[Hatake Suzume]

Indigo eyes snapped open. Again. What was this... the fourth time? With a sigh, Suzume rolled over onto her side, looking out the window of her bedroom at the crescent moon. No matter what she tried, she just couldn't find sleep consistently. There were nights, of course, where she rested peacefully until the morning birds stirred her from sleep, but more often than not she'd lie awake with her eyes boring holes into the ceiling until her father called her down for breakfast. Deciding that there was no use in trying to sleep again straightaway, the Hatake slipped out from the warmth of her covers, stretching as she stood up.

Suzume quickly changed out of her comfy cotton pajamas and into her standard shinobi attire: dark, Konoha green clothes, and of course her flak jacket and tantos. She almost never left home without her weaponry, even when the situation was meant to be casual. There was comfort in having her father's tantos with her, and it wasn't like her profession dictated she not carry pointy objects on her person, quite the opposite actually. Once she was fully geared up, she quietly slid her window open, hopping out and landing as quiet as a cat before making a beeline for the clan compound's walls. With a bit of chakra in her feet, she scaled them with ease, pulling herself over and landing on the other side just as quietly as before.

Now free to roam the mostly empty streets of Konohagakure, Suzume found herself as a bit lost as to why she had come out here. Being stuck at home felt suffocating, but being out of it made her feel vulnerable. Without a real plan in mind, she simply began walking down the road, simply enjoying the cool night air with her head held high. Admittedly, it was nice to walk the streets without the constant stress of being looked at. Maybe she needed to do this night walk thing more often.

Nara Satoshi

[Nara Satoshi]

This is so troublesome But I guess I’ll do it.

Satoshi could only release a pleased sigh as he moved past the village gates. It did result in receiving a boisterous pat on the back and a laugh from the Inazuka that had joined him on the mission they were returning from. Since it was so late already their team leader had decided that only she would report about the mission and that individual reports could wait till tomorrow.

With her going on ahead the nara would exchange a few more words before his other teammate and his dog finally split up to return to their own clan compound.

Now finally on his own Satoshi rolled his shoulder a bit before groaning as the action pulled slightly at the bruised muscle there. His appearance was over all somewhat disheveled showing clearly that it hadn’t been exactly a clear cut mission.

His usual shinobi attire had cuts and tears in some places and patches that appeared somewhat singed. There was also a bit of soot left in his hair so over all the nara really couldn’t wait to go home and get a shower.

He had just begun roof hopping when he sensed a familiar signature not too far from him. By now he was well aware of her problems with insomnia but usually she didn’t actually roam the village. After a few moments of mulling he twisted on his foot and changed directions.

He was already awake and close by so might as well check up on her and see if she wanted the company. Both of his teammates were troublesome in their own ways but he tried to butt in and aid in his own way where he could.

This would be one of these cases as he did worry about Suzume. While it would have been weird to either bring up the matter of her not getting enough sleep out of the blue too frequently or just knock on her door in the dead of night things had actually lined up tonight so Satoshi would take advantage of it.

After a few moments he would reach a roof top a bit ahead of the Hatake and would jump down from it and on to the road itself. Making his approach as obvious as he could to her and rising a hand in greeting Satoshi would call out.

"Yo. What a coincidence, fancy meeting you here Suzume.”

Of course it was obvious it wasn’t a coincidence at all and she would probably know it as well. Still he sent a small lazy grin her way as he closed the distance and spoke.

"Nice weather we are having.”

A really bad attempt at a joke and opening for a conversation but he couldn’t exactly open up with heavy topic or think of anything more interesting at the moment.

---

SA:

SPOILER: Click to show

Kagura Shingan [Kagura Mind's Eye]
After exploring his innate sensory abilities and thanks to his perfect chakra control Satoshi was able to unlock the Kagura Shingan. This ability allows him to find, sense, and track individuals through their chakra over vast range that exceeds ten kilometers. His able to achieve this effect by focusing and opening his mind's eye, though due to the low chakra cost Satoshi is able to keep it active passively at all times (Range is 15km) and increase the range even more with the use of the jutsu(25km). The ability also extends to telling when a person is lying from the fluctuations in a person's chakra made from dishonest emotions or detecting if someone, including him, is under a genjutsu. Also by focusing on a particular chakra, Satoshi can perceive its location and movement with great detail allowing him to track the movements of even those that are faster than him.

