[Oonakayama Arashi]

Nodus Tollens TAG. @akira WORDS. 288 NOTES.

Moment Music "Speak for yourself....I think I'd rather not take credit for this one...all yours..." Considering just what had happened, and that she had only come down this way to have a conversation, the results of her and Akira meeting seemed to have grown into an all out event. Still, while her smile was faint, she did manage to get a small laugh out of the situation as it would make an epic story to tell one day. Hell, she didn't think Miyo could top this one if she tried. As he attempted to remove some of the worm's remains from his attire, even Arashi found herself stifling a giggle as he looked even worse up close. But then, neither one of them were winning any prizes for heroic appearances in their current state. So, hearing his offer of them perhaps getting a drink and maybe even getting cleaned up, prompted the Suna-nin to nod as she placed her hands inside of her pockets. "Sounds like an idea...and..maybe we can see what we can do to help out there..." With her finally jumping down from the beast, Arashi would proceed to wait for him on the ground, her gaze now allowing her to see the true mass of the creature without the intent of killing it on her mind. This monster had truly been massive. A beast of true legend, only to be cut down. better it than us... Maybe...but..I can imagine a few people that might beg to differ... Waiting for Akira, the teen would then shake her head before looking upward toward the sky. "I can't even imagine how their going to rebuild after this...the quarry itself is a mess and removing this thing could take years..." SPOILER: Click to show -S.A Used- -Jutsu Used- -Items Used- Sand Gourd

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

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PEOPLE ARE DIFFERENT,

His brow rose at her. "I can't either." It was a team effort, Akira would've been... several miles underneath the earth if the beast had taken off, killed or squished or torn apart in some fashion or another by its method of eating. Arashi had kept it still enough for him to do some of his own damage. A team effort.

He dropped down from it as well, landing a bit more haphazardly than she did, arms touching against the floor before he stood up. "Psh...." he nodded to her suggestion. if he could help. Kokuo was nowhere in sight, so far he could tell. He watched her begin to walk off, sighing to himself, quietly, concern evident in his face. Like they hadn't been talking at all.

He would catch up to her.

"I don't think they would be able to. Stone Country isn't a Shinobi nation as such, I doubt they could afford to pay for it..." Akira would be the one to answer the unfortunate reality of the situation. This was a land that didn't see many Shinobi come by, while it was owned by a Daimyo: Akira knew the greed of the nobility and how they could be pervasive. If anything, it could've been an attraction for people.

"Wow..." Akira would look around as people were slowly returning - very, very slowly - to the town they'd thought to have abandoned, having watched the spectacle develop from afar - their fleeing come to an end. The thing that Akira was wow-ing at, was the state of the village that had been torn apart.

So they could make their way back toward the town that Akira had set his room in, and would be wandering through it all, until he found himself at the inn he'd been sat at - the entire landscape had been ransacked effectively, places being turned upside down - The land itself was jagged, like new little hills had been created. Akira's inn looked lopsided- broken, the entrance split in half. The place looked dilapidated, but still functioning. "This'is the one." Akira pointed, it seemed functional enough even though it could fall apart.

Into the foyer, part the reception and into the bar itself. Akira helped himself, wandering behind it while he searched around, there was glass everywhere. But two clean glasses later, and a miraculously unharmed bottle of what he presumed to be a liquor, Akira would pour two small glasses.

He was tired, truly. The chakra he'd taken was much less than what he'd had thought, and if now was any time to attack: he would've been a goner. But, his trust in the woman had been restored. Akira would be on the serving side, and unless Arashi joined him, she could've pulled up a toppled chair. "Cheers." Akira would clink the glass with hers, if she held one herself. If not, he would simply tip it toward her - and sipped. 'Kami.' Strong.

"Nice view." Akira wasn't talking about Arashi, but the gaping hold that showcased the rest of the street, where it looked like one side of the inn had been blown out: a hurricane swept through it. Everything.

"I hadn't even thought something like that could've existed..." His eyebrows furrowed, shaking his head. "It would've done more damage alive." at least he had reason, he supposed.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

AND MINE IS THE FURY

dandy ♫

[Oonakayama Arashi]

Nodus Tollens TAG. @akira WORDS. 881 NOTES.

