Chapter 6: Tulpa Switch *Fixed

*Swishhhh

*Pshhhhh

*Shwishhhh

*Pshhhhh

The sound of waves crashing along a beach shore slowly roused me from unconsciousness. I felt light, warm, and relaxed as soft encouraging energy flowed from my back and throughout my body.

It was like sitting in a massage chair with a nice hot towel covering my entire body, making me sink into it in enjoyment.

"Mhmm. That feels nice," I groaned pleasantly while shifting my body into the energy.

"Glad to see that you feel that way, usually one isn't allowed here unless they are about to give birth or at their coming of age ceremony." The gruff voice states blandly from the side.

This made my eyes shoot wide open, and the warm energy quickly disappeared as I lifted my head to attention in a large brightly lit cavern in a pool surrounded by people sitting in kneeling positions.

The comfortable warm feeling that I felt coating me was a large number of blobs and moving seaweed that was slowly wriggling along my bare chest and legs.

I was changed into a pair of shorts and briefs and laid here while being laid here.

"Did you have to do that? You grumpy old pile of wood, you're the one who dragged him to me with his body in shambles! Your lucky that the spirit pool was open or your recklessness would have cost him his arms!" A middle-aged woman nagged while swatting hard on the shoulder of my grandfather.

This was my Grandmother, Chiho Mēkā, a lovely woman with long platinum hair that reached her hips and a caring smile that usually covered her face.

But at this time she wasn't smiling at all, instead, she kept swatting hard at Ryū's shoulder with a glare.

"That's right Grandpa-" I complained and started sitting up, but stopped when I remembered my condition before I passed out.

/My arms?/ I was astonished because I wasn't feeling any pain from my body whatsoever, my arms were practically good as new and all my injuries felt healed as well.

"Eh? Where are we?" I inquired as I examined my surroundings, I began to sit up, causing the creatures squirming on my chest to fall.

*Schwee

*Schwee

*Schwee

Over a dozen slime creatures and the seaweed-like plants that coated my torso fell off with a small squealing cry of displeasure.

They bounced down before falling into the water and swishing around for a moment before vanishing like they were never there.

I tried to sit up fully but a solid hand gripped my shoulder firmly before gently pushing me back down.

"Stay still, your body has just finished healing but we are not so sure about your mind right now. As for where we are? We are deep under the mountain inside the Cleansing Spring." A warm voice sounded from behind my head, I looked up and saw that it was my father, Hak-Or, and mother, Yushiko Mēkā.

"You worried us Kekkai. Akiko and Akane were practically in tears when your grandfather came to us with all three of you wounded so badly!" Yoshiko Berated me while gently massaging my cheek.

"That's a lie! We weren't crying!" x2 denied The two sisters.

"She said close to, not that you were." Auntie Madoka chided her nieces.

"I'm the one who should've been crying, they were beating me to a pulp without even holding back! And meanwhile, I didn't even leave a scratch on them!" I grumbled and complained while she soothingly rubbed my cheek.

"Hehe," My mother just chuckled lightly at this.

Taking care to lie still I moved my head to look around to grasp my surroundings, I found that I was laying on top of a large spongy rock covered in seaweed and barnacles, and about two inches of water that splashed and rippled as I sat up.

The water was glowing in a soft blueish-green light, waves of heat and light spread like most throughout the small lake, and the ceiling above was covered with bioluminescent plants and flowstone.

This place looked like a natural wonder cave, completely tranquil and untouched. As I soaked back into the water below and relaxed, that soothing warm current began to flow once again from the water, and the algae from below once again slowly wrapped around me.

"I feel perfectly fine, what do you mean that you are not sure that I'm healed yet?" I asked

Everyone turned and looked at my grandfather, their looks saying that he should explain.

But Ryū wasn't paying them attention and just sat there with his head down in thought.

