vi.

chapter six - cold, crippled, and shallow

Rain pelted down on them, but it did nothing to hinder Daniel and his mission to keep them safe. The thunder boomed above them but he didn't even flinch.

"M-Mama— Mama!"

"Max, don't!"

Daniel lurched forward, pulling his brother back towards safety. There was nothing they could do; not without any weapons or help in sight. They could only stay put and hope for the best… for themselves. Their mother— There was nothing they could do to save her, it was already too late for that.

Max, the innocent and pure boy that he was, didn't see that. He couldn't see what was really there.

"My baby! Max— Max, help me! Help your mama, please, sweetie!" The blonde-haired woman called out to her youngest son, reaching forward with blood-stained arms. Max squirmed in Daniel's arms, trying to reach his mother.

"Let me go, let me go! We-We've gotta help her, Danny! Mama, Mama!"

"That's not her, Max— That's not her!" Daniel kicked at the bloody arms, trying to put as much distance between them and his brother as much as he could. They were insistent, however, and Max was growing more and more restless. Daniel could feel the hold on his brother loosening with the more he struggled, which wasn't good. All the noise they were making was attracting more zombies.

"There's room for her, Danny! We just hafta— We j-just have to pull her up!"

Max watched their mother nod frantically, "That's right, honey. You just have to pull Mama up there with you— then everything will be alright." Her voice seemed more calm now, as if she was trying to lull him to sleep.

A foot collided with the woman's head, earning a groan from her as she tumbled to the ground. The zombies that were already surrounding them paid her no mind, more focused on the two boys above them. Max gasped in horror, a desperate cry catching in his throat. "MAMA! H-How could you—" He turned to his older brother, a betrayed look on his face.

Daniel brushed it off completely, standing tall on the platform as he looked coldly down at his brother. "Look, Max— Look at Mama. Tell me what you see, Max."

The blond boy shook his head, covering his eyes. He didn't want to see his mother being eaten alive. He didn't want to focus on her horrified expression, or hear her screams—

Her… screams…?

Why isn't she… screaming? Why doesn't he hear anything other than the moans of the… dead…

"I'm okay, sweetie." Max shakily looked towards where he had last seen his mother. "Max, can you see me? I'm alright! Mama's okay."

Daniel wrapped his arms around his brother and brought him close when he heard his voice crack, "T-That's not— You're not my Mama…"

The woman's head tilted to the side, a bright smile on her face as she laughed, "Of course I am, Maxie—" Lightning flashed and gone was the beautiful image of his mother, replaced with the grotesque corpse of one of the dead.

"Who else would I be?"

Max screamed, turning away and burying his face into his brother's chest. Daniel whispered soothing words to him, never releasing his hold on the child. "Mama, Mama…" He cried, the rain mixing in with his tears and drool. "Why does it have Mama's clothes— W-Why does it have M-Mama's body? Why—"

Daniel hushed his brother, pulling him into his lap. "We'll fix this. I'm gonna make a cure, okay? We're gonna stop this sickness— I'll make it all better."

Shakily, Max looked up into Daniel's face. "Promise?"

Daniel forced a smile, "Promise."

There were some things that I'd rather forget. Like the memories of my family and horrible events that took place in my past life. It was a selfish thing to say, but thinking back on everything hurt sometimes. The fact that I would be reminded of that time through nightmares never helped either. It was one thing to ponder on things, and another to have to cruelly relive them.

I had gotten through a year in my new life without having any nightmares of my past, but of course that pattern had to be broken at some point. The worst part was that I had no one I could turn to for comfort. Sure there was Sasori, Chiyo, and my friends but… There was only so much they could do without knowing what was wrong. I couldn't just tell them about how my old life haunted me, or about the family I was still mourning over, or how I know the future of this world because it used to be pure fiction.

I was alone, but well, there wasn't much I could do about that.

Either way, it was better to just focus on the present issues at hand.

I was seven now, and Sasori was due to turn eleven soon. Komushi was twelve and on his way to becoming a chūnin. The Exams were to be held soon, and Komushi's genin team had more than enough preparation, apparently. Once again, it would be exclusive to only Suna-nin due to the war; a fact that shouldn't matter too much since the other villages were probably doing the same thing… or they were just mindlessly promoting genin so their numbers would increase.

I'm pretty sure Konoha did do that, and that was why Kakashi became a chūnin so quickly… That decision was pretty pointless to me, since those kids would die immediately on the battlefield before having the chance to fight for their village. Basically, Konoha was only increasing their body count.

