#i know its not 'canon' like mikotos is but. she means a lot to me

[straydogsys]

Thinking about Amane's implied DID again.

I know fictive=/= source but after spending more time with her I just... Man this kids been through so much and is holding onto so much. I just want her to feel safe and loved.

[jacksgreysays]

Fake Fic Title: Seven, For a Secret--Never to be Told.

— Oh shoot I forgot fake fic titles included character and themes. I was going to say Shisui for our favorite Crow adjacent character but honestly any Crow adjacent character for the counting corvids title, and theme chromatic aberration; itsv style.

SHISUI!!!! <3<3<3<3 Also, hello damnsmartblueboxes! Also, also, sorry for the late response, work truly broke me these past few days

Okay, so if we’re doing Into The Spider-verse, but Crow Edition, possible Crows either canon or fanon or AU: Shisui, Amano, Sai, Shikako (because of course there’s an AU out there for this) … oof, who are the other three?

Uzume in an AU in which neither Shisui nor Amano are around to be ANBU Crow T_T

Aoba, maybe?

Which then could do a similar Anko version in an AU in which Aoba isn’t around to be ANBU Crow—although maybe that’s too repetitive of the Uzume one. Maybe it’s just that, in a world where Konoha trusts her (maybe because she sleuths around and is integral in ripping Danzo out of his hole in the ground, thereby saving the Uchiha clan who now have way more political clout, or at the very least, are back to the clout that they had before?) Anko becomes an ANBU and she gets Crow and Aoba—because I will give up ANBU training buddies only when I’m dead—chooses to be ANBU Snake even though everyone is leery of that mask (like everyone is leery of the Fox mask)

… Or is that, maybe, too much of an offshoot/spinoff?

I mean, I always headcanon Mikoto has having been ANBU, though not usually Crow.

… BUT ALSO, in the Spider-verse there are multiples of the same person—with, obviously, Peter Parker being the most common Spiderman—so maybe just different versions of Shisui, Amano, and/or Sai and then the lone Shikako is the outlier? OR it could be that these are distinct Crows, but for the most part, each of them know who the other are—at least by reputation if nothing else—and the fact that no one has any idea who Shikako Nara is (or, bleakly, the ROOT brainwashed non-Shikako version of herself) is the Miles Morales-esque outlier part. SHE’S THE ANOMALY IN THE CROW-VERSE! (But instead of angry, its angsty O_O… or existential?)

Okay, okay, let’s get these Crows in their respective numbers according to the poem, I’m gonna do some logic puzzle nonsense:

Sorrow, Joy, Girl, Boy, Silver, Gold, Secret Never To Be Told

Obviously Shikako is a Secret Never Told. I feel like Uzume would be either Sorrow or Girl, meaning Amano would be the matching Joy or Boy because I want them to be complementary. Then Aoba, Mikoto, Shisui, Sai… let’s see… if Uzume is not Girl, then we could do Mikoto as Girl in a “young Mikoto becomes ANBU Crow because it’s the only way she can see any action because the Uchiha clan is being weirdly gross and misogynistic and are blocking her from taking any risky missions because they want her to marry Fugaku and have extremely powerful heirs with him” kind of way

And while not EXACTLY matching as nicely as Uzume and Amano, I feel like I could then explore my Aoba headcanon as a partial!Uchiha with Boy. And, boy, do I have a weirdly specific headcanon about partial!Uchiha Aoba stumbling into both the Crow summons (he reverse summoned himself!) and the Crow mask—both very Uchiha flavored inheritances—only after the Uchiha Massacre when he is an adult and 1) wouldn’t use the name, but also 2) wouldn’t be able to rub it in the face of the clan that rejected him and his non-Uchiha parent, especially if he was like… a bastard Uchiha child who was never claimed. ( @loveelemental and I had a discord brainstorming session about an Aoba centric fic in which his partial Uchiha heritage makes for a fascinating post-Jashin Sharingan activation, which is where we came up with a lot of details for this partial!Uchiha theory)

Which then leaves Silver and Gold for Shisui and Sai… which feels pretty good? I’d probably—because I’m biased—make Shisui Gold and Sai Silver because even if they are both (maybe) Uchiha, Shisui just FEELS more sun coded even though his Sharingan is “unbreakable genjutsu”, while Sai is moon coded (and also you can get into his brother Shin, the silver of his hair, the shine of moon on blades, and similes of second place and how even as Hikaku no one really wants him first and foremost the way that his brother Shin did T_T sad boy)

So I guess the fic would be these different ANBU Crows somehow interacting with each other, and honestly the easiest way to do this would be Crow!Shikako does a sort of seal space/pocket dimension/temporary mission team using the ANBU Crow mask as a cornerstone. An “I’ve gathered you all here because we all need to murder our respective Danzos, and together we can all help each other do that. Also, imagine the satisfaction of killing Danzo seven times… or more, if he already has Izanagi”

Another way is a more contemplative/abstract “echoes/ghosts of possible timelines” thing in which, again, the ANBU Crow mask is, like, a liminal space. But wearable. Haunted or cursed? And to make it even more angsty the echoes/ghosts only appear when you’re about to die… which, to be fair, ANBU, probably pretty often?

I guess what my brain is trying to do is more of a multi-versal Sense8 than an Into The Spider-verse thing… hm… I don’t hate it at all… it could be fun to puzzle out some more…

... I also realized, for all that I was very excited about your Shisui mention, I literally mentioned him the least, lolol

Anyway, I hope this makes sense and is interesting to you, damnsmartblueboxes :D

[kissmekakashi]

Hey anti sasusaku. Did you know that Sasuke is damaged, he is a mess and he needs someone dedicated to him. Sakura has always been there for him. Sakura filled his lonely existence with love. She loved him no matter what and he appreciated that. She was one of his dear precious persons and she meant a lot to him.

Sakura’s love has always been shown to be an enduring, selfless and nurturing love, the type that Sasuke needed, craved but rejected. Sakura is also a medical ninja so that fits. She is caricatured to be the lover of the series. Her dreams are about love, she is traditionally feminine. Don’t get me wrong, she’s a phenomenal woman but she’s also a traditional Japanese woman. Sakura’s character is also shown to be a devoted character.  She had and has to deal with so much. She has to be Sasuke’s rock.

This doesn’t mean that Sasuke doesn’t contribute to this relationship.

Sasuke is the only person who can make her feel on top of the world. He is her prince charming. She wants his love, his recognition and she wants to be with him and Sasuke gave that to Sakura after the war ended. he gave that to Sakura when he is mentally stable already.

SasuSaku have a really intense and mature relationship more than any of the hetero or even homo ships in Naruto.

*cracks knuckles* Okay

Please be prepared, this is going to be a long one.

Hello Anon. Did you know that almost everything that you said about Sakura and Sasuke's equation is extremely one sided? She wants the love and relationship of a man who on multiple occasions called her annoying?

Keeping that in mind, all of what you wrote was all about what Sakura felt and wanted out of her relationship with Sasuke - an idealistic world. None of it was felt or reciprocated by Sasuke.

This is also the same man who tried to kill her? One of them being a horrible gennjustu.

Sakura was crushing on a classic pretty boy, which is understandable and common but did she know a thing about him? Did she know that he was orphaned before making an off handed comment like this? And for someone who you claim to love so much, to the point where you are ready to turn your back on your village and for a pretty long time too, how can you not know this?

She may have "loved" him, and I am using the term "loved" very lightly here because I think she had an obsessive crush on him but he couldn't give rat's furry butt about her feelings. I am not saying he didn't recognize as a team mate, because he did, and for a brief moment in time, before Itachi's resurfacing, he had started feeling a little better.

But better did not mean that he fell in love with Sakura. In fact, the only person he considered close to him till now, as we can see in Boruto, is Naruto. Kakashi was his sensei so he had that basic respect for him and Sakura was a team mate and maybe a friend at best but nothing more.

In the multiple recaps and monologues that Sasuke has ever made about his lonely existence, the ONLY person who he kept and yearned to keep by his side ( and did too) was Naruto. In order to become truly alone, it was not Sakura who needed to be killed. It was Naruto. He mentioned this in both, VotE1 and VotE2. You see who fills his lonely existence in the multiple OC and EC too.

For Sakura, a pretty competent medic nin, to push herself on Sasuke, constantly, demanding a romantic relationship despite his multiple rejections feels odd, in fact, it's toxic. And he maintained that rejection throughout the series. That's not good on either parties.

When someone is mentally unwell, the last thing they need is a pushy person who wished to pursue a romantic relationship with them, irrespective of what happens or how many ever times said person has been rejected.

BTW this is the same Sakura who doesn't know if Sasuke wore glasses and their date lasted 2 minutes in Boruto. If Sasuke cared that much, there wouldn't be so many panels showing Sakura's constant disappointment in the distant nature and apathetic way Sasuke treats her. And it has been proven on multiple occasions that when it comes to emotions, Sasuke is the farthest from cold. In fact he burns intensely, like fire.

Despite having a child with the woman who was supposedly his rock, he never contacted her. For 12 years. 12 YEARS. And its not that he wasn't capable of contacting because he did keep in touch with Naruto as, once again, proven by canon. If you think your partner disappearing on you for 12 years after you have given birth to their child is "giving them the world" then I guess yeah, he did.

Sasuke and Sakura couldn't be further away from mature. Examples of mature relationship include Ino and Sai, Shikamaru and Temari, Naruto and Sasuke ( they feel INTENSELY for each other), Minato and Kushina. To some extent Fugaku and Mikoto too.

I hope I was able to answer you well. I am not trying to convert you or whatever, I cannot be bothered about who ships what ship. You do you. But these are my reasons (with facts) as to why I feel that SasuSaku is a toxic relationship that ideally, should have never happened but since it is canon, its a horrible one.

[uten4]

mikoto and kokomi, imu and kokomi, kubokai, phonon and nanase, khunbaam (need an update), shiki and neku, beat and neku

THANKS I LOVE YOU :)

Kokomi Teruhashi and Mikoto Aiura (Saiki K) Their relationship in the story was kind of just a lot of Saiki-focused love rivalry, but I think they have potential. I think it's epic that Aiura likes Teruhashi so much already; imo she's attracted to her. Their personalities have the potential to mesh in really interesting ways, and I think I've said before that they would be a power couple. Like they both literally have superpowers and a ton of confidence. :]

Imu Rifuta and Kokomi Teruhashi (Saiki K) The "I'd die for them" is because Imu is funny and canon gay, of course I'll die for her and any of her potential healthy relationships. I do think these two are a bit too similar for me to have gotten really interested in ImuTeru, but I still think it's very cute and I like a lot of the content about them :) My bone to pick with the fandom is that they don't take enough advantage of Imu's insanity. She's a soft girl (TM) for Teruhashi, yes, but she's also very analytical, and very good at being mean to people LOL. She's not just a soft girl (TM) all the time.

Kuboyasu and Kaidou (Saiki K) I think my era of being obsessed with them is finally over 😅, but I still think they're fun characters and cute friends (forgot to circle "I like it platonically" oops) and a cute ship and I enjoy seeing content of them around. Aesthetically it's great because of the contrast (Kaidou "goth" Shun and Kuboyasu "just a normal polite boy" Aren), but it's also still a great aesthetic if Kuboyasu reverts back into a punk.

Phonon and Nanase (Under Night In-Birth) I haven't seen everything about them yet so maybe I'll change my mind but for now I wuv them. :) I like how they appear so much together. I saw them hanging out casually chatting during the Hollow Night (a recurring night in the story when characters with powers can go into an unpopulated extension of their city and run wild) and it was so cute. Then they bullied Londrekia and that was also cute. #besties??? To my understanding Phonon is a complete and total chuunibyou, and Nanase also seems to be some sort of chuunibyou herself but from like a completely different genre; if that's true then that's amazing, I'm amazed. I've seen a lot of fans say that Nanase is a really really annoying tsundere, but honestly she doesn't seem to act like that around Phonon at all...?! Maybe Hyde really brings it out in her; updates to come.

"I like it in theory" is because if it were canon, I don't know if either the developers or the fandom would be normal about it... I mean everyone already oversexualizes Phonon so :/

Khun and Baam (Tower of God) This chart is making me laugh dsjkghvsndjkdshvuds. LISTEN. I think I've successfully stopped caring about Khun and whether he's gay or not in my daily life, but putting myself in the Tower of God mindset, they make me sooooo unwell 💙 Not because I'm gone for them; honestly I don't care about whether they get in a relationship or not and I never really have-- I just need it to be canon that Khun is in love with Baam. THE FREAKING POWER THIS NARRATIVE HAS. THE EMOTIONS. IT'S INSANE. IT'S MADNESS. AND IT'S NEVER GONNA HAPPEN. Again, not in my daily life, but in terms of Tower of God-- I NEED IT. No I don't, I'm strong, I don't need it. BUT I DO!!!!!!!!!!!

Shiki and Neku (TWEWY) I love their friendship. The ways that they've helped each other, and the amount they care about each other, is really nice. But in terms of romance, I don't really care for it!

Neku and Beat (TWEWY) Their friendship is so sweet and funny and interesting :) I'm not passionate about the ship for them, but some of the fan content is pretty cute and I think it deserves its steady rise in popularity SO MUCH.

[k-project-singularity]

Facts & Trivia || Misaki Yata

The following is part of a series of posts made by me. The information listed is official canon provided by GoRa. Sources will go from the anime, to mangas and novels as well as official short stories. These are NOT fanmade headcanons. The purpose of these posts is to provide useful information for fans as well as roleplayers looking for confirmed lore for their muses. Please do not reply to argue with me about what you read here. I did not come up with this stuff myself. GoRa did. I’ll come back to edit these as I find more info.

Born on July 20, 1993 (The same year as Daichi Yamata, Tōru Hieda, Andy Dōmyōji and Saruhiko Fushimi).

Member of Homra since January/February 2009, when he was 15 years old alongside Saruhiko Fushimi.

His Homra insignia is on the left collarbone like Saruhiko Fushimi’s. Yata and Fushimi are remarkably known as the first and only case in which two clansmen received the mark on the same spot. Yata took great pride in this and will show it off often. He hates that Fushimi marred his own.

His weapons of choice are his fists and legs that Yata uses with expert street fighting moves and acrobatics. He also brandishes blunt weapons such as a baseball bat and a pole, and can control his aura to make his skateboard go faster as well as use it as a weapon itself.

He wears a smartwatch that he uses instead of a PDA. It has all the functions of a mobile phone, including camera and holographic screen as well as a flashlight. It was gifted to him by Fushimi, who personally customized it for him when they were roommates.

Yata called himself Yatagarasu to sound cooler as a Homra member. Yatagarasu is a crow spirit with three legs in Japanese folklore.

Yata is the vanguard of Homra. This means he adopts an all-out direct offense tactic, charging at the enemy on the front without any regard for his own safety. This used to make his duo with Saruhiko almost invincible as his friend would watch his back and finish off the enemy. But after they split up, this strategy doesn’t work as well and Yata often puts his own life at risk with it.

He was born with a different (and unknown) last name. His last name became “Yata” only once his mother remarried (In Japan children of remarried women get their new stepfather’s last name). Misaki was 6 years old at the time.

He hates to be called by his first name because it’s girly. The only people allowed to use it without getting yelled at are his family, Anna, and Saruhiko back when they were friends. Saruhiko still calls him Misaki out of habit, sometimes just to annoy him.

During his earliest childhood he was best friend with Rikio Kamamoto, dragging him around in all kinds of dangerous explorations. Departing from him at 6 years old, he reunites with Rikio once he joins Homra nine years later.

He always displayed a kind of tough, abusive friendship with Kamamoto, calling him names because of his weight and yelling at him when Rikio showed weakness by crying. Even now he doesn’t hesitate to fight him or physically hit him when in an argument.

