Meeting the Seasons

Haru looked over the notebook that was left behind as she sat in the garden within her family's estate. Normally she had her facemask on but since she was home it was down around her neck, the collar of her attire protruding and covering some coverage to her next with her short hair falling neatly within the bounds of it. The garden itself was something she spent a lot of time at and focused on since she had grown up rather isolated and away from the main portion of the family. She knew a handful of her cousins but since she was a late bloomer and only recently decided to work towards improving her capacities, she was well behind even some of the youngest Uchihas who were progressing at a rapid rate. The fact that she was sharing the same class as her sister who was ready to leap full shinobi-hood was difficult to grasp around. She had heard whispers from her parents on a few occasions about her but it was always about her siblings, and rarely anything good if they were talking about her.

She was a quieter child growing up and it led to her even writing notes and tricks as she filled what time she was healthy with working in the garden. Initially, it was something she did with her mother but as she grew up and her mother grew older and focused on the more appropriate Uchihas within their family, Haru took over almost exclusively. She spent a lot of free time and ended up getting a part-time job at one of the local flora shops. She acquired a few pieces of garden furniture that decorated the garden in a manner that made leisure time there enjoyable. From cushioned outdoor chairs to even a glass table, Haru had been diligent about making the garden a third space for the family to partake in though often it was her by herself. The sun had begun to rest high in the sky as it reached its peak, casting minimal shadows outside of a large tree that the garden was centered around. Although circular gardens are not a traditional way to set one up, the large tree helped protect the flowers and other small root vegetables she was growing from the harshness of the midday rays.

Her raven hair blended lightly into the shadow of the tree as on this day she sat at the base of the tall shade provider. The notebook in her hand was one she had written when she was younger, right before she turned 10. She accidentally had left it outside once and it ever since found a home with the garden tools but for one reason or another, it was left on the outdoor table that was in the garden near their home. Being far away from the rest of the clan in actual distance but still within the Uchiha district meant that it was unlikely someone not of her family who snooped around to find it. Not that she cared too much, it could have easily been a groundskeeper for the district who was checking out their shed and making sure they were not putting anything odd away or they needed to use a tool to fix something and simply forgot to put it back. Whatever the case was, Haru rested with her knees bent, her back against the trunk of the tree, flipping through the old sketches and notes a younger and less forgotten Haru wrote down. It was wintertime in the village, and soon her season was to come.

WC: 600, TWC: 600

Home. A space that was suppose to feel warm and inviting, a place where you could let your guard down and feel safe. That was what Home was suppose to be for a person but for Fuyuto it was a place where the glare of his kin were the strongest. The tall white haired Uchiha was looked down upon due to his features and affinity with water instead of what the clan favored which was fire. He had been the eldest but treated with disdain and disgust for the majority of his life. A fire had burned inside of him from a young age, one that threatened to burn down the entirety of those around him if he so much as fed it a bit of energy or time.

This raised the question, why didn’t he just leave? Why didn’t he lash out at those around him? And for a good portion of his youth he did, Fuyuto had been a child who fought first and didn’t care who it was his fists landed upon. It wasn’t till he had gained enough “respect” from the family that he decided to turn into the person he is today, a person who embodied the Uchiha beliefs greatly but without the high and mighty taunting of those who simply were born into what the family wanted their children to excel at, Fuyuto was a person of great conviction and dedication to the betterment of himself, hoping to show that you could be thought of as less of a person by those close to you and through hard work and training end up being someone that proved to others that they were wrong about you.

Fuyuto had struggled with his studies, with his training, with his anger and even now the faintest gust of wind from those who whispered their vile words put his self-control at risk. It had made him cold, distant, short and blunt to those around him including his siblings. He spoke simply of the facts and while he did not mean to harm with his words not everyone took them as the familial advice he had intended. That was fine with him, those who could not see past their own faults and insecurities were those who would be trapped within the small world of this clan.

This “home” was a prison for those not chosen but Fuyuto didn’t walk it like a criminal on his time out in the sun but as a King who dared any to challenge his reign. His calm, controlled walk around the estate found him approaching the Garden of the estate, it was a warm place even if the season was not. In the spring it would be filled with a variety of colors and plants, a spot of vibrancy in a place filled so with much black and white monochrome individuals. It was a place that Fuyuto enjoyed visiting and he did so frequently though he rarely stayed long as others would bother him trying to curry favor or to “poke the bear” as the phrase goes though with a glare from his typically always activated Mangekyo Sharingan, it quickly dissuaded many of his kin from bothering him for long, as in the clan it was seen as a challenge and they knew that Fuyuto would not back down. He also knew that his siblings enjoyed this place as a type of sanctuary from the others specifically his younger sister Haru. Another of the family that had been labeled an outcast for her lack of affinity for Fire style techniques and considered a late bloomer compared to their youngest sister, who even Fuyuto knew was being treated as the Golden Child.

Scanning the Garden his eyes taking in the sights there was his sister, Haru, sitting against one of the trees seemingly flipping through a book of some sort it looked to be a notebook of some age. He approached with his even stride and when he was close he spoke, “Dear sister, How goes your studies?” He asked in his monotone voice, his facial features lacking in any thing that could help with figuring out if he was upset, happy, or any other kind of emotion.

WC: 703
-25 AP for MS
AP: 1000 > 975

Looking up, Haru saw the stoic face of her older brother. Being the second oldest came with a mixed bag of responsibility but as her parents had left her to her own devices, it was not often she came to conversations. Her raven hair shifted as she looked up and smiled though the only telling sign was that she closed her eyes and the movement of her face indicated as such. With a wave of her hand, she reopened her eyes to look upon the book that was plainly in her hands. Various sketches from a time long forgotten were washed with colors and tears from the elements around her. The garden was well kept as she closed the book before standing up to properly greet her older brother.

"My studies are going well dear brother." She declared bowing her head lightly towards Fuyuto. She had recently grown accustomed to periodic check-ins by her older brother as she stood under the tree within their space. She stared intently at her bother's eyes, their Mangekyo form vibrant in contrast to her own black eyes. Haru had a lot of work towards growing and developing her bloodline but she knew it was only a matter of time. Oddly enough, though her time at the academy had recently been a recent addition, she found she had a knack for identifying and learning more about one's chakra. She formed the seal of confrontation and focused on her sensory skills toward her brother before her, her eyes locked with his. "I've learned that I likely have a knack for sensory techniques. I hope to unlock my own Sharingan to see how better it can be improved with this." She declared and hopefully answered her brother's next question if he had any further ones, trying to anticipate his curiosity on how she was doing.

The time at the academy was a mixed time recently due to the recent Culling Games that took a lot of the village's focus elsewhere. She had been more in self-studies and exploratory courses to better develop one's skills over general studies that were standard for the course load. It had been some time since a Chuunin Exam was held and being a student of the Uchiha clan, her focus was more on herself during such a monumental time. Considering the stands and the average hygiene of people who smoked or did not practice normal healthy upkeep, Haru appreciated the quieter streets and more isolated times away from the crowds. She knew her younger siblings were excelling and likely spectating or finding other means of improving themselves, but Haru appreciated the steadiness she found. She stepped out from the shade of the tree into the beaming sun letting its warmth envelop her. Breathing in deeply she let out a breath before returning her focus releasing the seal of confrontation, "How are your eyes? I believe you have been maintaining them every time I have seen you recently. Are they not getting tired?"

WC: 500, TWC: 1,100