"Your Grandfather said that you were Possessed by a Yokai, but before he could do anything to contain it, it simply left your body." Grandma Chiho carefully explained after seeing that Ryū was stuck in his head.

"A Yokai? Possessed? You mean those stone guardians that Mom, Dad, and Auntie send to watch us as we go into the mountains?" I blinked as I asked this confused.

The image of yokai that I had inside my mind where small birds, dogs, and mixed beasts made of stone that followed us when we left for training in the mountains.

I asked them what they were to my mother, Yoshiko before, but she said they were creatures that the Mēkā used to complete work outside the clan and didn't explain it any further saying that I'll learn more when I attended the clan's school.

"Similar, but not quite. You see, the Yokai are a breed of spirits that dwell in nature and around settlements around the world. The one's here in the clan possess vessels crafted by us and released back into the wild now and then. But most if not all Yokai do not reside in vessels or places of balanced nature. They become corrupted and evil, turning them into Ikiryo spirits and Tsukimono, that torment and harm people." Auntie Madoka explained

"What's the difference if they are here and not? And why do you think I was possessed or something?" I asked patiently, they weren't explaining why I was still laying here.

/But I do enjoy the water, it's like sitting in a hot tub. Minus the crawling vines all over my body/ I mumbled in my head.

"Yokai here have been purified and pacified to allow them to reintegrate with nature, they take on smaller vessels to be helped and eased from their sorrows, but trust us, their true forms can vary from an insect to a large hill. This type is usually contracted and can be summoned to our sides for aid or even battle! They are usually named Shikigami, or Item and Nature Spirits." Yoshiko explained, with a wave of her hand a small squirrel scattered from within her sleeve and shattered happily before leaping off her palm in an attempt to jump into the pool.

But before he could land with a splash inside, my father, Hak-Or grabbed him gently from mid-air and gently placed it back on his wife's shoulder.

"But the other spirits who don't reside in vessels and avoid conflict typically guard certain areas and people. They are gentle creatures but sometimes, greedy people take advantage of this to regularly hunt, slaughter, and weaponized them for war and profit." He growled as if remembering something very unpleasant before carefully continuing to explain, "Their power is strange and way beyond normal people, so when people who don't understand what's happening are caught in their battles, it causes Yokai to be shunned or even attack their past guardians. Enraging them and turning them into Yūrei or Mazoku, a tainted Yokai, a cursed being!"

Hak-Or clenched his fist tightly as he said this, his eyes glowing dangerously until his wife gently caressed his arm to calm him.

"And Tsukimichi is very cruel things, they spread chaos, plagues, and diseases across the land. If they are not properly contained and purified. They can grow into large disasters that can kill thousands of people!" Ryū said finally raising his head. "Their very nature pollutes and corrupts their surroundings and hosts, even taking large areas and turning them into in-hospital wastelands."

"Why doesn't anybody stop them then? Shouldn't samurai and the daimyos stop them?" Akane inquired.

"Hehe, if the Daimyo listens to us to appease and integrate with the Yokai instead of sending Miko's, Ninja, and Monks to banish them every time they are sited, we wouldn't have to scramble from country to country to capture and bring them back here to pacify!" Growled Ryū through gritted teeth.

/I see, no wonder the adults and teenagers in the clan are seldom seen, I thought they were sent on Ninja tasks or whatever is equivalent at this time. It turns out that our clan is a tribe of monster hunters, Sweet!/ I thought, imagining myself fighting a thirty-meter-tall monster while dragging a giant buster sword on my back. Just the scene alone made my blood boil.

"Then why do we do that? Isn't our main means of business weapon crafting and woodwork?" I asked

"What? What in the gods made you think that, boy? The only reason we even do woodwork is as a meditative pass time when we return home. And have you seen those monstrosities? No noble would dare to buy them or else they will be laughed at for months on end!" Aunt Madoka gasped and then chuckled at my assumption.

