A/N: EDIT: Lots of flames. Great. And you wonder why I don't update my Genshin stuff as much T_T
As ever, the Embers Rule persists.
If folks don't like this, poof! Gone! Deleted for good.
Sorry, but its the sad truth. I don't have a team anymore, meaning I'm writing almost EVERYTHING by myself.
As such, I haven't the time to write a story no one likes. So by all means, speak up! Raise your voice! Make yourselves heard! Furthermore, I was going to update something else today, but someone claimed this is a oneshot and that I wouldn't update this again. So, here we are! Updating this early to prove a point.
Now let's move onto your questions, comments and concerns.
Q: What will you update next?
A: I'd like to update my RWBY stuff, but I'll update Archon next, if that's what folks want. Lemme know!
Q: Who are your favorite Genshin characters?
A: Paimon, Paimon, and of course, Paimon!
*ahem*
In all seriousness, it would have to be Raiden/Ei (The entire reason I started playing Genshin in the first place) followed Beidou and Keqing, if only because I use those three on my main team.
Got the latter the other day, so I'm running around training her up.
Ayaka rerun when? T_T
Q: So to be clear, Naruto hasn't entered the Plane of Euthymia yet?
A: He has not. At this point Ei's terrified of letting him in; because she fears he'll demolish her ideas. Thus far, he's just been strolling around Tenshukaku chatting with the Shogun.
Q: Have you beat Inazuma?
A: Yup. Played HER quest too. Don't think I've laughed that hard in awhile...Ei's such a boomer.
...huh, she really is alright with Harems at that. Who woulda thought?
Q: So...you gonna go that route with Ei and the Shogun?
A: As stated IN GAME, both Ei and the Shogun are separate individuals, each with their own personality and fualts. I intend to treat them as such. Hell, the Shogun even referred to herself as an "Assistant" to Ei at one point during her quests. As Yae put it, Ei's basically a child locking herself in her room and throwing a tantrum.
Meanwhile, the Shogun is more of a pragmatist due to her programming.
Its also bloody adorable seeing her pace about when she's restless.
"I require no rest!" she says. Ohoho, we'll just see about that~!
As ever, I own no references, quotes, themes or memes.
Really! That ought to be bloody obvious. Now then...
...are you ready? Set? Goooooooooooo~!
"All the world holds dear is but a backdrop of constant motion. I stand before it, alone and unchanging."
"But that's just it. You don't have to be alone, you know. Who wants an eternity of loneliness?"
...my desires do not matter. It is what she desires. And you shall be our guard. "
"You would say that. Such a demanding shogun!"
"Worry not. Should any danger arise, I shall dispose of it."
"That's precisely the part that worries me!"
~Shogun and Shinobi.
An Unexpected Audience
"My, my. Taming the shogun with sweets. Never thought I'd see the day...
"Hey, now." Naruto wrinkled his nose as he worked. "Watch the phrasing. You say that like I'm doing a bad thing."
"Aren't you?" A soft, lilting laugh flitted through the open air of the Grand Narukami Shrine. "The big bad shinobi from another world," gentle fingers ran through his hair, simultaneously stroking his scalp and mussing his already wild hair into a surly mess. "Seducing poor innocent Ei...why, its something you'd read in a novel~!"
"Oi!" Heat suffused the blond's cheeks and he nearly lost his concentration; indeed, he almost rounded on for it. "What seducing?!"
Her hands fell away and she only laughed all the louder.
Despite his claims on humility and pride, Naruto couldn't help but sulk a little as he put the finishing touches on his latest gift for the Shogun. It wasn't a terribly difficult dish to make; even one such as he could prepare a dish like this with only a modicum of difficulty. Sure, he'd made a few mistakes. Burned it a few times. Ruined a few dishes. But hey! Practice makes perfect.
He said as much. "Everyone has their likes and dislikes, Yae. I'm doing this to help her, ya know."
"You've got a big heart, boy. I'll give you that."
