Waking the Demon

"I'm sorry Sensei, it's harder to control this guy than I thought!" Xane exclaimed as he dropped his head again to catch his breath. He slumped his back to rest his hands against his knees for some extra support. It was clear that controlling the Nanabi inside him was going to be a long and arduous task. "I know Xane . . . that will be all for today." Shichirou turned towards home beckoning for Xane to follow. "Things will be easier tomorrow, I can already sense a change in your chakra." While this seemed very unlikely to him Xane had learned to take the words of his sensei very seriously given his extensive history and experience. In the five days that he had been the housing the Nanabi no Kabutomushi it had become clear that Shichirou honestly wanted nothing more than to impart his knowledge on controlling the beast to his young apprentice of sorts. After Nejiguma and Onigumo had succeeded in transferring the tailed beast's host they informed Xane that he would have to learn as much as they could from their master in the week he now had left to live. While this on it's own made learning stressful the fact that the 7 tailed beetle had no interest in him only added to the strain. Things seemed like they were going downhill fast the first day of training. Things started off with the Nanabi attempting to force it's way out of Xane. This attack on Xane only made it blatantly clear to the beetle that the more it struggled to rip it's way out the more it's own life was endangered. So on the second day of training the nanabi decided to go in the opposite direction with it's intentions. If he was going to be stuck inside this host he would simply separate their existences by keeping everything to itself. Again the beast was thwarted as Xane received a life threatening wound from Nejiguma during their training. Wanting to preserve it's own life more than anything else forced it to save Xane from death by healing the wound by granting Xane use of it's single tail power. The next two days were much the same as the Nanabi healed Xane as Nejiguma and Onigumo took turns beating him senseless while Shichirou would restrain the Nanabi every time it tried to force it's control over Xane and kill his two attackers. To Xane it seemed like he would never be able to master control over the Nanabi in the short time he had left to train with Shichirou. Then towards the end of the sixth day things finally took a turn towards the path of progress as the Nanabi finally decided to speak to Xane.

"Pitiful human can you do nothing to fight back against these weak geezers? I know you have more strength in you than so why must you force me to do your dirty work for you? I assure you I only want to live in peace outside this prison. I will never share anything with you short of saving your life to save my own. I only wait for the day when I am free to roam the world again without constraints." Xane was startled as the beast spoke from within him. As he traveled to the realm within his soul that now housed the beast he came face to face with the massive gates that locked the beast within and kept his inner sanctum safe. The great beetle within him was lazily resting in the corner in the dark with it's green eyes focused intently on Xane as he reached the gates stopping two feet in front of them. "So . . . come to chat ey human? Just because you feel like talking doesn't mean I'll listen. . . . Unless perhaps you have come to set me free from my prison?" Xane froze as the beetle scurried to the bars to poke Xane sharply with it's horn in an attempt to warm him back into reality. "Boy . . . Have you come to free me?" Xane took a deep breath as he pushed the horn away from him, taking a few steps back to prevent a possible retaliation from what he would say, "No I have come with a proposition to present you with . . . " "Ha! HAHAHA! A proposition? You honestly think I would go along with anything short of freedom as a possibility? Seems your not only pitiful but daft to top it off. Haha! Oi? what's with the smile there boy?" Xane stood his ground making sure he was a safe distance away from the bars as he drew his Ninjato from the sheath on his side. Raising the blade to his throat he began to smile wider as the Nanabi seemed to grow uncomfortable, it's breathing sharper and even panicked. "So that's the bargaining chip then? Do what you say or die? Honestly do you think I have no shame . . . there are limits you know to what some are just not able to do even if it means death. . . *sigh* So what is your proposition boy?" he spat as if the term truly hurt to say. It seemed that while the Nanabi was stubborn he would listen to reason . . . or in this case a threat at it's life. It was good to know that perhaps he had the possibility working with him rather than against. "The terms are simple I want you to share your power and skill with me as one, a single being and in return. . . not only will I avoid killing myself and as such you but I will also offer you the opportunity to grow as I do, to travel as I do and perhaps if the possibility is there to Allow you "out" in some sense. While I cannot grant you freedom now perhaps one day you will be free. Should there be away to do so that works out for everyone I'd like you to know that I'm the first one to want such a majestic creature as yourself to be free." The beetle began to grumble lowly a few minutes after Xane had presented his offer. At first it seemed like the Nanabi would try to burst through the gates and kill him for insulting him this way but soon the grumbling turned into a booming laughter. "HAHA! HA haha! Oi you seem to be more conniving than I gave you credit for at first Boy. I admire that! With that being said I suppose I don't have much of a choice since you'll off yourself if I don't listen . . . and much as I hate to admit to you I have no intention of dying yet. I accept this offer, but know this Boy I will not make this easy on you, not in the slightest!" Xane felt the power of the Nanabi gush through the gate into him. The feeling was like nothing he had experienced before. The power kept rushing into him and at any moment it felt as though he would burst apart like too much water in a balloon and yet he kept absorbing it, greedily taking more and more. And then it stopped, a shock wave gushing from his very core as he was ripped from within his soul back into the realm of man.

"Xane. . . Xane! . . XANE Please Wake Up! Snap out of it or you'll destroy everything!" Things began to come into prospective slowly. It seemed like he had taken on the form of the Nanabi while he was within his soul receiving the power from it. During that time he was restrained by Nejiguma and Onigumo while Shichirou began to sap the power from Xane in an attempt to shift him back to human form. As he slowly reverted back to his own self the restraints were slowly released and then he was allowed to move again. Xane learned that he was only capable of using the two tail power while remaining in full control for the moment but with time he would learn to control it all. "You did it Xane! You got the Nanabi to acknowledge you and now you'll be able to train with it and make it's power your own! My boy your on the path of becoming a great Jinchuriki!"
- Xane began to shake out of his flashback slowly returning to reality of present day-