Seeing the faces of the villagers as they passed, it seemed that this was less of a victories march. Something that Akira seemed to understand as well. Of course, they both knew it was more than that. They had done this together, and it would have been far worse if they had done nothing. These people...they still had a home, it was in ruins, but it was still there. Though the thought that they may never be able to fully get back what they had lost did weigh upon her mind. Arashi remained next to Akira, the stains of dark ooze upon her attire and the weathered appearance of her clothes seeming to blend in with everyone else that they walked by. They appeared as no more than survivors of this affair, and if they were lucky, that was how it would stay. At least for now... Arashi had no illusion to think that word wouldn't spread about all of this, and eventually someone would figure out that a large shuriken of sand appearing in the sky to help slay a monster worm wasn't something that many Aiel could do on their own. Then...she'd be tasked with explaining to both the Kazekage and the Hanchou Jounin just what the hell she was doing so far out in the first place? That's gonna be a fun conversation... Though such thinking was left on the back-burner, coming upon the location in which Akira seemed to identify, leading the way as they entered into what remained of the inn. There was no sign of anyone within it, leading to the assumption that it's keeper had yet to return or..had been killed. Yet, after some small effort from the young man, he'd manage to find both a bottle, and two glasses, prompting the teen to smirk as she had been busy looking for clothes to change into it. Of course, they were slim picking. Some kimono robes, two pairs of getta, and what she could only assume was a hat from the western seas. As he flipped a table upright, the young ninja would draw up a chair from the corner, joining him as he poured for the both of them, raising his glass in her direction as she did the same and tapped it against his. He looked tired, and she imagined that he had a lot of his mind. Such as the position that he was still in with Kokuo. She wasn't sure if she could sense the beast, but then her own fatigue had started to set in with the aches in every joint, and the pulsing headache that was now only starting to subside. With her chair backward, she'd lean against it's back, hand holding the liquid to her lips as she drank slowly from it, eyes growing wide briefly before then taking another swig as she let its contains soothe her. It was a slow burn, but the way it seemed to numb her was a blessing. With Akira's mention of the view, her gaze would shift to the opening to the outside world, seeing the people as they passed, many of which with the tools to try and reclaim what they had lost today, others with sacks and wagons to likely move on to find better housing. "Best in the house...we get to watch the trail of tears..." Narrowing her gaze as she looked down, her smile would show before shaking her head of such thinking. She couldn't blame herself for everything...this..was an accident..one that could have happened at any time...it wasn't as if she had to be the one to open the door. Anyone who knew how to undo seals could perform such a feat. There was no way of knowing just how they even agitated the beast either into being active. This wasn't on her...and she couldn't let herself think that it was. Which made her all the more thankful that the topic of conversation turned to that of the beast itself, leading to Arashi staring back at Akira as she rested her arms on the top of her seat, her toes dancing as they flexed upwards so that they were upright and pointed. "No one would...its based off a legend from Kaze no Kuni….Seibold Earthworms...or rather...one of them being known as Olgoi-khorkhoi….A Death Worm..." Shrugging her shoulders, the teen closed her eyes as she then looked upward as if to recall what she knew of the creature's story. "Its said to only travel through the very Earth itself, and was thought to be the cause of the valleys and other land-masses that exist in the desert. No one has accounted to have seen one in hundreds of years and even then...it looked nothing like THAT..especially since it was covered in stone..." Taking another sip, hearing Akira stated that it would have done more damage if it had lived, Arashi would nod before shaking her head. "Yea...and we have no idea if it wasn't already preparing to become active even before those morons thought to go digging..." Scoffing for a moment, the teen would then set her glass down as she shook her head. "But, I think that you are totally ignoring the other question lingering in the room..like what exactly happens now? Are you and...HE...okay?" SPOILER: Click to show -S.A Used- -Jutsu Used- -Items Used- Sand Gourd

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

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PEOPLE ARE DIFFERENT,

They were having a different experience with the alcohol. For him, there never seemed to be any fun in the drink: only in the aftereffects of it. Akira watched with a sadness as the people were trying to recuperate what they had lost today: from what they thought was a setback, to outright destruction of what they considered him. For some of them, it'd already happened with the fires.

His index finger would run around the rim of the glass as Arashi spoke, his focus flicked between her and on the commotion that grew outside - they could go about helping them out later. If he stuck around, or if he had the energy to form clones.

music

Akira watched a woman pull on her child, the child completely unaware what had exactly happened. Probably no more than a few years old - unable to comprehend the nature of their situation, the mother upset, streams of tears that she tried to wipe away and the child pulled at her dress, and oh how hard she was trying to keep it together for her child.

