#and that is one of the most cursed facts of himawari

[brokenrefraction]

dream hate anon reminded me of a dream I had where Himawari was in it and a mother fucking landlord in an acnl like world and (tried) to evict my ass but I fucking donated her ass to the museum and she became a fossil don't ask how

HSDJKGHKEDGHKEHGKHEJKGKEGHGE????? ?^ ?? ?? HELP

[platrom]

Infinity.

PROLOUGE.

JJK x READER

SUMMARY: In every universe, Ryomen Sukuna will find you, whether it is by chance or not. But only time can tell if you awake to discover your doomed fate.

WARNINGS: Heian era, reference to murdering of newborn girls in families, reference to being unloved, Uraume is cruel, servants are poorly treated and killed, Sukuna is idealized, reader has a best friend :)

MASTERLIST | NEXT CHAPTER

i. bliss

The springtime is always beautiful in Japan. Children tear away from the insides of their machiyas and frolic outside, dancing to the sway of the cherry blossoms and the tweeting of the birds. Parents tear away from work to spend a moment gazing at the beauty of life, and the world sings at the generosity of their gods.

But this year, unlike any other, has been far more prosperous.

Umes, ajisais, and himawaris have sprouted for the first time in decades. The elders are pleased to see the flowers of their childhood, ones that had disappeared for so long, had come to life.

The townspeople are kinder and more genuine. More bargaining is taking place and more vendors are being generous with their customers. Free fruits are being handed out to parents and sips of sweet juice are being given to playing children.

The rumors say it is Lord Sukuna’s doing. The world is coming to life because he is choosing his bethroted tonight.

Women from all over the land have arrived to his estate. Peasants, aristocrats, and royalty from all regions have traveled miles to reach the prosperous land of Ryomen Sukuna, where no battle has ever been lost. He is a permanent legend in Japan’s history.

The world will remember his name.

“Who do you think Lord Sukuna will choose?” Aguri sighs, sweeping the sides of the corridor. Speckles of black drift from the ends of the broom to the corner of the room. “I heard Akazome Emon is a high contender. Her poems are moving— I’ve heard.”

A silence settles. What she means to say is if she could read, she’d know. But as a maid as low her, you’ll never learn to read kanji. Her family had come from poverty, anyway. Aguri, as her parents called her, was an unwanted child. Just like her name’s meaning— excess. They had too many girls, all her parents desired was a boy who could carry on their name.

She was not, and so they left her behind to sweep floors and wash grime wherever a stray like her would be allowed.

It’s a fate better than being buried alive.

“She will be lucky to have him, if he chooses her,” you offer as you scrub down the walls. The pail beside your foot shakes as you step into it. “It is not our place to decide what our lord favors. It is his choice and his bride.”

Aguri pouts. You grin.

“No matter what, I’m sure Lord Sukuna will find a spouse worthy of ruling beside him and all will be well in Japan.”

“You’re staring to sound like Uraume,” Aguri nudges your hip. You elbow her back. “You and them can take place as Sukuna’s most loyal servant.”

“(Name).”

The two of you fall silent. To your left is Uraume themself, staring silently at you and Aguri. A seedling of fear festers in your stomach, flooding your system.

Your mouth glues shut, and you both bow your heads.

“The Frozen Star,” is all you offer. The ends of your hair slide against the smooth floor. It is black like the hearts of the direct subordinates of Sukuna and as dead as the heart of the king.

It is ruthless and eternal, just like Sukuna.

“You are summoned to the maid headquarters. Come with me immediately,” they order. Instantly, you move to their side, keeping your eyes trained on the ground. Uraume scoffs.

“And you,” they refer to Aguri, “if these floors are not spotless when I come around again, you will be fed to the curses.”

Your eyes may not see her, but your soul does. You can feel the way she trembles in fear, the promise of death far too close to comfort.

These threats were common. In fact, you both had watched your fellow maids been fed to those ghostly spirits that lurked in the bottom of Sukuna’s estate. Monstrous and deformed faces that foamed at the mouth at the site of a terrified human that got shoved into their cage, prepared to be eaten by another lifeless creature.

It was only a matter of time until you were next. One mistake was all it took for your life to end in the Sukuna estate.

Maybe living outside the castle’s walls were easier.

But you had heard the tale of the curses that flooded the village in the dark hours of the night. The ones that rose at dusk and feasted at dawn. In Sukuna’s estate, they were tamed and chained. In the world outside, they were free and vicious.

All safety had a price to pay.

You wish you could defend Aguri against Uraume, but you are powerless. One word out of line and your head will be off your body.

Your fists clench at your side.

“Yes, Frozen Star,” Aguri responds quietly, kneeling down to the bucket beside her feet. Uraume scoffs and begins walking, leaving you to trail behind her tail.

ii. opportune

The walk is long. Your head remains lowered as you walk inches behind Uraume, a symbol of measly position beneath a loyal Sukuna subordinate.

Individuals like them are treated as royalty adjacent. The ones the king can trust are considered to be angels sent from God, meant to serve Lord Sukuna for all of their lives. They are one in few, but undoubtedly devoted.

You had heard tales from the cooks in the kitchen that Uraume and their fellow subordinates had been kidnapped once, but a neighboring kingdom. They were tortured, striped of their clothes, and humiliated in front of masses. When their captors dangled the possibility of freedom above their heads in exchange for information on Sukuna, their mouths stayed sealed, just as their cries of pain did, and they endured the beating of one thousand whips until the king himself saved them all.

When you told Aguri the story you heard as you passed the kitchen, stars grew in her eyes. She seemed enamored by the idea of such a strong leader caring so much about his men. Aguri would never doubt the greatness of Lord Sukuna.

As for you?

Your opinion is always better left unsaid.

Uraume suddenly stops, and you pause your movements. The ends of their robes sway.

Their eyes focus on the top of your head. You wait in silence, your eyes trained on the tips of your shoes.

They’re worn, black flats. The sides are tearing on the edges, and the curve around your ankle is beginning to flake as the string stitching it together frays at the edges. They were the standard shoes lowly maids were given to wear— typically, they belonged to previous workers who had either died of old age, or from being fed.

The men of the estate received the shoes of the men who had died in war. They worked outside, against the spirits of the night.

You don’t understand how they get selected. There are men who can see the spirits that work inside the castle, cooking and cleaning like the rest of the women. You’ve heard the words “cursed energy” and “technique” leave the mouths of those who perform such gruesome tasks.

You are glad you have none. You can only see the spirits, but not kill them. You can stay safe inside the walls of the estate.

“You have served Lord Sukuna exceptionally. You will now be in charge of cleaning the rooms of the servants,” Uraume pushes the door open and steps inside, leaving you to follow.

You’ve never seen this room, before. There are stacks of rollers with a thin, plastic film around a black handle in thick layers filling the highest shelves. In the middle shelves are the bedsheets you all use, rags sewn together by young girls to cover the thin and scratchy mattresses the estate grants. And on the lowest shelves lay bottles of clear, yellowish liquids and an assortments of colorful towels with splotches of dark gray all over.

Uraume nods. “These are at your disposal. You are expected to know how to use all of these materials and clean all rooms by the end of the week.”

You bow. “Yes, Frozen Star. Thank you.”

She leaves.

iii. fulfillment

Somehow, cleaning the quarters of the maids is worse. It is a change from your previous routine— scrubbing the floors with Aguri, dusting the shelves, polishing the trinkets of the kingdom, and heading off to sleep after your measly meal of broth and whatever rotten vegetables were in the kingdom.

Now, you work alone. You must carry heavy sets of bedsheets and towels to each room, along with sets of rollers and bottles of spray. The cart they had generously provided was broken by another many years ago, but everyone has failed to notify Uraume.

The sides of your shoes are beginning to crack and tear even more, but you are certain any chance of getting a different pair of shoes is slim to none.

Nevertheless, the job does have its benefits.

While you clean the rooms of the higher-up maids, you have found little trinkets stuck underneath their beds or on the floor. Little bows, scrap pieces of porcelain fabric, and even bits of beads from heavens knows where.

You show them to Aguri every night, pleased with your findings. They are forgotten goods to you, perfect to make something special in the future.

Aguri is saddened by your move, however. She now works alone during the day and sometimes sits alone during supper while you run around cleaning. But the moments you two share in your quarters at night make up for it. You both gossip under the moonlight and giggle over the findings in the rooms.

In a few of the men’s quarters, you have found the undergarments of another woman. The suspicions you two have built against the others in the estate tend to be correct.

It is a joy to see love behind the dark walls of the castle. It sparks hope that even on the darkest of places, life can be grown.

#© platrom, plot / writing / banners & headers. do not repost, reblogs are appreciated! please consider leaving a comment and a heart! <3

[patchofgrey]

Neji Hyuga and Hyuga Clan Head canons

NejiTen Head cannons | Tenten Head Cannons | Nejiten Family Head Cannons

Alright, let's talk about the Hyuga Clan. There are still a lot of plot holes in terms of how the clan actually functions in certain ways as well as the whole genetics situation. My head cannons are strictly based on what is already established in the anime/manga. Kishimoto seemed to have jumbled some details together especially during the war;

What is Cannon that we can all agree on: 1. The Hyuga clan is the most prestigious clan in the Land of fire. Somewhere down the line, the Uchiha clan is related to the Hyuga clan (as explained by Kakashi during the chunnin exams when trying to tell the children about the byakugan...this is the first plot hole tbh) 2. Pre-war, there are two branches to the Hyuga clan; main branch (where they are unsealed and are involved in politics, and branch (the sealed, and protectors/bodyguards/serve the main branch. Main branch members may not become clan leaders or be involved in politics). 3. Post War, it is unclear however, heavily implied and then addressed by Hiashi that Naruto had a great influence on changing the structure of the Hyuga clan; there may be no such thing as the main and side branches, which means that the curse seal may no longer be in practice. However, it is just assumed since Neji is dead (based on this, it is possible that Neji's children would not be branded with the seal). 4. Birth order holds heavy meaning; Hiashi was the first twin to pop out, so he was part of the main branch. Hizashi was the younger twin and was branded for the side branch. 5. For Hiashi Hyuga, leadership of the Hyuga clan is at the digression of the current clan head; Hiashi chose Hanabi over Hinata to become head of the clan. 6. Hyugas can marry outside of their clan. We see this with Naruto and Hinata. It also worth saying that we do not see Hinata and Neji's mother's eyes in both the manga and anime (here's the other plot hole for Hyuga lore). If the Uchihas are distantly related to the Hyuga's, the mutation had to occur due to a mix of genetics outside of the clan (again, it's as if Kishimoto fucking forgot he had Kakashi explain that the Uchihas and Hyuga's did share a line at some point and pulled a fast one during the war to try and explain everything, but it fumbled the lore even more.) 7. It is possible for a Hyuga to not have the byakugan. There was a filler character who only had one byakugan eye. Himuwari also does not have the standard Hyuga eyes. This can also be related to the Uchihas if we are following the genetic line; the Uchihas activate their sharingan, just as Himawari activates her byakugan Here are my Hyuga Head Cannons: 1. The byakugan is a dominate gene. Due to the fact that we see that characters can have the kekkei genkai without having the signature eyes, it is possible that the two Hyugas who possess the byakugan can have a a child who does not have it and vise verse; BB, Bb, and bb traits for the Byakugan. Based on the traits, the child could also not possess the byakugan at all due to the bb recessive trait. A child with a mixed Bb gene may not have the standard Hyuga eyes until the Byakugan is activated like Himuwari. 2. All marriages must go through the clan head for approval/blessing. To keep the prestige of the clan nice and clean, it wouldn't be surprising if there needed to be some screening process or request made in order for a Hyuga to be married. Even if the marriage is between clan members. 3. Arranged marriages are based upon request. If a Hyuga clan member has not been approved for any self-picked marriages, the head of the clan may be inclined to suggest an arranged marriage. It would be more for the main branch of the family instead of the side branch. 4. Hiashi Hyuga already started implementing some change to the Hyuga can after the death of his brother. The guy was traumatized when Hizashi took the L for him, Hiashi was probably fighting with the elders on traditions and policies that in order to prevent something like that happening again. He also saw how traumatized Neji was upon seeing his father's corpse. It is possible the Hyuga elders and Hiashi held tension after the death of Hizashi, which prompted the lord to go against the birth order rule (by making Hanabi the heir to the clan instead of Hinata due to competence and potential) Allowing Naruto and Hinata to get married was one of the biggest changes to the clan due to Naruto's connection with Neji.

