#but yeah fun fact: the oh look Sasuke it's your new best friend joke is what really kickstarted me into writing TKAB

[sagemoderocklee]

Prompt list 2, #11 for gaalee!

okay, it’s been ages since i reblogged whatever that prompt list was and i don’t remember what it was and i was only able to find one list of prompts and tbh, i had so much fun writing Gaara drunk for Kado that i’m just gonna roll with the prompt I found because i need a warm-up writing exercise to get me movin today. this is kind of aimless and rambling and not really anything special fyi.

based on the prompt it’s probably obvious, but tw for discussions of alcohol use (past, not shown) and also for insensitive jokes surrounding drunken sex (there wasn’t actually any but kankurou can be an asshole)

things you said when you were drunk

Gaara groaned, rolling over and directly into another body. It was a well-muscled body, because it felt like Gaara had rolled directly into a wall. His mouth tasted foul. Worse than foul. Was there a word for that? He didn’t know, and his brain wasn’t offering up any stronger alternatives at the present moment because it was head was pounding as though someone had taken a sledgehammer to it.

He forced his eyes open, lifting his head to stare at the prone figure at his side. 

“Oh no,” he groaned. What happened? Had he really gotten so trashed at his sister’s wedding that he’d taken a stranger up to his room and--

“Good morning!” The stranger was awake. And very loud.

Gaara groaned in protest, pulling his pillow over his head.

“I am so sorry,” the man dropped his voice. Barely. “Would you like me to order some room service?”

Gaara shook his head beneath the pillow. What he wanted was for his drunken mistake to go away. Far away.

“I am sorry, I could not hear you. What was that?”

“Please,” Gaara begged, voice cracking. “Please, don’t talk. Just... shhhh.”

The man gave a quiet little ‘ah’ of understanding, rising from the bed and shuffling around the room. Gaara changed lifting the pillow up to look at the stranger, who was busy putting a shirt on. Gaara’s face flushed.

“Do you--do you know what happened last night?” he finally asked. He shifted, rising from the bed in a hunched fashion, blankets falling to reveal his rumbled suit.

“Of course! You got very, very drunk and uh, well...” The man flushed, his odd, boyish face turning bright red. He coughed. “You said some.... things. I promise, nothing happened.”

“Then... why are you in my room?”

The man laughed, as loud as he talked. “We are in my room. You were too drunk to tell me what room was yours, and I could not find any of your friends or family to help me. I did not want to leave you all by yourself in your state, but I promise, I was a perfect gentleman.”

His rescuer struck a pose, the most dramatic thumb’s up Gaara had ever seen, and smiled with all his teeth. 

“Are you sure you do not want me to order some room service? I have it on good authority that the free coffee is not particularly good, and I am sure you could use a pick me up.”

Gaara’s stomach turned over. He smacked his lips, his mouth as dry as a desert. Finally, he relented. “I could use some coffee.”

“Perfect! Here.” A menu was thrust into his face, the words blurring for a second. “I was going to order breakfast, too. Feel free to pick out whatever you want.”

“Um... I don’t wanna put you to anymore trouble,” Gaara hedged, though he couldn’t deny he was hungry.

“Nonsense! If it was any trouble, I would not have offered.”

“I can pay you back--”

“Please, think nothing of it.” The man disappeared into the bathroom, closing the door behind him, leaving Gaara to look over the menu and wonder about the finer details of the night before.

He could remember the first toast and the second toast clearly, but by the third his memory was fuzzy. He’d always been a lightweight, but he was usually more careful about how much he drank, knowing full well the limits of his tolerance.

The man returned from the bathroom, smiling as though he hadn’t spent the night before partying. How could he be so chipper first thing in the morning?

“Did you decide on what you wanted?”

“I’ll just have a plain omelette.” That should hopefully be gentle on his roiling stomach. “And a coffee. Black with sugar.”

“That sounds like the perfect thing to perk you up!”

Gaara didn’t want to ask, but he had to know. “What exactly happened last night? I mean, I know nothing--nothing happened between us, but I don’t remember even meeting you.”

The man’s expression was caught between open embarrassment and dejection. “Ah, I should have realized you would not remember that. I think you were already quite drunk by the time Naruto-kun introduced us.”

“Naruto? So then you were one of Shikamaru’s guests?” He’d had to assume, given that no one else was in the room with them that this stranger hadn’t been anyone’s plus one. And he certainly didn’t seem like the sort of person his sister would associate with.

“Indeed, I was! Shikamaru-kun and Naruto-kun are very dear friends of mine, and I was overjoyed to hear about Shikamaru-kun’s engagement to Temari-san! She is your sister, right?”

“Um, yeah. How come I’ve never met you before the wedding?”

“I live abroad! I work in the film industry, so I am always traveling back and forth between LA and Japan. Of course, when I got the invitation, I was worried I would not be able to make it, but thankfully, my schedule opened up and here I am!”

Gaara had to wonder if everyone in LA was this upbeat and earnest.

“And can I ask your name?” An embarrassed flush crept up the back of Gaara’s neck, mixed with the guilt of having forgotten everything about the man.

“Rock Lee!” Again, the man gave a thumb’s up, the dramatic flair perfectly suited to a career in film, Gaara thought dryly.

“Rock Lee. Well, Rock Lee, I appreciate you taking care of me last night. I hope I wasn’t too much trouble.”

The embarrassed flush from before returned to Rock Lee’s incredibly expressive face, a dead giveaway that he was leaving out some very important details. He laughed nervously, waving his hands. “N-no! You were no trouble at all, Gaara-san! Just a little too drunk to be left alone!”

“What are you not telling me?” Gaara asked, but Rock Lee had already picked up the phone and dialed room service. Gaara narrowed his eyes. He couldn’t avoid the conversation forever. Gaara was still in his room, after all.

Once their breakfast order had been placed, Rock Lee offered to let Gaara shower while they waited, a clear sign that he was trying to avoid filling Gaara in on all the horrid details from the night’s festivities.

Gaara allowed him to sidestep the issue--a shower did sound nice and perhaps if he let it go, Rock Lee would drop his guard and let something slip.

By the time he got out of the shower, their food had arrived, and Lee had changed into fresh clothes.

“Breakfast!” Rock Lee chimed. “How was your shower? Do you feel rejuvenated?”

Gaara couldn’t fathom the way Lee spoke. He shrugged. “A bit. Food smells good.”

The omelette was perfectly bland, and the coffee sufficiently strong, which went a long way in lifting Gaara’s mood and settling his stomach. He eyed Rock Lee carefully from the corner of his eye as he ate, weighing the best way to get the truth out of him.

“So,” Gaara began when his omelette was almost gone and his head had cleared. “Did you have fun last night? I mean, before you had to babysit me.”

“I did not mind that!” Rock Lee insisted. “And I did have fun! It was so wonderful seeing all my friends again, and to be able to celebrate Shikamaru-kun’s union with your sister!” A tear glistened at the corner of his round eye, caught between his thick lashes.

“Um, yeah. It was great. Really nice ceremony and all.”

“The ceremony was magical!” The tears in his eyes welled, fat drops clamoring to be free from the clutches of his lashes. “I have never seen such a splendid wedding! Well, I have not been to very many weddings. My friends, Neji and Tenten, are getting married next summer--oh, but you probably do not remember them.”

“They don’t sound familiar,” Gaara confirmed.

“Well, Neji is Hinata-san’s cousin--”

“And that is?”

“Naruto-kun’s girlfriend!” Lee said, scandalized. “How could you not know her?”

“Honestly, I didn’t even know he had a girlfriend.” Had she been with him last night? Gaara remembered running into Naruto, but he definitely didn’t remember a woman with him.

“Oh, that is--well, I suppose you and Naruto-kun have not been in touch recently! Because they have been dating for some time now.”

The look on Rock Lee’s face kept Gaara from countering this fact. Clearly, there was trouble in paradise if Naruto had been dating her for ‘some time’ and not told Gaara.

“So,” Gaara quickly searched for a new topic, something that would lead to more concrete answers about the night before. “Naruto dumped me on you, and then ran off with his girlfriend?”

There was a long moment of silence wherein Rock Lee’s expressive face pinched tight, his strange mouth pressed into a line so tight his lips went white. “Actually, he was distracted by Sasuke-kun, but... well that is always how he has been. But I did not mind taking care of you!”

“My brother says I’m a handful when I’m drunk,” Gaara goaded. “Says I get really weepy.”

“Not at all! You were perfectly happy to be in my company! You even--” He stopped short, flushing. He cleared his throat. “You were very happy to spend time with me, even if you do not remember.”

Damn. So close.

“Huh. Well, lucky you then. You didn’t drink much, I take it.”

“Actually, I cannot have alcohol at all. It... does not agree with me.”

Gaara snorted derisively. “I don’t think it agrees with me either.”

“True,” Rock Lee said with a laugh. “However, at least you do not cause property damage when you drink.”

Property damage? Gaara’s curiosity was piqued, but as he opened his mouth to ask further questions, his pocket began to vibrate. The caller ID was a photo of Kankurou, and he answered quickly. “Hey.”

“Heyyyyyy,” Kankurou drawled, his tone arch. “How’s my lil brother doin’ today?”

Gaara glared. “Hungover, no thanks to you and Naruto.”

Kankurou guffawed, his laugh echoing loudly through the phone’s speaker. “I’m sorry,” he said after a minute, completely unapologetic.

“No you’re not,” Gaara said.

“You’re right. I’m not. Soooo. What happened with that guy? The bowl-cut? You two were gettin’ pretty cozy, eh?”

Gaara caught Rock Lee’s wide-eyed gaze at that moment, both of them equally red thanks to Kankurou’s carrying voice.

“Unlike some people,” Gaara stated, accusingly, “Rock Lee didn’t abandon me to fend for myself.”

“Oh, I bet,” Kankurou teased.

“Fuck you,” Gaara said, rolling his eyes. “He made sure I was okay. That’s it.”

“So if I go to your room right now, I’m not gonna find that bowl-cut in there?”

“You’re not gonna find me in there, either. I’m in his room.” Not exactly proof solid that nothing happened, at least not in Kankurou’s mind, but Gaara knew his brother. He’d be knocking down Gaara’s door any minute.

Kankurou whistled. “Damn. And you expect me to believe nothing happened?”