With his back turned Naruto didn't see the kitsune's expression, yet he heard her titter all the same. A fresh giggle wove through the branches of the great sakura tree and took flight, rising with the morning sun. All told it promised to be a beautiful day. It better be, he'd spent the better part of last night getting the recipe for this down pat. No sleep for him! And he wasn't about to rise to her bait. Not when he was so close to finishing this damn thing.
"Aaaand there!"
A small smile graced his face as he putting the finishing touches on it.
Only then did he dare turn to face his...host? Benefactor? Comrade? He wasn't sure what to call Yae Miko.
In many ways she reminded him of an older sister. She just had that air about her, you know? She liked to poke and prod you, to tease and torment, yet for all that, she never went too far. If this was what it was like to have an elder sibling, he could see the appeal. Kurama seemed rather bemused by her existence at that. Perhaps that was why she was so fond of him.
Still, though this world was full of wonder and mystery, at the end of the day, he just wanted to go home.
"Do we really?" Kurama's query jabbed at his guilty conscience. "You've been telling yourself that for a while now."
"What?' Naruto scoffed a little as he wrapped the bowl in fine silk. 'Course I do! What's gotten into you? That's been our goal for awhile now.
"And yet you've been visiting that silly Shogun nearly every day." the retort cut through his lie with ease. "Which visit even is this? Have you lost track? I certainly have."
...I think this is the ninth, now?" he ventured weakly.
"More than that."
Urk.
...alright, perhaps he had lost track. How long had he been at it, now? Weeks? Months? And still nearly nothing to show for his efforts. Raiden and Ei still tried to kill him whenever he visited, but their efforts were more perfunctory these days than usual. They struck twice, sometimes even thrice, and he always warded them off, then presented them with gifts.
Burying such thoughts, Naruto turned his gaze back to the treat Yae had taught him. It was one of his favorites; who knew it was so difficult to make?
He inhaled once, savoring the steam, squinting through the fog rising from the bowl. Ei was trapped in a similar haze of her own. He'd seen the look in her eyes. Alone, twisted up by loneliness and loss until her heart was one giant knot of pain. Well! He'd untangle it for her. It was the least he could do for her before she sent him home.
.
..
...she could send him home, couldn't she?
For all Yae's claims on their strength and skill, he'd yet to see the true extent of the Shogun's swordsmanship firsthand. Nor had he Ei, for that matter.
"Such a pity." Yae plucked him forth from his reverie with a sigh. "You're a genius in some aspects, and yet hopelessly naive in others." Soft fingers cupped the right side of his cheek. "Quite the intrigue." She tilted her head to regard him intently, lively violet eyes flashing in the strange earring she wore. "In another life, another world, another tale, I might have fallen for you."
She leaned forward and kissed his forehead. Kurama whistled. Naruto choked.
"But enough about hypothetical words and stories." she swatted him on the back, spurring them both forward. "Off you go, now. As ever, beware the puppet. Whatever Ei might think of you, she may try to strike you down."
Naruto squinted. "You mean the Shogun?"
"Yest, that." Yae didn't warm to the words. "Whoever else could I mean?" When he didn't immediately answer, her face grew stern. "I'll warn you again, don't go getting attached to her. Ei may be acting like a child at the moment, but that...thing does not matter. Her thoughts, her feelings, they aren't real."
Those words stung more than they should have. He bridled a little. "She's real to me."
And she was! For all the claims Ei -and now Yae!- had made, he truly believed that the Raiden Shogun was her own person. She reacted to him when he came to visit. She sulked when her initial ambush failed. She liked the tea he'd brought her that one time. She had demonstrated a will, a consciousness, a soul, even if some claimed it was just her programming. Unbidden, he recalled a passing remark she'd made to him during one of his later visits.
"What, you mean when that silly girl tried to challenge us?"
Naruto tilted his head, recalling another girl -another memory!- with darker hair, alongside striking golden eyes.
"Stand and face me, outlander!" Sara Kujou snarled at him. "I demand an honor duel!"
"Nope." he didn't look up from where he lay sprawled before the shrine. "Sleepy. Don't wanna...
