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Naruto Saga » Hi no Kuni » Konohagakure » Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua]

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1Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Empty Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Sat Jun 04, 2016 9:17 pm

Kuroshiki

Kuroshiki


D-rank
Kuroshiki had been in the village for a few days by now and while he wasn’t exactly familiar with the overall layout of the village, he was still able to navigate himself around the village, so by the end of the day, he’d be able to make the trek back to his temporary apartments. The people he had met thus far were friendly, all with their own quirks just like everyone else. Konoha reminded his so much of the Land of Tea, of the area where his childhood home was located, but there was absolutely no way that Kuroshiki could return right now. Returning with his current capabilities would result in him being captured a whole lot faster. No, he needed to actually improve himself as a shinobi before he could even considering seeing the border of Cha no Kuni. Overall, Kuroshiki had a tough time discovering what it was he needed – the thing he had originally came to the village to achieve –though the matter was not urgent enough that he needed to address it right away. While it was better to find someone who could help him out sooner rather than later, he had no desire to actively seek out someone when he could take some time to relax.

The young adult from the Land of Tea had been wandering around the streets of Konohagakure no Sato before he had come across the park where he was now following a paved out path. Fixing his glasses by pushing them up with his right index finger, Kuroshiki wondered what exactly he would do today, considering he had no exact plans for the next while, except for finding someone who could help him out with controlling the nature of his katon chakra. He honestly wished that he could learn it on his own, seeing as how he needed to figure out to control how much chakra he was actually releasing each time he tried using a technique.

The amount of greenery, be it the lush hills he encountered on his first day within the country’s borders or the tall, age-old trees that surrounded the village itself, reminded him so much of home that it was difficult to walk around the village without something reminding him about his childhood. Kuroshiki knew it wasn’t home, but it was familiar, not exact, but familiar nonetheless. Finding this park being relatively quiet, with only a few passersbys, his eyes trekked upward to the sun’s current position. The sun was already on its downward trek from his current perspective, denoting to him that it was only two hours past noon. Kuroshiki would likely go for a late lunch, perhaps in an hour or so, but for the current moment he wished to rest his eyes, even for just a moment. It wasn’t due to exhaustion that he sought out a wooden bench, but rather the fact that having nothing to actually do in the day made him more tired than his physical activities would dictate. Stifling a yawn, Kuroshiki ungracefully sat down upon it, slouching rather than sitting upright as he usually would. In an instant, he closed his eyes and allowed his head to drop. It would be a few minutes longer before he would ultimately lose his senses to a temporary nap, for he hadn’t even been aware of the moment that his glasses fell off, bounced off his right leg and landed upon the bench, half a foot away from his leg.


588 Total Words

Aqua

Aqua


D-rank
Aqua’s eyes narrowed as she stared at her opponent. Straight, black hair flowing past his shoulders, falling on a white kimono with only a few specks of dust courtesy of the previous tussle they’d shared. Her opponent’s stance was wide, body facing her sideways and legs spread wide apart for balance, while his arms were extended at shoulder-height. Both hands were upturned, though his right – the one closer to her body – gave the ‘come hither’ gesture in an attempt to rile her up. Red blazed into her eyes, replacing the blue in an apparent hostile takeover as she stared down her opponent’s white orbs, standing in a bastardised version of the Academy’s basic taijutsu stance.

She wasn’t a Taijutsu specialist; she didn’t have the time nor experience nor guidance to develop her own specialised style, much like her teammate, Keishi, had been able to. Guidance from Sumimoto-sensei and a few prods and pokes here and there, and her sensei had managed to help her teammate adjust the traditional and standard Hyuga stance to fit his wilder style. It wasn’t recommended by the Hyuga, and she knew ‘not recommended’ was simply a veiled threat to anyone willing to question the authenticity of the Hyuga’s all-encompassing Taijutsu style. Sumimoto-sensei, however, was one exception to the rule, given he didn’t really mind what the Hyuga thought of him. Politics was interesting but Aqua had known Sumimoto for long enough that she could tell he didn’t give a damn about such politics. And, well, Keishi being a Hyuga himself meant he was exempt from punishment, so long as he upheld the Hyuga’s name, which he was determined to do in this fight.

Aqua ignored Keishi’s bodyguard, standing to the sides as she and her teammate sparred. It wasn’t normal for Hyuga to walk around the village with bodyguards, given they were among friends, but Keishi often had someone trailing him not just to ensure he was kept safe from others, but moreso to ensure others were kept safe from him. His wilder and more offensive style of the Hyuga’s jutsu had only been sanctioned due to Sumimoto’s guidance, but given that the young Hyuga wasn’t under the supervision of his sensei twenty-four-seven, it was only natural that someone else from his clan ensure he didn’t end up hurting anyone with an overly enthusiastic blast of chakra.

Aqua’s patience paid off, as Keishi rushed to her, forgoing his pretense of having challenged her into rushing him and deciding to go on the offensive instead. Aqua backpedalled twice before the heel of her right foot met the root of a rather large tree, towering as high as many of the others at the edge of the park they were currently sparring in, and a quick duck saved her neck from one of Keishi’s lightning-fast jabs, only for him to unexpectedly knee her in the shoulder. She rolled with the momentum, leaping back to her feet, only to find Keishi already upon her, right arm outstretched and brimming with visible chakra. She deflected his strike with her left forearm, before she felt his left leg hook around her right ankle, his obvious attack an obvious feint now, and with a simple jerk she was sent tumbling onto her bottom.

“Guess I win again,” Keishi smirked, extending his left hand as he straightened his body. Aqua returned the expression, accepting his aid in standing up before dusting herself off, Sharingan fading away to reveal ocean blue eyes. The burly form of his instructor walked up to them, giving her a disapproving look – she supposed he wasn’t approving of her Uchiha lineage – and then indicating for the two Hyuga to leave. “See ya,” Keishi bid her, and she returned with nod as she watched the two men leave, sighing mentally at the lack of progress she’d achieved in building rapport with her teammate’s family. His father, in particular, was strongly objecting of having her as a teammate, though it may have had more to do with how Keishi was paired up with members of clans that didn’t make up Konoha’s prestigious founders.