“He’s right here. You can ask him yourself.” Gaara put his phone on speaker, holding it between himself and an indignant Rock Lee.

“Oh shi--”

“Hello,” Rock Lee greeted, his tone clipped. “I will have you know that I would never take advantage of someone in their drunken state and I do not appreciate your mockery!��

Gaara sniggered, covering his face with his hand, while the other end was silent.

“Damn, looks like you got yourself a knight in shining armor, huh, lil brother?” Kankurou finally said. “All right. Guess I better leave you to it. Sorry for insulting your character, Bowl-Cut.” Again, Kankurou did not sound even the least bit sorry.

Rock Lee’s huff of indignation made it clear he wasn’t buying Kankurou’s apology.

“Whatever, jackass,” Gaara said. “I’ll see you later.”

He hung up without another word, tossing his phone on the bed.

“Sorry about my brother.”

“That is all right. I know what it must have looked like to others, but I promise I would never do anything untoward!”

“Yeah, I gathered,” Gaara said. “I appreciate it, by the way.”

“Please, do not mention it. Common decency does not need to be rewarded with thanks!”

Gaara eyed his phone thoughtfully, a thought occurring to him. “I suppose that’s fair. I’m gonna go to the bathroom.”

He snatched his phone from the bed and disappeared into the bathroom again, opening up his photo album. Sure enough, there were countless photos and videos from the night before, including a particularly long one, the thumbnail of which he could see Rock Lee’s shining black bowl-cut.

He pressed play.

“--so cute,” a drunk Gaara slurred, the image shaking as he held his phone and zoomed in on an oblivious Lee sitting with a pair of people he didn’t recognize.

Naruto’s familiar snicker echoed through the video. “You think Gejimayu’s cute?”

“Shhhhh!” Gaara shoved the camera and his free hand directly into Naruto’s face, clamping a hand over his mouth. “He’ll hear you!”

The camera zoomed in on Rock Lee again, his friends rising from the table and disappearing on the crowded dance floor.

“You want me to introduce you?”

“Noooooo,” Gaara said. “No, he’s--he’s so--”

The expression on Naruto’s face was one of comic confusion. He stared back and forth between the camera and Rock Lee, eyebrows high on his forehead. “I don’t know a single person who’s ever looked at Rock Lee and been flustered. You are drunker than I thought.”

“Dick,” Gaara grumbled, training the camera on Rock Lee again. “Oh, shit.”

The video ended, the camera half falling as Gaara fumbled to turn it away from Rock Lee who had caught him filming.

Gaara swiped to the next photo, which was of him and Naruto, both utterly shitfaced. The next item in his album was another video, shorter than the first.

“--dare you to go talk to him!” Naruto was egging Gaara on.

Gaara snickered, even his laughter filled with drunken slurring. “What--what should I say?”

“Tell him you think his eyebrows are sexy,” Naruto laughed.

Gaara swung the camera around so that it focused on Rock Lee over his shoulder.

“You have to come with me,” Gaara begged.

Gaara couldn’t take it anymore and he closed out of the video, his face awash with heat. He wondered if he’d ever actually told Rock Lee his eyebrows were sexy or if he’d done some other embarrassing thing in front of him.

Either way, he was amazed the man hadn’t abandoned him.

When he returned from the bathroom, Rock Lee had gathered up their dishes and was making the bed.

“Are you feeling all right?” he asked, looking up from his task.

“Yeah, I--” He stared at Rock Lee’s face and his thick eyebrows, embarrassment hot in his face. “I hope I didn’t say anything or do anything last night that was um...”

The smile Rock Lee sent his way was filled with fondness, which was strange given how little Gaara remembered from the night before.

“You do not need to worry. Even if you were a bit handsy,” he added, then blushed.

Gaara was mortified, but he couldn’t say he was surprised to by the admission based on what little he’d been able to bring himself to watch on his phone.

“I’m so sorry,” he managed, fighting to find his voice through embarrassment.

“Please do not worry! I did not mean to say that, I was just--I mean--it was fine! Honest! I understand you were drunk, and Naruto-kun probably put you up to it--”

“What? No! He didn’t--I mean, he encouraged me to talk to you because I thought you were cute--”

“Right, when you were drunk--”

“I think you’re cute now!” Gaara said quickly. “I’m just not... good at this stuff.”

A smile worked its way onto Rock Lee’s face, so wide it looked like it hurt. “Really? You--you actually think I am cute?”

Gaara shifted awkwardly. “Yeah, I mean, is that really so surprising?”

Rock Lee laughed. “For me, yes. Most people do not think I am cute.”

“Their loss.” 

“Do you,” Rock Lee began, then stopped, hesitating. “I hope this is not presumptuous of me, but would you want to grab dinner sometime?”

Gaara couldn’t quite believe his luck. He’d have to thank Naruto for foisting him off on Rock Lee, because if he hadn’t, there was no way Gaara would have worked up the nerve to have talked to the man.

“I’d love to,” he finally managed, a smile on his face.

Who knew waking up hungover could end so well?

[discoabc]

TKAB Original Oneshot

A/N: So I don’t think most of the people reading the fic knows this but TKAB actually is based off this thing I did for the 100th chapter of another of my fics. I wrote a series of short little oneshots about the OC-insert from that fic in different animes/mangas, all of which I found myself enjoying immensely whilst writing - especially the Naruto one. 

TKAB ended up being entirely different (MUCH darker and with the main character having a very different personality overall) so it is kinda funny to see how it stemmed from a oneshot intended to be entirely for humour

Kakashi perched on a railing with his book held in one hand, barely casting any attention upon the three teenagers before him. "So, your turn. You, first on the right." He pointed towards the orange-clad blonde.

"Believe it! I'm Naruto Uzumaki and I like-"

"Ramen. We all know you like god damn ramen. You live off the stuff. We get it already." Sakura, hair short and somewhat scruffy, sneered at the boy, making him pout.

"Jeez, okay Sakura-chan. I guess my dream is then to beCOME HOKAGE!" He ended loudly, jumping to his feet.

"If you become Hokage I'm defecting with no regrets."

"Sakura-chan!"

"Well then," Kakashi continued. "You, on the left, tell us about you."

The dark haired boy linked his fingers together. "I'm Sasuke Uchiha. I hate a lot of things and I don't particularly like anything. What I have is not a dream because I will make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan and kill a certain man."

"Oh wow, we have fucking Emo Badass over here who hates the world." Sakura ignored the filthy look she got from Sasuke. "Go cry to somebody who gives a fuck, we aren't your god damn therapists."

Naruto sniggered, Sakura raising her eyebrows at him and effectively shutting him up.

"Why don't you tell us about you now since you have so much to say." Kakashi gestured to the girl who rolled her eyes.

"I'm Sakura Haruno. I like spending time with my family as, considering the percentage of orphans around here, they'll probably die soon in some horrific affair. I don't like these two idiots with one of them thinking that orange is the best colour for a fucking ninja and the other intent on being the most angst-ridden teenager that ever roamed this earth. My dream is to get through this whole ordeal without murdering someone due to their colossal stupidity." She finished with a pointed look at the two boys beside her, Naruto moping about her irritation with him and Sasuke looking as though he was going to slit her neck.

"What a lovely team I have been entrusted with." Kakashi drawled.

As soon as the jounin started the timer, Sasuke darted away, Kakashi noting quite boredly that he had done a good job of concealing himself.

For a genin.

He then cast his eyes upon the two who hadn't moved, dully surprised by the supposed smartest of the group's presence next to the apparent stupidest. "You know, protocol states that you should hide from someone stronger than you." Kakashi pointed out.

"Heh, I'm not scared of you!" Naruto declared proudly, Sakura looking decidedly done with him.

Seeing that the man was waiting for an answer, she crossed her arms, standing in a deceptively relaxed pose. "Hiding may be protocol but in this situation it's basically useless considering how large the gap is between us and you. We should be escaping, however, all we'd be doing is showing our backs to you whilst running for it. Anyway, the aim is not to run, the aim is to get those bells." She indicated to the two round metal objects tied to his belt.

"So you're conserving energy?" He was purposefully ignoring Naruto's cries for the man to pay attention to him.

Sakura shrugged. "Actually, it's less about conserving energy, more about completing the real aim of this test. As a show of teamwork, I'm going to say sarcastic, supportive comments as Naruto gets his ass handed to him." She gestured to the boy.

"Hey! I'm not going to lose!" The blonde protested.

"I would've chosen to 'support' Sasuke but he'd probably say some stupid thing like 'I work alone' or 'you'll drag me down', whilst Naruto here is most likely ecstatic I stayed with him."

The said 'ecstatic' boy was still protesting about Sakura's low expectations of him.

"Well done, you all pass!" Kakashi beamed at the three, Sasuke still holding up his food to the tied up Naruto. "This was a test about teamwork, as Sakura correctly deduced. Although, you didn't really do anything other than tell Naruto that he was doing better than you thought he would when I threw him into a tree. And you didn't offer him your food either."

Sakura scoffed, her lunch already half gone. "I'm fucking hungry, like hell I'm sharing."

"I received word however that, unlike Sasuke and Naruto, you actually ate breakfast." Kakashi continued, the blonde gasping at the unfairness whilst Sasuke glared at her.

She snorted. "Of course I did, it's the most important meal of the day."

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto shrieked as the jounin was pulled to pieces by the enemies' chains, the bridge builder Tazuna gasping in horror whilst Sasuke drew out a kunai.

Sakura, on the other hand, rolled her eyes.

"He's a dramatic piece of shit." She declared, none too gently kicking Tazuna away before throwing her own two bladed weapons. The enemies smacked them away with their chains, beginning to sneer something condescending at the girl only for a large explosion to occur. "You owe me five explosive tags, asshole." She then declared, Naruto gasping when Kakashi emerged from the smoke with both enemies dragged behind him.

"How did you know I was alive?" He asked, not really too shocked by her correct deduction.

"I'd be worried about our village's survival if jounins were so easily killed." Sakura told him, turning and clicking her tongue as Tazuna started groaning about there probably being internal bleeding. "Pathetic."

"You're going to all die!" Tazuna's grandson, Inari, declared loudly as team seven sat in the kitchen.

Sakura took him in with dry amusement. "Oh look, Sasuke, it's your new best friend who hates the world as much as you."

"Sakura, shut up."

"All in all, I think this ended pretty well." Kakashi crinkled his eyes, smiling at his students, two of which were lying on the ground.

