From where he was seated, Hatake Kakashi surveyed his surroundings. The first thing that stood out was the sheer height of the ceiling, stretching more than twelve meters up. The second was the stage. It was a circle of about seven meters radius. On the opposite side of where everyone was seated, it led to what he guessed was backstage. Above the connection stretched a golden bridge, going from one end to the other. Kakashi peered closer, but he was right. The bridge wasn't above the circle, it was pushed back to the end and not above the stage. On the walls at the edges of the circle there were columns, going up until they almost reached the ceiling. They had ladders. Kakashi wondered what they were for. The seats were arranged in a half moon starting from those columns, lower the closer you were to the stage.
And the seats had more familiar faces than he'd realized. He scanned the crowd. The kids already settled at the center of the firsts rows were wearing the Nara emblem. More than a third of the people seated were, too. And was that Moose? The woman felt his gaze and gave him a short nod. Yes. This was Anbu Moose and how had she managed to get leave? Kakashi had never requested one, but he knew from all the grumblings that the petition had to be handed in more than a month prior. Was all of the Nara clan here? Surely not. There had to be someone with the babies and toddlers and guarding the gates, right? Not to mention on missions. Or were those tasks taken by the Yamanaka and Akimichi clan members?
"Kotone-sama," sounded from his left. Kakashi didn't know if he should be amused or relieved to be seated in the same row as the genin. As it was, Kakashi was between a lithe man and Sasuke, followed by Shikamaru, Ino, and finally Chouji. On the row above them were a couple who'd introduced themselves as Arata's parents - although the woman's violet curls were a dead giveaway of a familiar connection -, followed by Akio, Kotone, Shikaku, Yoshino, and Ino's and Chouji's parents.
"Yes, Ino-chan?"
"Will this be like one of your shows? I have never been to one."
"No. Shows take more than a year to plan out. They involve all five arts. Some have more than sixty performers, with hundreds behind their creation and production." She smiled gently at her daughter's friend. "Arata-kun and Hikari-chan had twenty days of active planning and are both of the Art of Movement. This is a taste of what can be, but certainly not a scaled down product. Does anyone have any other questions?"
Shikamaru nodded. "Me. Are they the only ones performing?"
Kotone hummed. "I'm uncertain as to how many will be on stage today." Kakashi's eye narrowed. That had been too vague for what he'd come to know as kyokuba-dan standards.
"Hikari-chan and Arata-kun wanted this to be a surprise," Hikari's father, Akio, added. "No one who has already performed is allowed to represent their Art on stage today. It is up to them whether they are joined by others."
"However," Kotone interjected. "They have been calling in favors by the dozens. That is something to keep in mind as we watch."
Chouji raised his hand and then blushed when Kotone's eyebrow arched. "Yes, Chouji-kun?"
"Why are we so far? Even the first rows keep quite some distance from the stage."
Indeed, the kids were settling into the spaces in front of them, filling the half moon, but they were still some ways off the actual stage structure.
"Arata-kun is an aerialist. To be able to appreciate what he does without craning our necks up, we need the distance."
Chouji thanked her quietly.
The lights dimmed and the stage was illuminated. Hikari and Arata came out. No one made a sound.
Hikari's leotard made it seem like she was enveloped in feathers, with tiny pearls and rhinestones dotting the sheer sleeves and mimicking lace gloves. The detailing got heavier in the short skirt, and she was wearing those half socks she'd had on during her lessons with Tanaka. Her hair was pulled up into a neat bun, with braids encircling it. The teenager at her side was wearing a black top with matching details in white and white straight pants. Against his dark skin and below the stage lights, it looked like he was only wearing gloves and a dusting of crystals for a top. Both wore makeup, their eyes heavily lined towards their temples in different colors.
They stepped up to the center, where a microphone awaited them.
"Those who have come before us have told beautiful tales on stage," Hikari addressed them. Her voice carried, filling the entire building with its solemnity. "It is our hope to do them justice."
"Those who will come after us will tell beautiful stories on stage," her partner continued. "It is our wish to help pave the way."
They both bowed deeply and retreated.
Another teenager entered, a spotlight following him. He was wearing harem pants in dull gold and a black kimono shirt with accents in an even deeper shade of ebony. His face was painted in a way that made it seemed as if gold had melted over its main features, encircling his eyes, stylizing his eyebrows, and dusting his deep red lips. The end result was both striking, sophisticated, and other-worldly. He took the microphone in hand.
"I did not expect them to ask Masaru-kun," Kotone remarked.
"Me either. I wonder how many favors they had to hand over," Aiko added.
"Who is he?" Ino asked.
"My apprentice and Arata-kun's friend," Kotone answered, amused at the awe in the girl's voice. Kakashi's eyes narrowed on the teenager because being the leader's apprentice had to carry weight.
"But not Hikari's?" Shikamaru asked.
A pause. "No, not my daughter's. They are both proud, perhaps too proud, of the kyokuba-dan. And they have different visions."
Akio huffed out a breath and added to his wife's diplomatic answer. "He also shaping up to be a powerhouse in the arts of Music and Language and older than her. Hikari has never quite grown out of being intimidated by singers. So no, they are not friends. This is a gesture, to tell us that although the performance is of Movement, they acknowledge the beauty of other arts. It's also a tribute to Kotone, to ask her apprentice and not someone else."
The teenager clad in gold opened his scarlet lips and began the story.
Once upon the olden times, the sky was a dance floor. An endless waltz was spun, for the measurement of time is a human construct. What is a second, a decade, or a century to a body of light?
To not fall, neither behind nor below, the stars picked up their skirts and turned faster as the music was remade. Below, the vibrations were felt. When they jumped, gales crushed trees. When they laughed, drafts teased hair away from faces. When they swayed, the breeze refreshed the children.
The winds scattered truths, and they drifted, waiting to be caught by the few who sought them. This is a true story. This is the truth as we know it.
Masaru went off stage and the whole stage was lighted. Hikari and Arata were already facing one another. She curtsied, he bowed, and they reached for the other. One of her hands settled on his shoulder, the other clasping his. The first note of a flute sounded out and they moved.
They stepped and slid and stepped again, rising and falling, steps long as they glided around the stage in sweeping circles. After a spin, Hikari stood in front of her partner and facing the audience.
She lifted her right leg up until it made a perfect vertical line and tilted her torso so it stood parallell to the ground. Arata grabbed the foot of the leg held up in a split, his other hand around her torso, and put pressure. Hikari did a full rotation, going upside down, her legs drawing a circle, and then up again. She ended up in a bridal carry. Arata threw her up. She did a twist before coming down once again into a princess hold. Arata hefted her up, one hand going to the small of her back.
Hikari balanced there, her body curved back, long arms extended and one leg drawn up with her toes pointed at her other knee. Arata's other arm was held straight away, showing off his one-hand hold. They held the position for a couple of seconds before he folded his free arm against his side. Hikari reached for it, one of her hands gripping his, the other on his forearm, and her legs in a split. Her weight shifted minutely and Arata was now drawing his hand away from her back and to the side, Hikari balancing on his forearm in another one-arm hold.
Someone in the audience gasped as Hikari was released, body twisting, one toe touching the ground before the other followed. Her body righted and her hands settled once again into position, one hand on her partner's and the other on his shoulder. The waltz continued effortlessly, as if it had never been interrupted, drawing measured circles around the stage.
Arata spinned her out. When she came back to him, he moved his hand from hers and to her waist. She continued her spin, arms stretched high and fingers pointed, as he reached down and wrapped his arm around her leg. And then Hikari was up, held perpendicular on his shoulder, fingers still pointed even as she continued her turn towards his other side. She straightened one of her legs and sat up. They held the position there, Arata's arms stretched out to the sides, Hikari seated on his shoulder, one leg twisted around his right arm and the other behind him. As if she got tired, she laid down, but his other arm was no longer held out for her. Instead, she got pulled in front of his body, both of her legs straight as he spun them both once and then twice. On the third, she spun around his torso. He stopped, but she didn't, instead continuing to loop now around his leg and out to the side, coming to sit on the stage floor with her front leg bent and the back one extended in a pigeon pose.
He offered his hand up, and she took it. The dance continued, with an ease and delicacy that belied the twirls and spins and clever footwork. And, in some of those rotations, Hikari's feet were no longer on the ground, but holding poses, or her body travelling across her partner's. In others, her back arched and her hands left her partner to taste the air as he spun her by the small of her back or helped her make an impossible number of pirouettes.