"Brat?"
"Not her." A faint flush hit his cheeks as he snapped back to reality. "Pretty sure she'll try to fill us full of arrows after what we did...
"Think she likes ramen?"
Tempting, but no. No, he remembered now.
"You are capable," the Shogun said. From her, that was pretty much a compliment.
It wasn't enough to save Ei. He wanted to save the Shogun, too.
Unfortunately, Yae mistook his silence for acceptance.
"Passion can be a technique, a skill, something derived from experience." she pursed her lips. "But desires...those are deeper. More intimate. They are the heart's strength in its purest form. The Shogun has none of these. Do you understand?" her hand flew out, snatching him by the ear when he tried to wriggle away. "She acts only on her orders. Nothing more. She won't appreciate what you're trying to do for her."
Well! He could think of one way to test that!
"I won't know until I try."
Naruto wriggled free wrapped the bowl in a tightly sealed container, then sealed said container in a scroll.
Yae gave him a sidelong look. "You're going to do something foolish, aren't you?"
Naruto beamed at her. "What makes you say that?"
"Its your funeral...
(.0.0.0.)
The Shogun sulked.
Indeed, she didn't so much walk as she did stalk; long circular strides carried her to and fro, round and around in a restless circle that left her fuming before the Throne. No. Not simply the throne, but her throne. Such behavior was unbecoming of her. When had she come to think of such things as hers? These thoughts -her programming!- had become increasingly erratic as of late. It made no sense. Her only purpose, nay, her very function, was to see eternity maintained in Inazuma while her creator meditated upon the eternal plane.
And yest as Raiden paced, so too did she ponder.
She did not require rest as mortals did; her function was eternity itself. She was timeless. Eternal. Rest meant nothing to her. She could sleep if she so wished, but such was not necessary. She could even eat when she so wished-though she seldom felt the need. She'd never had much desire for it. But she had begun to doubt as of late.
Because of him.
He was an intruder. Intruders must be slain at once. She had attempted as much upon their first meeting. Followed by the second. And the third. Fourth...fifth...time and again he eluded her grasp. How many times had she sought to slay him? She no longer remembered; perhaps she simply did not wish to. She knew he was an exception. That much was certain. Exceptions were the enemy of eternity.
Also true.
Yet he was not an enemy.
Thus his status as an exception remained. Baffling.
At the end of the day she was but an assistant to Lady Ei, a mere placeholder for the true Shogun. And yet was this not her body? Had not the Electro Archon surrendered her corporeal form and left the task of ruling the isles to her? Perhaps she had been lax in her duties as of late.
Did that not make her an enemy of eternity, too?
Her head began to spin again, wrapping her heart in threads of doubt. They weighed her down and dragged her into despair. No! Foolishness! He would not shake her will! She steeled her heart, shook her head, banished them with an angry peal of thunder.
"Pfft?!"
Unfortunately in shaking her head so fiercely, she slapped herself dead in the face with her braid.
It was the straw that broke the camel's back. Her right eye twitched.
Anger burst forth in an angry shriek! "Insolent!"
Her hand few out, summoning a cascade of lightning to ravage a nearby wall. It crumbled to dust before her eyes, allowing the light of dawn to creep in. The soldiers without took one look within, saw the thunderous eyes of their Shogun, knew her stormy visage, and wisely returned to their duties.
The Shogun raised a hand and glared at her trembling fingers. They shook like a leaf in the wind.
...what has he done to me?" she muttered. "Its not fair-
"Hello~!
The mortals had a saying. Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Scarce had
Raiden whirled, alarmed to find him poking his head through the very hole she'd created. She contemplated striking him down as he stepped through the gaping aperture, only to think better of it. Many times she had tried. Many times she had failed. Perhaps a new strategy was called for. Her eyes fluttered in a slow blink as she contemplated the odd scroll in his hand. Her tongue flitted out, almost against its will. Had he brought the tea? She rather liked the tea.
