With the beating sun rising from the west and the sound of chirping birds carried throughout the air with nothing but scattered clouds covered the tinted orange sky. The warmth of the sun touched the skin of a particular shinobi that seemed to have fallen asleep upon a branch feeling upon his skin and touching down his bare chest. As the beams of bright sunlight ripped through the shadows of the tree’s cutting through the darkness forcing it cower away as the light surely and quickly took over the land and woke the sleeping creatures of the day. Quickly did the birds start to soar into the sky as on the land the serpents, and rodents began their day by scouring across the land in their everyday lives of attempting to stay alive. As for Burittsu on the other hand the warmth of the sun felt soothing but also a burden as his skin felt soft when it came to the sun’s heat with his left eye starting to open and his right remaining closed he only observed the area for a mere moment only to give out a slight yawn and turning all the way facing the sun.

“The sun nature’s life.. Also a pain when it shines brighter than needed..”

Swinging his legs back and forth he only gave out another yawn with a push off the branch his body quickly dropped like a rock landing him upon the ground. Looking around he knew he was
not far from the village but whatever brought him out of the village and into the wilderness must have been important to him. Bending his knees as he began to stretch the cracking of his bones made an impressive statement upon the creatures nearby catching their attention as some were scared off the rest simply awaited for something to happen. Mere seconds have passed as he was done relaxing his muscles he simply began to make his way back to the main path cutting through the green lush forest in hopes eventually he would find his way back.

“If worse comes to worse I can simply climb to the top of a tree.”

Digging into his pockets it seemed there was a small note that was not there before it seemed it was folded up deep into his pocket it was given to him by a person who he considered a comrade but to him Burittsu was much more than a comrade. Opening it up was a long written note in such a impressive penmanship for such a crude shinobi. Before reading he flipped the paper over reading the directions on how to get to the destination as he flipped the paper back and began reading the note.

“Dear Yuki I Invite you to the manor for dinner don’t worry you’ll be safe and have a fun time with warm regards Yasuo.
P.S. Do not strive off the path I’m not responsible for what would happen to you.”

Flipping the page back over he only began to follow the path that was told upon the paper and remembered the warning that was given to by his comrade. As he traveled upon the path he only began to think to himself what type of food would be presented.

WC:546

"Berry" Yasuo smiled gleefully and pounced, jumping onto the guy they so loved to see him more than anything, even Sero. Sero was entertaining, very much so but he was a different kind than Burittsu. Burittsu was much more fun, in an innocent way yet he had a wild feeling about him at some times; their last mission was a prime indication of that. His nature was sadistic, charming, and youthful as his kills were still quiet messy but he had fun with it if they deserved to die. Master Sero was similar in that regard, but his was more vindictive, feral, cunning, vicious, terrifying. It sent chills down your spine and your breath caught in your throat. Burittsu made your chest tickle and your cheeks pinch. Similar yet so different. And to be quite honest, Yasuo was preferring Burittsu's company than Sero. Sero was not affection and treated Yasuo as a loyal lapdog which they don't mind too much since they put themselves in that situation anyway, but Yasuo was getting tired of the whole charade, hence why they have been leaving the chores to the spiders more and more often. They have become fascinating intelligent and quite bonded to Yasuo, not to the degree of Sero, but they trusted Yasuo and treated them as a second mother as Yasuo was kind, caring, and feed them unlike their mother who whilst motherly, was a spider, and ate some of their siblings and would threaten to do so whenever they did not act a certain way. Yea...they like Yasuo a lot. So they do not mind helping around the house. Mother saw it as them doing their duty and being helpful brats instead of useless brats. Yasuo was thankful and treated them well. They used their loyalty towards them to work on experiments more often or get out of the house every once in a while.

With things progressing, Yasuo had time to themselves. They bought some makeup, a few new clothes, and treated themselves. Their hair was now around their waist and they felt pretty happy in their oversize sweater, cropped turtleneck and shorts with matching thigh high stockings and slip on shoes that was all black. They had some mascara and winged eyeliner with plump soft red lips. They smelled like cinnamon and various other spices with a hint of lemon. Yasuo was self caring today and made some comfort food to welcome Burrittsu by making soup dumplings, pickled turnips, tea, breads, kobe beef chunks, and so on. Of course the beef was really human but it tasted just the same!