Though he was born in Shizume City, he moved to live elsewhere at 6 with his mother when she remarried. When he was 12 his family moved in Chiyoda City (Saruhiko and Scepter 4’s district) and was able to go visit Shizume City again because it was nearby. At 15 years of age he returned to live in Shizume City when he moved in with Fushimi.

He attended Himuka Middle School in Chiyoda City, where he met and befriended Fushimi. Both of them dropped out at the end of their third year.

Though he was often bullied, Yata was kind of a bully himself at school, often forcing people into being his friends and scaring them with his fierce and strong personality. This caused the other kids to not really like him much and blacklist him behind his back.

Swears and yells a lot. He’s very manic and violent when he gets worked up and won’t hesitate to give a beating to fellow clansmen too if they anger him (or even if they don’t, in the case of Kamamoto).

He’s very good at baseball and is particularly proud of his straight as a pitcher.

He can use both the skateboard and surf board very skillfully. Even to the point where girls will find him cool, unbeknownst to him. He owns both boards stylized with Homra’s symbol.

His favorite subjects in school were PE and music.

However, seen how bad Yata was at playing Totsuka’s guitar, it’s safe to assume his only musical talent was singing.

He tried to learn to play the guitar from Totsuka.

He likes videogames, which he played a lot with Saruhiko in the past. He often goes to the arcade and has even taught Anna to play FPS games. This shows he might be a bit oblivious to what is appropriate for a kid when it comes to gore and violence.

For his age, he has pretty good housekeeping and cooking skills. However, Kamamoto has described Yata’s cooking as “too manly” for a girl’s birthday.

All animals seem to dislike him for some reason. This includes the horse strain Basashi and a retriever that Fujishima once picked up.

Neko, who also believes to be a cat, shows instinctive hostility towards Yata just like a real cat would.

Yata is actually upset when animals hate him and to bring it up is a sensitive subject.

This seems to be a “mirroring” trait to Fushimi, who instead dislikes animals and yet seems to attract them to himself like a magnet.

Eric Sōlt seems to dislike him (a reference to his dog-like personality), and often mocks him in English. Though Yata’s English is bad, he seems to be able to pick up the insults and gets very annoyed.

He’s very annoyed by how popular Kamamoto gets in the summer when he loses weight. Though, rather than because of jealousy, it might be because when Rikio is surrounded by girls it is impossible for Yata to approach him or hang out with him at ease.

He’s an active member of the Committee of Fattening Up Kamamoto Rikio, going great lengths with his cooking skills to make him gain weight (even to the point where his own living budget will be as low as to force Yata to eat poorly).

Yata appears to get overwhelmingly flustered in the presence of young women, to the point he looks outright terrified and avoids interacting with them. He seems to be okay with little girls or women far older than himself.

Because of his past drama with Saruhiko, Yata holds a personal and violent grudge towards Scepter 4 and anything related to them, reacting with suspicion and hostility towards any of its members.

By far the member who cares about Homra’s honor the most. Yata doesn’t tolerate that anything offensive is said about his King or clan. He also gets furious when his fellow clansmen act in dishonorable ways that could stain the Red Clan’s reputation, and will violently discipline them without any restraint if so.

In general, Yata proves to have great pride and sense of honor overall, refusing to strike at injured people, no matter how bad he hates them.

Despite his problems with Fushimi and how directly he insults him as they fight, Yata also won’t tolerate that anyone else speaks poorly of him. In general, Homra members know to avoid the topic entirely around Yata.

He’s known to not listen all too well to no one, save perhaps Mikoto-san (who however hardly ever tells him anything).

This may be another a mirror personality trait to reflect Fushimi, who instead doesn’t speak out his thoughts (“He never listens vs. He never tells”).

He won’t tolerate being bossed around by any guy save the Homra founders. Yata dislikes when people settle things on their own. Ironically, he is guilty of this fault himself as he often takes decisions and acts without waiting.

Despite his fiery temper, Yata is very nurturing and won’t hesitate to show concern and care for those he’s very close to. Though he may be aggressive about it, especially with Saruhiko.

Yata is tormented by not knowing the exact reasons behind Saruhiko’s betrayal. He’ll ask him several times, only to get mocked as a result.

When he and Saruhiko start arguing, Yata can get tunnel vision and forget about everything else around him, including bullets and grenades.

Though he always swears he’ll beat Saruhiko to death, deep inside Yata has never given up on getting his friend back, and always looks with hope for signs from Saruhiko that they can be comrades again. Because of this he gets even more hurt every time Saruhiko reiterates his betrayal and spite towards Homra.

Yata can be a bit of a crybaby and tear up more easily than most guys.

He’s terrified of ghosts. When he hears about ghost stories or thinks one may be close, Yata gets extremely jittery and manic. However, he strongly denies his fears and will react with nervous violence if accused of this.

[fatesdeepdive]

Entry 8: Rinkah’s Burning Loins

My Castle

After fully dedicating ourselves to Hoshido, the game finally really begins. We’re given access to a customizable castle in the Astral Plane where our army waits between battles. We can talk to our units, giving them minor stat boosts or new weapons. Right off the bat, we have a farm and spring to give us resources, rooms for Corrin and Lilith, and a Hall of Records.

In Lilith’s spring, we can feed her to make her level up. Different foods affect her stats in different ways. Note that, although Lilith now has stats, she isn’t usable in battle. Other players can invade our Castle through spotpass, which I’ll discuss in a later entry, and Lilith is only usable in those battles.

Lilith

Lilith is a weird squirrel dragon thing that floats around clutching a random ball. She used to be our stable girl and is now our pet. I think she has a crush on Corrin. Her design is unique and cute, I like it. Gameplay wise, she can only use a modified Physic staff. I don’t dislike her personality, but she feels like a throwaway character added at the last minute. She raises a ton of questions that I doubt will ever be answered.

In the Hall of Records, we can see descriptions of all the units we’ll ever recruit, rewatch cutscenes, read unreadable poems, and play around with a relationship tester. The relationship tester is randomized, by the way, which kinda makes it pointless. That said, it told me that Corrin expects betrayal from Rinkah, while Rinkah’s loins are set afire by Corrin. This is now canon, I have decided.

In Corrin’s room, we can change their hairstyle and invite an ally over to chill. I chose Kaze. He complimented Corrin’s piano skills, which she apparently has, then stared at us, blushing, while thanking us for saving him from Garon.

So, let’s talk about the elephant in the room. In the Japanese version you get to rub units while in close up mode. Like Pokemon Amie except...with people. This was removed in the English version. A lot of Fire Emblem fans were pissed, crying about censorship because Nintendo of America had the gall to remove the minigame where you rub Camila’s tiddies while she moans. And I’m going to say a hot take right now: they made the right call. That stuff was weird and indulgent. It was the living embodiment of the fanservice focussed design that plagues modern Fire Emblem games. Good riddance.

Inviting allies to Corrin’s cool sex treehouse boosts our support levels. I suppose it's time I mentioned that. In Fire Emblem games, units form bonds from fighting next to each other, unlocking short conversations that flesh them out as characters. Units also fight together better when they have high supports. Now, here’s the fun thing about supports:

There are more than 600 supports in this game. Not support conversations, support lines, each of which is made up of three or four conversations. And, because God has cursed me for my hubris and my work is never finished, I’m going to read all of them.

Admittedly, I’m not going to unlock all of them. S-Rank conversations result in marriages and each unit only gets one. It’d take a few dozen playthroughs to get all of Corrin’s S-Rank conversations and I don’t hate myself that much, so I’m reading the transcripts from the wiki. I think I’m going to do four supports per Entry; that’ll leave me with a few extra by the time we reach the end, but I’ll just do a support grab bag entry or something.

Before we do supports, let’s finish up improving the castle. I built a weapon shop and a statue of Corrin that boosts her max speed. We are limited on the number of buildings we can build, but that isn’t a big deal yet because the only other option was to build a stave shop.

Support: Corrin/Rinkah

C: Corrin attempts to discuss battle tactics with Rinkah, but Rinkah blows her off and tells her to stop trying to be friends. Rinkah does acknowledge that Corrin’s authority and that Corrin saved her life, but tells the princess leave her alone.

B: Corrin pesters Rinkah until she explains why she’s so aloof. Rinkah explains that, the Flame Tribe keeps a great flame burning in the center of the village to honor the God of Fire. In the past, outsiders have extinguished the fire. One such instance was followed by a volcanic eruption that decimated the tribe. As a rule, the people of the Flame Tribe are wary of outsiders. Rinkah also explains that she’s working for Hoshido because her father commanded her to, much to her chagrin.

A: Rinkah explains that she would have preferred to die an honorable warrior’s death than be captured and resents Corrin for sparing her. Corrin says that she’s glad Rinkah is still alive, because it means Rinkah and her can be friends. Corrin also says that, despite the chaos of war, she believes in fate and its ability to bring people together. Corrin encourages Rinkah to use this opportunity to learn more about the outside world and bring that knowledge home with her. Rinkah begrudgingly agrees.

This is how the conversation will end on my playthrough, but if Corrin has a penis, you can get an S-Rank proposal conversation. I’ll be listing all of these off along with the normal conversations.

S: Rinkah comes to Corrin, blushing, and tells him that he has been a constant reminder of her shame and regret over being captured. But, over time, these feelings were replaced with love. Love that she hated, because Corrin is an outsider. Corrin says that he’s loved Rinkah since the day they met and only told her to be friendly to other people as an excuse to spend time with her. Rinkah states that, from now on, she will remember her capture as the happiest day of her life and the two get married.

Review: I really like this support line. It expands Rinkah’s backstory and culture, ties it into Corrin’s own isolation and belief in fate, and deals with the tumultuous meeting they had in Chapter 2. The confession comes out of nowhere, admittedly, but I do like Rinkah grappling with her mixed feelings of hate and love. Solid support.

Support: Corrin/Jakob

C: Corrin comes to Jakob to ask for a favor. Jakob interrupts her by humorously listing off the things he would do for Corrin. Things like slay dragons for her, which is actually kinda offensive now that I think about it. Corrin begs Jakob to allow her to be independent and Jakob refuses. Corrin explains that she’s his boss and he tells her that servitude is his reason for living. Jakob explains that, when he started working for Corrin, he was incompetent, and her kindness towards him made him indebted to her. The two compromise on the agreement that Jakob will teach Corrin how to make tea. After Corrin leaves, Jakob mumbles to himself that things might get apocalyptic.

B: Corrin repeatedly tries and fails to make a decent cup of tea. Both of them get some funny lines in, with Corrin telling Jakob that she can’t hear him because she’s ignoring him and Jakob saying that, saying that they’ll run out of leaves before Corrin makes decent tea. They meaning the nation in this case. Corrin eventually makes a passable cup, after Jakob secretly adds in sugar.

A: Jakob admits to Corrin that he messed with her tea and she laughs it off, admitting that she knew all along. She apologizes for being stubborn and accepts that she still needs Jakob’s help sometimes. Jakob says that he falls apart without Corrin. Corrin says that the two of them are alike in that way and Jakob literally faints from joy.

S: Jakob is acting more distant than normal. When Corrin asks him about this, he admits that he’s fallen for her and resigns from his duties as butler, because it is improper for him to have feelings for his mistress. Corrin begs him to say because she needs him and admits that she loves him too. The two of them get embarrassed and Corrin fires Jakob, giving him the new job of husband.

Review: This was a hilarious support that really made me appreciate Jakob’s snarky yet loyal personality. He is the perfect butler. The conflict of Corrin wanting to be independent and Jakob wanting to take care of her is a good dynamic that made me appreciate the relationship between these two characters. I do like them more as a platonic couple than a romantic one, but Jakob quitting his job because falling in love with Corrin is improper is a nice character moment.

Support: Corrin/Kaze

C: A villager gives Kaze a bunch of radishes because he’s super hot. And I mean, he is. Kaze apparently doesn’t realize that he’s hot until Corrin explains it to him. Kaze mentions that he dislikes the attention because he isn’t a good person before running off.

B: Corrin asks Kaze to follow her around so she can figure out what’s bothering him. Kaze says no, so Corrin annoys him until he agrees to hang out with him. Then he runs away again.

A: Kaze admits to Corrin that it was his fault that Garon kidnapped her, because when he was a child, he noticed the Nohrian soldiers that killed Sumeragi were in the city but said nothing about it. I don’t know how that makes Corrin’s kidnapping his fault, you’d expect there to be soldiers guarding a king. And the fact that Kaze was there means that there were also Hoshido soldiers, which means there was no reason to be suspicious of the Nohrians. Also, Kaze was a teenager at the oldest, so he should probably get some leeway. Whatever. Kaze apologizes to Corrin and Corrin, in turn, apologizes for making him live with guilt for fifteen years. Corrin also points out that Kaze led her home, meaning that they’re even now. Kaze compares Corrin to Mikoto because of her kindness and pledges to serve Corrin as her loyal retainer.

S: Corrin and Kaze joke around about Corrin’s kidnapping. It’s cute. Corrin mentions that, now that she’s spent so much time offscreen with Kaze, she likes him even more. Kaze blurts out that he loves Corrin, despite being her bodyguard, and the two propose.

Review: I found this chain a bit lacking, to be honest. The first two conversations were filler and the origin for Kaze’s guilt complex is kinda dumb. Kaze’s relationship with Corrin defines him as a character. He is so guilt ridden over her kidnapping that he would betray his country and his family to protect her. Later parts of the game hinge on this relationship. But, three of their four conversations are dull. I do like Kaze’s guilt complex as a concept, and think becoming Corrin’s retainer alongside Jakob and/or Felicia and a way to repent, but it isn’t enough to save this support line.

Support: Kaze/Rinkah

C: Kaze gets a bunch of candy for being hot and shares it with Rinkah, who secretly loves candy.

B: Kaze continues to give Rinkah candy.

A: Kaze continues to give Rinkah candy.

S: Kaze reveals that he’s been giving Rinkah candy because he’s in love with her.

Review: This one was a big let down. The fact that Kaze and Rinkah are introduced together made me think it would be about their capture, but no. It’s just Kaze giving Rinkah candy for four conversations straight. And it’s cute fluff, but it’s nothing more than that. There is something interesting below the surface with Rinkah hiding her love of candy to protect her image, but it’s never really explored.

So, off to a mixed start with the support conversations.

Birthright Chapter 7: A Vow Upheld

Team Corrin heads to a Hoshidan fort where Sakura is tending to wounded soldiers. We are introduced to Sakura’s retainers, Subaki and Hana. Suddenly, the fort is attacked by Nohrian forces. Corrin and Azura point out the ridiculousness of them attacking immediately after they arrived. Sakura freaks out because the fort is being used as a hospital and has no military value. So apparently Nohr is now being evil just to be evil.

Subaki and Hana agree to help Corrin defend the fort and argue over who’s more important to Sakura, much to her annoyance. Subaki and Hana give me a good opportunity to discuss a few interesting things about classes in this game. First off, unlike in most Fire Emblem games, classes are NOT gender-specific, as demonstrated by Subaki being the first male Pegasus Knight in the series. Secondly, the classic Fire Emblem classes were divided between the two nations. Nohr got Mercenaries, Hoshido got Myrmidons. Nohr got Wyvern Riders, Hoshido got Pegasus Knights. Etc. I really like this, it gives the two countries different feels in combat both aesthetically and mechanically. Finally, a lot of Hoshidan classes were renamed to be more Eastern, shown by Hana being a Samurai instead of a Myrmidon, or by Sakura being a Shrine Maiden instead of a Cleric.

Subaki

Subaki is a Sky Knight, this game’s equivalent of a Pegasus Knight. He can fly over terrain and has good speed and resistance, but is decimated by arrows. His personal skill buffs his hit and avoid when he has full health. Design wise, I like how ridiculously smug he looks. Personality wise, he seems over-competitive yet fiercely loyal to Sakura.

Hana

Hana is a Samurai with high speed and skill. Her personal skill damaged nearby enemies when she scores a kill. Her design is fine, if a little bland. Personality wise, she seems over-competitive yet fiercely loyal to Sakura.

