No Room for Another Heart (Kakuzu fanfiction)

Battling the Beast

Ikari's p.o.v.

I followed Tobi with a suspicious look making sure to keep my distance. I hadn't mentioned anything directly to Tobi about Fukushu...maybe he overheard me and Kisame talking on the couch. Even if he had, what on Earth could he mean by helping me control him? "Ikari, I know you don't exactly trust me but surely you can admit something is off about this situation right?" I hated to think it but I agreed with Fukushu. I continued to follow Tobi out of the hideout into the training grounds. The landscape still bore the scars of my last fight with Deidara and showed new ones of other members sparring in the recent past. "Tobi, what is all of this about? What do you know of Fukushu and how would you know how to control him?" Tobi didn't speak for a few moments as he stopped in the center and joyfully spun in place to face me. "Its easy Ikari-chan! Tobi heard you and Kisa-sama talking and decided he would help you control Mr. Fushu! After all, it would be a way we could see how we complement each other and a means of making you even tougher," I watched as Tobi childishly flexed exaggerating the tough part.

"Ikari, I know you aren't real fond of this situation but I would like to try working alongside you instead of separate. If you wanna try this though, let's use heavy caution." I found myself nodding in agreement with Fukushu. I do hate the mystery of it but I guess if there isn't any real way to get Fukushu out then I might as well try to work with him. The only means I know of getting something like him out is how we extract tailed-beasts and well...I'd rather avoid that end. I twirled a kunai around my index finger, leaning against a nearby tree. "OK Tobi, I'm game. You want to spar so I can try to control Fukushu. What would you suggest?" Tobi began pacing back and forth, scratching his head and spit balling ideas to himself before dismissing them. In a jump he snapped his fingers and turned back to me. "I've got it Ikari-chan! Let Mr. Fushu take complete control and then try to work your way back into control," I stared at him in shock for a moment. The idea actually made a decent amount of sense. "What do you think Fukushu? Would that work or not?" I waited a moment before I heard the voice sigh a little bit. "Its definitely possible. When I take full control then you'd be within your own conscious. From there you'd have to find a way to take control. It might take more than one training session though to manage it."

I nodded and began to take deep breaths. I felt the blue flames lick over my skin as they engulfed my form and the world went dark around me. As I opened my eyes once more I stood in darkness looking out into the world from behind my eyes. I watched as my body moved but not under my own volition. My arms struck out against Tobi but passed harmlessly through his form. How was that possible? The blows were solid and should have landed but they simply didn't. I looked around the dark interior of my conscious...or what I assumed was my conscious. I couldn't see anything no matter where I walked. "Hello?" My voice echoed throughout the room I suppose you could call it. I closed my eyes and tried to focus, trying to regain control over my body. I was shaken out of my focus by a loud explosion from outside. Tobi had placed an entire mine field around my body and they were exploding when I came near.

I watched as my body darted to the right to avoid a mine on the ground. In a split second, Tobi disappeared into the ground and reappeard on the left flank. "Fukushu on the left!" I didn't know if the warning was heard or not but as my voice echoed my body threw up its arm with a kunai to block Tobi's. I continued watching before closing my eyes once more and focusing. I could feel the warmth of the flames building in my core. I felt my eyes roll back into my head as if I were falling into a deep sleep. My head began clearing into nothingness as I listened to the battle outside. My core began feeling like it was filled with fluttering flames which began to lift upwards. For a few minutes it seemed as if I were making progress on gaining control until I heard a low growl behind me.