Once Berry was inside and the spiders left to other areas growing bored of him quickly, Yasuo took him over to the eat in kitchen as they did not feel the need to go to the grand dinning hall as it was reserved for Sero "I'm ecstatic you came! Do you want to go eat now or just relax?"

496~

It all happen in a blink of an eye from being hungry and curious to sitting down at a table with this male he called a comrade who by the smell of it was an incredible cook as the kitchen had an incredible smell that came with it. Looking at his comrade it had seem this must have been a really important evening for the both of them it would have been rude of himself not to put a show on and give a grin once or twice and be generous and kind to his host. Peeking up and down at Yasou he studied closely it had seem he was in the usual weird get up something that Burittsu himself would probably one day understand but for now that did not matter. He was asked a question earlier and was easily distracted by the looks of his comrade as to what was so special about seeing him this day or maybe he just wanted to look different probably trying out a new look to psych someone out. All this was running through the mind of the young Yuki but it did not matter he was present and he would act with respect now looking into Yasuo’s very eye as if he was attempting to look into his soul he realized himself that this was the closest thing to a friend he would have since Genbu. This moment would probably seal his fate for the future if he would actually have a connection with someone that wouldn’t just go out and die. As a breath escaped his lungs his hands quickly met together as he bowed his head in gratitude and respect to Yasou and quickly went and pulled out a seat sitting down with a small smirk upon his face. If this was his opportunity to actually connect with anyone that he met during his time being a shinobi it should be with someone who can at least see the darkness and light that is inside him.

“I thank you Yasuo for inviting me and for the food. Let’s eat.”

He was nervous but he only wanted this to go great probably something in a long while that he actually thought could benefit him and remind him why he was on this path of being a shinobi. By now his palms began to sweat a tad bit due to his nervous mindset but it all came to a stop as he took in a deep breath and released out the air giving a silent sigh and placed his hands on his lap rubbing them quickly. As the smell of the food only continued to take over his thoughts his stomach only had one response due to the fact it’s owner was attempting to ignore the fact that he only woke up sometime ago and still didn’t get anything to fill it up and silence it’s hunger until later. His mouth itself went from dry to moist as the smell continued to fill the air of the kitchen causing him to curious on how it would taste how it smell all these were unanswered questions that would soon be answered by his taste buds.

“Mhmm..”

It reminded him of the cooking that was presented to him when he was a young child at the orphanage back then was nothing but war and death but the thing that always made him feel safe was the cooking how the food itself always warmed his stomach. Made him feel calm and relaxed as if nothing else in the world could stop him from being happy or the fact that he was still a little kid in a big unknown world. One that he would one day have adventures upon and make all sorts of wondrous friends good, bad, and most likely fools but all friends none of the less. This memory of his past only brought a smile to his face as his taste buds danced and laughed enjoying the taste of the meal that quickly was devoured in mere seconds the grin on his face was priceless but it was a real one no matter what as he looked up at Yasou he only smiled a bit and and continued to eat the meal.

“Incredible..”

WC:712

The meal was pleasant. The food filled their bellies with a sense of comfort and warmth on this cold winter night. Yasuo had not spoken much during the dinner as they were not used to but instead of being outright ignored they felt comfort. Burittsu would never know the effect he had on the Kurohebi at all. He would not understand how appreciative Yasuo is that he exists. Yasuo has no one in this world. Nobody. Even the twins got up and left them, disappeared suddenly without a word. Sero was fixated on their new staff member Alwen, the young sea witch instead of them and hardly called for the butler if it were not to cook, then clean, then exterminate. Maybe once in awhile to deliver things to him in the village. Ever since Ayakashi left Sero-sama in charge whilst she was off to war, he had been in the village more and more often taking all manners of business to which they were not privy to delve into. With all the spare time they had been having, dark thoughts began to linger. Were Sero bored of them? Why should they care? What did Sero mean to them? What of Alwen? Nozomi? The Twins? Who were they to Yasuo and why should Yasuo care? Yasuo was used to a world without feeling, without heart, mercy or remorse. They were never shown faith or why to believe in it. Only pain and suffering were dealt in their hand. And fate had a funny way of reminding them that. That they had nothing. Nothing at all.