Hatake Suzume

OWL

[Hatake Suzume]

Suzume slowly relaxed more and more as she strolled down the street, feeling a bit more confident in herself as she continued on. She felt comfortable being alone out in the dead of night, so she hadn't noticed Satoshi up on the rooftop of a nearby building, but his landing certainly gave her a start. Seeing a person suddenly appear down the road in front of her caused her to instinctively react, stance hunching down and hand moving to rest on the hilt of one of her tanto. She recognized Satoshi immediately though, moving her hand away from her weapon but still remaining in her usual slouched posture. Suzume returned the greeting with half-raised wave of her own, head tilting slightly as the Nara humorously brought up the weather.

"Uhm, yes it is kinda nice out tonight... did you just come back from a mission?"

Satoshi's beat up appearance hadn't gone unnoticed by the Hatake's sharp eyes, and she wondered why he had gone out of his way to come speak to her in the state that he was. She knew the answer to her question already, so she spoke up again, some suspicion and concern finding its way into her tone.

"Shouldn't you be making your report? Or at least... you should probably rest up if you're putting it off 'til morning."

The purple-haired shinobi's mind was already imagining the worst. What other reason would Satoshi go out of his way to meet her than to berate her for something? Maybe she had missed a summons to a mission, the one he just returned from? The night air didn't seem to be pleasantly cool anymore, feeling much more chilling as a shiver ran down her spine.

[Nara Satoshi]

This is so troublesome But I guess I’ll do it.

It was always possible to get that kind of reaction out of her but Satoshi nonetheless had to withhold a sigh as he saw Suzume withdraw into herself. They really had to work on that didn’t they. His grin would soften somewhat as his posture shifted a bit more in order to appear more relaxed and casual to her.

The reason for that was that the nara was pretty sure he could guess what was going through her head so it was better to show off an air and image that was more soothing and hopefully disarming. Of course that would probably only work partly but every bit was helpful in the presentation.

"Yeah entered thought the gates a few minutes ago actually. Since it was so late personal reports were schedule for tomorrow.”

Pausing to throw in a casual shrug of shoulders that did make him wince a bit internally he prepared to shift the topic to dissuading Suzume out of whatever negative mindset she was most likely settling in.

"I noticed you out and about and decided that since I’m already up might as well drop by and check up on you, see how you are and if you need the company. I know you have trouble with sleep sometimes so it seemed like a good opportunity I can be helpful with in some way even if it’s just giving you a partner to chat whit or just to hang out with. Of course if you don’t want to I can just go and let you be.”

It was a bit mean to end with that and Satoshi didn’t really want to use it because he knew by saying that he probably made her unable to deny or would at very least cause her great discomfort to do so. It was in most cases necessary though to use her bad habits of following along against her in order to be helpful or at least the nara saw it that way. It left bad taste of his mouth of course but for now it was needed.

Not wanting to just endlessly circle that line of thought and steer away from it Satoshi would ask.

"Any direction you were going in or were you just going where your feet were taking you?”

---

SA:

SPOILER: Click to show

Kagura Shingan [Kagura Mind's Eye]
After exploring his innate sensory abilities and thanks to his perfect chakra control Satoshi was able to unlock the Kagura Shingan. This ability allows him to find, sense, and track individuals through their chakra over vast range that exceeds ten kilometers. His able to achieve this effect by focusing and opening his mind's eye, though due to the low chakra cost Satoshi is able to keep it active passively at all times (Range is 15km) and increase the range even more with the use of the jutsu(25km). The ability also extends to telling when a person is lying from the fluctuations in a person's chakra made from dishonest emotions or detecting if someone, including him, is under a genjutsu. Also by focusing on a particular chakra, Satoshi can perceive its location and movement with great detail allowing him to track the movements of even those that are faster than him.

