Why Should I? [Shino/Private]

It was a quiet, still day within the vast forests of the Land of Fire, with the creatures of day beginning to settle in for the night and the nocturnal simply waking themselves up, staring sleepily into the crisp, cool evening as the sun slowly descended, ending the day. Bright, vivid oranges and purples stained the sky and clouds, making a beautiful sight for anyone to behold. Yet the one other human being so far that was appreciating its beauty in the area at the time was a lone, jaded boy, his arms crossed behind his neck to act as a pillow as he laid on a patch of soft grass and bloomed flowers, staring into the air and watching as everything ended for the day. This was a ritual for him by now, wasting the day away in Konoha's forests, staying far off from any contact of any kind, right to the very tip of midnight, before finally going back home to rest in his unkempt room. Nothing would ever take away the little bit of freedom he felt while here, freedom from the scorn pelted onto him by peer and Clan alike, of the abuse from his family, and everything else that hurt him so. But if he was so hurt and needed to be alone, why didn't he just graduate the Academy and leave?

"Why should I?"


That was the same thing he told himself everyday. An attitude he had gotten from being neglected so long for the majority of his life, of being pushed down and treated like less than useless. It wouldn't change anything, for he'd always be treated the same in his mind. He'd just end up being even more alone than he already felt, because he was so sure that no one had a good heart. The only reason he had never taken this out on the world was because he was stubborn enough and still human enough to try and be the better man, even if no one would acknowledge him for it. Yet sometimes he did wonder if that would make him happy for once, if he could throw away all the binding of morality and just let loose. Which made him isolate himself even more, in fear of hurting people that never deserved his wrath in the first place. It was a vicious cycle, so he continued to waste his life away, out where no one but himself could hurt him anymore, in nature, hoping one day he would just wither away and finally become useful to someone by giving back to the earth that so cruelly created him. 

What he didn't know was that good people still existed, even if they hid in plain sight. His problem was approaching it, because he only saw everything in black. There was no white, as no one had shown him the light he could follow, to help him bring himself back up. His brother was better than him in every way, his whole clan despised him, the Academy Teachers had given up on him just as he had given up on them. The only person decent in his life was his doctor and therapist, but he was so hardheaded that he never let them have any true breakthroughs, and just treated them with the minimum respect a stranger should be offered. In that way, he was kind of like the people that hated him. So all he really needed was to be shown his own place, working off of his pride. But no one cared enough to do that...or they just didn't want to anger a Uchiha. The other part of his existence that held him back from certain people that discriminated due to the atrocities his clan has committed, both in present and past. He didn't blame them, though.




He's scum like the rest, so it's better he hide away and die in a hole.




[Current WC: 654]

The serene, deceptively serene, environment of the forest was a near constant home for Shinoskay. He lived in forest more then he did the orphanage, his own hut, burrowed out into the ground and roofed by an mud and stone dome that included a door to enter through, had been finished quite some time ago and now he spent most of his nights staring at his fire while contemplating the world around him. He could not remember how long he had been here, since he had been bitten by that thing in Tanzaku he held little to no memory of anything, he wasnt even sure why he was here in this forest. Something was calming about it though, like he belonged in it and like it was the only place for him.

Unlike most previous nights, on this night there was another who had entered the forest. they were not very stealthy and they did not seem to notice his presence but then they also didnt seem to care. Shinoskay had spent an hour watching this other boy, the white mask and his armoured hoody kept his body warm as he stood in the trees and stared at the one who stared to the sky. The genin had done this himself numerous times and so he knew what they saw, in his own mind he watched the sky with them.

If they had some how caught sight of the boy, he was standing some 20 meters up, even though his outfit was white his form was concealed by mess and masses of leaves and twigs. The moon light would cast a shadow over the boys mask from his hood. The boys green eyes were the only thing that would show clearly through the layers of concealment, wide to take in as much detail of his surrounding as possible. It was interesting to see someone so young, aside from himself of course, out in the woods this late. He wondered if they were their to think something through? like he himself had done almost a year ago in this very forest.