"Yeah, one of us ending up as the human version of a porcupine and the other releasing a bit of his inner demon is really what I call a good end to a mission." Sakura drawled, Naruto shooting up in shock and Kakashi's smile disappearing. "What? You thought I didn't know about Naruto having a giant fox inside him?"

"Sakura…" Kakashi began in a warning tone, seeing Sasuke sit up with furrowed eyebrows in his curiosity.

"For a secret punishable by death if told, it was stupidly easy to find out. Come on, he was born on the day of the attack and has goddamn whiskers on his face!" Sakura looked astounded by how shocked Sasuke looked. "It's so obvious! People are basically screaming demon at him every time he walks down the street!"

"I thought it was a metaphor," Sasuke mumbled.

Sakura threw her hands up in the air. "Typical! There's practically a neon sign screaming that Naruto has the Kyuubi inside of him and everyone just goes 'oh man, what could that sign possibly mean?'! And, by the way, I don't dislike you for having that asshole hanging out in your stomach, Naruto, I get pissed with you because you're a ninja wearing orange."

"Sakura-chan…" The blonde looked somewhat touched through his confusion.

Well, Kakashi thought as the pink haired girl then turned her attention back to berating Sasuke for not noticing the condition of their teammate. That didn't go as expected.

[minimalexertion]

Chapter 4

What to do When Attacked

Chapter 4: Defending Yourself (Physically and Mentally)

Step 7 - Priority of Lives and Basic Defence

Always put your life above others as a dead dimension traveller will not be able to save lives. Never purposefully put yourself in danger, unless it is to save a salvum hominem or the injuries and damage that you will experience due to that action are not over 10% life-threatening, i.e. if you have a 10% ~ 100% chance of survival, take the action.

Your protector eorum will train you according to your assigned powers when you are asleep or alone. However, it is up to you to maintain and further better your own skills so as to increase your probability of survival. If possible, try to spar with fellow 'friends' in your new dimension, however this is only physical defence.

Mental defence requires you to be always aware of your surroundings to be able to fend off mental attacks, such as hypnotism. Your assigned protector eorum will assist in this, but yet again it is up to you to further strengthen the skills that are taught to you.

Handy Tip #11: Meditation and yoga tend to help in your mental defence.

Handy Tip #12: If attacked, physically or mentally, always remain calm. Panic will cloud your mind, limiting the number of possible decisions that you could make which may then lead to unfavourable outcomes.

You awoke 15 minutes later to find yourself on the ground of the Hokage's office, a blanket covering you and a make-shift pillow made from a folded jacket under your head. Groaning, you sat up and looked around the room sleepily, barely managing to notice Kakashi move to your side to slowly help you up.

Clearing your throat, you asked in the most nonchalant tone (which probably did not suit this situation), "So, what did I miss?"

Naruto and Sakura were quick to fill you in on the details, whilst Kakashi hovered around you, checking your temperature. Zoning out for most of the explanation, you caught the important details. You, and your newly appointed team members, had to escort this one guy back to his home. This sounded easy enough, but due to your new found 'psychic' abilities, you knew that this mission would not be a good time.

It was going to be a bad time.

A really, really bad time.

The sound of someone clearing their throat snapped you out of your gloomy thoughts, forcing you to turn your attention onto the people in the room. Kakashi, with a stern look on his face (well as far as we could tell since at least 90% of his face was covered), inquired, "What were you talking about before, [f.name]? About this mirror maze and the death of Sasuke."

Oh boy.

Nervously scratching the back of my neck, I barely managed to stutter out my response, "W-well, sometimes. N-not really s-sometimes, more like most of the t-time? I get this massive headache and then, I wouldn't really call it the future, but I would kind of see glimpses of the future?"

I'm a paid actor, by the way. Thanks for asking.

Letting out a nervous chuckle, I continued, "Just then, I think I saw what was going to happen? I'm not to sure though. Because most of the time I am wrong." Everyone looked confused at this statement. I gulped, before adding quickly, "Like, one time last month, I had a vision that I was going to get put into a group with a duck, a fox and a flower, but that hasn't happened yet. I think?"

It was so easy to lie straight through my teeth, as if I was made for this acting life. Step aside Meryl Streep, [f.name] [l.name] is coming for this year's Oscar for best actress. As I cackled in my brain, whilst feigning an embarrassed look on my face, I continued, "So, I saw um... Sasuke being surrounded by these mirrors? And then he basically keels over dead in the next second, so I don't know what happened?" I say, noticing that the Hokage and Kakashi shared the look.

You know. The look.

The look you give your friend when someone mentions one word that relates to an inside joke that only the two of you know.

Yeah, that look.

Except for the fact that the look the Hokage and Kakashi shared was not one where it felt like a, 'It's an inside joke!' But, more like a, 'She knows too much and now we must eliminate her,' one.

The office was too quiet after I had answered, until Naruto yelled out, "Wow! That's so cool! You can see the futu-"

Which was promptly then cut off by Sakura telling him to shut up followed by a slap. This might be fun, after all.

After resting for a while, the four of you met at Konoha gates to depart on this new journey of friendship and love. Well, that was what you wanted to believe. You sighed, as the 6 of you walked out of Konoha, Tazuna (the man who you had to protect) shooting snarky comments every now and then to Naruto, who (much to the amusement of both you and Kakashi) got quickly riled up.

"You want me to believe that this kid is able to protect me?! Ha! It's more probable for me to drown in concrete than that ever happening!"

      "Hey! Shut it, you old geezer!"

           "You noisy little brat!"

Before Naruto could lunge at this old man, Kakashi once again (for the sixteenth time in the past 15 minutes) yanked Naruto away from the ground by the scruff of his neck. Naruto grumbled as Sakura reprimanded him, before apologising again and again to the 'poor old man'. Sasuke hadn't spoken a single word

This was then repeated again when we passed a random puddle in the middle of the dirt road.

You sighed, slouching a little as you walked past this puddle, slowing down just so you could walk right next to Kakashi, and inevitably receive front-row tickets to whatever was going to happen next. Stopping in your steps, to Kakashi's confusion, you bent down to take off your shoes, feeling the whoosh of air pass right above you and hearing the screams of Naruto and Sakura.

Shoes off, you came face to face with the saddest battle scene in the history of battle scenes. In other words, Naruto was freaking the fuck out, Sakura looked like she had lost her mind, and Sasuke.

Well, Sasuke was team carrying.

But, this battle was taking a bit too long for your liking.

Sighing for the umpteenth time of this day (you noticed that you had been sighing a lot recently and you blamed it on 'stink bag'), you dropped your shoes and immediately stomped the ground, raising a chuck of earth the size of Sasuke's ego - for those that don't know, it was just a large piece of rock. Stepping forward and punching it with both hands, this massive piece of earth began to fly towards the unexpected visitors (at an unexpectedly high speeds), smashing one of them through several trees and surprisingly also demolishing the chain that linked the both of them.

Uh, hello? Mou here. I just want to break it to our fine reader here, but I think you just straight up murdered that guy, nothing wrong with a bit of murder, but did you have to do it in front of the kids? No, you didn't. But you went through with it anyway. Do you know how much paperwork this is going to be for me? Surprisingly, not a lot.

Turning to face the other surprise visitor, you quickly summoned a red-hot flame in both of your hands before rushing towards them, a bored look on your face. Throwing fiery balls of hatred, you managed to get close enough to kick him where the sun doesn't shine, but Sasuke had managed to not only get in your way, but also pin attacker number 2 to a tree with a couple of kunais.

Skidding to a stop by digging your heels into the dirt, you looked at Sasuke as he nonchalantly shoved both of his hands into his pockets and walked back to the main group.

'This guy. This guy is an A-grade asshole. I actually cannot believe he gets worse, like you would think that right now, this is scraping the bottom of the barrel. But, no. He just happens to exceed my expectations and become an even bigger asshole.' I thought, barely managing to keep my eyebrow from twitching in amusement. A short silence had fallen on your small group, as I turned to face a shocked Naruto, a shaking Sakura, a nonchalant Sasuke, a terrified bridge builder, and an indifferent Kakashi. Oh, Kakashi is alive?

Zoning out, I walked back to pick up my shoes, dusting my feet off before slipping them back on. Looking up, I nearly snorted at the sight of Naruto waving his arms around as Kakashi attempted to bandage Naruto's hand. Before we could continue on our way to our destination, Kakashi turned to me and asked, "So, [f.name]. What is the name of that jutsu you just did?"

Shooting him finger guns, I smoothly replied with, "I don't kiss and tell, sir. But, if you must know, it's called a secret."

Kakashi sighed.

Earth-bending skills: 7 out of 10

Fire-bending skills: 6 out of 10

Acting skills: 1000 out of 10

Probability of survival: 68.47%

[keepyourpantsongohan]

Ayesha Liveblogs Naruto Shippuden S20 (Pt. 3)

I wonder if going after Karin’s Tsukuyomi bulb was happenstance or whether Tobirama went “I smell an Uzumaki” and had at it

“Just be quiet for a bit” How dare you speak to your father this way Sasuke, Kakashi does nothing but love you

“EVERYONE WILL OWN A DOG. GO GET A DOG, HOKAGE’S DECREE!“ you’ve got my vote, Kiba

Mirai as a baby is an absolute unit and I love it

Shikamaru, getting down on one knee in front of Temari: Will you not marry me?

You know what. All these dreams are extremely realistic. I buy it. A teenage boy would totally dream about kicking his friends’ asses for fun even if he had the opportunity to do anything in the world. 10/10 believability 

Sai dreams about being told he has a nice smile and being twirled around by Naruto my boooooy 😭😭😭😭😭😭

“[My Sasori transformer] will be the guardian deity of the Sand” Kankuro pls

Omg Temari’s dream is so cute she wants her little brothers to need her

God the fact Gaara’s dream is about having a happy childhood PICK UP THE PHONE RASA I JUST NEED TO TALK

“Madara, don’t you dare talk about the Uchiha. The only one who has that right, is my big brother.” But he did... murder them, Sasuke. That is a thing that happened. My dear. My dude. He done did it.  

Having read Itachi Shinden none of this should be shocking but FUGAKU REALLY YOUR SON IS FOUR WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS

“Listen Itachi, never forget this sight” well he sure won’t now that you’ve given him CHILD PTSD FUGAKU

“We finally have peace, and we must do our best to maintain it” Hmmm.... must you, Fugaku? Is that a thing you must do?