Hatake Suzume

OWL

[Hatake Suzume]

Satoshi explained that the personal reports were moved to be given in the morning, considering the late hour and all, as well as expanding on how their meeting was no coincidence. He revealed that he simply wanted to come check up on the Hatake, putting the burden of his company in her hands with some clever wording. The Nara knew how to pull Suzume's strings, it was only natural after spending so much time with her, and she somewhat suspected this, but it didn't change how she felt, shaking her head and reassuring Satoshi that she didn't mind his presence.

"Um, no it's fine... if you want to walk with me I don't mind..."

Hook, line, and sinker. As distasteful as it was for Satoshi to take advantage of her meekness, it was paradoxically a step in the right direction, the woman resuming her walk and bringing herself more in line with the younger man as they walked, a simple question coming from his lips as they enjoyed the night air together. She cocked her head as she considered it, actually a bit unsure if she was being completely honest. Subconsciously, she had been visualizing one of Konoha's training grounds as she walked, though she wouldn't say she had been heading there.

"I guess, a bit of both, really. For some reason, even during the day, I find myself gravitating towards the training field, even though I don't always mean to be there..."

In the same unconscious way, Suzume began falling in step with where Satoshi was headed, matching his pace whenever he sped up or slowed down, and just generally letting him lead the way.

[Nara Satoshi]

This is so troublesome But I guess I’ll do it.

As always it left a bit of a bitter aftertaste to manipulate his teammate like that but Satoshi couldn’t say he wasn’t getting used to it after having to resort to it as often as it was needed. That wasn’t good of course or what he wanted but as it usually happened that sort of dour thinking was pushed further back into his mind and bottled until a later time when he could properly reflect on it.

"I’ll keep you company then Suzume.”

Following saying that he would just grin in the direction of the Hatake with a small amount of the tiredness he felt allowed to underline the expression. It too was manufactured so it could only be assumed it was due to the mission exhaustion and short enough to just point to that. After all he didn’t want her to assume something negative or at least too much that it would make harder for him to salvage than it was usually expected.

Some leftover tension was starting to leave the nara’s shoulders though as they walked alongside one another and the fact he was in the village proper fully settled in. A slight hum escaped him as he thought on what Suzume had shared. His eyes would briefly move to focus on her before redirecting themselves to gaze at the night sky.

"Well I can understand that. Sometimes I’m starting to think my life has been taken over by that training field. That and missions as well. When I’m not meeting people I drift there or run a mission. Honestly thirteen-year-old me would have been appealed by this.”

A short chuckle would accompany the end of his sentence while Satoshi rolled his bruised shoulder again. Even now when he was trying to just walk aimlessly he could mentally see that the path they were taking would eventually lead to a training field. In a way he could have let it be but instead he would focus on an actual destination.

Eventually following the road would turn them in the opposite direction of where they had been initially walking to and deeper into the village. No doubt Suzume would be able to guess by herself that Satoshi was slowly leading them towards the Hokage Mountain even if he didn’t say it.

"Sometimes I feel like I’ve changed so much yet so little from the time I graduated.”

Maybe it was because he was tired or that it was peaceful but Satoshi kind of ended up blurting out the last part as they walked, his gaze still mostly on to the night sky.

---

SA:

SPOILER: Click to show

Kagura Shingan [Kagura Mind's Eye]
After exploring his innate sensory abilities and thanks to his perfect chakra control Satoshi was able to unlock the Kagura Shingan. This ability allows him to find, sense, and track individuals through their chakra over vast range that exceeds ten kilometers. His able to achieve this effect by focusing and opening his mind's eye, though due to the low chakra cost Satoshi is able to keep it active passively at all times (Range is 15km) and increase the range even more with the use of the jutsu(25km). The ability also extends to telling when a person is lying from the fluctuations in a person's chakra made from dishonest emotions or detecting if someone, including him, is under a genjutsu. Also by focusing on a particular chakra, Satoshi can perceive its location and movement with great detail allowing him to track the movements of even those that are faster than him.

