TangentOne: I've just noticed something.
TangentTwo: You finally realized you're gay?
TangentOne: How the fuck am I supposed to answer that? If I say yes, then you win, if I say no it means I haven't figured it out, implying I'm gay without my knowledge.
TangentTwo: That's the point! *Smiles*
TangentOne: Moving on, Riboruba means Revolver, doesn't it?
TangentTwo: Wow. It took you this long to find the reference, I'm disappointed.
TangentOne: Oh shut it, you're not my father.
TangentTwo: You don't know that! I am eons older than you. *Smiles wickedly*
As Kojiro left and Kanae washed Kiyoshi's clothes, the camp fell silent. Shortly, the girl came back with the drenched clothes and hung them on the same branch Kojiro did with his, though she had to jump to reach it. As short as she was compared to the missing-nin, she felt like a dwarf. Kanae walks back to her designated tree and picks her book back up, but something kept nagging in her mind as she read. She eventually built up the nerve to ask, it's one thing to joke with an s-rank missing-nin, it's another to go against his word entirely. She had a feeling the scars were connected to the night sweats.
"Kiyoshi, I know you said to drop it, but your brother's scars… did they have anything to do with this morning?" She asks, hoping not to incur his wrath.
"They do, but it's his place to tell you, not mine." Kiyoshi answers neutrally.
"I see… your scars though. That one across your chest seems nasty." She points out, drawing her finger across it in the air.
"This one?" Kiyoshi points to the scar, that stretched from atop his right collarbone down across his front, stopping at his left hip.
"Yeah, yours seem like regular battle wounds. I know it's taboo to talk about a shinobi's scars… but I find them fascinating. One thing people always forget to realize when seeing them is that you survived it. What's the story behind it?" She asks brazenly.
"I got this from a 'really' fat shinobi like I don't think I can really explain how fat this guy was. Anyway, he was the Perfect Sage for the Bear summons. He slashed his long nails across my chest leaving what you see." Kiyoshi describes.
"What's a sage?" She asks, eyes sparkling intensely.
"A cunt. A really fat cunt." Kiyoshi returns.
"No, not the guy, what he was. You said he was a 'Perfect Sage for the Bears', what does that mean?" She asks passionately.
"I can't really tell you. Give me a moment," Kiyoshi performs a set of hand seals, before biting his thumb and slamming it on to the jungle floor. "Summoning Jutsu!"
A large puff of chakra smoke appears, with Riborubā appearing, dwarfing Kanae. Riborubā looks rather confused, before focusing on what he believes to be a threat as she wore the Konoha headband. She looks in awe at the giant Ocelot and feels the urge to pet him greatly control her. Riborubā stands and puffs his fur, growling low and radiating killing intent multitudes higher than Kiyoshi had first let her experience. She promptly passes out cold, and Riborubā looks more confused than ever.
"Well, not what I expected, but fucking hilarious nonetheless." Kiyoshi laughs, before turning to face Riborubā.
"Did you need me, Kiyoshi? She seems a little… below my caliber." He says, still confused.
"She's not an enemy. She asked me a question I can't answer, not because I don't know, more because I need my summons permission." Kiyoshi explains.
"What question?" Riborubā asks, sitting himself next to Kiyoshi.
"She asked me what a Sage was." Kiyoshi continues to explain.
"Ah, I see. It's not really my place either. She's not my summoner, nor is she a feline summoner." Riborubā returns.
"That's true." Kiyoshi starts to ponder the situation.
Riborubā sits patiently for his summoner to return from his thoughts.
"She could become one right?" Kiyoshi points out, much to his summons surprise.
"Well, yes, that is a possibility, but not one I expected of you," Riborubā states. "However she's not ready at all, nor is she that loyal to you."
"Don't worry then, I'll deal with it." Kiyoshi replies, letting go of his summon.
By the time Kanae had awoken, Kiyoshi's clothes had dried considerably, and Kojiro was back with supplies for her practice. He had laid them neatly next to her favorite spot, for which she silently thanks. She also then remembers the reason she was knocked out, and promptly wishes the large feline was back, she thought he was beyond cute and past adorable.