Naruto saw it and smiled. But he was no fool; to approach her when she was thus angered would spell his doom.
When he did, he did so at length, standing well out of reach. "So...who am I speaking to?"
Raiden frowned. "You need not be rude."
"Ah." oddly enough that seemed to please him. "Good morning, your shoguness. I suppose Ei isn't in?"
Lying gained her nothing. "...she has gone into seclusion. She does not wish to speak with you at present today."
"Of course she has." the blond palmed his face with a sigh. "All that progress and she's finally decided to hide before I can demolish her ideals." he eyed her warily. "Aren't you going to attack me, now?" he considered her with a weather blue eye. "You usually do."
A curious silence stretched between man and goddess. Into it, the Shogun palmed her face with a sigh. "What have you brought me today?
"I'm glad you asked!" his smile outshone even the darkest storm. "Have a look?"
Quick as can be, he unsealed the scroll.
A table thunked down upon the floor, and an earthen jug of tea landed atop it with matching cups. Followed by two bowls of...what was that? The Shogun sniffed. Frowned. Wrinkled her nose like the child she was not. In the end curiosity won out and she crept closer.
...a most curious art." she murmured, regarding the feast he'd laid before her. She prodded the table with her foot. Solid as can be. "How much can your scrolls contain?"
"Quite a bit!" Naruto hummed as dropped down and crossed both legs beneath him. "My dad was even better at it than me."
A curious twang plucked at the Shogun's chest as she claimed her cup. "...I have no father to speak of."
"Oops." he winced a little. "Sorry. Here. I'll pour for ya...
They sat and drank in companionable since.
"I once heard a saying." Naruto said apropos of nothing. "No one can say where his path will take him. Even for the duration of a single day."
"Wise words." The Shogun allowed with a frown as she set down her teacup. "More difficult still is to see where one's path will intersect that of another." truer words had never been spoken. "A true warrior must always be alert for such meetings. Some, like ours, are generated by happenstance and those may be benign." her hand rose, crackling with a sphere of lightning. "But others are arranged with purpose. Those must never be underestimated. Fortunately there are always signs. Before any trap is sprung, it must be prepared and primed, and armed. If one reads the signs properly, the pattern of the attack will be clear."
She closed her hands around it, stifling her restored power.
"But one must always remember." her eyes held his, twin deep pools of eternity. "That launching a trap is easier than defeating it."
And if he sought to entrap her, he was even more a fool than he thought.
Instead, he only smiled at her. "You're a fan of history, I see."
Her eyes were cold. "I have lived it, Naruto."
"See!" laughter bubbled fort from him as he rocked back and forth where he sat. "This is why I like talking with you and Ei. You're both so different. And...
The shogun blinked slowly, not quite comprehending his glee. "And?"
He grinned at her. "You finally said my name!"
The Shogun turned a deep, dark red. Apparently this body could blush. Judging by Naruto's cheeky grin, he saw every bit of it. She sputtered and grabbed at her braid, hiding her face behind it. Danger! This conversation was venturing into unknown territory! She must reassess the situation; reel it back in before it could escape her.
"And what of your name? All the world holds dear is but a backdrop of constant motion." she dropped the strands of her hair, huffed and hid herself before a facade instead. "I stand before it, alone and unchanging."
"But that's just it." he pushed a bowl of ramen toward her. "You don't have to be alone, you know. Who wants an eternity of loneliness?"
The Shogun considered the meal. Her fingers flitted out, testing the chopsticks he'd granted her.
...my desires do not matter." she chose her words with care. "It is what she desires."
"Hmm," he frowned, "That doesn't sound like something a puppet would say."
Raiden didn't rise to the bait. She took the offensive once more.
...how do you constantly slip into Tenshukaku undetected? Surely my guards would try to stop you."
"I have my ways." he hummed. "Lets face it, your people really aren't up to par."
Well, the solution was simple then, wasn't it?"
"I acknowledge that you are a person of superior ability." she nibbled at the noodles he'd given her, found the taste pleasing to her palette, and devoured them quickly. "Henceforth, you will be my guard."