The flutes started to wind down, signaling the approaching end of the dance. Arata's hands went to Hikari's waist once more, but this time he pulled her up, both of his arms extended towards the sky. Hikari's legs bent towards her head, and her arms drew wings. She looked like a swan. And then they both twisted and she was no longer held by her waist but by her hands, doing a perfect handstand with her feet pointed towards the high ceiling and not a waver in either of their arms. And as the oboe cried one last note, she bent her arms and slid down his body towards the floor. In the last second, she bent one of her legs at the same time that Arata hooked his forearm behind her knee. Hikari's face stopped a few centimeters from the floor. The music came to a stop, the dancers frozen in their last pose.
The lights dimmed.
Kakashi glanced around for a clue, but no one of the kyokuba-dan made to clap, so he kept his hands still.
"That was so lovely, like we were watching an ethereal court dance. Hikari looked weightless," Ino was the first to break the silence in their row.
"That was their intention. The narration emphasized wind in all its shapes. I think we're going to see them go through the elements, ending with fire," Shikamaru mused. "There's four left, and they have four individual specializations between them."
The three genin murmured excitedly between them, until Hikari's parents' conversation broke through.
"It was a beautiful dance, and you didn't like it."
Hikari's father took his time answering his wife. "It was fine. I expected better."
Sasuke flinched. Kakashi put a hand on his shoulder, remembering Wicked Eye Fugaku's stern, impassive face as he decided if he got to keep Obito's gift. He couldn't imagine him being warmer, even to his sons. On his student's other side, Team 10 had frozen. The Naras surrounding them had tensed. They were likely using chakra to listen in.
Ino broke the silence. "Well, that's..." she clearly couldn't find words for it because she changed the subject. "Kotone-sama liked it."
Shikamaru fidgeted next to her. "Ino, they are of Movement. They need to impress their Head, not their leader."
"But..." the girl was clearly a bit lost. Kakashi was, too, because he hadn't realized this was a test. He hadn't realized Hikari could fail this.
"Hierarchy in the kyokuba-dan is fluid. They let the ones with the most knowledge or experience in the subject lead," Shikamaru explained.
"A correct but incomplete answer, Shikamaru-kun," the man next to Kakashi spoke up. He leaned forwards, forearms on his knees, to be able to see the boy as he addressed him. "You're still thinking of one person making decisions. We don't lean that way. The voices of the experts of the disciplines Hikari-chan and Arata-kun display will be weighted. I'm it for rhythmic."
Kakashi's eye narrowed because he didn't think it was coincidence that they'd seated him next to the expert of Hikari's specializations.
"I'm the current expert on dance," the woman on the other side of the rhythmic expert raised her hand.
"Trampoline," the next one stated simply.
"We are it for the aerial arts in their entirety," came from behind them. Kakashi turned his face. Arata's parents. He clenched his jaw, because parents who were also teachers tended to be harsher on their own children. It would take all three of the other experts to sway the opinions.
"I disagree with you, Akio," the dance leader declared. Kakashi breathed out because, from what he'd just heard, her opinion would matter the most for this number. Sasuke took the hint and tension left his shoulders. "They started out as ballet partners. It is only fitting that they begin their performance with it. Neither chose it, but they carried it over to their own disciplines. Hikari-chan's chorographies focus on telling a narrative and making the moves seamless. And Arata-kun almost always interprets her pieces."
And this was new to him, because he'd assumed Hikari and Arata were dance partners. But she'd only told him they used to be dance partners and were currently partners. He sighed. Sometimes getting information out of Hikari was impossible. She offered answers so easily you forgot to check if she'd answered what you'd asked.
"I see your point, but it was too simple. Both hold Hand to Hand. Where were the throws, the balancing, the tricks?" Akio asked rhetorically. So they were Hand to Hand partners, whatever that meant. "They didn't add anything new or daring. They played it safe. Too safe." And Kakashi realized he didn't know what they were seeing today. That dance had been neither simple nor ordinary.
The man next to him snorted, and Kakashi liked him for doing it when he couldn't. "Rhythmic is the closest to dance, so I can tell you that that routine was entirely new. I think they showed maturity by doing the narrative and music justice, instead of showing off their skills."
"They both wanted this to be a surprise, and they mostly succeeded," came the trampoline expert's voice.
"Ah, Toshiko. Who did you bribe?"
The woman scoffed. "I had to trade a lot to even get a hint from the Head of Production. He said Arata-kun and Hikari-chan were doing more numbers than they had specialties. He also said the first one was the shortest."
"We cannot judge them the way we usually judge a performance," Arata's father stated. "If what Shikamaru-kun said is correct, and this is about the elements, we will see at least five numbers. This cannot be a sprint."
"Let us see more," his wife finished.
"They asked for seven numbers," Akio conceded. "Let us see the second."
He gave the signal, the lights dimmed, and the singer came on stage.
One of the stars saw something in the horizon and reached out to grasp it. The star inspected the wish and shone brighter than ever. Oh, how daring, the star laughed. What a brave human soul. For below the request, laid a deal.
'Grant me a wish', the human bargained, 'and I'll show you the beauty of my world.
You'll see the colors of the rising sun, travel across mighty mountains, and feel the searing heat of the dessert. You'll ride the ocean waves, see the lightning, hear the thunder, and brace yourself for the storm. You'll create art under the light of the sun and the veil of the night, watch the chaos, succumb to sleep, and dream.
Leave the sparkling nebula and come with me, for this fleeting life is as beautiful as a wandering star's.'
The star smiled. A rumble shook the earth. Pure energy was expended. Below, people lifted their eyes to the night sky.
The star let itself fall.
Shocking white careered towards the ground, forking over and over and cracking the sky itself. Paths were created and diverged one from the other. Roads were forged, taken, and abandoned.
Static so strong it could be felt on your skin. Instincts blaring to life. The twitch of muscles firing. Something was coming, people realized.
The warning reverberated too late. The unerring lightning bolt had already struck, disguising the falling star amidst the flashes of light.
Masaru's spotlight was extinguished, and the lights came on. Only this time, it wasn't the stage being lighted. The lights came from the walls. The audience could see only from the middle up, and the midway section. Kakashi couldn't easily see the people in front of him, and the bridge on the very back of the building wasn't visible.
"Alright. Everyone who has never seen trapeze listen up," came Arata's father's voice. Its volume was high enough that it could be heard in the vicinity of five rows. Considering the ones being warned were shinobi, nearly everyone could hear him with the help of chakra, and the others would be told. "The flyers are not strapped in, but there's a net under them. It's just at the edges of where the light touches." Kakashi could see he was saying it both to reassure and to indicate interference would not be tolerated. More than one third of audience still tensed. Even with a net under them, if someone fell they could land very, very badly.
Next to him, Sasuke activated his Sharingan.
Kakashi cuffed him in the head.
He turned to look at him, offended and angry. "I was looking for the net," he whispered harshly. "It's there."
Kakashi nodded but tapped his cheekbone twice, telling him to stop using his doujutsu. He didn't know how the kyokuba-dan would react to their moves being copied, but he didn't want to risk it. Sasuke's eyes returned to black.
They both turned back to the front. There were people in the ladders, Kakashi realized. One of them was Arata, still in a white top. The other five wore yellow.
When the first note was struck, Arata leapt. Someone on the opposite side released another trapeze. When Arata got to nearly the center of the stage, he released his hold on his bar. The empty one swung towards him. He grasped it. Ino gasped, but Chouji shushed her, eyes on the stage and a hand frozen inside his bag of chips.
The teenager drew arcs that stretched from one column to the other. If the lights illuminated the circular stage it'd look tiny. Kakashi understood now why there was such a distance between the first row and the stage. It wasn't only because of the height, but also because of the distance being covered.
On the opposite column of where Arata was, one of the artists launched themselves and maneuvered until they were upside down, clutching the bar with the back of their knees. Their torso and arms dangled down. Meanwhile, Arata gathered more momentum. Finally, he jumped at the highest point of his trajectory, did three full twists in the air, and came down. The other trapeze artist caught him, hands clasping around his forearms. The swung two more times in one same bar, in the third, they released their hold, Arata twisted, and caught his original bar in his hands.