Kiyoshi could be heard snoring in his tent and Kojiro sat at the fire, deep in thought. She moved over to her spot via crawling, and he noted it but didn't act. His gaze never left the fire, and his mind kept wandering back to his early childhood. Memories he was not wanting to remember. Every now and again his mind would catch up and remember Hideo, the first person he'd ever tortured.
Kanae tactfully ignored him in favor of her work, making sure to keep the seals from exploding if she messed up. She failed twice, and they gave a small 'pop', that made Kojiro jump. Eventually, her curiosity got the best of her and she turned to him.
"About your scars… and the night sweats." She began, going for the direct route hoping it was less painful to talk about.
"What about them?" Kojiro asks, wrinkles crinkling his forehead.
"How did you…" She tried but failing to find the resolve.
"She wants to know how you got them." Kiyoshi notifies his brother through the tent, before drifting back to sleep.
Kojiro sighs, if she was going to be with them for awhile, it couldn't hurt to tell her.
"My-, no our, father," Kojiro spits on instinct, hearing Kiyoshi do the same in his sleep. "He wasn't a kind man. From when I was born to about four, my father experimented on me. From just gleeful torture to finding out how water reacts in the bloodstream. It's a miracle I survived, but there was always a medic-nin running about to make sure." Kojiro explains.
Kanae stays silent, this kind of history lesson isn't one you interrupt.
"He was brutal, for being only a chunin. Though, at my age back then, I suppose a chunin is not dissimilar from a god," Kojiro continues. "Every passing day it got worse, though I only remember the last month. It's just a thing I hate to remember, but with Hideo, and what we did to him…" Kojiro trails off.
"Hideo..?" Kanae asks after a few moments.
"Oh you wouldn't know, he's just a fat fuck. Well, was a fat fuck." Kojiro waves off, trying to hide his emotions.
"The same fat fuck Kiyoshi got that scar from?" She asks, remembering her earlier conversation with the aforementioned man.
"You do know then? Kiyoshi must've told you. Well, he did get a nice chunk of flesh from the Bear Sage." Kojiro comments light-heartedly, remembering the rage Hideo had shown for it.
"Kiyoshi said that too." Kanae recalls.
"That he took a chunk of his flesh? He does like to boast about his accomplishments." Kojiro chuckles.
"And my future conquests." Kiyoshi voice, inwardly winking at his brother.
The joke goes straight over the genin, but Kojiro laughed a little harder at the thought.
"No… the 'Bear Sage', something about how it wasn't his place to tell me what a 'Sage' is. When he tried to show me, or I think he tried to show me at least, all I remember is a large spotted lion pop up out of thin air before passing out." Kanae explains.
"Ah… that would've been Riborubā, his personal summon. For future reference, he's an Ocelot. Felines are very… particular about their species names." Kojiro explains.
"Kanae, always call him Riborubāoserotto." Kiyoshi laughs to himself.
"Brother, you may as well come out here." Kojiro calls.
"Fuck you, I'm trying to sleep in here!" Kiyoshi shouts, stifling a laugh.
"I will do that, Kiyoshi. Next time I see him, promise. Make it soon, please!" She pleads.
"You'll meet him when you're ready, until then fucking train. Now leave me be for fuck's sake. Can't get a wink of sleep with these cunts talking so loud!" Kiyoshi rants, falling back into his slumber.
"...Ignoring him. Do you not know what a sage is, Kanae?" Kojiro asks, anticipating the answer.
"I don't, and I don't suppose you can tell me?" She asks, batting her eyelashes.
Kojiro inwardly frowns, it's not his place, and if Riborubā couldn't tell her than he doubts Komori would be able to either. Kiyoshi said 'she'll meet Riborubā when she's ready', too, meaning something is already being worked out in that regard. Though, he thinks it's a little early, he's happy for his brother finally taking an interest in a child's development. Even if she ends up as annoying as he is.