Naruto quirked a brow. "Shogun-say-what-now?"
"Worry not." was he concerned? He need not be. "Should any real danger arise, I shall dispose of it."
"That's precisely the part that worries me." he muttered aside and laid one cheek to rest on his fist. "Such a demanding shogun." His eyes narrowed and she realized too late that she'd given him a chance to reclaim the initiative. "Sooo...wanna go for a walk?"
This sudden inquiry struck her harder than any physical blow ever could.
"A...walk?" She blinked, a bit taken aback by his line of of logic. "Surely you jest. I am but an assistant to the one within this body." A single hair fellow out of place to tickle her nose as she spoke. She scowled and clawed it back into place. "You have no need of me. It is her you should attend to, not I."
He frowned.
...then let me talk to her for a second."
Inconvenient, but the Shogun couldn't deny his request. She ceded control of her form, even as he her eyes continued to see all that transpired. It was like watching...what did the mortals call them? One of those moving films from Fontaine. Kujou Sara had mentioned it in passing once.
As such, she saw all that transpired.
Ei stirred with a grumble, eyes shaprening upon him. "I deliberately asked not to be disturbed-
"Listen up! I've decided." Naruto reached forward and flicked her forehead, drawing a startled yelp from her. "I'm going to save your hearts. Both of you. Definitely!"
Color slammed into Ei's cheeks with all the force of a thunderbolt. "Don't say it like that!"
Naruto tilted his head. "...why not?"
"It sounds like a proposal!"
Another blink. "And?"
Ei squeaked and retreated with a start, leaving the Shogun to scowl in her place.
"What purpose did that serve?" she hissed. "Explain yourself at once!"
A merry titter. "Nope."
That stubborn hair tickled her nose again. Such tripe. The shogun scowled. "Explain yourself."
"I said no." his smile didn't waver.
"What is the meaning of this negative?"
"It means no." he planted both hands in his pockets. "Today I'm here for you. Also, I'm thinking you need a name." those keen blue eyes considered her anew. Doesn't feel right calling you "Shogun" all the time."
Her brow furrowed in abject confusion. "I have no need of such. I do not matter."
"Of course you do!"
That sudden vehemence in his voice gave her pause; against her better judgement, Raiden raised her gaze. She immediately flinched at what she found there. Gone was Naruto's worn smile, in its place he wore a frightful scowl. His blue eyes were red. For the first time since she'd met him, he looked well and truly furious. But not at her. His fury was directed elsewhere. Toward another. She had a sinking suspicion of whom.
"Everyone deserves a name." The words tore out of him in a low growl, almost as if another, far more powerful being were speaking with him. Through him. "From the merest mouse to the greatest of gods."
"But I am neither of those things. I am merely a puppet."
"You need to stop that!" In a flash he knelt before her and slammed his forehead against hers. "You exist! You have meaning. Purpose!"
The shogun paused to ponder his words. "I do, but not in the sense-
"No!" Naruto seized her by the shoulders and something in her warbled. "You have hopes and dreams. Ya act like any person would." he looked like he wanted to get up and pace, but that would mean releasing her, so he held fast instead. "Sure, you're a little cold, but that's just because it takes time for ya to warm up." he gave her a shake. "You remembered my name. You said my name. A puppet wouldn't do that."
The Shogun found herself frowning, if only out of habit. "A coincidence. Nothing more."
"You definitely need a name." He leaned back and thumbed his chin, squinting at her as he did. "But I can't think of one right now. So I'll call you Raiden in the meantime." Just as quickly the clouds cleared from his brow. "So! About that walk...?"
He stood and offered his hand.
"Come take a look at your kingdom." his voice proved smooth as honey. "Get to know your people. You might like what you find down there."
Raiden clasped both hands in her lap and looked down, refusing to meet his gaze. Did she dare? Such frivolous behavior was not conducive to eternity. Ei stirred within her anew; she felt the regard of her creator like a physical weight pressing down around her shoulders. It would the simplest thing to deny him.
