Ai would watch as Zaiaku would freeze at the doorway, clearly considering what he said, the giant's left hand on the header above him as he was in the middle of ducking. The Genin would notice how the Chuunin would begin to shake, his fingers clearly adding more pressure onto the doorway, causing it to not only begin to crack, but break in general, leaving the pieces of wood to fall to the ground. He would hear Zaiaku respond with a curt "fine, just fine" as he would turn around suddenly, heading for the exit. Aiden's eyes fell to the ground, unable to look at the other male. The corners of his lips drooped in the beginnings of a frown, and when he opened his mouth to speak, he found shame had taken the words out of him. He didn't like seeing Zaiaku angry, as it made him feel bad, though he also hated being forced into things as well. If he had just asked, perhaps this could have ended differently, perhaps even with them both relaxing, though because he didn't, Ai's impulse kicked in, and he wanted nothing to do with the bath house in general.

He had been with Zaiaku long enough to know that the giant had quite a temper, one of which had a fuse as short as the temper is great, but he also wasn't fearful of this temper, as the giant himself never laid an offensive hand upon the male outside of a spar. Instead of being fearful of this, like a normal civilian would, Ai himself felt more of a regret seeing him like this. Even now, in his shame, he still felt the temptation to cause some sort of trouble, to mess around and just act out, and he wish he could help it, but he can't. It's tendencies like these that made him wonder every day as to whether or not he should even bother living in Sunagakure, wondering why he was given a headband in the first place, and if he would just be better off traveling around, trying to find out more about why he felt the way he did.

Opening his mouth once more, the male couldn't find the words to say, instead being left looking back towards the ground, his tail hanging low, resting upon the surface as his shoulders slumped, refusing to look at Zaiaku while the giant would sop in his tracks, his back facing the Genin. Hearing the giant let out a sigh, continuing on with a mentioning of his already paying with an irritated tone of his voice, he would leave Aiden and the employee alone together as he himself would head into the changing room. Ai himself felt like someone that needed to make this up with Zaiaku somehow, to figure out a way to use his urges to help make things a little better. Waiting a few moments, Aiden would look over to the confused bath house worker with a soft, regretful glare in his eyes. "Sorry, but you're kind of involved now." He would merely say as a thick mist began leaking out of his mouth, first surrounding Aiden, making him harder to see, before leaking towards the worker, filling the room with a thick mist.

Before the worker could even say anything, a fist would strike him, landing a fair blow right against his jaw, with a knee going into his stomach next, before he would be shoved into an open room behind him, the door closing and locking, leaving the worker within, hurting and making a light groaning sound. Aiden, whom of which would be behind the counter at this point, would use his hands to scan around for that money which Zaiaku used to pay for their way in. When his left hand had discovered that currency, Aiden himself would then make his way blindly to the changing room, where he would undress, wrapping a towel around his waist before entering the bath house as well, payment in hand. Walking with a brisk pace towards Zaiaku, Ai himself would make an attempt to kiss the giant on the arm, as the eight foot tall male was too tall for an attempt on the cheek, before handing him the payment. "I'm sorry for acting out Zai, the worker gave us the money back and said we can still enjoy the bath house." He would tell his lover, waiting for a response.

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Spoiler:

115/150

The bathhouse floor felt cold against his feet while the air felt damp and humid. A light fog lay in the large room due to the heat of the baths. No one was here, grant the heated giant some solace. No one to bother him. Eyeing the bath at the farthest wall from him, Zaiaku had begun to move towards it until he felt a very familiar sensation on his arm. Looking down at the source, he found Aiden standing there with a regretful look.

Holding out his hand was some money, to which Aiden explained was actually theirs. The worker apparently gave it back to them while allowing them to stay. Upon hearing this Zaiaku's face contorted into a very sour look. He had lived long enough to know that people just don't feel sorry for beasts like them, let alone, return their money back and still allowing them to use their service. "Don't lie Aiden." Zaiaku said in a stern, angry tone. His white eyes stared directly into Aiden's as he turned to face him, fists balled up. "I've had enough of your shit today. So tell me the truth, since, if I go over there and find that employee gone or hurt..." He trailed off. He knew he wasn't going to do anything. He simply couldn't bring himself too. The worst he could do was scold Aiden for what he's been doing.