It was upsetting to watch. The raw outside of whatever it had been covered by gave Akira an indication of the worm's age, and he didn't feel something of it's size: and composition: would be of the young ilk. It could've been like a natural disaster. Simply... no idea when it would next erupt. If they'd not been there to stop it... Well. Who knew? And what of the Shinobi who had went into the mine, apparently awakening it in some fashion by whatever mines went into the mountain. Perhaps they had scratched an itch that awoke it. Who could know?

"Hm?" Akira would turn his attention to Arashi, caught between her soulful gaze. "I'm fine," he didn't want to choke on his words, and responded a bit quicker than what would've been given when he thought would've been appropriate timing to think about her question, then answering it.

"He will recover. Upset with me for my mistakes, assuredly." He didn't have a full grasp on how the Bijuu felt, but he definitely wasn't happy with Akira for whatever measure, since it had been his fault that he'd nearly died. That wasn't the only other question, though. "What's going on in your life, then?" he asked because he wanted to know. About her, her life- elbow on the table and fist underneath his chin. The small pinches of his cheeks widened for her - his eyes soft on her.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

AND MINE IS THE FURY

dandy ♫

[Oonakayama Arashi]

Nodus Tollens TAG. @akira WORDS. 709 NOTES.

If Akira was hiding something, she wouldn't be able to tell. He was good like that...but she imagined that whatever had been going on between him and his...tailed beast, it wasn't the most prettiest of conversations. But then, when were they ever? Arashi could only count the most joined talks between her and Shukaku on one hand..and the finger count wasn't high. There was still tension, and it had a lot to do with just who was the one with the power and who wasn't. It was less about control anymore, and the idea of Shukaku attempting to escape. In truth, she believed that after the events of the Battle for Village Supermecy, Shukaku did see what kind of people would be willing to take him, and he was content to handle a threat that he knew, one that he could easily toy with. When he could manage it... But for Akira and Kokuo, it was a different story... What she knew, she only gotten in pieces. Which wasn't much... Though she imagined that it was still a long ways from being a partnership. She'd honestly never met someone...at least someone living, who had managed to create such a bond. There was Etsuko and Sada, but she wasn't sure what to make of their own connections. They were Jin, but honestly one of them seemed to have everything figured out and was more focused on shopping and perhaps making her realize a lesson, and the other...well. she was trying to prove something. Mika was another, but they were still young and hardly in a position to give her feedback. Moment Music When she thought about it, she wondered how far along she was in establishing that bond in which the woman in Iwagakure had mentioned, the one that seemed to unite the two of them. Perhaps a topic for another day. But at the very least, Akira was going to be fine...and so was Kokuo. Yet, as the topic seemed to shift to her, the teen would blink briefly, soon laughing lightly as she shook her head. "My life...well....I still have to answer an important question to someone..don't I?" Her smile would remain, her own finger tracing the edge of her glass as she let it ring around it, soon stopping as she then looked at him. "Because I don't..I don't think..it would be fair...for me to ask your family...right?" Winking in his direction, she'd show that she hadn't ignored his previous jab at the idea of drinking from before, soon allowing herself to sigh as she continued to smile at him. "Hehe..Okay..Okay..that was a low blow...I know..but you sooo had it coming...and I could have done..way...WAY worse than just chewing ya out when I got here...Why didn't you just send me a letter to talk? I mean...come on..." Her eyes would stay on him, looking over him as she then closed them briefly. "I get that you had no intention of seeing my mother that day...but you...you...of all people...wanted me to wait on a letter for us to meet...and you said you wanted nothing to do with me...on..might I state again...penalty of death...that was what you said right? Not to mention telling my mother about it, which...might I add..was a very..very brutal conversation to have with a woman who can literally kick ya spine out and that...is without her using chakra in the least..." Taking another sip from her glass, Arashi would relish the fact that it was easy to talk like this. It was strange how literally a life-endangering situation could easily help to clear the air. It couldn't have worked better than if they planned it. "Then the months...the months it took for you to even do that...I hurt you...and I totally got what I deserved that day...If I had...if you had done that to me... I'm pretty sure I would have done the same thing...that's why I never hated you for it...I was hurt...I still can't use that seal anymore...because of how guilty I feel for it...but..I think what hurt more than the fact that I literally did that to you..was that I did to someone that I..actually care about...I mean...lets face it...We've known each other since we were both gunning for Chunin...that's a long time.." SPOILER: Click to show -S.A Used- -Jutsu Used- -Items Used- Sand Gourd

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

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PEOPLE ARE DIFFERENT,

Akira shook his head and chuckled, "fuck off..." He regaled, but amused nonetheless. But he didn't understand why she thought he'd been able to explain himself in a letter to her. It didn't work like that, nor for him at the least.