Their loss, I guess.

In this world, the weak were quickly annihilated while the strong conquered all. This mindset was already carved into my skull from my previous life, so it didn't take some traumatic event for me to understand that. I was lucky, I supposed. Others (those that were born and raised here; experiencing their first life) wouldn't get the advantage I had, and would have to learn the hard way.

I was sure that Sasori had already been exposed to how brutal this world could be. He's been out there on the field for missions; he's probably seen all the carnage and bloodshed. Soon, he'll probably be released onto the actual battleground, along with Ichirou, and maybe even Chiyo too if things got too bad.

So far, everything was fine though. Everything was normal and my only concern was making it through my second year at the Academy. Classes were still easy as hell, but luckily taijutsu lessons seemed to have become more challenging; we were even beginning to have sparring matches.

"We should focus on your taijutsu during training from now on. It's getting a little bo~ring beating you all the time." Murai whined to me one day as we walked to his house after classes had ended. Jin was trailing along behind us, content with just burning a hole in my back as always.

I rolled my eyes, frowning in the rose-haired boy's direction (though he viewed it as pouting somehow). "You do not beat me all the time."

"Kyojin-kun is right; you are both on the same level in taijutsu," Jin spoke up from behind us, prompting Murai and I to look over our shoulders at her. "I am better than both of you, however." She said so with a small smile on her face.

I rolled my eyes while Murai laughed, "Ahh~ Your jokes are always so funny, Jin-hime~! I think it's the monotone that makes them work."

"Thank you, Murai-kun."

"Kyo-chan...?" A familiar voice called from across the street, making the three of us stop in our steps. I looked over to see the sandy-blond head of Ichirou Enomoto. The man was thirty now, but still the same as ever in my opinion. "Are you ignoring me? I know it's you, I can sense it~"

"Ichi-sensei?" I finally replied, approaching the blind man with a grin. Murai and Jin lingered behind slightly— probably confused; I never did introduce them to my brother's sensei, mostly because I never saw a need to. "What are you doing here? I thought you and Saso-nii were on a mission—"

"We just got back," A new voice came in the form of my brother as he leapt down from a nearby rooftop. He patted by head in greeting when I grinned up at him.

"Nii-sama!" I exclaimed, engulfing him in a tight hug before pulling away again, remembering how much my friends teased me about 'worshipping' my brother or something like that… Murai was already trying to hide a snicker behind his hands.

Ichirou sighed, a pout on his face. "Why does Sasori-kun get such an excited greeting? You merely asked me questions— Not even a cute 'hello'!" Sasori glared at his sensei and I smiled unsurely.

"Saso~chan, it's so nice to see you again~!" Murai chirped, popping up beside me to wrap an arm around my shoulders. My brother began to glare in my friend's direction, but Murai didn't seem to care one bit.

Used to this by now, I could only roll my eyes— Sasori and Murai have disliked each other since the moment I first introduced them.

I had thought that Sasori would hate Jin right away, considering her stalking tendencies, but nope— he disliked Murai the most and simply tolerated Jin. I'm not sure what sparked this… rivalry(?), but I would remain unconcerned until they actually began to try and kill each other.

"Die," was the only response Sasori gifted Murai with before he snatched me out of the boy's grasp.

Ichirou began to chuckle as the two boys glared at each other, sparks practically flying through the air and a fire in both of their eyes. "So this must be your rival, Kyo-chan! Sasori-kun has mentioned him once or twice." Complained he means, most likely.

"Oh~? So you talk about me, Saso-chan? I'm honored~!" Murai was practically speaking through his teeth, his smile tight on his face.

"I'm merely venting my frustrations when your pathetic name is mentioned," Sasori hissed.

"Isn't he really Sasori-kun's rival?" Jin intoned as she watched the scene in front of her.

"How insightful~!" Ichirou praised, reaching over to pat the girl's head. She swiftly dodged it, her eyes never shifting. The rejection made the blond pout mockingly before he was smiling again, "O~kay! We have to report-in now; we've kept The Kazekage waiting for us long enough— bye, you cuties!"

Sasori was pulled back by his collar, but he didn't protest or fight the hold his sensei had on him— he simply allowed Ichirou to drag him backwards, glaring at Murai and waving at me, "I'll see you at home, Kyo. Don't stay out late with that nuisance."

I chose to ignore half of what he said and waved back, "Bye, nii-sama and Ichi-sensei!"

