[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world yamaguchi daichi

Toru had more control over the coral at this stage, which was why he had willed it, to begin with. There would have been no point in continuing with the one-tail variety if he wanted to really hone in on the polyps. The more control he had over regular coral, the better, it meant he could spend more time focusing on the thing that required more focus - the polyps.

Some of the senbon hit Daichi, and now he created a barrier.

The Mizukage steeled himself, a barrier to separate them. He wanted nothing of the sort. How was he supposed to practice if Daichi was going to hide behind it? Well, the other half of it was Daichi couldn't just be a meat bag or him to hit over and over again. It was a little worrying that this was among Daichi's only defense mechanisms for himself though. Toru did not want Daichi to get hurt in the field, not truly... They would have to discuss this at a later date.

The young man inhaled, seemingly nothing but his legs clearly expanded, his cheeks becoming full before he unleashed two powerful jets of water from his mouth. This was something that he only had access to in his shrouds - thus far - but he hoped that this Suiton would be enough to break down the barrier. It would totally wet the ground though, making it slippery.

But, with the barrier down - presumably - he would send another set of polyp-covered coral senbon. He was finding creating smaller structures with polyps was a lot easier than what he had been trying before. And it was all about walking before running full steam ahead.

OWL

[yamaguchi daichi]

I COULD EAT THE WORLD RAW

It was true, Daichi didn’t have much to lean on in terms of personal defense. The harsh reality was that—he just wasn’t much of a combatant. His skillset laid in gathering information and support; his place was not necessarily in the thick of battle but rather its outskirts, relaying movements and details that could turn the tide of a fight, or allow his team to adequately strategize for a mission. He was decent enough with a kunai, could usually hold his own long enough for support to arrive, but… that was against other chuunin. A special jounin, maybe. The Mizukage? Not a chance. If this were a real fight, Daichi would already be dead. His chest burned at the thought, a bubbling mixture of fierce pride in his leader and turbulent shame in his own inadequacy, how completely useless he was as an actual bodyguard, how pitiful his performance as a chuunin— His mind raced, and his body ached. Coherent trains of thought were becoming difficult to follow, something he was distantly aware of—a bland observation, as if he were interpreting the symptoms of someone else’s body, and not acutely feeling the breakdown of his own. Two high-pressure jets of water shattered Daichi’s barrier with relative ease—as predicted, though not quite in the way that Daichi had hoped for. The barrier did its job, at least, which was to stay intact for the slimmest moment Daichi needed to jerk out of the way of the line of fire. He skidded as he lunged to the side, however, the floor now slippery beneath his feet, and though he managed to keep his head well enough to send chakra to the soles of his feet to keep his balance on the now-flooded floor of the training room, his careening sent his head spinning again. He shook it, disorientated. Precious seconds he couldn’t afford to waste. Another set of senbon pierced into the skin of his shoulder. Daichi grunted—a brief, swallowed sound of pain that quickly contorted into a vicious. wheezing cough that culminated in a wad of blood and bile that he spat unceremoniously onto the ground. His breath came short and struggling as he wiped his mouth. He wanted to say something, but didn’t trust that he could speak clearly, and so instead kept his mouth shut. Another barrier might have been helpful, but—his body hurt, and he was unsteady on his feet, and it felt like it was taking more effort than usual to keep himself stable with his chakra, especially with his doujutsu still activated. One more jutsu, then. He pulled out a kunai, his hand trembling despite his best efforts, and took a defensive stance. One finger traced along the surface of the weapon, quickly searing a small seal into the metal. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the Mizukage, as the world was starting to blur at the edges, and it took some effort to bring the other boy into focus. His chest heaved with shallow breaths. Defense wasn’t working, and Daichi needed to push himself through this, despite the pain, despite the ardent rebellion of his body as it heaved against the poison invading his system. Why ran through his head, a multitude of half-formed justifications and grim, lifelong dissatisfactions, but nothing he could string into a coherent thought. Coherent thought was left behind as he rushed forward in a sudden burst of jerky, erratic movement. He initially seemed to be closing in for a melee strike, but before the distance was closed, he threw the kunai towards the Mizukage’s center mass before repeating the same trick as before—a single ram seal, a burst of chakra he almost certainly couldn’t afford to spend, and the kunai expanded mid-flight until it was larger even than Daichi himself.

Kaguya Toru -- 637

LAIKA OF THQ

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world yamaguchi daichi

Toru could at least faintly tell from this distance between him and Daichi that Daichi was not doing well. Normally the bodyguard was at least moderately talkative, he remained silent and his steps that were often nimble were humbled with exhaustion. It meant the end was coming, and for a moment the Mizukage considered ending it now for the other's sake, his jaw clamping down tightly, teeth grinding down against each other as he stared at the other's next move. Chakra continued to swirl within and around Toru viciously, he already knew that he had struck where he had needed to strike. But it also meant that he would have to make Daichi give up soon.

