[Souma]

Souma

Of the Tantetsu Clan

Chuunin, Iwagakure Medical Corps

kagayaku sumire Moriko | 342 | notes

"So the one girl is a lot like you, actually. Quiet, keeps to herself- hair's the same color, too, come to think of it. That's- sorta weird, actually. Huh."

"That is wonderful, but I have tasks I am supposed to prep for using this ti-"

"And the other girl's a Ha. You know. The weapons? You're Tantetsu, right? You know weapons."

"I am not even a bukijutsu user, much less a smith, I-"

"Great, great, you're gonna do wonderful. It's academy stuff, you're Tokubetsu Jounin, right? This'll be cake for you."

"I am a MEDIC Tokube-"

"We really appreciate your help on this. Gotta run~! Byeeee~!"

The absolute scoundrel of an Academy Instructor scampered out of Souma's cramped little office at the hospital, home mostly to filing cabinets with carefully manicured patient records inside, easily referenced and indispensable to the hospital as a whole. However, since she was not in charge of running the hospital in NAME or TITLE and merely in duty since the actual head medic was busy reading ecchi manga on the roof or some nonsense, she had little defense against the Jounin instructor assigning her to cover for his afternoon delight- whatever that meant.

So, with a sigh, she closed up shop in her office and marched herself down to the Academy.

---

Where the students could reasonably have expected their instructor to be, there instead stood a somewhat stocky young woman wearing, of all things, a suit of armored plates over her Tantetsu robes beneath. She had an obi worn over the armor, secured with what looked to be a steel cable, and the armor bore subtle wave patterning, suggesting the chakra nature of the girl wearing it all. She seemed uninhibited by the weight of the armor, nor the warmth it likely trapped on her skin, and instead was poring over a couple unsorted case files while she waited for "her" students to arrive.

"Don't work smart, or hard. Work smart, then hard."

Template by: Monkey

[kagayaku sumire]

THE UNAVOIDABLE SUN

Where Sumire had reasonably expected her instructor to be, there instead was a girl who looked barely older than she was, though she was exponentially more imposing—she was about Sumire’s height, but thicker, more muscular, an attribute only enhanced by the heavy plate bound by steel cables that she wore as armor. And she wore it effortlessly, apparently, comfortably reading something from a file as Sumire quietly let herself into the classroom. Sumire glanced around—empty. Maybe Moriko and the rest of the class would be here soon? Or was this supposed to be one of those special side-lessons that students sometimes got pulled aside for? She had some vague recollection of one of the instructors telling her about… something. But she had stopped listening after the first few words, because the instructor had a mustard stain on his shirt, and she was thinking about soap and vinegar and whether or not she had remembered to buy pork at the market the morning before. Assuming that this armored girl would be too wrapped up in whatever she was reading to notice her entrance, as was typical of Sumire’s academy experience thus far, she went to go take her seat near the back of the classroom, directly adjacent to the window, and watched the goings-on of the outside world with her chin resting delicately in the palm of her hand.

Moriko Souma -- 228

LAIKA OF THQ

[Moriko]

✚ Substitute Scholar ✚

Why was she still walking herself into rooms? It was so much work, and she often just couldn't open the doors the way that she wanted to. They were so... heavy. So when she saw her newest friend opening the door to the room she had a smile grow onto her face as she broke into a rather slow sprint as far as an academy student was concerned. Her smile only widening as she grasped the sides of her real body and spread the cloak open.

"Sumire-Chan!!! Hug time now!" She would call out as she jumped forward and covered the main cloak of herself around her companion. The clone poofing into non-existence as her soft red cloth cloaked over the girl and sat snugly the her shoulders the blade-tassels of the scarf swinging around the girl's neck to hold the loose wrap to her 'friend's' upper body. Only after did Moriko register the woman that had been standing in the room. She no longer had a way to actually greet the girl that stood there, but Moriko practically vibrated with excitement at the experience of someone new.

Her wish to see new things and explore was meant to be pursued with others after all, so people were truly a resource she needed to utilize more of! ALL THE PEOPLE ALL OF THEM.

If she could raise two hands to the sky in praise to the idea they would.