"Unfortunately not, from what I gathered from Kiyoshi's rambling he would like to himself, given the right time." Kojiro explains.
Kanae sighs and looks back down to her work. Failing two times in a row on the third tier seal in the book wasn't bad, she quickly grabbed the concept of the first two. If Kiyoshi said she'd meet Riborubā when she's ready, then she'd like to get a move on. That large Ocelot peaked her interest more than anything else the brothers had talked about, the prospect of learning what a 'Sage' is was a good motivator.
A month and a half later, the boys were looking thin. Kiyoshi kept them just barely alive, though for what Kojiro had no idea. Kiyoshi seemed to have a purpose for them, though, as he had kept them alive. Kojiro and his brother had sparred a few times just in view of the camp. They never revealed their perfect paths, only keeping it to their base paths. If she decided on going back to Konoha, Kojiro didn't want her knowing too much. Kiyoshi gave in on that argument relatively quickly, much to Kojiro's surprise.
The two brothers were sat around the campfire, and the young male genin were leant against a tree, they had really mellowed out. Kanae was studying her seals and seemed deep in thought, so Kiyoshi had decided to let her work, which Kojiro was again surprised with. Generally, he would at least tease her about how shit seals were. After taking a single bite of his stale jerky, Kanae squealed and Kojiro turned to her, ready for a fight or to fling her away from an explosion. Instead, he found her jumping in place.
"What the fuck are you doing?" Kojiro asks irritatedly.
"I finished it! The whole first book, now I just need to move on to the second volume… these seals are tough. I think I have the concept down, though, and I'm sure I could get the second done much faster!" Kanae exclaims.
"I seriously think we should just slaughter Suna, saves us a fuck ton of time." Kiyoshi offers up, bored of inaction.
"I doubt we would survive like I said before. We can't really fight ten-thousand or more shinobi at a time, even if most would be genin." Kojiro says tiredly, though he agrees somewhat with his brother, the inaction was getting to him.
"I fucking hate doing nothing, where's the nearest non-important village?" Kiyoshi asks.
Kojiro considers him for a moment, yes, it means he would slaughter a village of civilians if he answered. Though it would also mean his brother's boredom would be abated and he could survive the next month and a half. He sighed inwardly in defeat before pointing southwest.
"That way, it's a small village of river fisherman. While you're there, pick up some fish, I'm hating this jerky, and we're running low." Kojiro asks.
"Why though? Are you going for a quick lay?" She asks with a wink.
"No, I'm going to kill all of them. Why? Want to tag along?" Kiyoshi states blandly, yet truthfully.
Kanae sat silent for a moment, they had been open with their opponents before, but murdering villagers was something she didn't think they did.
"What's the point? They can't fight back." She tries to reason calmly.
"If that stopped me, I'd hardly ever have to fight, and what's the point in that?" Kiyoshi returns, hoping for her to realize why he's doing it.
"But at least with shinobi, they have a chance for a lucky shot… civilians are different." She tries again.
"Kanae, you need to push that Konoha shit out of your mind. Civilians are there to serve and be used by us. When they cease to be useful, they die. That is the law, one Konoha will deny. It's how nature has governed this world since before ninja villages were commonplace," Kiyoshi explains. "This is The Way of the Bloody Mist, either accept it and prosper or die by another's hand."
After he finishes his lecture, he leaps to the nearest tree and heads for the village. When he's out of sight, Kanae turns to Kojiro to see him looking at her intently. His brother was right, as far as he was concerned, and he wanted to know if she learned that or not.
"What do you think, Kojiro-san?" She asks.
"He's right." Kojiro replies easily with a glint in his eye.
"What if they have a use to the shinobi of this country?" She tries again.
"Their only purpose to us, as missing-nin, is to steal from and relieve stress. As long as they can be used for those two things, I couldn't care less what happens to them." Kojiro explains with a wave of his hand.
Kanae sat, frustrated, but Kiyoshi's words reverberated in her mind as she worked. 'Push Konoha from your mind, this is The Way of the Bloody Mist.'