Hatake Suzume

OWL

[Hatake Suzume]

Offer of company was accepted and Satoshi confirmed, the two shinobi gently weaving their way through the quiet streets of Konoha. Suzume's answer to the question seemed to strike a chord with the exhausted Nara, to which the purple-haired woman nodded, not quite in empathy, she didn't feel the same way, but in understanding. She couldn't imagine what she'd do if she wasn't a shinobi, and the thought of a purpose-less life even frightened her a bit. Their movements continued to carry them along the path towards the aforementioned training field, Suzume more than content to remain silent, though Satoshi soon steered them in another direction. It was immediately obvious where they were headed to, but she had no qualms with this destination either, head turning towards the younger male as he blurted out one more thing. She was silent for another few moments as she chewed on that thought, trying to determine if she felt the same way, but it ended with her shaking her head.

"I... feel differently. I feel as though I haven't changed at all over all these years, but... I wish I could."

Satoshi had offered up some of his own vulnerability, and so she returned the favor, turning away from her team leader right after saying her piece. They were comrades, sure, but she wasn't all that confident in divulging any more of her innermost thoughts, at least not of her own accord. But, her curiosity had been somewhat piqued by his earlier comment, and she hooked back to that instead, returning his gaze to the Nara and hesitantly asking a question of her own.

"What other sort of things did thirteen-year-old Satoshi have his mind set on?"

[Nara Satoshi]

This is so troublesome But I guess I’ll do it.

Still mostly watching the night sky Satoshi lips would twitch a bit mirthlessly and he couldn’t help but quip.

"Changing oneself is as easy as it’s hard.”

It was a weird and somewhat contradictory statement that the nara had internalized and reached a while ago when he had dwelled on the question. In his opinion it was harder for a person to change oneself willingly and by actively trying than doing so without realizing it or by outside means influencing the change. Not that it was impossible just harder to achieve by oneself.

He of course didn’t voice or expand more on the statement unless a lot of attention from his companion was given to it. He didn’t want to get too philosophical with it. That was also a bit too pessimistic for his tastes though and for the current situation so he was quick to add on.

"You are steadfast though Suzume so I’m sure if you keep on trying you’d mange to achieve the change you desire. Trust the analyses of the nara on that.”

Now that seemed like a more positive message that while laying it on a bit wasn’t too thick and shouldn’t make the Hatake deny or dismiss it too hard or imply her tries are fruitless. His expression would lighten somewhat at the question she asked and at the mental image he had of himself at that age.

"Well thirteen old me wanted to be left to laze around and read books all day everyday if possible besides the normal social obligations. Of course there was also a girl that he had the biggest crush on at the time and couldn’t take his eyes off. Heh honestly….”

Shaking his head as he finished saying that Satoshi would just continue taking them towards their final destination. The roads only appeared as empty not only due to the early hour but also because the few people that could have been encountered the nara made sure to avoid by taking another route or a roundabout way.

Without much issue and unless Suzume herself interrupted or redirect them the duo would easily reach the Hokage mountain where the nara would settle on the head of the third Hokage only because he knew it actually had one of the better sitting spots and view than any real preference or like for the person.

"What about you Suzume. What was thirteen old you like?”

A question more to bridge things along and also somewhat a breather just in case something of heavier nature was tackled again afterwards.

---

SA:

SPOILER: Click to show

Kagura Shingan [Kagura Mind's Eye]
After exploring his innate sensory abilities and thanks to his perfect chakra control Satoshi was able to unlock the Kagura Shingan. This ability allows him to find, sense, and track individuals through their chakra over vast range that exceeds ten kilometers. His able to achieve this effect by focusing and opening his mind's eye, though due to the low chakra cost Satoshi is able to keep it active passively at all times (Range is 15km) and increase the range even more with the use of the jutsu(25km). The ability also extends to telling when a person is lying from the fluctuations in a person's chakra made from dishonest emotions or detecting if someone, including him, is under a genjutsu. Also by focusing on a particular chakra, Satoshi can perceive its location and movement with great detail allowing him to track the movements of even those that are faster than him.

