#turbidwaters

gaara met the kiri shinobi in his office with an even gaze, unfaltering --- unperturbed. he was not sitting there with a demand in his mouth, the inquiry a simple one, or so he’d thought. apparently such wasn’t the case as what should be an easy answer was quick to tread into deflection. avoidance. 

there was more to this than just the surface level explanation given to him. the kazekage wasn’t one to handout unjust punishments based on a word of mouth foundation, and he certainly didn’t want to show visiting shinobi inhospitably. suigetsu deserved a chance to elaborate on his actions as much as anyone else did. 

❛ it would make me feel better, ❜ he provides, harboring all the patience in the world to deal with the matter. ❛ there are two sides to a story. ❜ leaning forward a fraction, he folds his hands together, his eyes not once leaving the other occupant of the room. it was not a harsh look, only curious.

Karin feels like she doesn’t belong.

It could be the room. It could be Kiri. It could just be the location, an environment not meant to so openly welcome someone like her. She sticks out like a sore thumb in a sea of chakra that behaves very differently from her own.

Suigetsu’s chakra is the only that feels familiar. He doesn’t feel familiar though, two years apart and the friend in front of her looks very different then he did when she last saw him. Could she say he had sharper edges? Bits and pieces of him don’t add up. They don’t make the person she stood beside during the war.

They mesh together to form a very different kind of puzzle, with parts that don’t entirely fit, and movements that feel hollow.

She doesn’t like it.

“I came to visit?” She volunteers, taking his expression to mean she owes him something more than just a sudden reappearance. “I wanted to see how you were.”

That probably won’t go over really well. They both know she’s not the kind of person to go somewhere to follow the whims of her emotions. She’s a bit too methodical for that. But here she is, checking up on a friend.

@turbidwaters

            the memory digs clawed fingers into his mind with a physical pain, he is back in a dark room late at night, tiny figures dancing at his feet as he tries to copy their steps in the faint light of a candle. how many nights had he spent like that before he’d been caught, punished for his tiny acts of rebellion? three? four?

          he can still taste the thing he’s come to know as dread on his tongue, watching his minder stomp the little ink figures into puddles, the black footprints he’d left behind as he’d advanced on sai. the harsh grip of his hand in his hair when he’d dragged him to danzo-sama. 

          sai clamps down on the memory, ferociously, with teeth, and shoves it to the back of his mind. his face doesn’t change, but he leans back a little, giving suigetsu a blank look while he gets a hold on his current surroundings once more. his hand has frozen too long, and the ink from his brush is pooling on the paper beneath it, ruining the boring mountainscape he’d been painting. he pulls the brush away with an absent frown, lifts the paper and watches the ink run and then drip from the page. 

            Great, another establishment with her name written in red, just what she needed. Her list kept growing, but was it entirely her fault? She’d disagree.

          ❝ It was taking forever ... !!! I was trying to speed things up a little!                 ---If things went my way, we would’ve gotten twice the earnings... ❞  

            Her retort was accompanied by a huff, crossing her arms over her chest. The lackeys were large in stature in comparison to others she’s confronted in the past, but not as strong as they seemed to be. The fight was short and sweet, however, still tiring. At least they were able to ‘earn’ something, right? 

            She let out a dejected, childish sigh as soon as the other mentioned the ‘earnings’ she swiped, sloppily reaching into her back pocket. This for sure wasn’t her finest moment, and she wasn’t entirely sold on the agreement they made prior to the poker game, but she couldn’t exactly dismiss him at this point.

               Face to face, this wasn’t a mere confrontation---this was a threat ...  a threat she was too lazy to challenge at the time.

          Lee folds his arms as he studies Sasuke’s former teammate.  He’s an expert on this he decides— One what is true taijutsu strength and what isn’t.  Indeed, Suigetsu could hit hard, but only by using his muscle expansion technique.  The Leaf shinobi finds himself scrutinizing Suigetsu.  The little bulk he had now— Was that real, or was he maintaining that with his hidden technique?  

                  It was time to find out. Lee points a single digit towards Suigetsu’s folded arms, dark eyes on his biceps.  “Please inform me of the truth: Are those real or are you maintaining your physique with jutsu?”

The cold fingers of mist run down her spine. Hinata tries to curl more into herself, trying to retain her remaining body heat. The motion sends pain signals all throughout her body, shocking her from her unconscious state. Groggy from exhaustion and pain, her eyes flutter a few times. Unable to remain open for more than few seconds. 

When finally she gathers enough strength to look around her body fills with tension.This is not Konoha territory. Thick vegetation and wet mist surround her in warning. And a chicken just ran past her at lightning speed. 

Ehh?!

She catches sight of a few more chickens that run right past her. Pushing her aching body further against the tree in hopes of concealing herself, a of spike pain jabs her ankle. Her mind is thick with confusion and puzzlement, unable to draw on the memories of the past twenty-four hours. Just panic, anxiety, and fear. 

Her body shudders involuntarily. Remembering the enemy...they are broken fragments in her mind. Hands and feet inflicting the pain resonate in her body. A voice filled with cruel enjoyment, savoring the game of predator and prey between them. 

Closing her mind off to the memories, she works on placating the wave of panic trying to consume her. Taking a deep breath and evening it out the following ones. It allows her to take control of the thoughts coming through her mind. Filtering out what is necessary and what isn’t. She is in survival mode, gathering the details of her situation. She can handle this much at the moment.

She is an unfamiliar territory and injured. Ankle broken, bruised chest and stomach. Lifting her hand she figures her face is no better. Her tongue swipes at her dry lips, the taste of dirt and blood make her grimace. Just what territory did she wind up in? The memory of her map from yesterday morning makes her recall Kirigakure was the nearby nation to her last known location. She passed their borders, remembering flashing her identification to the guards. 

Her senses told her something was off when the guards glanced at each other. A shift in the atmosphere that sent the hairs on arms standing. Regrets fills her for ignoring her instincts in that moment. Though she’s not sure if that’s where...she would have to backtrack. Call for back-up. First, before all of that she needed medical attention and rest. 

Closing her eyes to take a moment for herself, thoughts of failure surface. Her first mission away from Konoha and this is how she winds up. Bitterness spreads throughout. Though she’s not left much time to spend in her thoughts. Another chicken comes past and this time it’s coming in her direction, clucking at her. Caught up with the chicken, she doesn't notice the footsteps behind it, until it’s caught and lifted in the air.

Her throat goes dry, but she forces the person’s name.