She stretched slightly to cool herself down after their short spar, something she’d volunteered to do as another one of Sumimoto-sensei’s suggestions for getting on Keishi’s family’s good side, but it seemed to have backfired once more. Either they didn’t like that she’d held Keishi off for the better part of a half hour before fatigue took its toll, or they didn’t like that she’d fallen to a move so not reminiscent of a Hyuga while slinking away from all of the moves that were so much more Hyuga. Beads of sweat continued forming on her forehead, and she wiped them away with the white sleeves that hung from her armbands, slowly catching her breath. Her head turned towards the entrance, where she saw the last of the two Hyuga disappear from her sight, Turning her head slightly, she’d spot a small bench where she could properly cool off and rest her muscles before she began the trek home, not sporting as much stamina as her teammates, who were more of the hard-hitters of the team.

She made her way over, seeing it occupied by one man roughly her age, giving him a few years her junior. He was splayed out on the bench, the very sight of exhaustion as he dozed. She saw a pair of glasses just inches from him, and picked it up before sitting herself to his right. As the muscles in her legs relaxed from the relief she was given, she laid herself comfortably against the bench, bare back unknotting against the sturdy wooden support. She would take in a deep breath of the afternoon air, not quite nearly as fresh as it was in the wee hours of the morning but still a welcome gush of oxygen into her lungs. Holding the spectacles by one end in her left hand, she’d tap against his shoulder with her knuckles in an attempt to wake him up, transitioning to light smacks with the back of her hand against his upper arm should he remain passed out. When he would awake, she would ask, “Are these yours?”

WC: 1077

Kuroshiki

Kuroshiki


D-rank
All he could really see from his current vantage point was the top of the dinner table, the prestine white cloth of the dining table cover hung off a foot from all four ends of the table. Upon the table, Kuroshiki could only make out small details, mainly five small sticks that stood upright with his mother standing at the opposite side from where Kuroshiki sat on the floor. She was lighting a matchstick and slowly lit each of the five candles on the cake while Kuroshiki went back to playing with the two toys he had laying before him. Neither of the two objects were unusual, for they were products of a popular television series at the time; a group of five heroes, each wearing a distinct colour, that fought off the evil forces. The first toy that Kuroshiki held was slightly smaller than its counterpart, a male figure that was outfitted completely in the colour red, with small inclusions of white on the chest, gloves, and boots to provide a slight variation to the toy. A helmet was also worn by the figure; it was completely red with the exception of a black visor-esque inclusion that the hero saw out of in the actual television series. The other figure Kuroshiki held in his hand was more or less a dinosaur that stood on two legs and possessed two small arms. It was also red in the majority of its colouring, though it siphoned from the human figure in that it was coloured gray in quite a few places.

Before Kuroshiki could continue his play further, he felt himself being hauled off the ground, as two arms grabbed him from his under arm. Toys forgotten temporarily, due to the sudden sensation, Kuroshiki’s grasp on them weakened and immediately let them go. His sock-clad feet dangled in the air for a few seconds, kicking back and forth, before Kuroshiki’s smaller body was brought against a much larger one. Looking at the culprit who had interrupted his time, Kuroshiki was greeted by eyes vastly different from his own, but so familiar for they belonged to his dad. “Come on little guy, it’s time to blow out the candle.” Kuroshiki’s dark grey orbs travelled from his father, to the cake that sat upon the table, and then to his mother’s eyes which were similar to Kuroshiki’s own. Her gentle smile had the little boy deciding that he could continue his play later, probably with his cousins who were now rushing to the table. His uncle, his father’s older brother, came to stand next to his father.

“Are these yours?” His uncle would ask, his voice sounding menacing as his sturdy figure looked down to the floor where Kuroshiki’s red ranger figure lay captive under his uncle’s foot.

“Are these yours?” He heard the voice, felt a hand tap against his upper arm. The voice was so different, but the line was the exact same; his mind could only recall his uncle’s voice. Without knowing who it was, if they were after him or not, Kuroshiki jumped up from his spot and on to his feet, eyes frantically searching the area, skipping over the female in search of his uncle. A few seconds past, with nothing out of the ordinary seemingly being there, except for the presence of the female who had been lightly tapping his arm for a few seconds. He turned to face her, his eyes likely still wild, as if he had seen something that was haunting him; which was partially true, even if it was a recollection of his fifth birthday.

It took Kuroshiki an extra second to comprehend what it was she was asking and why she had asked him that question. When his eyes finally spotted the glasses she held in her left hand, Kuroshiki would release a breath, one that he hoped would calm down his current nerves. “Sorry.” Kuroshiki muttered in regards to his actions just a few seconds ago, not knowing if he could even explain it to the female with blue hair without her judging him for essentially being out of his mind. Tilting his head to the side as if he’d temporarily forgotten why she’d waken him, his hair falling even more messily than it had before, it was then that he instantly remembered she had his glasses in her hands. “Ah… yes. Those are mine.” He replied, yet made no motion to exactly reach for his glasses. Instead, Kuroshiki stood there, shifting between putting pressure on each leg every few seconds.


774 of 1362 Total Words

Aqua

Aqua


D-rank
OOC: Sorry if this was short, but I had no clue what else to write.

Aqua continued tapping the boy on the shoulder when it was apparent his sleep was deep enough that mild stimuli wouldn’t be enough to rouse him from his slumber on the bench. She saw his eyelids part to reveal stormy eyes, first sluggishly before they almost immediately shot wide open and he leapt from his position on the bench. He landed a little ways away from the bench, not too unbelievable a jump, but Aqua watched with a slightly confused expression as his eyes darted around, scanning the entire area… but surprisingly not picking up on her. Her outstretched left hand had retracted somewhat as she stared at the boy in front of her as he seemed to satisfy his curiosity of his surroundings, before finally settling on her.