Kakashi took back what he'd first thought when Hikari had explained what she did. He didn't want her launching herself from the air. Kakashi had been shinobi since he was six. Maito Gai had declared him his eternal rival, and he had been in Anbu. Their lifestyle attracted odd habits, suicidal tendencies, and adrenaline junkies. He was used to it. But these were civilians. He never thought he'd see them risk their lives in the name of art.
Three of the yellow-clad people climbed the ladders even higher and leapt. Kakashi realized there were four bars, each pair in a different level of height. If he thought they were risking their lives before, it was nothing to what the group of six was doing now. As if they did this everyday, and Kakashi realized they did, they continued to launch themselves from the columns and catch others at the end of their arcs.
The ones on the highest level let themselves fall, trusting the ones below to catch them. The ones below did so while they themselves were upside down, attached to their own bar by the back of their knees or even just the bridges of their feet. Once, there were even three people in the same bar. The one in the bottom swung his body, gaining such momentum that, when his companion released him, he returned to a bar swinging on the level above.
The yellow and white arcs, full turns, and shapes against the dark ceiling were stunning. The kids were gasping. No one reprimanded them, not willing to look away from the stage. Kakashi thought the second he glanced away one of the six would finally miss their bar. They didn't.
The music wound down into a lull, the five people in yellow retreated to the columns, and the light concentrated on the center of the stage and lower than before. The net was now evident. Arata released his trapeze, did four turns in the air, and fell on his back on the net. It was springy enough for him to bounce. He did so until he was on the edge of the net. He let his body dangle down, perpendicular to the ground while his hands clutched the end. Then he was twisting his body until he was upright.
The net dipped under his weight until he was only one meter above the stage's floor. He released his hold, fell on his feet, and gave them a short bow before going to the connection. Instead of going backstage, he went underneath the bridge. It had a metal hoop hanging down.
Unlike with the trapeze, this wasn't a show of daring and explosive energy. This was a show of strength, flexibility, and creativity. It showed versatility. The music slowed down, Arata struck one last pose. This time it wasn't on the hoop, but on the rope it was held in. The lights dimmed and the number came to an end.
Kakashi opened his envelope.
Kakashi-sensei,
I am afraid my specialties cannot do your affinity justice, but I hope you enjoyed our rendition of it.
In flying trapeze, each member can be both flyer and catcher.
If done right, it is an astounding display of teamwork - your first lesson and demand from Team 7.
I do not remember your exact words, but the spirit of them remains: you never abandon a teammate.
Thank you for your teachings,
Hikari
Kakashi blinked, and then blinked again, this time harder. He very carefully folded the paper in two and slipped it back into the envelope and into an inside pocket of his jounin vest. He focused on the experts again, hoping he hadn't missed too much. Hikari's partner, Arata he chastised himself, had done it right. No slips, no fumbling. They, he, deserved to have that acknowledged.
"What a little overachiever," the dancer was saying about the trapeze. They must have started discussing the hoop. "Honestly, when we say mastery over an apparatus it normally means in several shapes. Is there anything Arata-kun didn't show us with trapeze?"
"There is static cradle, done with a partner," came Arata's mother's answer.
"You can't hold that against him," the dancer spluttered. "Hikari-chan is not an aerialist."
Kakashi didn't know what a cradle even was. He really doubted they meant a crib, but he was happy his student hadn't been the one up there.
"It won't be held against him, although we would have liked to see it," Arata's father acquiesced. "It was a great performance. Adding the six-man flying trapeze made it dynamic, and they did shapes we had never seen before."
"Was it Hikari-chan's choreography?" the rhythmic expert asked.
Kakashi paid attention. Hikari's gesture was beautiful, but he hadn't expected her to have such a heavy hand on it when she hadn't been the one on stage.
"Yes. She gave the choreography to him after she graduated," interjected Akio. Kakashi's breath caught. "It does Arata-kun credit, to have achieved it in so little time, with a group he'd never worked with before. Very well done. Adding it was a big risk, and it paid off."
"What's next, Shikamaru-kun?" the trampoline expert asked. Kakashi realized that the elemental cycle was shinobi common knowledge. Civilians would never wield them, and therefore only knew it existed. Maybe those inclined towards philosophy knew more, but it wasn't a fundamental part of their lives. So different.
"Earth, Abe-sensei. It is weak against lightning but strong against water."
"Thank you." She turned towards Akio. "Shall we give them more time? If I remember right, you get points deducted from every second a rhythmic apparatus isn't in motion. Earth is steady and static. I doubt this will be Hikari-chan's individual performance."
Akio shook his head. "They will have factored in a rest if they intend to do the next one together. My guess is the narration will be longer."
Masaru stepped on stage.
The fallen star, made flesh, asked the human what their wish was. They shook their head with a smile and said they'd make good on their part of the deal first.
'Before we see the world and seek answers', they replied as they watched the mountain ranges, 'I'll first tell you what we humans ask ourselves. Perhaps the truth you seek and the beauty you'll see are different from ours.'
Kakashi straightened as the spotlight was extinguished. Wasn't this supposed to be longer instead of shorter?
"Can the world be explained by a human mind?" Came Hikari's voice from all around them.
"Pre-recorded," came a mumble from in front of them.
"Does it have meaning beyond what it establishes for itself?" That was Arata's voice.
"Does the universe care about human fate?"
"What is our essence?" They asked together.
"Reason?" Arata offered.
"Emotion?" Hikari countered.
"Love?"
"Agression?"
"Spirit?"
"Soul?"
"Will?"
"Wish of death?" Kakashi's hands clenched because that was his student's voice, and she should never be driven to think that. He forced himself to relax. A story, this was a story.
"Freedom?"
"Life itself?" Both voices rang out.
"How is nature related to us?" one asked.
"How do we relate with nature?" the other countered.
"Does the past matter? Should we learn from it or avoid it as the future approaches and the present is lived?"
"What drives history: destiny, freewill, or forces beyond our understanding?"
"How should our society be organized? Who should lead?"
"What comes first: community or the individual?"
A pause. Silence. And then the spotlight was back on Masaru, who hadn't actually exited the stage.
Universe, Humanity, Nature, History, and Society. What are they? What should they be? Can we change them? Are we changed by them?
What are they? We don't know, but experience and time tell us they exist in flux. They are, even as they are shaped and reshaped. They were and are and will be. They withstand. They hold their ground through time. They endure. They remain perpetual, perennial.
"That didn't really sound like Hikari-chan," the whisper came, surprisingly, from Chouji.
"Maybe they're Arata-san's words?" Ino agreed.
"They are," Hikari's mother said. "Hikari-chan is younger. She hasn't yet been asked to ponder perennial questions in her classes."
Sasuke twitched. "You teach this?"
"Not the answers, those they have to seek themselves. But yes, language classes include schools of thoughts. We have lessons for every art: movement, music, theater, visual arts, and language."
"Hn."
When they come on stage, they had changed their costumes. Arata was wearing black pants and a deep emerald tank top. Hikari's was just as startlingly simple after the white one. It was emerald, too, with clean straight lines. Hikari laid down on the floor. Arata stood over her, feet on either side of her hips and facing her legs.
The first drum pounded, their hands clasped, and he squated and swung. Their arms pulled taut and her body moved and held an arch as she came to be on a handstand. They held it there for far more than a couple of seconds, and then Hikari slowly and steadily arched even more. More than Kakashi had thought possible, and then she was resting one foot over their clasped hands, body forming a closed loop. She straightened out her other leg towards the ceiling. Kakashi could see only very faint trembling in their arms as they held steady.
One of the drums pounded louder, and as if that had been the signal, both of them drew one hand to their side, holding the position with just the other for support. Arata moved then, sliding to the floor while twisting. It showcased Hikari's pose in all angles while showing off the teenager's own flexibility. Finally, once he was in a split, they released their form and Hikari righted herself, feet on the ground once more.
This time, it was she who reached out a hand to help Arata up. He took it and then they were spinning and leaping towards opposing sides of the stage. Once there, they faced each other waited for another beat of a drum, building anticipation up, and then ran at one another. Before they crashed, Arata leapt as if he was one of the big cats, and Hikari... Hikari didn't move out of the way, didn't do one of those incredible arches she was capable of. She just leant her head back to admire the jump, fully trusting him to clear her entire height. A child squealed in delight before he was hushed up by the ones next to him.