Starting with this chapter, we have a prep menu, where we can choose which units to use and rearrange them on the map. We can bring our whole team in with us, so it’s a little pointless, but it's nice. Worth noting that you can have units start in pair up via this menu, unlike in Awakening where you had to pair them up after the battle started.

At the start of the battle, the chapter’s boss, a Cavalier named Silas, shouts out to Corrin that he’s her childhood best friend. She does not remember him even slightly. Okie dokie.

This map is decent. It’s a bit short, but it features a lot of good bottlenecks. The Dragon Veins can be used to open heal tiles, which is a bit pointless because you have two healers. When Silas and Corrin fight, he reiterates that they used to be friends. Corrin says that she can’t remember her past. And that confuses me, because I was under the impression that she got amnesia when she was taken to Nohr, which would have been before she met Silas. Unless he’s lying.

After the battle, Corrin refuses to kill Silas. She interrogates him about why he was so hesitant to attack them and he explains that, when they were children, he helped Corrin sneak out of the walls to have a picnic. The guards tried to execute Silas for this, but Corrin stopped them, because apparently guards listen to small children. Because of this, Silas feels he owes a debt to Corrin.

Question. Why was this random child allowed to play with the super secret hostage princess? Whatever.

Corrin eventually recovers a vague memory of Silas and asks him to join the gang. She explains that Garon is crazy and evil and that’s enough to make him swap sides. Silas is now officially the most sane character in the game. I mean, he should have probably realized this stuff before being sent to destroy a hospital for shits and giggles, but still.

Also, Silas mentions that Corrin’s favorite food is surf and turf. Perhaps this symbolizes how Corrin is stuck between both kingdoms? Or maybe it’s a random throwaway line. You be the judge!

At the end of the chapter, Saizo and a new character named Orochi show up, wounded, and report that Takumi and Ryoma have gone missing. Uh oh.

Team Corrin decide to help search for the missing princes. Sakura decides to come along, despite Corrin and Kaze’s objections. Silas also decides to come along and Saizo points out that he totally could be a spy or traitor. He’s a dick, but he is infinitely smarter than Kaze.

[queensconquest]

 kiingsroar said: K project ! & Twist ~ fieryvanguard said:  Fandom: K Project!

( SEND ME A 001.FANDOM 002.SHIP, OR 003.CHARACTER FOR ANSWERED QUESTIONS )

K  PROJECT 001 | Send me a fandom and I will tell you my:

Favorite character:  DON’T MAKE ME CHOOSE. Yukari & Nagare are my favorites. I’d say Yukari a bit more if only because he’s so fun. but i love Mikoto as well.

Least Favorite character:  Neko. She is annOYING

5 Favorite ships (canon or non-canon):  Yukuroh , MikoRei, SaruMi, Yukari x Nagare , Seri x Izumo

Character I find most attractive:  Yukari obviously

Character I would be best friends with:  ANNA BC SHE IS GOOD AND DESERVES IT. But that’d be more sibling so i’d say Nagare.

a random thought: I still have icons of the angry amazon box in the JUNGLE hideout... also where tf are the other rooms the manga shows in JUNGLE ?

An unpopular opinion:   Season 2 is better than Season 1.

My Canon OTP:   Izumo x Seri are close enough to count.

My Non-canon OTP:   Yukuroh

Most Badass Character:  Yukari. He is okay, the 1 non King able to kill a king if he wanted.

Most Epic Villain: JUNGLE as a whole, but Nagare specifically is amazing

Pairing I am not a fan of:  Shiro x Kuroh. *shrugs*

Character I feel the writers screwed up (in one way or another):   Shiro. Like the fuck are his powers ? cAN HE FLY OR NOT? and whY DOES HE NEVER USE THEM.

Favourite Friendship:  a friendship specifically? Izumo , Mikoto , and Totsuka’s friendship. But the JUNGLE family is best.

Character I most identify with:   Nagare for sure. Very intellectual but I’m ?? very uncertain around people and social situtions. Idk when I count as someone’s friend yk? So i prefer to keep a select few around me irl, like 3-4. Also i tend to be pretty quiet in general and i’m logic over emotions. I’m good at giving advice.

Character I wish I could be:  I mean... either Nagare or Yukari’s good with me.

TWISTED  WONDERLAND 001 | Send me a fandom and I will tell you my:

Favorite character:  Vil...... But I also love Riddle a whole lot.

Least Favorite character: Floyd. he just is. 

5 Favorite ships (canon or non-canon):  Rookvil , Riddle x Cater , Ace x Deuce, Leovil, and i guess Jack x Vil  ? 

Character I find most attractive:  Vil. But uhhh Leona’s overblot? Nice af.

Character I would be best friends with:  Hmm. I have no idea. Maybe Trey? Ortho? Idk.

a random thought:  I fucking hate epel’s shoes.

An unpopular opinion:  Let them be EVIL !!  They’re  VILLAINS  !

My Canon OTP:  N/A

My Non-canon OTP:  Probably Rookvil tbh. 

Most Badass Character: Rook. His eyesight and skills with bows and everything? Terrifying but so cool too.

Most Epic Villain:  I’m going off the Overblots, and I’m saying Riddle so far.

Pairing I am not a fan of:  I’m not sure. See Vil’s jealousy says rook x leona. but idk if thats me or vil hdsjdfgf. I guess Kalim x Floyd? Idk. I dont really care.

Character I feel the writers screwed up (in one way or another):  I’m very scared they’re about to ruin Vil’s character. Like the canon information they’ve already given. This is why i’m ready to rewrite the chapter if need be

Favourite Friendship:  Ace and Deuce ! Their friendship is amazing and i love it. 

Character I most identify with:  *stares into the void* I have no idea. I guess Vil. I can definitely be a perfectionist with certain things. I tend to act okay or say i’m okay even when I’m not. So i have that ‘mask’ he does too.  I know its not good, but i feel like i have to for others, esp when people look up to me. I don’t want to let anyone down, so i bottle everything up inside until i explode. Also trust issues. 

Character I wish I could be: Everyone needs therapy, but I’d love to have Vil’s beauty and like, knowing what to do with my feature like he does.

[marshmellowtea]

hey!! im gonna send you a lot of charas, you can answer them as you want, I just wanna make sure you have enough to answer all you want!! seishi, nikei, ayumu, marin maki, komaeda, makoto, mikan and sayake, please!

aaaaaaaa anon ur so sweet ilysm ;o; 

i’ll probably have to divide these into a couple posts so i can break it into chunks for myself but i’ll start off with seishi, nikei, and ayumu here :’0 

also putting this under a cut so i hopefully don’t break anyone’s dashes 

seishi 

favorite thing about them 

he’s just,, baby?? he’s just baby hdfjaslkdfsdf i don’t even know how to describe it. i was attached to him the moment i saw him and the more i watched of him the more in love i fell he’s such a precious dork,, 

least favorite thing about them 

idk if this actually counts because this is more of a criticism of his writing than anything but it’s so annoying how people just default him to “standard evil villain” after the katagiri zen reveal like no,, there’s so much more that can be done with him,, how dare you,, 

favorite line 

tbh as much as i’m disappointed (read: angry) with the direction voices was going to go, “did you just call us horny?” is still an ICONIC line fhaslksdfjlksdf i love it so much 

brOTP 

him and marin! also him and mikoto,, and him and nico,, tbh him and any girl is good he just vibes “let’s go wlw let’s go!!”, y’know? i also like him and nikei being like. adopted brothers or adopted cousins tbh it’s really cute 

OTP 

seishi/akira/ayumu/saiji. yes that it as an ot4. yes it counts come at me bro. any seishi/rebirth boy ship is good tho 

nOTP 

i,, really don’t like seishi/girls fjadsklfjsadf feels bad man 

random headcanon 

he has TRAUMA dammit!! i hc that he has a backstory similar to maki’s in that he was forced into being an assassin at a young age so it wasn’t really his choice to get involved in all this. i’ve kinda ran that idea into the ground at this point though so here’s a lighter headcanon: when he was 14, he reeeaaaally wanted to be a cat. like, to the point where he’s embarrassed to look back on those days because oh my god he really straight up tried to act like a cat 24/7 huh? kinda ties into another headcanon of mine that he’s less mature than he lets on and tends to go through periods of feeling kinda childlike but ssshh shsh shsh shush

unpopular opinion 

he’s a good boy with a morally dubious job and that doesn’t make him automatically evil. y’all are just unimaginative, uncreative and mean >:( 

song i associate with them 

coughs at my seishi and zen playlists uhh there’s a lot tbh but the songs most strongly connected with him in my mind are “this is how you spell haha we destroyed the hopes and dreams of a generation of faux romantics” by los campesinos! and “i’ve got all this ringing in my ears and none on my fingers” by fall out boy (and yes those are two songs with very long titles i know hdfaklsjdflsd ;w;) 

favorite picture of them 

aaaa rebirth doesn’t have a lot of good cgs to pull from across either of its canons and idk if fanart counts so,, but gosh i really love his surprised sprite. he’s like :o. he’s so baby i love him so much 

nikei 

favorite thing about them 

he’s so interesting. it’s clear a lot of work went into his character, and it’s always a fascinating struggle to try and write him. i think it might be a bit easier after chapter four is fully translated but still there’s a lot of complexity to him and it’s interesting trying to break down his outer shell and get inside his head, y’know? also, he’s adorable. i wanna squish his cheeks. 

least favorite thing about them 

oh my GOD does my boy stress me out. i hate seeing him being mean to my other favorite characters and i’m always just like baby why are you like this please don’t ohmygod?? i’m gonna have to watch chapter four with my hands covering my eyes hasdfjslkdf i hate betrayal plots :’) 

favorite line 

this is kinda hard actually hasdkflsjdfk but “and she threw them away just like that? girl, are you a genius or an idiot, make up your mind!” from the third trial is reALLY GOOD FHKJDFLKDSF on a more heartbreaking note though him apologizing before he dies is just,, god. god.

brOTP 

him and the other voids!! they’re a family fight me. and him and seishi, ofc. i also like him and setsuka a lot though,, after chapter six i’m doubling down on my “she’s his mom!!” stance okay. i also like him and yoruko because i think they could have a fun dynamic (and maybe a soft dynamic with older yoruko,, maybe,,)(what i’m saying is that he gains another mom okay. let me project my mommy issues in peace) 

OTP 

i,, actually largely headcanon him as aro so there’s not a lot of ships with him i’m super passionate about?? i still kinda like him and setsuka in aus and such but other than that i mostly dropped all my ships for him after chapter six cuz it’s no big loss to me. though,, i’m not gonna lie, i still have a HUGE soft spot for sorakei. after seeing his free time events they just,, grew on me and i’d think they’d be really cute together c’mon guys can we make it happen- :’0 

nOTP 

nikei/mikado nikei/mikado nikei/mikado LIKE CAN WE PUT IT TO REST ALREADY I ACTUALLY HATE IT 

random headcanon 

his hair is actually naturally super curly and he straightens it every morning so other people don’t realize this. the other voids think it looks really cute pre-straightener but he thinks it makes it hard for others to take him seriously which is why he goes to such lengths to try to hide it basically he does NOT appreciate the cooing he gets from emma, thank you very much. hgalsdjfadlfkl

unpopular opinion 

i’m not actually sure if this counts cuz i don’t see this on tumblr at least but i don’t think we should take what he says to emma and hajime in the void theater at face value. i think despite what he says he actually does care about them in his own way, he just doesn’t really show it well because he doesn’t like to be vulnerable around others. he’s an asshole sometimes (actually a lot of the time hadsflkjsdflk), but that doesn’t mean he’s unfeeling or unable to care about people. 

song i associate with them 

once again side eyes my nikei playlist ahdfslksdfjslkfd a part of me doesn’t want to spoil one of the songs on it because i do eventually wanna release it to the public but i really just,, i really gotta go with “are you satisfied?” by marina. it’s just too perfect and i think of him every time i hear it now 

favorite picture of them 

honestly? his first tts avatar. no talk him. him angy his last tts avatar upsets me though LEAVE HIM BE LINUJ

ayumu 

favorite thing about them 

AAAAAAAAAA BOYFRIEND BOYFRIEND he’s so sweet such a good boy!! i like that he’s empathetic towards others cuz of his luck and he cares about how it affects them. i like that he’s soft and definitely a good cuddle partner. i love that he’s a trans icon even if that’s not really the intent i don’t care he just vibes trans so well (gal or guy or nonbinary but i tend to stick with the trans guy headcanon cuz haha i transmasc-)  

least favorite thing about them 

i kinda wish he had more of a canon sarcastic side? i mean i’m gonna continue to write him that way lol but c’mon there had to have been times where his luck is just so wildly terrible that his inner hinata jumps out and he makes a quip about it hfkajsdfksdf 

favorite line 

aaaaaa his little hope speech during in voices’ chapter one trial makes me soft,, i love him so much,, i also like him shutting aruma down when she’s being too horny hdlkajdsflksdf it’s really good 

brOTP 

ngl i tend to ship him with most of the class so,, like,, i also brotp him with the whole class,, dalfksdlfkasdf 

OTP 

see above but my favorite of those pairings are ayumu/seishi, ayumu/akira and ayumu/mikoto 

nOTP 

when i’m headcanoning him as a trans guy: nico, misuzu, and kasumi cuz i hc them as lesbians. when i’m headcanoning her as a trans girl: seishi. kind of a nonissue when i go with a nonbinary headcanon though 

random headcanon 

he plays minecraft with akira a lot, but they always have to play in create mode where you can’t really die otherwise it’s just a montage of ayumu dying over and over again, pfft. even with unlimited life though he still usually ends up stuck somewhere and akira has to come dig him out and since akira’s a rude boy he’s always laughing his ass off as he’s doing it smh >:0

unpopular opinion 

it’s,, silly to be mad about his “secretly a boy” twist on the same level as you’re mad about the v3 protag twist,, it’s a fangan and not even that well known of one at that like it doesn’t really have the power to “break down barriers” like that or whatever tf you’re expecting hdsflkajsfdlksdf 

song i associate with them 

he’s another character i have a playlist for ahdflaksdjflaksd but “this is home” by cavetown and i cry every time :’) 

favorite picture of them 

once again there’s not a lot of canon art to pull from but i do adore the promo art of him with his “male” and “female” versions :’0 

[bisame]

Itachi doesn’t do relations aside from his tongue to the hokages boot but canon fucks with my head of how the clans work like are they a people group of hundreds, a small family, what are they cause like I remember in canon Obito said Itachi killed his ‘lover’ and it was like well he was 13 what lover for one but I headcanon shisui as mikotos nephew and that’s why he tries to look out for Itachi but I hadn’t thought much about Itachi and Izumi. Is Sasuke inbred?

Did kishi think of all these implications with the clans and how they work when he was writing them? Did he think to himself, yeah the only girl nice to Itachi cause he’s a freak is his ‘lover’ like what does that even mean. That’s not even a pairing it’s a mess.

Okay, so, this is going to be a long ass post because I’m verypassionate about this subject, so be prepared for a wall of text. Let’s see ifthe read more works… ( trigger warning for discussion about incest )

tl;dr: I don’t think Kishi put much thought into the clans besides “The Hyuugashave Byakugan andslavery which has been blessed by the Official Konoha Seal of Approval, while the Uchihasare violently emotional and suffer from their OP eye powers”, and because hedidn’t explain much about the clans’ histories or the clan members’ relations to oneanother, shipping Itachi with either Shisui or Izumi is questionable at best.

I’ve been thinking about the whole clan ordeal for the longest time. Forsome reason it’s super easy for me to believe that, for example, the Hyuugaclan is inbred because they have other nasty things going on but that’s just myheadcanon. Where I base it on is mainly the slavery and keeping their dojutsuwithin the clan. We never see Neji or Hinata’s mothers so I think that a)either Kishi didn’t even bother to think about their moms [wouldn’t surprise meat all] or b) he realized what he would be implying if he gave them motherswith the Byakugan, and didn’t want to put that kind of controversial thing intohis manga. If I remember right, we get to see Hinata’s mom only in the anime,but she has her eyes closed. The Byakugan is only carried by the Hyuuga and bc/they want to protect it from “outsiders”, it wouldn’t surprise me if theynever married anyone outside the clan. BUT I digress.