“Sorry,” he spoke after another second of hesitation and a small exhale. He would then tilt his head to the side, before continuing, “Ah… yes. Those are mine.”

Aqua let her eyes drift down to the pair of spectacles that she held in her hand, half-expecting him to reach for them, only for him to remain standing there. A silence, almost awkwardly so, passed between them for a few short but visibly long seconds as he shifted his weight from foot to foot as if in anxiety, and she watched him in curiosity. He wasn’t reaching for his spectacles, nor was he moving to reclaim his seat on the bench beside her. She would make a small flicking motion with her left hand, trying to remind him that his spectacles were in her possession, before she would opt for a more verbal approach.

“Is there something wrong?” she asked, wondering if she’d somehow gotten on his bad side by simply desiring to rest her legs on a bench that he had arguably first taken. She wasn’t too good with people, that much she knew. It was actually an aspect of her that Sumimoto-sensei had time and time again attempted to fix, and while she had begun to socialise more and more in recent years – though nowhere near healthy enough, according to everyone who knew her – she still wasn’t entirely sure on the etiquettes that she was to pursue when in an entirely natural social conversation. “Do you… want your spectacles back?” she asked, a hint of doubt in her voice. “I apologise if I disturbed you.”

WC: 402 + 1077 = 1479

5Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Empty Re: Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Tue Jun 07, 2016 10:01 pm

Kuroshiki

Kuroshiki


D-rank
He didn’t mean to offend the young woman who had sat next to him and had tried to wake him up. Kuroshiki knew it was irrational of him to have jumped when after the female had woken him up, but the dream he had felt so real – it was a real memory – that he couldn’t have helped his reaction. He hoped that he had not offended the blue-haired woman, for it wasn’t her fault for having caught him off guard like that. Knowing that his reaction was the result of a memory, not one he wished to relay, he knew he should apologize to the woman before she actually became offended by his actions. Anyone would, really. She had woken him up and the first thing Kuroshiki had done was jump off the bench and wildly searched the area looking for a hostile threat. Now he was shifting from foot to foot, seeming as if he could dart off at any second, not wanting to be around the stranger. A stranger who still held his spectacles in her left hand, ones he hadn’t sought to grab from her. With the slight flicking motion she made with the hand that held his glasses, Kuroshiki would watch his glasses for a few more moments.

“Is there something wrong.” Taking in a deep, Kuroshiki shook his head after the woman’s calm question reached his ears. There wasn’t anything wrong… just a dream that seemed too real that included a man who wanted him locked up or dead. He couldn’t decide which was worse.

“No… I just had a… bad dream. That’s all.” It was Kuroshiki’s slight attempt to remedy the situation, hoping that she understood it wasn’t her fault at all. The result was due to the bad dream and being awoken by familiar words. There were so many memories that eventually some faded or altered and the one he just had could have just as easily been distorted due to current perceptions and the lack of recalling such memories. Heaving out a mental sigh, Kuroshiki would blink once, hoping his eyes wouldn’t look as frantic as they had before and expecting his nervous motion – of shifting his weight – to come to a full stop.

“Do you… want your spectacles back? I apologise if I disturbed you.”

With one more blink of his eyes, Kuroshiki returned to his usual relaxed state, his nervousness slowly coming to an ease. “Ah… Yes.” He replied concerning his glasses, reaching out with his right hand such that the woman could drop them in to his grasp. While the item was his, Kuroshiki would not take an item out of someone’s hands in most circumstances. He didn’t even need his glasses; they only helped him keep up a non-threatening appearance. There was a passing thought that told him it could easily be interpreted as him confirming she disturbed him… which she really hadn’t… at least not to the degree he was annoyed with her. “You didn’t disturb me… I’m kind of glad you woke me up, actually.” He supplied with a smile, for it was true that Kuroshiki didn’t want to replay any memories that included his uncles or cousins. They were usually laced with horrid qualities.

“I’m Kuroshiki Nozaki.” He started, feeling it best to at least let her put a name to a face. That and being polite. “I apologize if I startled you.” Kuroshiki bowed his head slightly, in the way of an apology for his behaviour just moments ago. Bowing his head would only last a moment before Kuroshiki would stand up once more, looking at the woman once more. She seemed… tired or at least like she had been exercising earlier. Considering he was now in a major shinobi village once more, he’d probably run in to hundreds more shinobi here than when he was travelling around. “Uh… Were you training?” He asked in the way of attempting to make conversation, whether he had received a name or not from the slight pause following his introduction and apology.


696 of 2058 Total Words

Aqua

Aqua


D-rank
Her new acquaintance shook his head at her question, answering that it was simply a bad dream that had snuck up on him and caused him to react as violently as he had to her else ordinary question. Aqua mentally exhaled in relief as she adjusted herself on the bench, hand still outstretched to offer him his possession. She watched how he continued flitting about, before his nerves seemed to calm and he regained solid footing. Had she still had her Sharingan active, she may have been able to register enough about him quickly to note that, while he struggled to constrain himself, there were still slight jitters across his body, particularly his fair face, that stood out. As it were, however, such small trivialities escaped her notice, and she took his lack of jitteriness at face value.

As she offered him his spectacles, he would reach out with his right hand, opening his palm face up just underneath his glasses, in an almost demanding demeanor. Aqua raised a sly brow at the gesture, just ever so slightly, as she pondered the unusual reception. Nevertheless, she relinquished her hold on it, easily maintaining the fake smile she put on to avoid alarming him or discomforting him further. He’d already been agitated once that afternoon, and Aqua wasn’t the heartless woman most perceived her to be to put him on the spot further, regardless of what went about the rumour mill. She would confess to a stoic facade any day of the week, and while it was only her teammates and a select few who took up no more than the fingers on both her hands whom knew better of her, it didn’t mean she’d have to reinforce this stigma that people had already conjured up for her.