Except for him. Yasuo does not know why they cared for the Yuki. At first it were primal desire, now kinship and perhaps more. Why do they feel their defenses lowering instinctively when he is in their presence. Why is his voice soothing that they remember randomly on occasion or the image of his face whilst busy in other activities. Something was drawing Yasuo to Burittsu and they can not be quite sure what that attraction is. The kurohebi can not claim to love Burittsu nor do they trust him so much to delve into their deepest darkest secrets. However a soft floating voice whispered to them 'But you might'. That alone frightened them so whilst they ate the meal they prepared they tried to focus on the sense of comfort he provided. But god that bloody headache that is agonizing their head is hurting his head. They were having such a good day and they can not let such a stupid fucking headache ruin it. Yasuo tried their best to eat normally and enjoy their time and they did so with flawless precision. Good, no need to ruin a good day. They smiled once the meal finished and some of the larger spiders were kind enough to carry the dishes away; Yasuo made sure to dismiss Berry's worries should they arise by assuring them they mean no harm if no harm is done onto them.

And then there was a knock at the door...

1008~

He found himself full after only one plate the food filled him to the brim and tasted superb he only thought to himself if Yasou could make another plate so he could enjoy later indeed all was fine until the sight of large beast like spiders came around. Each grabbing the dirty used plates and scurried off the calm Yasou was the answer as Burittsu tried to keep the same cool level he had before they made their entrance. Leaning back in the chair as he felt the food begin to process through his body warming up his stomach as it had been a while since he received a good home cooked meal. Placing his palms on the table as he bowed his head to his host in appreciation to the food that was made and to the invitation to the home of the shinobi. With a smirk on his face as his mind began to process the true meaning of friendship sitting up straight with a small grin upon his face it must have been a rare sight to his comrade due to the fact the shinobi doesn't smile like that revealing his teeth to the world as his eyes began to squint nearly disappearing.

He only wondered if he was destined with a gift to meet new friends but as it turned out he was only scared of losing more friends felt like he had a virus. Only time could tell if Yasou would meet the same demise as did Genbu this only swiped away the smile from his face. Making him really dive into his mind if there was a way to avoid any sort of situation that could lead to the death of this person. Giving a sigh there was only two people that lived in his life that he truly knew the first was his teacher somewhere wherever he was probably off in some far off land fighting off more shinobi than he needed too. That thought only brought a small grin to his face as he truly did get lonely and bored without getting beaten down into submission most of the time he tried to go head to head with all the time he grew fond of the male indeed.

The second person was in front of him at the moment literally on the other side of the table he indeed was weird and different from the other shinobi he met but Burittsu did not see it that way he had made an actual friend one that could not replace the last one but enough to actually count as a friend. With a faint smile he only knew he had to evaluate and manage this friendship till one of them died he only hoped this lasted till the day the two grew old enough to see the new generation thrive and go out and live. Maybe each of them having a family of their own even Burittsu knew life was to short to remain a shinobi eventually the new generation would cut him down on the battlefield and that was a place he did not feel like having his former comrades finding his body. In mere moments his own attention was snapped by a knocking on the door behind him as he looked over his shoulder he only wondered who could that be visiting Yasou.

“Mhm..?”

WC:562

The Story of the Cowardly King. Once upon a time in a land not too different from this one lived a young king.  The kingdom was small and had been through a revolution before the current Kings rule. The kingdoms previous monarch had been cruel and bloodthirsty, forcing his citizens to war and blood sport, stripping the people of the crops they gathered and punishing anyone who disagreed. The people had felt hopeless until one day a young man, full of righteous fire and heart filled with passion for his fellows, lead a rebellion that took down the evil tyrant and freed the people from their misery. There was much rejoicing in the streets despite the heavy losses that had been taken on all sides, and it was not long before every man, woman, and child recognized their fearless leader as the true and rightful heir to the throne. The young man with humility and grace tried to place his trusted general on the throne instead, knowing that she had the knowledge and experience to be a proper ruler, however the people insisted and he could not bear the thought of disappointing them and so it was that he reluctantly accepted the crown. The moment he was crowned the King turned to his beloved general and named her his royal Adviser, entrusting the care of most of the kingdom to her. It was a joyous occasion and there were celebrations for weeks, the kingdom at last could thrive out from beneath the thumb of the tyrant. It would seem a happy story were it to end there, sadly important stories rarely end with collective happiness.