"So. Is that really what happened or did you do something? " It was quite obvious Zaiaku was still rather....put off about earlier. Not that he was proud of it. He was just so annoyed, however. He couldn't help it. It was within his nature. And yet, despite this cold demeanor and hard tone, his heart still twinged at the sight of Aiden's regretful eyes. "Please, just tell the truth." His voice was almost unnoticeably softer than his previous tone as he shifted closer to the young ninja.

WC: 333
TWC: 3,651

Shit, Zaiaku had seen through Ai's deceit, telling him in a stern and angry tone to not lie, the sudden eye contact causing him to look away once more in regret, eyes pointed towards the ground with the beginnings of a frown curling on the edges of his mouth. He had figured that this would bring at least some sort of comfort to the Jiendo, but instead it seemed to make him all the more angry. But through the regret and shame he had felt, he could also feel something else swirling around inside of him, something akin to anger, to frustration. Had enough of his shit? It's not like he asked to be living within the walls of this village, to have been thrown from one circumstance to another, to be expected not to just sacrifice one thing for another. Why should he care what happens to some employee? He belongs to Zai, not these people.

"So what if they're hurt a little. He's just a human, just like the rest of them. They're all just monsters waiting to happen. I don't see why you suddenly care about them." He would say, though at this point his own fists would be curled into balls. His teeth were clenched as he felt a warm feeling rising from within, one that felt both good to have and uncomfortable to feel, like a rising sensation that seemed to make him just want to lash out. His hands would shake from the tension as he would hear the seemingly softer voice come from Zaiaku, though at this point the other male's feelings would have already rose. Throwing his right arm out, almost as if to just let off some pent-up energy, Ai would glare up at Zaiaku, his eyes beginning to soften, though the glare remaining all the same. "It's not like we owe anything to these people, these same people that glared and looked worried when we went into a restaurant just to get a fucking bite! So what if some no name got hurt? You're the one that I'm looking out for, not them. I never once asked to be apart of this village. Hell, the only reason I'm even here is because I keep falling into one circumstance after another! It's not like I asked to be the way I am, Zai, I just am. I hate the fact that I'm like this, I hate how I have to protect people that aren't even like us and I hate.... I hate.."

His voice would trail off as he turned away from Zaiaku, a tear going down the side of his cheek as he would try to get some distance away from the giant, attempting to end up a meter away, the faint scars that are on his back evident. "I hate being alone." He would say, the meaning running so far deeper than what the words convey. It had always bothered him, how he hadn't once seen another like him, another person that he can look at and wonder if they're related. It hurt to wake up and see people that don't even resemble him daily, to be constantly and painfully reminded on how he doesn't belong, how even a family of pariahs have others they can relate to, while he himself is just struggling to find something even resembling his own kind. As the lump in his throat formed, he would begin to attempt to walk away towards the changing area, the mist he released before beginning to leak into the main bathing area.

"It's hard, having to wake up every day seeing people that aren't even like me. It hurts, it makes me feel like I'm a mistake. To make it worse, I have to make it my job to help protect these people, to not lash out even a little." He would start up again, stopping in his tracks and turning around, glaring at Zaiaku, his right hand tensing up. His fist would open, the fingers slightly curled before suddenly, with the leaning forward of his upper body and the kick off of his front right foot, he would lunge at the giant, aiming to dig his claws right into the other male's chest with his right hand. "Why do you get a family while I get nothing!?" He would yell as he moved, wanting to take out his anger at that moment, barely caring who even got hurt.

WC 765
Twc 5131

Little by little did his own clawed hands unwind and the flare in his eyes dissipate. Any veins that may have appeared on his body due to his rage have disappeared while his overall stature seemingly shrunk. A peculiar feeling enveloped his chest as Aiden began to vent. A sort of pressure that grew stronger and stronger as he continued to speak, causing an actual feeling of discomfort. "I..." Zaiaku would attempt only to shut his mouth promptly, knowing he couldn't defend himself from this. He knew Aiden was right. He knew that Aiden really doesn't have any reason to be in or part of Sunagakure to begin with. That he doesn't need to be.....here.