“You didn’t disturb me,” he supplied, “I’m kind of glad you woke me up, actually.”

Aqua shot a more genuine smile his direction, somewhat in playful humour, a trait most people believed her to lack. “Was it that bad of a dream?” she asked with a glint of playfulness in her eye. As she did so, she would breathe in another fresh bout of air, stretching her arms overhead momentarily not so much consciously as much as to stretch the sore joints in her limbs. When given his name, she’d return with her own, “And my name is Aqua Uchiha. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Aqua would then hear his upcoming apology, likely put forth as courtesy and decorum, and she’d give a slight dip of her head as acknowledgement.

She did find it odd how he didn’t move to sit, but ignored her own reservations about him in favour of answering his next concern. It wasn’t entirely unlikely that he, like her, wasn’t accustomed to hanging around with other people, least of all strangers, and Aqua noted that she did take into account how certain tense or awkward scenarios may have risen by simply seating herself next to a complete stranger. Regardless, their interactions so far hadn’t involved anything less than civility and comity between the two of them, and Aqua took this as a good sign.

“Yes, I was training. Just a quick spar with my teammate,” she responded. “What about you? The park’s nice, but I doubt most consider it an optimal place to sleep.”

WC: 570 + 1479 = 2049

7Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Empty Re: Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Sun Jun 12, 2016 12:14 am

Kuroshiki

Kuroshiki


D-rank
“Was it that bad of a dream?”

Kuroshiki blinked owlishly at first, and then took note of the smile she had presented along with it not being that much of a serious question when he took it in full. It hadn’t really been a dream… but rather a remembrance of past events that had been altered to display his current perception on reality. His uncle had originally been kind to Kuroshiki, especially when he first too him in, but even those events Kuroshiki couldn’t recall with one-hundred percent accuracy. Now each one of these memories that contained his uncle and cousins had been covered by an ominous hue, one that wasn’t friendly towards Kuroshiki. “It could have been a lot worse, I suppose.” Kuroshiki would reply in regards to her question, for it could have been far worse than just seeing his uncle’s presence. His vivid dream hadn’t presented an issue that would be traumatic to Kuroshiki, but only characterized a facet of his uncle that Kuroshiki had been exposed to; one that he figured took over for the man he once knew. Or perhaps his uncle had always been that man and simply displayed it once Kuroshiki’s own father had disappeared.

“And my name is Aqua Uchiha. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” While her first name wasn’t familiar to him whatsoever – the word itself was – her last name brought on a bit more intrigue to Kuroshiki. He couldn’t recall exactly where he heard the name before, nor  for what reason, but her family name was familiar enough to make him aware that he read it someplace in one of his books. That in turn meant it held some importance, to what degree he couldn’t exactly remember, but it was important nonetheless. Taking a look at his glasses, he put them back on and pushed them up the bridge of his nose. The aesthetics of wearing them to complete his ensemble often won out over practicality.

“Yes, I was training. Just a quick spar with my teammate. What about you? The park’s nice, but I doubt most consider it an optimal place to sleep.”

It was true that the park didn’t offer him the most ideal place to rest his head, but it had been better than the alternative for the moment it took him to decide on taking a nap here. The trek back to the inn he was staying at took a few extra minutes that Kuroshiki really didn’t want to spend travelling and the park had been conveniently located close to him when his mild drowsiness had kicked in. Factoring in that he was actually more tired than he assumed, leading him to fall asleep and not be aware of someone sitting next to him, was slightly embarrassing. He could only presume that Aqua had thought his awareness of his surroundings was poor – a presumption that would be beneficial to the guise of being a civilian. Hiding his status as a wandering individual who could utilize chakra happened to be something he wished to keep relatively quiet, solely for the fact that his uncle would be less aware of his location and travels.

A slight tinge of red took over his cheeks, embarrassed slightly at the thought he fell in to a deep sleep in the park. With a small smiling taking over, Kuroshiki would glance between his now empty seat and Aqua. “I guess it’s not the best place to fall asleep.” He added with a light laugh, more directed at himself than anything. “It was either getting a bit of rest here or making the twenty minute trip back to the inn I’m staying at. Getting my eyes closed as soon as possible had won out over making the trip back.” He’d supply his answer for why he ended up sleeping on a park bench rather than in the comfort of a bed. It wasn’t anything different than sleeping out in the wild when he’d been journeying around – even from his most recent trip from Tsuchi no Kuni to Hi no Kuni.

Eying the spot he sat in previously, just moments ago, he would turn his attention back to Aqua, deciding to ask instead of sitting down immediately. It was something drilled in to him, asking out of politeness rather than reclaiming what had originally been his. “Ah, Uchiha-san… may I sit next you?” He really didn’t need to ask, but Kuroshiki had done so anyways. He couldn’t recall if it was something his uncle drilled in to his head, or if it was a lesson he was taught by one of his instructors; either way, it did not matter anymore.


799 of 2857 Total Words

Aqua

Aqua


D-rank
“I guess it’s not the best place to fall asleep,” he said, this time adding a small laugh at the end of his sentence.

