1 Blue Turban Rebellion [Mission B-Rank] Sun Jul 14, 2013 9:32 pm
Tenmei
D-rank
Today it was one of those jumping frogs.
It was much harder than the simple folds of the crane and the elegant, sharp points of the lily; her creations of the previous morning. But despite the extra effort she had used, she managed all the folds perfectly and precisely, just as she had done every other morning.
So now, with the small, white piece of origami in her hands and the steaming teapot settled beside her on the well used wooden tray, the young dark haired Genin sat calmly down cross legged in the lotus position, on the balcony on top of a woolen blanket and closed her eyes. Then, just like this, she stayed completely still and took in the early hours of the morning, embracing every soft breeze that dared disturb her daily ritual.
------------
Ever since her training with Solstice a couple of days ago, Tenmei had pretty much lost all risk of losing control; the one thing she was deathly afraid of. This in itself would have made her daily ritual redundant.....if it had not been for the events of the previous night.
Yes. That was right. It was just after midnight when she had woken up, with the cold sweat evaporating off her in clouds of steam that rose up to mingle with the musty air.
The fire freshly lit and the cold escaping the outside through the crack in the window; Tenmei had to wait a full few minutes before her skin cooled down enough for her to peel herself away from the worn down futon and walk across the house to the bathroom.
And even as she stared in to her once pale reflection, she could hear the voices as they continued to echo through her thoughts.
'You can't fight it this way. Who are you kidding?
There is nothing you can do.....I'm sorry
I am so....sorry'
The act of running the shampoo through her hair and scrubbing away the evidence of last night's terror was almost as soothing as the luke warm bath that followed. Though it was not nearly enough to rid her anxieties all together, it certainly aided in focusing her thoughts on today's chores of getting the groceries and maybe paying Solstice a visit....if she was free that was. Since she had become Kage not a couple days ago, it was getting increasingly hard to get an audience.
Her only friend and she still had to make an appointment to see her.
It was enough to bring a sigh to the steel eyed girl's lips.
It was after she dragged herself out of the deep tub, that Tenmei got to work, concocting this mornings brew of chai, vanilla, and cinnamon tea, one of her most favourite blends. She boiled the water in the pot first, using her own chakra as she had been taught to do, and then mixed in all the ingredients she had set out on the table.
While that was settling, she got to work, finding a fresh piece of parchment, one that had not been tainted by ink yet or had been folded in to a note of some sort.
Today it was one of those jumping frogs.
"What the f....."
The sound of flapping wings and the husky 'caw' resonating just beside her ear, startled the Genin in to obliterating the paper animal within her hands, reducing it to a small pile of ash in mere seconds.
"Now look what you did...."
Tenmei, while still slightly stunned, just watched helplessly as the wind claimed what was left of the paper and blew it to the dampened ground somewhere around the corner. Only when it was completely out of her sight, did she turn her gaze to look at sleek black bird that had disturbed her rare moment of peace. It seemed that now since she was officially a member of this village, her peaceful mornings were growing shorter by the day.
Didn't matter. The message was clear. It was time start the day.
-------
Tenmei had mixed thoughts as she stood in front of the Kage's desk an hour and a half later.
Dressed in her usual attire of a plain black lightweight vest, loose open legged trousers, and a woven leather belt, she had made her way through the mist, and maze of houses until she reached the rather intimidating building of the Kage's office. She was excited to see her friend and mentor again so soon after their last meeting, but also nervous about her first mission outside of the city....and without her father guiding her along like he had done in the past.
But that was not what had brought forth the conflicted feelings that the Genin was experiencing. It was the idea of working with someone that was not Solstice. Someone that she could easily burn if she was not careful. But then again...it was meeting new people.
It was enough to do the young Genin's head in.
"What if I hurt this other person?" she had found herself asking, her eyes to the floor in semi-contemplation. "Is it really a good idea to put me with other people?"
"I trust strafe, don't worry, he's like me, he will be able to handle your heat with his mirrors"
If it was anyone else, Tenmei would have continued to question and worry until she had talked herself in to a headache. But Solstice had never lead her wrong before, and she always seemed to know what she was doing. So, Tenmei swallowed her doubt and left with a reassured mind and the promise to not fail, and that she would come back to make her late parents, and her Sensei proud. And not even the voices that lingered in the back of her thoughts, would steer her from this resolve.
---------
For convenience's sake, the arranged meeting place would be the old well where she had met Solstice for her first lot of training. Only because it was one of the only places where Tenmei knew how to get to and they could leave straight from there.
Naturally, she had ducked home first to grab her bag which was neatly packed with tea, provisions, a couple band aids and a spare change of clothes just in case. It had a few other smaller items in it, but nothing unnecessary. Even Tsukeru was left back at the house.
When she arrived at the destination close to midday, Tenmei was not surprised to find that she had gotten there early and there was no one else around in sight. So, in the mean time while she waited, the unusually warm female sat herself down and brought out her thermos full of the left over tea from that morning's ritual.
As she sipped contentedly on the tea, she couldn't help but notice the carnage left over from her training session a few days ago.
The grass had been burned and had died off in a near perfect circle close to where she sat. It was the same with the shriveled leaves of the closest trees and the charred stone of the well. It was all her fault and yet, no one got hurt and there was already new shoots starting to peek through the tangled brown ground.
This new sign of life pushed the doubts further back in to her mind, and she was left to comfortably sip at her tea while she waited for her partner to arrive for this mission.