His eyes met with the floor at Aiden mentioning that he hates being alone. While Zaiaku was definitely no stranger to it, he couldn't imagine how the Otter-Nin felt. He really knew nothing about him aside from the basics and his quirks. Except, of course, that Aiden was alone from the start. The ogre stared at his back, eyeing the faint yet evident scars sprawled about. It wasn't his first time seeing them, having live with Aiden for a good amount of time now. He couldn't recall if he ever questioned him about it, though. He was quite hesitant with discussing such things, since he could take a guess that Aiden's life wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. Plus the fact that Aiden seems to be uncomfortable with such topics himself.

Looking at them now, however, Zaiaku couldn't help but feel some sort of ambiguous dread. That something very bad, worse than he previously thought, had happened to Aiden. While he tried to keep his mind from wandering on this, he listened to his lover's suffering. How he feels like he's alone and out of place. That's some error. Some sort of mistake. The word made Zaiaku grimace as it left the boy's lips.

Before any attempt of comfort could be said or done, Aiden turned with a glare not unlike the one Zaiaku gave him earlier. He was taken aback as Aiden suddenly lunged at him, claws aimed at his chest. Coming to his senses, Zaiaku quickly brought his left arm between Aiden and him, having it take the attack.

He hissed as he felt Aiden's nails easily slice and pierce into his thick forearm, sanguine nectar oozing out leisurely and dripping onto the floor. Despite this, Zaiaku did not motion to counter or remove the afflicting appendage. Rather, he dropped down to one knee. He was now at face-level with Aiden. While the boy's expression seemed to be of passionate rage, Zaiaku's was that of shame. His normally lazy or angry eyes were soft and....hazy as they looked into Aiden's. Without a word being said he quickly grabbed Aiden's wrist with his right hand and, instead of pulling him away, slowly pushed his fingers deeper in. His grip would hold the boy there as the giant began to speak.

"I.." He tried, not able to form a cognitive reply. "Aiden...I...I'm sorry. I never thought of how you felt in this way. How alone you probably felt....." It was a rare to sight to see Zaiaku in such a position. His white eyes were glazed and his voice was meek. He was breathing heavily and it was quite obvious that he was doing his best to keep himself together. "I shouldn't have done what I did. Force you to come here and then get mad at, even when you tried to make it all better. Shit, at least you did try...." At this point he removed the claws from his forearm, blood more freely pouring which he restricted via holding the wound. "I pushed you this far, even when I said that I would be there for you and protect you." His being began to shudder was his breathing became hitched. Warm tears slowly slide down his face and onto the floor, mixing with the thick blood already present. He turned his face away and tightened his eyes, his teeth bared, trying to restrain the flow but to not avail. "I'm sorry, Aiden. I don't..." He trailed off as he let go of his arm and slammed his fist onto the floor, cracking it as he shuddered some more. "I don't deserve you."

WC: 747
TWC: 4,398

Ai would feel a soft pressure placed on his fingers by his claws as they dug into the Jiendo's left arm, finding their home within his hardened flesh, causing a dark, sanguine liquid to trickle out, the blood leaving a warm sensation upon his fingertips. He would be surprised by this, as he never truly had harmed Zaiaku before, not where he actually broke his skin, not once during their spars together. He was all too familiar with blood, both the blood of himself and of others, though something about his harming Zaiaku, his claws dug into the giant's arm like a shovel, which had made the experience feel different than before, more bad, in a sense. He would look at where they dug into his arm, his eyebrows raised as his teary blue eyes locked onto the injury, mouth agape before slowly turning into a soft, subtle smile. "W-What do you know, I actually hurt you." He would say, almost as though he had broken out of his sorrowful mood, though his voice had a softer sound to it, almost as if he was pleasantly surprised and yet also filled with pain.

He would look at Zaiaku's shameful eyes as he had dropped to a single knee, clearly trying to not flaunt the eight feet of height he had, and instead intended to come to Aiden's level of sight. They were hazy, and that would be all Aiden would remember seeing before his own blue eyes would be overcome with a blurry liquid, which had begun dropping down his cheeks as the giant pulled his right hand in deeper, keeping him pinned there. It seemed he couldn't form a response to the Genin, not right away, at least, though as Ai stood there, his face twisting as tears kept running down his cheeks, he would hear him do something he never heard him truly do before; he would hear him apologize.

