Alas, Dear Brother... (P)

As Haru choked the boy, sword in bleeding hand, the gathering storm finally yielded the rain it had been threatening for so long. As the water began coming down, Haru thought it was ironic the way it always seemed to rain when bad things happened. This was likely a wake up call for Altar. After all, he was finally seeing Haru for what he really was. And what was Haru, really? Not a cold, ruthless killer, as Altar likely believed. No, Haru was no killer. He was merely a tool. Was a knife the culprit to a stabbing? Was an arrow the mastermind behind an assassination? No. Merely the tool used to execute the job. 

As Haru held Altar above himself, the blade in his hand threatening to cut the boy in two should he try to struggle, he wondered if Xyxer really sent Altar after him. Why else would the boy be attacking him?

The boy choked out a few words before he blacked out, Haru's cold eyes wavering slightly as Altar lost consciousness. Haru held him there, suspended in the air for a few fractions of a second, before releasing the boy, whose form would collapse to the ground before him, splashing in the water. Haru stood there quietly for a second, reflecting on what had just happened.

"If only you knew, Altar. 'We' haven't become anything. I'm not like you." He muttered solemnly as the crimson faded from his eyes and the color returned to his skin. Haru would turn, looking around and searching the streets and rooftops. 

"Another test, lord Mizukage?" He would say to the open air, sure that the man was around somewhere, watching. At the very least, Haru expected another ANBU to be hidden away somewhere. With his byakugan, Haru combed the area for Xxyer. "I truly hope that's what this was..." He said, looking back at Altar's limp form. If this wasn't a test, then Altar truly was unhinged, and truly did want to kill him. No, that couldn't be it. The boy's words confirmed Haru's suspicions. This was another test for him set forth by the Mizukage.

Xyxer had watched the entire ordeal from the rooftops nearby. The patter of rain drummed against his helmet, echoing around inside of it. The sound soothed the demon. His own territory. This was what made him a creature that mothers warn their children about. The Abysswalker that followed neither the line of pure sanity nor uncontrolled insanity, but merely a void. Void of compassion. Void of empathy. Void of limits. He had forced two friends to engage one another in feral combat. One had came out on top with, what appeared to Xyxer, little effort. Shaking his head at the display, he walked towards the edge of the rooftop and dropped silently onto the wet cobbles beneath himself. Dispelling the armour that covered his form, he allowed his clothing and body to become soaked in the element that formed so much of himself. The water sustained him as he walked, vitalising his body as he gazed upon the broken shinobi in the hand of the ANBU.

Lifting his hands up slowly, the moist palms met each other after a lapse in distance, then again, and again, and again. Xyxer clapped as he approached the bleeding art held by the painter Haru. Dripping into the puddles beneath his own feet, soiling them with it's crimson blessing. His eyes ran from one half of the sculpture towards the other, nodding his head in admiration. "How close are you to this boy, Haru? He seemed worried when he had to fight you." He paused for a moment, smirking, "The little flinches in the cheeks, widening of the eyes and all." However, he paused once more after saying that, flicking his left hand away from his head as his brows furrowed and his lips extended into a feature of confusion before he allowed words to emerge from his lips again, "He failed the mission he vowed to carry out. Failure as you know is heavily discouraged, and is rewarded with a punishment. Let him remember the day he lied to his Mizukage, Haru. Cut a gash into his cheek deep enough to scar, so that when ever he sees his reflection, he remembers the opportunity Xyxer awarded to him, and the victory he yielded to you." With that, Xyxer awaited in the spot as the rain crashed around them, his arms folded over his torso with a neutral expression clouding his features for the main event.

Haru's byakugan caught a glimpse of Xyxer, armor fading away as he descended to the ground. He bowed respectfully to the Mizukage as the man approached, before looking up intently. He was a little put off by the man's question, not because it made him uncomfortable, but because he didn't expect it. He figured the man already knew... After all, he had sent Altar to attack him as a test.

"...I don't have many that I call 'Friend,' Lord Mizukage. Most of them are dead and gone. Altar is one of the few that I give that title to." Haru said. It was true, he hadn't had much place in his life for friends. His first true friends, Dante and Yuri, were either dead or missing. His Sensei Rin was also dead. Haruna and Matsu as well... It was no surprise Haru had distanced himself from most people, as anyone who had read his file would know. 

