Welcome Back, Strangers (Kotsuzui)

With their paces quickened to get out of the snow sooner, the duo made fast work of their journey back from the land of iron, and soon enough they were back in the land of fire, the greenery and warmth of the sun a pleasant greeting. The kunoichi, whose hair was still reminiscent of the land they had traveled from, loved the snow and normally would have wished to stay for as long as possible in it, but the discussion that had taken place and the mood if left her in, mixed with the weight growing heavier with each passing second bundled in her tired arms, made her want nothing more than to go home and be with Kuro. It didn’t help she wasn’t even sure how much time she had left to be with the wolf before she went back to Kiri in hopes of being mentored by the Mizukage.

Speaking of which, it was an odd notion, her wanting such a man to teach her especially when she was a medic and he was not. However they were a strange pairing even without their abilities for he was a giant and she a dwarf. Not to mention the fact that he had been the force most people blame the war on, the fighting that ended up costing her brother his life. Such a connection should’ve made her hate him to the point of seeking his death, but her twisted mind didn’t see it that way. Somehow she defied every logical thought, everything that screamed at her that she was wrong, and even now it perplexed her how she could be in the wrong when it made perfect sense that Konoha was to blame.

Her thoughts didn’t linger long, having been down that path over and over and over again. Nothing could change what she thought, even Kots tried and failed to convince her otherwise on a matter just as close to her heart as who to blame. Hikari knew she wouldn’t gain anything by dwelling on this matter, and allowing herself to muse over the past would continue to prevent her from moving forward. She was weak because she didn’t stop herself from repeating the past and letting her heart rule her actions, something that was dininitvie of her but also made her stagnant.

She knew the reason she was holding back though...it was because her heart held the last remaining ounce of humanity in her soul, and she wasn’t quite sure if she could ever come back if she crossed that line.

If she became more like Xyxer, could she ever return to the person she once was? The person Kotsuzui believes she still is? Would she even want to return to be that same person after she’s had a taste of the power giving everything up could give her?

By the time these questions popped up in her head, she was already at the gate of Konoha, the guards from her point of view were unfamiliar, and there were hardly any people attempting to enter the village at this time. That wasn’t much of a surprise to her for they had gotten back the same day the Kage Summit had ended, and there weren’t any festivities to take place in the village yet since they had barely just decided upon the joint chuunin exams. Her headband sat atop her head and held her snowy hair in place as it had during the summit, so she wasn’t worried about the guards not letting them in. Although the glances she was getting from some of them irked her, as if they hadn’t ever seen a dead body before. For all they knew, since Kotetsu’s headband was not visible from their angle, this person was their fallen comrade. If that were so, the looks they were giving were too harsh and cruel, ones that a grieving shinobi would never want to be given in their already feeble state.

(WC: 660)
(Entry to Konoha and exit, unless interrupted)

In the comfort of silence, the two Konoha shinobi made quick work of the road ahead reaching the borders of the Land of Fire in no time. Kotsuzui did not mind the silence. In fact he welcomed it. He was always a man of few words. He was also glad to be out of the cold and snow. He hated environments with such drastic temperatures. He hated Suna and it's blazing sun beating down on you everyday and he hated the Land of Iron and it being cold everywhere. Konoha was perfect for him. The same day the Summit had ended, the duo had arrived at the gates of Konoha for what was likely only a few hours after Risako herself had arrived.

Kotsuzui's pace slowed down along side Hikari's as they approached the gates. From where he was standing he could see a number of guards patrolling the walls. Undoubtedly they were going to be met at the gates and checked. Just the thought irked the Kaguya. He was seconds away from simply teleporting his way into the village has he had done last time specifically to avoid this very situation. But that means leaving Hikari to deal with whatever the guards had in mind. Was that something he could do after having stayed with her for the short lived journey? Yes. It was totally something Kotsuzui would do. But would he? No. He could have teleported straight from the Summit. But he didn't do it then so he won't do it now. May as well see the journey to its end.

Kotsuzui waited for someone to come meet the duo. If no one came to greet them then he'd simply make his way into the village and be on his merry way. Though that was unlikely. People always loved prodding their nose into other people's business.