Hatake Suzume

OWL

[Hatake Suzume]

Paradoxical statements seemed to be something that Satoshi favored, though Suzume was used to it by now. That wasn't to say she really understood what he meant when he said them, but she had stopped questioning it long ago. His next words were given more of a reaction to though, the light positive message bring a rare smile to the woman's face. She didn't really trust her own judgements when it came to most things, but if Satoshi said that he thought she was capable of change, well, that made it much easier for her to believe. Smile faded just as quickly as it came however, the indigo eyes turning skywards themselves to admire the sight while Satoshi expanded on the thoughts and dreams of his younger self. She could relate heavily to the whole lazing about dream, though not so much on crushing on anyone.

Once again, Suzume was content to simply enjoy their walk, stewing in silence as they came upon the third Hokage head. She settled into a seat just beside the Nara as he returned the question her way, though her answer wouldn't be as interesting or unexpected as Satoshi's.

"Ah well, I guess I was the same back then as I am now... I've always just wanted to make my parents happy, live up to the Hatake name, hence... being a shinobi."

Her posture curled up even more, knees drawn up to her chest as she hugged them, and as Satoshi had predicted, a slightly heavier topic brought up.

"Nowadays though... I just wonder if there's any... me left in me. People say that I'm good at being a shinobi... but what happens when I stop being one? What am I good at then..."

In pursuit of becoming an acceptable ninja for her parents, Suzume had thrown several things like hobbies and meaningful friendships by the wayside, and it was only natural for her to worry about what the meant for her as a person.

[Nara Satoshi]

This is so troublesome But I guess I’ll do it.

Heavier topics indeed though Satoshi didn’t turn to face Suzume but instead kept his gaze ahead and watched the sleeping village. Shoulders hunching together briefly as the nara took a deep breath he pondered the statement until he finally gathered his thoughts on the matter before replying.

"I know you well enough by now Suzume so I could spin something positive and feed you how if you stop being shinobi you’ll easily return to things you have given up on or discover new ones. Settle down and maybe find a profession you enjoy doing or something along those lines. I probably could even make it quite believable but I can’t…no I don’t want to lie to you like that.”

Satoshi expression was both grave and somewhat melancholic as a strange tension had settled on his shoulder though his words still kept flowing.

"The truth is that I don’t know really. It’s different for you and I. Both of us were not only born in a shinobi village but also part of shinobi clans and no matter what someone can say or think we had a choice in it there was nothing else in the cards for us but to become shinobi. It is what we were breed and risen for to be. It’s in our blood, by design.”

A slight mirthless chuckle would fill the air for a moment before the nara returned to speaking.

"I love this village dearly but there is not meant for us to have anything beyond being shinobi besides maybe imparting whatever knowledge we have gathered on to the next and aiding the cycle of churning out more forces. That is the grim reality of our lives.”

Finally, he would actually look in the direction of Suzume and hopefully meet her eyes with his own as a small grin finally broke his worn expression.

"There is a point to this depressing viewpoint I was painting though. I guess the trick is finding balance and learning to live with it and try to either reclaim what you have lost or discovering some new meaning while maintaining your path. And well if you ever end up at a point where you need to find an answer to that question I promises I will be around to help you.”

Releasing a sigh, the nara couldn’t help but add a final thing.

"Heh. Sorry I didn’t expect to be so morbid tonight.”

---

SA:

SPOILER: Click to show

Kagura Shingan [Kagura Mind's Eye]
After exploring his innate sensory abilities and thanks to his perfect chakra control Satoshi was able to unlock the Kagura Shingan. This ability allows him to find, sense, and track individuals through their chakra over vast range that exceeds ten kilometers. His able to achieve this effect by focusing and opening his mind's eye, though due to the low chakra cost Satoshi is able to keep it active passively at all times (Range is 15km) and increase the range even more with the use of the jutsu(25km). The ability also extends to telling when a person is lying from the fluctuations in a person's chakra made from dishonest emotions or detecting if someone, including him, is under a genjutsu. Also by focusing on a particular chakra, Satoshi can perceive its location and movement with great detail allowing him to track the movements of even those that are faster than him.