Good. At first, Aqua had thought she’d struck the wrong tone in their conversation with her attempt at humour when he’d given such a somber response to her question. She had never been good with people, often keeping to herself when in crowds at parties or ceremonies she’d been forced to attend as a compulsory service during her ninja career. The drinks and the talking and the chatting… she enjoyed them, but she also found herself uncomfortable when forced to open up too much. She didn’t feel ready to let herself be read like a book, especially when there was so much at risk should she do so. Serah, Matsu, Keishi, Sumimoto, maybe even her sister’s teammates, Junichi and Hirotsugu, and their sensei whom she was often compared to on more than one occasion as being a near carbon copy of personality-wise. She trusted them, and so she would hide nothing from them, for that was the only way to retain trust within a group – a lack of suspicion – but with anyone else she just met, especially those who weren’t of Konoha’s origin, she’d only trust them as far as she could throw them. Which wasn’t very much, considering she preferred to take them out in their Genjutsu-induced dreams. Fortunately, it seemed that despite his solemn response, their conversation wouldn’t border completely on the formal.

“It was either getting a bit of rest here or making the twenty minute trip back to the inn I’m staying at. Getting my eyes closed as soon as possible had won out over making the trip back.”

“Which inn is that?” Aqua asked. She’d heard it was always polite to try and pursue further any topics in a conversation unless they seemed to make the other person uncomfortable, and until that came she’d likely try to follow any advice she could grasp at the ends of the straw. “I would’ve actually been enticed by the soft beds rather than the hard bench.”

But he was staying at an inn, was he? So he wasn’t from Konoha. She tried to stop her mind but there were some things that were just on autopilot, and her paranoia and suspicions, as much as she didn’t show or even feel them, were one defining feature of her character that even Sumimoto-sensei had failed to beat out of her in the past few years. It had cost her more than a few potential friendships, but it could also be seen in the reverse that those who normally got through her discrete screenings were those whom she was almost unwaveringly loyal to. She could count on one hand the number of people who’d gotten into and remained into this circle for longer than she’d hoped to remember, and those five were just the members on her team and her sister’s team. If you counted the senseis, you could probably be forced to use both fingers… but she didn’t completely feel that way about the enigma that was Mihoko-sensei, Serah’s squad leader. The irony hit her again that the one she got along with least was the one people compared her with most. Maybe it was just in their personalities that people like them blended like oil and water, though their sharp minds were always trying to outdo the other, and Aqua normally won out because she knew when to quit, while Mihoko’s victories were chalked up to her astute Nara intellect, something Aqua would be hard-pressed to compete against anytime soon.

Fortunately, though, she managed to stop her train of thought there and then, concluding that he was either not a Konoha native, or simply had no lodgings. The chances of him being an infiltrator were close to nil, and if he managed to get past the village’s walls, gate guards, and the occasional ANBU who scanned and patrolled the village streets for even the slightest hint of danger, then she was unlikely to be able to pry anything out from her observations, nor do anything about them should she manage.

“Ah, Uchiha-san… may I sit next to you?” he asked.

“Please do,” she said, “I wouldn’t feel right depriving you of your bench.”

After he seated himself and made himself comfortable, Aqua would continue the conversation – unless he struck one up first – crossing her legs together. “I take it you’re not from Konoha if you’re staying at an inn. What brings you here?”

WC: 791 + 2049 = 2840

Kuroshiki

Kuroshiki


D-rank
“Which inn is that? I would’ve actually been enticed by the soft beds rather than the hard bench.” He should have expected that question, essentially having given up the information that he was a foreigner to Konohagakure no Sato or someone in Konoha who had been displaced from their home. The former was far more believable than the second option that Kuroshiki quickly had come to grips with Aqua knowing he wasn’t from here. It didn’t hurt his overall objective, of learning as much as he could while in the Land of Fire about chakra, fighting, and being a shinobi in general. He could learn about each on his own time, though that process take him far longer than securing his own future, seeing as how his Uncle had access to resources that Kuroshiki did not. That thought alone made Kuroshiki believe that he needed to quickly become stronger so that he wouldn’t have to constantly worry about coming across mercenaries. So far, the number could be counted on one hand alone; though he fully believed his Uncle would stop at nothing to remove him from the picture.

“I’m staying at Kiyoshi’s Inn, I believe it’s just outside of the Market District.” While he could understand the delight behind having a comfortable bed to lay one’s head upon, having roamed the wilderness and been away from civilization for a few days every now and then, Kuroshiki had grown used to having to sleep upon the cold, hard ground. A soft bed versus a park bench made little difference to Kuroshiki these days, though he could still see the allure that Aqua held towards a bed in an inn. The thought process Kuroshiki went through to decide to sleep in the park had been a simple one – to just rest his eyes as soon as possible. He figured there was less harm to come in the village, considering the various patrols that ventured around the village hourly. While Kuroshiki wasn’t a resident or citizen of Konohagakure no Sato, he’d been able to get into the village through the front gate easily enough. There was little to no reason for the gate guards to deny him entry, for he wasn’t a threat to the village – at least not directly. He found no thrill in having a village want his head, seeing as how the entirety of the Hidden Leaf village could easily dismantle him before he could even begin anything, not that he would anyways. Kuroshiki solely arrived in the village for a sole purpose, to learn more, and that was all he was here to achieve. Anything else that came with it would be additional consequences of his visit to the village.

Kuroshiki kept his expression neutral as Aqua complied with is questioned request to reseat himself upon the bench. Her language was… formal, more formal than Kuroshiki often cared to grant others. The use of the word ‘depriving’ had brought about this short pattern, but he immediately disregarded it. Aqua’s pattern of speech really didn’t bother him; he just found it slightly odd how she worded that particular phrase. With a smile present once more, Kuroshiki returned the seat he had earlier occupied, before Aqua had come across him. Looking over his shoulder briefly, simply to absorb the rest of the park, his eyes caught note of Aqua shifting slightly in her seat before posing him another question. “I take it you’re not from Konoha if you’re staying at an inn. What brings you here?”