While I don’t think that marriagesinside the Uchiha clan were unheard of, I think they’d have some regulationsfor it just to keep the gene pool as healthy as possible, e.g. they’d look fromrecorded family history if the couple wishing to be married were too closelyrelated. There’s a difference between marrying your cousin than a person withwhom you share an ancestor from six generations ago.

We see a bunch of Uchiha clan membersfrom Madara’s era and there’s a lot of variety between them. Hair colors gofrom black to red to dirty blonde, and facial bone structure and eye shapesdiffer a lot, too. Though, with majority of the known Uchihas, Kishi used thedark hair/dark eyes combination that can also be considered as a common Uchihatrait (that every major Uchiha from Madara to Sasuke have [and if we considerBort to be canon, this includes Sarada]). The only visible thing that unifiesthem is the Sharingan, and since it can be implanted on people, it wouldn’tsurprise me that if someone who married into the clan could get their eyesswapped (though in that case there should be a donor) and learn the GreatFireball Jutsu.

We don’t know how the Uchiha clan feelsabout the possibility of marrying outside the clan but, considering how theUchiha didn’t seem to have as many strict restrictions as the Hyuuga clan, itmight be more common. It might be that an Uchiha can marry someone outside the clan,but their partner doesn’t inherit the clan name or be eligible to wear thesymbol on their clothes, but their offspring can.

What we also don’t know is how the clanfeels about adopting a child or an adult to the family. Correct me if I’mwrong, but I’ve understood that adoption between ancient Japanese clans wasn’tthat uncommon. For example, samurai Taira no Kagekiyo was originally from theFujiwara clan but was adopted by the Taira. So, I don’t see a reason whyadoption would be so frowned upon in a fictional universe that takes a lot ofits inspiration from ancient Japan and Japanese lore.

Shipping Uchiha clan members that sharethe same surname but haven’t had their relative status clarified is a bit…skeevy at the least. We know that the only confirmed relative Shisui has isKagami, but that’s about it. We don’t know if Kagami is his grandfather orgreat-uncle, nor do we know his relationship with Fugaku and Mikoto. I havealways thought that Shisui is Itachi’s cousin or second cousin, because theylook a lot like each other, and they have a close brotherly bond, so I totallyagree with you. Shisui being Itachi’s cousin from Mikoto’s side would makesense.

Izumi is more or less a filler charactersince she doesn’t appear in the manga. I can’t remember and confirm that Obito usedthe word “lover” in canon, but I believe you. It might be a continuationfuck-up (which, again, wouldn’t surprise me) or maybe Kishi was… I don’t evenknow. How can a 13-year-old have a lover? Lover?? When I was 13, two of my schoolmates“dated” for a week bc/ they were popular and all they did was hold hands andsit next to each other in class. Kids don’t have lovers, that’s just fucked up.They have kiddie crushes, and that’s a totally different thing. Man, I don’tknow… I hope there has been an error in the translation or that it really is abrain fart on Kishi’s behalf, because I can’t find any other good explanationfor it.

BUT if we consider Izumi a canoncharacter, shipping her with Itachi is weird because we don’t know how closelythey are related. At least Izumi’s dad is a non-Uchiha, so she isn’t inbred (we’llget to you later, Fugaku and Mikoto), but there’s a thousand otherpossibilities for her and Itachi to be related, and none of them are worth takingthe risk of sailing an incestuous child ship.

Speaking of inbreeding, Fugaku andMikoto have been a mystery for me from the very beginning. While both look likethey’re Uchihas by blood, they don’t look related. Their bone structure isdifferent and so are their eyes and hair. Mikoto looks more like a Madaradescendant (thought that gay little man didn’t conceive any kids let me tellya) while Fugaku resembles random background Uchiha number 13 from Madara’sflashbacks in the anime. Personally, I think that both are from the Uchiha clan,but they come from different branches of the family tree. There’s this little voiceinside me telling me that I should have at least the tiniest bit of trust in Kishimoto,that he wouldn’t make Itachi and Sasuke’s parents close relatives, but I’malways ready for disappointments.

My second favorite theory is that eitherFugaku was adopted (most likely Fugaku’s adoptive parents’ child(ren) died andthey adopted him, implanted the Sharingan and taught him the Great FireballJutsu) or Mikoto was married into the clan. While it could be argued thatMikoto looks more like an Uchiha than Fugaku, there’s also other charactersthat could pass as Uchihas (I’m thinking of Kurenai, Sai and Shizune), so Mikoto’sappearance isn’t a great  argumentwhether or not she’s an Uchiha by blood or by adoption/marriage.

This has become a 1,200 word essay bynow and while I could continue, I think I’ll just start digressing more. Thanksfor the thought-provoking messages, Anon! ♥

[scaip]

If K project was settled in Westeros, in which house/organization would the clans be?

This is, as most of my fandom posts, a recollection of random thoughts glued together. Gotta use this as an excuse to talk about ASOIAF, my burning passion.

Now, not every clan will 100% meet the picture every house and place in Westeros may carry. K Project is settled in a modern, capitalist Japan AU, with a strong technological advancement. Westeros is based on medieval society from western Europe, with Great Britain as its main source of inspiration, though other places from the continent draw similarities (Dorne with Spain, northern Africa, and the Middle East, Highgarden with France, etc). The premises of both settlements are VERY, VERY different, based on different histories and different continents.

All westerosi houses draw their characteristics from the environment of settlement, relationships with their neighboring houses and territories, the narratives of their historical members. There is a lot of diversity there, so, in some cases, the clans will have more than a house of alignment. Westerosi noble houses date to hundreds or thousands of years, while the Clans of K Project can have more than six decades (in the case of the Tokijikuin) to few years (most of the others). 

The themes of each clan could fit more than one organization but I only choose one for each clan, for simplicity’s sake. The rest is below due to length

Silver Clan: Hakumaito/White Rice Party - The Citadel/ Order of Maesters

Academy - knowledge - abnegation - independence - community.

Gold Clan: Tokijikuin/Timeless Palace - House Hightower

This one was tricky. The Silver Clan is formed by three people, five if you add Hieda and Kukuri by the end of K. All characters have diverse backgrounds, though we can agree they all share orphan issues or the situation of losing people dear to them. In Adolf’s case, since he only refers to having his sister, I suppose their parents either died or never where truly close.

Unlike other Clans, I believe Hakumaito becomes a proper clan towards the second season. Ashinaka, the School Island becomes their domain. Weismann works as a teacher there, while Neko and Hieda attend as students (x).

So, I ended up choosing the Order of Maesters, the core of intellectualism and academic pursuits in westerosi society. While the Order is seen as a place to dump second sons and a where the poor may manage to make a living if they study, it still remains as The Place to search for information and knowledge. In K-verse, Ashinaka Gakuen is a school settled by the gold clan, and a rather elitist one, for what we see from Hieda’s point of view. From the parody manga of Gakuen K and its otome game, it seems there is a university too, placed in the island.

Westerosi maesters are supposed to leave behind their personal histories and families once they finish their studies and start working for noble houses. They cannot marry either. A life of abnegation in service of others. The parallel here comes from Adolf’s way of life, first as the Silver King to live in relative isolation in a giant ship, then, as a teacher in a school. Teaching is a service to the community. Leaving aside ship-tease and the fact GoRA won’t give us canon pairings, we can only guess Adolf’s relationship with Kuroh will go from a platonic one to that of lovers. The story won’t give us that. Kuroh also behaves life a figure of abnegation: low profile, taking care of house duties, looking after Neko, Weissmann and later, Hieda. Obviously, this is not strictly played: Kuroh keeps relationships with people from Ichigen’s old town and visits it. But Shiro and Neko’s past relationships are not brought up.

I find it rather funny the characters oddly resemble archetypes of the Faith of the Seven. Shiro/Adolf would be a mix of The Father, The Crone, and The Smith. Kuroh has traits of The Mother, The Warrior (d'oh), and the Smith too. Neko would be the Maiden, shared by Kukuri who also has traits of The Mother. And, oddly enough, I feel like everybody minus Kukuri, represent aspects of The Stranger, as outcasts and because they are not what they seem at first sight (Kuroh may be a zig-zagged version of this).

As I said above, teaching is a service to the community. Adolf shares his vast knowledge to kids and seems like an informal and relaxed teacher. There is his personal close relationship with Daikaku, the Gold King, too, just like The Citadel owes a lot to Oldtown and House Hightower (I will later elaborate on that). In fact, I think it is a given that Adolf is allowed to work as a teacher and in that particular school because of his relationship with Daikaku.

I won’t elaborate much on Neko and Hieda, as the latter personal history starts to develop after the end of season two, once he regains control of his body, while Neko has lots of personal issues, and, well, The Citadel is base on patriarchal and misogynistic rules of medieval Europe, so, traditionally, there wouldn’t be places for Kukuri and her there. Kukuri’s character never gets much development, so I will leave her aside too.

Prosperity - Wealthiness - Knowledge - Welfare -

Red Clan: Homra - House Targaryen

The Gold Clan rules Japan from the background, moving strings. They keep The Masquerade of K Project going on (with an ambiguous grade of success, ‘cuz lets be honest: people randomly sprouting powers out of no-where seems too vox populi), internal and external affairs, the economy, education, health, and scientific developments. Tokijikuin patronage the pursuit of education and knowledge, Ashinaka Gakuen, considered an elitist academy in-universe, is settled and run by the Golds. They keep good connections, information networks as they are into every branch of government.

Then we have House Hightower from Westeros, one of the wealthiest vassal houses, with a rich port, who keep Oldtown in their domain and patronage its studies, also have close relationships with The Faith of The Seven (as they adapted well to the Andal invasion), and until Baelor The Blessed’s reign, remained as the Core of the Faith. In fact, during Aegon’s contest, Oldtown would have been the capital of the kingdom, hadn’t the Targaryens chose to establish it in King’s Landing. The domains of House Hightower are cosmopolite and influential to the rest of the realm… and other continents too.

While House Hightower remains more-or-less neutral during the books’ events, (there is this ambiguous curse concerning their interactions with the Targaryens) we can’t deny their influences on westerosi society and Essos as a whole. They have their own armed forces at their disposition, unlike the Gold Clan: while they move strings undergrounds, it appears security issues are divided between Toujijikuin and Scepter 4, with the latter gaining prominence on normal police and armies when Kokujoji died.

Kokujoji also kept personal relationships with Ichigen Miwa and Weissman/Shirou, receiving assistance from the former and giving it to the latter, similar to House Hightower influences on both Oldtown and The Faith.

Fire-themed - violent temperaments - intuitive - spontaneous.

Also, as someone pointed in TV Tropes:

The red clan has a bad reputation on both of their forms, though I believe Homra’s perception is biased from the actions of Genji Kagutsu, the previous red king, and the shape his clan took: Purgatory House. Purgatory House was an organization akin to Yakuza, Homra is more of a friendly gang. The fall of Genji’s sword of Damocles created a great crater, and we know the physical state of a Damocles’ sword reflects the inner state of its owner. Kagutsu was presented as a violent monster, however, we don’t fully know what his mental condition was. But we know Mikoto’s. He was suffering a crippling depression since he was 15, as shown in Kingdom of Red, when Izumo meets him. Mikoto’s mental illness never was properly treated, and we know how he ended.

Now, we have the infamous House Targaryen. They also carry a theme of mental illness, though as this clever analysis shows, it is not entirely deserved.

What fuels the special? That might very well be various forms of episodic, high-functioning, trance- or dream-like madness with resulting access to alternative thought-patterns. This can even be present in the brilliant Targaryens… which could explain why the wheels fall off so much on those who can’t keep their grips on their entries and exits into and from their individual forms of this as they go along. The general belief about Targaryens is that it’s hard to tell the difference between the great and the mad ones since madness and greatness are so close to each other. 

“(…) madness and greatness are so close to each other”

Blue Clan: Scepter Four - House Arryn

Mikoto wasn’t crazy, just mentally ill. Anna had to grow up rather isolated due to her strain abilities. But we must remember we are using descriptions from an early medieval-based westerosi society. No clinical psychology and psychiatry there.

A flashback from Mikoto, during the creation of Kagutsu’s crater, shows him using sports clothes with a number 10 on his back, meaning he was that good a whatever sport he played during his school years. He seems to have been able to fluently speak English as a foreign language only with a high school level education. Mikoto could also tell who Reisi was without introductions the first time both met one another. Mikoto leaves me with an impression of “what could have been”: his depression stopped him, but I truly believe he had lots of potentials and could have been amazing at what he tried.

Then is Anna. Her strain powers involve dream-walking, peeking into the memories and thoughts of others, visions of the future (dragon dreams parallel, people), finding people and objects (do you remember how she tried to use her marbles on a map to find Tatara’s killer?), flying (once she awakened as a king) and somehow reproducing tortures performed on her towards others (remember that scene from KoR when she escapes Homra in desperation). She already had a strong affinity with the Dresden Slate as a child. Heck, I find lots of similarities between Daenerys and her.

There is also the state of their clans: feared and respected while Mikoto was in charge, though he had to work towards it with the help of his friends. But once they went to attack an enemy group, Homura would most likely win. Weak and scattered once Mikoto died, but strong again after Anna became the red queen. Similar to the state of Daenerys when Khal Drogo died: in danger, surrounded by enemies, but some dormant knowledge helping her move on.

Anna had an epiphany/lucid dream in Missing Kings, meeting the already dead Tatara and Mikoto, with the previous king telling Anna the ‘Red’ is hers now. Izumo’s words to her already implied Anna becoming a king as something both were aware of. From the prologue of Kingdom of Red, we learn the Slate started to call her once Mikoto died. At the end of her dream-state, she says Homra’s motto, links with the Slate and awakens as the new Red King, with her own Damocles’ sword.

At the end of AGoT, from Daenerys’ verbal exchange with Mirri Maz Duur, her affinity to the dragon eggs (feeling them warmth), the apparition of the red comet, we see her having an instinctual grasping of what was going on, about lost valyrian magic, and gets in a trance-like state.

“(…)the fire is mine. I am Daenerys Stormborn, daughter of dragons, bride of dragons, mother of dragons, don’t you see? Don’t you SEE?”

We already know the rest of the story: Daenerys walked into the funerary pyre with the dragon eggs, spent a whole night there, and her people found her the next morning with the first hatched dragons in more than a century.

There are similarities in their backgrounds as well. Both were orphans in charge of people who couldn’t properly deal with the situations. For Daenerys, she depended on another freaking child for a living. Viserys was an asshole who reaped what he sowed, but growing up as a lonely child without adults to rely on and a little sister to take care of, as exiles, in another country, leaves people scarred for life. For Anna, her aunt Honami wasn’t aware of what was truly going on with the 'medical treatment’ Anna was receiving and had Honami been fully aware of everything, without Homra’s help, and adult and a child can’t go against institutions. Both Daenerys and Anna also won more agency after becoming part of a bigger group, though, for Anna’s case, it was harder as she was only a child and still had to go through a period of 'isolation’ during the months Izumo is absent and Homra temporarily disbands, before awakening as a king the Red Clan reunites again.