As Ai wrapped his left arm around the giant, the soft, whimpering sounds of his crying coming out, he would hear the Jiendo mention how he never thought of how he felt in this way, and how alone he felt. He mentioned how he shouldn't have done what he did, with his forcing him to come here and getting made at him for trying to make it all better, as at least he tried. At this point, Zaiaku's hand would help Aiden remove the claws from his forearm, the male's hand falling down afterwards, showing his lack of use in the limb at the moment. He would feel the Jiendo's tears reach his right arm, another first he had experienced with the giant, whom of which generally kept his feelings reserved, bottled up and used for rage later on. If it weren't for the situation at hand Ai could say he felt happy to see Zai like this, but as it is, all he could do was keep hugging the giant, allowing for his emotions to run free.

He would hear the floor crack after the sound of something slamming against it as Zaiaku would say how he didn't deserve him, which the Genin would ignore, already knowing that it wasn't the action that had his attention, but when the Jiendo had said. Raising his head out of the giant's right shoulder, where it would have been nested all of this time, he would look at the giant, sniffling before speaking. "I.. I want to go home and sleep.." He would say before sniffling again, fighting off the lump in his throat. "Let's just go home and act like this didn't happen, alright?" He would suggest, though he knew it was already too late to turn back the clock, no matter what he would say. He could already feel a weight on his shoulders that he had kept back long before, and the raw feeling he had from his emotions pouring out was still too fresh of a wound for him to ignore.

"This is the little shit that got my drink on me? Wow, and 'ere I thought it was someone worth punishing." A voice would ring out from behind Ai, whom of which would ignore what it had said. It had a gruff, amused tone to it, and the holder of it would be an average sized adult male, one of whom would be wearing wet suit, backed up by one male and one female, both of which seemingly wore clothing that had blue as the main color on them, and both of whom would be wielding weapons, with the female wielding a katana and the male wielding a wakizashi. "Oh well, just give me all of your cash and we'll call this situation settled. Don't worry, we'll bring you to your clothes."

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The gentle, loving touch did nothing to help quell Zaiaku's sadness. His head simply twitched as it forcibly turned back to face Aiden, fighting back the urge the look away once more. His snowy eyes would look directly into Aiden's cerulean ones, lost and vulnerable. Unsure of what to do or say. He would wipe the tears from his face as Aiden spoke, trying to hold himself together before bringing the boy into an embrace. Blood would slowly ooze from his arm and onto Aiden's back, which proceeded to slide down and stain the towel. Not that Zaiaku cared of course. "I want to sleep too..." Came his reply, it being a simple whisper into his ear. Before he could continue speaking, however, interlopers would arrive.

The man who Aiden had previously made a joke of stood before them, his suit still drenched from the.....accident. Getting a better look at him now, Zaiaku noticed that he had short hair that was as brown as a melted chocolate bar. He had a small, fine mustache and an overall rat-like face. Behind him were two more people. A woman who wore a blue vest over a white shirt with black slacks, and a man who had on a simple blue tank-top and shorts. Both were armed with blades.

Slowly Zaiaku stood, pushing Aiden gently behind him as he faced the trio. His breathing was slow and prominent at first, slowly growing faster and louder. His heft hands balled up into fists while his teeth were bared. His entire form began to seemingly shake as his breathing grew much more audible, veins popping out at various places of his toned body. These....these worthless, disgusting, revolting bugs have gall to just waltz in here and flat-out threaten them. After all that has transpired? They think they can simply just have their way?

A light blue aura began to form around the Jiendo, radiating off of him like fire. The air seemingly became thicker, with the two armed fools taking heed of the threat before them. They stood in-front of the wretched man, swords drawn before them. Within his arrogance, however, the man continued to speak. "Oh, would you look at that? He thinks he's brave!" He said teasingly, hands on his hips. "Look, if you try anything w-" He was cut off as Zaiaku suddenly dashed forward, covering the distance between them in seconds. He roared as he brought his hand back, hand opened and fingers curled, mimicking what Aiden had done moments before. Zaiaku smashed his hand into the tank-top man's chest, his claws easily ripping in him as he was forced onto the ground.

He turned to the woman next, who was currently walking back in an attempt to gain some space. It failed, however, for he ripped his hand free from the man's chest and formed it into a fist. With a sort of feral quickness it connected with the woman's jaw, knocking her onto her front and loosening some of her teeth.