"It's always a pleasure to be in your brother's presence." Jin said, nodding to herself. "If Kyojin-kun is a prince, then Sasori-kun is a king."

Murai and I looked at the orange-haired girl in concern. "Jin-hime… you're not going to start stalking Saso-chan are you~?" Murai asked his cousin, a disgusted look on his face. He even looked a little pale.

"Hm? No, that is not my intention. My heart already belongs to Kyojin-kun."

As relieving as it was to hear that she wouldn't target my brother, it was still a little exasperating to be reminded of her ongoing crush on me. If that's what you could even call it. Murai seemed satisfied enough with her answer though and smiled, "Great~! I'd probably have to commit a gha~stly crime otherwise."

"Whatever," I sighed, "Let's just get to your house already— we still have training to do."

"Don't forget homework~!"

"Shut up."

Seven years of existing in this world, and only now was I going to meet my great uncle. Apparently, he's Chiyo's brother (who I completely didn't know existed) and his name is Ebizō. I didn't know much other than that aside from the small tidbit that he is the head of Sunagakure's Council, and is famous throughout the village— as is Chiyo somehow. Not going to lie, that information blew my mind.

Sasori didn't seem so surprised when Ebizō explained this all to me, so I assumed he already knew but geez… I knew that Chiyo was a really talented medic-nin within the series, but I had completely forgot that she was also known —along with her brother— as part of the "Honored Siblings."

'I'm definitely calling Chiyo, Obaa-sama, from now on because fuck, I didn't know she was this revered.'

Getting past the wicked surprise that Ebizō had thrown in my face, I learned that he was the exact opposite of Chiyo, personality-wise. While my grandmother was… crazy, in a way, and loud, brash, and overall fussy— My great uncle was calm, indifferent, and very reserved. The difference was very refreshing and made me want to spend as much time with the old man as possible.

Ebizō offered not only a bit of insight on his and Chiyo's younger days, but also his very large library to Sasori and I. We happily dug into the vast amount of books that were present to us, all while Ebizō did his own little thing. More often than not, however, I'd find myself sitting with my uncle in his backyard where he liked to fish in his small pond.

I'd sit next to him and read while he usually kept quiet, or happily told me a tale about his shinobi days before he retired. Sometimes Sasori would sit and listen as well, but usually he was preoccupied with reading or training instead. Neither Ebizō nor I minded, just satisfied with the redhead's presence.

Visiting Ebizō became a common occurrence for me, because going to the said man's house felt like a vacation. Normally I stopped by during the weekend, but sometimes (after a rather hectic day) I'd come over during the week as well. Ebizō never seemed to mind, and in fact appeared to enjoy my company. It made me wonder if no one came to see him often, but even if that was true, Ebizō didn't look like the type to suffer from being alone. He probably preferred it, to be honest.

The man seemed to be normal overall, and a lot more sane that Chiyo by far, but there was definitely more to him than what I was seeing— a fact that I learned during one of my many visits to his house.

Sasori was inside the house at the time, probably lost in the many books on puppetry he had found recently with Ebizō's guidance. My great uncle and I were outside by the pond, sitting under the sun in comfortable silence. While the man beside focused on fishing, I was lost in my thoughts— the nightmares that had been plaguing me were on my mind once again.

I don't know why I tortured myself by digging up the images I had once tried to keep buried. What could I possibly gain by thinking about my undead mother's face, or the way my brother so desperately thought she was still alive? Nothing good was the answer to that… I remembered that right after he calmed down, I had to take out all the zombies that had cornered us. Max's eyes were on me the whole time, and when I got to our mother— Well, I felt as if a small part of him began to resent me after he witnessed me put a knife through her head.

I bit my lip, fighting against the sudden pain in my chest that made me want to cry. Rolling over onto my side so that my back was facing Ebizō, I breathed a shaky sigh.

"Does it still eat at you?"

"Huh…?" I looked over my shoulder at Ebizō, who had just spoke. His heavily-lidded eyes remained on the pond before him, and his face was expressionless as usual. For a moment, I thought that I had just imagined his voice, but then he spoke again.

"The memories of your previous life. Do they continue to haunt you?"

My eyes widened and I quickly sprung up into a defensive stance. I was weaponless, so taijutsu and ninjutsu were my only options right now. Not to mention that Sasori wasn't too far away… If I called or spiked my chakra, he was sure to come and help me out in time. I glared at Ebizō, who hadn't moved at all since I got up. "What do you know?"

Ebizō's lips twitched a little. "I was correct in assuming that this isn't your first life then, hm?"