Blue themed - honor before reason

(zig-zagged)

- elitism - military activities -  pride - discipline -

Green Clan: Jungle - Not entirely sure

  Why am I not placing Scepter 4 on House Stark, the obvious contrast to Homra’s red and House Targaryen’s fire? Well, that’s because House Stark is directly inspired by the history, territory, and people from where northern England meets Scotland. In-universe, House Stark rules over the biggest and most rural land in Westeros, are duty and honor-bound, however, the  House Stark is on the roughish scale of nobility. They are hard, modest and melancholic. Heck, “stark” is the word for the name of the house. There is the famous wildness of some members, in-universe called Wolf-Blood. They keep old customs, follow the old gods, descend from the lines of the First Men. House Stark reflects Scotland and northern rural England, so considering the refinement and modernity Scepter 4 portrays, it doesn’t match the rough and rural image the North of Westeros has within.  While Reisi’s animal may be the wolf, Stark’s animal are the direwolfs. Remember, their colors are grey and white, there is no blue in the sigil.

Second, because Eddard Stark, our picture honor-bounded nobleman, was fostered as a child in the Eyre by lord Jon Arryn. House Arryn moto is “As high as honor”. The Vale has a militaristic, knightly culture and gave the realm most of their best knights. Jon Arryn orchestrated Robert’s Rebellion against the Iron Throne, uniting the North, the Stormlands, Westerlands, and Riverlands, later became Hand of the King and essentially run the government of Westeros. In fact, historically, House Arryn had strong ties with House Targaryen: Kingsward members, Hands of the King, marriages with Targaryen princess, even Arryn queens.

Scepter 4, for me, matches House Arryn better than House Stark. A disciplined warrior elite. I believe their blue oni theme matches House Arryn well. Scepter 4 works closely to the Gold Clan, regulates strain activities, has executive functions and give off a hell of a sophisticated vibe. Good is not always soft or nice, and the heads of the clan can show it too, as they are not above using shady means, such as Reisi’s attempt to kidnap the millionaire that keep getting in his way in Files of Blue, Saruhiko drugging the high school student in season one in order to get the information he needed or Seri blatantly proposing plans that disregarded Mikoto’s human rights for the greater good.

Remember the tale of lady Alyssa Arryn not crying even when her husband and children were killed in front of her? I think about Reisi repressing his pain due to Mikoto’s death. Icy and proud. A prodigious mind, that essentially ends up as head of the country by the end of the season of K, but has to fight his way too. There are elements of frigidity and pride too.

The Arryns have been close to the Targaryen Dynasty, while also dealing with their own issues. Similar to how Scepter 4 closely works with the Timeless Palace, unlike other clans. The blue clan limits itself with the regulation and use on force on individuals who possess special abilities, but still, need authorization from the Gold King to act on some aspects. Obviously, had the Arryns rebelled against the Iron Throne, things would have end ugly for them, with or without dragons. Reisi can be rebellious towards the gold king, challenge him a bit, but that’s because K project is settled on a modern world. Different rules.

Intelligence and wit come to mind too: the Eyrie is a complex castle elevated over a mountain, inexpugnable and sophisticated as hell if we consider it was built over a mountain in the ancient westerosi world, with medieval technology. The freaking cells of the Eyre castle invoke psychological torture, as prisoners may fall from them due to the diagonal floor. Scepter 4 may be an organization for the greater good, but it doesn’t mean they will be nice.

Falcons (the animals of House Arryn) are symbols of boldness, courage, and victory. Tell me if that doesn’t match the Scepter 4, marching forward towards what they want, always ready for whatever emergency may appear, attentive and watching over.

There is a lunar theme too. The Eyrie remains high in the sky. Blue and white. The Moon Doors. Lunar symbolism references renewal and purity. Remember Scepter 4’s motto:

“We of Scepter 4 carry out duties of the sword. Forgiving of neither war in the sanctuary, nor chaos in the world. We will advance with sword in hand, for our cause is pure!”

The moon also symbolizes shadow and opposition, contrast. Scepter 4 is a military organization that doesn’t appear in the eyes of official society, working underground, in the shadows. There is that short story after the Gold King’s death, with Reisi intimidating the prime minister. The moon also represents feminity, with the implication of cleverness, grace, elegance the blue clan represents in contrast with the reds. Heck, remember how House Arryn had to deal with the mountain clans as arch-enemies for thousands of years? Clans as a ragtag bunch of misfits, followers of rude customs, working as gangs, in contrast with the discipline and pomp of another organization. Don’t you see in this a similarity with how Scepter 4 perceives Homra? Similar to how English nobility historically viewed Scottish clans and society.

There is both snow and ice in the imagery of House Arryn as it is settled in The Vale. Mountains, hills. While Scepter 4 has an affinity with the element of water, in contrast to Homra’s fire, I choose House Arryn to match Scepter 4 due to its history of chivalry, warriors and cold-blood. There is an ambition too as an element of the house, and, while we know Reisi is a terribly ambitious guy, that trait shouldn’t overshadow his clan as a whole.

This is a tricky one. I have troubles placing Jungle on a freaking medieval house, as they benefit from modern technology, since the majority of the clan work as an anonymous mass waiting for orders and depending on modern technology, more akin to mercenaries, but not mercenaries in the ancient sense of the word.

I have serious troubles with this, so, you are all invited to write your own thoughts on this.

Grey Clan: Cathedral - The Faith of the Seven

Devotion - abnegation - integrity -

Colorless clan - The Faith of the Seven

This was tricky too. We don’t know much of Cathedral, and Japanese media tends to mix protestant, Anglican and Catholic elements for the aestheticTM. While, judging from Seigo’s attire, he probably was a protestant priest, there is a lack of info concerning his personal story, let’s not speak about the whole clan. We know Cathedral was second in importance to the Gold Clan during the 90’s, all the clansmen perished during the creation of Kagutsu’s crater, and there is this flexible Christian theme surrounding them.

Since in Westeros the Faith of the Seven (from here on, it’ll be addressed as The Faith) is analogous to Christianity spreading over previous forms of beliefs, with the introduction of the Andal mass migration towards the continent. Septons and septas are analogous to priests and nuns who take vows of celibacy, though, in K, I suspect Cathedral held a non-catholic approach. We will never know, as the plot will always be abstract (that’s why we like it) and Seigo is a secondary character. 

I think the Colourless Clan would represent other aspects of The Faith, focusing on The Stranger (Ichigen, Kuroh, Yukari), The Krone (Ichigen), and The Father mixed with The Warrior (all three), The Maiden (Kuroh, I suppose Yukari too?), The Mother (Kuroh again, Ichigen too). For all, the Colourless King is considering the weakest of all those chosen by the Slate and a “joker”. The colourless clan led by Ichigen was composed of way different people, though there this misfit theme on its members: Kuroh’s backstory is very tragic, Yukari’s doesn’t seem to have a nice one either (the only thing we know about him is a heartbreak in the past) and Ichigen appears to never have married and later won clairvoyance powers as he was chosen as a King by the Dresden Slate. He carried on his martial school, has wisdom he shared to a selected few and a hermit lifestyle, though he closely collaborated with Daikaku Kokujoji himself.The original members of the Colourless Clan are walking deconstructions: Kuroh has this proper samurai image, yet behaves as a housewive towards Hakumaito and enjoys the activities. Yukari is a sword ace, but carries an ambiguous feminine image (there are in-universe discussions about him, such as Saru referring to him as gay, but the post-credit story has him flirting with two girls. Chaotic bi? flexible? simply metrosexual? we will never know. Ugh, I like him) yet has wisdom and is good at mentoring others (when he bothers to), but there is this morally gray streak about him. Heck, Nagare called him a “Breast”. And Ichigen, as I said above, acts like a reserved hermit, yet aids the Gold Clan, which carries on an underground Japanese government.For the anonymous Colourless King we have in the first season of K, I don’t really have many words. The character was an easily manipulated chaotic evil individual, who later got a sad backstory by losing their remaining sense of self by the use of their particular ability. Another aspect of The Strange, maybe? The whole colorless clan, presented as a joker in k-universe, could fit some degrees of The Stranger theme.

[kuriquinn]

Anyone ever noticed how people who leave “constructive, friendly reviews” (that actually are just them pointing out something they personally don’t like) tend to avoid leaving any means of communicating with them to either a) find out ways to fix a mistake or b) respond and clarify why something was written the way it was?

I mean, don’t get me wrong, that’s what I love about posting unfinished stories. I get a beat on what I’m doing right and what I’m doing wrong and some kind of guideline that in the next chapter or the next edit I can fix.

But if someone just leaves a random piece of crit and no username or handle or PM or whatever, I have no way of following it up. And then I have to post it here and hope maybe they’ll see it because I’m not taking up space in the beginning of my next chapter to respond.

So, just to put it out there (and if this person follows me on tumblr or wherever they can PM if they want):

A Mary-Sue is pretty much defined as a character who is flawless and and no one calls on their shit and is usually a self-insert. (The definition covers a lot so if you’re curious check out the Mary-Sue litmus test. It’s very comprehensive)

NTMTO Sakura very clearly has flaws (dependency, making rash and bad judgements, being rather childish and naive at times), she does and will continue to get called on her shit (started with Ino in chapter two and this one, and there will be others later but has to wait since the characters who actually know her and her background to call her on it are all still living in Japan at the mo) and is in no way some idealized version of me, because honestly, I come at things that bug me directly (even more so since my burnout because I do not have the patience for pussyfooting around). Also, being an overachiever is a pain in the ass and stressful as fuck. I would never want to be someone like that because it’s just asking for a mental breakdown and making stupid quick decisions (all of which will be touched on with Sakura later in this fic)

At most the Sakura of NTMTO (a fic that is only in its infant stages right now) could be termed OOC. And even then, she was deliberately written this way to show the contrast between Sasuke’s idealized version of her in his head and the actual person she is. In the same way that she views Sasuke as distant and uncaring toward her when she clearly is ignorant (and a bit dense) about his feelings for her.

These are aspects of the characters that will grow and change and develop over the course of the fic because they are barely eighteen years old and people are not fully formed and mature at eighteen years old. Teenagers decision making abilities and thought processes are wildly different from adults. I’ve watched some pretty assholish behavior on the part of my students while they were firmly in the mindset that they were some kind of martyr. And it happens with even the nicest kids. Girls can be particularly dense about some things when they get into one of their high drama episodes (boys do to but usually in a different way)

If I made it seem like everyone has been blaming Sasuke for the falling out, it’s not my intention. Maybe I didn’t write it properly (keep in mind this is an unedited version of things) but Mikoto and Itachi are not happy with Sakura at the moment. And if she were in front of them they’d make that plain. But they are also not the type of people to make an excuse and go “oh, this is too bad, but don’t worry honey, there’s nothing you can do about it Sasuke because it’s all her fault”. They give him advice about what to do on his end since that’s the only part of it that he can control. You’ll notice that both of them even suggest he might be better off letting Sakura go, which would be the healthier option for Sasuke. As for Mebuki, she just always blames Sasuke. In any fic I write, even the head canon ones. Because she’s ridiculously overprotective of her daughter. That’s not a reflection of everyone shitting on Sasuke, it’s an aspect of her character (to me anyway)

So basically, if you feel like quitting my fic because I’m apparently not doing Sakura’s character justice or putting Sasuke down to make her look better, then that’s your business. Go with the Goddess and all that. But I take pride in my characterizations and plot decisions, and to me, being told I’ve turned a character I worked with for the better part of two years into a Mary-Sue (based on barely 4 chapters) isn’t constructive criticism, it’s short-sightedness and a bit insulting.

It’s the kind of thinking that causes people in the Naruto fandom to hate on Sakura for the way she was as a Genin and refuse to acknowledge all of the character development she went through by the end of the series.

So go ahead. Tell me you dislike how I’ve characterized her in this fic, and that you don’t like the direction I’m taking the story in. Those are valid opinions and I can’t argue with a person’s personal likes and dislikes.

But for goodness sake, don’t throw around the term Mary-Sue so casually, especially when you’re just salty about some OOC moments and plot decisions you don’t like.

(If you want to see a character I consider close to Mary-Sue, honestly I would say my Gal Friday Sakura is pretty much the definition. Four chapters in and she’s practically perfect in every way...though again, it’s only four chapters in. No one knows what I have planned for her in terms of character development. For all you know I could turn that fic into the next My Immortal)

TL;DR: I take offense to having characters called Mary-Sue, especially if it’s unjustified. Use the proper terminology and don’t assume you know the reason an author chooses to write a story the way it’s written until the story is done.

[nekosayuri]

Family: Uchiha.

I recreated this family first, ages ago, pretty much when Konoha was still empty. <3 it’s probably no surprise if you know me even a little (I mean, I use them in my previews too nowadays xD that’s how much I love them.)

I first created Sasuke and Sayuri in Belladonna Cove for the heck of it, but then I got really attached, especially to their kids. Back then (2014ish), my ACOH story was also not all that developed past their 20s, but playing their sims inspired me a lot, and the kids they had became their kids in my story too (well, only the first three, cause come on, eight kids?!) I literally let their sims guide my writing. <3

Since I wrote little Sim/story profiles for them, I posted them separately first, but here’s the all at once post. :D

This is like the first time I ever do this, but I really wanted to try, so sorry if I’m confusing! 

Uchiha Sayuri, previously Amamiya, is first, cause why not? She’s one of the main OCs. Self insert originally, too, so I’m a little biased. :D

Sayuri never really fit into the Ninja world. Something about the occupation always rubbed her the wrong way. She knew she was born in a Ninja village to a Ninja family, but was that really all there was? Was her destiny really to fight and kill? She refused that. It took many years, and some friends in high places, but with effort and stubbornness, Sayuri got people to follow her dream and make it a reality: a village where kids could be kids, without the pressure of the Ninja world on their shoulders, where they have a choice and can make their own way. A place where she would want her own kids to grow up.

Nowadays, Sayuri is the head of the Diplomacy department of Konoha’s government. A skilled negotiator who is not afraid to get in the thick of it, she’s solved many situations that could have ended far worse. She gets personally involved, though, which takes its toll. But she can’t help it– this is how she is. She wouldn’t be so good at it otherwise.

Sayuri is a family sim with a pleasure secondary. Her zodiac is Cancer, with a personality of 5/4/5/5/6. She’s relatively in-the-middle there for someone as revolutionary as her, but despite being kinda shy, she’s also VERY stubborn and willing to fight for her dreams/goals/whatever.

Traits: Family oriented, nurturing, over-emotional, bookworm, and terrible cook.

Turn ons: black hair, logical (may have been influenced a little over the years she was married to Sasuke… xD). Turn offs: bad at cooking that should be a turn off, ugh! Right now, it’s robots, because there’s no such thing, yet! I can never find turn offs that actually make sense.

Sasuke is next, this is my attempt at explaining what he is like in my story?

Sasuke spent 10 years living a life that wasn’t his, pursuing a goal that was forced on him by his brother, Itachi. When he came out on the other side, he couldn’t recognise himself anymore– not the person he was before the whole thing started, not the person he had become over the years. He had nothing left but a hollowness inside that scared him. But he was wrong, and there were people who were there to show him that. As soon as he saw in himself something good that could become bigger, he grabbed it with both of his hands and never let go.

Nowadays, he’s the Head of Shield, a team of elite ninja, chosen only by him and the Hokage. They’re the very best for a reason. Each and every one of them are experts in their field and they normally go on the most dangerous missions, and come back alive. That must say something! Due to his position, Sasuke also has a seat on the council. Though he clearly cares about his position and the village itself, Sasuke would prefer to stay out of harm’s way most of the time… so he can come back home to his family at the end of the day.

Random facts: the name ‘Shield’ was chosen by the Hokage, Naruto, at the time. It’s inspired by a word he heard while visiting the Cloud village. Also, ‘dangerous’ isn’t the same as it used to be 10-20 years ago.

Sasuke is a family sim, too, with a knowledge secondary. His zodiac is Leo, with a personality of 7/4/8/3/5 (mostly head-canon, really). He’s a bit of a clean freak and his active personality is literally his core. 

Traits: Athletic, disciplined, brave (a condition for his job), social disaster, natural cook. 

Turn ons: fitness, creative. Turn offs: fat.