"Yes. It was petty of me." He'd leaned back into his chair, avoidance of the behaviour at hand but wanted to address it as directly as possible. It had been a mix of sadness and revenge that led to the reaction- or more specifically, the content of his words. "yea- yeah. Three years or so. But honestly, I have a real reason, no playing around with you, Arashi," he rubbed the underside of his nose.

"There's a really deep reason, the one I figured out why it hurt me as much as it had, and I think I've said something along the lines of it before..." he scratched the space between his eyebrows, trying to be honest with himself. That was the goal of this conversation.

"At least, I hope I've told you about them.. well.. They were my best friends, and I killed them by accident. I wasn't as naturally gifted at Fuuinjutsu with yourself, and I tried creating an explosive tag..." He started off slow with how he was describing it, at hand. Akira was dreading about the conversation, and they were talking about it more maturely than it had been, the action and tiredness from both of them had put them at ease, or their bodies were forcing them to be at ease, rather. "My memory is all I have of them now, and it's why I reacted so badly the way I had. The idea that it could be taken from me was more important than the act of it happening in the first place."

He wasn't trying to pull out a scorecard over the situation, he wanted rid of it - the ailing source of his behaviour, pulling at the strings in his life beyond what he wanted, and he needed to seize his own control back. "I know, you know, you hurt me. I accept that I hurt you as well. I want this to not be a thing and move on."

"You think if I'd ever been a Sunagakure Shinobi, any of this-" the hand with the glass in it gestated to around them. "-would've happened?" too many thoughts swirling about his head. 'It wouldn't be so bad.' A small voice from inside his mind. That thought was being entertained too much.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

AND MINE IS THE FURY

dandy ♫

[Oonakayama Arashi]

Nodus Tollens TAG. @akira WORDS. 672 NOTES.

Perhaps there was wisdom in talking things through... Despite Arashi's reservations on such things... In the end, as Arashi listened to him, he began to open up on just how it was that her actions had hurt him. It wasn't the act alone, it was the fact that just how important his memories were to him. That was where the pain was, and as he spoke, the young teen realized just how much pain came with those memories. But that pain, was also the very thing that kept him in touch with the people that he had lost in his life. He only spoke of them briefly, but hearing the full story now, she could only look at him, shaking her head as she wasn't even sure what to say. But...one thing came to mind.. "Akira...I'm so sorry...had I known..I never would have..." She wanted to complete that sentence and say that she wouldn't have done it. But in truth, in a moment of panic, people were capable of just about anything. Herself included. Yet, he seemed to understand that, and he seemed to know that despite the fact that both of them had indeed hurt each other, they had to move on from this. He wanted to at least and so did she. Though, she imagined that it would be a long road. Though she honestly believed that with three years behind their belt, they could do it. It was just take time...But, there was still that linger question. "I want that too..." As she allowed herself to reach over to the bottle between them, pour more of the liquid into her own, his next question left her with a surprised look on her face. What followed was a small laugh, leading to her covering her lips as she almost snorted before shaking her head. "I'm sorry...sorry...its just that...if you met my father, ya really know how funny that questions is..." Releasing a breath, she'd offer up the bottle toward his own glass as he gestured with it. Filling it slowly, Arashi would close her eyes before clicking her tongue. "You've already met my mom..or at least..as much as my mom as ya probably want to in a situation like this...she was basically raised on the idea that family is everything and that you don't mess with anyone in her pride...but..shes compassionate enough to know that...things happen between people and its best to let them have moments to figure it out...as for my dad..." Arashi would then open her eyes as she then let her own glass linger in the air. "He is about as protective as they come, just is actually more direct and probably would at least be polite about telling you where ya stand and where you shouldn't be standing..." Honestly, she had no idea how Asahi managed to survive dinner with them, but then he did manage to work for her dad. Perhaps that was what allowed him to get in at least some small graces with them. "In the end, I'm still their daughter...so even if you were from Sunagakure….all this...would still be happening..." As she took another sip, she'd then place the glass down before her as she stared back at Akira. "But that shouldn't matter...because...I could care less what village your from...Half the people that I care about...and...even some that I aspire to be...their all from different places all over..." It was the honest truth, and Arashi openly admitted to it. "I care more about the kind of person that you are, rather than where your from..what happened in the past, while important..can't dictate everything...and I won't let it direct my life and the people that are in it..." In saying this, the young girl would then let her hand trace along her glass yet again, soon stopping short as she smiled at him. "If ya haven't realized, I'm not exactly a typical girl or princess...nor do I really follow every rule in the book...hence why we have a dead worm..." SPOILER: Click to show -S.A Used- -Jutsu Used- -Items Used- Sand Gourd