This was where their views differed. Daichi saw an inadequate bodyguard, unfit to survive the Mizukage. Toru saw Daichi's tenacity and obedience. He could have collapsed already, thrown in the towel under this seemingly unsurmountable pain. But he still stood, still molded his chakra to perform techniques as he slid across the water to maintain his composure. A bodyguard was much more than a protective vest, kevlar meant to be used and thrown to the side once ruined. Daichi was far more than that to Toru.

The younger of the two remained still, staring quietly as he observed Daichi's next move. He wondered how much more he could push himself, how much more both of them could push each other. He knew Daichi would collapse first, but he was curious as to when though it pained him to think he would allow Daichi to hurt for this long without administering the antidote.

Toru lowered his stance when he saw the kunai and the gentle traces of shaken fingertips along the surface of the dark metal of the blade.

But, what happened next came with a bit of shock to Toru. Daichi was running at him or rushing towards him. The movement and chakra use were what drastically made the toxin worse, and work faster, did Daichi not figure that out already? Did he know already figure out that the shroud that bubbled and lashed out all around Toru was close to impossible to cut through that even legendary blades struggled against the durable youth? There had to be more, had to be, or else Daichi was truly delirious and Toru would have to put a stop to this exercise entirely and immediately.

He let it go on for a little longer...

Daichi stopped and the kunai catapulted through the air, whistling as it sliced towards Toru. Toru's hands twitched towards one of his swords - Saigo - but the kunai expanded much larger than Daichi and thus very much larger than Toru. Haphazardly he threw his hand up to try and get the coral to grow from the ground to stop the weapon, but alas, he was too late.

Though, instead of being impaled, he was struck by the blunt force of the weapon, the shroud protecting him from everything but the sheer velocity of the kunai.

Toru collided with the wall behind him, and the kunai unable to penetrate his carapace would fall to the side Toru on the other hand would leave a rather large dent in the wall before he willed his body forward collapsing forward onto his knees, the Mizukage braced himself and looked towards Daichi.

"Enough..." They could go on for longer, but he worried for Daichi now as he rubbed at his stomach where the impact had been made slowly he would get to his feet and allow for the chakra shroud to fall apart a singular motion of his hand would have the individual with the antidote descend upon Daichi to administer it.

"I cannot let you continue."

OWL

[yamaguchi daichi]

I COULD EAT THE WORLD RAW

The kunai collided with the hot red whiplash of the chakra shroud that enveloped the Mizukage, sending him crashing back against the wall behind him. Daichi inhaled sharply, his eyes going wide, panic skittering in his chest—did I hurt him?—before his vision went white. It was brief. When he was able to see again, he was on his hands and knees, face-to-face with the floor. It took him a moment to realize that the world wasn’t shaking, he was—full-body convulsions and violent heaves as he vomited up a rancid mixture of bile and black ichor. He was dimly aware of the Mizukage saying something, before a hand was pulling him upright, tilting his chin up so that his face turned towards the ceiling. (somewhere in the whirligig of his tired and scrambled mind he thought: that’s not my lord’s hand. too large, too soft, no calluses at the base of the fingers, at the joint between forefinger and thumb.) Through a wet haze of sweat and unshed tears and awful, spinning vertigo, he saw a blur of vivid green. Daichi shook his head. He shook his head again, insistent, and wiped his mouth—his hand came back bloody. He pushed the hand away from his chest and tried, slow, aching, delirious, to stand. "I can keep going,” he said hoarsely. "I’m sorry, I can—” Another dry heave nearly sent him to his knees again, but the last remaining dregs of his conscious willpower bid him to stay on his feet. All else he said was unintelligible, a wretched litany of apologies and a dogged insistence to carry on.

Kaguya Toru -- 276

LAIKA OF THQ

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world yamaguchi daichi

The antidote was administered the guard stepped away, washing the vomit away with a simple suiton as Daichi insisted on standing, whereas the man was trying to get Daichi to rest. But he spoke and insisted and the guard looked apprehensively towards their leader.

Toru took slow steps forward, with each step the temperature of his body plummeted back to normalcy. No longer was he the fiery inferno, the demonic cloak that brought sorrow and widows. Even the water seemed to steam around him with each step he took.

When he was upon Daichi, he was every bit Toru with only the refuse of beast, still glowing brightly in his eyes, but simmering down to embers, a funeral pyre at dawn.

Slowly he reached up and touched his bodyguard's cheek, his palm fully pressed against the dampness of the other's flesh. The other hand resting on the top of his shoulder, he applied pressure, gentle but commanding. Bidding Daichi down to the watery ground, to rest.