Okay, onto my head cannons for our bestest boy <3

Neji's mother died soon after his birth. We see mostly Hizashi with his son in the manga and anime, and there is no mention of a mother, but I feel as though one of the main reasons why Neji had such a strong bond with his father was because his mother was not there. His mother could have also have been a distant cousin of Hiashi and Hizashi in order to maintain the dominate byakugan gene.

Hizashi remarried a civilian to take care of Neji. As much as I would love for Hizashi to be a single dad, it would make sense that he would remarry someone who was not a shinobi in order to look after Neji when he was on missions or handling clan duties with Hiashi. When Hizashi died, we see a woman sitting besides Neji, to whom we can assume was a mother like figure for him (that or a cousin...) Neji’s step mother is named Shizukana Hyuga.

Neji's stepmother is well taken care of by Hiashi. I would like to believe that Hiashi held a lot of guilt and pain over his brother and in order to rectify the situation in some capacity, he took it upon himself to become financially responsible for Neji and his step-mother. He sends money quietly, not wanting to make a big deal about his support, which can be why Neji is able to live comfortably...which goes into;

Neji and his stepmother do not live in the Hyuga compound. With the mess of the main and side branch conflicts, it would be an interesting notion that many side branch members moved out of the main Hyuga compound; only the main branch members as well as branch members who directly service the main branch (we have seen the Hyuga maids in the anime...it's wild to me that the branch members are employed in such a way, but hey. It is what Kishi wrote. It reminds me of how in a monarchy, you have the queen's attendants). Neji's house is probably located somewhere around the proximity of the Hyuga compound, however far enough that there is some separation.

Neji refers to his stepmother as "mother". Following the head cannon that his birthmother passed away, Shizukana was the only other figure Neji had maternally. He is aware that she is not his biological mother, however still holds her in some high regard.

Shizukana shows great favor in Neji spending time with Tenten, in fact, she was able to get Neji to acknowledge his feelings towards her. Neji probably didn’t have to say anything when he would bring Tenten around her. Neji made it obvious he had a crush, just as Shikamaru had observed. Where Shikamaru and the guys would tease him, Shizukana was rather straight forward in talking to her son about Tenten. Neji had a hard time explaining himself to his step mother.

Neji is obviously protective of Hinata, but when it comes to Tenten, Neji will try his best not to hover over her. His role as protector is hard to maintain when you don’t want your girlfriend to be mad at you for being over protective. In the words of Megara from Disney’s Hercules; “I’m a big tough girl, I can tie my own sandals and everything.” This scene can be paralleled with how I see Neji and Tenten interacting, minus the seduction part.

Neji is always completely honest with Tenten. He would never lie to her because there was no point to. They needed to have a trusting partnership in order to function properly but he was also grateful that Tenten did not judge him even in his darkest of times.

Neji will rarely say no to Tenten and Hinata. For Hinata, that is his sister (technically) and he may still feel a sting of guilt after all those years of treating her like absolute trash. Hinata had forgiven him, but he worked hard to repair his relationship with her; he was happy to have a younger sister to protect. For Tenten, in the anime and video games we see that Neji does not say no to her when she suggests to go places, or partake in whatever shenanigans she wants to set out on. He says yes to her automatically most times.

Neji is great at handling Tenten’s temper. She’s a bit hot-headed, especially when it comes to Gai and Lee. But Neji is able to keep her grounded and makes her feel validated in her feelings.

In Neji’s Ninja journal, it is cannon that he writes about Tenten. In the light novel, Hinata shows Naruto a few lines of Neji’s journal, one of the lines is a vow of Neji trying to make sure Tenten does not get depressed. It wasn’t expanded on, however I’ll assume that he does write about her from time to time; whether it be for sparring or just to record his thoughts about her.

Neji admire’s Tenten in many ways; mostly how she handles Gai and Lee. In one of the video games, Neji attempts to compliment Tenten (and fails because he’s awkward as fuck) on how she is able to manage both green beasts with suck ease. In a way, she is like the mom friend to the team in keeping them in check. Neji also has nothing negative to say about Tenten in cannon and even allows her to assist him in Hyuga matters (like when Hinata got snatched up during the first round of chunnin exams).

[completeoveranalysis]

Of Yūko's customers, which ones you find most memorable?

Most memorable customers, you say?

I hope you don't mind me using this as an excuse to make an arbitrary list by way of answer. (Arbitrary lists, my beloved...)

Yuuko's Customers In Order Of How Well I Remember Them

(Though I will exclude all the bigger characters for fairness. So, Syaoran, Watanuki, Lava Lamp, Fai, Kurogane, Doumeki, Himawari, Seishirou, Ashura, Tomoyo, etc, etc. Regular xxxHolic customers only!)

10. Birdcage Customer

What was this about? Was he even a customer? We just don't know!

But the thing most memorable about this whole situation is the most pressing question: WHY DO YOU HAVE EVIL WOLVERINE'S SYMBOL ALL OVER YOUR HOME? It's even on his front sign!

WHO ARE YOU?????

9. The Liar

Mostly at the bottom because I can't resist the irony. She's the first big customer we see - but what do we really know about her? Absolutely nothing, because she lied every step of the way!

What can we really remember about someone who never actually told us anything about herself?

Though I guess you could say her ending causes quite an impact.

8. Monkey's Paw Customer

Did I forget this had happened? Perhaps!

She's one of those cases where the cause and effect are so clear that the rest of the cast might as well not even be there - and I think most of her story IS told through scenes entirely from her perspective.

I think the most memorable thing about her is the Sheer Audacity of hunting down a monkey's paw and being convinced that, actually, she already knows what it does so it can't possibly go wrong. Love that for her. Would kill for this confidence.

(Not literally - but she kind of did that also)

7. Ame Warashi

Her impeccable style. Her winning charm. She's an icon.

I had just completely forgotten that she was also a customer at one point.

She makes up for it for being absolutely great in every scene she was in, but what are you going to do in a list based purely on how well I remember the customer part? Woops! My bad!

6. Karasu Tengu

They get huge points for this being a Central Event in the narrative, but also I completely forgot they were in this as customers. The entire plot scenario? Incredible! Character defining! Et cetera!

The actual Karasu Tengu themselves? Woops! I forgot they were there. My fault though!

5. The Computer Addict

I love this one. She's so ahead of the curve that she was addicted to the internet back when you had to be on the pc to use it. Honestly, relatable. I also went through a phase like this as a young teen, so the struggle was real.

Little did we all know that in the present day the accessibility of the internet would be so rampant that she literally wouldn't even need that pc to indulge her habits anymore. Oops!

But that aside Yuuko is peak during this arc and I love everything about it. Especially the fact that Yuuko just hangs out on message boards in her free time? Wonderful information. I can do so much with this.

4. Oops! All Ghosts

Another incredible storyline. The twists are preserved by some sneaky panels from Watanuki's perspective and Yuuko's morally grey approach to the whole situation is wonderful. What if you wanted to get rid of the ghost in your home, only to find out that YOU were the ghost all along? It has the DISTRESS. It has the CONFLICT. It has the TRAGEDY. 10/10

3. Haunted Photo

Another customer with Peak Audacity. Trying to wish away the consequences of your own actions? Committing something awful but being unable to actually look at the proof yourself? The ultimate wish being an anxiety inducing curse that is sure to fail? Love it.

It's also one of those juicy situations where the morality of the situation basically drives itself. The customer causes her own problems and can't actually be saved - and doesn't deserve it either.

And honestly I think CLAMP should get a lot of credit for having the haunting effects of a photograph slowly turning around in a purely static medium. They really pulled that off.

I still love the evil smile in the photograph the last time we see it. PURE memorable.

2. The Twin

WE LOVE HER? WE LOVE HER.

Being consistently cut off and run down and overwritten and slowly clawing your way out of the situation through the sheer desire to be your own person?

And then the answer is a haircut?

It's another glimpse into the side of Yuuko that really does try cut people a good bargain. The wish could have been taken in any number of ways, but Yuuko went for the easiest and most affordable way that would genuinely help the customer actually fix her life on her own. She didn't specifically need supernatural help for this, but it was the route that presented itself, and it was the one that got her the help she needed when she needed it. Very hitsuzen, very relatable, very identifiable storyline that sticks with you.

Just like the final entry!

1. Kohane

Listen do I even need to explain this one.

Kohane is like THE storyline. It's THE example of what it's all about. It's not entirely supernatural in nature but completely heart wrenching. It has Watanuki playing a central role in fixing the problem, setting up for his future (or at least, what I assume it will be). It ties xxxHolic to Tsubasa and hints at a secret tool that will help with someone later.

And it has Kohane! You can't go wrong.

[pyrettawychwiggin]

'Wishful Thinking' - Character Page for Himawari Sasaki (OC x Nanami Kento)

Name: Himawari Sasaki

Age: 27

Pronouns: She/Her

Level: 3

Height: 5'9"

Hair Colour: Honey Brown (with a mallen streak on one side)

Eye Colour: Olive/Green

Occupation: Masseuse/Acupuncturist

Afiliation: Tokyo Jujutsu High (former)

Grade: Grade 3

Cursed Technique: Minor Time Manipulation (further explained below the cut)

Cursed Tool: Senbon Needles

(Temporary image of Himawari made in the Picrew creator- try it yourself here!)

Appearance: Himawari is tall with straight honey brown hair down to the middle of her back. She sports a streak of grey hair on one side from overuse of her power (explained below). Her skin is peach-coloured and lightly freckled, and her eyes are olive green. She has always been taller than average, and she has always kept relatively fit. She has a permanent patch of age spots over her forearms that she cannot get rid of (explained below) that she is sometimes self-conscious of, causing her to often wear long-sleeve shirts or wraps.

She tends to wear semi-casual clothing; her signature look is a knitted olive-green sweater that hangs off her shoulder, showing a slate grey cropped tank top underneath. She usually prefers to wear simple dark grey jeans and brown leather boots, but she occasionally likes to wear long sundresses on warm days. When she's being a little flashier, her go-to is scales/snakeskin print.

She has pierced ears that usually simply have small rose-gold hoops in them, and a green ivy and snake tattoo around her upper left arm.

Personality: Himawari is a relatively quiet woman who has a calm and laid-back air to her most of the time. Though she enjoys spending time with her close friends, and likes to go out from time-to-time, she is very much a homebody who enjoys the peace and quiet of her lazy days at home with her many plants, two cats (Hoshi & Kumo) and ball python (Ki). She has a somewhat cheesy and self-deprecating sense of humour.

She is kind-hearted and loves animals, occasionally taking in injured creatures she finds to nurse them back to health and release them back into the wild when she has the time and resources. She sometimes wonders if she should have gone into veterinary medicine rather than massage therapy.

About Her Abilities:

Himawari can reverse time in a small radius of around 6-10 feet, but her control of this ability is somewhat limited. She never quite learned how to properly balance her technique, so she only tends to use it in small increments; but it has many uses. She can slowly bring a plant back to life by using it in small, concentrated bursts. She can reverse small injuries that have occurred recently by essentially 'undoing' them, etc. However, this power works by reversing time at triple the speed, but her body acts as if time is going forward, causing her to essentially speed up her own aging in the process; paired with the amount of raw cursed energy her ability requires, it always takes a toll of her.

She cannot use her time manipulation on herself.

Due to the nature of her ability, she prefers not to use it. When she does, it's done so in tiny increments, and usually directed through her trademark crystal senbon needles for better control.