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

[googlefont=Fira+Sans|Playfair+Display]

PEOPLE ARE DIFFERENT,

He shook his head. "You couldn't have known." Akira wasn't certain if he'd told the story to her before, but there were a lot more facts to it than he had given, but reliving it was... not something he wanted to do. She broke their silence with action, and he'd offer up his own glass to her.

Akira nodded for the opportunity for another glass. Only because - well. They'd saved an entire town, and he had the ironic thought as though someone might come in asking them to settle the bill for it. A funny idea but a short lived one.

And hopefully from that moment on it would be resolved.

Akira was initially puzzled with her snigger. "What?" he'd ask. Ah yes, her mother - the milk drinking, equally attractive woman: the one who put him very much on edge with very little of her own energy. But he had no idea of her own father - only some stories from the war. He knew that he'd heard of the messages. Well... he didn't know, but a letter addressed to his daughter, from someone in Iwagakure no less? It would've been flagged. Not something Akira brought up.

Even though that exact conversation hadn't been brought up yet, Akira was feeling better for it. Was he? That's what he wanted to tell himself. He would stand up, pulling the chair around closer to her side, leaning back into his chair and straightening his legs out, crossing over one another, avoiding the crunch of glass and debris - one side of his body leaning into the table wit his elbow. She'd looked... great. Akira had only managed to change into a white t-shirt, but was otherwise not looking any better.

But the affirmation was taken in a different direction, not for her own fault. Perhaps she was blaming herself for a genetic component of her capacity to find trouble? Even Akira didn't have such a claim. She didn't seem to care that he was from another village - a titillating fact. "No, you're not." his head had tilted. "But you're always getting me in trouble, somehow." he chuckled.

He had the tendency to get himself in trouble as well. So many things that he'd done wrong with his life - and even in the times, Akira didn't think he was a good person anymore, but not even Arashi could be privy to that. Nobody could. When that momentary amusement had faded, there was something he'd wanted to ask. 'Better late than never.'

"Was that what you'd wanted to say earlier? I mean, before all of this."

---

SPOILER: Click to show

AND MINE IS THE FURY

dandy ♫

[Oonakayama Arashi]

Nodus Tollens TAG. @akira WORDS. 533 NOTES.

Akira appeared to be reassured by that, and with him moving closer, it seemed as if the matter of trust was starting to be resolved as well. Looking down briefly, Arashi would continue to smile as she then began to adjust the hat that was over her head, it's brim seeming to have a habit of slipping over her face and nearly covering her eyes due to it's rather large size. She honestly didn't know why someone from the west would need such a garment, but then fashion wasn't exactly her specialty. Still, she knew her mind was trying to delay her, allowing her thoughts to linger. So as Akira asked if that was what she wanted to say, her expression changed as she shook her head slowly. It would be easy to lie, and a part of her wanted to. Just let him keep living with the idea, with that feeling of happiness. They had just managed to finally get back to a place where it felt like they could talk to each other and trust one another. But...he had told her his truth...and as she thought of Asahi, and how he would want to know the same thing, the teen knew what she had to do. "No...no that wasn't it..." As she released her breath slowly, her hand reaching towards her kimono as she straightened it upon her torso. This was going to be tough...and she knew that it was going to hurt him. But, she also knew that if she really cared about him, she'd tell him the truth. Everyone deserved that. "Akira....I do care about you...and I know that you care about me...but..I don't care about you..in the same way that I think you do..." Emotions were something that Arashi had very little practice with, but she was getting better at it...thanks to Asahi. "Which...isn't right..because I..I want to believe that when two people really do love each other..it should be in the same way. Because it isn't fair that you can love someone and they can only be half-way in...You don't deserve that...you don't..." Her expression remained calm, as she knew he probably didn't want to hear this. Honestly, in a different time, she wouldn't have wanted to say it. But, if she wanted to keep this connection, she couldn't lie to him. She meant every word. "You deserve to be with someone who loves you...completely...not half-way...and I know that you will...It just..it isn't me...I'm so sorry..." She said it, Arashi had said it...now it was for Akira to either hear it, or ignore it. She was expecting a number of things to happen in his reaction. But, she had prepared herself for it. She didn't want to lose Akira as a friend. So, even if he did hate her..or no longer wanted to speak with her, she'd wait. Because she didn't give up on the people she cherished...and she protected that. Was that a mistake? At times, it had proven to be close to the death of her. She had to learn to let things go, but the people that really mattered to her, those were the ones that she knew she had to fight for. SPOILER: Click to show -S.A Used- -Jutsu Used- -Items Used- Sand Gourd