Hatake Suzume

OWL

[Hatake Suzume]

Satoshi's sigh led Suzume to believe that he was about to drop quite the answer, and she was right. She gently turned her head to face him as he spoke, resting the side of her face against her knees while keeping an unwavering gaze on the Nara. The younger male presented the harsh reality of their situation, not bothering to even entertain the optimistic, but naive, ideals that most other shinobi liked to hold dear to their hearts. It was... harsh, but refreshing at the same time Most people that wanted to 'fix' Suzume's bleak personality showered her with positive words and overly happy attitudes, but it was easy to tell when it was forced, so she welcomed Satoshi's bluntness on the matter. He capped his little speech with the reassurance that he'd always be around if she ever needed help, and then an apology. She vigorously shook her head almost immediately, slightly uncurling her body and sitting up just a bit straighter.

"I'll keep that in mind and... you don't have to apologize. I... really appreciate it when people are honest instead of just trying to appease." Definitely a hypocritical statement, coming from the people-pleasing Suzume, but perhaps also a form of projection. There was a lengthy pause, her eyes shifting sideways before her head turned to follow the direction, facing forward again as she reciprocated his offer. "And um, and if you ever have any questions yourself... I can be around to answer them too."

Even after his openness tonight, it was hard to believe that Satoshi would ever need to come to Suzume for questions or emotional support. He seemed to confident and self-assured in her eyes, qualities typically sought after when appointing leaders of squads. But the Hatake wanted to put her offer on the table nonetheless, both out of reciprocation and her innate desire to be useful to others.

[Nara Satoshi]

This is so troublesome But I guess I’ll do it.

Satoshi’s eyes crinkled a bit as he slightly smiled towards the Hatake. It warmed him to hear that coming from and that was why he was quick to reply.

"Thank you Suzume, I’ll keep it in mind and do so should ever something come up.”

Shifting a bit to make himself a bit more comfortable the nara stalled a bit with his conversation. He was caught a bit flat footed after his short speech as he wasn’t sure how to continued Should he keep on trudging though heavy topic or maybe switch to something a bi more lighthearted. He was unsure but that didn’t mean he had to do it at right this moment as there was something else, he wanted to say to Suzume.

"You know we should play shogi sometimes; it has been so long since I actually set down and did that. It would be nice to do and if you don’t know how to play, I can teach you. In fact, we could try that one of the next times you find yourself restless and I end up keeping you company.”

It was a roundabout way to say he would be joining her more frequently when this nightly outing happened. It was also preparing her for eventually making her comfortable to seek him out and not him butting in like tonight. That though was going to take some time of course and he would have been refused and just made her flustered had he just straight out asked at least when it came to this topic.

---

SA:

SPOILER: Click to show

Kagura Shingan [Kagura Mind's Eye]
After exploring his innate sensory abilities and thanks to his perfect chakra control Satoshi was able to unlock the Kagura Shingan. This ability allows him to find, sense, and track individuals through their chakra over vast range that exceeds ten kilometers. His able to achieve this effect by focusing and opening his mind's eye, though due to the low chakra cost Satoshi is able to keep it active passively at all times (Range is 15km) and increase the range even more with the use of the jutsu(25km). The ability also extends to telling when a person is lying from the fluctuations in a person's chakra made from dishonest emotions or detecting if someone, including him, is under a genjutsu. Also by focusing on a particular chakra, Satoshi can perceive its location and movement with great detail allowing him to track the movements of even those that are faster than him.

Hatake Suzume

OWL

[Hatake Suzume]

A bit of pink entered Suzume's cheeks once Satoshi thanked her for her input, the Hatake hastily turning her face forwards to hide the rush of elation it brought. It was a common phrase, a simple gesture, but it had the power to mean so much to certain people, Suzume being one of them. Yet another lengthy paused filled the air between, a good amount of what had needed to be said already spoken, and just as she opened her mouth to pick up the conversation, Satoshi managed to beat her to the punch. Turning back to the Nara, both of Suzume's eyebrows raised in surprise, hesitation clear on her face as she considered his offer. She didn't mind his earlier offer to go to him whenever she needed counsel, but she wasn't too sure about making this nightly talk a regular sort of thing.