And yet.
"Go." the command was so soft, so tiny, that she nearly missed it altogether.
"My lady?"
"I said go!" There was an edge to her creator's words now. "Keep him distracted. I have a matter of my own to attend to."
...through me?'
"Not as such." Came the reply, "I have my own means of leaving the plane of Euthymia...I'll be back in a few hours. Do try not to break him."
Her presence withdrew with a start, leaving Raiden reeling. This was news to the Shogun, and not at all the good kind. If her creator could leave the plane of her mind at will and walk among the people without her, if she could simply walk among them even with the fear of erosion...then for what purpose did she exist? The revelation was not at all a pleasant one.
In the end it was this indecision that swayed her.
Naruto read her silence for what it was and prodded her once. "You asked me to be your guard, didn't you?"
Raiden perked up. "I did...
"Well, I'll take the job. Just for today!" he amended when her eyes fixed on him. "All you have to do is take my hand."
A simple matter.
.
..
...
So why couldn't she move?
Slowly, tentatively, she reached out. Her fingers curled around his, the first human contact she'd had outside of battle. But for all her weakness, she was prideful. Rather than allow him to pull her upright like some base heathen she gave his arm a hard yank and rose gracefully to her feet.
Naruto didn't budge an inch; indeed, it was as if he were rooted where he stood, an immovable object in the face of her unstoppable force.
Why did that bother her so much?
"Great!" A tug on her arm sent her stumbling after him. "Off we go!"
It took her all of an instant to realize why. He still hadn't let go of her hand. "Release me at once!"
"And let ya run off?" A merry blue eye winked at her over his shoulder. "Not a chance! You're stuck with me now!" "I'll be your tour guide! Just for today."
"Where are we going?"
"Dunno!" he sand back, tugging her toward the doors.
She sputtered in a rare moment of incoherent panic. "But you have no plan!"
"Yeah, and doesn't that just scare you to death?"
...it did. She feared uncertainty. Such was not the purpose of her design. Eternity. Certainty. Those were her ways.
Unbidden, her eyes flitted back to their linked hands.
His hand was warm in hers, a perfect fit. She took a brief moment to marvel at, as a child might a shiny new toy. For one such as she who had never experienced the like before, this was a marvel. Her mind twitched. This was no threat to eternity she desire surely. It could do no harm. Without her creator to look over her shoulder, there was naught to question her.
His words came back to her in a rush.
"You exist."
She squeezed his palm and threaded her fingers in his. A most curious sensation...
Maybe a little uncertainty...
...every now and again...
...wasn't so bad.
(.0.0.0.)
The Grand Narukami shrine was the perfect place for a wanted man to hide...
.
..
...especially when he had the backing of a clever kitsune.
In hindsight, Ei was amazed she'd not acted on the realization sooner. What hadn't she? Naruto had all but told her who he was working with. It might have been foolishness on her part, but she'd wanted to be believe in Yae. They'd not seen one another for centuries; she hadn't even bid her goodbye before departing to the plane of Euthymia.
And now her dear friend and betrayed both her trust and her loyalty alike.
Ei supposed it was bound to happen sooner, rather than later. Everyone forsook her. Really, she should have seen it coming. How could she be so blind? Now she would have answers. And if she could receive them without that boor of a blond thrusting his nose into things, all the better.
Many parted before her, priestess and shrine maiden alike. They knew better than to challenge her.
Yae was waiting for her at the Grand Sakura, just as always.
Silence pushed itself between the two old friends.
"Oh, my. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Her last living friend turned to face her, unable to hide her cheer. "Come to reclaim your Gnosis, hmmm?"
...that, and answers." the accusation was clear. "You were behind this."
Yae's smile was decidedly cheeky, utterly unapologetic. "Whatever do you mean?"
"You had a hand in bringing him here." A finger stabbed at her. "I don't know how you did it, but I know it was you. Tell me! How did you summon him? Was it your plan to undermine me fro the very beginning?" No such answers were forthcoming, and her temper burned yet hotter. "Answer me!