The years passed by, the King was a benevolent ruler, kind and generous, with time and resources to spare.  All the people in his fair kingdom were glad of his rule and never complained about their magnanimous leader. The King frequently visited his people, bringing with them food and cloth and handfuls of gold that he passed out without reluctance amongst even the most unsavory of his subjects. The King spent his days thinking through inspiring speeches, talking about current events, and planning engagements and appearances; all in the hopes of bestowing happiness on his people. To some, who had the rare opportunity to see him in privacy, it may have seemed that the King was rather vain and self centered.  Everything he did caused the people to sing his praises, for none could be as great as he, and on the surface it seemed as though that was what the King wanted. However, that could not be further from the truth as the secret cause for his obsessive behavior was much more sorrowful. The King wanted desperately to be loved, and would stop at nothing to have that be so, all the while fully believing he neither deserved to be loved nor had achieved that lofty and unattainable goal.

There were few who knew this sad fact, but among those who did was the King's Adviser.  She was a sly and manipulative sort, as is often the case with successful royal advisers, and spent considerable effort creating a King that would lean heavily on her word and therefore consider her irreplaceable. The Adviser had worked long and hard to earn the trust of the King, she was usually critical and disapproving of his ideas knowing that if he learned she was hard to please he would choose to unquestioningly agree with any idea that did please her. For you see, the Adviser also wanted to be loved, but hers was a selfish desire. She had felt cheated all those years ago when the crown had passed to the young upstart that she had carefully advised and kept safe. Adviser she was, but with a heart full of bitterness merely advising the King was not enough. So she spent her days doting on the King and following his commands and the nights plotting her revenge. She knew that she would be a far greater ruler than the young King was, but she also saw how deeply he was loved by his people and this caused her great concern. She had thought many times of simply overthrowing him, the armies were hers and would follow her without question, but the hearts of the people belonged to him. This fact ate at her, fueling the resentment and jealousy within her. Every time she had to deliver yet another gift to the glorious King, or turn away yet another suitor her rage grew.

And so it began, the silent and oppressive battle between the King and the Adviser. Both wanting the same thing and both unwilling to speak of it. The King gave away more and more of his wealth, what had started as generosity to his people quickly spread to neighboring kingdoms. He hosted grand balls, courted nobility and royalty from far away lands, and all the while his coffers diminished. He kept up his ridiculous behavior until one day he was told in no uncertain terms that the kingdom was simply out of wealth. His heart was broken, how was anyone to love him if he had nothing to give? He unfairly turned his disappointment on to his Adviser, while he had little wealth to spare it seemed that the kingdoms armies were fabulously wealthy and the tiny seed of resentment was planted in his heart.

The Adviser did her best to temper the King's flippant use of the kingdoms wealth. She sent her armies to neighboring lands, using them to garner a small income for their upkeep. But it was never enough, try as she might she could not acquire more wealth than the King could dispose of. So instead she trained her armies, adding as many new recruits as she could, knowing full well that there would come a time when she would have to use them to rid the kingdom of it's frivolous child ruler.
More years passed, the King and the Adviser focused on their hatred of each other and giving little thought to the kingdom they were destroying in the process. What had once been a bountiful and prosperous land was now barren, its resources stripped and its people starving. Sickness spread throughout the land, the people were overworked and anyone who was strong enough was sent either to the mines to look for more gold or they were recruited into the ever expanding and now quite underfed army. The people had long ago stopped praising the name of the King, now they feared him and named him a tyrant. The Adviser saw this and was overjoyed, for now she could enact her terrible plan and gain the revenge she had not ceased thinking of since the day her rival was crowned king.

One grey and rainy morning the horn of battle sounded, it's wail echoing the anguish that was felt by all. It was not an easily won battle, as although the Adviser controlled the armies the King still had his guard. There were cries and screams, rivers of blood where streets once were but at last the Adviser reached the King. The two stood staring at the other both with malice and soaked in blood, their hands tightly gripping their swords and muscles tensed to spring and cut the other down. Just then a soft clapping was heard across the room from the couple, and turning to look they both saw an old man wearing very fine clothes and a crown upon his head. He walked up to them fearlessly, casually stepping over fallen bodies as he did so, all the while grinning a most terrible grin. He stopped just outside of the range of their weapons and bowed stiffly to both of them, "Thank you." was all he said. But they were two words that held the weight of a generations worth of hatred.