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

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PEOPLE ARE DIFFERENT,

Oh.

That had explained why she was avoiding the topic until he'd brought it up, exhausting every other subject, because she didn't want to face the truth. But Akira had, and had gone there with the intent to listen and hear her out, which he did. It was hard to explain how he felt.

His posture had clearly tightened up, and his emotion had dropped from being serene in their moment of relief from danger, to one of a simple tension between his brows, a slight angle of his face, one of his hands went into his pocket, the other grasping around the glass, his eyes not really sure where to look - drawn to her face but ever erratic in trying to avoid it, so it settled between on and off her as she spoke.

He just needed it to be over, it was unnecessary how she'd phrased it in her first sentence was all he needed to know, the rest of it was just filler. Ignore her response, how her touch found his - and Akira wasn't sure whether to believe her.

Did he believe she cared? ..well. He couldn't tell. He gulped, saliva building in his throat, his heart in a sense of suspense, like he had all but stopped breathing and his heart was growing heavier, taking an all too bigger presence in his chest than any of the other organs.

And she didn't stop talking, couldn't leave it there. Had to dig that hole deeper, one that was making him grow sadder. Was she trying to say that she... liked him, but that was it? Nothing more? Was she trying to tell him that there was nothing there?

"Oh," there was never an appropriate response. "Are you saying there was never anything? i-"

He understood her, in that you could not like someone, and have there be no reason, you just... weren't attracted to them. Arashi could've said that, and Akira would've been hurt. Hurt, but understanding. He leaned forward, wiping at his eyes with his palms but otherwise just stressed, rather than upset. What he didn't understand, is that she was saying that preceding everything that had happened between them "I can take you saying that it can't happen.. Or, that it will just never happen? But what happened in Kuwana, exactly? Between us? There has been chemistry beyond just that one night, and for that, I don't believe you. If you don't love me, I get that, but what is half way to you, then?" Akira's voice wasn't angry, it sounded a bit like someone beaten into submission. Pityful.

'You're just pleading with her without being obvious. You want this.' Akira more than wanted this, he needed it from her. 'Please, love me..' there was also that. The juvenile part, the one that was hurt. All of this, leading to an inevitable dead end.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

AND MINE IS THE FURY

dandy ♫

[Oonakayama Arashi]

Nodus Tollens TAG. @akira WORDS. 466 NOTES.