He felt like that question would become a common theme during his stay in Konoha, as people were genuinely curious creatures – even if his presence in the village would have nothing to do with them. Kuroshiki knew the answer was simply and it didn’t exactly hurt him to be honest about it. The only issue came with actually answering the question, which would inevitably lead to even more questions regarding why exactly he was here. Less, in this case, was better for Kuroshiki, as there was less that he would be asked… possibly. People came to varying conclusions on their home, and he doubted that he’d get away with a half-assed answer regarding his visit to Konoha. “Hmm… I came here to figure out some things that could help me out in the future. Mainly I came here to learn how to defend myself, so that I have less to worry about overall when I’m travelling.” The mention of travelling could likely bring up more questions; regarding why and his actual home. Those he could get to, if they ever came up in a conversation. He could defend himself to a degree, though Kuroshiki doubted he’d be able to handle even a genin from a major shinobi village. “I figure it’s better for me to be able to defend myself, rather than having to rely on hired help… though that is another issue considering finances.”


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10Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Empty Re: Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Sat Jun 18, 2016 12:56 am

Aqua

Aqua


D-rank
Aqua mapped out the position of Kiyoshi’s Inn mentally, noting that it was a small place sandwiched among all the other large corporate businesses that found their home in Konoha’s sprawling Market District. While she hadn’t taken to memorising the entire blueprint depicting Konoha’s villatic locations in all their extensiveness and thoroughness, the few places of interest to her, of which the Market District was one as she frequented it often, nearly almost only on weekends, to get her groceries and other necessities, had been memorised as well as she could so she could find her way around the otherwise confusing array of streets that made up one of the busiest places she’d yet to visit, active at almost all times of the day even when the sun had already set and the moon was making itself comfortable in the dark night sky, illuminating the buildings with its soft, gentle touch.

She also recalled passing it and reading of its business practices. Like many other inns and hotels in the village, they offered the standard complimentary breakfast and dinner meals, urging tourists to go out during the day to get their lunch out in the village and see its sights in corporate attempts to immerse foreigners into Konoha’s unique and diverse culture, enticing them to spend more of their ryo on the village, and by proxy their businesses, as well as bringing Konoha further up in the economic world. Nevertheless, its rates were rather good, maybe a little on the low side if you were willing to compare it with some of the more flourishing hotels that had recently been set up in Konoha herself, but all in all not too low that one would shrug off its services as unruly.

Aqua wondered if perhaps he really was as exhausted as he was trying to lead her to believe, to have collapsed on a park bench, as uncomfortable as it may be, instead of walking the extra twenty minutes to a district that was lively enough and homely enough to pass for anyone’s abode. Twenty minutes, while seemingly a while, wouldn’t have seemed so to her, as she was already used to running on treetops for hours on ends as she and her team strove to reach the destination and venue of their mission ahead of schedule. It wasn’t a practice their sensei endorsed, nor was it one built from the spirit of the team as a whole, as much as it was simply Aqua’s desire to adhere as closely as she could to the completion of her mission without allowing for any complexities to rise, hence the quick arrival and planning and preparation for their mission with all the facts at hand.

Sumimoto always was proud of her for that. Her teammates… they frowned upon how much she liked to push them, but made far too many jokes about it for her to take their complaints seriously.

“Hmm… I came here to figure out some things that could help me out in the future. Mainly I came here to learn how to defend myself, so that I have less to worry about overall when I’m travelling.”

At this, Aqua would nod her head twice, gently, noting that she was indeed paying attention. Her lips would part slightly in understanding before closing firmly again. It wasn’t unheard of for travellers to make their way from far and wide to the closest, or sometimes not even the closest but the best in their opinion, hidden villages to brush up on their skills so they could be freer in life, so to speak, unburdened by the crippling fears that would seek out those who couldn’t defend themselves. Aqua supposed that Kuroshiki was just one of many people who made their way to hidden villages trying to seek out a formal education in the more combative purposes of chakra. Aqua idly wondered if she should press further on why he needed to defend himself, to seek out whether he was in need of some form of protection or if it was simple paranoia that had gripped his heart at facing the elements, before noting that his age should reflect his maturity for his situation, and shrugging it off that he would be able to seek the appropriate assistance if his desire to improve his skills was anything more than a supplement for his wanderlust.

“I figure it’s better for me to be able to defend myself, rather than having to rely on hired help… though that is another issue considering finances.”

Another issue? Did he have a problem managing his finances? It wasn’t unusual that tourists or foreigners or wanderers found themselves in a pinch regarding their monetary situation, since most of it was spent travelling and the only income they got was normally from the odd-jobs they performed along the way, which didn’t actually pay much in the grand scheme of things. Aqua could… She would have to admit she couldn’t really relate to an uncertain financial situation, as ever since she’d become self-sufficient (or, self-plus-Serah-sufficient, since she mostly paid for their basic expenses) she’d been extremely careful with what she bought or how much their apartment’s rent would soar. She’d never actually had a shortage of it, instead making up for it with scantiness in the lifestyle she chose to lead.

“Well, in that case, you may want to visit the Academy. The instructors there, when free, would definitely be able to help you improve your self-defense. I’m afraid I can’t help you too much in your finances though, if they were a problem.”

WC: 962 + 2840 = 3802

11Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Empty Re: Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Wed Jun 22, 2016 12:24 am

Kuroshiki

Kuroshiki


D-rank
Finances in the grand scheme of things weren’t of the utmost importance for Kuroshiki, for the vastly different life he led now made him pick and choose where he spent his ryo. Between having to find places to stay and food to purchase, his overall spending was rather limited; there was no need for him to attain items he couldn’t carry around with him. While he was out in the wilderness, on his own, money was a non-factor for he would search for his own temporary shelter and hunt for his own food; he was vastly improving on that front. The saying ‘living off the land’ was applicable to Kuroshiki’s life when he wasn’t residing in a village, though the funds to have a more permanent, or even long-term, housing situation were troublesome. He could accumulate money from odd jobs here and there, but he never had enough time to put in to them to get what it was he needed. Kuroshiki still had a relatively large sum of cash for himself – from his life before being on the road – though he chose to only delve in to it when the need actually arose.