---

TAG ✚ Hex: #f0a461 ✚ Notes?

tempbyai

[Souma]

Souma

Of the Tantetsu Clan

Chuunin, Iwagakure Medical Corps

kagayaku sumire Moriko | 350 | notes

There were, of course, some other students gathered around Sumire and Moriko- some enthusiastic, some less, and almost certainly one or two that picked on Moriko for being so weak on her own (though likely never with Sumire around to stand up for her!)- and after the kids at least found seats, a steel cable snaked into the air from behind the girl at the teacher's desk- before pausing as, of all things, a raccoon girl "bolted" into the room and vanished, hurling a bladed coat of some sort? onto a girl that had to have been the one mentioned with her hair color. After a moment, it resumed movement- and snapped, whip-quick, CRACKING the air to demand attention. As the room- or at the very least most of it- went quiet in surprise, Souma finally lifted her eyes and closed the folder with a quiet smile.

"Hello, students. My name is Tantetsu Souma," she said in an abnormally level tone, the cable moving to grasp a piece of chalk and write her name in large characters on the chalkboard behind her. She easily came off as cold or robotic, but it was really just a lack of practice in expressing tonality. It just didn't come natural. "I am a Tokubetsu Jounin specializing in medical techniques. I am one of the head medics at our village hospital, and today-" Her lips narrowed discretely and she sighed, just so, from her nose before continuing. "- I am covering for your instructor."

She looked around the room, at a lot of faces nearly her own age, and seemed, at least on the outside, unphased. "There are a handful of Academy Techniques, all of which I am sure you have at least heard of, and some of which are doubtlessly already mastered by at least a few of you. Are there any questions before we break into groups to practice specific jutsus?"

"Don't work smart, or hard. Work smart, then hard."

Template by: Monkey

[kagayaku sumire]

THE UNAVOIDABLE SUN

It was still a little jarring, seeing the small raccoon-girl and understanding quite logically that this was Momo—after a fashion. That the cloak was Momo, and this was how Momo got around when there was no one around to wear her, or something along those lines—a slow, sluggish, unoptimal kind of body-projection that just poofed out of existence the moment anyone looked at the girl the wrong way. Or when she leaped at someone to hug them, which she seemed especially fond of doing to Sumire. Not that she minded. The academy was cold, and hugs were warm. Sumire stopped in her tracks, her head tilting as she held out her arms, not to catch the other girl, but to make it easy for Momo to wrap her cloaked self around Sumire’s shoulders—the way a nobleman would stand when their manservant helped them to put on their coat. Easy, thoughtless, as though it was meant to be. Cozy. Then a crack as one of the girl’s steel cables snapped in the air, immediately demanding the attention of everyone in the room. Sumire took her seat by the window, but for once, her gaze wasn’t drawn outdoors. A Tokubetsu Jounin—Sumire was new enough to the shinobi world that she hadn’t quite memorized all the ranks yet, but that was pretty high up there, no? Unless she just had an especially youthful face, that meant she had either started training very early (apparently some children started training as young as five, which seemed quite useless to Sumire, given that she herself had not even been capable of tying her own shoes at the age of five), or she had progressed in rank very quickly. Either seemed probable. Souma-sensei asked for questions, and for once in her life, Sumire responded to the call. She held the blades of Momo’s tassels gently between her fingers, raising up the length of the red scarf along with her own hand—as if she and Momo were raising their hands together. She had a feeling that Momo would also want to know the answer to Sumire’s question, which seemed far more relevant than any Academy Techniques that they needed to learn. If called upon, Sumire would ask in a soft, delicate tone: "If you’re a medic, why are you wearing heavy armor and steel cables?”

Moriko Souma -- 387

LAIKA OF THQ

[Moriko]

✚ Question Companion Extrodinaire ✚

Sumire could not have hit a nail on the head more fluidly for as little as she knew Moriko personality wise - Momo was quite the trickster and master of many ways to hide her expression. The ultimate poker face! Still the blades were cool to the touch as they were lifted with her companions own hand to ask a question, or wait too. That was fine, the companion cloak incarnate was curious what was so pertinent to ask in this moment as well. She really wanted to know what was going to come out of Sumire's mouth, and also the instructors honestly.