If she is forced to attack, she tends to immobilize rather than outright destroy her opponent, sending her senbon needles out with incredible accuracy into her enemy's pressure points, causing them to stumble, freeze or collapse. If she needs to be more aggressive, she can flare the cursed energy within the needles instantly and cause them to shatter like a frag grenade in her opponent's body, inflicting a great deal of pain in the process.

Hand-to-hand combat has not always been her strong suit, but she has some skill in grappling and basic self-defense. Her actual skills lie in her speed and accuracy, as long as she can calm her nerves enough to get into the fray.

General Facts:

• Her grey streak was not from birth, nor was it intentional. She once overused her time reversal and pushed it way too far, causing a patch of her hair to turn silver. This also left her with a permanent patch of age spots over her forearms.

• She enrolled at Jujutsu High School when she was about 16 years old. She selected a set of crystal senbon needles as her cursed tool, and was initially excited about the prospect of becoming a healer, hoping to use her time reversal solely for this goal, but when she and two other students were sent on their first real mission, she crumbled and wound up being a liability due to her inability to overcome her fear of the mid-level curses they faced. When one of her teammates wound up losing an arm protecting her, she pushed herself farther than she ever had, using her time reversal to grow their arm back in a frenzied burst of cursed energy that left her forearms smattered in age spots and a permanent grey streak in her hair. Knowing a time would come where she would be sent on solo missions, she decided to leave the school before she even graduated to live a quiet life away from it all in hopes that she could learn to better balance her energy through her own self-practice and regulation.

• She and Nanami knew of each other as distant classmates in school, but they were never really properly acquainted beyond simply knowing each other's names, grades and general abilities. One or twice, she's seen he and some of the other sorcerers on missions in the city, but she always chooses to let them do their jobs without interruption. A part of her feels guilty for leaving the school, and there's a feeling of shame in the back of her mind.

• She has lived alone in a small flat outside the city limits of Shibuya for the last five years, preferring the silence of the outer limits over the bustling excitement of the city. She works part-time as a massage therapist and acupuncturist at a clinic in the city, only working three back-to-back days a week where she prefers to stay in hotels before returning to her home outside the city.

• Her two cats are named Hoshi & Kumo. Hoshi is a fluffy black Himalayan cat with one eye, and Kumo is a Russian blue cat with cloudy blue eyes. The two were raised by Himawari as kittens and are rarely seen apart from each other. Both of them are very friendly, even to strangers.

• Himawari has had a couple relationships, most of which were casual. The two longer relationships she's had ended rather unremarkably, and after her most recent relationship ended a year ago, she's been content to stay single for the time being to focus on herself.

• She is an insomniac with permanent bags under her eyes. She drinks coffee and tea regularly, but mainly for the taste; she finds that the caffeine does almost nothing for her.

• She has a habit of picking at her nails; a nervous trait she's had ever since she was a child.

(Image by okaya/blackjokecompany)

Stay tuned for 'Wishful Thinking!"

~ Pyretta

[ccborrega]

 The Anotherholic novel has quite some tidbits of randomness that I sadly haven’t seen anyone commenting so here I go (And keep in mind I don’t know how much you can rely on this one as it was written by someone other than CLAMP? But it seems they were involved.) :

Yuuko mentions ‘English gentlemen are the most honorable ones out there, they’d never be up to anything suspicious’ which is funny considering the one British guy she’s shown to know is precisely the opposite.

She’s also apparently really good at breaking codes- not magically, either. There is also something to how she’s apparently a really fast texter but in ‘Rou’ Watanuki says pressing the keys gets on his nerves, like- it’s funny the senior of them is better with tech than the junior.

She’s CONSTANTLY MAKING PUNS (They’re untranslatable most of the time but still.) much to Watanuki’s chagrin. You don’t understand, Yuuko making silly puns that make Watanuki want to murder is one of my favorite headcanons.

Watanuki can sense when people are having rude thoughts about him. It’s for comedic effect, I think but there ARE some hints to his sealed powers being still present in aspects where they’re there to warn him of things that could be bad for him, so it may be part of that (Which makes the whole thing with Himawari so much more WORSE.) 

Going back to the rude thoughts- he usually pins it on either Yuuko or Doumeki.

Apparently, at one point Watanuki lost all of what he’d fared in Yuuko’s shop thanks to his big mouth- he made a gamble that if shiritori ever saved his life, he’d happily give away what he’d earned thus far.

Yuuko keeps calling him ‘My Watanuki’. (Not sure if it’s a different translation from the ‘Our Watanuki’ used in the manga to imply his ‘Belonging’ to the shop, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t fucking melt.)

She also calls him ‘My adorable Watanuki’ but I’m not sure how serious she’s being there.

The single best exchange between them, hands down: ‘Now you’re starting to scare me.’ ‘I exist to scare you’.

There’s this joke I’m not sure I understand where she says two times in a row that she ‘Won’t give him a raise’, but the second time ‘Raise’ is in italics and my perv ass mind immediately went to the gutter. Looking up the word for ‘Raise’ and whether it had alternate meanings didn’t help much as it apparently has a ton, ranging from ‘To give someone an updo’ to ‘To bear a child’ going through ‘To fry’. In any case it seems like she’s implying something improper. Watanuki’s reaction being that he’s uncomfortable she’s making it sound ‘Real’ makes me lean towards that even more.

Yuuko owns a ten-gallon hat... and wears it indoors. To lay around on her sofa.

Apparently, the reason she smart-mouths him so much is she doesn’t want him to get a big head- which if we consider how powerful he’ll become in the future, is not entirely a bad call.

Another exchange ‘If I am forced to eat something besides flowing somen today, I may well die.’ ‘Glad to hear it.’ Kid. KID. I don’t know if the writer knew back then where this was going but oof those words are gonna haunt you.

Watanuki vowed to himself never to become like her at some point. I can’t tell if it’s more sad or funny.

The ‘Aerosol’ chapter of the novel is where the thing about his dislike of Doumeki on first sight being because the spirits were influencing his mood and keeping him away from the one thing that could help him draw them away came from. I’d seen that mentioned by fans before but wasn’t sure where it had come from. Though in terms of his character and furthermore the ‘Curse’ placed on him by Fei Wong , it made sense for Watanuki to reject someone that might save him and be attracted to someone that might kill him instead, so I accepted it.

There’s also a thing about how his beef with Doumeki is ‘He has what Watanuki wants and doesn’t have what Watanuki doesn’t want.’ but that one sounds like he’s just rationalized the visceral reaction.

‘Had he ever felt that keenly about anyone? He had good friends, and he had a family. He had a girl he liked. But were his feelings for them so powerful that he would make them into ghosts if they died? He might have eyes that could see spirits. But that did not mean they could see who was important to him.’ OK nevermind the writer KNEW.

Add ‘You think I’d be involved in anything GOOD?’ to the golden Yuuko quotes list.

Also apparently Watanuki thinks if he were to stop coming to the shop she’d starve. She does make a comment to that effect earlier on so he’s not entirely being sarcastic.

For a moment there, Watanuki thinks he’s paid enough to be able to stop working for Yuuko and just like in my wildest fanfiction dreams, he’s not happy.  He gets sad that he’s never going to see her again and that he couldn’t even get to thank her, feed her one last time and say goodbye properly and can you tell I’m dead? ‘cause I am. 

In the same instance, he finds he no longer finds Doumeki repellent and getting to know him better sounds like ‘A dandy idea’. Which I guess is because this seems to be timed BEFORE the ghost lady that made him sick and they aren’t really all that close just yet. Otherwise I think he’d try to stick to status quo a bit more.

The fact that he sees spirits bothers and terrifies Watanuki not because of the spirits themselves but because it makes him different from everyone else and he DESPERATELY wants to feel he belongs. Am I crying? Yes.

Around the end, it seems to also be the first instance where Watanuki asks Yuuko if there is any wish he wants him to grant for her. Followed by her asking jokingly (Or not?) if this is his first step in a campaign to take the shop from her?. Um. Ouch.

Also, Yuuko hints at Watanuki’s wish of losing the ability to see spirits ultimately not making him happy if it’s granted. Which we now know is probably right.

[secrettastemakerland]

☕ Tea Party Tuesdays ☕

All this talk of Lion and him being canon makes me feel like he needs a fic. 🤔

So I wrote one! 😇

Includes Lion's perspective, a trashed Uzumaki household, a flirty (and comforting ❤) Naruto, Sir Older Brother Kawaki, a jealous Boruto, and Madame Himawari, the hostess of the tea party!

Now, please enjoy Tea Party Tuesdays! ~

Tuesdays were his favorite day of the week. Paws down.

Mondays were usually the busiest days of the week as Naruto, Kawaki, Boruto, and Himawari had to return back to work, missions, and school. He and Hinata were left with all the chores of the day and were easily tired out by the time the rest of the family made it back home. Helping Hinata was much easier now that he was officially 1 year. Especially since someone would randomly leave his toys around the house. He was still trying to solve that mystery.

And while Wednesdays and Thursdays were still super fun with family gardening time ™ and runs around the backyard, Tuesdays still had them beat. Not even the movie and cuddle filled Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays came close! (Though he loved them just as much. Especially with Naruto glaring at him from Hinata's other side as he knowingly stole the blond's cuddles. The man was too fun to mess with sometimes.)

He watched in his seat, specifically reserved for Tuesdays, as Himawari ran to the table and back with stuffed animals and accessories for each. The girl was already dressed in proper tea party fashion with a crown on her head, a pair of fairy wings on her back, and long tea gloves on each of her hands. Very high level fashion.

She had everything (and everyone) ready and had already placed his bowls on the placemat in front of him after their last disaster last week where he had been given tea cups and plates instead. (Luckily no one was the wiser and he was still invited to Hima's famous tea parties.)

When he was still about 5 months old, the Uzumaki children had invited him to his first tea party. He hadn't known what they were called due to all the sneaking around he and the kids had to do. And at first, Kawaki wasn't too sure about hiding him from their parents but one group of puppy dog eyes later, he was sitting at his first tea party!

He had been placed between the kids as they sat on the floor in a triangle as they decided on what to call him. It wasn't until the youngest sibling had yelled out "Lion!" that their decision was made . (It was the only name that had received a tail wag.) She and Boruto had argued about his new name for a while until Kawaki had ended it by saying he agreed. And with 2 against 1, the Naruto lookalike gave in.

When he had become an official part of the family, he had received a collar with "Lion Uzumaki" printed on it and everything!

He straightened his back and licked his lips as the blue haired girl made her way to sit at the table with a tray of cookies she had made in her Easy Bake Oven. Only gentlepups got cookies so he had to have the best behavior. (Not to brag but that was something he had learned at his 4th tea party so he was kind of an expert at these things.)

He licked his lips once more after Himawari had booped his nose as she placed the cookies on the opposite side of the table. "You can't eat them all, Sir Lion. We have to save some for Kawaki. Um, I mean Sir Kawaki." she lightly scolded as she placed a crown on his head.

She received a whine as she poured the rest of her guest their "tea". After a couple more whines, Himawari had of course relented. Curse those puppy dog eyes! "Ok! Only one. We have to save some for our other guests!"

He let out a happy "woof!" as the girl placed a cookie into his bowl.

Oh yeah. He loved Tea Party Tuesdays.

Meanwhile in the Uzumaki family living room...

"Are you sure you haven't found him yet?" Naruto asked his wife. He had just finished looking for the golden retriever in their shared bedroom and hadn't seen hair or hide of their beloved pet.

Lion had been missing for about 15 minutes and the Uzumakis were getting worried. They had already turned the living room, kitchen, and the bathrooms upside down in hopes of finding him. Maybe he thought they were playing hide and seek?

They were trying their very best in hiding this fact from Himawari, who was fortunately busy with Tea Party Tuesdays. Kawaki was currently at the store so they were down a pair of eyes. Hopefully though, the three could find him before the older teen came back.

Hinata shook her head as she closed the laundry room door behind her. "I know he likes to take naps in the laundry bin but he wasn't there." she sighed heavily. What if they never found him? What were they gonna tell Himawari and Kawaki?

