[Scene – Kirigakure Cliffs, Days Later]
The sky was overcast, a dull gray that matched the sea crashing below the cliffs. Mist clung to the edges of the rocky platform where Riku now knelt, a sealing circle etched into the ground around him. His mother, Kaede, stood nearby—silent, vigilant.
The scroll lay open before him. The Jade Beetle sigil pulsed faintly, its mandible-shaped seal glinting like glass.
Riku exhaled and sliced his thumb, pressing it to the inked glyph.
"Summoning Jutsu—Crystal Pact!"
Chakra flared, the circle igniting with threads of pale violet and emerald light. The mist swirled—thickened—and then chimed, like glass tapping glass.
A pop. A shimmer.
And there, standing on the scroll, was a scarab-sized beetle, its shell carved like a tiny jeweled fortress, glowing faintly green and gold in the candlelight.
It moved slowly, not out of weakness, but deliberation.
[First Appearance – Kōten]
Its voice echoed not in Riku's ears, but inside his thoughts, layered like wind brushing over crystals.
"…So. A new bearer of the pact. After so long… I wondered if the line had died."
The beetle clicked its forelimbs together, not in hostility, but in formality.
"I am Kōten, scout of the Jade Hive. Fourth generation warden of the Inner Archives. Your blood calls me. Your chakra binds me."
Riku stared, breath caught in his throat. The beetle's presence was heavy, despite its size.
"You are Kiryū's offspring. I taste his chakra in your veins. His wounds echo through yours. But you are not him."
"…No. I'm not."
"Good. We do not seek echoes. We seek evolution."
[The Tribute – Pact Binding Ritual]
Kōten scuttled forward and paused, antennae twitching in slow arcs. Then, solemnly:
"To bond with a beetle of the Hive is not a gift. It is a contract. And we demand tribute from those who summon us."
Riku blinked. "What kind of tribute?"
The beetle raised its head, crystalline eyes catching the light like shards.
"Tribute is chosen by the beetle. Some want food. Others, treasure. Some require battle. My kind… wants memory."
Kaede's brow lifted, but she said nothing.
"I want a truth from you, Riku Kiryū. A truth you've never told anyone. Not even her."
The beetle glanced at Kaede, then scuttled to the center of the summoning circle.
"Speak. Or the pact fails."
[Riku's Tribute – His Quiet Truth]
The silence pressed in.
Riku's hand curled into a fist. Then slowly… he opened it again.
"I hated myself after I killed that boy. Not just because he died. But because… part of me felt powerful in that moment. I felt… seen. And I was afraid of how much I liked it. That's the truth."
Kaede's expression didn't change. But her breath caught—just barely.
Kōten was still.
Then:
"Good."
The beetle's shell pulsed once, then dimmed.
"Truth feeds the Hive. Pain. Insight. Ego. You offered not just guilt, but honesty—the kind your father rarely gave. That is enough."
"The contract is sealed."
[Post-Summon Bond – Kōten's Role]
Kōten skittered to Riku's shoulder and sat, oddly regal.
"I will serve as your first scout. I see light and chakra threads invisible to others. I can warn of illusions. I can map paths that stone cannot hide. But I will not fight—not yet."
"Why?"
"Because summoners do not command. They earn."
Kōten's shell flared once, sending a pulse of soft light through the mist—mapping chakra lines through the cliffside like veins of glowing glass.
"Prove your restraint. Prove your strategy. When you are ready… you will earn more than beetles. You will earn the Hive's name."
————-
✦ Updated Contract Note:
Kōten – Scout of the Hive
Size: Small (fits in palm)
Abilities:
Chakra Thread Detection
Illusion Disruption (can dispel weak genjutsu)
Memory Siphon (senses emotional traces on places or items)
Combat Role: Non-offensive. Primarily reconnaissance.
Tribute Requirement: An unspoken truth or self-revelation from the summoner.
As Kōten nestled into the folds of Riku's collar, Kaede finally spoke.
"You said you felt powerful. Does it still scare you?"
Riku nodded. "Yes. But not as much as it used to. Because now… I think I know what to do with it."
She stepped forward and touched his cheek gently. "Then you're already doing better than we ever did."
END