“What is life, anyway?” Damn my existential dread didn’t kick in at least until I was in school, Itachi

Sasuke was such a weird-looking newborn I love him

I wonder how the English dub will deal with the mild implications of inc/est between Itachi and Izumi

Please Mikoto your son is like 6 why are you having him babysit

God I am so used to every version of Itachi having the voice of a grownass man that hearing a child-like voice even when he is 6 is almost off-putting lmao

Full offence Obito but why do you have to be such a little bitch

“Oh good, I knew that you’d be alright” HE’S 6 FUGAKU

Why is Naruto just sitting in a basket on top of his father’s grave??? Who let you do this? Hiruzen what is wrong with you??

“I’m glad that you didn’t die” an accurate representation of Itachi’s social skills at all ages

DFhsdjfhkdsjhfk I love that Itachi has accidentally become these kids’ leader 

AHHHHH I guess that’s Hana next to Itachi I wanna see the cat ninja and dog ninja fight 

“If the fighting can be stopped, I’d like to stop it” Shisui <3 

Itachi’s sweet tooth is so goddamn cute ahhhh what a little nerd

Hhgfkhjfhl SASUKE’S PAW ENCYCLOPEDIA THE PREQUEL THIS IS WHAT I NEVER KNEW I NEEDED

“I mean, [ladies] are clueless” “How dare you insult my woman” Turns out the alcohol this cat was drinking was Respect Women Juice

God I love Minazuki-sensei he’s such a mess

“No they blew away in the wind” guess Itachi hasn’t picked up his snitching tendencies yet lmao

Baby Sasuke has acquired a younger voice too I guess. It is real late in the game to be establishing these lmao

Obito. I’m. Stop???? Please. Is this how Kakashi felt during the war

God I love Shisui the tiny ninja detective they really have left off some of the cooler aspects of being a shinobi in all the wild and flashy jutsu like during the Land of Waves arc when Kakashi kept noticing relatively mundane clues

“Shisui picked up on how I felt right from the beginning” welcome to empathy Itachi

“I’ll hand this intel over to Lord Hokage, and he will deliver a just and fair judgment” I like this ANBU vs. ROOT dichotomy but bold of you to assume Hiruzen won’t ultimately let Danzo do whatever he wants lol

Damn what the shit how does Shisui know who the foundation already isn’t he like 12 

The animation of this arc is nice but also so weird they really did make Itachi and Shisui’s eyes like half of their face

These wholeass adults getting between by two prepubescents lmao 

“A teleportation jutsu has no mass” wait WHAT I have so many questions Shisui what does that MEAN 

“I want to you to think of me as your older brother” HELL YEAH HE DOES

Ffgdfkghkjh what an abrupt voice change between age 8 and 11 Itachi

How many times have they animated these same goddamn Itachi scenes 

Holy shit it’s like they tried to tell the story of the Itachi Shinden novels and then got bored halfway through gfkhgfkhgkjh

“I’m exhaAAAUsted from my mission” Itachi pls why say it like that

“You have the Mangekyo as well?” Fugaku had a friend???? Unrealistic. Blocked

THEY KIDNAPPED NARUTO??? I DON’T REMEMBER THIS IN ITACHI SHINDEN

Genjutsu but I don’t remember that either ?!?!?! Doesn’t Fugaku spend all of Itachi Shinden being emotionally distant and sending Itachi mixed moral messages

Who is the Fugaku hater on this storyboard staff lmao I’m crying

I have a lot of thoughts about this art direction honestly why is everything in the shadows why are the character models so weird why is Itachi suddenly outside in the lightning for his murder discussion meeting instead of inside the council room if you had to shout over lightning people could hear you 

“I challenge you to the high jump” “You’re no match for me” Sasuke you’re the most obnoxious seven-year-old in the world I love it

“There’s something that I’d like you to help me with” a very casual opener when you’re proposing the murder of your entire clan but okay

They really leaned into the horror movie aesthetic huh fair enough 

I have some objections to register about Izumi’s death like both options are weird but at least in Itachi Shinden she wasn’t humiliated by Obito begging for Itachi to save her she had a degree of awareness and it was an impactful if strange scene

FUCK THE TOBI VOICE I KNEW IT WAS COMING BUT I’M WHEEZING

Cute new ED but also the idea of Tobirama giving anyone a fistbump amuses me immensely 

“Who would’ve thought that that scuzzy bearded jerk would’ve been able to use a taijutsu like that” RUDE but also ‘scuzzy’ jhfjghkjhfgj

Omg that’s so funny they literally gave the former owner of Zabuza’s blade the same voice

This doesn’t make any fucking sense how could Juzo have the executioner’s blade when Zabuza would be like 21 when Itachi was 13 oh my god 

“The Hidden Mist doesn’t keep any prisoners” unsurprising but interesting

Is this meant to imply that Juzo is killed and then Zabuza immediately finds the sword and starts a coup because that’s hilarious

Wait how does them fighting the Mizukage make any sense isn’t Yagura under Obito’s control lmao who wrote this

Did Itachi just.... accidentally cripple the Mizukage omg [Zabuza screams in the distance]

Hahahaha I know it’s supposed to be evil but it’s really funny that Kakuzu killed his partner for being too slow

“I wouldn’t know how to cater to your moods” kjfhgkdhfgjh Kakuzu just got wrecked by a thirteen-year-old LMAO 

“I’m not sure what to do with you... whether to kill you right now or find a way to use you” KILL OROCHIMARU, ITACHI, IT’S GONNA SAVE YOU A LOT OF TROUBLE 

Why the hell would Kabuto be hanging out near the Akatsuki anyway isn’t he in a long term infiltration of the Leaf Village lmao or can Orochimaru summon him like a snake

On what basis does Pain decide these partnerships did Kisame and Sasori take a babysitting course or smth

The cutaway without the “This... is art” scene is almost funnier because it implies Itachi just had to flash his eyes at Deidara and Deidara was like, “HELLO AKATSUKI I AM HERE”

“I wouldn’t mind giving you a taste of my art” [insert ninja sex joke about Deidara’s mouth hands here]

Deidara really should not be old enough to be here by this point in the narrative but this entire arc has been wacky timeline wise

Man it must be fucked up to fight a puppet version of your own corpse

“What I really wanted... was to get a hold of Itachi’s body” you are the definition of stranger danger Orochimaru

From what I remember the video games had Kakuzu and Orochimaru approaching Hidan and not Konan and Itachi but I’m game for any Orochimaru erasure lmao

 I’m pretty sure all of that blood was Hidan’s?? World-building whomst

“He licked Kakuzu’s blood” did he though?? Show me his wound Itachi

OMG they’re really heavy-handed with Leaf!Itachi as if we did not just watch a bunch of episodes of Itachi caring about his village like honestly look at this:

Kisame: So even you have feelings for your birthplace, is that it?

Itachi: No. Not at all. [Sasuke, I hope that you’re safe.] 

(Me too Itachi 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭)

“It’s been a long time... Saaasuke” could you say his name a little less weirdly please Itachi

You really can’t get mad at Kakashi for teaching Sasuke chidori Itachi like maybe if you would murder less people Kakashi would feel a little less overprotective

God was the only point of animating and voicing these scenes again so that Itachi could mentally apologize every twelve seconds? You know what fair enough, anxiety and depression be like that sometimes

“You still have people who’ll protect you” Oh plot twist Itachi was actually writing a “Nice” list instead of a “Naughty” list and Kakashi, Jiraiya and Naruto are all on it

Oh yeah I kind of forgot that this was all supposed to be like a 5 minute span for Sasuke’s flashback of Itachi’s entire life lmao

You know.... it’s real unclear to me how Obito wakes up from his trance lmao he may not be in a cocoon but he’s certainly exposed to the light

“Be careful. We’re surrounded on all sides by four of his shadows” “Yeah I know that” Yeah, Naruto knows it, but Sasuke’s warning where the Shadow Madaras are entirely for Kakashi and Sakura’s benefit BC HE WORRIES MY BABY BOYYYY

“This chakra is even way stronger than Ten-Tails” I really heard “Tenten” there and I was like, wait what did I miss with Tenten kfhkjhgkjhg

OH GOOD ANOTHER UCHIHA FLESH MOUNTAIN JUST WHAT WE NEEDED

“They’re turned into White Zetsu” I hate this nonsensical bit of world-building it made more sense and felt less weird when they were Hashirama clones like what the fuck

Oh I can’t believe this is making me feel almost bad for Madara did Zetsu really edit the Uchiha Stone Tablet’s Tsukuyomi section to say “Peace Plans” ain’t that how like the CIA entraps people 

“Hashirama... where did I go wrong” We’d need a lot more time than you have to unpack that Madara

“Countless nights passed” I mean. Was it countless nights. Because I think it was. A couple hours. This war arc spans like two days. I have spent more human hours on this arc than they’ve spent ninja hours in this war

“I can’t believe such a person existed” neither can I Sasuke it’s almost like she was invented specifically for this arc

For real Obito no offence but like why aren’t you dead it just doesn’t make much sense khkjfdhkjhgkjh

Hmmm not 2 be that gal but Kaguya’s voice is v pleasant on the ears 

“Sorry to be so rough with you, Obito” Kakashi. You loving, kind, dumb bitch. He stabbed you THREE TIMES in the past two days you really owe him like -1000 apologies

“This is also one of those times where your body just moves on its own” SASUKE CALLED OUT FOR LOVING HIS COMRADES

“I’ve got to get to Naruto” I love your dedication Minato but I feel as though the loss of both of your arms makes helping more difficult

Kakashi is not NEARLY as surprised about this levitation thing as he should be. I think as this point he’s just like. ‘This might as well happen’

All other things aside Kaguya’s really fun to look at damn

Okay okay okay not to look for too much logic in this ninja show but don’t both Naruto and Sasuke have Six Paths chakra why can only Naruto float is a metaphor for Sasuke’s fall from grace

“I am Kaguya’s child” I can only imagine a Game of Thrones-eque shadow flying out the hooha situation

“Just before the seal took hold, she gave birth to me, in order that she could be restored” I can only assume Kaguya fucked Bitterness and Regret and you know.... fair enough