Moment Music Akira wanted a definite answer...and it was either that he didn't understand or want to. Honestly, Arashi imagined that this would be hard, but she didn't realize just how much. Telling someone, who clearly loved you, that you didn't have that same love for them, it would be difficult for anyone to understand. So when he asked if there never was anything, the girl shook her head with a calm expression. "I didn't say that..that wasn't what I..." It was his turn to speak, and it was clear that he was trying to take all this in and perhaps grasp it in his own way. She couldn't help but feel like she was destroying someone, and it didn't take a jutsu to do it. Only words of rejections. As he questioned the events of Kuwana, as well as everything else that had happened between then, the teen found herself allowing her gaze to shift to the side, her hands now resting in her lap as she released a breath as he stated that he didn't believe that there had been nothing between them. More than that, he was asking just what exactly was half-way caring for someone to her? "Everything that happened in Kuwana was real..it wasn't me playing with your feelings or anything like that...but I have never let myself be that open with anyone...ANYONE before..and then it felt like I was using you just to get some clarity in my own life..." That said, Arashi would then look at him, her expression still holding that same calm, but still guilt was clear on her face as she stared back at the rock nin before her. "That's half-way caring...and it's..horrible...and cruel and I know that we want to move passed that, but what I did...and now knowing even more about it...Even if I hadn't known about how important your memories were, I still shouldn't have done that..no one who really loves someone would hurt them...just to try and get some sense of worth..." Arashi said this, allowing her hands to rest on the table before them. "Maybe if I had my act together back then...it would be different..if I understand that...so this isn't nor ever was...anything to do with you...it was me...I was the one that messed up...but I can't say that I'm in love with you completely...and lie...because that wouldn't be right and it wouldn't be how I feel about you..." Gently reaching out, she'd place her hand upon his arm, still looking at him with her hazel brown eyes. "I do love you...and I will always care about you...but I can't be anymore to you than a friend...and if you hate me for that, I get it...if you don't wanna talk to me anymore..I get that too...but...that's all I can give you..." SPOILER: Click to show -S.A Used- -Jutsu Used- -Items Used-

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

[googlefont=Fira+Sans|Playfair+Display]

PEOPLE ARE DIFFERENT,

'It hurts.'

She listened, and he spoke: as was natural. As he spoke, he watched her features - the guilt, the care and every other emotion that struck by her face. Was the issue that she had been too open - was it that he was serving as a reminder for what she could be, in how she could act, in his shape and size? Was it because "I don't care." He said quietly in response. It was wrong, even for him. Akira knew where she was coming from, and he himself was stooping low to not fully meeting her objection: but logic didn't work here. Emotionally speaking, it was better that he didn't engage there.

She wanted to say that it was her fault, but he didn't believe that. His actions had brought on something - and maybe that conversation would never happen. He accepted her words, but didn't believe that it was fully about herself.

But there it was again - she wasn't in love with him completely. She had said those words, and was a tiny comfort in comparison to the overwhelming weight in his chest. 'It hurts.' He wanted to cling on to those words - passing them aside in his mind, a phrase that he would find himself repeating, and he was spectating from afar: watching the memory over and over. She found herself explaining, under no certain terms that she didn't not love him, but they wouldn't be anything more than a friend. "I understand," his voice broke a little bit, blinking a lot through it. With her placing her arm on him, made it all the harder to keep his composure. "I.. I do, do think - that you're not being honest. Whether you love me more or less than you're saying, I don't know, but I've always firmly believed you can't negotiate how you feel. I get it."

"Whether I say that because I'm in denial about it, or because I really can see more than you're letting on, I don't know.." he gulped, his eyes forcing themselves shut as he was leaned forward, looking down toward the rubble of the bar they sat in.

"It really hurts." He'd place his hand on top of hers on his arm, and squeezed it once. The man gave a really poor attempt of a smile while he looked at her features, searching deep for what he hoped was there. But her words were honest and her face was humble. 'It hurts.' "I don't want you out of my life." there was a tear rolling down his face, and he was strained trying to keep it back. "But I can't see you for a while..." his hand was still on hers. "I know you understand." Everything was just so hard to get out, between a squeak in his voice - and volume.

He needed to break the link holding him back from leaving, and so he would, hesitantly, withdraw his hand and arm and stood up. "I still want send you letters, Arashi-chan, but I think we both need some time. Me, especially..."

He'd stand and let her say whatever she needed to say and have a conversation if there was anything else to say.

If she didn't want to add anything else, his hand would raise - he'd finish the drink in one and begin to walk - making his way toward the gaping hole in the bar. If she had nothing else to say, he would nod. Eyes afire with life, more than she had ever seen them. It was sad, because he felt truly alive at the moment. One level of exhilaration paired with what he was describing as the second worst moment in it.

"-See ya..."

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SPOILER: Click to show

『Talker』
Akira is a natural talker, mildly charming and versed in many different subjects as a result of spending far too much time indoors. As a result, his mind is matured far beyond his years, he is incredibly empathetic to the emotions around him, weather in deception or in genuine emotion; he seems to get on easier with those around him.