Naruto's blue eyes softened as he made his way over to his wife. He grabbed and squeezed her in reassurance. "We'll find him. I promise."

Even if he acted like he didn't, Naruto cared about Lion just as much as the rest of his family did. And if he had to, he and millions of Shadow Clones would search for their dog all night.

Hinata looked up and smiled as she squeezed Naruto's hands back. She nodded in determination. If Naruto gave his word, then they will for sure find Lion.

And if they didn't, she was sure that Naruto would send tons of Shadow Clones into the night until they did.

The blond pulled her in closer and rubbed his nose against hers. "Has Bolt found him yet?"

Hinata smiled in amusement as Naruto continued to rub their noses together. "I'm not sure." she giggled slightly . "Maybe we should continue our search?" Hinata teased but asked seriously since Naruto showed no signs of stopping to try to cheer her up.

Her husband pouted slightly before he let go. Lavender eyes looked at him pointedly as if telling him "now's not the time". He only raised his hands in surrender and shrugged. "I got distracted."

He was glad that his flirtations brought Hinata back to her smiling, happy self but he wasn't too sure if they would have the same effect on Himawari and Kawaki if Lion was nowhere to be found.

Hinata rolled her eyes at him lovingly but before she could properly convince him to resume their search Boruto came in through the back door.

"Hi guys."

Naruto and Hinata shared a look before they glanced back at their second eldest. "Bolt, why are you covered in dirt?" Naruto questioned slowly as Hinata blinked in confusion.

His clothes and hair were smudged in soil and he even had some little pieces of mulch in his hair. Boruto was tasked to look out in the yard to see if Lion was sunbathing or had (possibly) escaped through a hole in the fence, not fight any Earth jutsu users.

The miniature blond sighed. "A bag of dirt fell on me in the shed. I grabbed at it thinking it was Lion. It wasn't Lion." he shook his head in embarrassment as a light blush stained his whiskered cheek. "Did you guys find him?"

The silence he was met with was telling enough.

Boruto pulled at his hair in frustration. "What are we gonna do now? What are gonna tell Hima and Waki? But most importantly, who's gonna tell Hima and Waki?" the dirt covered boy yelled in despair.

Boruto was close to tears. Not only was Lion missing, but they had to share the news with his siblings, who would heartbroken as well.

As the adults made moves to try to comfort their clearly distressed son, they heard the front door open and turned in it's direction slowly.

"Tell Hima and Waki what?" Kawaki stood in the doorway with grocery bags in each of his hands and a look of bewilderment on his face. His eyes glanced at the mess the three had left behind and then widened at the sight of his brother. "What happened to the house? And what happened to Bolt?"

...

Kawaki placed the grocery bags he had been holding the entire time on the kitchen counter and turned to his embarrassed family members. He laughed in amusement before he spoke. "You guys think Lion is missing?"

Naruto, Hinata, and Boruto looked at Kawaki like he was crazy. They had just finished explaining that when Boruto went looking for him to take the pup on a walk, he was nowhere in sight and now he was laughing instead of offering to help look?

Suddenly, out of nowhere, the teen pulled out a fake mustache out of his pocket, placed it on his face, grabbed one of the bags he had placed on the kitchen counter before he motioned for the extremely confused three to follow him.

Kawaki walked to Himawari's closed bedroom door and politely three times. "Madame Himawari, may I, and three other guests, please come in?"

Hearing poorly hidden giggles behind the door, everyone smiled unconsciously at their sunflower child's happiness.

Himawari took a second to clear her throat before she spoke in a fancy tone. "Yes, you may, Sir Kawaki." There was a slight pause before she added, "And guests."

Sir Kawaki, who was now in his tea party attendee mode, glanced back with a smirk before he opened the door.

With confused looks on their faces, Naruto, Hinata, and Boruto leaned on close to see...

"Sorry I was late, Madame Himawari. I was buying a gift." Kawaki said as he entered the bluenette's room and gave her the bag.

"Oooo! Cinnamon rolls! Perfect. Shukaku and Lion have been eating them all." she looked up from the pastries and shook her head at the dog seated across from her.

... Lion. They leaned in and saw Lion.

Standing there in his seat, specifically reserved for Tuesdays, Lion looked up happily from the tray of half eaten cookies and yipped in greeting to the rest of his family.

Himawari cupped a hand towards her new guests and whispered into it, "I think Lion's framing Shukaku."

Kawaki pat Lion in between the ears as he sat down in his own seat, which Himawari had left clear of any stuffed animals waiting for his arrival.

As the two kids continued on with the tea party, Naruto, who still stood in the doorway with Hinata and Boruto, got rid of his shock quickly.

Nudging Hinata with his elbow slightly, he said, "I told you we'd find him."

She let out a breathy laugh, all her worry washing away. "You did." She turned to him in curiosity. "Since when has Lion been apart of Tea Party Tuesdays?"

He tilted his head back at her. "I think the real question is when did Kawaki start wearing a fake mustache on Tea Party Tuesdays?"

Her eyes widened in realization. "I don't know."

Naruto nudged her again. "He looks good, though." his blue eyes shined down at his wife in mischief.

A loud cute snort was his reward. "Come on, we have to clean up the house before dinner." She used both her arms to force him to turn.

The blond nodded and headed toward the living room before he faced his wife with a smirk. "What do you say, Hime? Should I grow a mustache?"

Hinata lightly shoved him forward. "Don't start."

As Naruto and Hinata made their to fix up the house (bantering back and forth about Naruto and his wish for a mustache), Boruto fumed in his sister's doorway.

Obviously as her favorite brother, he should be the one wearing the fake stache!

"Hima! Why have you never invited me to Tea Party Tuesdays?" he pouted uncontrollably.

Himawari and Kawaki turned to their upset brother. Lion, who had resumed to eating the cookies, looked up as well.

The hostess of the tea party shrugged. "You never asked." She wrinkled her nose after noticing how filthy he was for the first time. "What happened to you?"

Kawaki snorted behind one of his fist. "Long story, sis."

Boruto blushed in embarrassment. "Did Kawaki ask?"

The boy in question straightened his fake mustache and smirked. "Since I'm her favorite brother, I didn't have to ask."

Blue eyes narrowed. Two could play that game.

Boruto walked calmly as he could to the table and sat down on his knees on the floor. "Pass the tea, please, Madame Himawari."

The girl squealed in delight and got up to find more tea cups and hopefully another chair.

While the two boys started another one of their 'Himawari loves me the most' arguments while the girl searched for more pieces in her tea set, Lion curled up into a ball, belly full of cookies, to take a nap.

And with the Uzumaki children's noises of laughter as background music, Lion fell asleep happily.

And with that, the surprise is finished!! 😆😆😆 I know the end wasn't that Lion based but we needed an end to Tea Party Tuesdays! 😝 Which are (clearly) famous in the Uzumaki household. From now on, Bolt is invited to all of Hima's TPTs so all's well that ends well!

And I'm not sure if Naruto would look good in a mustache or not but that was to go along with Kawaki and his fake stache. 😂🙈

Hopefully no one is too OOC?? 😅 I was especially nervous writing Kawaki but I wanted to include him in the fun!

[chattegeorgiana]

Can I just say how freaking articulated you are?!

I’ve been reading your thoughts/theories regarding NaruSaku and SS and I love how you keep your cool and analyze the facts and I’ve been having a blast reading your posts.

Also, when I first started watching the anime, I think I was 13/14 years old and, just like you, I used to ship SS but as I got older I was like OMGWHY, and at first I was really shocked with how much I started to enjoy the idea of NaruSaku since up until that point I only saw them as friends.

Adult me doesn’t like SS at all, I’ll protect Sakura with all that I have until the end of times and I can’t stand how some people see their relationship as “healthy”.

Seeing that I just finished reading some NaruSaku stories, I’m feeling warm and fuzzy and filled with love, and I opened my tumblr and saw some hatred being throw your way, I’d come here and share with you that you’re awesome and I thoroughly enjoy reading/seeing/fargirling over your work. Happy Sunday and NaruSaku for life. ❤️

Hey dear!!

First of all thank you so so much for your nice words!

Lol, it’s like we have the same story, heheh. I was also a SS/NH as I started the anime. I think it’s no wonder that many of us used to be, since that’s what the anime version of the story pushed forward.

They literally stole interactions from canon from NaruSaku and gave it to the others. 

For example how Naruto in the chakra training says to Sakura how great she is and whatnot? Studio Pierrot takes it and applies it to Naruto telling that to Hinata in fillers.

Sakura genuinely being concerned for Naruto and wanting to give up both her chance AND Sasuke’s in the chuunin exams selection? 

Sakura is shown downright malicious there, like she is glad Naruto is going through this turmoil, when it’s viceversa.

Also, in the canon manga Naruto never thinks about copying from Hinata, while in the anime he does so.

So no wonder people disregarded NaruSaku that much. By doing everything in their power to show Sakura as being this malicious little girl, this only had a ripple effect on both the fandom, NaruSaku and their reception.

That’s why when I turned to the manga, I found a totally different story than the anime. 

Which is sad, because the manga tells a rather much more touchy story than the anime, to be honest.

And this is also the reason I won’t be able to support SS. Because no matter what, the source material shows us SS as not being the right choice for Sakura. Through the plot, through character dynamics, through symbolism. You name it. 

People can try defend it as much as they want. It’s out of the necessity to fill a void. I know I used to do the same with Sakura, hoping that Kishi will finally make something of her. He didn’t, sadly. And that’s something I accepted.

I still love her, I still considers she has one of the best developments within the story (looking at source material, not the adaptation), but I won’t hide under the pretenses that she’s perfect.

Hell no. Her love for Sasuke makes her miserable. Her potential is unused. She was sidelined compared to the main cast, like it or not.

There are a lot of problematic aspects with her as well, as a character. But I ADMIT that. Unlike SS-ers that make it look like this perfect love story that breaks the curse of hatred. Nah. That’s NaruSasu’s story first of all, and second of all, like I said, God forbid these kids enter such a relationship. And I very much mean it.

However, I do defend Sakura on other counts. On those which I can, on those that put her on this hateful pedestal that she’s the meanest, when it’s not true. When she is one of the characters that has a change in behavior IN THE VERY FIRST CHAPTER SHE MAKES AN APPEARANCE!

I wonder how many people can brag about that in real life. People have NO IDEA how difficult CHANGE IS.

Look at this fandom. They weren’t able to change even now, years later, in their regards to Sakura. She is still one of the most hated characters in the history of characters (which is so interesting to look at from a sociological point of view).

But they talk all high and mighty about a character who is showing change ever since chapter 3, like I said.

It’s funny because when it’s about admitting faults, like SS is problematic? Noo, it’s whatever. But when it’s about admitting that Sakura showed real change in her relationship with Naruto and even FLIRTED with the damn guy and ACCEPTED A DATE with him, people are like NAH, SHE’S A BITCH, NEVER TREATED HIM RIGHT YADDA YADDA YADDA.

Or like... when it’s about her and the comedic relief punching thing, OMG SHE’S ABUSIVE!

But when they copied the same traits to Hinata and had Himawari punch the shit out of Naruto OUT OF THE BLUE FOR NO REASON, it’s OMG SO KAWAII.

Like, these people are shown a mirror of their very moral standards and they still won’t admit their double standards.

It’s fun to watch though. But aah, anyway, I don’t care about those kind of people. It’s funny to observe them, but NOT MY tribe.

Thank you very much for your kind message dear! You really made my day with it, gotta admit.

Sending back positive vibes towards you tenfold!!

SPREAD THAT NS LOVE, because that’s what NaruSaku always has been. ABOUT LOVE, about SHARING the love for one another, in more ways than one. Cheers!

[chestnut-b]

Himawari - Chapter 5

A request to kindly reblog if you like the art or the story! (Still not appearing in tags, unfortunately ;_; Thank you so much!

Chapter 5 of a Demon Slayer AU.

“Please don’t go hoisting your parental duties on me just yet, sensei. Do you really want to entrust Naruto’s growth to a guy who reads Icha Icha Paradise?”