WC: 516
TWC: 4914

Aiden wouldn't pay the group of three any mind as he himself was lost in his own thoughts and feelings. Instead, he merely passed them off as just another group of people that pursued him and Zai, just another group to add to the list, and just another group that will most likely die trying to get him, as well. He would do nothing but let Zaiaku push him gently behind him, facing the trio alone. Ai was more than confident that he could take them on by himself, and knew Zai was a bit overkill in this situation, but frankly, he wanted nothing really to do with scum like this man and his two friends at the moment. His eyes remained looking to the ground, the eyelids dropping while a small frown remained on his face.

As the light blue aura formed around the Chuunin, Aiden himself would begin to walk away from him, instead aiming to make an attempt to walk out of the room, already losing all interest in this group of people. There was another that was on his mind, someone that was the source of some of his fears, and many of his night terrors that he suffered on occasion. This fiasco with Zaiaku had taught the male that he needs to seek out answers, not just about himself but about what happened to his family, and figure out what is truly right for himself from there on. He would breathe lightly as the man taunted Zaiaku, mockingly stating how the giant thinks he's brave, and he would grimace as the man in the tank top and shorts would face the Jiendo's wrath first, already forced to the ground.

He would reach the entrance into the bath house and looked back, seeing Zaiaku then, in a blur, striking the female in the jaw, already knocking her onto her front, clearly taken out in a singular blow. "Y-You're going to pay for this, you fucker! You'll all pay!" The original leader of the three would say as he would scramble over his feet, attempting to escape the bath house. At this point, Ai would have entered the mist of the changing room, where he would reach his clothes, already having put on his underwear and pants as the man ran through. Using his tail, he would swing it, feeling the hard limb connect with the man's stomach, knocking him to the ground. Pulling out a kunai, Ai would go over to where he heard the man land, offering a quick thrust with the weapon, piercing him in the stomach once.

Ripping out the small weapon, he would thrust forwards again, stabbing him a second time, and then a third before he was finished. The man would be yelling and yelping in pain as the Genin returned to where his clothes were, where he would put on the remainder before stepping over the injured male. "You pieces of shit, you don't know who you're messin' with!" Aiden would hear as he would keep walking out, feeling his way through the mist before he reached the exit way of the bath house, where he would walk through the streets alone.

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[Exit Thread]

Zaiaku leap onto the woman's back, straddling her waist as he began to viciously strike the back of her head. Each punch would send her face careening with the tiled floor below, further damaging her face. As he brutalized her, the man who he had previously struck had gotten up and held his sword high. Letting out a war cry he would flash downward at Zaiaku's back, the blade leaving a large cut on his thick hide. Zaiaku hissed in pain and immediately lunged at the man from where he was seated. Soon the man was on his back as Zaiaku rained down fist after fist to the man's face, stopping only when he finally noticed that Aiden was no longer in the room. He looked about the entire area, finding no real trace of him.

The adrenaline that once fueled him was coming to a halt as the beast began to calm down. He looked at the man below him. His face was colored with an unnatural mixture of purple and red. Both of his eyes were shut as his face began to swell, while his open and bloodied mouth showed that he was lacking teeth. A moan escaped him as he made no attempt to fight back, sword laying limp in his hand. Zaiaku would then look at the woman he had just previously attacked. She was on her hands and knees, coughing up a mixture of blood and mucus. She could hardly hold herself up as she wiped her mouth, not moving from where she was.

The once burning aura had diminished into nothingness as Zaiaku stood, slowly making his way to the dressing room. "Aiden?" He called out, his heart dropping as no response came. "Aiden, you still here? I'm..." He trailed off as he entered the mist-filled room, no doubt some of Aiden's handiwork. "You." Came the shrill but pained voice of the rat man. "You'll pay for this....you're fucking dead when I get out of here...." He would say more about how in trouble Aiden and Zaiaku would, but his threats fell on deaf ears. The strange hollowness from before would return to Zaiaku, haunting about his being as he dressed him. He hissed as the fabric of his clothing crossed over the wounds he sustained. No doubt he was going to see a medic before going home.

Exiting the bathhouse and entering the street, he'd look pleadfully around, hoping that Aiden was still near. Zaiaku would only catch a glimpse at his backside before disappearing amongst the everyday crowd of Sunagakure's citizens. His form grew sullen as he averted his eyes to the ground, hurriedly heading in the direction of the hospital. "..I'm sorry."

WC: 463
TWC: 5377

EXIT THREAD