Chapter 4- Mental Shenanigans

"What happened to your ninth tail?!" I blurted the question before I even realized it and I was treated to the sight of a giant fox sighing and putting a paw on his forehead.

I knew it probably was a stupid question to ask honestly, but it at least distracted me from the identity crisis I was starting to have. Besides, in the memories I inherited, Kurama always had nine tails. So seeing him without nine tails is just weird.

Having nine tails was something I was proud of, as it was a symbol that I was the strongest amongst my siblings. And there I go again... having thoughts inserted in my head is rather annoying. Hell, Kurama is right there! So I obviously can't be Kurama! But nooo, even in my own mindscape, my thoughts and his are mixed!

...Mindscape?

I turned to look around once more, ignoring the rather exasperated fox as I took in the scenery. There was a gentle breeze blowing through that made my ears twitch on top of my head and caused the trees to sway with it. The forest was peaceful, which contrasted the downwritten city that was merged with the forest. Even in the distance I could see faceless shadows going about their business, not caring for the trees that are in the middle of the road and even through some houses.

'So, this is what my mindscape looks like.' I thought to myself, looking over the decimated city sadly. I had no idea what the city symbolized in my mind, nor the forest, but it still makes me rather sad seeing it like that. But at least it's better than a dank, smelly sewer.

I heard Kurama cough behind, getting my attention, and I turned around to focus on him once more.

He sighed once again and I tilted my head in response.

"Being human made you either stupid or unobservant." Kurama stated, as if he was speaking to a mere child. "I can't tell what is the worst of the two."

"Hey!" I shouted back in indignation. I crossed my arms under my breasts and galred at the mountain sized fox. Probably not the best idea I ever had, but I was too pissed off to care.

"Look behind you, kit." He said, using the same condescending tone he took ever since he decided to speak.

I continued to glare at him, which made him sigh once more, before I relaxed and turned around and looked at the city behind me once more.

"I already saw the city behind me." I said, turning back to Kurama.

His eye twitched, I smirked.

"You're doing that on purpose." He observed.

"Maybe." I responded cheekily and moved my new found tail, that I've just realized I had, to my front. Annoying him is better than being embarrassed at not noticing I had a tail before he pointed that out.

"So... is this your tail?" I questioned, pointing at my new fluffy tail. I resisted the urge to start petting it. It was rather tempting.

"Yes, and no." The eight-tailed kitsune answered vaguely. My left ear twitched.

"Yes that it was your tail and no since it's mine now?" I asked in annoyance, letting my tail go back behind me. Kurama smirked.

"No." The fox replied smugly.

"What." I stated flatly.

"The tail was always yours and not mine. Just as the name Kurama is not mine to claim." The fox said calmly and I gave him my complete attention. "It's yours, at least it was."

"What do you mean?" I asked, though I knew the answer already. He gave me a "are you really that dense look" that I found rather rude.

"It means..." Not Kurama starts speaking slowly, thinking that I wouldn't understand what he was saying if he doesn't. "That you are Kurama and I am just a mental representation of what you once were. Your power, your memories, are all within me."

"I...I see." I nearly stuttered from the shock of having that revealed to me bluntly and took a step back. As if keeping my distance from the shadow of who I once was would make it go away. But there as something that didn't get explained, so I asked. "What did you mean by "was" though?

The fox just looked at me for the longest time before saying, "You are a mistake that shouldn't of happened."

What?!

When the light cleared I found myself in a clearing. I managed to do it,I managed to travel to a different dimension and live. For a short while at least.

I found myself weakened greatly from the crossing, instead of being as tall as a mountain I'm back to being as tall as a human, like when I was a kid. But even then I could tell my form is destabilizing quickly.

This world... this world has no chakra so it's absorbing it greedily, and I'm still weaken from brute forcing my way here. Making it hard to stabilize my form; to prevent the world from eating me.

Heh, so this is how I die, eaten by a planet. Well, I knew my survival was a long shot when I did this anyway. At least the Juubi will never be born again with my death. Still, I wonder how much time I have left before I disappear completely.