"I'm here," Toru whispered speaking as if his presence should be kept a secret. He knew the antidote would make its way through his system soon, and he knew that it would make him feel better. The youth's index finger would curl, soft fingertip gently dragging soothing patterns just at where the other's jaw hinged wishing for the muscle to relax here too. It was strange, for Toru to be doing this, he did not understand why he was doing this, as much as he felt a strong compulsion to do so.

He was bad at affection, but Daichi was in pain and trying to stand for him nonetheless, it stoked a fire in his chest and it bloomed with brilliant passion.

OWL

[yamaguchi daichi]

I COULD EAT THE WORLD RAW

Daichi’s mumbled protestations were ignored, the antidote administered despite his insistence that he didn’t need it, he was fine, he could keep going. He trembled violently as he stood there, hunched over, lacking the strength to even keep his posture straight. The antidote worked quickly, even just scant minutes after administration. It was starting to help. Some. Pain still convulsed through his body, but his stomach stopped trying to claw its way up his throat. He still felt hazy, aching, like a massive weight was bearing down on his body and mind, and it was hard to piece a thought together, hard to speak, hard to breathe. Chest tight, his mind racing in a dozen different directions, staying rooted to the spot was all he could manage. A hand touched his cheek, warm—too warm. Callused palm, soft fingertips. Soft voice. Mizukage. Slim fingers pressed down on his shoulder, an unspoken command. Daichi obeyed, slowly, carefully folding his stiff and screaming limbs until he was sat on the damp floor. Streaks of his blood marred the surface of the scattered, shallow puddles. Fingers pressed against his clenched jawline, and he shivered. He breathed out slowly, trying to let go of the tension, and leaned into Toru’s hand. At another time, in another state of mind, he might have worried about appropriate behavior, the disrespect inherent in this kind of casual touch—but the parts of his mind concerned with what was socially acceptable had long since been turned off by exhaustion and pain. He was offered comfort, and grateful for it beyond measure. The crimson of Daichi’s left eye faded back into a dull, glassy green, unable to keep up even the minimal flow of chakra to the forefront of his mind. His eyes slid closed, his breaths coming shallow, but less strained with every passing heartbeat. "You did the technique, m’lord,” Daichi said softly after a long moment. His words were quiet, the thickness in his throat slurring them all together, but pride in what the Mizukage had accomplished was winning out over his aching, tired mind, his disappointment in his own participation. "Held three times, I think. W’the needles.” Another stray thought suddenly came to mind, a quick-recalled memory fighting its way through the haze of the past few minutes. Even on the ground Daichi nearly lost his balance, his hand flying up to cover Toru’s, anxiously squeezing his fingers. "I hit you with the—I’m so sorry—are you hurt?”

Kaguya Toru -- 413

LAIKA OF THQ

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world yamaguchi daichi

The dampness soaked into his trousers until he was no longer kneeling on wet tiles as much as he was wearing wet clothes. A change was in order. There was a weight in his palm as he held Daichi's face, he couldn't tell if he was a resting place or a pillow for the delirious bodyguard. They had gone too far. The next time they practiced, or he practiced he would have to make sure that there were no victims in sight for his experiments... Unless he was aiming to kill. Truly kill.

"Yes," Toru confirmed, though he was not totally happy with his progress, Toru was never known for being happy with his progress. It seemed even now where he stood at the top of all the ranks around him, he wasn't good enough in his own mind. It was easy to be disappointed in his own ascension, and when he held himself to these standards, he ended up holding others to the same. It was hurtful at times, but he knew that striving for acceptance, being the best, well it fueled a fire in the bellies of some individuals. Something Toru was more than willing to continue to stoke.

"I'm not hurt," It was not explicitly a lie. Toru was not physically really hurt. It had HURT, but it did not hurt HIM. A strange duality, being able to feel pain but never truly experiencing it anymore in the form of wounds, cuts, and so on. It took a great deal of effort to really do anything to him.

"I can carry you," Daichi was a bit bigger but Toru was not weak and despite how comical it might appear he was willing to carry Daichi out of the arena and to his room where he stayed for the duration of the exams. The hand remained pressed against Daichi's shoulder though, a reminder of the command he had given to not stand up, in case a protest reared within the dark-haired teen.

OWL

[yamaguchi daichi]