They were off again, doing somersaults and aerial cartwheels, twisting and moving in sync from one end of the stage to the other, crossing each other effortlessly. Kakashi admired the skill it took for them to travel the same distance and with the same moves when they had such different heights.
In one of those passes, Hikari ended in the splits at the center of the stage with both of her hands in her front foot. Arata once again stood over her, feet on either side of her front leg. He clasped his hand over hers, holding her feet, and the other on her shoulder. He swung again, the hand of her shoulder releasing in the way and the other holding on. They paused once she was standing on his hand, her other leg still behind her in a split.
They formed one single vertical line. Arata flexed his arms and pushed up, making Hikari jump. In the air, Hikari straightened her torso and lowered her leg. Arata caught her feet, forearms flexed and hands near his shoulder. She was now standing upright, arms extended towards the sky. A preparation pose. She lowered them while flexing her knees and jumped, Arata helping her by pushing her feet away.
Hikari did two full twists in the air. In the middle of the third, when she was nearly on ground level, Arata caught her by her armpits. He squatted further so her face nearly touched the ground, arms extended at her sides and legs on either side of Arata's torso. The boy arched back as he came up from his squat, taking Hikari with him and releasing her at the highest point. She did another two and half turns, this ones backwards, and was caught once again once the boy turned a hundred and eighty degrees. On the third pass, she completed the third rotation and landed on her feet, with Arata only supporting with his hands on her extended arms.
They transitioned into some dancing moves, pirouetting and spinning before going into another one of those combos. They finished another round of tumbling, this one with both of them going the same direction and diagonal to the audience, so they saw them move in perfect tandem, looking more like one person than two. The beat of the drums got slower, and they held their last pose at center of the stage as the lights above them dimmed.
"Is it wrong to feel like anything after this will be a let down?" Chouji asked hesitantly.
"No," Ino answered.
"Yes," Shikamaru said at the same time.
They both turned and glared at each other.
"This was stunning."
"It was, but Hikari hasn't done her own specialties yet."
Akio chuckled. "You're both right. It was a stunning piece, and they've upped the bar for the discipline. Arata-kun showed complete mastery over his chosen apparatus and has done three numbers. He likely needs a break. Next is water, which is always in movement. Let us see Hikari-chan's."
The lights dimmed less than usual, and the aisles were still visible. Kakashi eyed them, and then the children who seemed to be nudging one another, but didn't say anything.
Beyond the dales and seated at the star's side, the human let the water soothe the aches from their travel.
Near the shoreline, an old woman drew her lover's profile in the sand. She regarded the portrait, lent down, and kissed their mouth. Her own tears erased the image. She stood up, drew her arm back and sent a bottle into the ocean, trusting the depths to safeguard the secret inside. She turned and stopped.
A young couple stood in the ocean, blushing and smiling to each other. It was a secret smile, of the kind that only those in love share. The woman's own lips drew back softly. The star marveled as her beauty was revealed, taking the eye away from the permanent tear marks stretching from her eyes and down her throat.
A pause, and then two files of children made their way through the spectators, stopping each row to pass down purple flowers.
Two children stopped by theirs. They were clearly siblings. The smaller one handed out single flowers, but the older one handed a pot, indicating it should be passed down to Ino, before they both took a seat on the aisle. She turned the pot around with shaking hands.
"Oh, Ino..." came Inoichi's soft whisper.
The girl let out a shaky laugh. "We became friends because of flowers, you know," she said to no one in particular.
"How come?" Yoshino asked, reaching out to pet the girl's hair.
"She came to me in a kunoichi class with my favorite sweets in hand and asked me to teach her about flowers, because they were a language, and Shikamaru had told her I already knew it."
And Kakashi could almost imagine it, a girl with braids in her hair finding out that there was a whole new language that she didn't know.
"And did she learn it?" Kotone asked.
"Yes. Purple orchids for admiration, stocks for beauty and affection, and hydrangea for sincerity and appreciation. All in my favorite color, too. She even played on the name. Hyrdangea, hydros, water. They require a lot of it, too," she smiled softly and then frowned. "Purple hydrangea also symbolize gratitude for being understood. She used the story, too. The one thing we've always butted heads over is love."
Shikamaru straightened. "What?"
"We were once walking from the Academy to the shop and came upon a public proposal. It was grand, and I thought it was the most romantic thing ever. Hikari was certain the woman was being blackmailed."
Kakashi blinked twice because that was quite a big misunderstanding.
"How come?" Shikaku rumbled out, lazy eyes belying his interest.
"Courtship is between those who enter it and no one else. It is not a performance; it cannot be a spectacle. It has to be sincere," Akio chimed in.
"Yeah, she said something like that. But the story about the woman, that we can both agree it is talking about love," she smiled softly and very carefully set down the pot between her feet.
They all turned back to the stage, where the singer was waiting for their attention to return to him.
A child crashed into the woman. She regained her bearings and made sense of her fall. A handful of kids had been racing each other to the sea, eager to submerge themselves in the cool temperatures after a day of playing under the sun. She reached down and drew the kid up, who grinned at her in apology and shook off the sand.
The human spoke to the star. 'More than half us is made of water. Life draws out of us tears, blood, and sweat.' The star nodded and kept watching. The kid's parents offered the woman a warm smile, and a vendor handed her an ice cream. Life, the star understood, changed humans. And there were some who gave out kindness even when life had taken from them. That, too, sent out a ripple.
The children stood up and handed out small bags filled with konpeito in every color of the rainbow. The one still waiting in their aisle handed them theirs while the second handed a bigger bag, nearly five times the size of the other ones, to Chouji.
Shikamaru smiled and patted his bewildered friend in the back, prompting him to accept it. "Because kindness is beautiful, too."
Chouji turned to him. "Shikamaru, how did you -."
"You two really need to notice when you're being overheard, you know."
Ino chimed in, "You handed her grapes. Now she's giving you sweets. Fitting."
Chouji smiled as he opened the bag and plunged his hand in.
Kakashi saw Sasuke finger his envelope. It had a giant "After #4" stamped on it. He smiled behind his mask. The children made their way back to their seats at the front.
The lights on the ailes dimmed until they once more saw the stage. Hikari was already there. She was wearing a regal, long-sleeved leotard with a very short skirt. It was sapphire blue, with rhinestones and crystals going from the shoulders and narrowing at the end.
She faced the audience with a hoop in her right hand. Kakashi settled on his seat, remembering she had told him it was her favorite. The music came on. It was soft and fluid, a sharp contrast to the percussion of Earth.
With her left hand, she drew her left leg straight up, forming a split while standing. She put the hoop in her foot. It moved around the arch even as she held every other part of her body still. She switched her grip on her leg and turned her hips. She was now in profile to the audience, her leg behind her in a straight line and the hoop still spinning. After a couple of seconds, she put her torso to her leg, hands on the floor. And then she shifted her balance to her hands. Keeping her legs in a split, she went into a handstand without wavering, legs now parallel to the ground. The hoop kept moving around her foot. Slowly, she lowered herself until her chest touched the ground. The leg with the hoop went straight up and the other went all the way to in front of her and beyond her head, body forming a loop. Kakashi winced. She went back to the handstand with splits.
Hikari bent the leg without a hoop and arched her back, going into a bridge with the other leg drawn straight up, still holding the hoop. The leg on the floor left the ground, showing off that it didn't actually hold any of her weight. She held the arch handstand effortlessly for a couple of seconds. She put her foot back again on the floor and shifted her weight to it at the same time she drew up. She was back on her starting position, leg up in a split and hoop spinning around her foot.
She drew the hoop off her hand and threw it up. More than eight meters up. Kakashi mused that the bridge wasn't above the stage not only to accommodate Arata's number, but Hikari's too. She turned while the hoop came down, and then did a front walkover. The hoop went into her hands and torso as she went down, got held by the arch of her back as her legs completed the walkover and back to her arms as she straightened.
Hikari threw it up again, doing a round-off and then moving into a somersault. The hoop came down. She trapped it with her tucked in body before continuing the somersault and landing cleanly, immediately going into a pirouette.