Kojiro studied Kanae's work from the campfire, he had just finished his workout and broke a sweat. His eyes darted between the open pages and the seals she drew on the paper, which was running low. He'd have to make another pit-stop at the shinobi village. Kanae notices his gaze and looks up from her work with a raised eyebrow.
"Why do you stay? Why not try to run?" Kojiro asks the girl.
She sighs and leans back against the tree, now's a good time as any to take a break.
"Given who you two are, and how weak I am, I figured staying is healthier." She replies honestly.
"I see, so it's only to save yourself? What about caring for your two friends over there?" Kojiro points to the husks of children, just barely alive.
"They aren't my friends, and there's nothing I can do for them anyway. Even if I wanted to, they'd be just as broken either way. Kiyoshi isn't the easiest person to deal with." She points out matter-of-factly.
"You've got that right," Kojiro chuckles. "Speaking of, why are you so… natural around us? We're from The Bloody Mist era in Kiri. On top of that, we're missing-nin."
"I don't know, honestly. Normally I keep to myself and read or train, my Shishou only ever trained me when he had spare time. He's in ANBU, so he's not always around." Kanae replies.
"It seems like you're at the very least, gregarious. I think Kiyoshi has taken a liking to you, that's not normally a good thing, but this time seems different somehow." Kojiro comments.
"What do you mean?" She questions.
"Normally you'd be dead, probably eviscerated, for standing up to him the way he told me you did. It's quite interesting to watch his interactions with you as well, the only time he's ever taught anyone anything, was when he taught me the basics of our style. The rest I learned on my own." Kojiro explains.
"You mean, he actually likes teaching me? That stuff about 'The Way of the Bloody Mist'?" She continues.
"Seems like it, normally he wouldn't even worry about what a captive thinks. Look at the other two." Kojiro again shoves his thumb at the other two genin or lack thereof.
"...Huh." Kanae simply answers whilst looking at the other two.
"To top it off, he even showed you Riborubā, something he's never done to anyone who's survived before." Kojiro explains.
"So what are you saying?" She asks, turning back to Kojiro.
"Take his lessons to heart. He wants you to understand his words and actions, but more importantly, he wants you to understand the meaning behind them." Kojiro says with finality, grabbing the last bag of jerky.
Kiyoshi returns in a nearby tree, with only a few drops of blood on his clothes. If Kojiro hadn't known any better, he'd say there was only a workplace accident. A nail on the thumb or an accidental papercut. Kojiro knew it had more to do with keeping the slaughter's brutality from the young genin, she isn't quite ready to accept those kinds of actions. He plops down next to the campfire and pulls out two storage scrolls. He places the larger one on the ground and runs chakra through it, a mountain of fish appears out of it, much to Kojiro's delight.
"Thank the fucking Sage! It's about time we had a decent fucking meal. That jerky is horrid." Kojiro comments.
"Fucking right? Kanae, this is yours." Kiyoshi says, throwing the second seal to the girl.
"What is it?" The girl asks, grabbing it from the air.
"A dead body! Just fucking open it." Kiyoshi jokes, sitting next to the fire.
Kojiro grabs three fish from the pile and shoves sticks through them in the background as Kanae pushes chakra into the seal hesitantly. To her dismay, a dead body drops onto her lap from out of the scroll, smelling of burnt flesh and blood stains. She hurls up the jerky from before as Kojiro laughs his ass off.
"Oh shit wrong one!" Kiyoshi pulls out a bunch of seals from his pouch, flicking through until he finds the right one. "Ah, this is it, I hope."
When Kanae regains her sense, she quickly stores the body back and throws the seal over to Kiyoshi. Still retching, Kiyoshi throws her a seal with slightly different markings. She puts it on the ground and pushes chakra into it, backing up quickly in case it is another dead body. Fortunately, a tent roll and supplies for it pop out of the seal with minimal chakra smoke. She turns to look back at the larger man and notices the fish now cooking on the fire.
"You got this tent for me?" She asks quizzically.
"No, I got it for the idiots tied to the fucking tree." Kiyoshi quips, watching the fish cook with hungry eyes.