[Entry to Konoha and exit, unless interrupted]

The single eyed aburame quietly stood at the front of the gate as his gaze slightly steeled upon seeing the two  induviduals at the base. But then as the gaze with his eye was merely aimed at the body in the girl's hands. Still the flash back to salzem being stabbed flashed through his mind. As for the instant of a second he felt a twinge of anger. Though this wouldnt flash through his,face, nor eye. It was more surprise.

They were not in front of that beast.... yet they dare come here.... 


Yen thought as he smiled somewhat warmly at their stopping, and with a slight nodd of  his head while his eyes travled to the girl and the kaguya. Each one in tow his thoughts fleshing their identity. As if vertifying something.

You were both jouninn. You simply had to strike him down where he stood. Yet there you were standing in his ranks... where was your pride as a konoha shinobi? Perhaps now i should've made sure to include you two in protecting him, but this is what happens when we know nothing of any of the others. perhaps.... but i cannot slay another headband in gresn now.... at least intentionally.  Yet this is our position.... sal died because of all of our weaknesses, and i stand here greeting you. A failures lament.


Yen thought  as he simply spoke up and greeted the two. Wasn't a crule greeting nor anything bad. Perhaps by an onlooker it would seem a bit bitter sweet.

"Welcome home you two."

Was all he said as he took a step aside  towards the gate, and granting them acess. Stopping slightly he would speak up audibly to them only.

"Im glad you two are safe"

A single tear would fall as he was full of regret, yet he took off the hat  and fanned himself a bit. Taking it as a drop of sweat.

"Boy sometimes i hate wearing all of this  this black..... still"

He murmered sadly. A twinge to the lost family he had, but it was indeed a dark thought, but he was honest with himself. He could'nt stop mourning yet.

Had the stars aligned? What else could explain what just happened. Of course the day the two arrived back in Konoha, it was none other than Yensung Aburame keeping guard. Just the site of the tiny Jounin cracked the tinniest of a grin on the Kaguya's face. "This should be interesting" he thought to himself as the words Hikari had recently told Kotsuzui re-surfaced in his mind. The reason she had felt for the death of the dead Hoshi nin in her hands was because it reminded her of Salzem's death. Now the man who spear headed the killing of Salzem was standing at the gates to greet them. What were the odds. 

Eventually the two would make it too the Jounin stopping as was expected. At least Kotsuzui stopped, expecting the normal procedure to occur. However that was not how it went down. He welcomed the duo home, which wasn't that odd. Nothing to bat an eye over especially considering how he even stepped aside to let the two in. But it seemed he did not want it to end there, saying he was happy to see the two safe. Kotsuzui could only imagine What Hikari was thinking. Was she burning up inside? Was this the moment she would act on her thirst for vengeance and take the life of the Aburame? Was Yensung even aware of how Hikari felt towards him? So many questions that may or may not be answered at this very moment. The thought alone excited the Kaguya.

The excitement was short live as Hikari remained silent the entire time. Shame really. Guess it was time to finally enter the village... or not. It seemed Yen was not done with his small talk. Was this his way of letting everyone know he was still in mourning? Unfortunately it seemed as though Kotsuzui would have to do the talking here, releasing an internal sigh once he realized it.

"Must be hard to see with one eye, Yensung" Kotsuzui blurted out. "In case you may have missed it, there are more important things that need taking care of" he added as he motioned his arm in the direction of the body in Hikari's arms. "Will that be all?" he asked rhetorically, not wanting to know whether there was actually more to be said. Instead, he'd wait to see how Hikari proceeded. If she stayed, he'd stay. If she entered the village, he'd enter. Why miss out on free entertainment?

There he was. The little bastard of a man had made his way to the front among the gate guards when she wasn’t looking.

Her grip tightened around the cold corpse in her arms, her eyes hardening, and her jaw tightening. Of all the shinobi in the village, he had to be on gate duty today? Hikari cursed her luck for it seemed the gods above were enjoying her misery. The journey back had been awkward and tense for a majority of it, and now this. This entire trip kept getting worse and worse.