Or worse, writes it. Iruka could only laugh. He couldn’t remember when he’d laughed this freely before.

He’d have to find a way to live forever now.

------------------------------------------------------------------

All Kakashi had to do was follow the yelling. Naruto’s, specifically. 

Swiftly, he navigated the dark tunnels, stopping only to orient himself at the numerous forks along the way. When Naruto’s voice faded, his ears picked up the sound of waves and rushing water. That too, lasted a few short seconds before dissipating into soft echoes, but Kakashi knew he was close. The stench of death was growing stronger with each step.

He arrived just in time to see Iruka, standing seemingly still in a shallow pool of water at the base of a huge cavern, Naruto clinging to his side. Their backs bore signs of having been dragged a distance, Iruka’s more than Naruto’s. Kakashi couldn’t see if they’d sustained any injuries, but knowing the teacher, he must have taken the brunt of it on their way down here.

He gazed at Iruka’s form. That defensive stance… a breath technique?

His curiosity piqued, Kakashi resisted the urge to act, instead choosing to mask his presence. There was barely enough light being emitted from the pool for him to get a view of their grim surroundings. The corpses of beasts, predator and prey alike, littered every nook and cranny, some hung from the stalactite-covered ceiling as skeletal, brittle husks.

Soon, an ominous rattling reached his ears, followed by what could only be described as a grotesque symphony of hisses, groans and moving parts. 

“Mare..chi…what a feast...ha..haha...it’s been a while since I’ve had a human meal..”a wretched voice echoed, already drunk with hunger.

Well, that confirmed it, Kakashi cursed inwardly. He’d left the cave obediently at Iruka’s request, and now they were facing a demon that was already salivating at the thought of rare blood. The slayer hadn’t spoken, nor had he moved an inch despite Naruto’s presence beside him. His hands were poised to draw his blade from its sheath at a moment’s notice. 

The pool at his feet started to ripple in slow, rhythmic pulses. 

There it was again. Kakashi felt a familiar, gentle wave pass over him. His presence had been felt, but Iruka made no appeal for assistance.

Let’s see what you’re made of, Iruka-sensei. 

A single piece of rock fell from the ceiling, creating a secondary wave of ripples in the water. Kakashi spied a snaking form in the reflection, and in the next instant, the foe descended upon the pair.

Legs, too many legs. Kakashi cringed inwardly. 

He hated centipedes. 

A demon large enough to hunt monsters for prey, with a long, segmented body twice as thick as a human adult. The demon’s face and neck were nowhere to be seen, though he had a good idea of where it was hidden.

There was a flash of metal, followed by a terrible shriek of pain. The demon fell and thrashed violently in the water. With a shining blue blade, Iruka had managed to fend off the first strike, slicing off a row of legs in the process. 

But there wasn’t enough strength behind Iruka’s blow to have dealt significant damage to the main body, Kakashi observed. If the path of his blade had strayed, there would have been trouble. It had been a concentrated effort, judging from the deep, controlled exhale that followed.

The teacher had taken the chance to jump back with Naruto, increasing the distance between them and their foe. The boy let out a taunt, but was quickly silenced with an extended arm and a hushed admonishment. 

Just as the demon found its bearings, Iruka reached into the sleeve of his haori and in the next instant, three kunai had found their marks deep in the crevices of the centipede’s body, this time producing a sputter of indignant rage as tiny streams of blood seeped into the pool.

With a shrill shriek, the mouth of the creature pried open, and out emerged a humanesque head and torso, its skin pale and wet. Veins of purple had started to snake up its neck.

Naruto failed to rein in his cry of disgust. 

“You bastard...wisteria?!” The thing screamed bloody murder. 

Iruka kept silent, walking towards the demon while staring it down with an unrelenting glare. This seemed to enrage it even more, for it backed up, coiling like a snake preparing to strike. In its delirium, it opted for a head-on attack, lunging straight for the approaching slayer with blinding speed. 

“Iruka-nii!” 

The slayer’s strike had only opened a wide gash in its torso as it whipped past. Iruka hadn’t expected the change in trajectory. Naruto had already started running his way, and the demon adjusted its course for retaliatory strike. 

“Get down!” Iruka screamed. 

The boy took to the ground, arms over his head. Iruka shielded him with his own body, bracing for a direct hit.

However, nothing came but a wet crash and an inhuman screech. Iruka lifted his head in time to see one of the severed segments drop onto the ground beside him. 

“Iruka-sensei, I don’t think this is what you meant when you said we’d be in time for dinner.” 

Kakashi turned his head for a moment to beam moronically at the teacher. Iruka sighed in response, but favoured him with an exasperated smile in return anyway. Kakashi found himself thinking; while a glare was always an interesting look on Iruka, nothing quite looked as natural on him as a smile.

The teacher had taken a few bumps on the way down, a cut on his head bled worse than it actually was, but other than that, Kakashi saw no reason for alarm, 

A sharp interruption broke his train of thought.

“Shut up. You’re late!” Naruto berated him.

Kakashi rolled his eyes, as he was prone to doing when around the boy. 

He wasn’t late; it was in fact, a strategically delayed entry. 

Nevertheless, the Hashira approached the writhing demon, gleaming black blade in hand.

“Hey, where’s your master? I’ll make it a painless death if you tell me.” 

There was no coherent or useful answer to be gleaned in the screams that followed. 

”That’s a pity. Well, be seeing you then.” 

Contrary to his threat, Kakashi took the demon’s head clean off with one silent, clean strike. Soon after, the body started its slow disintegration into black ash. 

“May you find peace...and light on the other side.” 

He knew full well it wasn’t meant for him, but something in that gentle voice made Kakashi’s heart stir in a way it hadn’t for a long time. For a moment, his father’s visage surfaced in his mind. 

He turned back to the pair, only to see Iruka looking into the eyes of the fallen demon. On his exhausted face was a genuinely forlorn expression. The demon stared silently, but a single tear joined the rest of the pool at their feet, creating a final ripple before the last of the body disappeared for good.

“Iruka-nii!” Naruto cried, bearing the now slumped Iruka on his shoulder. He’d lost consciousness. 

Kakashi flicked the blood off his sword before returning it to its sheath, doing the same for Iruka’s. He passed the sheathed blade to Naruto before picking the teacher up into his arms. Truthfully, he would have wanted to see the reaction on his face had he been awake, but instead Kakashi was met with another somber realisation; Iruka was a half a head shorter than Kakashi at most, but his weight scarcely reflected it. He didn’t have time to ponder for long before a subdued voice spoke out.

“Is he going to be ok?” It was one of those times when Naruto sounded the most like the 7 year old child he was. 

“He’ll be fine. Sensei’s stronger than he looks.”

His gaze lingered on Iruka’s worn face just a bit longer. 

When my time comes, will you pray for me too, sensei?

 ------------------------------------------------------------------

 Sound was always the first thing to come to him when he woke up. He remembered the chirping of birds or summer cicadas, his mother’s humming as she laid out breakfast, or his father’s stern but warm voice as he trained at dawn.

In this place was the gentle crackle of a fire, the rush of trees and grass swaying in the wind, and the rhythmic pitter-patter of a light rain hitting stone. On his right could only be Naruto’s soft snoring. The weight of fabric over his shoulders felt like a warm embrace. He wanted desperately to lose himself in the sheer comfort of the composition, but Iruka knew he was not lying in his room or in his bed. 

Cautiously, he opened his eyes to see a soft orange glow in the stone ceiling above him. 

“Good evening, sensei.” 

And there was Kakashi. 

Iruka cringed as he struggled to sit himself upright, every part of him ached. Now that the adrenaline had worn off, he could feel every bump and bruise all over again. He turned to his right to see Naruto, sleeping like a log, wrapped in Iruka’s haori. Seeing that, he looked down at his own lap to see what could only be Kakashi’s haori. It was a deep maroon that at times shone a silk-like black under the right light. It was beautiful, and, looking at it up close like he was now, easy to get lost in its richness. He removed his arms from under the coat, and was surprised to see the cuts and scrapes that his hands had suffered had been cleaned and carefully bandaged. The red braided cord he used to tie his hair was neatly rolled and left in his palm. 

“I had to look into your bag to see if there was anything we could use, sorry sensei.”

The Hashira had saved their lives, and now he was apologising? Iruka wondered if all the pillars were as odd as this one. Iruka shook his head before taking in his surroundings. They were still in the same cave, and judging from the height of the moon outside, it was just after midnight.

The wind brought a slight chill, but the worst of it was fended off by the warmth of the fire and the haori that had been draped over him. His hair, now spilling over his shoulders, protected his neck from the worst of the cold. He turned to Kakashi, dressed in only the standard blacks, gently lit by the moonlight as he sat closer to the mouth of the cave. 

He looks cold. 

“How are you feeling?”

Like crap, if he was going to be truthful. But it must have been miles better than being a drained shell of a meal for a demon. 

“I’ll survive.” 

Iruka struggled to his feet. Taking the haori along with him, he offered it back to Kakashi, who merely smiled and shook his head. 

“You should get back to sleep. You need it.”

“Right. So we’re sharing then.”

“What?”

Iruka draped the haori back onto Kakashi’s shoulders. But instead of returning to where he’d been lying, he plopped himself bodily next to Kakashi, pressing their shoulders together before wrapping the other half of the haori around himself. Kakashi let out a warm, amused chuckle that vibrated through his battered body. He dug his face into his knees. The heat he felt rising to his cheeks wasn’t from the warmth of the fire. 

“That’s what you get for being stubborn about it.”

“Oh sensei, If we’re going to be children here, how about a bed-time story?”

There was a rustle of paper, and Iruka lifted his head to see a very child-unfriendly woodblock-printed illustration shoved right in his face.

“What the hell is this?!” He hissed indignantly, swatting the book away from his face. Kakashi’s hand retreated with it before any damage could have been dealt.

“Jiraiya-sensei’s latest work. Icha-Icha Paradise: Romance in the Floating World! He left the manuscript in his-, I mean, my room, as a way of keeping me occupied while I play babysitter.” 

Iruka swore he had never heard the man sound this happy. He looked so satisfied thumbing through the book with the brightest orange washi-paper cover he’d ever seen that Iruka couldn’t help but think himself an idiot. Because, even just for a moment, he’d thought Kakashi looked quite dignified, sitting there in the moonlight. 

Iruka had never been so wrong. 

Beside him sat the strongest of the Hashira, legendary user of multiple breath-styles; Hatake Kakashi, and he was reading porn in a cave. Iruka was dumbstruck.

Maybe this is all a dream, or maybe I did get eaten by the demon and I’m in hell where I belong.

But Naruto was here too, so that couldn’t be it. He groaned, rubbing his forehead. That had been carefully bandaged too. 

“I suppose this is why you didn’t try to get us back tonight.” He’d shown Kakashi the map, he knew where the entry points were.

Kakashi nodded solemnly. “I hate getting wet even under normal circumstances. If Jiraiya found out I destroyed his manuscript, well, I’m not sure if there will be any of me left for the demons, sensei.” He didn’t know if the shiver Kakashi produced was real or mere parody.

“Plus, it’s a beautiful night, isn’t it?” 

Iruka couldn’t deny that part. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d slept rough like this, but he felt the same sentiment. He’d remember this night, and not just for the scenery and soundscape.

Jiraiya-sama. It wasn’t the first time he had met the man, but he’d taken the task of observing Naruto even less seriously than Kakashi had at first, spending most of his time in the town taverns or in his room. He’d requested a good supply of paper and ink blocks upon his arrival. So this is what they were for. Iruka sighed, what a waste of good writing materials. As if they weren’t troublesome enough to obtain too. 

The books though; he’d seen them as he browsed the town’s bookshops. They stood out in the most indiscreet fashion possible, Iruka’s eyes couldn’t help but be drawn to them. Kotetsu had been bugging him to buy one on his trips there, but once he saw the title, he decided there were definitely better uses for his limited savings. He never expected the author and the esteemed retired Hashira to be one in the same Jiraiya. 