If a cloak could laugh though, Sumire would feel laughter. It was a faint sort of deal, but the suggestion of it was edging her mind as the girl so quietly asked the most straight faced joke Moriko could have ever hoped to here come from her, now certainly crowned, best friend. This was why she paid Sumire the big hugs, obviously. Finding a practical joker in her friend was certainly nice as Moriko continued to simply exist in time with the blue-haied academy student.

Her new curiosity turned entirely to where this would lead... or rather she absolutely needed to know where this could lead. A push to follow this cornered at Sumire's mind. It did not crack through though. Try as it may, it did not.

---

TAG ✚ Hex: #f0a461 ✚ Notes?

tempbyai

[Souma]

Souma

Of the Tantetsu Clan

Chuunin, Iwagakure Medical Corps

kagayaku sumire Moriko | 237 | notes

Souma smiled a touch wider and nodded appreciatively at the question asked, lifting a closed hand, prepared to count on it. "That is an excellent question. You would be... Kagayaku-san, from what I'm told? And I believe you're wearing Ha Moriko-san? Well, here is your answer, ladies."

Her thumb popped up. "First, I am a Tantetsu. Our clan has mastered working with metal, and part of our coming of age is forging something significant for ourselves. That is commonly a weapon, but I made armor-" She popped up her pointed finger. "- BECAUSE I am a medic. If I am disabled or killed, I cannot repair injuries to anyone else. Therefore, it is paramount that I do what I can to avoid that damage, or everyone I could have saved suffers as a result. And the cables are a clan jutsu I make extensive use of. They can deliver my healing techniques, as well as defend me in a number of ways, without needing to take my hands off my patients to do so." She nodded, almost to herself. "That is why I wear armor and cables- it makes me a better and more self sufficient medic for doing so."

She glanced around for any additional questions, looking to Sumire and her worn-friend as well.

"Don't work smart, or hard. Work smart, then hard."

Template by: Monkey

[kagayaku sumire]

THE UNAVOIDABLE SUN

There was an odd sensation pressing upon the back of her mind, something that Sumire was at once aware of and not aware of; not unlike the experience of reaching for the memory of a dream, but being left with only the vague impression of how that dream had made her feel, as opposed to any concrete recollection of what it was. The specter of a laugh haunted her mind. It almost made Sumire smile. Almost. Her head tilted just so to one side as Souma-sensei explained the rationale behind her armor and cables. It was all very logical and made quite a bit of sense to the academy student, but Sumire had now unfortunately been enabled, and with the vague positive reinforcement coming from somewhere in the corner of her brain, Sumire raised her hand once again, clicking Momo’s bladed tassels together in a brief betrayal of her own impatience. "If you’re a heavily armored self-sufficient head medic and you’re covering for our instructor,” she said, "then how old are you?” A question asked partly out of genuine curiosity, and party to sow dissent in the ranks; if, as Sumire expected, Souma-sensei was around her own age or just barely older, then some of the younger students in the classroom might put up enough of a fuss that the lesson would be fully derailed, and they wouldn’t have to spend as much time talking about academy techniques and instead focus on the much more interesting topic of the daily lives of teenage combat medics.

Souma Moriko -- 255

LAIKA OF THQ

[Moriko]

✚ Laughter is the Best Distraction ✚

Momo continued her endless chortling. A tendril still placing its root to dig into the mind of her friend. A hug for the soul, a conversation that transcended language trying to crack through. That didn't seem to be working regardless though. A scarf wriggling to life from around Sumire it shook like someone hunched in laughter before the digit like claws began to clack at a rather high speed to speak facing Sumire, "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

It was a very loud set of clacking, drawing some amount of attention before it suddenly stopped and Momo's "hand" flopped the other direction and began to clack again though not in repetition, but rather in slow spelling, signing out her own question, "Isn't your armor heavy? It seems like it would slow someone down a bunch. Slower is bad for travel isn't it?"

If they were just trying to pull attention from the class then Moriko didn't mind berating out her own curiosities. The scarf rolling back around Sumire as it went slack again. Momo didn't have more to say even as she continued to try and connect internally with her wearer. A physical hug to match with the spiritual one she was attempting to exercise with the blue haired youth.

