Show and Tell

'I don't like it.'

The first of many pings that ring in Jurei's mind during the brief exchange she has catching up with Koda and, at last, his companion, Tso. Ninjiro locks eyes with the odd-looking centipede while he casually chews away at his straw. 'Don't like that gods-forsaken creature one bit, Jurei, you're telling me that THING has a master? Him? That House of Cards that looks like he could topple over from someone sneezing in his general direction? Either he's either crazy or—and I think I can speak for any sane person worth his salt—should be locked up in an asylum and examined... Bloody hell is with the way she's eyeing me up like that, eh? Is she lookin' for a fight, eh? I'll wallop that hollow-skulled bug into a fine paste if she tries anything funny, I swear on my life.'

The raccoon dog's ranting goes on for a few more minutes, proving to be a comparable inconvenience when she tries to engage and intermittently re-engage in the dialogue in her immediate company before Jurei finally manages to calm him down. 'Ninjiro, please,' A return ping sounds in the raccoon dog's mind. 'You're making a fool of yourself. Tso is Koda's companion and has been since they were children. She won't hurt you as long as you don't provoke her.'

'I'm not scared of her!' Ninjiro psychologically shouts back, but huffing in actuality. 'I just don't like the way she looks at me, that's all! I've seen those types before, Jurei! They'll gobble you up if you let them! Don't tell me you can't see it too!' The raccoon dog then turns to the young centipede, who returns his glare with an equally intense one of her own. 'Look at her! Look at those eyes! She wants to eat me alive! I know it! I can feel it! I can see it in her soulless eyes!'

Jurei sighs and shakes her head. 'Ninjiro, please...' The ping rings in the raccoon dog's head once more. 'You're being unreasonable.'

'Unreasonable? Me?' Ninjiro points to himself, aghast. 'I'm not the one who's trying to make friends with a giant insect that could probably eat me in one bite!'

'Tso is Koda's companion,' Jurei repeats, growing tired of the raccoon dog's antics. 'She won't hurt you as long as you don't give her a reason to.'

'Oh yeah?' Ninjiro challenges, his eyes darting back and forth between Jurei and Tso. 'And what if I do?'

'Then I'd advise you run,' Jurei answers without missing a beat. 'Because she will chase you down and eat you alive.'

Ninjiro blinks once before letting loose an indignant huff. 'Well, whatever! Just keep that damn thing at least 10 feet away from me.'

'Fine, fine, just please be quiet for a moment, at least.' Jurei shakes her head and diverts back to her company, to which one of them abruptly excuses themselves to attend to other matters. And it seems the woman clad in gold also has matters to attend to but demonstrates her prowess in channeling the chakra natures of Lightning and Fire, describing the source of the former derives from the signals of the brain and the latter derives from the rhythm in one's heart. After the young woman excuses herself and leaves the premise, Jurei—semi-bewildered by the deliverance of wisdom, if one can call it that—waves goodbye to the kunoichi before she ponders the advice given, looping one arm around her waist and the other rests its elbow atop her forearm and her hand—balled into a fist—rests along her knuckles.

"Fire comes from the heart...? Sounds awfully poetic," Jurei murmurs to herself. "But I suppose there's some truth to it. The heart is what drives us to do what we do... to love and hate and everything in between." She sets her hands on her hips and sighs. "What do you think Ninji?"

Ninjiro perks up his head and blinks once before he shrugs, then finally speaks aloud. "I dunno, sounds like something you'd say, not me."

Jurei rolls her eyes and shakes her head. "You're no help..."

"Hey!" Ninjiro protests, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'm just as confused as you are! I'm no poet, but common sense would dictate that fire's, firstly, pretty damn hot, and secondly, burns things. So why does it come from the heart? The heart is where you feel love and all that mushy stuff."

"It's just something to think about," Jurei says with a shrug. "Besides, I don't think she meant it in a literal sense."

"Well... whatever," The raccoon dog huffs, turning his head away. "You're a smart lass anyway, I'm sure you can figure out what she meant by that."

"I suppose so, huh." She answers mono-tonally. Not quite sure where to start, she places her right hand over her chest, feeling a rhythmic thump repeat. "Fire comes from the heart..." She repeats the words once more, closing her eyes as she does so. The heartbeat continues, steady and strong. It's a comforting sensation. One that reminds her of the many nights spent in front of the fire with her parents when she was a child.

'Fire comes from the heart...'

The words echo in her mind, repeating over and over again until they become nothing more than a faint whisper. She opens her eyes and looks down at her hand, watching as tiny sparks dance across and hover a centimeter over her fingertips. "So this is what it feels like..." She smiles slightly and turns to face Ninjiro. "I think I'm starting to understand what she meant by that," She says, holding up her hand so that he can see the flames dancing across her fingertips. "It's not about where the fire comes from, but rather what drives it. And for me, I think that's love."

"Love?" Ninjiro raises an eyebrow, tilting his head to one side.

"Yes, love," Jurei answers with a nod. "Love is what keeps us going, even when things seem hopeless. It's what pushes us to keep fighting, even when we feel like giving up. It's what gives us strength when we feel weak and courage when we're afraid." She smiles softly as she watches the flames flicker and sway before finally fading away into nothingness. "Love is what makes life worth living, it gives us something to look forward to and to protect. I know it sounds like a 'mushy' revelation that you'd read in a romance novel or something, but it's an honest one. You know what I mean?"

Ninjiro blinks once then nods slowly before he speaks again: "Well... I guess that makes sense." He shrugs his shoulders and turns around, walking away from her. "Anyway, I think it's about time we skedaddled back home and see what your mother's cooked up for me. Heh, maybe she'll even let me have some of the leftovers this time!"

Jurei rolls her eyes and chuckles at her Familiar's antics before following after him. "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say Ninji. Sorry, I have to cut our time short, Koda, Tso, but let's take a rain check until then." She performs a small curtsey to the duo before she sees herself out of the Dojo Yard.

---

WC: 1,208
TWC: 2,034

Requesting approval for the following claims:

Investing 2,034 TWC into the following **Element(s):

► Learning the Fire Element (1,000/1,000) [1,304 TWC Left]

Investing the remaining 847 TWC into the following *Jutsu:

► Training Fire Release: Candlelight Method (187/187) [847 TWC Left]

*25% Discounted via Max Stats
**75% Discounted via ATF (learned from Anastasia Akari)

---

Investing the 847 TWC into the following ***Jutsu for Ninjiro:

► Training Genjutsu Release (187/187) [660 TWC Left]
► Training Surface Walking (187/187) [473 TWC Left]
► Training Transformation Technique (187/187) [286 TWC Left]
► Training "Your Next Line is..." (286/375) [0 TWC Left]

***Discounted via ATF (learned solo)

Investing 847 TWC into the following Stat Points for Ninjiro:

► Training +8 Speed (-800 WC) [47 TWC Left]

→Expunging the remaining 47 TWC.

[EXIT]

TWC: 675 WC 
 claims not being made, char to be retired, WC only counted toward the retirement WC total count.

Koda Omukade wrote:[EXIT]

TWC: 675 WC 
 claims not being made, char to be retired, WC only counted toward the retirement WC total count.

Approved