The sounds of water that surrounded them made Iruka realise how thirsty he was. He placed a hand on his throat in an attempt to soothe it. Another article was soon in his line of sight, a bamboo water canteen. 

“Sorry I couldn’t get it to you sooner.” He’d sounded genuinely apologetic, and it wasn’t just about the water either. Iruka shook his head. He’d have apologised too, for being this weak, but Kakashi had witnessed it for himself plenty by now. Nevertheless, he took the water gratefully. Gingerly, he reached into his pocket, taking out a small sachet. He emptied its contents into his mouth before taking a large swig of water. 

From the day he was born, it never failed to taste absolutely awful.

Kakashi chuckled. The reaction on his face must have been too obvious.

“Mustn’t be easy being a Senju huh, Umino Iruka-kun.”

Iruka blinked at him before bursting out laughing. He was grateful Kakashi had waited for him to swallow before bringing that one out. 

How many years had it been since he’d heard those two names in the same sentence. 

“You must have been a great student, Kakashi-san.”

“Quite the contrary, Minato-sensei was just about ready to kill me himself. Too many questions can be a problem, apparently.”

If there was a time Iruka could relate to Naruto’s late Father, it was right at this moment. 

“When did you realise?” Iruka sighed, he’d laughed so hard, he had to wipe the tears out of the corners of his eyes. 

Kakashi turned his head, his one eye, grey as stone, gazed at him warmly.

“Maa, my suspicions were just about confirmed today, actually.” 

“Please, do enlighten me.” 

Kakashi made a pleased sound, nodding his head. 

“Firstly, Sarutobi doesn’t take just anyone as a student. No offence, sensei, but physically speaking, you’re not the strongest combatant. So there had to be other reasons for him to keep you around, especially knowing what happened between you and Naruto that day.”

Iruka nodded slowly. He’d barely made it through every Hashira training session that Kakashi had been instructed to conduct when he was posted at the school. Iruka, like everyone else there, dreaded those days the most,

“Secondly, Your earrings. Sea-glass from the Uzumaki coast, and a bit too expensive for a commoner’s family. It’s not just where the Uzumaki came from, the Senju had long been there before moving further east. Not the strongest evidence, I admit, but there it is.” 

Unconsciously, Iruka’s hand had moved to touch the earring on his left ear. The only things he had left of his Mother.

“Thirdly, that troublesome condition of yours. The stuff you take for it, smells just like what they get delivered to the main estate. Not envious of that one at all, sensei.”

Iruka chuckled, and swore to himself he’d sneak it into Kakashi’s tea one day. It would be a difficult task, with his hound-like sense of smell, but he’d find a way. 

“Anything else?”

“Hmmm. A man you share your family name with, Umino Ikaku, famously spiriting away Kohari, a Daughter of Senju, even one from a minor branch family, caused a bit of a stir at the time, even though I was a kid when I heard about it. Father found it pretty amusing, like a Shinobi love-story come to life. Maybe that’s where I got it from.” He mused, waving the book in his hand.

That he had the audacity to even mention the two stories in the same breath. It was enough to make Iruka burst a blood vessel, but he settled for a hard shove in Kakashi’s direction. If he was lucky, that book would find itself tinder for the fire by sunrise. 

“Also.” Kakashi continued, glancing at the red cord bunched in Iruka’s fist. It had been gifted to him by his Father when he’d hit his first bullseye with a kunai.

“You may not know this, but with your hair down, you’re a splitting image of Oyakata-sama.”

Iruka sighed. He’d never stepped foot on the Senju Estate, never set eyes on the great Senju-Hashirama. Sometimes, his Mother would mention it as she combed through his hair, how much they looked alike. But Iruka had no point of reference, and so had never thought much about it. 

But in hindsight, Sarutobi had always been soft on him. The Hashira designation wasn’t that old, and Sarutobi had been one of the first named Hashira, after the great founder himself. Great warriors, all, each carrying part of his name into battle with their sworn enemies.

Iruka started when he felt a gloved hand grab his. Kakashi lifted it up and pulled the sleeve back, looking at his arm as if he expected something to materialise if he stared hard enough.

“I’d ask you for your password, but we both know nothing will come of it. Right, sensei?”

Checkmate. 

He’d never been through the final selection, and was thus, a rankless pretender.

Iruka took back his arm and hugged his knees. Despite the fire and Kakashi’s warmth beside him, he felt the chill of guilt spread through his body.

“The Senju lead the Slayers, send good men and women to die for their mistakes, and yet…...we can’t join them.” 

“Well, but here you are on the ground. Fighting alongside everyone else. I think that’s pretty admirable, wouldn’t you say?”

Iruka glanced at the sleeping boy, He’d done well today. Despite the chaos of his first demon encounter, he kept himself calm, as calm as Naruto could be, anyway. Children of experienced slayers might not have stood as steadily as he did. His reaction to the wisteria gave Iruka so much hope too, even if the boy didn’t realise it himself. 

He’d be a fine warrior one day, if he chose to walk the path. 

“Naruto’s going to get stronger and stronger. Eventually, I’ll just be a burden on him.” Iruka whispered, how many times had he regretted his weakness, his cursed inheritance. 

“On the contrary, sensei. You showed him there’s someone out there who’s willing to lay down their life for him.” Kakashi’s voice was as warm as the fire. “He kept watch over you until he fell asleep, you know. He’s not going to forget what you did for him. What you continue to do for him, every day.” 

Iruka burrowed his head deeper. He was so tired, there were no more tears to let fall.

“Kakashi-san, if I’m not around……”

“Please don’t go hoisting your parental duties on me just yet, sensei. Do you really want to entrust Naruto’s growth to a guy who reads Icha Icha Paradise?” 

Or worse, writes it. Iruka could only laugh. He couldn’t remember when he’d laughed this freely before. He’d have to find a way to live forever now. He lifted his head to look Kakashi in the eye. 

“You know, the Senju are famously short lived.” 

“And wielders of black blades and demon marks are said to be short-lived too. Slayers fall in battle every day, sensei. You could say that we are the lucky ones.” He said, tapping his eye-patch. 

For the second time that night, Iruka felt tremendously stupid. 

“So, if you want to keep me accountable, try to outlive me, won’t you, Umino Iruka-sensei? For both our sakes.” An arm had landed around Iruka’s shoulders. 

Warm. Kakashi had stripped him bare, but he’d never felt this way, not since his parents left. But he had no strength left to cry, and so his response was reduced to a single nod.

“Even if I hadn’t been there, I know you would have protected him no matter what, Iruka.” His voice was already slipping away.  

Kakashi was a weird Hashira. 

Those were his last thoughts as he slipped into unconsciousness. 

For the first time in years, Iruka dreamt of his parents, still alive, and it was a happy, warm dream. 

 Author’s Notes:

A nice meaty chapter which much to chew on! A chapter which was a joy to write from start to finish. I’d love to hear what you think about it (and the reveals at the end!) 

Terminology:

Marechi: Humans with Rare Blood, drives demons mad with hunger.

Password and Rank: Confirmed slayers have their rank engraved on their arms, it's supposed to appear using a password.

Oyakata-sama: Another term for 'leader'.

[daraanna]

“Arranged Love”- Part Three „Golden chrysanthemums”

So at the beginning I want to say I have no idea about fencing, sooo... some things can have no sense. Still I hope you will enjoy it.

................................................................................................................

To his surprise, his life after marriage did not change much. He could do whatever he wanted, and his wife hardly bothered him. At first, he liked it. He spent all his free time with friends or watching the dances of beautiful dancers. However, after two months, the lack of interest from the black-haired girl began to bothering him. It wasn't normal ... Every woman he knew was charmed by him, or at least interested. At first he understood it, after all he was a stranger to her. However, now the indifference his wife give to him began to irritate him. This feeling also caused that he lose interest in other women. Basically, they were no longer a challenge or entertainment for him.

"Maybe try to do something for her?" One day Mitsuki suggested "when I have fight with Chõ-Chõ I arranging a great feast in our chambers as apology and then we take chocolate and ...”

“Mitsuki, really none of us want to hear that. It is disgusting and do not convince me that such are the charms of love in books they do not describe such things“ Inojin interrupted him.

"But the idea is not so bad ... You should do something that pleases her," Shikadai said.

"She doesn't like anything" blue-eyed sighed looking at the chessboard, "And this game is still boring ...

"Because you can't win," Nara said, checking his king.

“Maybe some gift? Jewellery or other fringe girls like these things.”

In this way, the idea of buying her fabrics and threads arose. This did not bring any result. Not only his wife still didn’t speak to him ... Expensive fabrics were wasted, because what she did with them did not resemble embroidery... More his sister's doodles. Really, black-haired girl hated him so much?  "Maybe she has a lover?" Shikada finally said. "That would explain her disappearance ..."

At first he laughed at the idea. However, the longer he thought about it, the more angry he was. He felt bad that only he cares ... Not to mention the fact that her behavior offended not only him, but the entire royal family.

 Not long after, one morning, the creak of the floor woke him up. When he opened his eyes he saw his wife standing in front of the wardrobe and preparing her kimono. He looked at her for a moment.

“Sarada ...” he was able to see her body stiffen at the sound of his voice.

"Yes?" She replied turning towards him.

"Come here," he looked at her approaching figure, he didn't know what he wanted from her. The girl stopped next to their bed and looked at him surprised . From this distance he could clearly see her face, her long eyelashes, black onyx eyes and pale skin. Her hair was loose and in slightly mess was falling on her shoulders. She was only dressed in a thin, translucent Hadajuban. The fabric created to be worn under a kimono allowed him to see every curvature of her figure. Against his will, his eyes stopped on her not too big but full breasts to escape to her wide hips and long legs. He swallowed involuntarily. His wife was really beautiful. Shikadai's words popped again in his head. He felt a strong squeeze in his stomach at the thought of another man who might have had her. On impulse, he grabbed her wrist, pulling her close to him, catching her lips in a kiss. The girl did not resist, she did not react at all when he embraced her waist pulling her body to his. She smelled of lavender, forest and a bit like incense, her lips were soft and her body warm and at that moment it was hard for him to remember the last time he wanted someone else's touch so badly... However, when his gaze crossed with hers he felt his heart freeze.  She was even more frightened than on their wedding day. He pulled away from her feeling guilty. He quickly got up and headed for the bathroom. When he returned, his wife was sitting exactly where he left her. He felt even worse, but did not know how to fix it.

"You can go ... you're free," he said after a moment of silence. After his words, the girl covered herself with a blanket and fled to the bathroom from which he had just left.

....................................

After this incident, his wife avoided him even more. If at all possible. He spent the next weeks with friends avoiding women as much as he could. He felt overwhelmed by all this, and flirting made him feel even worse. Of course his servants were not delighted. That day he walked alone in the gardens when he heard laughter. Normally he would ignore it, but at this point it caught his attention for some reason. Looking out from behind the tree, he saw Sarada walking with a pink-haired woman. He was shocked when he noticed that his wife was smiling. The girl was relaxed and really happy. She looked even more beautiful. However, he felt as if someone had kicked him in the stomach. She was never like that with him. It was at this moment that their eyes crossed and her face changed immediately.  The woman with her, however, gave him a friendly wave, embarrassing him. Although she looked familiar, he had no idea who she was.

"Good morning, Boruto-chan," the pink-haired woman greeted him, shocking him even more, because no one with right mind would addressed the heir to the throne like that. “Oh, how you grew up, I mean I saw you at the wedding, but they dressed up both of you so much that I barely recognized my own daughter.

It took him a bit to add two to two, but finally he realized that he was talking to the wife of ex-Shogun and the best healer in the Fire country Sakura Uchich, and which means the mother of his partner.

“O-Oh good morning ... “he replied the only thing that came to his mind.

The appearance of the woman was different from what he remembered, her hair, though still pink, lost its shine and intensity of colour. Her skin became unhealthy, pale, almost cyanic. The whole posture of the healer, who once aroused him in fear (especially when he pissed her off) was more frail. It was obvious that she had lost a lot of weight, in some places the shape of her bones was clearly visible. While standing, she had to be supported by her daughter. Something was clearly wrong.