When she once again faced the audience, she put it on her waist and it spun as if she was doing hoola hoop, but without moving a centimeter more than she had to. She put her hands up. Someone behind her, and Kakashi would guess they were standing in the connection where the lights didn't hit them, threw a hoop at her. It went into her hands and then down to her waist. She made one of the hoops go down to her lower legs, the other still on her waist, her arms still straight up. The next thrown hoop landed on her hands. Hikari moved all the hoops to her waist and caught another one. And then she spun around the stage with the four hoops. As if she grew bored with them, she tossed them off, leaving her with only one. She glanced up just as a ribbon came flying from the connection, handle first. With the hoop held in her hands, she knocked the handle forwards so it went ahead of her with more momentum than it had been thrown. She then threw her hoop behind her. It caught the tail of the ribbon and knocked its course off once more. This time, it came back to her. She caught the handle, end first. The tail of the ribbon miraculously didn't tangle with the hoop, and Hikari now had her other apparatus in hand. The transition had been beautiful and fluid.
The violin and harp's notes came quicker, picking up their rhythm. Hikari did the same.
She turned, ribbon making waves and loops and curves. She pirouetted, one leg extended in front of her at a ninety degree angle and one arm ahead, drawing coils. Kakashi wondered how it didn't tangle with her foot or leg as she completed five turns. Coming out, she did five jumps, doing a circle around the stage with the ribbon under her legs on the leaps.
She pointed the handle straight up, which she'd told him not to do or it'd knot, drew coils into the air, and then released the handle straight up. The ribbon continued to spin around her body while her other hand caught it. She didn't pause, already sliding into chaînés and crossing to one end of the stage. Hikari put the handle down. She went into a walkover, grabbing the handle with her foot as she came up and throwing it forwards. It streaked to the other end of the circle. Hikari caught the tail and drew two wide circles in front of her before releasing it. The handle came back. Hikari caught it and threw it again. This time she did go after it, grabbing the handle in the highest point of a split jump.
She did some pirouettes, ending with her body facing the opposite side of the stage, and threw again. She followed doing one-handed cartwheels and not stopping. This time, she caught the handle while upside down in one of her cartwheels. When she came up from it, she did some spins to the other edge of the circle, faced the opposite end and threw one final time. She did several chaînés while following the satin before sliding into a split and catching the ribbon.
Hikari drew coils, the satin around her hiding her torso from view as she went backwards in an arch. She let the length of the ribbon around her waist settle and held the position a few beats after the music had come to a close.
The lights went off. Immediately, Kakashi faced the rhythmic expert, ready to snarl at him if he said something stupid.
Kakashi blinked. The man was facing the back of his seat, scrambling up with hasty grace and dropping in front of Akio. He leaned forwards and declared. "You're passing her. I don't care about the next three numbers, you're passing her."
When Akio remained silent, the expert grasped his shoulders and shook them. "You're passing her. Her discipline is rhythmic and yet she demonstrated balancing and minor contortion with the hoop. And then she added three more. She held four. Four."
"Hikari added minor tumbling, too. Rhythmic doesn't have round-offs or somersaults." The trampoline expert added, "She taught herself those with the hoop."
"Yes!" The expert stopped shaking Akio in favor of leaning closer to him. Kakashi thought if this happened in a shinobi clan, the poor expert would be down on the floor. Akio just leaned back slightly so they weren't so close. "And that switch to ribbon is not something taught in individual rhythmic. Even in group, it's one of the most challenging ones. And she did it. And then she went and did a near flawless routine with the ribbon. Did you see all the throws without visual control?"
"The pirouettes were good. No hopping, very minor trembling in some." The dancer added. "She ended with the music, too. Not one second off."
When the rhythmic expert made to shake him again, Akio threw back his head and laughed. The sound reminded him of Hikari. "I liked it, too, Ryu. Thank you for asking. Her skill shone through. It was a beautiful choreography and very well executed."
"Oh," Ryu blinked and looked at his hands. They were still on his Head's shoulders. He awkwardly patted them. "Good. Yeah. I'm just going to..."
He slid back into his seat, face red but a proud glint in his eye. Kakashi caught his eye and gave him a short nod.
Kakashi heard Sasuke's envelope tear and him unfolding the note. He leaned back a little and glanced over casually.
Sasuke-kun,
I asked you what Fire was to you, and your answer resonated with the Fire kyokuba-dan's.
As Masaru-senpai said in the beginning, this is our truth. Maybe some of it echoes yours.
If mom hasn't already done so, please ask her to explain the deal between the star and the human.
Your friend,
Hikari
Kakashi frowned. He'd thought its only function was to connect the five elements together. He sighed. If anything, this performance proved that Hikari layered meanings within meanings.
Sasuke hesitated before turning. He didn't say anything, instead waiting for Kotone notice him. A smart way of not having to address Kotone by name without honorific. If he were one of his ninken, Kakashi would give him a treat for it.
"Yes, Uchiha-san?"
"Hikari said I could ask you to explain the deal in the story."
Kotone's eyes went briefly to Sasuke's fingers clutching the envelope, but Sasuke didn't relinquish his hold. She then traded a glance with her husband, but he only shook his head. She turned back to Sasuke.
"I apologize. I assumed you understood what they were referring to. What do you," and her gaze included Team 10, "know about the formation of Fire's kyokuba-dan?"
There was silence and genin glancing at each other and back again. Shikamaru shifted. "Hikari said there was just one kyokuba-dan in the Warring States Period, and it broke off as the Hidden Villages were formed."
Kotone nodded, as if this was basic information. Which it wasn't, not to him. Kakashi wondered if this was something he skipped over by graduating in a year. But the leaders from the Ino-Shika-Cho clans were listening intently, so he guessed it was just history lost to shinobi. Kotone waited for Sasuke to shake his head before speaking up.
"It was a time of warfare, and we were nomadic. Your clans survived because they could defend themselves if they were attacked. How do you think the kyokuba-dan survived?"
"By not being attacked?" Ino said haltingly.
"Yes, but how did we ensure whoever thought of attacking would lose more than they'd gain from such an action?"
"With secrets," this came from Shikaku, his commander's gaze sharp and assessing.
Kotone nodded. "We held the secrets of all the countries, and we threatened to release them if they ever hired shinobi to attack us."
"You never dealt with shinobi secrets," Shikamaru figured out. "But by holding the ones of those who wielded shinobi as their weapons, you were protected."
Kotone grimaced. "Mostly."
She let the word hang heavily among them before picking up the thread.
"The dream of Konoha's founders was two-fold. For one, to be able to pick and choose what jobs they would take. For another, to protect their children. Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara came to the kyokuba-dan and explained their dream, knowing we were at our most ruthless when it came to protecting our lights."
'The vileness endangered our lights.' Kakashi remembered Hikari saying, and a shiver went down his spine. Hikari had been talking of children. Between the founding and now, something had made the kyokuba-dan retreat.
"We listened to their truths, and they offered us a deal. In exchange for going with them, for holding the balance, and offering our beauty, they'd give us their own beauty: protection and a home. A place to return to after tours, somewhere to educate and raise our children in peace."
It was a brilliant move, a triangle of checks and balances. The daimyo and court would hesitate to take action against shinobi because they protected those who held their secrets. If the shinobi went back on their deal, then the kyokuba-dan could strike back via the daimyo, and from what he'd heard of Hikari in Waves, the merchants and businessmen. In exchange, the daimyo's secret holders resided within his Land, affording him some measure of control. Three parties protected from the other two sides.
"The wandering star let itself fall," Shikamaru recalled. "You agreed, then."
"Yes. Some families saw the dream echoed in theirs and let themselves be tied down, made flesh."
"Were you allies?" Sasuke asked abruptly. "With the Uchihas."
"Not more and not less than with other clans." Kotone watched Sasuke sink down a little and added, "I think, at that time, we were both too proud, too wary, and too unwilling to explain our differences. We were cordial. But look around you, Uchiha-san. Today, a great part of the audience is shinobi. Hikari-chan is sharing with you our truths, our art. Things can change."
Sasuke nodded and turned back to the stage, sliding his envelope to one of his pockets. The lights dimmed.
It was fire that led them on, candles and lanterns lighting the way to the bonfire by the cliff. The star and guide settled down near the flickering flames and rubbed their hands together so warmth seeped into their bones.