"Thank you. You didn't have to." She says, beginning to set the tent.
"Don't mention it. Ever." Kiyoshi voices, in a tone that could not be deciphered by the girl.
Kojiro looks at his brother happily, it's been a long time since he's cared for anyone. This seems more human, something Kojiro is pleased with. His thoughts quickly turn back to the cooking fish, reminding him of home. An image of his father passes through his mind, and his gut wrenches, but he pushes it away in favor of the now cooked river fish. Kiyoshi and Kojiro grab their respective closest fish the second it looks cooked and dig in greedily.
Kanae watches them eat as she sets up her tent, either they'll give her food or they'll let her work. When she finishes pitching the tent she moves back to her spot against the tree and watches as they put another two fish on the fire. Kiyoshi looks over at her and nods his head towards the cooking fish.
"If you don't hurry and eat it, I fucking will." Kiyoshi states.
"Fucking finally, I'd thought you'd never let me!" She exclaims, jumping up from her position and grabbing a stick with a well-done fish on it.
"Next time just grab a fucking fish after us, I hate wasting effort to tell you." Kiyoshi points out grabbing another fish.
"Thank you, Kiyoshi." She replies through mouthfuls of river fish.
"Will you stop thanking me for fuck sake." Kiyoshi demands thirdly, glaring at her.
"Do you not appreciate a pretty girl thanking you?" She asks, batting her eyelashes.
"Do you want to see a plethora of dead bodies? Because I've got a lot, and I have no problems shoving them into your tent while you're asleep." Kiyoshi grins madly, pulling his mask down.
Kanae retches, thinking of the last dead body she'd seen. She shuts up and eats her fish, as Kojiro laughs in the background.
"You're a little young for him anyway, Kanae." Kojiro comments, grabbing his third fish.
"I already have a conquest anyway." Kiyoshi winks towards his brother.
"Aye, 'conquest' is an understatement for how difficult it will be. You're seriously way in over your head, she's out of your league." Kojiro promises through mouthfuls of fish.
"If I can kill her, she's in my league." Kiyoshi states, finally pulling his mask up.
"Who are you talking about?" Kanae asks, finishing her fish and patting her full stomach.
"You'll find out in due time if you make the right choice when the time comes." Kiyoshi answers ominously.
"Oh," Kanae drags out in a spooky manner. "So ominous."
"Note to self must check to see how many dead bodies will fit into Kanae's tent with her also in it." Kiyoshi mumbles to himself.
She quickly turns back to her sealing work, letting the older men eat in peace, hopefully avoiding the wrath of Kiyoshi and his dead bodies. Kojiro and Kiyoshi stay up late that night, and when they hear the now familiar breathing of their seal user, they begin talking.
"Kiyoshi, what exactly are you trying to do with this girl? It seems like you want to teach her everything you know." Kojiro comments, putting the mountain of fish back in the storage seal.
"She's worth teaching. I don't know what it is about her, but she's like us, in a way." Kiyoshi explains.
"I felt that too, but I didn't know you'd come to like someone this much. It's the first time… well ever." Kojiro replies, sitting down back to back against his brother.
"I don't know what it is, but she's willing to risk death to get something." Kiyoshi points out, thinking deeply.
"You showed her Riborubā, and she's not dead." Kojiro points out.
"She had a question, and he was the only one who could tell her. It takes a lot to ask something of us." Kiyoshi says, closing his eyes.
"Aye, that it does. I enjoy seeing you teach her, you seem to be happier." Kojiro answers honestly.
"It's better I teach her than those cowards in Konoha. She deserves a chance in life." Kiyoshi admits, for once showing a sliver of compassion.
Kojiro smiles, he would head out to the shinobi village tomorrow, he needs to pick up some more seal supplies. He stood up and patted his brother on the shoulder, and headed into his tent.
"You'd best never mention this either!" Kiyoshi shouts towards his brother.
Kojiro just sighs and zips his tent up once inside. Little did they both know, Kanae was still awake and listening to their conversation.