A vibration of cheerful curiosity. A push to press further. An attempt.

---

TAG ✚ Hex: #f0a461 ✚ Used:

tempbyai

[Souma]

Souma

Of the Tantetsu Clan

Chuunin, Iwagakure Medical Corps

kagayaku sumire Moriko | ### | notes

Having explained her armor, Souma had turned her attention back to the lesson for the day, and picked up a sheet of notes and advice on exercising each of the five academy techniques, so by the time Sumire posed a new question, Souma had her hands full of papers. And Momo's question, despite its unorthodox delivery, deserved an answer.

So Souma gave her one.

One moment, Souma was standing with her papers in her hands. In the next, there was a blaze of movement, a sense of lightning tearing around the aisles of the classroom, which saw each student's desk planted with a note sheet, and Souma abruptly appearing at the OTHER end of the teacher's desk, striding back into place calmly.

"Weight only slows you down if you cannot bear the weight comfortably. I am very much able to bear my armor comfortably. In fact, I wear it almost all the time. Except for swimming. The physics of bouyancy do not much care how strong I am."

Her eyes flicked back to Sumire, and she answered that question now, too. "The more useful question is how long ago I graduated from the academy. I did that about five years ago. I spent about a two years as a genin, and another two as a chuunin, and have been in my current rank around a year as well. When you ask my age, it implies a direct comparison, which is not constructive. But look at the time involved, and it becomes clear that anyone who wishes could accomplish what I have, with enough hard work and focus.

Now." She clapped her hands, just once, and the impact was THUNDEROUS, demanding attention in an instant. "Review the sheets before you, and choose a technique to practice, and I will separate you all by those lines and arrange exercises for each group."

SPOILER: Click to show

Jutsu used is Raiippo.

"Don't work smart, or hard. Work smart, then hard."

Template by: Monkey

[kagayaku sumire]

THE UNAVOIDABLE SUN

Sumire found herself stifling a giggle, which was rarely an impulse that she had to fight; she was not prone to laughter, as her amusements tended to be private and quiet. Yet she found herself buoyed, her chest opening up in a surge of vibrant joy that felt like not-quite-hers, and she wondered abruptly if this was, potentially, Momo’s bright laughter seeping through. Her attention now totally withdrawn from her petty provocations, Sumire tuned out the world around her, accepting the note sheet that was planted on her desk faster than even her keen eyes could track as though it had been handed to her at a normal speed, with normal delivery. She was too focused now on attempting to connect to that lightness within her: like a man adrift at sea, reaching out for a life raft. Just as she felt like she was about to get somewhere, connect to something, Souma clapped in a way that made it feel like the world was ending, and Sumire was jerked back to reality. She frowned, a small, subtle twist of her lips that gave only the barest impression of displeasure. "I’ll be a jounin in like six months, but sure,” she muttered, more to Momo than to her instructor, and perched her chin in her palm as she gazed vacantly down at the sheet. Vacant—until an errant thought popped into her head, and she once again politely raised her hand. If Souma invited her to speak, Sumire would say: "I already know all the basic academy techniques,” though this was a lie, and then: "I want to learn Ue Some. Momo is vibrant and we need to be more stealthy in the field.”

Souma Moriko -- 283

LAIKA OF THQ

[Moriko]

✚ fast, faster, the fastest ✚

Moriko had desired freedom from the time that she had been reborn as a Dansetsu Ha. A child's mind that wanted nothing more then to see the world in its current state, then the state it would be, then again, and again, again, and again. There was no end to the wanderlust of the young tanuki cloak, and the ego was only flooded as the instructor had moved. Moriko had not seen the full extent of the motion, but she knew that the medic had definitely moved from the spot that she had been in.

When they were told to pick Jutsu to learn though Momo realized this lesson was not necessarily for her, not in the same fashion. She needed to accept that, but the speed. She wanted that speed, no, she NEEDED that speed. A deep welling reach like a hand trying to forcibly push its way into Sumire's mind, body, and soul came as Moriko tried her best to establish a bridge. They needed a bridge, they WOULD finish a bridge this time, "SPEED, LEARN TO GO FASTER, YES YES! GO FAST WITH MOMO, PLEASE? PLEASE? PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE? SUMI LETS LEARN HOW TO GO FAST LIKE THAT!"