“Well, in that case, you may want to visit the Academy. The instructors there, when free, would definitely be able to help you improve your self-defense. I’m afraid I can’t help you too much in your finances though, if they were a problem.”

Nodding as Aqua mentioned where he could find tutors that could possibly help him out, Kuroshiki took a mental note to keep the shinobi academy of Konohagakure no Sato in mind. He couldn’t be entirely sure about their helpful nature, given that he wasn’t exactly a native of Konoha and it was likely they’d be speculative about helping out a complete stranger. While generally the world and shinobi nations were more at peace with one another these days, Kuroshiki knew that there would always be minor tensions between them. As a civilian – or an individual aspiring to attain more tutelage as a shinobi – Kuroshiki could only come to the assumption they would deny teaching him anything. That was one of the few worst case scenarios that came in mind, one that didn’t involve Kuroshiki having to explain himself further. Should he be able to gain assistance from the academy instructors, the process would be expedited and he’d be able to face his Uncle sooner than if he chose to take the route of learning alone.

He wasn’t opposed to learning on his own, gaining all the required knowledge from books and scrolls, but it was often far easier to do so when there was somewhat out there who could guide you. Kuroshiki prided himself in being able to pick up details on his own and if that could translate to the ideal usage of chakra, it would be a much needed boost. If not, then he was fine and ready to accept the tutelage of another person.

As for his own financial situation, he’d be able to get by as time progressed. Kuroshiki knew that no one else would really be able – willing – to help him out with that issue, nor did he expect to get help. In fact, that facet of his life was something he would address on his own; something that would ultimately be situated once he settled the unresolved issue between himself and his uncle and cousins.

“Thank you, Uchiha-san. I’ll be sure to visit the academy and see if I can get help.” A grateful smile presented itself as he turned his head to face his companion. It went unsaid that Kuroshiki was surprised she so easily offered him a slight bit of guidance in that respect. Kuroshiki’s own assumptions of shinobi went as far to think that they would be paranoid in helping out one who wasn’t aligned to their nation. It could likely be the case he’d be met with such thought patterns and mannerisms once he got to the academy, but that would be an issue for hone he actually went there. “I’ll be able to manage financially. I’ve always been good with keeping expenses to a minimal that I have more than enough to get by for a while.

Knowing that he could find the academy on his own would take a bit of time and he could easily ask around, Kuroshiki arrived at the conclusion that asking Aqua would get it out of the way as soon as possible. She seemed friendly enough to want to help him, such that he was comfortable in asking her such a question – he’d be likely wary of others. “Uchiha-san, I would appreciate it if you could tell me where to find the academy. I’m sure I could find it on my own… but I suppose having a general idea of where it’s located is better than nothing.”


838 of 4536 Total Words

12Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Empty Re: Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Fri Jun 24, 2016 12:19 am

Aqua

Aqua


D-rank
“Thank you, Uchiha-san,” he’d replied graciously. “I’ll be sure to visit the academy and see if I can get help.”

Aqua merely smiled in response to the gratitude he was showing for the small bit of advice that she’d opted to give him. That was as far as she would be able to help him, as she would help any other traveller, in attaining what he wanted to achieve. The Konoha academy, in her memory, had always been welcoming to those who weren’t currently enrolled in their classes, helping them fine tune their mastery over chakra or the ninja arts just as they would had the person been studying in the academy itself. Their classes wouldn’t go past the very basics of being a ninja, and everyone would be treated as if they were a curricular student as well, though she supposed there was a chance that Kuroshiki would be turned away at the massive gates that led to the Academy simply for not being a native of Konoha. Back in her youth, she’d seen all sorts of people, of various backgrounds and ethnicities, apply to study at Konoha’s Academy, but whether they had been people of the village or no, she would have been too young to remember, and too young to know anyhow.

“I’ll be able to manage financially. I’ve always been good with keeping expenses to a minimal that I have more than enough to get by for awhile.”

“That’s good to hear,” Aqua answered. Money, she knew, was a very prevalent problem for some, especially those who couldn’t help but be captivated by trinkets that were hung in nearly every market district around Konoha, in nearly every shop, plastered at the front of every window, to lure tourists into pouring more of their hard-earned, and justifiably set aside for such occasions, to dump it all into the locals’ treasuries, which would then find their way to Konoha’s governments’ banks to further finance the village’s doings. Fortunately for her, she didn’t have the same attraction to such stuff as other girls her age did; or maybe a more accurate way to put it was that she was able to control the cravings that she had for the more glittery stuff that enticed her peers, being someone who’d almost always had control over her own desires and actions.

“Uchiha-san, I would appreciate it if you could tell me where to find the academy. I’m sure I could find it on my own… but I suppose having a general idea of where it’s located is better than nothing.”

The image of the academy, its conical building stretching several floors up with its land enclosed by walls at least ten feet tall, more for delineation purposes than actually keeping people out, flashed into her head. Located very close to the Hokage Tower, it served as mainly an educational facility, though Aqua had heard of certain cases where the academy had been used as a makeshift shelter during times where the threats to the village had someone slipped past its gargantuan walls. That being said, she doubted she’d read anywhere in her history books nor heard from anyone purportedly experienced in the village’s history that told of a threat large enough to actually take note of; the last such danger to the village had nearly, or actually did, razed it to the ground, and it had been centuries ago.

“You should head to the center of the village. If you have the administration build in your sights, the academy should be close by,” she provided. “The two actually share the same land, so it’s a simple matter of asking anyone on the site where the academy building itself is. Just remember: Konoha’s central district. It’s also where you’ll find most of the administrative buildings if you need them, and it’s just in front of the Hokage Monument,” she said, referring to the large mountain that stood within Konoha’s borders, painted and carved out with the faces of the Hokage that had come before the current one, which also doubled as a guarded shelter for whenever the civil situation in the village would come under fire.