I gotta tell you Zetsu being the primary narrator of this arc is jarring

Tenji seems kinda nice it’s a shame something terrible will probably happen to him

Say what you will about SP’s animation inconsistencies they can animate some beautiful-ass skies

“Is there anything that you desire” Get u a man like Tenji

Fellas is it gay to sit under the stars with your handmaiden who adores you in comfortable silence

“Even now you’re not scared. That just makes me like you more” take a shot every time a man is Like That (bah dum tss) 

“Do Not Touch Me,” wow Kaguya mood

I will clarify I said that BEFORE she exploded the men gkhkjfhgkhh

Tenji, that Aino lady is your subordinate are you really gonna leave her with the creepy That man u are not the man I thought you were

“Just tell him, and I’m sure that Lord Tenji will forgive you” to be fair Aino you could’ve elaborated u were just like ‘yup she killed them’ and left it at that

WOW I RESCIND ALL COMPLIMENTS TO TENJI CALM DOWN DUDE

When life gives u lemons use people as fertilizer for ur infinite lemon tree I guess

Are you telling me 1) Gamamaru has existed since the DAWN OF CHAKRA and 2) He knew all about this Tsukuyomi shit just like. Kept it on the DL. WHAT KINDA WORLD-BUILDING

Okay but for real did the Otsutsuki clan stem like.... all the clans, because there’s the Kaguya clan (through Hamura I guess?), and the Hyuga clan definitely through Hamura, and then the Senju, Uchiha, and Uzumaki through Hagoromo like just how many people did your kids sleep with and for that matter how long ago was this

“A real talking toad! Think people would like it if we caught it and took it home?” Why are Hagoromo and Hamura the cutest things in the world this is the sibling content we deserve

“You’re just a snake oil salesman, and not a very good one” oh I think I love Hamura oh no I would love a character who gets stuck on the moon 

Take a shot every time a woman exists to die and make a man sad 

“She fell in love with the ruler of this land and in time she became pregnant with the two of you” notice that at no point does Gamamaru say they got married can u believe Kaguya invented premarital sex

You know none of this goes against mine and Sloane’s Kagumo theory

“How can you see so far into a toad’s heart that clearly” Gamamaru and Hagoromo’s interactions are killing me

How much time has passed for Hamura’s hair to grow that long

Hamura @ Kaguya: BROTHERS BEFORE MOTHERS

HOW MUCH TIME HAS PASSED FOR HAGOROMO TO DEVELOP THIS BROW RIDGE SAGE LAND TAKES A TOLL 

Tenji doesn’t even appear in this flashback about love and betrayal it’s just Kaguya being bitter bc her gal Aino died they were in lesbians together

Every so often I’m reminded that Kishimoto has a twin brother and I wonder what he thinks about making the twins fight

“You enabled me to awaken the mangekyo sharingan and rinnegan” how do u even have words for those things. Didn’t they just happen right this moment

Wow this is all very Little Shop of Horrors, Momma feeds the tree with people juice and in turn it wants to protect her from harm

“I split the Ten Tails into nine souls” SOULS? HAGOROMO CAN... JUST MAKE SOULS. COULD HE POINT AT GAMAMARU AND SAY “YOU ARE TWO FROGS NOW” AND THAT’D JUST BE TRUE?

“We won’t be that far apart,” said Hagoromo, just as his brother was about to teleport to the moon

Side note: Maybe ur crops were failing bc without the moon the tides are all out of whack and you know, the moon was apparently just invented right now

“Time passed, and so did Hagoromo” I love this particular literary device

“Time after time I’d approach the reincarnates of Indra and Ashura” okay so we’re supposed to be down for not only regular reincarnation in Naruto but Indra and Ashura ONLY BEING BORN TO THE SENJU AND UCHIHA CLANS REPEATEDLY WHAT WHO WROTE THIS

Does this mean that people Naruto and Sasuke every 50 years????You’d think the Land of Fire would just. Get used to it

“Just with that alone, a thousands years passed” well at least we have some idea of how much time it’s been since Kaguya era lmao 

Ur telling me that this horseshit happened bc Tobirama doesn’t know to leave dead bodies well enough alone

SHHHHH I PREFER THE ZETSU BEING WEIRD HASHIRAMA CLONES

This montage of Zetsu taking credit for everything Madara and Obito did is not appreciated lmao take some responsibility for your actions!!!!

I’m gonna keep harping on this for the rest of the war honestly like where is the ACCOUNTABILITY

“So your teen rebellion continues” LMAO UR NOT WRONG

“I know that this could be our last hurrah, but we gotta give it our best shot” not much of a plan Naruto sweetheart but fair

Tag urself I’m Kakashi’s look of despair at his hormonal students

“And Sasuke? Sorry that my sexy jutsu didn’t work” I was not prepared for the sincerity with which that line was delivered

The Sad Old Man™ energy radiating off Obito is... Immense 

“We’re all ready to die” R U THINKING OF RIN BC SHE WAS READY TO DIE OR BC UR READY TO SEE HER EITHER WAY IT’S SAD KAKASHI

“I want to thank you for helping me out. And for helping Sasuke” “No, there’s no need to thank me” this is the first time Obito has been right about something since the age of 13

“I’m not going to waste time on speeches,” said Obito, in the middle of a dramatic speech 

Minato..... how did you chop the branch.... with no hands to pick up a kunai???????? What kind of yoga contortion was involved

What I imagine the subtext of this scene to be:

Hagoromo: New old son!!!! I am dad now

Hashirama, whose dad was Butsuma: [choking back tears] Okay

Tobirama: I also hate our father

They’re all taking to this “demi-god pops out of the bottom half of dead ex-comrade” thing pretty well but to be fair they’ve had a complicated day

[darkmindsthinktwistedthoughts]

Senpai!!!! May I request a gaming evening with the warlords and Sasuke either always winning or losing? Idc which game 😘😘😘 i love u

@colivara The possibilities for this tickled me. I have a mind for a certain game that was driving my family a little mad this last holiday season. I hope you enjoy my little musing. 

---

Writer: In a wormhole far far away... oh no sorry hang on a minute I'm getting my tales messed up with some other long popular saga. Clears throat. That’s better, now where was I? Oh yes. 

---

Azuchi castle had been a hive of activity all day. News travelled fast around the servants that they were to play host to some visiting warlords. No one had expected it to be these warlords though.

“I fail to see the benefit to being here.” Shingen muttered as he pushed around a cube of bean jelly on his plate.

“I agree.” Agreed Yukimura who was sitting next to him in the audience chamber.

“Feel free to leave at any point.” Ieyasu wasn’t exactly pleased to see the Tiger of Kai or his little puppy. In fact, he was practically bristling. 

“I think I might stay here forever.” Shingen heard the young warlords remark and decided to meet it with a teasing joke. He made a show of popping the sweet bean jelly into his mouth smiling as he looked over at the enemy.

“Over my dead body.” Hideyoshi called out. He was even less pleased. The presence of so many of the enemy in one place was one thing, but they were inside the castle right now. Lord Nobunaga could be in danger.

“That can be arranged.” Kenshin’s icy tone cut through the already tense atmosphere. his hand twitching on the hilt of his blade.

Nobunaga and Mitsuhide were sipping sake watching the verbal tennis match unfold. Neither said anything to anyone else except occasionally to each other. Masamune who had been helping the staff in the kitchen arrived at this point with a platter of food. Mitsunari had his nose in a book sitting like a rather cute, all be it oblivious, statue by Ieyasu.

“Lord Kenshin!...”  Sasuke called out putting himself in front of the blade happy warlord halting his advance. “My Lords, I apologise for my late arrival. I see you were able to remain entertained.”

“That is one way to put it.” Yukimura crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall.

“I suppose there is a reason you called us all here ninja?” Nobunaga addressed the one that was responsible for that note on his desk resulting in this pantomime in his castle.

“Yes. I was talking to Mc and we both discovered that we were part of extracurricular games groups in school.”

“Extra Kur-ick-u-er?” Mitsunari attempted to repeat the new foreign-sounding word. Ieyasu had the strategists glasses in his hand so Mitsunari looked a little like he was coming around from a trance as he adjusted to the world.

“Sounds interesting.” Masa joined the group smiling.

“Sounds like an illness.” Ieyasu stated flatly.

“Oh if it’s an ailment Lord Ieyasu is sure to find a cure. He is a very gifted healer.”

“Mitsunari?”

“Yes, Lord Ieyasu?” 

“Shut up.”

---

After a short while of explaining things to the gathered warlords, and dropping in the fact that Mc looked really happy with the idea that they were all going to have a games night together. All of the warlords in assembly suddenly became a lot calmer and decided to choose a game they liked the look of.

Sasuke had spent a great deal of time working with Mc to try to recreate at least a few games. It had been fun sourcing the materials and then attempting to make everything as close as they could to the modern versions.

There was Battleships which was left resembling the original game. The only difference was the ships. The ships they were using were modelled on Pirate and the Portuguese trade ships. 

Monopoly was created and adjusted. The areas were names of domains, there were tea houses instead of hotels. Community chest cards became cards from the Emporer and the cards of Chance became fate and fortune cards. The figures were a little different too there was the usual dog, cat and boat. But the rest were a ground spike, a katana, a horse, a cooking pot and a Ladle. The money was different coloured dried beans.

Cluedo was changed so it became rooms around the castle. The players were just coloured figures. The weapons had minor tweaks for historical understanding but was otherwise left.

And there was one surprise finishing game that was perhaps the easiest to recreate. Pictionary.

Sasuke made his way around each group of warlords explained the rules and how to play each game and then joined them for a few games on each.

---

“There is no way you can keep finding them like that!” Yukimura exclaimed as Sasuke once more made a direct hit on one of his boats.

“I’m sorry but the board is basically a grid in a series of rather simple mathematical equations you can...” Sasuke began to explain how it could be done unaware of the glazed over expression Yuki was making trying to keep up with what he was being told.

“Ok ok I get it YOU can do it. why don’t you just move on the next guys huh?” Yuki gave Sasuke a little push as he tried to get him to move. After that, he sat and stared that the board in silence as if trying to figure it out.

---

“How did you managed to buy up all that domain?” Ieyasu asked looking at the three slots that should have been the prime locations that included Mayfair.

“It is luck with the dice and knowledge of what to buy where.” Sasuke pushed his glasses back on his nose as he replied devoid of expression even if his heart felt like it was going wild in his chest speaking to his idol.