Kaito is the eldest and the only boy in the family besides Sasuke. I admit I was delighted their first kid was a boy. :D

Kaito is a genius. Everybody knows that. He’s “perfect” in every way (ask his fangirls), and so he should be, he’s an Uchiha after all. Kaito sees it a different way though, he just wants to be left alone, so he can read his books and do his ninja training and hang out with his friends and figure himself out. Everybody is in such a hurry to put him on a pedestal... 

Kaito is a teenager (15 story-time), so he has only one aspiration, knowledge. His zodiac is Aries, with a personality of 5/4/7/3/7. He was born in game and everything was copied over, although originally I had Sayuri encourage him to be nicer, so that was copied over as well. He’s hell of a lot like Sasuke, personality wise, but his attitude towards people is more like Sayuri’s. xD

Traits: Genius, brave (from Sasuke), terrible cook (from Sayuri). Teens in my game will have only three traits, get another one as YA, and last one as adults.

Turn ons: athletic, brown hair. Turn offs: jewellery.

Mikoto got her name from Sasuke’s mother, because she was born with her eyes (grey which is lighter than Sasuke’s.) It’s mostly not a thing to name your kids after your parents (with some clan exceptions), but meh. 

Right from the start, there was one thing that stood out about Mikoto: her unending care for others. Even as a young child, she would take care of her friends and her little sister, watching over them as if she were their mother. She got more into art as she grew, and she loves painting. She doesn’t really know what she wants to do with her life, you know? She’s only 13 after all! She still has two years before she has to decide whether to go to Ninja school or the Academic one, and she’s going to take her time figuring it out.

Mikoto is a child in the sims, despite being 13 story-time (I kinda figure Teen stage starts at 15), so her aspiration is still to grow up. Her zodiac is Aquarius, with a personality of 4/5/5/5/6. Again, born in game and everything was copied. She’s obviously a lot like Sayuri with the whole in-the-middle thing.

Traits: nurturing (from Sayuri), artistic.

Hikari was born in the middle of the night, when Sasuke and Sayuri caught a glimpse of a falling star just before Sayuri went into labor (that actually happened in my game, I’ll add a link to the picture when the archive actually works -_-). Anyway, I’m a bit of a cliche, so obviously she got her name from the stars lighting up the night sky. XD

Hikari is not like Kaito and Mikoto. She’s not unsure, she’s not confused. She knows exactly what she wants: to be a ninja, of course, so she can be as strong as her father, or even more! so what if she’s just 10 and has plenty of time to make up her mind? 

Hikari’s aspiration is to grow up in the sims, since she’s still a child. Her zodiac is Cancer, with a personality of 5/3/8/4/5. She got her active trait from Sasuke and her shyness from Sayuri. :D born in game, copied faithfully as always.

Traits: Shy, athletic (from Sasuke).

Bonus: The cats!

From right (sitting cat) to left: Kuro, Kurona and Ryoma. 

Sasuke found Kuro on a dark, rainy night when he was just a kitten. He never cared for animals all that much, but when their eyes met, he couldn’t just leave him be, either. Kuro had the kind of eyes that reminded him of his own, at the time-- aloof, independent, but also lonely and lost. So he took him in for the night. That was when he was 17. Needless to say, Kuro stayed. But Kuro came with his own dark past and his own troubles... he’s a ninja cat, after all!

Fun fact: Kuro means Black in Japanese. That’s how creative his name is! Sasuke’s idea.

It was again a dark, rainy night when… ok no, it was a sunny weekend day, when Sasuke and Sayuri were 21, that Kuro came running in frantically and begged (by meowing, a lot) for them to come with him. When they arrived at the destination, they found a pregnant white cat, but she seemed sick. They took her to the animal hospital, who decided to get her kittens out ASAP. Luckily, everybody survived. The kittens were given homes, and the pretty white cat, well… Kuro got attached to her, so Sasuke and Sayuri ended up taking her in, too. Need I mention she’s also a ninja cat?

Fun fact: Kurona was given her name because, well, there’s Kuro, so if we add na (supposedly, a short for nya, which is the sound cats make in Japanese), you get Kurona. It was Sasuke’s idea

Ryoma is their son. He was a part of a litter of four, but the other three were given away because there was just too much chaos at home and Sasuke couldn’t stand it. There was some whining and crying from the children, who were all old enough to understand what was happening, but what had to be done was done. For some odd reason, though, Sasuke decided to keep Ryoma... the hyper, wild kitten! 

Funny fact: He got his name from a character in Prince of Tennis. Yep. No story reason there. XD (the other kittens were named Ryoga, Nana, and Kana. Two males, two females. :D) 

A note on ninja cats for interested people: they’re not like normal cats. Their lifespan is much longer (closer to humans), even though their ability to breed is similar to normal cats– basically, they can breed as soon as normal cats, but they lose that ability the older they get (halfway through their life). As always, females sooner than males. Another thing is that they do understand the human language, and they can also talk! That said, both Kuro and Kurona escaped from their ninja village before they actually learned to talk, so neither of them can. They do understand the human language though, as they’re taught that sooner than to actually talk it. They can also read it, but not write.

[mistleto-3]

Awakening: Part 1

When another crisis looms, Mikoto has to learn to navigate a world of Kings as a regular man. 

AU in which Mikoto and Tatara survived the Colourless King incident.

Pairing: Mikoto/Tatara

3,750 words. CW for canon-typical violence, mentions of depression and other mental health issues. Kuroshiro mention.

Sequel to my earlier fics Breathing and Breathless (which have recently been redrafted.) This fic will follow the Missing Kings and Return of Kings timeline.

Seeing as I started Breathing on Tatara’s birthday last year, it seemed fitting to start the sequel on Mikoto’s. I’ve been super excited to get back into writing this fic for ages.

All parts | Next part

AO3 | Ko-Fi 

"This is the end of the line."

A figure swathed in black stepped out of the shadows of the narrow side street to block the path of the small group of Homra members, brandishing two long, curved blades on a double-ended weapon. The goggles covering their eyes glowed an eerie neon green, and they spoke in a distorted voice from beneath the mask that covered their lips, like a villain in a horror movie.

"Hand over the girl," they demanded.

Mikoto immediately moved to position himself between Anna and the masked figure. Despite the fact he'd long since returned his powers to the Slate, the move was instinctive. Beside her, Tatara tightened his grip on her shoulder, knowing full well he could do little more to protect her than Mikoto could.

"Over my dead body," came Mikoto's brisk reply.

Rikio stepped forward, lighting his fists- he had been accompanying the small family. Since the Green clan’s activity had begun to pick up and this ninja-like figure had made their first appearance outside the bar, he'd insisted that he remain close to Mikoto, Tatara, and Anna at all times, should a situation like this one arise. Tatara was glad now that Rikio had the good sense to pressure them into accepting the help.

Rikio grit his teeth and rushed at the ninja, leaping upwards and spinning in mid-air to send a wave of his aura rippling towards them. As he lunged forward, he called out:

"Who the hell are you?!" His tone was hostile.

But the attack that looked so sure to hit its target found nothing but empty air- the figure had simply dematerialised.

And appeared again behind Rikio.

Tatara didn't even have time to cry out a warning to his friend- his breath froze in his lungs at the sight of the masked attacker raising their weapon, ready to strike at Rikio's exposed back.

"I have no reason to answer," the ninja replied, deadpan, and the electronic buzz to their voice sent an uncanny shiver down Tatara's spine. All he could do was try to cover Anna's eyes.

Suddenly, a man darted into the alleyway, too quickly to make out who he was until he came to a sudden halt between Rikio and the attacker. He had caught the ninja’s blade with his bare palm.

The Black Dog, Yatogami Kuroh.

The attacker faltered at the effortlessness of the way he interrupted the battle.

“W-what?”

A hint of panic crept into that electronic voice, and they leapt back, distancing themself from Kuroh and landing in a crouch a safe distance away.

“You’re with Jungle, the Green clan, I gather,” Kuroh said. “Well, I know that girl. If you want to continue, I’ll take over from here.” A subtle hint of threat lurked beneath his tone.

The figure stood up straight, an arc of green electricity flickering across their body as they sheathed their weapon. Then, they reached out a hand toward the wall beside them and stepped through it, seeming to carve a pathway out of the brick with more of that green light.

“My business does not involve having to fight you,” they said simply, vanishing into the glowing portal that closed immediately behind them.

Kuroh watched, a frown forming between his brows as the attacker disappeared from view. “Was that the rumoured manipulation ability of the Green clan?” he said, appearing to speak more to himself than to the others present.

“Long time no see, Black Dog,” Rikio piped up, seeming to snap Kuroh back into the present. “Guess I owe you one.”

“Have we met?” Kuroh asked.

Rikio appeared slightly stung. “Aw, come on.”

At that point, Tatara piped up in defence of his friend. “He’s the high-ranking Red clansman Kamamoto Rikio. As I understand it, you met on Ashinaka last year. You went with him and Yatagarasu to go and search for me whilst everyone was evacuating.” Tatara managed to maintain his chipper demeanour as he spoke, but there was a slight falter in his smile- the attempt to kidnap Anna had clearly shaken him somewhat. But he was doing better than Mikoto, at least, who was stony-faced and silent, bristling with fury that was almost tangible in the air. The pair of them both had a protective hand on Anna’s shoulders.

“Kamamoto… Rikio?” Kuroh narrowed his eyes in confusion.

“Can’t say I blame you for not recognising me right away… I haven’t had much of an appetite since everything that happened last year. Summer’s over, but I’m still skin and bones.”  

A small frown creased between Anna’s brows at his words, and she turned towards him. “Rikio…”

“Hey, but don’t you worry, Anna. I may be thin, but I still pack lots of power,” he said confidently.

“Why is the Green clan after you?” Kuroh interrupted, glancing between the group of Reds.

“It’s a mystery to us…” Tatara admitted.  “That ninja showed up at the bar one day, saying they had a request for Anna.”

As Tatara spoke, Neko caught up with her friend, and she waved at the Red clansmen over Kuroh’s shoulder.

“Request?” Kuroh raised an eyebrow.

“They asked for Anna to use her sensory powers…” Tatara began, but Anna interrupted him:

“To ‘find the Silver King’.”

“Huh?” Neko straightened up at the mention of their King.

“What?” Kuroh demanded. “You can do that?”

“You can find Shiro?!” Neko cried.

Anna paused, then shook her head solemnly. “I can’t right now…”

The faces of the two Silver clansmen fell. “Is that so…” Kuroh said quietly.

“Anna’s powers have been… a little fickle for a while now…” Tatara explained. “Our clan hasn’t been in the best shape since everything that happened last year.”

“She can’t locate people right now,” Rikio said.

Kuroh stepped forward. “But you were asked to find him. Does that mean he’s alive?”

“I don’t know,” Anna admitted.

“Why… is the Green clan looking for Shiro?” Kuroh’s gaze dropped, and he once more appeared to be thinking aloud rather than talking to anyone in particular.

“So… what now?” Rikio asked.

“Can’t you join up with the rest of your clan?” Kuroh said.

“Homra is as good as disbanded right now.” Rikio explained.

“We’re pretty much all that’s left…” Tatara rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Since King abdicated, the others have mostly drifted away, and there isn’t much we can do to protect Anna by ourselves. Not when the only one with any meaningful amount of power is Kamamoto. Even Kusanagi-san is out of the country.”

“Homra’s strategist?” Kuroh asked.

“I can’t divulge the details, but I’m the only fighter left for the time being,” Rikio said.

“What about that take-charge clansman? Isn’t he always at the vanguard?”

Rikio’s expression sank at the mention of his friend. “Well… Yata-san is…”

“…dealing with some personal problems right now,” Tatara finished for him.

It seemed the melancholy in the Red clansmen's voice as they spoke of Misaki didn't go unnoticed, and Kuroh merely nodded respectfully and dropped the subject.

It wasn't as though Misaki's emotional strain hadn't been evident on Ashinaka Island the better part of a year ago, but he'd been in damage control mode then, trying to deal as best he could with the trauma of nearly having to watch one of his best friends die in his arms whilst coping with everything going on around him. Since then, the dust had settled and the adrenaline had subsided. Once it became clear that nobody else was in any immediate danger, he'd had time to process what had happened, and the reality of everything that had taken place had begun to sink in. It had clearly shaken Misaki to his core. The repercussions had manifested slowly- at first, he'd simply been a little more snippy, a little more protective of Tatara. And then his mood had started to drop, the fire in him started to fizzle out. He showed up at the bar less and less, and when he did, it was often with greasy hair and bags under his eyes. Tatara had spotted the symptoms of depression from a mile away, but Misaki had pushed back hard when Tatara suggested maybe he should speak to somebody about it. Not that Tatara had expected any different- going to a professional would have been showing weakness in Misaki’s eyes.

And then the rest of Homra had begun to drift, and Misaki's mental illness had begun to manifest in earnest. It was written all over his face: he hated himself for not being strong enough to drag himself into the bar every day, hated himself for barely being able to get out of bed when Mikoto and Tatara had been through worse but were still doing better than he was. And then there were all these other clansmen who were perfectly capable of showing their faces, but they chose not to. He resented them for it, and it was eating away at him. All of that, combined with the aftershocks of the trauma that Tatara's brush with death had left behind in him... Tatara almost didn't recognise him anymore. No matter what he or Mikoto or Rikio or anyone else in Homra had tried, they couldn't get him out of his spiral. There had even been times they'd considered contacting Saruhiko, but they knew Misaki would never forgive them for informing his enemy of his perceived weakness.

Before Izumo had left for Germany, he'd said that, as much as they might have wanted to, there was nothing they could do to help someone who didn't want to be helped, and that they needed to give him time. It was only then that Tatara had finally, reluctantly, accepted defeat. But he still dropped by Misaki's apartment every now and again with care packages of food and toiletries, just in case.

There was a moment of quiet as the mention of Misaki made the members of the Red clan collectively wince, and then Neko piped up: "Kurosuke! We can't leave them by themselves in case the ninja comes back! Anna is Neko's friend, and Totsuka is Shiro's friend. Shiro would want us to help them!"

Kuroh looked at her for a moment, then nodded. "We have a room at the high school that we use as our home base. It will be easier to protect; we can shelter you there until the threat has passed."

"Thank you," Tatara said. "We appreciate your help."

The mismatched group set off together, with Neko leading the way. Mikoto trailed a short distance behind, his hand protectively on Anna's shoulder; he still hadn't said a word since the attacker had disappeared. Rikio followed close behind his old King, keeping up a wary vigilance in case they were attacked a second time, and Tatara and Kuroh brought up the rear.

"I haven't seen you since that day on Ashinaka last winter," Tatara said to him quietly. "How have you been?"

"We haven't found Shiro yet. We don't even know if he's alive," Kuroh said, by way of an answer.

"You've been searching for him all this time?"

Kuroh nodded. "…What did he say to you, before he disappeared?"

"It was hardly a suicide note, if that's what you're worried about."

"But what did he say, exactly?"

"That he felt despite having clansmen who followed them, each of the Kings is walking a solitary path. But I told him that wasn't true; if it wasn't for the Slate, there would be dozens of lonely people who never found the family that they found in Homra, and I never would have met the love of my life."

Kuroh nodded slowly.

"He wasn't talking like someone walking down death row; he told me about how much you and Neko mean to him."

"He did?"

"He said you're the best friends he's had in a long time. I don't think he would stay away unless he had a good reason to, but something tells me that good reason isn't that he's dead."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Sometimes you just get a feeling about some things," Tatara said lightly.

Kuroh seemed to ponder what he'd said for a moment, then changed the subject awkwardly. "So it's true, about you and your King...?"

"Practically married? Yeah, it is." A sly smile twisted on Tatara's lips. "Why do you ask?"

Kuroh was stoically silent for a moment.

"You have feelings for Shiro, don't you?" As Kuroh opened his mouth to protest, Tatara cut in playfully, trying to lighten the mood. "Don't try to deny it~. You talk about him the way I talk about King."

"...I barely knew him for two weeks," Kuroh protested weakly.