Shinoskay recalls this moment

There was much to see in the Greenery surrounding the village, a second chuunin exam was occurring, a great deal could be on the uchiha's mind. From beside him on the side opposite Shinoskay is on, a whisper in his ear, "The world is beautiful, no?"

ooc
using ventriloquism

Lynn hadn't felt the need to even return home this night. It was too quiet, too cold, and too comforting. This cold embrace he felt from nature was simply much more welcoming than anything he had at any other point in his life. So why, indeed, should he do anything but stay here? Nothing called him to action, no one cared, and he had no obligation, other than to not give out secrets of their Village. This was about the only thing he ever did, as he never would dream of spilling out information if he ever came across it. Not without a lot of convincing otherwise, anyway. He at least had enough patriotism to keep the innocent safe and that was all he really could do, despite his situation. Yet, just when he had caught the glimmer of eyes as green as his somewhere in the distance, that's when he heard that whisper.

It startled him much more than he probably would have anticipated, so when those words tickled his eardrum, he jumped a bit, sitting up with his hands on the grass. There was no clear source of where this came from, but he simply looked around, under those tinted shades of his, evergreen eyes scanning the area. He was not very trained, so Shino's camouflage made it too much for him to find his eyes again. With a frustrated sigh, he began to get up, wrapping his white and blue coat around himself as he slipped right into it again, dusting it off out of habit, before he said anything at all.

"I don't know where that came from...who are you? If you want my money, you're out of luck, cause my brother took all of it today already."

Of course, that was a complete lie. Lynn always hid his ryo within a hollowed out section of his diary, the only thing of which could only be unlocked by him, and the key he hid discretely, where no one else could find it. Whatever material it was made of, it was actually harder for his brother to break through, though secretly he believed maybe he just wasn't as strong as he thought. Not that it would matter though, since they were still better than him. Disregarding his thoughts, he shoved his hands into his jacket's pockets and twirled around, continuing to try and find where the voice came from, with no avail, before cautiously starting to walk forwards, albeit a bit slowly. For all he knew it was his head playing tricks again, though he doubted this. There had to be someone there, right? Probably someone sent to beat him up. It had to be. There could be no other possible explanation in his mind. Yet, he also wasn't bothered by the prospect anymore. It was not like he could fight back, even if he tried. He was sure he wouldn't even mind dying too, as it would save his doctors the trouble of patching up his pathetic excuse for a body again. Nothing suicidal about it, as if he were he would have done it by now, though. Just not caring at all.

"...I guess I'll answer your question. The world itself is probably the most beautiful part of our existence. It's the people that plague it that taint its beauty in my eyes. I've yet to find anything to contradict my point, too."

[Current WC: 568 + 654 = 1222]

As the Uchiha, of course Shinoskay didnt know they were of that clan just yet, stood the masked genin would smirk and suppress the desire to breath out a chuckle. it was humorous to watch someone else's confusion, naturally. He watched them glance around the area, he almost felt he was found as they scanned the tree's and passed over where he was at. He had remained still, even in the cold night he did not shiver thanks to the thick coat and the mask insulating his heat. His form remained still as the tree he was on till their gaze ceased its search and they decided instead to put on their own coat.

Whether as a ploy or honestly, they presented they had not spot him and they spouted off that they had nothing for him. He felt this was probably not true... not what they said about their money but just in general. Shinoskay had no money but the gear on him cost several tens of thousands of ryo and in and of themselves were useful items.... his puppeteers tail alone provided numerous invaluable fighting styles, tricks, and combo'ed techniques that without it he would be far less capable. Regardless, he was not here to rob them, but their quick defense still was amusing.

After the Uchiha spun themselves for one more search, then began to move off, the genin would simultaneously activate quiet step to silence his foot fall while also activating surface climbing technique before carefully maneuvering his way down the tree. While he was slowed by taking his time, he was still some thirteen times faster then the boy and so by the time they even moved a meter Shinoskay had managed to reach the ground before getting to 15 meters behind them where they would not see him. He maintained quiet step, his breath would not be labored and he was careful to move without stepping on any twigs while following the student before him. While his coat was thick and may have caused sound as he moved, 45+ feet away in the forest would all but absorb the sound into the cacophony of the night and the woods.

Once more, from next to the boy and in his ear, "What do you see in this forest?"

ooc
fuuton quiet step
ventriloquism

This night certainly provided its own challenges to the comparatively inept Academy Student, as he leisurely strolled in the beautiful forest under the moonlight, trying to ignore the fact he could have been talking to himself. Shino's prowess as a ninja so viciously surpassed Lynn's that even if he tried he wouldn't be able to find him, nor face him off if they were to come to blows, though this was expected of him anyway. The only thing he had over anyone he ever knew was his mind. Whether it be rhetoric or literature, no one could ever beat him at it, and it was quite considerably all that went right with him in any walk of life. While it was acceptable in the Academy to have this, and should have been noticed by his clan, everything else he failed at seemed to make any achievements in those fields irrelevant. Yet hopefully he'd outwit his current stalker through wordplay alone, if he wasn't going crazy. They had asked what they saw, right? Then they'd know everything he could see, alright.