At once the King and the Adviser saw their error. They had spent so long hating each other, feeling worthless and undervalued that they had failed to see both that they were wrong and that they were destroying the very things they loved. A lesson learned far too late as the old man raised his hand and both the Adviser and the King fell to the ground, arrows piercing their broken hearts. The old man watched until he saw the light fade from their eyes and a look of peace settle across their features. Satisfied that their reign of terror was at an end he bent down and took the crown from the dead kings head. "No more." he said to no one in particular, "This land is poisoned by hatred and fear, it can be trusted to no one. Burn it to the ground." And as the old King rode away over the hill, he looked down upon his own armies whose features flickered in the firelight but it was unmistakable the admiration they held for their liege. The old King gave each of his soldiers a quick nod, acknowledging the sacrifice they had made and then rode away back to his own kingdom with a heavy heart.

Love, it was a terrible yet beautiful. We give and give so much of ourselves to love and be loved, just as the king. However when it is not reciprocated the way we desire, we turn bitter and cold, like Adviser, putting the blame on others for we felt cheated out of the happiness we so rightly deserved. If not careful, it can destroy the chance of it ever being obtained, slipping right through our fingers like sand, fragile and fleeting, wasting away. Yasuo felt love in many ways and they tried so desperately to hold onto it.

So when they opened the door to see Kuro bloodied and torn, without...their crimson eyes fell to the scroll in Kuro's bloody hand, it was a body sealing scroll...Seems I can never obtain happiness they chuckled darkly as tears flowed down their cheeks and they felt themselves back up. Tonight, there was a body that had to buried...


2696~
Trained:
PER C - C3 (1875/1875)
SPD C1 - C2 (600/600)
221wc left over

[EXIT]

Looking at Yasou opened the door it was something that was simply off about it as his host seemed motionless and quiet. Sitting up on the chair as his stomach was still full of the meal from earlier he only took his time to look over his shoulder. Until seeing what seemed like a droplet of water rolling off the face of his friend this only triggered one thing and that was for the male to actually begin to worry about what did Yasou open up too. Indeed it took some time to stand up but when he did as he gave out a sigh he only began to walk towards his partner placing a hand on his shoulder and taking a peek into the outside world. What he saw was a scared human what caught the attention of Burittsu was how the tears began to run down the face of his friend as the flow of a river running down a path and off the cliff creating a waterfall. Raising his eyebrows Burittsu did not know what to do in such situations as this he was not always big on his emotions but he knew pain when he saw it and Yasou was currently in the middle of a battle from within that is something must have been that disturbing to such a shinobi as this as he placed his left hand on his chest to feel his heart thrust and pound every second. The shinobi took a deep breath in and out to calm his nerves as his right hand remained opened just in case something was more than meets the eye.

Each step felt heavier than his last as he got closer and closer to his ally he only could place his hand on Yasou’s shoulder to indicate that he was not alone at his time of need no matter what the situation was Burittsu was dedicated to stand by this shinobi. No matter how many threats stand in his way in reality as he thought to himself before he decided to see what was on the outside he did meet a lot of interesting people in his life in the village going from shinobi who walk a darker path than he does to shinobi who were nothing but kind and respectful he had only hoped none would be a victim to whatever Yasou just witnessed. The tears that flowed down the face seemed dense and real enough not to be some sort of trap the reaction he saw earlier as the shinobi took a step back away from whatever it was that he saw was enough for Burittsu to know he must brace himself for whatever he saw releasing the shoulder of his friend he slowly began to take those heavy steps which only got heavier each moment he got closer and closer. Heart racing as his blood pumped throughout his body with each moment passing as he himself looked out and about only to receive the same amount of greeting that Yasou did a body rested upon the earth floor.

Someone that was new to the eyes of Burittsu but by the tears of his comrade it was more than a simple body it was someone that he knew and probably cared for deeply. It was only the invitation for Burittsu himself to leave due to the fact this was a matter that did not concern him the body of whoever met a lot to Yasou if it forced tears to be shed and shown. Bowing his head in a sign of respect to the body Burittsu simply looked over his shoulder as he walked towards his friend placing his hand upon his shoulder giving him a firm grip of hope and trust but also respect. And with that it had seem like it was over Burittsu turned his back to the male heading out the door back into the wilderness as his body was quickly consumed by the darkness coming to a faint stop in the midst of his pacing. He only looked back for a second or two to only bless his comrade with the best of his luck to get through tough times such as this he only hoped leaving was the right idea.

“I’m here for you if you ever need me..Go handle your business.”

~ End ~

WC:725
WC Total: 2,545