[1266/1500]
It was much harder than the simple folds of the crane and the elegant, sharp points of the lily; her creations of the previous morning. But despite the extra effort she had used, she managed all the folds perfectly and precisely, just as she had done every other morning.
So now, with the small, white piece of origami in her hands and the steaming teapot settled beside her on the well used wooden tray, the young dark haired Genin sat calmly down cross legged in the lotus position, on the balcony on top of a woolen blanket and closed her eyes. Then, just like this, she stayed completely still and took in the early hours of the morning, embracing every soft breeze that dared disturb her daily ritual.
------------
Ever since her training with Solstice a couple of days ago, Tenmei had pretty much lost all risk of losing control; the one thing she was deathly afraid of. This in itself would have made her daily ritual redundant.....if it had not been for the events of the previous night.
Yes. That was right. It was just after midnight when she had woken up, with the cold sweat evaporating off her in clouds of steam that rose up to mingle with the musty air.
The fire freshly lit and the cold escaping the outside through the crack in the window; Tenmei had to wait a full few minutes before her skin cooled down enough for her to peel herself away from the worn down futon and walk across the house to the bathroom.
And even as she stared in to her once pale reflection, she could hear the voices as they continued to echo through her thoughts.
'You can't fight it this way. Who are you kidding?
There is nothing you can do.....I'm sorry
I am so....sorry'
The act of running the shampoo through her hair and scrubbing away the evidence of last night's terror was almost as soothing as the luke warm bath that followed. Though it was not nearly enough to rid her anxieties all together, it certainly aided in focusing her thoughts on today's chores of getting the groceries and maybe paying Solstice a visit....if she was free that was. Since she had become Kage not a couple days ago, it was getting increasingly hard to get an audience.
Her only friend and she still had to make an appointment to see her.
It was enough to bring a sigh to the steel eyed girl's lips.
It was after she dragged herself out of the deep tub, that Tenmei got to work, concocting this mornings brew of chai, vanilla, and cinnamon tea, one of her most favourite blends. She boiled the water in the pot first, using her own chakra as she had been taught to do, and then mixed in all the ingredients she had set out on the table.
While that was settling, she got to work, finding a fresh piece of parchment, one that had not been tainted by ink yet or had been folded in to a note of some sort.
Today it was one of those jumping frogs.
"What the f....."
The sound of flapping wings and the husky 'caw' resonating just beside her ear, startled the Genin in to obliterating the paper animal within her hands, reducing it to a small pile of ash in mere seconds.
"Now look what you did...."
Tenmei, while still slightly stunned, just watched helplessly as the wind claimed what was left of the paper and blew it to the dampened ground somewhere around the corner. Only when it was completely out of her sight, did she turn her gaze to look at sleek black bird that had disturbed her rare moment of peace. It seemed that now since she was officially a member of this village, her peaceful mornings were growing shorter by the day.
Didn't matter. The message was clear. It was time start the day.
-------
Tenmei had mixed thoughts as she stood in front of the Kage's desk an hour and a half later.
Dressed in her usual attire of a plain black lightweight vest, loose open legged trousers, and a woven leather belt, she had made her way through the mist, and maze of houses until she reached the rather intimidating building of the Kage's office. She was excited to see her friend and mentor again so soon after their last meeting, but also nervous about her first mission outside of the city....and without her father guiding her along like he had done in the past.
But that was not what had brought forth the conflicted feelings that the Genin was experiencing. It was the idea of working with someone that was not Solstice. Someone that she could easily burn if she was not careful. But then again...it was meeting new people.
It was enough to do the young Genin's head in.
"What if I hurt this other person?" she had found herself asking, her eyes to the floor in semi-contemplation. "Is it really a good idea to put me with other people?"
"I trust strafe, don't worry, he's like me, he will be able to handle your heat with his mirrors"
If it was anyone else, Tenmei would have continued to question and worry until she had talked herself in to a headache. But Solstice had never lead her wrong before, and she always seemed to know what she was doing. So, Tenmei swallowed her doubt and left with a reassured mind and the promise to not fail, and that she would come back to make her late parents, and her Sensei proud. And not even the voices that lingered in the back of her thoughts, would steer her from this resolve.
---------
For convenience's sake, the arranged meeting place would be the old well where she had met Solstice for her first lot of training. Only because it was one of the only places where Tenmei knew how to get to and they could leave straight from there.
Naturally, she had ducked home first to grab her bag which was neatly packed with tea, provisions, a couple band aids and a spare change of clothes just in case. It had a few other smaller items in it, but nothing unnecessary. Even Tsukeru was left back at the house.
When she arrived at the destination close to midday, Tenmei was not surprised to find that she had gotten there early and there was no one else around in sight. So, in the mean time while she waited, the unusually warm female sat herself down and brought out her thermos full of the left over tea from that morning's ritual.
As she sipped contentedly on the tea, she couldn't help but notice the carnage left over from her training session a few days ago.
The grass had been burned and had died off in a near perfect circle close to where she sat. It was the same with the shriveled leaves of the closest trees and the charred stone of the well. It was all her fault and yet, no one got hurt and there was already new shoots starting to peek through the tangled brown ground.
This new sign of life pushed the doubts further back in to her mind, and she was left to comfortably sip at her tea while she waited for her partner to arrive for this mission.
[1266/1500]
Last edited by Tenmei on Mon Jul 15, 2013 9:34 pm; edited 1 time in total