Then, when she didn’t think it could get any lower than it already was, the one eyed child spoke up and smiled warmly at them, as if the sight of the duo returning home was pleasant. As if they were old friends meeting for the first time in years.

His voice was calm, neither warm or cold, as he welcomed them. Normally the Hyuuga would’ve thanked the guard for the greeting, glad to be one step closer to her house and Kuro, but today she had to resist the urge to drop the body in her grasp and slit the man’s throat. He was unsuspecting and unaware of the fury and resentment seething within the petitie kunoichi. It would’ve been the perfect moment.

Yet the lump in her palms wasn’t just a dead body, it was a test given to her by the Mizukage himself, and no matter what she desired to do, fulfilling this “mission” was far more important than attacking a man in broad daylight, with several witnesses around. She needed to bide her time, waiting for the more opportune time to strike him down, when there weren’t people who would instantly sentence her to death. Plus she still wasn’t entirely sure she would win against him, the only few things she knew of him were his clan and the fact that they control insects, that he specializes in genjutsu and medical-ninjutsu, and that he has barriers in his arsenal. COuld she even break through them? Did she have the strength or power?

Her instincts told her no, that she was no match for him in her current state. She wasn’t strong enough, didn’t have what it would take to murder someone quickly. What she lacked was the most crucial part.

So instead of lashing out, she kept her thoughts and pain inside, wanting to make sure he didn’t suspect anything about how she felt towards him. The last thing she needed was for him to raise his guard around her, weary of what her intentions were. It would make it difficult for her when the time finally came for them to fight to the death.

As the Aburame stepped aside, saying he was glad they were safe, she held back the urge to roll her eyes at his act. There was no way this man, this murder, could be happy that they had returned, it just didn’t make sense...unless he was just trying to play the part of a good little shinobi. Fortunately the pinkette beside her wasn’t amused either, his voice breaking through the silence as he stated that it must’ve been difficult for the jounin to see with only one eye. Then he moved on effortlessly to his next matter, slightly gesturing in her direction while mentioning they had very important things to deal with that did not involve such idle chit chat.

She couldn’t have said it any better herself, she noted with a bit of pride in her companion for handling the situation with such ease and grace. He was commanding, hardly allowing the smaller shinobi to have his way. A small, sad smile tugged at the corners of her lips, thankful for Kotsuzui, with only a part of her wishing she had been collected enough to have spoken herself.

Taking a deep breath, she mustered up all her emotions and tried to regain her composure. It wasn’t fair for Kots to ‘fight’ this battle on his own, especially when it was hers to begin with. “If that is all, excuse us then.” Her words were curt and simple, her lilac tinted eyes dull with specks of coldness within as she began to walk forward past the guard. She didn’t care for what else he may have had to say, his charade of sadness and caring was getting on her nerves. How many others, she wondered, had fallen for it. Who had believed such a thing to be sincere.

(WC: 1,413)
(Potential exit into the village)

Yens single eye caught the  simple experssion changes of hikari, and yet as one may hide it  the anger was directed at him. Yet kots was perhaps more direct woth his emotions. The thick skull prolly had an inkling of what was bothering yen, but this was more direct. A challenge of sorts.

"Yes at times it is hard to see from times.... was that a jest?"

Yen stated with a sad smile at the kaguya however his second response would  wifen the smile.

He ignored kots next two remarks apparently as the girl tried to cloak it. But it was obvious. Her disdain to losing sal was a dangerous road. 

I dont know if i can prevent her from being rash like him... the true enemy is xyxer, but then again like sal she may as well belive one demensionally i am responsible. Still.


Yen thought as he spoke. A test in the waters as she passed by. He gave kots a sad, but knowing glance as he spoke for them to hear.

"Anger only takes us so far. Thus i can tell you are angry..... I too want a little justice, for my wife, my children..... and him.... don't blind yourself, or you will make the same mistakes."

Yen would state quietly as it showed his insight on her. Her expressions said it all and more. Thus he knew the results of such anger. Sal too had an explosion. But with that  he would no longer aquire any further. 