With that, Aqua would stand up, stretching her arms outwards once more and hearing the satisfying pop of her arms and back as it was arched. “I should go. I’m making dinner tonight for my sister and I. If you need any further help, you can likely find it: administration board for technical assistance. Have a nice stay,” she ended, before walking off.

As she did so, her mind reeled to Keishi’s training earlier that day, which had transpired before her meeting with Kuroshiki. While unorthodox, she thought back on why exactly they had been training. The two of them had been brushing up on their skills, following their confrontation with her sister’s team, colloquially known as Team Mihoko with the assigned number all but forgotten to the senseis themselves. Their sensei, Sumimoto Kyudoka, had been less than pleased with the boys’ performances, and had assigned her to tutor Keishi in being more serious, while he took Matsu for their own special training. While the team had won the game as a whole, Keishi and Matsu, and indirectly her, had left too many opportunities for their team to slip up and lose, especially with Aqua’s sympathy for her sister and the bond between the two of them to cause her to derive a plan allowing her a one-on-one with her sister – a fairer encounter than her sister’s teammates – while her teammates’ desire to fight Hirotsugu and finally take him down (which they failed to do since she won the game for them by retrieving the objective before they could beat him up past his Wood Release) had made sure that they were unable to help Aqua wrench victory from her sister (should she have needed it).

Her Sharingan flashed once more, allowing her eyes to be bathed in the red of blood before it went away just as quickly, and she was reminded of her sensei’s words following her awakening of the Dojutsu.


Four.

That was her fourth kill on this mission. Far from her fourth in her entire career. The kunai was slick and warm with blood which dripped onto her arm, worming its way onto her grip and making the leathery handle of the kunai just that slightly more difficult to hold onto. Her body twisted backwards, blocking a swipe from a random, nameless bandit before jumping back to clear herself of the mass of bodies, whether alive or dead. Two bandits, faces she couldn’t quite place, ran up to her, and she caught one in a Genjutsu, causing him to stab his partner in the back, incapacitating him before he realised what had happened, and charged to her in fury.

She raised her kunai to block again, meeting his weapon midway and holding it there, even as she was pushed back an inch or so from the sudden momentum. He removed his blade and lashed out with his foot, and she caught it with the palm of her free hand, only for it to be insufficient to stop his strike, causing her hand to ricochet upwards with his leg, slamming into her chin and causing her to stumble backwards three steps. She recovered in time to dive to the left, rolling once into a kneel and bringing her kunai again to block his attack, layering a Genjutsu over him to falsify his sights before lashing out with her kunai and digging a deep line into his neck, immediately killing him.

Five.

She heard a yelp of fright from Keishi, which was enough to distract her from the bandit who sprung up in front of her, grabbing her throat and attempting to squeeze the air out of her. Both hands instinctively reached for the wrist, broad as it was that she couldn’t close a single hand around it, accidentally dropping her only remaining kunai in the process. She struggled in his grip and watched as his other hand pulled back, curling into a fist… though curiously curling slower and slower and slower… and slower. She looked at the arm holding her, seeing the bulging veins that led from his forearm to his upper arm, both smudged with dirt and exposed flesh from the slashes she’d given his small group of seven, five of whom were already dead.

She saw the snarl on his face, the small spittle gathering at the corners of his lips, the flared up nostrils, the eyes wide open and clearly enraged, pupils dilated and hair messy as it was when she’d sprung the ambush on them so her teammates could rescue the hostages and clear up the stolen stash. She could see the tight knuckles on his fist, now slowly approaching her. Her mind slowed down, registering everything in her sights as if time itself had stopped, allowing her to take in everything she was seeing, to process it, to either use it or to store it for future usage. She saw the crow flying in the distance, just a speck, but easily recognisable to her as a crow for some reason. Not a raven, but a crow. It was leading a group of other crows, smaller than its raven counterpart as well at that distance…

Even as the fist flew towards her she had the time to appreciate that her vision had improved dramatically, not in just helping her reaction time but also in the quality of her vision. She could see so much more now… and she was going to use it. Her eyes darted from the man’s face, which now sported some confusion beside the fury, to the hand that was currently flying towards her, and her left hand rose to deflect it, messing its travel such that it would miss her just slightly, hitting only her ear – she knew it would miss her – while her other arm rose and slammed downwards on the man’s forearm, giving her enough slack to take in a small breath of air, and swing her lower body forwards, sending her foot into the man’s chin, dazing him enough for her to pry herself out of his grip, as she felt the air distort around his fist. Not a wind jutsu, as she couldn’t see the mass of chakra around his arm as any more than just the natural flow of chakra within his civilian body.


She would learn later that she’d awakened the Sharingan, but the circumstances around it wouldn’t stay with her, fresh in her memory, as much as the words that Sumimoto-sensei had used to instil fear within her as to the damnation that the eyes normally brought to their wielder.

“The Curse of Hatred.”

Those four words had been uttered many times throughout the history of Konoha, and had been similarly repeated in many sections of Konoha’s history books, specifically on the sections that focused on the Uchiha clan as one of the few clans that had come together since before Konoha’s official founding and laid the foundations that would eventually found one of the greatest hidden villages to dot the elemental continents. They were an embodiment of what happened to a shinobi when they lost themselves and succumbed to the dangers that came with being a ninja. The Uchiha, he had warned, were especially prone to this due to the nature of their eyes, which only came about whenever they were under extreme duress. Most Uchiha failed to cope with the stress that came with their eyes, and naturally allowed the antithesis of love to consume them.

She wondered why that particular memory struck her as she exited the park, her apartment in the more respectable housing districts of Konoha her destination.

WC: 2014 + 3802 = 5816

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13Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Empty Re: Sequential Followings [Private | Aqua] Mon Jul 11, 2016 2:05 am

Kuroshiki

Kuroshiki


D-rank
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