“But the rest of the teahouses are all scattered what makes those three up there so important?” Masa looks down at the board a little confused. He understood gaining territory and how it could affect others but this game had no war it was all money... well beans.

“I’m afraid if I explained to greatly I might risk upsetting the balance of the game in the future.” Sasuke looked away from the game as he tried to think how best to continue but his thoughts were interrupted.

“Hey don't just put your hand in the coin purse!” Ieyasu cried out and smacked the back of Masa’s hand as he reached for the coin purse that was acting as the bank that held all the beans.

“What? I passed that space there that means I get 10 beans.” 

“Yes, but you can’t just go helping yourself.” Ieyasu chastized his friend before becoming aware that he had just smacked him over a stupid future game and became uncomfortably embarrassed about it. “I can’t believe you decided to be the Ladle that is such a dumb piece.” 

“Hey, Man don’t underestimate the power of a good ladle.”

---

“Why is there no dungeon on this board?” Kenshin asked as he looked over the rooms once more.

“Probably because the Princess might play it. Do you really expect an Angel like her to walk around a dungeon in a game?” Shingen scoffed as he drank from his sake cup waiting for his turn on the board.

“I don’t see what is wrong with it. Dungeons in Kasugayama are practically guest rooms.” Kenshin said proudly. In his opinion, no other castle could reach the level of his beloved home.

“Funny that’s what Mitsuhide calls ours.” Nobunaga chuckled as he finished moving his figure on the board. “Mitsunari exactly what are you doing?”

“Oh, I’m terribly sorry I was just reading the cards I had closer.” Mitsunari had been leaning over engrossed in reading and rereading the details on each card, nearly missing his turn.

“Well, it’s your turn.”

“Can I make a guess without rolling and moving anywhere? I’m gonna say it was Mitsuhide in the Tenshu with a rifle.” Mitsunari beamed brightly as he made a guess.

“Why exactly am I always the prime suspect?” Mitsuhide asked acting hurt by the accusation. 

“Probably because out of all of us you are the most suspicious.” Hideyoshi replied back as fast as ever. 

“Why Hideyoshi I had no idea you thought so much about me. I’m sorry to inform you though I have plans later this evening so I won’t be available for any little trysts.” Mitsuhide smiled meaningfully in such a way as to purposefully give the wrong impression whilst leaving just enough confusion so he could innocently wriggle free of any repercussions.

“Well, tha- what tryst!?” Hideyoshi blushed furiously as he glared at the castle kitsune.

---

Games night was a success. well, a success in the sense that both sets of enemy warlords had gathered and remained in the same room as each other without it resulting in a bloodbath.

“So who wins?” Masa called out to Sasuke as all the games came to an end.

“Wins?” Sasuke felt a little like he had missed part of a conversation. In the future, they had very different ideas about games. 

That wasn't to say people didn’t win or lose but it was not something that typically came to the end of the night where you declared an overall winner in order to prevent a very real declaration of war.

“Yeah, there has to be a winner or else what is the point?” Masa nodded and several of the other warlords agreed.

“Well, I do have one final game.” Sasuke picked up the last box of games. “What you do is...”

---

Mc came into the audience chamber after the warlords had all made their way to rooms for the night in the castle. Breakfast in the morning was going to be fun. Moving to Sasuke’s side she started to gather the various parts to games and returned them to the boxes.

Sasuke was standing there hardly moving at all. for a second or two Mc considered the possibility that he had somehow fallen asleep whilst standing. But she could see him blinking behind his glasses. 

“Er... Sasuke?”

“Oh! Mc.” Sasuke blinked several times as if trying to regain focus on her.

“Are you ok?” Mc asked still a little concerned for her friend.

“Yes yes, I’m fine. Thanks for helping with the cleanup.”

“No problem. So how did it go? Did you win any of the games?” She happily asked as she stacked the boxes at the side of the room out of the way.

“Oh erm no not exactly.”

“Oh... that’s a shame.” Mc looked as if she was thinking about something before continuing. “Still, I know how competitive the guys can get so its probably really difficult to win against them even with brand new games. Better luck next time huh?” Sasuke silently nodded he wasn’t trying to ignore her he was just preoccupied right now. “I’m going to go to the kitchen and see if there is some onigiri or something are you coming?” Mc walked to the door and stopped waiting for his reply.

“Yes. I’ll be there in a minute.” Satisfied with that she left in search of food.

---

It was during clean up that Sasuke had made a discovery. In his hands, he currently held not an autograph but a drawing made by his idol. it had missed being torn up after that argument broke out about it looking nothing like what it was supposed to be. 

He might not have “won” any of the games showcased tonight but at this moment in time, Sasuke felt like he was holding in his hand the grand prize of the evening.

---

[kusunogatari]

                                                              [ @kyuuzuchiha ]                                                                      𝕩     𝕩     𝕩                                                                      𝕩     𝕩     𝕩                                                                      𝕩     𝕩     𝕩 

“Yo, teme! Teme!”

Lurching forward as an arm wraps around his shoulders, Sasuke just sighs. “What, dobe?”

Grinning like a fox, Naruto flashes two small pieces of paper in his other hand. “Lookie what I got!”

“...tickets? For what?”

“Some fancy shmancy new restaurant!”

Dark brows furrow, looking to Naruto skeptically. “Tickets for a restaurant?”

“Well, it’s not just a restaurant...apparently they do, like...shows and stuff!”

Shoving his friend aside to unburden his pace, Sasuke gives another glance. “...why did you get tickets to something like that? Doesn’t seem your style.”

“I won ‘em!”

“...how?”

“Oh, just a little bet I made,” the blond replies evasively, tucking the tickets back in his jacket.

“...meaning?”

“Nothin’!”

“Naruto, you weren’t swindling humans again, were you?”

“No, no! It wasn’t anything like that!” Hands wave in defense. “They weren’t human!”

“So, less likely to get you arrested, and more likely to get your ass beat.”

Lips pout. “Hey, I won that game fair and square.”

“All right, fine. Still doesn’t explain why you’d put your ass on the line for something that...random.”

“Welllll, at first I was gonna sell ‘em! See, this place is Nightwalker…! So they’re super expensive! Apparently it’s, like...really hard to even get tickets. But then I thought...y’know who I know who appreciates nice things?”

Sasuke deadpans.

“My good pal Sasuke!”

“Why would I care about some high-end eatery?”

“Aw, c’mon! It’ll be fun, ‘ttebayo - we can get all dressed up, rub some elbows…!”

The Uchiha’s nose wrinkles. “What makes you think something like that would be fun…?” He has distant family in high places, which means elbow-rubbing is something he does at times. And it’s never fun. Just boring, stressful, and time-consuming.

Naruto’s lips purse again. “Well just cuz you get to do it all the time doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy it!”

“Then go by yourself.”

“But I’ve got two tickets…!”

“So? Sell one, if you want the money.”

“But Sasukeee…!” Naruto gives his best combo of puppy eyes and whiny tone.

Head craning back, Sasuke sighs. “All right, fine.”

“YAY!”

“When is this supposed to happen?”

“Friday! Uh…” Whipping the tickets back out, Naruto studies them. “At...two am!”

“A little late, isn’t it?”

“Aw, c’mon - sunrise isn’t until after five this time of year! It’ll be fine! Plenty of time for you to skulk off to bed, huh?”

“...address?”

Handing over the ticket, Naruto lets his friend type it down into his phone. “We should probably get there a little early, huh? Find good seats?”

“Naruto, the seats are assigned. Look, it says right here.”

“Oh…” Smiling sheepishly, he tucks them away one last time. “Guess I’ll see ya there, teme!”

“Guess so.” Watching the werefox take off, Sasuke sighs lightly to himself. Surely one morning won’t be a huge loss...and it’ll make the blond happy. Maybe he’ll get off his back for a while. Hands stuffing into his pockets, he starts to mosey for home.

His little apartment is quiet and dark when he arrives, sunrise just tinting the horizon. Flicking on a light, he indulges in a snack before calling it a day, hiding down under blankets in his blacked-out room until nightfall.

The rest of his week passes fairly quickly. To his own annoyance, part of him actually starts to feel...curious about this little outing. Not excited, but...he’s intrigued. While he’s been to a few Nightwalker-only places, they’re hard to maintain given how populous humans are.

Even harder to keep safe.

Digging through his closet Thursday evening, he picks out something nice, but...not too nice. Slacks, black shoes, matching socks, and a dress shirt. A little perusing of the place online gives the impression his outfit should be fine.

Gods know what Naruto’s going to show up wearing…

He doesn’t don it until he’s ready to go, deciding to walk. It’s not too far, and he can always use a little speed to get there quickly if he has to. Otherwise, he strolls casually, taking in the city by night, as per usual. To his honest surprise, a small crowd is gathered outside when he arrives.

A faint feeling of unease stirs in his gut.

“Sasuke! Oi, Sasuke!”

A bit surprised to see the blond there before him, Sasuke closes the distance. Somehow, Naruto’s actually dressed about as he is...except that his shirt is a bright, obnoxious orange compared to Sasuke’s deep purple. “You weren’t kidding about it being hard to get in.”

“Told ya! C’mon, I’ve got the tickets!”

“Any idea what the show actually is…?” Sasuke then asks, glancing around and taking in the building.

“Apparently it changes every so often so it doesn’t get boring. Guess we’ll see when we get up there!”

The line moves rather slowly, tickets checked at the door alongside identification to ensure no humans manage to find their way in. Eventually the pair make it to the front, presenting both.

“All right, so you two are on the main floor, left-hand side,” a woman tells them, the stub of the tickets removed. “Next show starts in ten, so you’d better get seated.”

“Thanks!” Naruto calls as Sasuke steers him in. “So I guess they do the show more than once?”

“Makes sense - otherwise people would miss it, given how many hours they’re open.” Also must be why there was a time on the tickets.

The tables are numbered, most seating groups of two or four. Their own is one of the former, and Sasuke finds himself glad they won’t be joined by any strangers. In the general murmur before the next showing begins, a band plays slow, soft jazz music.

“Cripes, look at these prices!” Naruto whispers harshly, followed by a grunt as Sasuke elbows him. “What?!”

“You’re being rude,” Sasuke hisses back.

“But -!”

“What did you expect, dobe?”