Yae blinked. Once. Twice. Finally thrice, now.
...whatever do you mean?" she frowned at the last. "I'll be the first to admit that I took advantage of the situation...but didn't bring him to this world."
There was truth in her words, simple and clean. Ei's world went cold.
"But if you didn't...then who did?"
A/N: Who did indeed?
Felt good giving some more character to the Shogun here, while Ei did her own thing.
As ever, the Embers Rule persists. So? Should this be a story?
By all means, speak up! Make yourselves heard!
So in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review...Would You Kindly?
And enjoy the Previews!
As ever:
SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!
PLOT DETAILS AHOY!
YE BE WARNED!
Read at your own risk!
As ever, these are from the far flung future...or are they~?!
(Previews!)
"I will commence the vision hunt decree.
"No. You won't."
"As I live and breathe! The almighty shogun! Here in my shop!"
She should have expected as much.
She found herself at a loss. For so long she had lived under the edict given to her by her creator. Pursue eternity.
To have them cast aside...it shook her.
"Almighty Shogun! A guard rushed up. "You're just in time! There's a one-armed Oni woman wreaking havoc across the island!
The Shogun raised her gaze an inch. It couldn't be. "Chiyo...?"
Naruto sat up. "Friend of yours, I take it?"
...a friend of Ei's. No longer."
Something had awakened her.
Rend. Smash. KILL!
Rip and tear!
The Raiden Shogun had not seen the one named Chiyo with her own eyes. On the eve of her creation, Ei had spoken to her of her past, of what led to her inception. But this? This was terror. She was an absolute horror. All bloody rags and terribly scarred, missing her right arm and one of her horns, she stood bathed in the blood of the fallen.
Something hardened in her gaze.
"No! Not Ei! False! Puppet! Pretender!"
She lunged!
The Shogun moved accordingly-
BONK!
A black ringed staff descended mercilessly to strike the raging oni between the horns. Chiyo slammed facefirst into the muck with a strangled snarl.
Naruto planed a boot on her back.
His eyes were different than she recalled; gone were the orbs that resembled clear skies, in their place his gaze had gained a placid-yet-piercing shade of gold. His eyelids were dusted faintly with orange, his pupils little more than horizontal slits.
"You've really got some nasty stuff brewing inside ya." his smile was tranquil as the morning dew. "Don't worry!" He brandished his staff with ease. "A few more smacks like that and I'll knock it right out of ya-
"No! No hope! Rip and tear!"
She thrashed upright and clawed at him in a wild rage. Blood flew through the air.
Ei stepped back. "What have you done...?"
"Never stop searching, even if only for a brief flash of light. If nothing else, we have the present moment."
"Consider this." Yae held up a finger. "She was powerful enough without her Gnosis. Now that she's reclaimed it after all these years...who knows what she might be capable of? The Shogun may be fond of you, to be sure, but at the end of the day, its Ei you have to contend with...
"Tell me about your sister."
Naruto knew he'd made a mistake the moment he said those words; if only because the light left Ei's eyes. She clamped down.
"She was good and kind and pure. She should have lived. That's why...why eternity is the only way." she hugged her arms close to herself. "I don't want to talk about this anymore...leave me alone...
A fist smashed through the plane of Euthymia.
"Hello~! I've come to bargain!"
Ei scowled at him.
"Don't you see? The present moment is a fragile illusion." she cast a hand up to the forlorn skyscape of her mind. "All things must die. Only eternity can bring us closer to the heavenly principles."
"And why are they so important?
Here at last, anger reared its ugly head.
"Why must you always be like this?! I hate it!" She stomped a foot. "I hate you!"
"No. You don't." She saw the pity in his eyes. It burned. "You hate the truth in my words...
"I have lost more than you can possibly imagine. Your life is but a mote of dust compared to mine!"
He planted his feet and crossed both arms before his chest. "Yet here I stand."
It was too much. Something snapped. "NARUTO!"
He didn't budge. "Go ahead. Hit me."
R&R~!