"...I see the incredible, vivid tints of green in every single laid out blade of grass, leaf and bush, swaying within the cool winds of hell. I see the muddy brown of ground and trunk, with the skittering creatures of night leaving behind their ever unique tracks, waiting for a hunter to follow the trail and either study its workings or end its life. I see the sky, with its never ending sea of stars, never changing, not letting itself be a pawn to the woes of our own society, paired with the massive girth of our moon, lighting up all that dare hide but the craftiest. I see myself, a weary soul, with nothing and no one of importance, with no life ahead of them, with the only salvation being the wide expanses of nature, of which it never judges. I see how our mutual mother welcomes me in her frozen embrace, which feels me with more warmth than anything of what birthed me has even provided, of my many brothers and sisters that simply want to live on rather than beat me down and steal any and all glory I could have ever gotten. I see many things. Yet I don't see you. Is thou death? Then come, taketh."

...With the last word, he stopped once more, staring up into his world once more with a bit of defiance, something he hadn't bothered feeling in a while. Something about all of this annoyed him, yet it intrigued him more than anything else. It was all different, a taste of rebirth that he craved more of. Perhaps there was more to all of this, and he'd find the jackpot he never bothered to chase after himself. Maybe he'd free himself from his own confines and take on everything that put him down. Through all of that, he kind of doubted it though. Since when has anything cool happened for him?

[Current WC: 501 + 1222 = 1723]

Shinoskay walked quietly behind and listened to them reply, he was no psychologist but it seemed to him that they held a great deal of sense of weakness and fear to them. Most of what they talked about included either dangers of predators or conflicts of failure to predators. The little they did see outside of that seemed to be of bland obviousness. The genins held chuckle quickly melted into a frown...

"And yet, all of this stands. Yet, all of it thrives. look now, in the tree's lay eggs, in the soil lay eggs, Life pushes forward and despite the overwhelming threats new life births and makes new life. This great forest was once nothing, though its greenery is devoured and though its wood burned... it stands still, vibrant, and full of life. Unlike the tree's, and the life of the earth that is hunted, humans can choose and choose from more options then that. Will you be a predator, prey...."

Now, no longer using ventriloquism, "... or will you be a protector... " As soon as Shinoskay spoke this from his true position, he then would immediately dash off at speeds that far exceeded the academy students ability to perceive.

~Exit~

A moment of silence had followed Lynn's little speech. At first, he allowed himself a slight smile, figuring he had taken down his opposition's ability to reply, and would show himself immediately. This was the only bit of his pride he thought he had left, so he wanted to take advantage of it, after all. However, this is exactly the opposite of what the currently hidden, masked stranger did. They replied rather quickly, as if not skipping a single beat, which shook Lynn to his very core.

As he spoke to Lynn, the young boy intently listened, albeit with a shocked expression, which slowly turned into defeat, yet acceptance. This fellow seemed to have a point. If he considered the forest to be the only thing of value, he should at least treat it with such respect through actions too. Even if this was a small step towards coming back to society again, at the current time, Lynn hadn't seen that way. He thought back on everything his ancestors did, on how they wished to destroy and prey on the weak, with the very few good ones having been left in the shadows. His brother was taking that very same path, as their parents had envisioned. Maybe it was time he broke the cycle and did something useful, rather than wallowing like a fool. Become strong, so he can protect the mother he both always had yet never did.

Before he could say anything to his stalker, the sound of around a few crushed leaves was all it took to tell Lynn they were gone. While too fast for him to truly do anything about it, he looked back down at his hands, of which were open by now, making his lithe fingers wiggle around. These could do great things, alongside the rest of his feeble body. With the help of his mind and suddenly growing tenaciousness, maybe he'd stand a chance where he never had before. Then his family, maybe even the clan, would look at him differently. He'd show everyone that he was worth a damn.

Like that, he went back home, leaving behind his pathetic shell.

[EXIT]

[Final WC: 359 + 1723 = 2082]

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