My ears twitched when I heard the bushes shake signaling something coming this way. I turned in the direction of the sound and saw a human girl crawling determinedly through the bushes, even humming a little tune, for some odd reason. She stood up and started dusting off her pant legs, for a lot of good that did as she was covered in dirt and grim. She smiled to herself and wiped a hand across her cheeks, which only spread the mud on her face further, and then said the oddest thing.

"Mission complete!" She exclaimed with a fist pump. "I am totes the best at hide and seek!"

With that said she started looking around to see if anyway heard her before she caught sight of me and froze. Her green eyes becoming tiny little pinpricks.

"Yo." I said casually, waving one of my front paws.

"Hehehe." She managed to say before she dropped like a rock.

'Amusing.' I thought with a smirk. 'Though this may be my lucky break.' I started moving towards her, even when I felt more of myself being consumed. 'There may be a chance I could live after all.' I stared at the fainted girl and gently lifted her shirt up to expose her belly.

I require an anchor in this world, a place that would allow me time to stabilize my form and recover my strength so I can prevent the world from consuming me. Therefore, I am going to do what no other Bijuu has done before. Seal myself inside this little girl. I'm sure that, given my current weaken state, she wont explode. Best of all, I should be able to release myself anytime I please.

I placed a paw on her belly and started to manipulate my chakra the best of my current ability. My form started to destabilize faster and I gritted my teeth. My red chakra swirled around us before exploding in a brilliant red light.

"Annette?!" I heard a voice call out. "Where are you?!" Was the final thing I heard before everything faded to black.

I recoil away from the fox as the memory hit me. I start breathing heavily even though I'm in my own mind.

"Kurama never meant to reincarnate as a human as you saw." The eight-tail fox stated. "The human named "Taylor Hebert" was never supposed to exist, therefore you are a mistake."

I tried to calm myself glare at the fox but it simply laid down and rested his head on his paws than react to my poor attempt at cowing it. Red started to tint my vision and I bared my teeth in fury.

"I'm not a mistake!" I yelled at the fox, clenching my fists, I was filled with the overwhelming urge to lash out and hurt the eight-tail fox before me. I managed to hold myself back as I knew deep down that it would do nothing but make me seem like a flailing little child throwing a tantrum. "I knew the chances of actually completing the seal in the state I was in were slim!"

"Oh?" The shadow of what I once was stated simply. He wasn't at all intimidated by the sheer rage I was showing, nor the overwhelming threat I represented. Him being so nonchalant about this just pissed me off further. Just like that insufferable smug smile he was showing me.

"Don't "Oh" me!" I scream in my rage; my red chakra began to swirl around me. "I will not let a mere shadow of myself look down on me!" The wind started to pick up around me, trees started to bend with some of the thinner ones already breaking. The eight-tail fox just continued to smile, not even bothered by the harsh winds I was creating.

"I am not a mistake!"I roared! The wind became more intense and turned into a great storm that decimated my once peaceful surroundings.

When the storm finished, I stood there panting. I didn't look around to see my surroundings and only looked at the giant fox that didn't even budge one inch, nor did he look at all injured. His smile turned into a full fledge grin as we stared at eachother.

"It doesn't matter to me if you're a mistake or not." He stated when I was catching my breath from my outburst. "I am merely a safeguard that was created to prevent you from becoming nothing but a mindless beast of hatred and destruction."

"W-what?" I said between breaths and looked at the fox in confusion.

"As the eldest of the nine, you were the closes to the ten-tails; in likeness and possible temperament." He chuckled. "You did have a nasty temper when you were younger."

"What?" I repeated, this time more clearly; still lost on what the kitsune meant.

The giant fox gave the impression of a sigh.

"I'm a failsafe in-case you ever were fully consumed by hatred. If that ever happened I was created to remind you of what you were and help you regain yourself."

"Then why the hell did you make me angry?!" I shouted at the giant smug looking bastard; no longer panting to catch my breath.

"Because you were only using chakra by your instinct and I wanted to make you aware of that fact." The fox answered calmly. "Plus it was rather embarrassing to see."