“Uh, but you should have some time for each other I so often take Sarada from you” sighed green-eyed stroking the head of mentioned girl” I will go back to myself and you two should talk ...”

Black-haired girl was about to protest, but her mother interrupted.

"I am able to walk alone yet" she sighed and slowly goes back toward the palace.

Younger Uchiha was clearly worried.

“Um ... Uh”blond broke the silence, but did not know what to say” What is wrong with your mother?

He immediately felt the chilling look of brunette.

"She is sick," she replied briefly.

"Then she shouldn't rest until she gets better?" He asked, trying to continue the conversation.

"It's not this type of disease you can't get out of ..." she replied much quieter.

“I mean the curse !?”

“Tch. Some say so.”

“ And you don't think so?”

“I think it is more complicated... And, I doubt anyone would have reason to wish her death.”

Once again, the girl's hands began to tremble. And despite the fact that it was once again in his presence, he knew this time that he was not the reason. He remembered the days when his mother was unconscious after the birth of Himawari. The court doctor said that he might not survive this. He thought he understood what the girl was feeling, even though his fear lasted not a whole week.

“I'm sorry...”

"It's not your fault," she replied.

Despite her words, he felt even worse. It all explained her behaviour since she arrived at the palace. She didn't have a lover, she just took care of her sick mother.

“Uh ... I ... As for what happened ... I don't know why I... I mean it won't happen again. I'm sorry” he stammered.

The girl shuddered and looked at the ground.

"Nothing happened ... The duty of the wife is ..." she started, but the blond interrupted her. “I don't want it to look like this ... I know that this marriage doesn't suit any of us, but... I don't want you to act like my slave ... I know I'm a bad husband, but maybe we would try differently. I mean ...” he knows that he was babbling, but he had no better idea to solve this problem. What is worse, the black-haired woman didn’t answer him, just stood and watched.”Maybe we could try to be friends?”

Again, embarrassing silence and her gaze. As if those onyx eyes were able to look into his soul. "We were friends ... As a child," she said uncertainly. This time he looked at her, her expression changed, and her eyes showed curiosity. However, it was obvious that she still didn't trust him.

"I think so, I don't remember much of that time," he sighed, scratching his head.

“Me too. Although it was probably easier then ... To make friends ...”

"Then I thought you were a boy," he said before he had time to think about it. As soon as he realized what he said, he felt embarrassed. Sarada, however, was too shocked to say anything.

"N-nani?" She finally asked.

"I have to go!" He replied, making a tactical retreat.

.......................................................... Despite the embarrassing end of the conversation, his relationship with Sarada warmed. It might not have been a big change, but they talk sometimes, have meal together, and he was convinced that he saw her smiling at least twice in his presence. However, it made him feel so good that it was noticed even by his friends. Who did not fail to tease him without mercy. Now when Mitsuki returned to Oto and Shikadai and Inojin were on training, he spent most of his time alone practicing sword fighting. Once again, he repeated the figures, he had recently been taught by Uncle Kakashi, but unfortunately he stepped on his own legs and landed on a ground, miraculously without hurting himself with a katana. If pain after this fall were not enough, when he was gathering from the ground he heard laughter. Definitely feminine and familiar. He looked around and saw his wife standing not more than 3 meters from him. The girl covered her mouth with her hand to stop the giggle. He couldn't tell if he was more embarrassed or surprised.

"Do you think it is easy?!" He grunted, dusting himself off.

Sarada stopped laughing and stood in silence. She looked at him clearly thinking about something.

"What?" He finally asked in confusion.

“You do it wrong ...”

“Nani?”

"Your posture and the way you hold the katana are not correct," she replied calmly. At what he laughed.

"Are you saying that you know better how to fight than four sensei who taught me how to use the sword?" He came closer, looking at her rashly.

“I do not deny that your movements look beautiful, but they are not very effective.”

"One of my masters was Kakashi Hatake, I'm really supposed to listen to a 14-year-old princess from a small health resort village?" He couldn't resist irritating her when she saw her face. She was clearly annoyed by his behaviour, which she had never expressed so openly before.

"Should I prove it to you?" She growled, coming closer and never losing eye contact with him. There was a determination in her, which in combination with the pink-purple kimono she wore looked cute.

“Okay if you want it so badly.”

He watched with a mocking smile as the girl stripped off a layer of her outfit, showing a simple white shirt and light pink hakama. Typical Naka attire would probably be considered inappropriate for a woman by many. Pulling out the ribbon that was part of her obi, she tie her hair. She looked around and picked up a long stick.

The blond man rolled his eyes. 'Of course,' he thought, remembering their childhood times.

Black-haired girl adopted a fighting pose, waiting for him to prepare for the fight. Boruto smiled as he pulled out his katana. They looked at each other for a moment. Finally, the heir to the throne decided to attack. Sarada dodged and struck the flat part of his sword with a force that Uzumaki did not expect at all. His weapon slipped from his hand, hitting the ground two meters away. Moments later, he felt the tip of a stick touch the skin on his neck. Shocked, he raised his hands, giving up. His wife smirked as she took off the stick.

"I told you," she said, dressing her coat back and tying her belt.

The boy was still looking at her with wide eyes.

"How?" He finally said.

"When you fight, you should use the strength of your whole body, not just your hands," she explained more calmly. "You lack balance and you should work more with core muscles ...

The heir to the throne sighed because he had heard it before.

"How do you know that?" He asked.

Black-haired girl turned away from him, focusing her gaze on the nearby flower bed.

"I had seen my father train," she said. Blue-eyed knew that the knowledge she had could not be gained by mere observation, but he did not know how to draw a conversation. Especially since the subject of the deceased Shogun was still delicate.

"Chrysanthemums are blooming," she said, changing the subject. "Autumn is coming..."

He came up to her and looked at the golden flowers.

"It's getting colder," he said, looking at her. The girl looked thoughtful. She clenched her hands on a basket of herbs. It was now that he noticed that she had it with her.

"I have to go," she said sadly, "I can come back later today ...

Boruto nodded as a sign that he understood.

"See you later," he replied, watching as he headed towards the palace.

.................................................. ......

It was not more than two weeks, as once upon awakening, to his surprise he saw his wife's back. Normally Sarada got up much earlier than he did. For a moment he wondered whether to touch her hair, which, without any hairpin, spilled over their bedclothes, covering her entire pillow and also started attacking his .However, he thought that he should not risk waking her up. If she slept that long it means she must have been tired. Getting up as quiet as possible, he went to the wardrobe, and then to the audience with his father. He noticed at the door that something was wrong. His mother also was in the chamber, holding Himawari on her lap. Everyone was wearing a black, mourning outfit. His parents looked depressed, only his sister, probably not understanding what was happening, was playing with her fox. Concerned, he entered the room and bowed. Moments later he was in the arms of Hinata.

"How is Sarada doing?" She asked him.

He felt panic rising in him, but even though the matter seemed obvious, his brain couldn't connect all the dots.

“What happened?”

"Sakura," his dad replied, placing a hand on his shoulder, "I mean Sarada's mother died tonight."

For a moment he was shocked, and then he immediately run out of the room back to the bedroom. He found black-haired girl exactly in the same position she was when he left the room, but she was awake. She lay on her side blankly looking at the opposite wall. He slowly approached her and crouched beside him.

“Sarada ...” he started but the girl wasn’t reacting “I'm sorry ...”

She looked at him for a moment, with gaze filled with pain, and then turned away from him. Again, looking at her back, he felt even worse.

"I know you feel bad, but ... This is not the end of the world ..." he replied, grasping the opposite of what was intended.

“You know how I feel? “ Her voice was silent but firm “ You don’t know a shit about me ... You have no idea what I'm going through!”

She continued, and with each word she spoke louder and louder.

"I lost the only family I had, I lost my home, I don't have anyone to live for, so it could be the end!"

Moments later he heard her sob. He didn't know what to do. To calm her down, he sat down next to her and put his hand on her shoulder, but the girl quickly turned his palm away, turning back to face him.

“What now !?”

He looked at her. Tears rolled down her cheeks, her face and eyes were swollen from crying, she also had bags under her eyes, most likely caused by not sleeping at night. Her hair was in total disarray, and her body was shaking under the influence of emotions tormenting her. She looked completely different than the quiet and composed, almost looking like a porcelain sculpture  woman he saw on their wedding day. He felt strange, because just as terrifying this view was it was also extremely beautiful and painful. Then he realized that he couldn't do anything to take this suffering from her. He, the heir to the throne, the person who has everything, was completely powerless.

"You are not alone," he said much quieter. "You still have your people in Naka ... My parents care for you, and Himawari ... She adores you and loves you like an older sister ..."

He took her hand uncertainly and gently and, to his surprise, did not pull her away.

“You also have me ... I know I'm not a ideal husband  ... Actually, I have no idea how to build a real relationship. As a friend I am any better at this moment, but ... I promise I will not leave you. If you only let me be by your side, you won't be alone ... “

He had the impression that what he said didn't make any sense and that he probably made everything even worse when he felt a certain weight on his chest. Sarada leaned forward, laying her head against his shoulder. He instinctively embraced her in the waist, pulling her close to him. Her body became limp, occasionally she trembled. It took a while before she was so exhausted that she fell asleep. Boruto was sitting still, only gently stroking her back. It was hard to determine what he felt. He had vague childhood memories of Aunt Sakura, no doubt he was sorry about her death. He was worried about Sarada, he could not imagine what she could feel now. If he lost his parents ... All he knew was that he was confused.

………………………………………………………………………………

Soooooooo…  there is another part... Finally! Although I am not exacly satisfied with the last part. And I know... I killed Sasuke and Sakura. I feel terrible too, but they will appear in flashbacks ( you know It is Naruto fanfic after all), and they are happy together now trust me...

One more thing about the title  chrysanthemums are the flowers which are very popular to use to make cemetery bouquets in my country. They are so popular at cemeteries that traditionally it is consider to be bad luck If you give someone alive  chrysanthemums  bouquet.

  <<first part                                                                            next part>

[shikastemari]

— mistakes; inohimakawa. ࿐ྂ。

words | 1,605

rating | M

warning | language, drinking, angst, hints of inosara and borusara

request 01 | “InoHimaKawa” — anon.

request 02 | “ now usually my cup of tea is borusara… but hmm i wanna read my boy inojin trying to take his shot, whilst boruto doesn’t allow it ALSO wants to take his shot. thank you :)”  — @saladabolt

a/n | the famous drinking and doing shit cliche with ma boi inojin. i love writing for him. also, kinda of a normal teenagers in a party AU.

credits | wanna credits @eternalmikaelson for some sarcasm prompts!

masterlist in bio

The first one tasted like mint candies.

The second one, like cigarettes.

The third has something about cheap alcohol and cigarettes.

This one tasted like Jack Daniels.

Inojin didn’t mind the taste. In fact, he didn’t mind anything. There was one face he was eager to wipe out from his head and he seemed to fail every single time, even after the half bottle of tequila he had.

The curvy girl grinded against him on more time, as his tongue assaulted her mouth. He was getting hard by second. She pushed her body against him and Inojin could feel every single curve pressed against his body.

He opened his eyes, taking a step back to invite her to come to his house with him, when his gaze met a pair of big blue eyes.

But it wasn’t the pair he originally wanted.

The music blasted in the speakers somewhere, sweaty bodies dancing next to him and the girl. He spotted Boruto whispering something to Sarada, the brunette rolling her eyes at him, clearly not buying any of his shit.

His throat clenched, because seeing Boruto just made him remember she was there.

With someone else.

The girl in front of him had a mix of confusion and expectation glittering in her blue eyes. It only made it more painful. He was sure if they met in another moment, he would ask her out without hesitation.

He couldn’t do it with the sensation that his heart was shattered.

Inojin leaned in, giving the girl a quick peck in the lips before turning around, looking for the closest exit.

