4 Chapter 4

Morning came once again, and Shizukana had to leave. After saying his goodbyes to the family he exited the village. Putting his finger to his lips, he made a loud, harsh whistling noise. In response, a majestic bird, colossal in size, descended swiftly from the heavens.

It was the size of an elephant, with a wingspan of 13.5 feet. Its plumage was the common black, mixed with small streaks of white. Like most of its kind, it had three eyes, two on the side and one on its forehead.

Making sure that it accepted him, for it was a proud bird. With a silent exchange of acknowledgment, he carefully ascended its broad back. No harness was needed, for those skilled in the art could secure themselves through the power of their chakra alone, melding seamlessly with the bird's form.

The giant bird quickly took to the heavens. High above the clouds it flew unbidden by Shizukana, it soared on and on nearly tearing past the planet's atmosphere a couple of times. Perched atop the majestic creature, Shizukana maintained his grip with unwavering concentration, channeling his chakra to ensure a steadfast hold.

As the journey stretched on, hours melted away until the great mountain range loomed before them. Mountain after mountain stood like pillars holding the heavens above from crushing the earth below. Among them, a singular colossus rose above all others, its towering presence commanding reverence. Akai Tategami Mountain, named after the very planet it adorned, stood as a monument to the heavens, its sheer size and breadth unmatched by any other peak. Home to the Ōtsutsuki immortals.

The bird descended unbidden by him, below he could see other crows as large as his, and in their midst was a woman. She looked up at the two as they descended. Shizukana guessed that she must be here for him. A bit tired from the long journey, he climbed down from the crow's broad back.

"Lord Ōtsutsuki." The woman bowed, "I am Sakurima. I have been tasked by to be your guide until you get your bearings around here."

Shizukana nodded in response. From her introduction it was obvious she held no rank of worth. 

The woman led him trough the spiraling streets of Akai Tategami Mountain. Many other he passed on his way, sometimes walking in twos or threes, but many he saw wearing the Ōtsutsuki symbol, more than he'd ever seen in his life.

He heard whispers from the crowd as he passed by.

"So that's him eh? Doesn't look like much." Someone said with mirth in their voice.

"Looks don't matter, he won didn't he?" Another replied.

Shizukana listened to all this expressionlessly, he was used to people underestimating him. Before all this he'd mostly kept his head low, quietly building his power. He had expected doubts, this was the way of the world, reputation was a valuable resource, with it alone, a person can swing whole wars, influence political landscapes for centuries to come.

Before he'd won, people assumed his opponent would win, after all the man had spent decades building up this precious thing called reputation, and then out of nowhere he'd come along and cast him down, this would no doubt have shocked the world, it was like Albert Einstein loosing to a 6th grade math teacher, it was inconceivable.

But that was the point, one might think due to his past actions of keeping to himself, that he disvalued reputation, but that was not the case, as was said before, reputation was a valuable resource, and he planned on making a reputation built on doing the supposedly impossible.

By now the sun was setting, leaving a trail of shadow in the land and the woman led him to a mansion on the side of the Mountain. It reached four storeys high with multiple other servants walking to and fro.

"Please follow me." She said, leading him up to the last floor. They walked several flights of stairs. The higher it went, the less noisy it got, as the servants were all currently waiting downstairs.

"Here." She gestured, pushing open the grand doors to reveal a throne room. Seated at the end was the Ōtsutsuki patriarch of the Akai Tategami region, at either side of his was the his many trusted advisors.

He bowed, keeping his eyes on the ground he spoke, "I am honored to be in your presence, Patriarch!"

I could not see but I could tell he inclined his head, "Greetings new immortal, You may raise your head."

I did as he requested, my pale lavender eyes meeting his.

"You have made quite the impression, Shizukana Ōtsutsuki. Your victory has not gone unnoticed. We have been observing your progress closely."

Shizukana inclined his head again, acknowledging the Patriarch's words. "I am grateful for the opportunity to serve the Ōtsutsuki clan and contribute to its legacy."

The Patriarch's eyes seemed to scrutinize him for a moment before he spoke again. "Indeed. Your potential is undeniable. But potential alone is not enough. It must be honed, refined, and channeled toward a purpose."

"I understand, Patriarch," Shizukana replied, his voice steady. "I am committed to furthering my training and fulfilling whatever purpose the clan deems fit."

"That remains to be seen." The Patriarch said, turning his head to his right. "Osaki." He suddenly called.

A man from the crowd stood up, the horn on his head long and curved. He looked very similar to the Patriarch in more ways than not.

He like the others was dressed in the traditional white of the Ōtsutsuki with a red sash looped around his shoulder and waist.

"Patriarch." He too bowed, gesturing for him to follow.

And just like that, I was dismissed. I followed this new man, unlike the woman he had the Ōtsutsuki symbol stamped on his back. 

He led me down the path and to the right, too another mansion similar to the one we left, though smaller.

He gestured towards the apartment-style building a few meters away from the mansion. With a subtle nod, he indicated towards it and spoke in a measured tone, "That's where you'll be residing for the foreseeable future. Ask from there, where you are to stay, Tomorrow, you'll be introduced to your assigned role within the clan."

He left abruptly. Shizukana stood there for a moment, a bit put off by the sudden reception, before heading towards the building.