My eye twitched.

"Asshole." I stated, putting all my annoyance at the mental construct in one word.

"Takes one to know one." He replied smugly.

Ouch... I walked right into that one.

But something he said just stood out to me.

"The old man created you right?" I asked, already knowing the answer. The giant eight tail kitsune nodded his head. "What would have happened if you weren't? Would I still have awakened my memories?"

"I assume so, just that instead of safely regaining your memories in small parts, you would have remembered all of them at once."

My eyes widen in surprised before I shut them. I rubbed my forehead, just imagining the headache that probably would have caused me.

"I don't know what would have happened then, but I could take a guess." He stated, this time completely serious. "You probably would have went berserk for awhile until you finished assimilating all of your memories... it wouldn't have been pretty."

That was something I could agree with.

"Why are you missing a tail though?" I asked, honestly curious.

"Because it was either through sheer coincidence or luck that I'm even allowed to help you to safely regain your memories in the situation we've found ourselves in. Us reincarnating, or even brute forcing ourselves to get to another dimension was not something the old man could have seen coming." He paused his expression turning serious. "When all nine of my tails are gone, that will mean you've fully awakened your birthright and I would disappear completely... That will also mean you would no longer have a safeguard if you ever get fully consumed by your hatred; you will need to be careful about that."

"I see." I simply stated as I honestly didn't know what else to say to him. What was I supposed to feel about him disappearing anyway? Sadness? Pity? I wasn't even aware of his existence until I came here.

"Now that you're done redecorating the forest..." He stated and I felt the strongest urge to punch the bastard. Any pity I would have felt from his fading existence completely vanished without a trace. "You should probably go."

"Why?" I asked and crossed my arms under my breast. I do what I want when I want afterall. That hasn't changed throughout the years.

"While I honestly find it amazing that you managed to visit your mindscape in the first place." He said and then yawned; I started to growl at the perceived insult. "I don't know how long you were in here so it's probably getting late and you don't want your 'father' to get worried now do you?" He closed his eyes, getting ready to sleep. Completely removing the wind from my sails as I realized the kitsune was probably right. But...

"I still have questions though." I said and started to tap my left foot. He opened his eyes again with a sigh.

"And you'll have your answers." He stated calmly.

"Am I going to go insane and go on a rampage, killing everyone in my wake?" I questioned. This was something I was worried about all day and something I really want to know.

"I don't know, are you?" He answered my question with a question. I twitched again.

"That's not an answer." I stated coolly.

"And I can only answer questions that you yourself know already." He countered.

I sighed and rubbed in my annoyance.

"Thanks for the help." I sarcastically said

"You're welcome." He stated smugly. His annoying little smirk made an appearance again and I resisted the urge to yell at him. I still had my arms to my sides and my hands clenched into fists.

I relaxed and reminded myself that trying to kill the smug bastard was a bad idea. I then took a deep calming breath and asked. "How do I leave?"

"Think." He unhelpfully stated.

I twitched.

Instead of trying to strangle a giant mountain size fox, I closed my eyes to do exactly that. Focusing on an exit. When I next opened my eyes I was back in the clearing I meditated in. I could see the sun starting to set and the area start to darken. I put a hand over my face and sighed. That experience was more tiring than it should have been.

And then I remembered something the eight-tailed kitsune pointed out and sighed again.

"Now how am I going to explain this to dad?" I asked myself, knowing that he was probably home already and worried about me. I couldn't exactly say I was inside my own mind.

Then I suddenly heard a bush rustle just like in my memory that started this entire mess; I jumped up and looked into the direct of the sound. Only to fall because my legs fell asleep from sitting like I had been for the past couple of hours.

'Well... that was embarrassing.' I thought to myself, and I swore I heard the smug bastard laugh in my head.

Two foxes came out from the bushes and saw me. Instead of running away, they moved closer to me and then bowed.

"Good evening, mistress." One barked and the other one nodded her head.

I realized I could understand what foxes are saying.

Huh... that's new.