I cursed myself inwardly, narrowing my eyes. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have reacted so strongly. Either way, Ebizō knew something; something very important that involved me. I was both terrified and relieved because on one hand I didn't have to carry this burden all on my own, but on the other my memories could put a target on my back and get me abducted or killed— or worse: Sasori would look at me differently. He'd no longer see his adorable little brother, but instead only see a disgusting bodysnatcher.

I shuddered before gritting my teeth, "Explain— How is it you know these things?"

"I'm just like you— this isn't my first life. Unlike you, however, I am not new to the reincarnation process. This is my fiftieth lifetime, which is why I knew you were like me. After being reborn as many times as I have, you begin to be able to differentiate the new souls from the old ones. It's rare to meet others who retain their past memories, though— You're very lucky to have received such a head start."

I blinked, absolutely dumbfounded. Speechless even. Slowly and with shaky limbs, I sat back down. My eyes were wide with shock, and I was surprised that I hadn't fainted from such a revelation. There was a small chance that Ebizō's words were false but… it was so slim and if he was lying then why? I didn't understand— and lucky? His last sentence made me want to spit acid.

'These memories of mine are nothing to be grateful for.'

"You know nothing," I nearly sobbed back, keeping my head down as I clenched my fists. "My first life— there's not one single thing that I'm happy to remember. It's just another burden I don't want or need."

Ebizō smiled at me, "Not one single thing, hm?"

When I only narrowed my eyes at him (flashes of the undead rolled through my mind; the deaths of my friends and family; my suicide) Ebizō shook his head and continued, "I know more than you probably think. I said this was my fiftieth life remember? That means forty-nine deaths and even more losses. Currently, you've only died once and have only lost a lifetime worth of people— I'd say my pain is greater than yours, but fortunately, time has made most of my memories hazy, so it doesn't hurt as much anymore."

"You're saying time will eventually heal my wounds, right? That's so cliche— it's absolute bullshit at the moment so don't give me that crap. It's no comfort to me at all." I was growing frustrated, angry-tears began to form in the corner of my eyes. I knew Ebizō didn't deserve to be the target of all my pent up emotions and thoughts, but I wasn't thinking clearly in that moment. I couldn't even look at him as I fussed and swore.

My great uncle (he was still my family and I wasn't about to be a hypocrite and look at him differently) remained calm, withstanding all my negative emotions with his head held high. After my outburst, he remained quiet and allowed me to regain some of myself before speaking again, "Time will heal your wounds, but scars will remain. Occasionally, I'll have a dream or a nightmare that will remind me of an event I had long forgotten. Sometimes they put a weight on me, while others brighten my mood. I've found that the only sure way to cope with such an amount of memories and past experiences is to just let things be. Let time take it's course— Focus on the present, and if nightmares torture you— remember the good things instead of the bad. You have said that there isn't a single thing you're happy to have remembered, but I know that cannot possibly be true."

I refrained from arguing against his words. They were so wise and filled with such reassurance that I couldn't do anything other than listen to them and soak in what he was telling me. Hearing it come from someone I respected so much (as well as someone like me) made it easier to come to terms with. So, as I wiped my eyes, I gave Ebizō a smile before I threw myself into his side. At first he seemed surprised, but it wasn't long before I heard a small chuckle and his arms were wrapping around me.

"Thank you, Oji-sama."

"You don't have to carry this burden alone anymore, Kyojin."

That only made me want to cry even more.

。。。

After finally calming down and coming to terms with everything, I felt much better. It was as if an extremely heavy weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. My memories in general were still my own secret to keep, as were Ebizō's since neither of us had the want to try and pry into the other's past traumas and experiences. I didn't mind not sharing my foreknowledge of this world with my great uncle, as him just knowing that I was a reincarnation was enough to soothe my soul.

Things were back to normal, and I resumed basking in the sun's rays while Ebizō continued fishing.

"So…" I broke the quiet between us, "Does this mean that everyone gets reborn eventually?"

Ebizō nodded. "Yes, but it's not common for more than one reincarnated soul to be placed in the same universe, nevertheless retain their old memories."

A sudden thought blossomed through me; a bright burning hope. "S-So, my family— My first one, they were reincarnated too? Could they be here?"

"It's almost like you only heard me say 'yes'..." Ebizō sighed, "You're family was most definitely reincarnated. Into this world? Unlikely. Even if they were reborn into this universe, it is even more unlikely that they'd still have their previous memories," His words turned even sharper as he continued, "You must also remember that this world is vast and dangerous. If your family exists here, you may not ever meet them. Either due to the distance between the both of you, or because they were killed again before you could do so."