I COULD EAT THE WORLD RAW

A protest did rise up in his chest, and Daichi felt the strong instinct to struggle to stand, to prove to his lord that he could, he was fine, he didn’t need help. He was supposed to be taking care of the Mizukage, not the other way around. But an order had been given, and Daichi’s loyalty instantly won out over his primitive, combative instincts. He remained where he was, breathing slow and unsteady, watching water slowly soak into the fabric of Toru’s grey trousers. His mind was slow to catch up. I’m not hurt, the Mizukage said, but Daichi knew that was wrong, he had seen the impact. He couldn’t make sense of the details, but he was certain that was wrong. "I hurt you,” he said quietly. His words came a little easier now, less rough and caustic against the torn-up lining of his throat. After a moment, and with no small amount of effort, he pulled himself more or less upright, not leaning so heavily against the Mizukage’s hand. Without thinking—there wasn’t enough left in him for thought—he reached out, fingers pressing against Toru’s chest. No marks, no bruises, no evidence at all that he’d been struck, but… center mass. Daichi knew. "I’m sorry,” he said again. "I didn’t… I’m sorry.” His body ached. His bones felt heavy. His hand lingered against the Mizukage’s chest, as if he’d forgotten it was there in his daze. "I, um, I think I can stand,” he said, though he made no move to do so, and wouldn’t unless he was given the okay. "You don’t… have to do that.” Pride had ever been his greatest vice. That he clearly still had so much room to grow was damning enough; if the Mizukage carried him to his room like a dog with an injured leg, then Daichi’s body would take far less time to recover than his wounded pride.

Kaguya Toru -- 324

LAIKA OF THQ

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world yamaguchi daichi

The grey of his trousers grew darker within the water that soaked the floor, Toru's hand remained pressed against the broad musculature of Daichi's shoulder. Daichi was strong, Toru was mostly a lanky teenager, but his command carried the word of a warlord and a king. So did his palm, so Daichi remained on the ground despite his desire to stand, despite the strain, the tension Toru felt in that shoulder for a moment.

"I had asked for it," Toru remarked in retort. Even if he had *hurt* him in the true sense, Toru had not backed down. Had not told him to not hurt him. They had a real spar, it was expected. Required. If he had not tried to hurt, had not fought back Toru would have been disappointed by their simulation.

Once again he felt the muscle of the other's shoulder and back fire up, Daichi sat up a little stronger. The antidote making him feel marginally better, enough to sit up. Just enough.

The apologies came, spilling from the other, gushing. Toru swallowed thick, his throat visibly moving down, his adam's apple had become more prominent recently, his voice undoubtedly becoming that of a man instead of a boy, though his body and face remained still in that somewhere in between, not a boy, not a man, a teenager.

"No," Toru whispered, but it was a firm voice. "I don't. But I am." The Mizukage cared not for wounded pride, he only cared for his wounded bodyguard that was struggling to breathe, let alone stand. So, he stood, and with the power of what had to be a dozen of the greatest heroes in their world he lifted Daichi, his eyes glowing red, it was obvious he was using the bijuu's chakra to allow him to do this. But he was not aflame as he had been, he radiated warmth... Daichi smelled sweet.

He started to walk silently, past the guard with the antidote and to his quarters in Kagamino no Shi - the Daimyo's palace. Where Daichi would be settled in *his* bed and a medic was called.

"Rest."

OWL

[yamaguchi daichi]

I COULD EAT THE WORLD RAW

Mizukage had made his decision, and Daichi was in no state to do a thing about it other than make a soft noise of protest as he was lifted from the ground. He didn’t doubt his strength, but a vague, unnameable feeling twisted in his belly that his tired mind could only parse in terms of he shouldn’t strain himself for me. Toru was warm. It was a struggle to stay awake, exhaustion mingling with loose anxiety over propriety and reputation and a deep, festering discontent with his own capability, his complete uselessness, an emotional upheaval that would bubble up his throat before being tempered by the steady pace of Toru’s footsteps, the comfortable warmth radiating from his skin. He came back into something close to being alert when he was carefully placed onto soft sheets, a comfortable bed, and he realized with a dimly growing alarm that this was not his own bed—rather the Daimyo’s. Toru’s. He opened his mouth to protest, once again struggling to sit up, before he was stopped in place by a simple command: rest. "... Thank you,” he said, soft-spoken, feeling immeasurably small. His eyes closed, too heavy for him to keep open even a moment longer. "I’m sorry.” [END.]

Kaguya Toru -- 205

LAIKA OF THQ

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world yamaguchi daichi

Toru lingered near Daichi's side, his hands clasped behind his back, though draped and hidden by his sleeves.

I'm sorry.

His jaw tightened, and rust-eyes stared towards the older boy, if there was emotion there Toru did not show it. But the feeling in his chest was hollow and painful, and it burned with a strange desire to shake Daichi to his senses. To tell him to stop apologizing and to stop thanking him for doing the bare minimum. But he knew it would do no good. So there he stood, watching for a moment before he moved away to go grab a towel, he would wet it in a basin full of cold water and bring it back to place it over the bodyguard's forehead. That was all he could do for now, he was not a medic, though he understood basic first aid, he knew that with the other being asleep there was not much he could. Daichi needed rest after the antidote was administered and some after care, something Toru was willing to provide but needed proper guidance on.

So the medic arrived, examined the sleeping male and gave Toru instructions to which Toru agreed and so, he crawled onto the bed and sat near Daichi for as long as it took, with a hand resting over the other's stomach tepidly.

[End]

OWL