye to each other, it was time to do it with their child. Naturally, the man granted the floor to his wife, who was altogether too happy taking it.
"My love, now talk."
And talk she did. In fact she pretty poured her heart into it, trying to impart all the wisdom and motherly advices she wanted to give her when she grown up but never could. As inane and meaningless as such gesture might be, she still felt a little more relieved due to it. It was her catharsis.
But despite everything, a placid smile was still present on her face. Because thanks to the favor she requested from the toad summon, she had just assured herself a place on her daughter's life, even if indirectly.
/Little did she know, that what she thought of as a relatively action to guide her daughter in her life and her development, would end up creating so many changes at the long haul. Like the disturbances provoked by a sole butterfly's flapping wings.../