The flames shone in all their glory and illuminated the dancers' linked hands. The blaze leapt and climbed up, a crackling and smoldering inferno. Blazing, growing, and beckoning closer. The hungry creature roared and devoured the dancers. It rolled them around its fire tongue and spit them out, exhaling out embers and sparks. The artists came out, clothes scorched and sending black smoke towards the sky but burning brighter than ever. They ignited the night as they moved, for the flames burned inside their skin. They were wildfire in their own right.
Passion lies inside all of us. Perhaps crackling playfully, maybe roaring and rampaging. Perhaps simmering, maybe eager to explode. Let your inspiration light the ever burning fire. Feed the flame's appetite and be consumed. Set yourself ablaze.
Do not giggle behind a dainty hand. Cackle with glee. Do not cry. Weep your sorrows.
Desire, instead of wishing. Leap, instead of jumping. Dance every step of the way.
Experience rapture.
Challenge yourself.
Love. Make that risky choice and be rewarded.
Create.
Be fierce, be tender, be curious.
Learn.
Grasp your choices, your dreams, and your passion in your hands. They are yours, and no one else's.
Make of it what you will.
The stage was illuminated again, and there was some sort of fabric hanging from the ceiling and to the stage, making a U with tails that hanged all the way down.
"You approved this, Akio!?" Kotone hissed.
"Yes."
"Our daughter is not an aerialist." And Kakashi liked her a little bit more. He had thought this would be one of Arata's again, leaving one more for Hikari and then finishing the seventh together. If the fabric meant the both of them... he didn't like it. Like Kotone, he, too, didn't want to see Hikari moving ten meters above ground. There wasn't even a net, like with the trapeze number.
"She isn't, and I promise I cleared every move we'll see even if I let them keep the choreography a secret. I discarded about half of their list, Kotone, and I made them change the apparatus," he reassured. "It's a modified cloud swing, with silk instead of soft rope. Even if something goes wrong, she'll have a chance to catch herself."
Kakashi liked Hikari's father less than before because that was not how you reassured someone. Even he knew that. Pakkun would be shaking his head. The man must have caught his wife's expression because he added, "They never thought they'd get to perform together. This is the only chance they'll get. They deserve to display everything they know, and Hikari-chan does know aerial and Hand to Hand."
"We did say he hadn't done cradle," Arata's mother remarked.
"Oh, no," Shikamaru turned to look at them with wide, horrified eyes. "I know what cradle is. You mean he's going to toss her from the swing."
"He'll also catch her," Arata's father added hurriedly as everyone mirrored Shikamaru's expression. "Don't worry, Kotone-sama, Shikamaru-kun, umm... everyone. He'll catch her. And the story is talking about passion, partnership, and bravery. What displays more trust than someone who didn't choose aerial arts being her partner's flyer?" Seeing he hadn't convinced anyone he slumped over a bit. "It's also starting. They're coming out now."
They came into view, on opposite sides of the stage, each walking until they were within arm's reach of one of the tails. They had changed outfits again, and both wore one-pieces. Kakashi had only seen Gai wearing a skin-tight unitard, and the difference from it to this was like night and day. Hikari's was mostly skin colored, with only red stripes running up her legs, around her torso and hips, and in a line up to her wrist. It looked like she was wearing nothing but strings of fire. Arata's was black, fading to deep garnet at the collar and with flames made of purple and red rhinestones decorating his arms.
Each grasped one of their tails and made their way up unhurriedly but in perfect symmetry. They did splits, and inversions, and small drops, and wrappings, and un-ravelings. They hung suspended from only their hands, from only the tail around their shoulders, from only small supports. They made shapes and traveled up with their bodies both horizontal and vertical to the ground. Finally, after one of their drops, they began to make their way up more quickly, pulling themselves up with their feet.
"Warn them, Akio!" Kotone ordered.
"What? Oh, yes. They're going to fall."
Kakashi's eye widened. Shikaku stood halfway up. Sasuke, Shikamaru, Ino, and Chouji froze. From one of the Naras closer to the stage, a shadow shot out, heading towards the stage.
"They're strapped in!" Kotone hurried to explain. "The fall is going to be controlled, but it'll look like they'll hit ground. They won't."
Shikaku sat down again. The genin unfroze. Kakashi breathed. Shikaku signaled and the shadow retreated.
"Yes. Sorry. I was watching how they wrapped, but Kotone's right. It's a simple one, even eight-year-olds do it. Just not from that height."
No one tore their eyes off of the two on stage. They had reached ultimate height and stood facing each other. And then they leapt backwards, bodies drawing an arc. An arc that stretched over nine meters down. No one breathed as they free-fell. Kakashi almost moved to the stage, until he saw the knot on their ankles. Sure enough, when they were a meter away from crashing into the ground head first, the silk pulled taut and they hung there suspended. Then they reached down to the remaining tail and twisted it so they were spinning. Because of the momentum, it wasn't only in their own axis, but also around each other. They reached out every now and again to link arms and spin together.
When they stopped, they diverged for the first time. Hikari's feet touched the ground while Arata quickly made his way up. He reached the cradle and sat there. He let himself fall until he swung upside down, the swing settling where his legs met his hips and his legs extended to the sides. He took Hikari's tail and gathered it all up until it made a U. Hikari moved up to the U and did an inversion, so she was laying face-down on it, body parallel to the ground. Arata gathered the silk up and Hikari's body twisted, going up until she could reach and grasp his hands. She released the tails, only danging from Arata's grip.
What proceded then was something Kakashi would try to banish from his memory. Seeing his student be tossed, caught, thrown again, caught one-handed, caught from her ankle and doing a split was not fun. It looked impressive, and Kakashi would have been impressed by the sheer bravery of the act if not for the fact that one of the artists was his student. Not even when she wasn't being hurled was it a gentle sight. Once, Hikari even hung parallell to ground, held up only by Arata's hold on her neck and and back of her thighs.
Finally, Hikari reached for one of the tails and Arata for the other. He quickly wrapped them around himself and proceded to do one twisting fall to the ground. Once he was standing away from the apparatus, Hikari pulled both of the tails together. She wrapped them around her torso until it the whole length was around her. She stood completely parallel to the stage floor and opened her legs wide, making them form one line. Her hand on her waist removed some of its pressure and then Hikari was travelling down the length of the silk, legs spinning like windmills. Finally, she reached the last meter and hooked the back of her knee over the silk to stop her descent. Arata reached for her, holding her in a princess carry.
It was a strangely gentle and safe pose to end with. It made the piece more striking. Hikari had trusted Arata, and the trust had been rewarded. She was safe and down in the ground once more.
The lights dimmed.
"Hikari once told me that aerialists were crazy and singers were scary," Shikamaru blurted out, face white. "I laughed and thought it troublesome, but Hikari has never lied to me. I should have known not to laugh."
Yoshino reached over and smacked him. "Shikamaru!"
The boy turned, embarrassed, to Arata's parents and Hikari's mom. "I apologize, I-"
Kotone waved her hand, brushing off the apology. "No need. We've heard Hikari's truth before."
Arata's parents nodded before reassuring, "We know aerial is not for everyone."
Shikamaru relaxed.
Akio leaned forwards. "Shikamaru-kun, Hikari-chan's immediate family is either an aerialist or a singer." Kakashi realized that both couples thought their kids were as good as siblings. "Except me. What other truths has she shared?"
The boy fidgeted.
"Am I the only sane one?" Hikari's father was almost preening, clearly smug.
Everyone turned to look at Shikamaru. He turned to look at Kotone, who nodded and smiled ecouragingly. "Ah, she said you had chosen to marry a singer, which made you the craziest of them all."
There was a beat of silence. Two. And then the experts, Kotone, and Arata's parents were laughing hysterically. Akio looked very put-off.
"You married a singer," Arata's father gasped out. "And the best thing you can do is 'They're going to fall'?"
"It's a wonder Kotone-sama hasn't filed for a divorce," Arata's mother teased. "No respect for Language."
Akio groaned. Kakashi turned his attention back to his own row.
"How can there be another two numbers?" Ino asked. "They've done all their specialties, dance, and aerial. What else can there be left? They've completed the elements. What do you think, Shikamaru?"
Shikamaru shook his head. "I don't know."
"I think I do," Shikaku said lazily from behind him. "We told Hikari there were seven transformations. We've seen five."
Realization dawned upon the genin.
"Yang and yin," Chouji pointed out.
"But what else can they do?" Ino asked. Kakashi wanted to know the same thing. Hikari had done three numbers back to back. What else could they do?