"Like I said, sometimes you just get a feeling about some things. I had that feeling about King, that he would be someone special. I wish it hadn't taken so long to figure out just how special, though."

Kuroh nodded slowly, then fell silent as the group climbed the stairs into the light rail station, seeming to chew over what Tatara had said. After a moment, cleared his throat and spoke up once more, addressing the whole of the small group of Red clansmen: "It'll be helpful too, if you can fill in the details for us. The audacity of the Green clan to enter another clan's territory is worrisome." The abruptness of the way he changed the subject made Tatara smile.

"I'm sorry," Anna said suddenly, and Kuroh paused to look at her.

"For what?"

"About your king... I know it wasn’t him who tried to kill Tatara."

Kuroh nodded solemnly. “You said your powers were unstable; is nearly losing the Red King the cause?”

“No… this is different.” She drew her hands up to her chest, and as she lifted her head, the shadow of her hood receded, revealing deep worry carved across her expression. She paused, suddenly seeming to be trembling, and there was a moment of quiet as the older clansmen regarded her, concerned by her sudden change in demeanour.

The quiet was broken as a crackle of green light arced across the roof of the building, and the television screens it leapt through flickered and went blank in a shower of sparks. Mikoto instinctively made a grab for Anna, drawing her close against his body, and with his other hand he grasped Tatara’s wrist tightly. Kuroh and Rikio tensed. A shutter near the exit began to lower as the clansmen looked around for their assailant, instinctively moving to surround Mikoto, Tatara, and Anna as best they could, in the hope they’d be able to protect them. It was only then they seemed to realise the station was empty except for themselves.

“I’m feeling all tingly; something is coming!” Neko cried.

Footsteps, eerily loud, rang through the cavern of the building, accompanied by more of the green lightning, and then a sing-song voice announced: “As one travels on, a reunion awaits them, right for the moment.”

Kuroh tensed, seemingly in recognition, and he reached for the hilt of his sword. “That haiku… is by Master Ichigen… It can’t be!”

Neko hissed as the figure of the speaker drew closer, then stopped. A tall young man with long, indigo hair and delicate, feminine features, dressed in dark clothing. He had a blade not unlike Kuroh’s strapped to his back, and an almost serene smile on his face.  

“I wonder why his poems are so touching…” he said. “Hi, Kuroh. It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Have you been well?”

“Mishakuji Yukari…”

At the resentment in Kuroh’s voice, Tatara laced his fingers with Mikoto’s and tightened his grip anxiously.

“Hey, who is that?” Rikio asked, his voice low. Tatara was impressed at how much of his evident fear he managed to keep out of his tone.

“Mishakuji Yukari. Former clansman of the late Seventh King, Master Ichigen Miwa, and student in swordsmanship. I once addressed him as my senior,” Kuroh explained tersely.

“S-senior?” Rikio said tentatively, taking a step closer to his friends.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Kuroh demanded, addressing the newcomer.

“Oh, wipe that scary look off your face. Aren’t you happy to see me?” Yukari’s voice was playful.

“You?! Someone who pointed his blade at Master Ichigen?! Stop messing around!” Kuroh’s words grew to a shout as he spoke, and he tightened his grip on his sword, lowering his stance.

Yukari giggled. “Oh, that was just a test of our spirit. That’s the strong bond that he and I shared. You still don’t understand that?”

“Liar!”

“When I learned of his death, I cried for the first time in a long while. I still carry those feelings with me. But now you show up to get in my way…”

“Answer me, are you with the Green clan?!” Kuroh demanded.

Yukari drew his blade, the metal engulfed in arcs of green static. “Yes. That’s why I’m taking that girl,” he announced, nodding towards Anna.

Tatara felt Mikoto stiffen beside him. His jaw clenched as he ground his teeth, and it was written across his face that he wanted nothing more than to see the stranger who threatened his daughter burned to ash. His frustration at being able to do nothing was palpable.

“So Shiro…. Adolf K. Weismann is alive?” Kuroh pressed, drawing his blade, but his hands were shaking.

“I dunno. That’s what we want to find out: if our biggest threat to the Green clan is dead or alive,” Yukari said simply, then darted across the room towards his old comrade. Neko barely had time to cry out a warning before their swords clashed.

“I was quite pleased when I learned that we’ve become foes. See, I was determined to overcome our tragic destiny.” He said the words with a quality of almost irony in his voice. “But you, Kuroh…”

“Get away from here!” Kuroh cried over his shoulder towards the others.

Tatara didn’t need telling twice, and the four Red clansmen turned and hurried for the exit, with Mikoto clinging onto Anna’s hand.

Yukari merely watched them leave, making no attempt to stop them. “What’s with this sword?” he asked casually, then took a swing at Kuroh.

Kuroh parried the attack, but it knocked him sliding back across the tile floor. He grunted, then charged forward again, swiping repeatedly at his opponent, but none of his attacks connected.

“And here I was looking forward to sparring with you! This isn’t even fun!” Yukari commiserated as he danced out of the way of the onslaught.

“There’s nothing to learn from you at this point!” Kuroh snarled.

The two Colourless clansmen appeared to have forgotten about the escaping Reds, who were still running for the exit as Rikio prepared to blast through the shutters. They were nearly at the doors when an eerie green glow suddenly emitted from one of the pillars in front of them, and from the light emerged the ninja who had attacked them earlier that day. The group skidded to a halt, and Rikio spun around to urge them in the opposite direction, but as his back was turned to the Green ninja, they struck out at him, carving a deep gash down between his shoulders. He grunted in pain.

“Rikio!” Anna and Tatara cried out in unison as he toppled to the ground.

Tatara instinctively rushed to help his friend, but received a swift kick to the ribs for his efforts, knocking him sliding across the tile floor. He gasped for breath, winded by the shooting pain.

Mikoto squared up to the Green clansman, his hands curling into fists. There was a dark fury in his eyes that, a year ago, would have been the last thing their attacker would have seen. But his powers were gone, and all he could do was dodge to avoid the swing of their blade. He struck out with his fist, but the attack only found empty air, and then the hilt of their weapon caught him on the temple and he stumbled, dazed. But he never let go of Anna’s hand.

“Mikoto!” she cried.

The attacker spun Mikoto around to secure his wrists with a cable tie, but as they attempted to do so, he headbutted them in the stomach, and they spluttered briefly, but only hesitated for a fraction of a second before kicking Mikoto in the back of the knees, knocking him to the floor and finally forcing him to release his grasp on Anna. Then, they grabbed her, lifting the girl to lay her over their shoulder as she struggled.

With a snarl, Mikoto swiped at the ninja’s legs with his foot, almost loosening their grip enough for Anna to slip free.

“I’m taking Kushina Anna,” they announced, and their distorted voice made Tatara’s blood feel as though it had turned to ice in his veins. “And if I must take Suoh Mikoto as well, then so be it.” There was a sickening crack as the ninja kicked Mikoto in the side of the head to subdue him. He slumped against the tile flooring, only semi-conscious as the attacker grabbed him by his bindings.

“S-stop!” Rikio protested weakly, but the back of his jacket was soaked with blood, and he could do nothing more than reach meekly towards the kidnapper.

Tatara couldn’t even speak through the floods of tears. He could only watch in wide-eyed horror.

Kuroh was still locked in a heated battle with his old comrade, apparently at a disadvantage, and he barely even seemed cognisant of what was going on behind him. It was only when Yukari paused to look past him at where the masked assailant stood that Kuroh even seemed to notice Yukari wasn’t the only enemy present.

“Oh? Mission accomplished already?” Yukari remarked, then turned back to Kuroh. “And that means this lesson is over. Too bad.”

He danced past his opponent to join the other green clansman, and the ninja stepped to the side, back into the portal they had emerged from, carrying Anna over their shoulder and dragging Mikoto along behind them.

“King!” Tatara cried out in panic, and as he did so, Neko called:

“Anna!” and hurried towards the Greens, but Yukari swung his blade, sending out a bolt of electricity that cut across the ground in front of her, stopping her in her tracks.

“We’ll meet again, Kuroh. Next time, though, be more mentally prepared.”

With that, the two Green clansmen and their captives disappeared back into the portal. The green light swallowed them up and closed behind them.

[opendoorlorien]

I'm curious what are ur thoughts on Takumi? I personally don't like him, but I always give ppl the chance to try to change my mind abt him

lol I had a feeling sooner or later that someone was goingto ask me my opinion on this kid. OKAY BUCKLE UP. There’s no way I can be brieftalking about a character like him so here we go.

Takumi is without a doubt one of the more complex andlayered character of Fates (but not the most, no, that honor would go to Xander.But Takumi is definitely just behind him.) This is a great and welcome change fromAwakening where most of the cast just were as they were and didn’t have anydevelopment or character arcs or great change for better or for worse duringthe entire story (the only ones who really did are Chrom (a bit), some villainsif you count spotpass which is barely canon, and perhaps Lucina a tad). Fatescranked this up quite a bit with many of the royal family members going throughgreat character arcs for better and for worse in both routes, and some nonmain/royal characters who have smaller—but still powerful and significant—charactermoments… some being only for the worse (like Flora and Gunter to a similarextent).

But the real question here is how I feel about Takumispecifically. And I don’t suppose that’s really a simple question to answer (Ialso figure you sent me this ask bc you want to see me analyze him and talk indepth about his character lol. So I’ll do that a bit here too instead of justgiving my opinion.) For one I actually really like complex and multi layeredcharacters. I tend to avoid or disregard the ones that don’t really haveanything going for them (I feel like if Kaze didnt have all his character stuffI might not have liked him as much. If anything it really works to his benefiton how he appeals to me (and a reason why I like him better than say, Frederick)). So as long as a character is complex and goes throughsome nice development, even if I dont like their personality, it’s hard for meto at least not respect how they were written as a character, you know.

And I think that describes how I feel about Takumi too lol.NOW DONT GET ME WRONG, I definitely don’t hate him in any sense of the word.It’s just that……… I don’t like tsunderes lol. And here I’m going to usetsundere here as an umbrella term for “a character who is mean to you but doesn’treally hate you, necessarily”. Fates actually has a few of these characters invarying levels of intensity: Saizo, Rinkah, Selena lololol. And Takumi is oneof them too. But honestly I like to give Takumi the benefit of the doubt herebecause among them all, he’s has the most understandable and relateable reasons for acting the way he does to you.  Like Saizo is an ass just because lol (I get his pricklypersonality also stems from how he was brought up and the position he wasmeant to fill and everything but geez dude CHILL). Rinkah is an even worse casehere since she’s just very angry and snippy to everyone bc LOL FLAME TRIBE GETIT!? SHE’S LIKE FIRE LMAO. AND THAT MEANS SHE’S ANGRY LOLOLOLOLOOL.

And while I generally dislike tsunderes (or at least maletsunderes because I find they’re generally more harsh and brutal to you), I’mwilling to give Takumi a pretty big benefit of the doubt here because of what MADEhim the way he is. He has a LOT of reasons why he developed his harsh and coldattitude toward strangers. I feel like most people who dislike or even hateTakumi have no compassion for what he went through and just disregard it asirrelevancy. Like they’re just either unwilling or unable to understand him. AndI get it, like sometimes you’ll come across a character that you can’t findyourself liking no matter what. But I feel like when you understand whereTakumi’s coming from and what made him this way, he becomes MUCH less of a shitand much easier to sympathize with.  

Okay so a lot of people give Takumi shit in his firstappearance for being really mean to both you and Azura. Like literally thefirst thing you hear him say (outside of the weird dream battle in the prologue)is that he doesn’t trust you or Azura and he’s not really going to give you achance. Now the game doesn’t really explain why he’s so harsh to you from theget go (which is why I think people get upset with Takumi and his first real appearance gives you a bad impression of him from the start), but guess what he actually has a legit reason for how he acted here. I’m not going to go superdeep into why, but instead I’m going to recommend you watch the Fates drama CD.More specifically the Birthright one which recounts chapters 4ish to 6 in Fates,from mostly Takumi’s perspective. And these tracks humanize him WONDERFULLY andexplains and justifies PERFECTLY his attitude toward you in his firstappearance AND afterward. Like Takumi actually REALLY did want to like you, getfamiliar with you as his family, and form a relationship and a bond with you.Just… a lot of unfortunate things kept getting in the way. It’s DEFINITELY wortha watch and honestly just tore at my heart strings, and put a lot of things in perspectiveand set up the beginning of Takumi’s character arc perfectly. Long story short?It’s all Saizo’s fault lol.

Takumi gets his best development and most exploration ofcharacter ironically in Conquest. Also, personally, I just find Conquest to,generally, be the best written of all three routes. Yes Takumi does have somemoments in Birthright, but they either exist for eerie foreshadowing for whatwill happen in Conquest

or they just aren’t written that well. 

sigh.

And when I play Birthright, I find that is the route I enjoyTakumi the least. Yes my feelings are still far far away from hate. But whenhe’s not pushed into the extreme downward spiral situation like he is inConquest, he just ends up acting like a snippy tsundere. I mean even toward hisfamily and very late in the game too he keeps acting this way with theoccasional snarky comment or “more harsh than he meant it to comeoff” remark. Which wore on me a little bit but nowhere near as much asSaizo or Rinkah’s constant mean attitude. Takumi’s support with MU is also agood example of this. And since M!Corrin is canon with BR, and F!Corrin iscanon with Conquest, I think Takumi’s support was written with M!Corrin inmind, no matter which one you pick. Which is why I think he acts so mean to youin that support.

Despite my gripes with Birthright, the one valuable thing itdoes show us about Takumi’s character is his dorky side. Because this boy is adork lol. And this is actually a surprising, but also very welcoming, side ofhis character to see. I don’t think Takumi’s tsundere side is who he is. It’sjust an unfortunate byproduct of his inferiority complex and ptsd from Corrinbeing taken away and leaving a huge void in the family. It’s not who he is. Andin Birthright we really get to see more of Takumi’s better side in a morecasual and less extreme environment in supports with other people in the army.We get to see firsthand he’s actually a very sweet, kind and well meaning boy.Yall haven’t forgot that DAD IS ON THE WAY comment right lol. Takumi is verypure of heart and its really nice to see this part of him in BR. Like, look, he is a NERD

(lol Kaze lurkin in that img I didnt even notice)

AND in his support with Oboro when she makes some clothes and asks his opinion he says “this gets the Takumi seal of approval” AND do you remember how he pushes Leo’s back and brings him closer to the group in that very last cutscene of Rev? YEAH

In my Revelations opinion piece where I talked aboutcharacters, I mentioned the four big ones who get the most development andcharacter focus in this game, those being: Xander, Ryoma, Leo and Takumi. Nowthese four are similar in that they both kind of have a good end character arcand a bad end character arc depending on whether you’re playing BR or Conquest.Like Xander gets his best end in Conquest while BR is his WORST.

So, naturally, the same is applicable for Takumi whereConquest leads to his bad end. Or… does it?  

Now everything here begins with Anankos. It’s never actuallyofficially stated anywhere exactly WHEN Takumi was first possessed by him, butif I were going to put my two cents in, I would say it happened when Mikotodied in chapter five. Now going back again to the drama CD, we get to see morehere just how deeply this affected Takumi. In the game Takumi only talks to youpost battle in chapter five where he just screams curses and blame at you. Ifyou don’t know where he’s coming from, this also puts him in a kind of badlight. But the drama CD gives us another more focused account on what Takumiwent through in the direct aftermath of Mikoto’s death and its really notpretty. And if there was any perfect time to want to brainwash this kid, itwould have been here.

Now Leo and Takumi are sort of similar as characters in thatthey kind of have the same problems and struggles. Like they both haveinferiority complexes, and are desperate to live up to their over achieving siblingsect. I think the most important part where they differ—and why Takumi waspossessed and not Leo—is that Leo has his pride. I feel like he has less selfdoubt than Takumi and a higher opinion of himself than Takumi does of himself.(I’m also sure Leo’s magic power helped to stave Anankos’ influence off a bit).Takumi was also put in more extreme situations than Leo was. Keeping in mindTakumi is kind of weak of constitution and has a low opinion on himself, andthat he just saw the woman he’s known as his mother killed before his eyes,gives us more than enough reasons for him to fall hard victim to Anankos’influence here lol.