“I dunno! Guess I’ll just...put it on my card…”

Scowling, Sasuke picks up his own menu, and...wow, Naruto isn’t joking. Maybe he’ll just get an appetizer and call it good…

“Sasuke?”

Looking up, the vampire startles at a familiar face. “Wha-? Aniki? What are you doing here?”

Itachi stands beside their table, looking just as surprised to see them. “Madara-sama is attending tonight. How did you…?”

“I won some tickets!” Naruto chirps, earning a look that makes him shrink.

“He swears up and down it wasn’t anything illegal,” Sasuke cuts in. As an enforcer, Itachi’s got every right to look into it and arrest the blond...if his dealings are shadier than he claims.

“...well, I’ve got more important matters to tend to, anyway,” Itachi assures them, giving Naruto a pointed look, a hint of a smile showing through.

“So the old bastard’s really here, huh?”

“I’d be careful how loud you say that,” Itachi cautions flatly.

“I’m not scared of him.”

“You really should be. He’s a senator, Sasuke -”

“And he’s got way bigger things to worry about than me calling him names,” the younger brother cuts in. “You better get back to your guard duty, lapdog.”

That earns a flat scowl from Itachi, but Sasuke’s right - the music is fading, and the show’s likely about to start. “...maybe I’ll see you again before we leave.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

Naruto watches him go, then turns to Sasuke. “That was...awkward.”

“Aniki takes his job too seriously, that’s all. As if someone like Madara gives a shit about what I say.” Still, the fact that the senator is here brings back that worried feeling in Sasuke’s gut. It could be an invitation for trouble…

His musings are interrupted, however, as spotlights illuminate the stage at the end of the building. Their table is fairly close, and Sasuke watches as slower, more somber music kicks up from the band. The red fabric begins to rise, and finally reveals the subject of the show.

Sitting on her knees atop the stage floor is a woman. Clad in a silvery gown, waves of snow white tumble down her back, which is mostly exposed in the backless dress. Head bowed, she seems to wait for a certain moment in the music. Then a mic grasped in a hand lifts to her lips...and she starts to sing.

The tune is melancholy, crooning about loneliness and solitude. Staring almost as if dazed, Sasuke listens as the lyrics tell a tale of someone both eager to be loved, and yet shying from the risk of heartbreak. Slowly she lifts to her feet, almost as though floating, a mic stand held as she continues on. This close (and with eyes this strong), Sasuke can see her own are a rain cloud grey, framed by lashes as white as her hair. Curiosity burns as to what kind of Nightwalker she is.

And then she tells him.

Her gown pools at the floor, hiding her legs. But as she abandons her hold on the microphone, moving to shield her face from her fears, her arms shift in a smooth motion to white feathers smudged with sooty black.

Sasuke can’t help a jump. So...a harpy. Snowy owl, maybe…? He’s not exactly an expert when it comes to birds. While there’s plenty of common-breed harpies in the cities - crows, pigeons, and the like - something like an owl seems...out of place. And even then, they tend to dislike how crowded the cities are. No room to fly. Too many wires over the streets. Spell broken for a moment, he glances over to see Naruto staring, jaw agape.

And he’s not the only one.

The whole hall is enraptured, staring at the avian as she sings her song. Wings slowly shift down to peer out, silvers tinged with both curious longing, and yet a fearful hesitation. They roam over the audience from one side to another.

And Sasuke swears they stop when they meet his.

Something seems to pull at his spine - like an urge to get to his feet he barely manages to suppress. And as soon as she moves her eyes, the feeling seems to pass.

What the hell was that?!

After a few more bars, her voice holds out a long, last note before fading out with the music. There’s a stunned silence, and then the audience breaks out into applause as the lights fade back in. Limbs arms once more, she smiles bashfully, head ducking and face flushing a pretty pink. A hand then gestures in praise to the band.

Once things quiet a bit, she looks up and addresses her crowd. “Thank you...it’s an honor to be invited here to perform. And an even greater honor to do so in front of one of Japan’s most prolific senators!”

Up she gestures, and Sasuke follows her hand to the second floor balcony above and behind them. There he sits: Uchiha Madara, giving a small, acquiescing wave. Beside him, both Itachi and Shisui eye the crowds warily. Even more Uchiha, Sasuke’s sure, are positioned around the room to help guard against any threats. Not that Madara needs them, but...what’s the use in his enforcers if they don’t double as a kind of secret service?

Still smiling, the harpy then introduces her next song, the band striking up into something a bit lighter in mood.

Wait staff then begin fanning out to take orders, and Naruto turns to his friend. “Holy crap, that was awesome!”

“She’s good.”

“Good? Good?! Dude, it was like...like...mesmerizing! I couldn’t look away!”

“You and everyone else,” Sasuke assures him, leaning back with folded arms.

“She’s so pretty...think she’ll sign autographs after? Man, if I could get a picture -”

“I think she’s a little out of your league.”

“What?!”

Sasuke snorts, grinning as he teases his friend. “She’s a professional singer, and you run back alley deals and smuggle stuff. Not sure she’d find your employment charming, Naruto.”

“And what about you?!”

“What about me?”

“Y’think she’d be all goo-goo eyed over an enforcer dropout who lives in a teeny tiny apartment and works odd jobs?”

“I never said I wanted her to like me. You’re the one all smitten, fox boy.”

“Whaaat? You mean you don’t think she’s pretty?”

“She’s...fine,” Sasuke replies evasively.

“You’re insane!”

“And you’re taking this little daydream a little too far.”

They’re cut off as their orders are taken, and both wordlessly go back to watching the show. She’s singing a jazzy little number, swaying with the tempo and smiling coyly.

Sasuke’s eyes squint. She’s clearly harpy, but...looking around the room, he finds any eyes on her totally glued. It’s almost like she’s -

With a loud report, the front doors blast apart, debris and smoke billowing into the dining hall. Screams quickly break out, and Sasuke reflexively spins to face the threat. All around him, panicked Nightwalkers make for the stage: the direct path away from the explosion. Atop it, the harpy calls for them to come this way, to make for the back door.

A glance up shows Madara being directed the same way, enforcers dropping to ground level to stand between him and whatever’s happened at the entrance.

Through the smoke step a group of people. Many are clad with modern armor, riot shields at the front and bearing weapons no doubt loaded with silver bullets. But at their fore is a woman: black hair cut in a sharp bob to her chin, violet eyes seeming to glow as they’re illuminated from behind. Armored vehicle headlamps burn into the now-gaping entry. All she seems to hold in terms of weapons are clawed gloves.

Sasuke sees them drip.

Poison.

...is she -?

As one, the group moves. Bullets start streaking through the hall, blasting into the woodwork and shattering stone. Cries of pain join those of panic as the enforcers all take cover.

Ducking behind a half-wall, Sasuke’s joined by Naruto. “What the fuck?!” the blond shrieks.

“Hunters!” Sasuke calls back over the sounds of gunfire and impacts. “They must be here for Madara - they’d never be so open otherwise!”

“Sasuke!”

Itachi’s voice cuts to them, and they lock eyes.

“Take the harpy out through the back!”

“But -?”

“Just do it!”

Looking to Naruto, Sasuke sees him grin, teeth already sharp. “Not quite the show I expected,” the blond offers, “but I guess this’ll do!” With a blur of orange and black he shifts, streaking forward with the enforcers to begin combatting the Hunters.

Swearing under his breath, Sasuke looks up. Half-shifted herself, the harpy takes to half-carrying, half-dragging wounded Nightwalkers back behind the stage with her taloned feet. Blood coats her dress, and judging by her limp, she’s been hit.

Sasuke knows well how silver stings. That she’s still walking at all is impressive.

Aniki, you’re gonna owe me big time for this, Sasuke growls in his mind, flickering over to her as she makes one last pass behind the wings of the stage. “Hey!”

Screeching, she makes to strike at him with her claws, but he swiftly pins her.

“I’m not the enemy! I’m here to get you out!”

“No! There’s still people in there!”

“And you’re wounded! The enforcers are taking care of the hunters - you need to get out of here and get some medical attention!”

“No!” Defiantly, she kicks a foot at his chest, knocking him aside long enough to slip back out.

“Damn it!” Sasuke shouts, taking off after her.

She’s made her way to the second floor, landing beside a couple pinned down. With feathered limbs she guides them to a rear staircase that leads down behind the stage. Making the leap amidst the bullets, Sasuke takes her shoulder. “I am not leaving you in here!”

She makes to snap at him, but they fly apart as more rounds cut through the air. Coming up the stairs at the front, hunters begin closing the distance.

“Is there an exit up here?” Sasuke calls.

“There’s another flight at the back that goes up to the roof!”

“Then let’s get going!”

Sprinting, they cut into the stairwell and start ascending. Finding the door locked, Sasuke simply kicks it from its hinges, flying out across the roof. Around them, buildings tower several stories over them. Out in the open air, they hear the whirling blades of a helicopter, a spotlight snapping to the movement of the door.

Well, shit.

“Run to the edge!”

“What?!”

“Run to the edge, and jump - just trust me!”

Looking to her like she’s lost her mind, Sasuke ducks as a bullet slams into the top frame of the door from behind them.

No time to argue.

Using vampiric speed, he bolts across the rooftop, leaping out toward an alleyway between the buildings. Landing a three storey fall is nothing for him, but -

The helicopter fires a volley of bullets, and just as he crests the edge, he feels one tear straight through his left side. Arms and legs still pumping as he screams, he feels something grip his biceps. Talons lock around his limbs, and rather than fall, he glides upward as the harpy carries him out between two taller buildings that frame the restaurant.

With the backdrop of human structures, the helicopter doesn’t dare fire again, and they slip into the alley unscathed.

For several blocks she glides, managing to find a one-storey roof nearby. Dropping him to his feet, she doesn’t land so smoothly, crumpling and rolling as she shifts back to a human guise.

Gasping for breath as the silver eats at his flesh, Sasuke collapses to his hands and knees. It’s mostly just a graze - he’s sure no vitals were hit, but he’s bleeding like a stuck pig. Add in the intense pain of the metal, and he trembles with the struggle to keep from slipping into a frenzied state.

Several paces away, groaning in pain, the harpy drags herself up. Turning to him, her eyes widen. “Hey -!” Limping back, she kneels beside him only to fall to her backside as Sasuke bats her away.

“D-don’t!”

“But -?”