He would instead  head towards the graveyard and return to mourning

(Exit)

Not only was he a bastard, he was an idiotic one as well, asking a simple question about Kotsuzui’s inquiry of him. Anyone could tell the Kaguya wasn’t being genuine, well anyone except for Yensung it seemed. Hikari held back an eye roll from his apparent obliviousness, trying to remain as composed as possible. Fighting right now wasn’t a luxury she had so she needed to bite her tongue and wait patiently until they could take their leave.

The short man ignored her companion’s next few statements, waiting to speak up again until they were passing by him, his voice loud enough for the duo to hear as they were walking. She felt it was incredibly rude of him to do such a thing, but then again he wasn’t known for being a nice guy among the village, she reasoned.

His words that dribbled out of his mouth were ironic. Completely and fully ironic.

She was being lectured about anger by none other than the man who was the target for her deep hatred. The white haired woman was amazed that he had the audacity to try and feign grief over Salzem, or tell her how to live her life as if he knew what she had been, and still was, going through.

He could never understand her pain, which is why she had to show him first hand the torment she suffered every day because of what he’d done. She would make him beg for his miserable life, laughing as his cries fell on deaf ears while he paid for his sins in blood.

But until that moment came, Hikari would try her hardest to ignore the pest and avoid running into him in the village. With determination flashing briefly in her lilac tinted eyes she continued forward, glancing at Kotsuzui every once in a while to see how he was handling everything, her fingers slowly returning to a normal pink hue as she released her death grip on the corpse. She couldn’t wait to discuss Kotetsu with the Hokage, and doing so as quickly as possible was her best option, so her short legs weaved around the village until she saw the towering, wooden building.

(Exit)
(TWC: 1,780)
(Claims: all 1780 towards Rain Tiger at Will, placing it at 1833/3000 due to the previous wc from this thread)

Approved

"You seem like a smart man" Kotsuzui said to the Aburame's question, "I'm sure you can figure that one out on your own". Due to Kotsuzui's short conversation with the Aburame he did not get the chance to see the expressions on Hikari's face. But he could only imagine it was filled with anger. After all, she did want to kill the man. However she managed to be the better person in the moment and held back from expressing her true feelings, opting to simple ask if that would be all. How unfortunate. Just when he thought things could have gotten a little entertaining. But Yensung was not done with it. To answer's Hikari's question, it was not all.

He detected the anger showing on Hikari's face and decided to make a comment of it, telling her that anger was essentially not the way. That he wanted a "little" justice. Kotsuzui's left brow raised as the words little. What exactly did a little justice entail? What does that even mean? It was a strange way of framing it but Kotsuzui did not bother asking him. Instead he would reply with his own remark to the comment. It was clear to see Yensung was not the only one who had lost something on that night. 

"What steps are you taking to get your justice?" Kotsuzui ask as Yensung made his way to the graveyard. It was a question Kotsuzui expected an answer from. It was a question to get him thinking on his future actions. A question for self-reflection. Was he in fact doing anything, or was he just mopping around playing the victim. With that Kotsuzui finally entered the village with Hikari. She was likely heading to the Hokage's office. He was headed to a bar.

[Exit into Konoha]
TWC: 1016

1016 words into Gate of Healing (1016/1500)(25%)

Yen simply stopped for a moment as he took a,second or two to consider if it was wise to reply back. It was near noon and he hopped to snack by his deceased family's grave while paying salzems a visit. But deciding to not play as big of a purpose his reply was simply leave it at that. A dead silence. But he stopped to show he heard the kaguya.  But perhaps the silence meant that yen was merely biding his time for the moment.  Or that he was already ready to extract vengence, but merely was doing something to pass the time? But for what?

But it could mean anything to the kaguya. Yen was not known to explain anything past the surface. Even then he rarely went into detail of his plans. He trusted very few. And any he could trust with his planning were already dead.  But perhaps he belived that even the kaguya would've figured out the awnser was not obvious, but complex. Something he did not need to disclose to the kaguya now. Who openly talks about their plans anyways.

Fool...


Yen thought walking away to the graveyard his thoughts were merely nothing as it was simple.

If you truly want to know. Then simply follow me of course.


Yen thought as he simply passed the kaguya and the angry girl from mind for now. Now he needed to pay his respects.

(Exit)