[Bijuu Research] At Last! The Titan of the Depths Lurks No More

Takeru strode with purpose down the vast halls of the ancient owl, Fukuro's, library. He had received a message from Shitai just moments before via a fox, that the curious little animals would provide him with anything he needed should he but ask. Without a moments hesitation he requested the fox take him to any areas that held knowledge on the bijuu, specifically the Hachibi. The fox had led him around for the better part of an hour before they reached a section dedicated entirely to the Bijuu, with an entire bookcase with texts specifically on the eight tails itself. Takeru's mouth fell open in wonder at the sight, after all his years of research he had only ever scratched the surface, only ever pieced together hints and clues from individual texts. He had spent months tracking down books simply for a chapter, a page, a sentence, and yet here before him was a whole bookcase filled with information on the eight tailed bear. Sinking to his knees Takeru felt a tear well up in the corner of his eye, he was sure now that this was the final step in his journey, the final piece to the puzzle that would allow him to finally find the Hachibi, finally obtain the power he needed to avenge his wife. He rose to his feet and strode to the first column of books in the bookcase, everything he could ever imagine was here. Lists of the past jinchuuriki of the Hachibi, books detailing the myths cultures had about it, whole books dedicated to its migration patterns. He selected one book out from the rest, "Hachibi: an in depth study", and sat down to begin reading.

To those who read this book, please take a moment to remember the many great men and women who's lives were dedicated to compiling this information. This book is the eighth of a nine part series, dedicated to the study of the bijuu, split up into single tomes for each of these magnificent beasts. These people gave their lives to find and study these creatures, so that all may know of them and know best how to protect themselves from their wrath. Alas, many of these died in their work, as i suspect many of you who read this will die while trying in vain to use this knowledge selfishly, for all know that to go alone against a bijuu is death. So caution reader, this book was not written so that you could maliciously use the knowledge for you own gain.

Takeru paused a moment before turning over the page to reflect on the author' words, he had no desire for personal glory, he merely wanted to see his wife avenged and the war stopped. Goals that the Hachibi's power would put within his reach. He turned the page over once more and began to read. It seemed that out of the many bijuu, the Hachibi was almost lazy in its approach to life, the book stated that the beast spent nearly eighteen hours a day asleep, and ate a constant stream of deep sea fish when it was not asleep. Curiously this fit with many of the myths that Takeru had dismissed as pure fantasy, many stories of the Hachibi in ancient times placed the beast in a role of a comedic giant, doing favours for food and often falling asleep on the job. The attribute seemed to extend to the jinchuuriki as well, with the book detailing them as sleeping much of the time, and eating copious amounts of food. Though mythology placed the beast and its jinchuuriki's as fools history told a much different story. The book warned its readers not to be fooled by the placid outlook of the beast, as it is widely considered the second most powerful being to occupy the earth, second only to the fabled kyuubi, a beast of pure destruction. The records of history showed the beast and its host to be fearsome warriors of the nations they inhabited, generals and trump cards in wars that happened hundreds of years before. Takeru read the book feverishly, relishing every written word on the book's ancient pages. After some time he put the tome down, and turned to the fox that had sat patiently by him the entire time. "I would like some tea, and perhaps something to eat, if that would be agreeable?" The fox bobbed its head and moved away silently, and if he had not seen it Takeru would have sworn that there was nothing there at all, the foxes were eerily quiet. He looked around at the vastness of the library, it would be incredibly easy to get lost within the maze of books here, he himself was unsure if he could find his way out unguided. Several minutes later the fox returned, a tray balanced perfectly on its back. A small steaming teapot and cup rested on one side, while on the other a plate with rice and saucy meat sat, utensils to one side. Takeru accepted the tray with a warm expression of gratitude. He wondered how the animals prepared the food, almost as much as he wondered where they did so, though he supposed there were many secret rooms and areas hidden within a place this vast. In respect to the great owl Takeru ate without a book in his hands, it wouldn't be respectful to dirty the pages simply for his impatience, after all, he was here for a whole week, there was no need to rush. He looked around once more at the multitude of books hidden away here, and a smile crept to his face as he imagined all he could learn in the week he was here. At long last he had found the knowledge he had been seeking, after all these years. An image of his wife Kailie filled his mind, and tears began to fall as he thought of her tragic demise, of the four tailed beast that had crushed her. "It is almost time Kailie, rest easy, my journey is almost at an end" . He was glad he was alone here, he didn't want the Kage or Shitai to view his moments of weakness. He barely noticed the fox as it sat watching him eat, his tears falling into his food. He barely noticed himself, his thoughts already focused once more on finding out what he needed to know.