“I...I’m not s-stable…”

“You’re wounded!”

“I-I might -”

Eyes flickering over him, her jaw then sets. Bloodied hands pull locks from one side of her neck. “You’re a vampire, aren’t you? Blood helps you heal, right?”

“I can’t, I - I might infect you. I can’t...trust myself not to frenzy.”

“You can’t infect me.”

“...but -?”

“Just trust me!”

Shaking, Sasuke’s eyes drift from her face to her neck. His mouth burns in instinct. If he’s going to survive a wound like this...he does need help…

Uncurling himself, he heavily grips her upper arms. For a moment, dagger teeth hover over her skin before plunging in.

He feels her stiffen for a moment, but then force herself to relax.

A minute passes as he takes long draws. Already, the fresh blood eases the sting...but he knows it’ll take more than that to tend to a silver wound. But before he can go too far, Sasuke forces himself back onto his haunches, chin stained red.

As soon as he moves, one of her hands lifts to hold at the wounds. “...do you have a lighter?”

“What -?”

“A lighter. If we’re going to help that silver wound close, we have to get rid of the flesh that’s been touched. Otherwise it will stay open.”

His brows draw...but he shakes his head. “No, I...I don’t smoke -”

She heaves a curt breath through her nose. “...well, at least the bleeding’s stopped. Here -” With a tug, she rips a wide section from the hem of her dress. Part she spares to her leg, where Sasuke sees not a bullet wound, but peppered punctures from shrapnel. The rest she binds around his middle, ignoring his protests. “We still need to clean them, but...at least this will keep anything else out for now.”

“...you a nurse or something?”

“I wanted to be at one point. Never panned out. Can you walk?”

“...can you?”

“If I have to.”

After a pause, Sasuke then thinks to pull out his phone.

“...who are you calling?”

“My mother.”

A white brow perks.

“She’ll send someone from my coven. Get us cleaned up. Hopefully she’s heard if things back there are over yet…”

Looking him over more closely, she observes, “...you’re an Uchiha too, aren’t you? Are you related -?”

“Distantly. My brother is Madara’s top enforcer.”

“...and you?”

“...I’m not.”

As though sensing the sensitive topic, she doesn’t push it as Sasuke finally connects. “Kāchan? Can you -? Yeah, I’m fine. I was. Is anyone -? ...okay. We’re -” A glance around. “...probably three blocks south? On a roof - I think it’s a conbini. Yeah, but - ...no, I’m not dying. Not anymore, anyway. Is aniki -? Okay, good. Yeah, we’ll be fine. Can’t really leave, we’re covered in blood. Five minutes, got it.” A pause, then, “...I love you, too. See you soon.” Hanging up and leaving a bloody thumbprint on his screen, Sasuke looks up. “The hunters were pushed back...no idea how many were killed, yet. My cousin’s going to come find us.”

“...do they...know if it was bad…?”

Sasuke eyes her for a moment. “...not sure. But you got quite a few people out, seems like.”

Her own gaze averts. “...I had a bad feeling. As soon as they told me the senator would be there…”

“Yeah, me too. But it could have been worse.”

“It never should have happened at all,” she cuts in, hugging her knees with a bitter expression.

“...I know.”

Silence falls, and then she glances to him. “...what’s your name?”

“Sasuke. You?”

“Suigin Ryū.”

“...I’d say nice to meet you, but the circumstances are a little…” A pause. “...fucky.”

To his surprise, she snorts softly. “...to put it lightly.”

Another question burns at him, and he decides he might as well ask. “...you’re not just a harpy...are you?”

Greys glance to him warily. “...no. I’m not.”

That explains her lack of worry over being infected with vampirism. If she already has humanoid Nightwalker blood in her, she can’t become anything else. “...never met a hybrid before. What...else are you?”

“Succubus. From my father’s side. Not that I know him, but...well, I knew my mother was a harpy like me.”

“...was?”

“...was.”

An awkward silence falls. “...guess that’s why Naruto was so gaga over you,” Sasuke then offers, trying to lighten the mood.

“Naruto…?”

“Friend of mine. The werefox that was sitting with me.”

“Oh…” A hint of a smile lifts her lips. “It helps with shows. At least...on anyone who’s attracted. Otherwise I have to rely on actual merit.”

“Sounded pretty good to me.”

“Thanks…”

Well, now he knows why he felt that strange pull.

Another silence, but this one more...relaxed. “...thank you…”

“For?”

“Saving my life.”

“Yeah, well...guess I can say the same. Call us even. It’s my brother who’s going to owe me, pulling me into this mess. And Naruto for getting the tickets.”

“For what it’s worth...I’m glad you were there.”

“...least I made it out alive.”

“Oi!”

Both heads turn to see another Uchiha climbing up a ladder along the side of the building. “About time you got here, Shisui,” Sasuke chides.

“Pretty sure none of our evenings went as planned, Sasuke,” the enforcer rebukes. “C’mon, I’ll get you back so you can get cleaned up.” Helping them both down, Shisui introduces himself. “Sorry about all the ruckus, miss.”

“It’s not me you should apologize to,” is her soft reply, wincing as he guides her into a seat.

Thankfully it’s not far to one of Madara’s many safehouses. Already the wounded enforcers are gathered, as well as the dead. A few civis are taken in to be seen to, and Madara himself speaks sternly to his captain. Itachi’s expression is strained.

There’s gonna be hell to pay for this.

Once inside, the pair are made to be separated - Sasuke’s wounds are far more severe. “Guess I’ll see you around.”

“Yeah…” Letting Shisui guide her to another room to be patched up, Ryū glances up as he questions her about the bite on her throat.

Her answer is cut off as Sasuke’s led to different room, dressed down to have his injury purged of the silver influence. Spare blood to help him recover further is quickly brought in. Muscles tense and nerves scream as the afflicted flesh is removed, eagerly gulping down the red viscous liquid. Almost immediately, the wound begins to close, no longer impacted by silver.

“How’s the harpy?”

“Fine, sir. Just some shrapnel in her left calf. No silver.”

Given leave to shower, he does so and redresses in spare clothes. By the time he emerges, she’s already done, hair still wet from her own cleansing. “...you okay?”

“I’ve been better,” she admits, clinging to a large coat someone’s thrown over her shoulders, a basic gown over her frame to her knees. “But...I’ll be all right.” Peeking out from under her hem is white gauze encasing her calf. “...I’m sorry you were shot. It was my fault -”

“The only reason I got off that roof with just one hole rather than looking like Swiss cheese is because you carried me out. Don’t apologize.”

“But -?”

“It’s fine. I’m already on the mend.” As proof, he lifts his shirt, showing the knotty scar.

Her brow furrows at the sight of it, but she doesn’t comment.

“Sasuke.”

Turning, Sasuke brightens at the sight of his brother. “Aniki…”

“You were shot?”

“I’m fine. Already healed over. You?”

“Somehow avoided it...I heard what happened.” He turns to Ryū. “...thank you. You saved my brother’s life.”

“I also helped put it in danger.”

“Well...your actions helped get most of the civilians out. We lost far fewer than if you hadn’t taken the initiative. Thank you.”

She just ducks her head.

“Now...we should get you home. I still have much to attend to...there hasn’t been this much open conflict in quite some time, and the implications are still growing. This is going to be a nightmare to cover up...”

“I can take her.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” Sasuke assures his brother. “You just keep your nose to the grindstone. We’ll be fine.”

“Very well. Thank you.”

Nodding, Sasuke takes her back through the building...only to come up short as Madara himself steps in their path.

The senator glances to him coolly, but his focus quickly shifts to the harpy. “My apologies, miss. It would seem you were caught in our little drama.”

Stiff with nerves, Ryū manages to stutter, “I-I…”

“I assure you, you and the guests will be compensated. This attack won’t stand…” A hand reaches, taking a lock of her hair even as she flinches back. “...we will speak again. Another time, when we are not so...otherwise indisposed.”

“Y...yes, sir.”

Lingering a moment longer, Madara then takes his leave, asking for Itachi as he walks past them.

Ryū then remembers to breathe.

“...yeah, he’s a little intimidating,” Sasuke mutters.

She doesn’t answer.

Taking one of the Uchiha’s many fleet cars, he drives back into the city, getting quiet, short directions from his companion. A high rise apartment building takes them into its underground garage, and he offers to accompany her to her door. Outside it, they pause.

“...thank you again,” Ryū murmurs, fiddling her keys.

“Back at you.”

For a moment she looks ready to protest, but then sighs in defeated acceptance. “I...guess I’ll say goodnight. Take care of yourself, Uchiha-san.”

Snorting at her sudden formality, Sasuke doesn’t rebuke it. Clearly she’s still shaken up, and a tragedy hasn’t exactly made them best friends. “...you too.”

Letting her eyes lift, there’s a moment’s hesitation before she steps up, planting a kiss on his cheek.

The skin seems to tingle pleasantly, and he can’t help a small jump of surprise.

“...goodbye.” Opening her door, she steps in and gives a polite nod before it shuts.

For a long moment he lingers outside it, a few fingers reaching to itch at the sensation on his cheek, which starts to fade.

Something tells him he’ll be seeing her again.

                                                                     .oOo. 

     Woo, day two! This time featuring my Nightwalkers verse, and the lovely @kyuuzuchiha‘s boyos, as well as a few of my own from @hyuuchiha in addition to Ryū :3 And Ayame’s technically in there if you squint, heh heh.      Technically we don’t have a ship in this verse yet, so...I made it more subtle. I don’t write action or violence too often, so...hopefully that part wasn’t a total flop - I tried ^^;       Nightwalkers is of course my original monster verse with lots of politics and drama and stuff! I LOVE getting to write in it cuz...I’m a nerd when it comes to my worldbuilding =w= So this was actually rather self indulgent, eh heh (kinda like the whole event is so I can write all the lovely ships with the lovely people who humor me, ahaha~)      ANYWAY, Boo darling, I hope you enjoyed this dramafest, lol - and I hope I did both your boys justice. I love how you write them and I hope I managed to stay true to your interpretations ;w; And of course thank you for writing with me, no matter the verse or the bonds with our muses. I love it <3 (and I hope you’re doing all right, dear)      Buuut that’s enough rambling outta me! I still need to work on more days to try and stay a bit ahead since I’m busier than I’d like, ahaha~ Hope everyone is enjoying the event n_n