"Well, I guess so, I mean dads woodworking is pretty terrible, but I thought it was just him." I smiled while scratching my nose sheepishly.

/This damn brat!/ Hak-Or glared at me with a vein popping over his eyebrow and his complexion darkening.

"But still, why do we have to go out of our way to retrieve those spirits and bring them here? It seems that we could be doing well in the clan minding our own business?" I asked

It seems that they didn't agree with me because they all glared down at me. Flinching at their glare, I decided to sink more into the water and let them finish explaining.

"There is indeed a reason why we don't sit on our asses and do nothing, and That's because it's our sworn duty and task given by both the gods and the various lords across the land to maintain the balance between nature and the people ever for over a hundred and fifty years," Ryū states glowering at me.

"Is it mainly our clan? Or are there others?" I asked ignoring his glare.

"Yes and no. Whenever there is a Tainted discovered, the local lord is required to send Miko and trained Monks to contain or even seal it until we arrive and either bring it to the nearest cleansing node and repair the damage done to the environment or seal it and bring it back home. If we can't do so and the Yokai is too rampant, it is allowed for those ninja clans to be dispatched." Grandma Chiho explained, although with a bit of venom in her tone when she came to Ninja.

"What's wrong with a ninja clan being sent?" I asked curiously once again.

"Don't you know your history from School? Jakob goes into large detail about those abomination's deeds over the years!" Grandma Chiho asked, flabbergasted at my lack of common sense and understanding about my clan.

"Well."x3 Akiko, Akane, and I turned away in embarrassment.

"Hehe, these three don't like attending school and just grab books from the outer library to bring with them when they train." My mother exposed us immediately without hesitation, a grin appeared on her face as she watched us squirm under my grandmother and grandfather's scorching double-team rebuking glare.

"Well, that explains your lack of caution when it comes to the danger of Possession, but how did a yokai manage to get past the barrier as well as Ida's Blessing on your spirit is beyond me even now." Aunt Madoka shook her head wrily.

"The Yūrie must have switched hosts somehow. The Bitan has been treating him for over three straight hours now and there's no sign of impurity leaking from him. We should alert the rest of the elders and do a search around the entire mountain for breaches in the Barrier." Grandma Chiho commented while placing a hand on the seaweed wrapping my body and maneuvering around the squealing slime from time to time.

"Agreed." All the adults nodded in agreement.

"Wait, I still don't understand! When was I possessed?" I inquired hurriedly

"At the end of your duel, when you attempted to free yourself from the bolder. You had gone into a trance and immediately corrupted, completely skipping the delirium state, the only weird thing is that other than breaking you out, the spirit did nothing else and left. And usually, it pollutes the mind and body of its victim but you seem completely normal!" Ryū explained while scratching at his beard, completely perplexed.

"Umm." I blinked, I think I finally understood what happened and why they were so worried.

"The way I see things is that you overreacted, that wasn't me being possessed, it was a Hiden technique that I created," I explained slowly

Everyone stopped talking and looked down, not saying anything, and just blinked at me.

After a moment Ryū tentatively began to ask what was on everyone else's mind.

"A Hiden technique? Do you understand what your talking about?" He inquired.

"Well it's not a jutsu, more like a mental technique that I experimented with, it's called a Tulpa. A small little thing that I created to help me out." I clarify grudgingly

"Tulpa? What is that? What does it do?" My father asked.

"It's me, or a part of my will give a different shape and thoughts and abilities. As for what they do? Mostly nothing unless I call for them. I call it [Swapping]. It lets me sit back in my head and let them interact and do whatever they do best. In [Damian] case, he makes me stronger." I explained while sitting up, this time my father didn't stop me, he and the others just looked at me weirdly, as if I had gone out of my mind.

/Well not that I blame them, If I didn't do it myself I still wouldn't believe it was possible./ I mused

/<#€*<*<€~£~!/ rebuked an unintelligible voice from my head.