Shikaku shrugged. The lights dimmed.
The sun shined brightly once more when the star decided to speak up.
'I have listened to your words and traversed your lands. You have upheld your part of the bargain and have yet to state your wish. What can I give you that you couldn't otherwise get?'
The human smiled and told the star it was now its turn.
The star was confused. Its turn to do what?
'To create, of course!' The human answered. 'I've shown you my truths. We are made of the elements: breath, instincts, flesh, sweat, and soul. When you add motion, what do you get?'
The star looked up at the sky and pondered it. What came with movement and before creation?
Chaos.
It was in the midst of chaos that potential was born. It was in its throes that change arose.
You had to dip into the uproar, the turbulence, the unrealized, and the confusion of sheer potentiality to emerge with something new.
Chaos. Sinuous elegance. Raw dissonance. Powerful vibrancy. Mysterious contortion. Irregular clamors. Secret reflections. Cacophony. Generation. Asymmetry. Friction. Chaos.
The star looked at its hands, its body, its medium, and moved until the night fell.
Instead of illuminating the stage, the lights went out. Kakashi couldn't see anything, but he could hear some of the kids moving around, whispering excitedly. It only took a minute for the lights to come back up, illuminating the stage and the bridge. Kakashi scanned the first rows. Fifteen kids were missing.
When the music started, a veritable explosion of music and instruments, Kakashi saw why. His student and her partner were nowhere to be found, but the fifteen missing kids and teenagers were up there.
Kakashi had trouble knowing where to look. Until now, the narration, the lights, and the artists themselves let you know where your attention should be. But now, the stage was busy.
People were leaping over one another, groups doing circles that crossed and interchanged people. The littlest kids were doing cartwheels while expertly moving around the other people to avoid crashing. The teenagers were doing a spectacle of walking, sprinting and racing each other while in handstands.
Pairs were practicing throws or balancing one on the other. Trios were spinning in sync. Kakashi found that if you didn't actually focus on one particular group, then you could see they had a strange pattern as a group. The positions on stage formed shapes. Simple spirals, a trifecta of circles, a perfect square, a handful of triangles, etc.
And then they came onto the bridge. Hikari was wearing a purple leotard with a short skirt. Arata was wearing black pants and lined purple mesh. Both had spirals of rhinestones dusting the fabric. Instead of joining the fast pace of the ones below, they moved to a single instrument of all of the ones that were playing. It was measured but unpredictable, stopping when it did and starting up with it again. It was sharp when every number before had been spun to merge one move with the next. Kakashi noticed that, when they did move, they were doing more complicated versions of what went on underneath them.
The beat wound down. The fifteen merged, the youngest six in two pyramids while the rest were in the middle crafting a much more complicated structure. Hikari and Arata had frozen above. The oldest arranged themselves as bases, and it slowly took shape. It was a half-finished triangle, the top nowhere to be seen. And then Arata and Hikari pulled themselves up to stand in the railings. Arata stood in the center of the stage, above everyone, and made room for Hikari between his legs. He grasped one of the support beams overhead. Hikari turned so she faced the audience, put her arms up, and took one step forward. She fell. Arata caught her hand with one of his, the other hanging on for support. Hikari opened her legs to the sides wide but not in a split.
Kakashi's brain put the picture together. Although Hikari and Arata were all the way to the back of the stage, they were in perfect position to finish the picture. Hikari's legs formed the widest part of a triangle, followed by her torso and then her hands clasped together and in one of Arata's. She was the top of the pyramid, and Arata was literally putting her on top. They held the position there as the song stopped.
The lights dimmed but the ones on stage didn't disappear, letting the artists see what they were doing as they came down from their pyramids.
"So, this is where the favors were going," the dancer mused.
"This was stunning. Most of the moves they came up with together and taught were there," the trampoline expert said, matter-of-factly.
"You're just glad your discipline was represented," rhythmic shot out.
"Of course. You hoped yours was, too."
The rhythmic expert shook his head. "Not really. I know this was supposed to be about chaos, but it would be a disaster to put rhythmic or aerial apparatus on that number."
The experts paused to imagine it and grimaced.
"Adding the kids was genius. They embody potential."
"I don't think this was Hikari-chan's choreography," Kotone mused.
"It was trick after trick," Arata's mother agreed.
"Arata did this one," his father concluded.
Kakashi glanced at the sound of an envelope ripping. It was Shikamaru. Kakashi's sharp eyes caught 'Before the last number' and he almost snorted. Trust Hikari to not even give away how many numbers there would be.
Shikamaru unfolded his note and stopped. He then looked for something else in the envelope before drawing back.
"What does Hikari say? I really don't know what else they can possibly do."
"Nothing."
"Shikamaru!" Ino complained loudly. "Tell us!" She demanded.
"Literally nothing, Ino." He showed her the blank page.
Confusion started turn into disappointment.
"Shikamaru-kun," Kotone called out, voice gentle and soft. "Perhaps she hoped the next number would say everything there is to say."
He didn't look very convinced, glancing halfheartedly at the envelope again, looking for something he'd missed.
"I know what the next number is," Kotone added. Everyone but her husband turned to look sharply at her. "It is the one they've spent the most time planning. More than two months, even. It's also the one she's most worried of how it's going to be received. Perhaps that's why she couldn't find words. She's of Movement, yes? She'll show you instead."
She then turned to Shikaku. "They mean no offence, and I personally think it's a stunning piece. Just know it's meant as evocation and not imitation."
Shikaku frowned but nodded, clearly not understanding her meaning but willing to keep it in mind.
The lights dimmed and Masaru came on stage.
The star panted heavily, exhausted but proud. It leaned against the human and steadied its breathing, taking every new inhale slowly before releasing it into the still night.
'Is it done?' the human's voice asked.
The star looked at their art and frowned. 'No. It's missing something.'
The human smiled gently. 'Some pieces are never fully complete.' They stood up, dusted their clothes off, and bid them farewell. 'I hope we'll meet again someday.'
'You're leaving? But it's not finished! I haven't granted your wish.'
'Of course you have. I have now seen just what a star can create. That was my wish. Like I said, it is now your turn. Continue to create under the light of the moon. Go where your spirit takes you, even into the unknown. Polish your craft. Seek knowledge, unearth truths. Put dark ink into blank pages and song into silence. Dream under the starry skies. Sleep soundly, sleep calmly, sleep safely in the gentle night. With sunlight creation started, and by moonlight it will continue. Farewell.'
And so he left.
The star, now made human, stood alone on the rooftop. She turned to her art and softened its curves, honed its edges until they were razor-sharp. She pulled the pieces together into one cohesive unit, made it flexible so it could endure, and breathed intention into it. Calm settled into her and, tired, she made to rest, face turned towards the night sky.
And so once more a human laid down on a rooftop and wished upon a star.
Masaru allowed the words to drift, the story coming to a close and closing the cycle. Kakashi thought he'd leave the stage, let the final number continue, but his voice came once more. It was less melodic but no less powerful. No longer a bard, but an artist giving a warning.
From chaotic night the stars are born, and behind every star a dream hides.
This is the truth as we know it, the truth of our world. Perhaps you hold it, too. Or perhaps, to you, this is the truth of a world of make-believe. He smiled softly, dark red dusted with gold stretching and giving life to his features. But what wonderful world that would be. Its only limit is the fear that chains imagination down. His smile turned sharper, the red ressembling blood rather than a rose. "Let us not forget. A muse is not a gentle force, and it demands to be set free.
The lights went once more completely out, but this time they didn't go on again. Instead, a screen was erected down from the bridge. A light shone behind that, making the screen the only thing they could see. They all saw the point when the music, a sweet and slow piece in only piano, started and a dancer came in. They could only see her silhouette. It was a young girl, or at least she made a small figure on the screen. She was pirouetting or just spinning with her arms out. Her movements were clumsy, as if she were still learning how to move with complete control over her body.
Behind her, other people and came into the scene. Some joined their silhouettes and formed buildings, others merely drifted in and out of the scene dancing, walking, or doing some sort of trick. Kakashi realized he was looking at the kyokuba-dan. How clever, to create the stage, the actors, and the props with their own bodies. They rolled out, revealing the secret of how they had achieved it.