AND MINE IS THE FURY

dandy ♫

[Oonakayama Arashi]

Nodus Tollens TAG. @akira WORDS. 318 NOTES.

Feeling him pull away, Arashi remained silent as she watched him rise up. His words of hurt weren't lost upon her, prompting her to simply look up at him as she then could see the pain in his eyes. The tear that rolled down his cheek. While he didn't fully think she was telling him everything on how she felt, he understood that what she had said was indeed the truth. "I understand...I think so too..." If it hurt her to say it, it was clear that it was painful to hear it for the Iwagakure nin. Though he still wanted to remain friends, he believed that for the moment, they both needed time apart. It was reasonable to see that he needed to heal, and that could only be done if he had space from...all of this. As she needed it too. With him finishing his glass, he'd give a sign of his leave, her smile brief as she acknowledge his offer to send her letters, though she didn't expect to hear from the shinobi anytime soon. "See ya...Akira" Akira would make his leave, disappearing through the gapping hole in the inn, leaving the Sunagakure nin alone. Looking down at the table, Arashi would see the glass in front of her, raising it to her lips before shaking her head with closed eyes. Moment Music She had done the right thing...it was the right thing... But as she opened her eyes, she felt a single tear slide down her face, crusting over upon the surface of her skin before she rubbed it away with the back of her hand. Had she...actually still had feelings for Akira? Of course she did...but...in her heart...she knew that there was something different about the way she felt about him, that she did for Asahi. That alone was her reasoning...and what she knew in her heart to be true. That wasn't going to change, no matter how much Akira may have wished differently. But... Perhaps...maybe...in another lifetime...in another place in time... I would choose you... -End Thread- SPOILER: Click to show -S.A Used- -Jutsu Used- -Items Used-

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

[googlefont=Fira+Sans|Playfair+Display]

PEOPLE ARE DIFFERENT,

"-See ya..." His voice was bleak as he gave a wave, energy to lax as to not even be able to outstretch his fingers. He would walk through the gaping hole in the building - not taking the time to turn around, looking back. With her in the background of the village would etch itself into his memory as he looked to his left and his right.

His feet would barely lift across the ground, weighing him down as the weights added to his shoulders. 'Maybe this is for the best.' even in his mind, his voice was quiet against the background music of nature. 'I need to see her one more time.' he wanted to turn around, to see her in her dress and hat that she'd acquired. Akira would shake his head as he continued to walk. 'One last time.' His head disobeying the order to turn around. His jaw was doing a turn on himself, clamping down, and he walked off- the taste of blood evident where he'd chewed too hard into the front of his bottom lip. He'd berate himself, his lips pursed and his eyes squinted down towards his own feet as he walked, face stony as he took himself away.

Even on the way out of the village, there was the slightest stroke of lucky that he found his Kusarigama and Scythe duo, but held no happiness as he picked it up - his body finding much more weight in it than usual.

And that's what would happen. His feet were taking him out of sight, through a forest where he had come through with Akatsuki on his way here, all the while past a destroyed terrain: through a small green clearing, littered with purple flowers. Except, it was no longer beautiful: the landscape had been torn through. He didn't know how far he'd gotten.

moment music

Akira needed to stop. At the edge of the small clearing inside the forest, now finally out of sight of anyone that could go there, and he'd almost hide himself to the world as his back would slide against an overturned tree - still larger than his entire frame. His head would touch against the back of the tree. 'Just breathe.' Akira was trying to clear his mind and yet she was all he could think about. It was worse than before, where he could focus on what he was doing - on his mission, there was nothing to stop him.

The man would find his feet give way and he would begin to slide down the bark of the tree, fists coming up over his eyes, elbows in to his gut. "No..." a whine from him, until his knees locked him into that position and he was sat, slightly out of key with his equipment knocking into him, his Scythe turning sideways, his form creating a small den for him to burrow his head into. Shaking. A soft, pathetic whimper began to cascade out of the man, in what began as shaking began to emerge as a stifling of sound, before combining together to his nose clogging up, his face turning red and his eyes screwed shut.

'ithurtsithurtsithurtsithu-' a mantra ran through his mind as weak noises protruded from him. They were irregular, constant, whines coming from his mouth and body as a reflection of the inner turmoil being released, into full blown gasps and a cry. Nobody would be coming here.

It was fine.

END

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SPOILER: Click to show

AND MINE IS THE FURY

dandy ♫