Moriko would shout in an ear-shattering fashion inside Sumire's mind, or try to. How much would get through? Moriko couldn't tell, but she would not get to say more. Not in this attempt to connect.

---

TAG ✚ Hex: #f0a461 ✚ Notes?

tempbyai

[kagayaku sumire]

Sumire was cut off from her question by a sudden earth-shattering screech so loud and so painful that Sumire flinched and covered her ears—something that could have been interpreted by those around her as an effort to protect her hearing from the thunderous clap that Souma had performed. All she heard was: PLEASE? PLEASE? PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE EEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE? And nothing else. Glancing around, however, it seemed that no one else had heard a thing—all the other students were quietly discussing their options amongst themselves, trying to decide if they were going to learn rope escape or the substitution technique today. Was she going insane? Hallucinating, maybe? She’d eaten some tofu the day before that had a suspicious green tinge to the edge of it—maybe it was a low-grade hallucinogen and now she was losing her mind. Her brow furrowing intensely, Sumire disregarded the activity they’d been given entirely in favor of focusing on what was happening in her own body and mind: the source of the sound that felt like it should have deafened her. Signing to herself, Sumire said: Momo, did you hear that? Am I going crazy? She felt, inexplicably, the urge to leave, to vacate the classroom and run off wherever her legs would carry her. After a moment’s consideration she raised her hand again to excuse herself to the restroom, and as soon as she was out the door she took off running, heading straight out of the academy’s back door and into the training yards beyond.

Moriko -- 252

LAIKA OF THQ

[Moriko]

✚ First Contact For the Upteenth Time ✚

Oh. She had heard that, for a moment there was a sense of embarassment from Moriko as she processed that she had basically just screamed into her friend's ear. It had taken her a good moment, and Sumire actively signing to her for her to raise her 'hand' as if to speak before letting it drop back into a comfortable draping of the girl's shoulder and neck. She had heard her. She had heard her! Yes! Yes! Yes! That was so good, that was such a good sign! The bond formed between weapon and wielder in the Ha was very sacred, but it took time to build familiarity to a point where their very souls reasoned with one another in true harmony.

A lifted claw once more under the effects of Bunraku would sign out the question that she had, now utterly ignoring Souma, "Sumi heard me? Hello? Hello! Can you still hear me Sumi?"

Moriko would prod a lot more softly as she felt out for her companion, and how or where the window of communication had been. Where the resonance began and ended, and the answer was so expressly simple once she caught hold of the oddity within her soul - a singular pane that could only be described as glass. It was not glass but to all of her being it was as if the metaphor for looking through the glass had become a reality.

---

TAG ✚ Hex: #f0a461 ✚ Notes?

tempbyai

[kagayaku sumire]

The tell-tale click-clack of Moriko’s claws signed out the question: "Sumi heard me?” A mystery solved, in part—but more mysteries cropped up in their place. "That was you?” she signed back, thinking as loudly as she could in the confines of her mind; she pictured herself screaming, hands cupped around her mouth to make herself heard. What void exactly she was shouting into, she didn’t know, but hearing even a snippet of Momo’s voice in her head made her heart thrum with anticipation. This was interesting. This was exciting. Bursting out of the back doors of the academy and into the training yard, Sumire paced in circles, wearing a path into dust and packed earth. "I think I heard you,” she continued, signing as she walked. "I think I… felt you, earlier. Excited. Happy. Is this… normal?” Maybe normal was the wrong word to use. "Is it something we can do on purpose? Talk inside our heads?” To anyone else it might have been concerning, offering up mental residence to someone you hadn’t known for very long—but to Sumire, it seemed as natural and correct as breathing. Moriko was her friend. Her very first friend. Whatever they needed to do to make communicating easier was a plus in Sumire’s book. Without thinking twice Sumire left the academy entirely, hopping the fence and ditching class in favor of booking it back home, to do whatever she could to keep building this mental bridge between them.

Moriko -- 248

LAIKA OF THQ