My hope simmered a bit, but it still remained. Ebizō's words were very depressing and true, but I couldn't let that stop me from at least hoping that there was a chance to see my baby brother again. Of course, it'd be amazing to reunite with my father and mother as well, but… Max meant the most to me.

"Kyojin," Ebizō called my name and brought me back from thoughts, "It would be a blessing to be able to see your past family once again, but do not forget about the present one that you already have."

"I would never," I said immediately and without an ounce of hesitation. My gaze turned to look at my great uncle's house, where Sasori still remained inside. I love this new family of mine too much to just forget them like that.

Ebizō smiled kindly down at the water of the pond, "I believe you."

。。。

Sasori and I remained at our uncle's house when it was time for dinner. Ebizō was pretty hopeless when it came to cooking and could only cook fish— which matched his hobby perfectly, might I add. Despite how ancient he was, the culinary arts just wasn't something he ever picked up. His lack of skill didn't deter Sasori and I, however, so we took dinner into our hands. We had since gotten tired of fish, so of course we'd take it upon ourselves to make something different for once.

We had decided to go and pick up some groceries when Chiyo arrived, Komushi walking in beside her. A couple bags of groceries were in their hands, which I eyed in confusion. My grandmother was the first to speak between the two, a big grin on her face as she nodded in greeting. "I'm here!" She announced, already walking towards the kitchen to put the groceries up. Komushi followed obediently behind her after greeting us as well.

"May I ask what brings you here?" Ebizō asked, his tone exasperated.

Chiyo returned to the room bagless and with her grin still in place. She winked, "We're going to eat dinner together! Komushi-kun here was supposed to come and let ya know, but I got off work earlier than expected and decided to just tag along with him."

"I see…"

My grandmother huffed, smacking the back of her brother's head. "Well, damn! Don't get too excited on me you old coot!"

Ebizō didn't react too much to Chiyo's sudden fit, merely nursing the back of his head while he sighed, "I'll do my best."

"Ebizō, be grateful that your dear sister is cooking you a meal!"

"Is she really?"

A pause.

"Be grateful your dear nephews are cooking you a meal!"

Sasori and I shared a look before standing up and heading to the kitchen. That was obviously our cue to get to work and put our cooking skills to the test. Komushi was still in the process of putting groceries away when we entered the room. The boy looked kind of stressed with his task, unsure if he was putting everything up correctly. I snorted and took the bag of produce that he was holding out of his hands, "There's no point in putting things up when we'll have to use them anyway."

"Ah!" The brunet exclaimed, "You're right! Thanks for saving me all that trouble, Kyo-chan."

Sasori shook his head, examining all that we had to work with. "Not that it would matter where you put them anyway. Oji-san's kitchen is very bare and not organized in the slightest."

"Oh… Well, whatever! What are we gonna make, anyway? Chiyo-baa-chan said I'd get to cook and I've never done that before, so I was super excited when she told me that! Kaa-chan never lets me help her make stuff… She says it's because she doesn't want me to accidentally get hurt but I'm a ninja now! Geez, I don't get her at all."

'For some reason, I feel like Komushi's mother is more worried that he'll fuck up the food rather than accidentally hurt himself…'

Sasori seemed to have the same thoughts, because he blankly stared at Komushi before stating, "You can watch."

"Damn it," The eleven-year-old pouted, but Sasori wasn't affected at all.

"Nii-sama, what are we going to make?" I changed the topic as I looked to my brother.

The redhead silently tapped his chin before giving all the groceries another once over. Finally, he decided, "Miso and tempura."

"Delicious!" Komushi exclaimed right away, making Sasori's lips twitch upwards.

I snorted, nodding my agreement. "Let's get started then."

"Are you sure I can't he—"

"Stand back, Komushi."

Since the discovery I made with Ebizō's aid, I began to look at people differently. I examined them; analyzed them thoroughly to see if I could spot any similarities of my little brother in them. Max died before I did, so I mainly looked for people older than me, assuming that Max had been reborn before I had.

While my old family was on my mind (mostly Max, if I was honest) that didn't mean I had forgotten about my current and real one. Ebizō's words had been taken to heart, so I was going to try and heed his advice to not forget about the family that was already with me.

Speaking of my present family… Sasori was eleven now and I began to wonder what the differences between him and canon Sasori were currently.