Haru sighed as Xyxer made his command. Inflict a punishing scar upon the boy. It seemed fair, being a ninja was brutal, and those who couldn't live up to that expectation were often killed in training, rather then scarred. He lifted the boy, drawing one of his trench knives, preparing to make the mark. As he did this, something struck him. He wondered why Altar was being punished for Haru's passing of his own test.
"Before I do this, I need to know... What exactly is he being punished for?" He inquired. "I thought the test was for me. Why does Altar need to suffer for my actions?" He asked.

"The world of Shinobi is a terrifying one. For someone to accomplish their mission, another must fail their own. If the lion outruns the gazelle, the gazelle is devoured and the lion's hunger is sated. If the gazelle outruns the lion, the gazelle is granted the sanctity of life and the lion is depraved of quelling the roar of it's gut." He shrugged his shoulders as if the true meaning of what he said wasn't truly needed, after all, an order was an order. The only reason Xyxer was not immediately curing Haru of the ailment of life was because he was proving to be a worth while asset to Kirigakure. Any other lesser ninja would surely be disciplined. "He wished to play in the big leagues. To be one of the scariest shinobi that Kirigakure has produced. He failed in his mission to assassinate you, and so he must know the price of failure. Where you have succeeded, he has failed. Such is the duality of man."

Haru just shrugged. What the man said made sense in a way, although he would never have thought that way himself. He wondered if that was what all ninja from old Kirigakure were like... No, that couldn't be. His sensei had been from the original Kirigakure, and Rin was a kind soul, even tempered and sparing of judgement. Haru shook the thought from his mind. An order was an order, no matter who barked it down at him. Haru wasn't a man to decide right and wrong, he was a weapon, a tool to be used by his village to ensure that the law was upheld. Xyxer was hard and cruel, but he definitely got results, and Haru couldn't argue with that.

"As you wish." He uttered simply. He had no qualms about cutting Altar. Although the boy was his closest friend, save his sister, Haru knew his duty always came first. He could almost always put his personal feelings aside for the sake of the mission. Gripping the blade tightly, he lifted the boy's body by the collar of his shirt, and pressed the blade against the flesh of his cheek. Effortlessly, the blade pierced the soft flesh of his face, and pushed through, cutting a gash clean through to the end of his cheek. Instinctively, Haru prepared to apply the mystical palm technique to the wound, before remembering the intent was to create a scar.

"It's done." He said as he set the boy back down, cleaning the blood from his blade, before turning to the Mizukage.


(TWC:4747)

Watching on as the blade advanced into the flesh of Altar, he momentarily reallocated his gaze towards the face of Haru. He wanted to indulge in the emotions he was giving off, how weak was this man before him? Was he one that displayed their inner emotions for the entire world to see and prey on, or did he keep his face stern, not relenting such pivotal information. He saw a few twinges in the face, but it was relatively untelling. Were they feelings of remorse? Pleasure? He did not know, and that was good. Nodding his head once the deed was done, he did not bother to congratulate Haru on not dying, after all, that was it's own reward. With a single wave, he turned his back towards the duo and walked through the rain silently, disappearing into the crowds of civilians.

[Exit]
843 words
hit me up with 4 AP

Haru's expression was blank as he felt the Mizukage's eyes upon him, his vision with the byakugan, which was still active, comfirming it. He said nothing, not really caring what the Tenkage saw. He felt nothing for scarring his friend. The boy was fully comfortable with trying to kill him simply to join the ranks of the ANBU, so why should he feel remorse at placing the scar? 

As the mizukage bid him farewell, Haru sighed, looking down at the boy, laying drenched in the streets. The Mizukage hadn't told him to do anything with the boy, be it bring him home or leave him to the mercy of nature. After considering it for a moment, he decided. He had just scarred the boy for life, he might as well do him a favor and get him out of the rain. He would take the boy by the collar, dragging him like a dog holding a puppy by the nape of its neck, carrying Altar out of the rain, underneath some scaffolding, providing some cover from the rain. He leaned the boy against a wall, taking a good look at the gash he had made in the boy's face. It would heal in time, leaving a deep scar, just as the Mizukage wanted. 

Learning that the boy had made the choice to try and kill him just angered Haru, who had come to expect the boy to have some degree of loyalty. This was unusual for Altar, at least the one he knew. Of course, Haru would have killed him without a second thought, if given the order, but he wouldn't have sought it out, nor would he choose to if given the chance, unless there was something at risk. Personal power was not a reason to betray an ally. He wouldn't pass judgement himself, but he definitely was not pleased with the boy.

Haru will remember this

(Exit)
(TWC: 5066)

+50 AP, 66 words to charity

This thread was before I changed my stats, so idk how this fits into the grand scheme, give a verdict and i'll roll with it