Takeru wasn't sure how intelligent the foxes were, but he knew if they had feelings, they would be very annoyed at him after the last week. He had found a table after the first few hours on the first day, and now the only part of the wood showing was a small section where the food tray sat. Books, scrolls and maps completely covered the entire surface of the large table, Takeru supposed that it was meant to house many people, yet he had filled it all. The bookcases that held the information on the Hachibi were far more barren now, many tomes lay on their sides because their brethren who had held them up had disappeared onto the table, leaving them to fall over. He had spent the week filling himself with knowledge on the eight tailed bear, its habits, where it had lived previously, knowledge on how strong it was, how big it was. That was the biggest surprise, he had known the beats would be big but on further reading had discovered that on all fours it stood at a whopping twenty seven feet, more if it stood on its hind legs. Takeru had always thought that the reports of the creatures size were overstated and exaggerated, and the knowledge that it truly was humongous was foreboding. He had learnt that the creature had an almost inexhaustible supply of chakra, much more than any human could ever hope to attain. The table was also full of notes, and the detailed plans that Takeru had made in preparation of his eventual confrontation with the bijuu. The most concise description he had found on the bijuu was in a encyclopedia of living things.

The personality of the Hachibi demon is extremely more lax than that of the others. He spends his time roaming around an underwater cavern. All he does is fish for deepsea creatures to eat throughout the day, but mostly he spends his time napping. The Hachibi no Shirokuma spends nearly 18 hours a day sleeping. He has a very prudent "I don't care" kind of attitude, and usually will not fight anything. Even if it were to be sealed inside a host, it would barely react to the sealing at all, as long as no harm would come to him in the sealing. If it were to be sealed inside someone, even though it would take a liking to its Jinchuuriki and be extremely calm and very sealable, it would make the host feel hungry and tired at all hours of the day. It is also extremely hard to get to, being in the middle of a maze of caverns 2 miles below the sea. It CAN be violent however. If it is woken up from a nap, or simply annoyed enough, it will enter a rage that it won't exit from until the annoyance has been eliminated. If sealed inside someone, if they don't eat very often and sleep even more often, it will enter a state of rage and try to break free of the Jinchuuriki.

Takeru had made a copy of the entry and had it piled up with his other notes ready to take with him, the foxes had been more than happy to provide him with the materials needed to write down what he had learned. Half way through the week he had even had a visitation from the owl himself, the bird had just finished reading the 'Essays' and had come to add it to the collection. Takeru had spent nearly half the day with the ancient being, discussing many topics both current and ancient, even spending some time relating his efforts to research the bijuu and the Hachibi. The bird had expressed interest into his massed notes, and he had promised to return sometime with them to donate to the library. Throughout the week the foxes had kept him company, putting back books he wasn't using anymore and bringing him whatever he needed. They were handsome little creatures and he had to admit, he would miss their useful ways once he left the library. He had resolved to come back someday, he enjoyed the owl's company and the sheer amount of information contained in the great building would keep him occupied for some time. He might even retire here. Smiling at the thought and chuckling quietly to himself Takeru began gathering his things up. The week that he had agreed on with Shitai and Neo had come to a close, and it was nearing the hour where they were supposed to meet up back at the entrance. He placed his amassed notes into a folder provided by one of the foxes, he knew every word off by heart by now as it was, but the notes would provide a nice refresher. He would have to be careful with them however, they gave detailed information on the Hachibi, as well as its current location, knowledge that shouldn't be allowed to be spread. He asked a fox to show him to the entrance of the library and strode off after the creature. Now came the hard part, he had to prepare to face the Hachibi at its full power within its own lair. A gigantic ice maze two miles below the Summit Ocean. Smiling, Takeru realised that the old man he had interviewed had been right all along, what an ironic world he lived in.

Word Count: 904