/No wonder they thought I was possessed, you do know that even I can't understand what your saying right?/ I taunted

/^#*#*<*!/ [Damian] said again.

"Can you do it on command?" Ryū suddenly asked

"Yep" I confirmed

"Show us," He ordered

"Sure thing," I said, [Damian] was a gentle berserker, he wouldn't do anything stupid, or at least I hoped so.

Closing my eyes, I took one long deep breath, held it, and released my eyes went blank and my pupils dilated.

"What is he doing?" My father asked curiously.

"Just watch, open your sight, and look at his brain," Ryū said, his eyes covered in a slight haze.

"Ask the Bitan to hold him still if he becomes violent. Whether this is a Yokai or this supposed Tulpa he's talking about, that thing seemed very violent when it first appeared." Ryū

.

.

.

.

/Hey Damian! Take the wheel!/ I called as I sank into my mind but this time I didn't sink too deeply, still able to interact with my senses but allowing [Damian] to manifest himself.

/^*#./ He replied

After a moment, Kekkai's eyes snapped back into focus. And the moment they did, his entire aura changed, becoming wild and frantic, a slow tint of Burgundy slowly spread from his eyes and to the rest of his face.

The seaweed wrapped around Kekkai's body suddenly halted, and then began to unravel at a rapid pace, detaching itself from his body before swaying the air around him, like they were feelers prodding and testing him, they lightly touched his body here and there.

As if they found nothing wrong, they slowly retracted and sank into the water and the cove below.

Feeling the change in temperament everyone began to examine Kekkai in surprise and vigilance. Not knowing what to make out of the situation.

But Kekkai didn't do anything, deep within those Viscous eyes was absolute clarity, he simply looked at his surroundings and tapped on the rock below him, after a few seconds he simply lay back down and soaked into the water.

"^#*}+#+#*}^," Kekkai said in a slightly pleasant tone.

"Chiho. Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Ryū asked in a hushed tone.

"Seeing, not much believing. Such malevolent and furious Chakra, but also contained to the surface of his body. Full of wrath and yet tranquil. It's astonishing." She whispered

"But didn't Kekkai say he didn't refine chakra yet? Why does it appear now?" Akiko asked while leaning forward.

"Sweety, everything has chakra, even plants, and inanimate objects. Indeed, your cousin hasn't used a refinement method to harness it into his Tenketsu. Whatever this Tengu is, it has a Chakra of its own. And a dangerous, possibly unchecked Chakra as well." Yoshiko answered her niece.

"It feels like a Yokai possession but it's not, the Balton didn't seem to reject it, so it's like a manifestation. It feels like my clan's Blood curse, but it's not even close to as fierce and viscous as the Jackal." Hak-Or examined as he looked at Kekkai splashing in the water in front of them.

"And not even a hint of a breakout, this is truly interesting!" Grandma Chiho states.

"That's not what I'm talking about, don't look at the chakra, look deeper, look how it manifests itself on his skin." Ryū face was growing solemn as he pointed to the prone Kekkai.

"His skin?" Chico asked

"To be exact, his skin is changing shade completely. And below it, his body is shifting itself at an extremely slow pace. Doesn't this remind you of something?" Ryū explained and looked deeply at his wife.

Chiho turned and re-examined Kekkai, trying to think of what was making her husband so upset. Slowly, her face changed, turning to disbelief and fear.

"Wild nature energy," she whispered

"That's right, it has the same feeling as that time. This is Mazuko Manifestation, Demonic Sage Arts." Ryū said solemnly.

"Kekkai, dismiss it!" He commanded

Hearing this, I took the wheel back from [Damian] and returned to the driver's seat of my body.

This time I heard everything that was said around me, I didn't sink too far that I wouldn't perceive what they were discussing.

/Demonic, that sounds bad./ I thought

"Umm, is everything ok?" I asked

Nobody answered me.

/Yep, anything Demonic is bad./ I confirmed with a pained moan.