For one, Sasori isn't as withdrawn and gloomy. There also hasn't been any sight of puppets that resembled our mother and father, so that must be a good sign… I'm not sure where all of this will lead, but I hope that Sasori doesn't desert the village like he did in the series. I don't think I could handle losing another brother.

Murai's foot clipped my chin, sending me backwards and onto the ground. I coughed when sand got into my mouth, spitting it out in disgust. Even after all these years of living in the desert, I could never get used to the horrible terrain.

"Damn it, I didn't even sense you!" I fussed, quickly catching the pinkette's ankle when he tried to bring it down on me. I twisted his leg, attempting to bring him down with me, but irritatingly enough, Murai caught himself and threw a punch in retaliation. I released his ankle and dodged, jumping away to put some distance between us.

"Really~?" He grinned, jumping away from me as well. "I'm happy to hear that! I've been practicing a lot with it; soon you won't be able to sense me unless I want you to."

I laughed a little at that, charging towards Murai and readying a kick to his side. The boy danced around it, but was unable to dodge when my fist caught his other side. "It's too bad your clan is cursed with bright coloring. Your kekkei genkai is practically useless if I can spot your hair from a mile away."

"Which is why—" My fist just missed his cheek, and Murai wasted no time in grabbing my arm; soon enough I'm flipped over his shoulder and hit the ground with a grunt.

Instead of dodging like last time, I caught the rose-haired boy's fist and pulled so he fell forward on top of me. My legs wrap around his waist, and the leverage allowed me to switch position so he wasn't sitting on top of me. I drew a kunai to Murai's throat; this was my win.

We were both panting and out of breath by the time our spar ended. Murai spoke up after some time, finally finishing his sentence, "Which is why I want to specialize in genjutsu."

"Huh," I rolled off of him and onto my back, eyes closing as I sighed. "I thought it'd be taijutsu."

"Hm, maybe that'd be a close second… but genjutsu will help me out more on the field. Like you said: the Niijima clan all have really loud looks~!" Murai stuck out his tongue, winking teasingly. "Honestly no one in our clan has dull looks. Mah~ Is it a blessing or a curse— I don't know~!"

I frowned in disgust, bringing my hand down to smack Murai across the face, "Idiot."

"Ow~! That hurt, Kyo-chan!"

"No it didn't, you useless narcissist."

Murai continued to whine and pout, eventually leading us to bicker. While a frown remained on my face, a cheeky grin was plastered to his.

'Honestly, he's the type to tick someone off just to see their reaction.'

"So if you're going to specialize in genjutsu, and I'm going to specialize in poisons and traps… Do you know what Jin is planning to master?"

Murai's mood seemed to dampen a bit at the mention of his cousin, but I pretended not to notice. He was always private when it came to his background and, honestly, I haven't felt close enough to him to ask about it just yet. I planned to wait until he told me himself, or until we became genin at least.

The rose-haired boy hummed, "I believe Jin-hime said something about wanting to be the best at ninjutsu~ She really likes those kinds of things; for a prodigy she acts a lot like a normal kid~! It's kind of cute, huh?"

"You're a prodigy too, though, right?"

"Huh?" The question was enough to startle my friend, making him sit up.

I watched him, my eyes never straying away from his. "You don't act like a normal kid, either. None of us do actually. I think it's obvious to everyone that the three of us are all considered to be prodigies…"

Murai scoffed, looking away and at his lap. His pink hair obscured part of his face, blocking his expression from me. "No, I was just trained to be able to cover Jin-hime's weaknesses. I've been working hard ever since I was able to walk— that's all."

I wanted to ask more, but I knew I'd just upset Murai more than I already had. I knew his negative feelings weren't directed towards me per se, but more likely at Jin… no— More likely at Jin's father.

Sighing, I tugged at Murai's shirt until he was laying back down beside me. I held his hand reassuringly, staring up at the clear sky and trying to ignore how I felt his orange eyes bore into me.

"It's a beautiful day today," I glanced over at Murai from the corner of my eye.

He smiled, eyes soft and expression serene for once, "Yeah— it is."

author's note: surprise~! you got some insight on how reincarnation works within this story, and also got to see a plot point form. will kyojin start to actively search for his younger brother, or will he just keep his fingers crossed and hope he runs into him one of these days. alternatively, if kyojjin does aim to reunite with his past family… how far is he willing to go to find them?

this chapter was beta'd by the lovely Vandenberg and fortheloveofb!

story rec: "rebirth" by the. shrewd .ravenclaw