Another group of dancers rolled in and settled their bodies into the shapes of trees. A forest. A boy came into scene, hair pulled back like the Nara's typically did. Kakashi blinked, realizing what Kotone had meant. Hikari had left no note with Shikamaru, choosing instead to show them meeting each other, becoming friends, and going to the Academy together with plays of silhouettes. With shadows.
The dancers did the sweet story of two kids becoming best friends, sometimes getting angry at each other and sometimes waiting for the other to be able to play incredible justice. They rolled in, made the shapes, held them to tell the snapshot of the story, and then rolled out, showing just how they had created the scene with their bodies. It involved positioning, clothes being pulled, and odd balancing.
It was a beautiful gesture to the Nara clan. Through movement and art they told the story. But they were also using shadows. Kotone's comment now made sense. It was really being told with silhouettes but evoking their family's technique.
Finally, the friends graduated and the piano wound down. The screen went dark, but the piano still played although very very softly.
Shikaku made to say something.
Kotone hushed him with a whisper of 'Not yet.'.
The screen lighted up again. On one side was a circle. Inside of it, a braid was being woven. On the other side stood a group of people. They shifted and suddenly they, too, were forming a symbol. The Nara symbol. Not the simple version, but a circle with multiple lines curving inside it. They held their positions as the piano stopped.
The emblem of the Nara clan shifted, people retreating until it was only one vertical line inside of the circle. The lights didn't dim one last time. With the emblems still in place, the screen started to lift. Arata stood sideways, arm crossing his body so his wrist could draw a circle with a ribbon similar to Hikari's, creating the circle around him.
The kyokuba-dan's own circle was actually an aerial hoop, the braid woven with aerial silks. Hikari was inside, laying on the hoop, her profile to them. Her torso and legs curved back to follow the curve of the hoop and not disrupt the circle's silhouette. It looked like an upside-down bridge, her arms back and holding onto the hoop.
Once the screen was up, they both released their poses and made their way to the center of the stage.
The ones from the previous number joined them on stage, followed by who he could only assume had been the silhouettes in the final number, and, finally, Masaru. He handed Hikari and Arata a microphone. The whole group bowed or curtsied and then left the pair on stage.
They stepped forward.
"Those who have come before us have told beautiful tales on stage," Arata stated. "We hope to have done them justice."
Hikari continued, "Those who will come after us will tell beautiful stories on stage. It is our wish to continue to help them pave their own way."
Together, they addressed them one last time. "We thank you for allowing us to show you our world."
They bowed, and the curtain came down.
Silence reigned and then Kotone stood up and started clapping. As if that were the signal, applause rang out. Kakashi made his way to his feet. Every row stood up. He turned. Shikamaru was nearly in tears, but no one was saying anything to him. Chouji just patted him in the back and offered him some chips. Ino clutched her pot between her elbow and body so she had her arms free to clap. Even Sasuke was standing.
"Kakashi-san." Kakashi turned to Hikari's father. "How did she do, in your opinion?"
He blinked. "Excuse me?"
"We're putting our deliberation together. Not that there's anything in doubt at this point, but still. Your voice should be heard. You're her sensei, after all."
"Ah." He paused, not knowing what to say. "I didn't know even half of the things I saw were possible. I didn't know she could do what she did today."
Akio smiled wide. "That's the point of a kyokuba-dan performance. Thank you for the high praise."
He, Kotone, and the experts strode backstage.
Kakashi shifted his weight and followed the crowd as everyone started to head out of the building.
Once outside, Kakashi saw it was nearing dusk. The path they had walked to the building was illuminated with tiny fairy lights. He smiled. He thought it was Hikari's doing, making sure the beauty didn't end with the final number, but until you stepped outside the kyokuba-dan.
Before long, Hikari and Arata came out, still in their last costume. The first one to make it to them was actually Shikamaru, which surprised Kakashi. He hadn't known any Nara could move that quickly. He managed it, though, nearly making his friend crash to the ground with the force of his hug. From his position, Kakashi couldn't hear what he said, but Hikari was smiling and hugging him back. Ino and Chouji respectfully stood back as Shikaku and Yoshino congratulated the performers warmly. Yoshino even tugged Hikari into a hug, which the girl returned after a moment of shock. Then she was passed to Shikaku, who gave her a brief embrace before passing her over to Ino. The couple made their way over to where Kakashi and Sasuke were standing. They all watched the blonde pull Hikari into a very uncomfortable-looking hug, as the pot was still being clutched by Ino. Chouji smiled widely at her and congratulated her.
"You're Hikari-senpai's sensei!" A childish voice rang out. He looked down. A little girl in a pink costume stared up at him, violet hair contrasting against her skin. Was she Arata's sister?
"I am," he remarked haltingly.
"Are you of Theater?"
Kakashi blinked. "Excuse me?"
"Masks are Theater's symbol. Is that why you choose to wear a mask off stage?"
Kakashi remained silent, too stunned and miserable as he heard Shikaku's choked off laugh.
The child continued, un-bothered by his silence. "Or maybe you think the whole world is a stage!"
Yoshino slapped Shikaku's chest, trying to get him to quiet down.
"Aimi-chan," Hikari's familiar voice greeted as she came to stand behind her, grin in her face and a sparkle in her eyes. Kakashi was glad she was here. Now he could just congratulate her and leave before he killed his commander by ridicule. "I don't think Kakashi-sensei sees life as a play. He's told me it's a road."
Maybe he wasn't so glad she was here, now that he thought about it.
"A road!?" the girl exclaimed, peering up at him as if he was the most interesting thing she'd seen today. "And what do you do in it? Do you walk it? Do you run it?"
"He gets lost," Sasuke drawled, arms crossed over his chest.
Kakashi decided Naruto was his favorite genin.
The girl stopped bouncing. "Lost? You need to stay in place if you get lost and there's no one around to ask for a way home," she said with all the authority and wisdom a child her age could muster. "And someone will come find you!"
Finally, his student interrupted. "Aimi-chan, it's Kakashi-sensei's choice, right? What would you do with your road?"
The child pondered it for all two seconds. "I'll cartwheel it!"
"That sounds great. Arata is over there, if you want to cartwheel to him."
The child waved up at him, apparently not put off by him only saying four words in their conversation. "Bye, Hikari-senpai's sensei! Bye, Hikari-senpai's teammate!" And then she was off, heading for the lavender-haired boy.
"That wasn't very nice, Hikari-chan," Kotone reprimanded.
Kakashi felt a bit vindicated until he realized she was staring at the upcoming reunion. The little girl did indeed cartwheel up to Arata, and then she launched herself at him. Not expecting the attack, tired, and a civilian, the teenager went down.
"I can't feel my arms, mom, and I'm blaming Arata. He chose aerial, after all."
"Hikari-chan," Yoshino interrupted. "We thought something like this would happen, so we brought you something."
She handed out two presents. Kakashi's eyes narrowed. Hikari hadn't said he needed to bring one. Did he have to?
Hikari beamed before calling out for Arata. He made his way over, no add-on clinging to him.
"Hatake-san, Uchiha-san, thank you for coming," He inclined his head before turning to the Nara couple. He and Hikari reached out for the boxes and opened them. They were jars with anti-inflammatory inside.
"Thank you!" Hikari beamed. She turned to her partner. "This stuff is great. It means no ice bath."
"Thank you," Arata bowed and then made his excuses, heading over to his parents again.
Hikari turned back to him and Sasuke, more serious now.
Kakashi put a hand on the top of her head. "Great job, Hikari. I had never seen something like it. Thank you for the invitation."
She beamed, eyes sparkling and smile stretching her mouth. "Thank you, Kakashi-sensei. For coming. For listening. For everything."
Kakashi eye-smiled, uncomfortable. Seeming to sense this, she turned to Sasuke.
"I'm really glad you came, Sasuke-kun. Thank you."
Sasuke nodded. "You invited me."
Hikari continued to smile. "What did you think of it?"
The boy took his time answering. Finally, he settled on, "It was elegant."
Hikari's eyes widened and she reached out to Sasuke's shoulder, pulling him to her. It was more a sharing of space and a press of shoulders than a hug. "Thank you."
Sasuke nodded again and moved back after a moment. He put his hand on his pockets.
Kakashi put his hand in Hikari's head again. "We'll see you tomorrow, alright, Hikari? Don't be late."
"Yes, Kakashi-sensei."