Indigo eyes shifted from left to right, avoiding direct eye contact with the operations team leader as she struggled to get out a proper response. Her own father had tried to get her to play shogi with him, but she never found the game particularly interesting, but Satoshi suggested that they should, and so she felt the overwhelming urge to buckle and agree. Her instinct eventually won out over her own will, shoulders slumping ever so slightly as she gave the male a nod.

"Sure, I suppose that could be nice... you will have to teach me though..."

[Nara Satoshi]

This is so troublesome But I guess I’ll do it.

Satoshi resisted the urge to grin at the reaction his thanks had drawn out Suzume and instead allowed for silence to take over until he made his suggestion. Since his gaze was on her he noticed the slumping of her shoulder and could hear some of the reluctance carrying her in voice. It seemed it might have been stepping a bit over what she was comfortable with so that’s why the nara mentally noted to start out with a fewer attempt of bothering her before steadily increasing the number.

Still the scene reminded him of another person that had pretty much the same putout reaction when he had suggested playing shogi before. A small chuckle did escape due to it but before the Hatake could take it the wrong way he was quick to explain it and add in.

"Don’t be this disheartened Suzume it would be just an activity to fill the time in the dark hours from time to time. Besides much like a I said to former friend of mine long ago save that feeling for when you don’t win immediately after I teach you how to play.”

Hopefully that would soften things even just a bit even if Satoshi expected a somewhat more negative reaction. He had dropped some hints to distract from that and make room for her to ask other questions or if she just wanted, to switch the topic completely. Not that there was much left to be said besides idle chatter as the nara wasn’t sure if too serious topic should be brought up again.

---

SA:

SPOILER: Click to show

Kagura Shingan [Kagura Mind's Eye]
After exploring his innate sensory abilities and thanks to his perfect chakra control Satoshi was able to unlock the Kagura Shingan. This ability allows him to find, sense, and track individuals through their chakra over vast range that exceeds ten kilometers. His able to achieve this effect by focusing and opening his mind's eye, though due to the low chakra cost Satoshi is able to keep it active passively at all times (Range is 15km) and increase the range even more with the use of the jutsu(25km). The ability also extends to telling when a person is lying from the fluctuations in a person's chakra made from dishonest emotions or detecting if someone, including him, is under a genjutsu. Also by focusing on a particular chakra, Satoshi can perceive its location and movement with great detail allowing him to track the movements of even those that are faster than him.

Hatake Suzume

OWL

[Hatake Suzume]

The dissatisfaction with the offer seemed to be a little too obvious in her voice as Satoshi was quick to add onto his previous reply, reassuring her that it wasn't meant to be an activity taken too seriously, and instead just something to help pass the time. Thinking about it in that sort of light did help the idea of playing shogi go down easier, especially if it ended up being more like the talk they had just shared. A slight smile cropped on her face for the second time that night, a bit more conviction in her voice as she accepted the offer again, but much more willingly.

"When you put it that way, then I suppose I look forward to the next time I can't fall sleep..."

It was now her turn to offer up a bad joke, one that she hoped would show that she was genuinely okay with his proposal, as well as lightening the mood her disposition usually created. After that though, Suzume decided to turn her attention forward, remaining silent for a few minutes as she simply observed the still village of Konohagakure. Eventually, she pushed herself up onto her feet, sleepiness finally weighing down on her mind and urging her to head home to her warm bed.

"Um... thank you Satoshi for... well, everything, but I think it's about time I head home now..."

Despite everything, while there was some more confidence in her voice than before, there was still that hint of hesitation, her tone revealing that she still believed there was a chance Satoshi would disregard her wishes and have her stay longer. But, there was little chance that fear would come to pass, and if Satoshi let her go, she'd exchange her goodbyes with the team leader, taking her time in getting home, reflecting on their conversation all the while.