Everything was too much. The air, too heavy. The drinks, too weak. The music, too loud. The lights, too bright.

His heart? Too broken.

He bumped into some girl and he got really confused when he recognized her.

“What are you doing here? I literally saw you next to the dancefloor two seconds ago.” Inojin poked her cheek and she slapped his hand away, playfully.

“I’m running away from Boruto.” Sarada replied, crossing her arms. Accidentally, Inojin noticed how the action made her breasts look better in the cleavage. Maybe he could…

Inojin shook his head. That was fucking Sarada Uchiha in front of him. Maybe he did drink too much.

“Earth to Inojin.” Sarada elbowed him. “Are you listening?”

No. “Yes, sure.” Inojin blinked twice. “Why are you running away from him?”

“Why not?” Sarada smirked and Inojin couldn’t help but do the same. She looks amazing, he thought. Pushing all the coherent thoughts to the back of his mind, he got closer to her, pulling one hair strand away from her face, behind her ear.

“You know what, Sarada?” Inojin’s smirk grew bigger. “I could help you run away from him, all you need to do is to come home with me.”

She rolled her eyes, but the blush in her cheeks didn’t go unnoticed. How did he never look at her like this before?

“How much have you drank, Yamanaka?”

“More than you, I would say, Uchiha.” Inojin leaned in, slowly, with the intention of kissing her. Sarada didn’t move and somehow he knew she was pushing him to see where he was going with all that.

Almost too close to them, someone cleared their throat and both turning her head to see a angry red cheeked Boruto narrowing his eyes at them.

“Can I help you with something, Boruto?” Inojin asked and he heard Sarada giggling. Knowing that she found the whole scene funny just riled him even further.

“Have you finished sticking your tongue into every unknown woman here and decided to give it a try with your friends?” Boruto deadpanned, his blue eyes being an exact copy of what ice should be.

Also an exact copy of her eyes.

His comment actually hit Inojin hard, but he wouldn’t let his former brother-in-law know that.

“I was just offering Sarada real fun. She wouldn’t get any with you anyway.” Inojin took a step in his direction, but Sarada put a hand on his chest making him stop. Boruto watched the gesture like a hawk, his eyes burning when she touched the Yamanaka.

“What? Needing another heart to break?”

Inojin couldn’t fake for this one. His jaw clenched. Boruto knew better than anyone what happened between Inojin and his sister and yet, he still said that. In fact, Boruto was one of those who encouraged him to break up.

“You have your entire life to be a jerk. Why not take today off?” Inojin replied.

“Inojin…” Sarada’s voice was a warning. One Inojin decided to ignore deliberately.

“It’s better to let someone think you’re a complete idiot than opening your mouth and proving them right.” Boruto took a step closer, his face not flinching one second.

“I’ve been called worse by better.” Inojin smirked.

Boruto lost it.

Inojin could have dodged it, easily. He could have fought back. He could have stayed quiet.

He didn’t.

All he had time was to push Sarada to the side to make sure she was going to get hurt. Boruto would never lay a hand on her, but Inojin knew he was blinded by anger.

When Boruto’s fist met his right eye, Inojin fell and waited for more.

“What are you two doing?”

He knew that voice. It had been in his dreams for too long now.

“Inojin?”

He peered up to her face and it all came back. All the kisses they shared, how she fit in his hugs so perfectly. In his mind was still printed how soft her skin was under his touch and the taste of her lips.

Himawari lowered herself until her eyes were at the same level as his. “Are you okay?”

No. “Yes.”

She tilted her head, clearly not believing at any word coming out of his mouth. Damn, it seemed age since they were this close. All he wanted to do was touch her.

“Hima..” Inojin heard Boruto’s voice behind her. The girl turned her head to him and Inojin couldn’t see her face anymore, but whatever was the look she gave Boruto, it worked. He never saw the blond guy looking so hopeless at that moment.

“Come.” She ordered, pulling him to stand on his feet and passing one arm around her shoulder. She was using the cologne he gave her last summer. He thought about embracing her and not letting go, when they started to walk out of the place.

Himawari helped him to sit in a bench outside, away from the noises and the bad glimpses he got from his friends. She grabbed her chin with her slim fingers and moved his face to analyze his eye. Inojin just stood there admiring every detail of her face.

“How is he treating you?” The question spilled before Inojin could hold it. He cursed himself mentally for it.

Himawari blushed and let go of his face. Never Inojin regretted something more than he did of saying those words.

“Inojin…”

“I miss you.” He muttered. “I miss you so much and I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have broken up with you when I went to college, that was stupid and-”

“Wari?”

What the fuck is Wari?

Inojin head turned into the boy’s direction. He was at least twenty centimeters taller than him. His arm was covered in tattoos and the blond almost laughed when he realized that not in a million years he would say Himawari would be interested in a guy like that.

“Are you okay?” He asked her, but his gaze locked on Inojin and there was a sparkle of recognition there. Himawari told him about them.

“Yes. Inojin just told me how much he is enjoying college.” Himawari walked in his direction and the guy wrapped her into a thigh hug, his eyes still on Inojin.

“You’re Inojin, then.” He said and Inojin noticed how Himawari grabbed his shirt, preventing him to say anything. Apparently, he chose to ignore her. “I’ve heard some things about you.”

“Too bad I can’t say the same, pal.” Inojin yawned in a mock-disinterest. “Hope you didn’t hear good things, cause they would be all lies.”

“Kawaki, let’s go.” Himawari tried to push him away from there, but his feet didn’t move.

“You should be careful with what you say, or you might get another black eye.” Kawaki replied. Inojin thought about doing a joke or two about his name or even about the whole situation, but the look Himawari sent him knocked all the air of his lung.

It was just sadness and the cause of it was him. Again.

Inojin just nodded. “Take care of that one. Don’t hurt her or I’ll end you myself.”

Don’t hurt her like I did.

“You don’t seem in a good position to threat someone.”

“Try me, Kawaki.” Inojin sustained his look for as long as he could. Kawaki just turned away and pulled Himawari with him.

She did look at him one last time, before vanishing through the door.

Inojin remembered the last time she did it. It was almost like yesterday, and not fourth months ago, that he had the brilliant idea of breaking up with the girl he loved because he was moving away for college. The ironic part was that he always thought he couldn’t survive a long distance relationship, when the truth was he couldn’t survive without her. If he just kept quiet that day, they would’ve made it work. But now she was too busy in someone else arms to think about him.

Just like that, Inojin realized he had lost the most important thing in his life. For good.

[valkyriefreia]

CARD CAPTOR SARADA

Drawn By: Valkyriefreia (artist me)

Written By: WIndstruck07 (writer me)

Disclaimer: I do not own Boruto: Naruto Next Generation or Card Captor SAkura. Characters and designs belong to their rightful owners (Masashi Kishimoto, SP, CLAMP... you know the drill)

NO REPOSTING.

(I know some of you giuys suggested Team Konohamaru Cowboy Au... but I couldn’t resist dressing Sarada up in something girly) xD

Himawari had this strong fascination for magical girl TV shows lately... so much that it was starting to annoy Boruto.

Once he came home finding her using a broom as a makeshift wand while wearing one of her flouncy dresses. At first, he just rolled his eyes at her antics and admitted that she did look sort of cute this way, (not that he would admit that to anyone, mind you). But when she was raving on and on for months about this... Card Captor whats-her-name and tried to convince her to play some Li Xiao something, he was at his wit's end and unintentionally yelled at his baby sister to shut the F up,

(Of course, he would never curse at his baby sister, not even in anger)

Instead of once again being on the receiving end of Himawari’s Byakugan-induced wrath, however, he was met by a puddle of tears and silent treatment for almost two weeks.

That was so much worse than getting his pressure point hit by his baby sister. His mother, his aunt, even his shitty old man did their best patching up the siblings’ usually tight-knit bond, but it looked like Himawari wasn’t ready to forgive her onii-chan anytime soon.

That’s why he found himself one evening, kneeling on his female teammate’s door like a blubbering fool, begging for her help.

“Come on, you’ve got to help me! I’m running out of people to turn to,” he sobbed rather pathetically as his arms clung around the girl’s knees. “I tried everything but Himawari just won’t talk to me!”

Sarada’s patience was running thin, and the fact that Sakura was giving her funny looks behind her back only added to her irksome. She placed her hands on her hips and pretended not to be bothered by Boruto’s shimmering blue eyes staring at her like a lost puppy.

“Well, it can’t be helped, stupid,” she replied in a condescending tone. “You just insulted one of the things she loves most.” She adjusted her glasses, fluorescent light bouncing off its red rims. “If you want to make it up to her, you’ve got to let her know that she was right and you were wrong.”

And just like that, a brilliant idea crossed the boy’s mind.

“Besides, why is Himawari so pissed off with you lately--”

“You’re right.”

“What?”

“You just gave me a stupid idea.” Boruto’s lips stretched into an ear-splitting grin. “And you’re going to help me.”

“Wait... what?!”

... ... ...

Sarada was going to kill him.

Well, it was partly her fault. If she hadn’t admitted that maybe she did watch Card Captor Sakura, and that maybe she did find the clothes cute, and that maybe she did have a teensy crush on Li Syaoran when she was little (she actually didn’t tell him this last bit though), this would not have happened. 

She was now getting fitted for a magical girl costume, courtesy of Sakura due to her undying desire to have an excuse for dressing Sarada up. Boruto was more than happy to receive all the help he can (and Sarada made him swear not to tell Chouchou or anyone else about this matter or she would pummel him to kingdom come). 

It also didn’t help when Sasuke came home that same day, eyebrows raised as he gave her a once over. As much as Sarada loved her father being home more frequently than ever, this was the one time she wished he didn’t. It was a very awkward experience. 

“It’s for Himawari,” she explained with a furious blush.

“Ah,” Sasuke nodded slowly.

“Maybe I should dress up too!” Sakura supplied cheerfully. “The show is, after all, named Card Captor Sakura~”

Sasuke had an odd smirk on his face, which made her mother blush. Sarada groaned. It was going to be a long day.

... ... ...

Himawari had the surprise of her life when she caught her onii-chan trying on a Syaoran costume.

Boruto didn’t know that she was there of course. She sneaked a peak in his room when she heard voices. They were his shadow clones arguing amongst themselves on whether or not he looked ridiculous in the getup. Most agreed that he looked weird and stupid, but what really struck her was what the original said next.

“I don’t care if you guys don’t like it! If this makes Himawari happy, that’s all that matters!”

She sneaked away, a bright smile on her face.

Onii-chan is the best brother in the whole world!

... ... ...

Of all the people in the world, Sarada should have known that it was her mother that would eventually betray her.

The word reached Ino, which in turn reached Inojin, which in turn reached Shikadai and Chouchou, which in turn reached the rest of their graduating class in the Academy. Interestingly, most of the girls (and some of the guys, surprisingly) loved the show, and all of them wanted in on the planning right away.

Boruto did not hesitate to ugly-cry with happiness.

So they found themselves before a live audience, up on stage with Konoha’s press on the sides and a proud mother yelling Shannaro backstage with “Go Sarada!” flags in her hands. The other genin volunteered to dress up as Clow Cards, Chouchou becoming her Tomoyo, and well... she didn’t bother wanting to know who played who. She was beyond embarrassed, and quite frankly nervous.

But then she saw Boruto and the frown on his face and the searching look in his eyes when he scanned over the crowds in search of his baby sister. And when he found her, she was jumping excitedly and waving at the stands. Hinata and Hanabi. even Nanadaime-sama was with them, carrying the biggest sign of all. Their names were on the sign, Boruto’s bolder and brighter. That’s when the realization struck Sarada: between the two of them, Boruto detested magical girl shows. In fact, it would make more sense for Boruto to be embarrassed more than her. But he sucked it all up because above his own pride, he would choose to put a smile on Himawari.

Light danced in Boruto’s eyes and a smile replaced the frown on his face. He turned to Sarada, a challenge in his gaze as he handed her staff.

“Ready?”

Sarada smirked. If the idiot could do this, why couldn’t she?

“Ready!”