When you take into consideration everything that happens toTakumi in Conquest, its honestly not hard to understand why he became this way.Firstly, I believe Anankos’ endgame goal here was to kill Takumi, and as soonas possible. For whatever reason, Anankos can’t completely control someoneunless they’re dead first (as evidenced by all the other people he controlslike Sumeragi, Arete, the people of Valla, Garon too—though its not really madeclear to us how or when he died).

Like, we don’t get this

 until Anankos hassuccessfully pushed Takumi beyond the breaking point and gets him killed.

Before then Takumi is very angry sure, but he’s stillhimself to at least some extent. He’s not ‘completely lost’.

So what Anankos did instead to further his agenda wasamplify Takumi’s emotions of anger, rage and hate and push him to the breakingpoint. I think Anankos actually kind of sees himself in Takumi because theyboth had similar issues and personal downfalls, and that added with Takumialready being kind of mentally weak and vulnerable, was the perfect recipe fordisaster here.

In Conquest, Takumi suffers. A lot. Think about all of thisfor a second. He fights and loses to you in chapter 10 which, in his mind, allowsyou to move forward and attain greater power that he knows you’re going to useto harm his friends and family in Hoshido. And him losing to you only adds tohis inferiority complex because he was unable to stop you. In chapter 13 afterhe loses to you, Hans goes on a bloody killing spree, brutally taking the livesof Orochi, Reina and Scarlet. And Takumi has NO reason to think you didn’t havea hand in either helping Hans or allowing him to go through with it. And thelast time you see him alive in chapter 23, you’ve just started your invasion ofHoshido, have captured Sakura, her retainers, and Yukimura, and you’ve just gotdone killing Oboro and Hinata—because let’s not mince words here, they do die inchapter 23. So, honestly, taking all this into account, even WITHOUT Anankosbuffing his rage, Takumi has every right to act as angry and frustrated withyou as he does in Conquest. And anger blinds.

And all of that finally culminates to Takumi DOING A FLIPoff the Great Wall of Suzanoh.  And nowthat he is dead, Anankos has more control over him. Based on what we see ingame I don’t think Anankos can 100% control a person like a puppet, but more orless influence their extreme negative desires. When we see characters likeTakumi or Garon as a goo zombie, they don’t even mention Anankos by name, impliedor otherwise. When you see Takumi again he’s gone FULLMADNESS and his onlydesire is to kill you, which were his biggest defining thoughts when he wasalive in Conquest, now pushed beyond to the extreme now that he’s dead and completelyunder Anankos’ influence. He’s basically just a zombie made out of nothing buthate and the desire to kill you. I actually think Anankos probably wanted touse him as a trump card just in case you ended up stopping Garon, which you did.

Luckily we still got the power of love to contend with here.The ‘dream sequence’ at the very end of Conquest does wonders for both Takumiand the viewer. Like, even if you DON’T like him, you had to have feltsomething here. What both Corrin and Takumi needed in this route more thananything, but didn’t get the chance to do until now, was to TALK IT TF OUT. Andtalking it out can really do wonders. Takumi in this dream sequence appears toyou as his truest self and is able to give to you all of his honest to goodnessfeelings and smooth things over for the most part. And as a bonus he infusesYato with some Fujin Yumi goodness so you’re all good. (Which, now that I think about it, is some kind of symbolism with him truly forgiving you, apologizing to you, and giving his heart to you)

The Conquest finale will always be incredibly special to me.Because unlike in every other FE endgame where you just kill a transparentlyevil big bad dragon (or in Sacred Stone’s case—SATAN) after all the horrible,cruel, bloody and nasty stuff you went through in Conquest, after hitting rock bottomafter rock bottom, the last thing you do in the route is fight to save someone’ssoul. And that is honestly so powerful to me, and a reason why I’ll alwaysprefer Conquest over BR or Rev.

That’s more or less all I have to say about Takumi opinionswise. He is a very extreme character, and because of some of his actions inConquest I can understand people not liking him. But, much like Xander, he is avery complex and layered character who has a lot going on for him. He’sdefinitely not one of those characters you can just write off at first glancewithout trying to understand what makes him who he is, and why he acts theextreme ways that he does, and understand the reasons why he does the thingsthat people give him flack for.

It’s definitely okay not to like him if you don’t want to—I appreciatehim a lot as a character but I could really take or leave his tsundere side—buthate him or not, you got to admit he’s one of the best characters in this game.If everything you read here didn’t change your opinion on him or cause you tosympathize more with him, then I gotta recommend you go watch/listen to thatDrama CD because like I said, it really does WONDERS for Takumi as a character,explaining where he’s coming from, his stand points on things, and explaininghis volatile attitude toward you. He really doesn’t hate you at all, butsometimes people can let their emotions get the worst of them without meaningto—and when a centuries old evil helldragon is controlling you, it’s honestlyno wonder things got so bad, right.

And, all in all, TAKUMI DID NOT DESERVE THIS SUFFERING AND HE DESERVED SO MUCH MORE AND DESERVES HAPPIEST END

Also here’s a link to that drama CD on youtubePart OnePart Tworecommended tracks if you dont want to watch the entire thingVol 1. Track 2Vol 2. Tracks 4-6 and 8CHECK IT OUT

[kusunokihime-a]

💞

[ Send 💞 to ask Mun their Shipping Properties! They will answer all below ][ @master-and-student || @littlelilypetal (since you sent in a few lol) ][ Accepting ]

What’s your OTP for your Muse?:

     Well, my first ship with Ryū started about five years ago with some friends, where I wrote her with Itachi. I RPed…a LOT with those two friends, so we had a LOT of time to build the ship. Those RPs are actually where the twins came from! So that pairing is very dear to me. Of course, any muse is different, so that ship is something I see separately from anything that happens here. But it’s still something that brings me a lot of happiness to remember, because it was so much fun time spent with my friends n_n

     I’m lucky enough to have a few ships on here, and I honestly adore all of them. So I really can’t pick a favorite, tbh. Even a few of my background characters have a ship or two, which is super neat!

What are you willing to RP when it comes to shipping?:

     Just about anything? My only stipulations are that there can’t be adult x minor ships, and no incest ships. And of course, no smutting with minors. Other than that, I can’t think of anything that I’d exclude!

How large does the age gap have to be to make it uncomfortable?:

     …I’m not really sure I can put my foot down in any way except for adult x minor. Because like…there’s also some squeamish factor where like…as SOON as a character turns 18, yes they’re legal, but it can still be a bit predatory if someone leaps at the chance the moment they are. Because one day ago, they weren’t. So it sorta depends on the dynamic? I dunno if that makes sense ^^;

Are you selective when shipping?:

     Beyond my basic rules, not really? In the end, it’s 100% up to my muses what they feel works, and what doesn’t. If they don’t see your muse in that light, I’m sorry, but I won’t force a ship. It has to work organically. Sure there’s situations like arranged marriage AUs, but that doesn’t mean my character will have feelings for yours. So, in short, I am - or rather, my muses are!

How far do steamy moments have to go before they’re considered NSFW?:

     …that’s a good question? Tbh I haven’t really RPed nsfw here until VERY recently. I used to RP it with a friend outside Tumblr, but that was literally years ago. I’m majorly out of practice, and tbh I’m not sure I’m very good at it because I’m very ace and sometimes I get squeamish xD But I think once there’s like…foreplay? I’d like to see things under a cut. Because I know there are people who don’t like to see that on their dashes. I’d always rather be safer than sorry when it comes to putting stuff under cuts.

Who are other Muses you ship your Muse with?:

     Oh gosh, let’s see…for Ryū, there’s sort of a ship with @hirasenshi​‘s Rin, in an AU; there’s @rxvensden​ with Sebby; @despairinghxpe​‘s Itachi; @ofascxnsionss​‘s Shieru; and @scxrlctiisms​‘s Nagisa. I also ship Reika (Ryū’s mom) with scxrlctiisms’ Aki, and Fu with Hotaka. Fu also has a ship with @himahimesun​‘s Himawari! Neither Mikoto II nor Reika II have any active ships yet.

     And with my other blogs, I have ships going with Mey, lol -with both Shisui and Kakashi :3

Does one have to ask to ship with you?:

     …I guess? I mean sometimes it just HAPPENS in the RP, but usually muns kinda look at each like, “Do you ship this thing…?” and the other goes “OH YES I thought you’d never ask” lolol. So I mean it can build up, but I think usually it’s a good idea to double check with each other ooc to make sure it’s okay!

How often do you like to ship?:

     Tbh? Any time! As long as things are organic and not forced, I’m down any time! And if we don’t have anything yet, you’re more than welcome to ask :3 I won’t bite! Of course I can’t guarantee my muses will play along, but you’re always welcome to ask n_n

Are you multiship?:

     Yes! Each ship has its own verse…unless muns agree for some tug-of-war, huehue~

Are you ship obsessed or ship more-or-less?:

     …somewhere in the middle? Like…I don’t want to be obnoxious xD I ADORE my ships, but I also realize that they can get kinda…overdone? Like if my partner is sick of my rambling about them they just gotta tell me to shut up lol - I don’t want to push something to the point where things get ruined because it’s being talked about too much, know’m’sayin’?

What is your favorite ship in your current fandom?:

     …I don’t wanna pick favorites, man! I love all my ships! Besides, I don’t want anyone to feel crummy if I say one over the other - that’s not nice. I love each of them for their own reasons - there’s really not any I prefer over another~

Finally, how does one ship with you?:

     Just…write with me? Like we can discuss things ooc early on if you’d like, but in the end it’s also gotta come down to chemistry. If my muse and I agree to it, then it’s all good! But like I said, in the end, it’s up to my muses. Whatever they’re comfortable with, be it planned out early on, or built up far down the road.

     One quick thing I will note? I’ve written a really long fanfic for Ryū’s backstory, all the way into a long epilogue arc, which was started like…five or six years ago. I wrote it as close to canon as I could, which meant she bumped into canon muses through that. OBVIOUSLY, my own fic writing DOES NOT carry over to other mun’s muses. BUT. It does kinda sorta mean I already know some canon muses Ryū would be down to ship with, IF IT EVER CAME UP. So there are some muses we both know she’d already generally get along with. Given, another mun’s interpretation of those characters might change things, but it does give me an idea as to what I myself could see working right out the gate.

     Jus’sayin’ ;3c

[hyacinthetic]

You've interested me with potential Reitotsu from your "swimming, swimming, swimming" meta. Please expand on this. More detail about preventing territorial blowout, how would Totsuka achieve this? Seri and Kusanagi haven't done it.

i’m going to answer you a bit backwards – first by talkingbriefly about how awashima and kusanagi were bad fits for bringing peace,second by discussing why totsuka would bother, third by addressing reitotsu andwhy it interested me in 2015 but i don’t see it working out too hot.

as a preface: let’s be clear that the full context of my original sentence was “totsuka tries to overcome all his fears of a s4 v. homra territorial blowout” (emphasis added). for various reasons,* his odds of succeeding were always going to be shit. but i do believe that (i) it’s within his wheelhouse to have tried something; and (ii) he’s better-positioned for it than awashima + kusanagi combined. let’s take those points backwards.

( * it’s mikorei. when in doubt, i am always talking about mikorei. )

RE: WHY AWASHIMA AND KUSANAGI FAILED TO RESTRAIN THEIR KINGS

this point makes sense largely if you consider totsuka’s service to his king v. kusanagi / awashima’s services. our most extreme example comes in s1, when mikoto goes hurtling headlong to his death and his childhood best friend—the one who knew him best before he ascended—stands by and tells the empty night, “you were the best king we could have asked for”, knowing perfectly well that suoh mikoto never wanted to be king. similarly, awashima never brings up her concerns with munakata directly in s2: she only confronts him after he comes back and he’s made his own choice. both fall into supporting roles; they don’t tell the kings who to be, they only work to ensure that the kings meet their own goals.

totsuka, by contrast, is a kingmaker in a very real sense. the post you mention quotes snippets such as totsuka’s enthusiastic cry to “make this a great kingdom!” and to convince mikoto that he’s a protector. kings do not default to violence and territoriality  – see ichigen miwa, who lived alone in the mountains and picked up an apprentice almost by happenstance. totsuka tells mikoto what being king means, and mikoto takes his cues to lead. munakata and mikoto may have philosophies at odds with one another, but totsuka’s the reason their conflict’s ongoing. so if you were going to change mikoto’s path without developing any of his canon relationships, totsuka would be the go-to option. he’s done it before, and it’s not out of bounds to think that mikoto’d be willing to change again at totsuka’s word.

RE: TOTSUKA’S MOTIVATIONS FOR STEPPING INTO THE FIGHT

assuming that totsuka has the capacity to change things, the question becomes motivation. we know that totsuka enjoys playing the weakling who acts only by influencing others (see: that time he took homra out to an amusement park to force mikoto’s hand in scattering a bunch of thugs following anna), and that others consider this his role in homra. (“We’re a breed of team where power is like our meanin’ for existence. And on top of that, we’ve got a bunch of guys together who let the blood rush to their heads. Someone who, within that, won’t let them drown in their power… who’ll keep everyone together using a method that isn’t forceful, is needed.”) so what would drive him to push suoh mikoto, the man he’s only ever wanted to follow?

the end of my “swimming, swimming, swimming” post was a throwaway joke, but not out of line with how i’d answer the question seriously: totsuka acts according to his own interests. he started following mikoto in middle school, not for any serious purpose, but because he thought that mikoto had a kingly air and he wanted in on that. so if he thought that munakata was (physically) interesting and he saw an advantage in ingratiation, it doesn’t seem to be a stretch to suggest that totsuka might try to involve himself with munakata to bring peace to the homra-s4 conflict from the other side.

i’m going through totsuka’s motivations in some depth because i can’t, in the end, answer your question positively: i don’t believe he’d win the day re: bringing peace. totsuka’s advantage with mikoto is that mikoto accepts other people for who they are (provided they aren’t actively hurting others), and uses his own strength to protect them. totsuka held onto peace for as long as he did by making sure that mikoto had people to protect. this is not a tactic he could use with munakata, whose core philosophy is that humans need structure and a just system. his power comes from working within the system to bring justice. if there’s one thing we know about totsuka, it’s that the system doesn’t suit him much. he can’t even stand the consistency of keeping just one hobby. and i don’t buy that totsuka would charge in where he didn’t think he had good odds for success.

RE: REITOTSU AT LARGE, or a study in fucking around with paragraphs that have no topic sentences; don’t do this at home, kids.

i’d argue there’s some leeway for at least a superficial friendship based on both their interests and the the way they deal with the relationships between ‘being king’ and ‘being human’. you don’t need canon to tell you that totsuka definitely has at least five 3-D puzzles and three books on japanese tea ceremonies propping up a table somewhere. further, unlike mikoto, munakata seems to feel the gap between humans and kings as an actual loss. (see: various remarks throughout canon in which he tries to assert a connection with people who don’t want him that close.) they have a common philosophy: a king shouldn’t need to be lonely. i’ve addressed above why totsuka would be interested in munakata; it doesn’t seem unreasonable to think that munakata wouldn’t respond to that interest to some degree, particularly in light of totsuka’s connection to the main thorn in his side.

ultimately, however, what brought totsuka to munakata’s door would likely drive them apart, too: mikoto may be a brute, but totsuka’s the one who motivates him to stay in power. let’s take a moment to remember that munakata’s main issue with mikoto isn’t that he’s an asshole – it’s that he chooses to act outside the law, and a large part of that choice derives from totsuka’s encouragement. to give them any kind of serious relationship, you’d need to address the conflict. which is difficult, because the nature of any system is that it presumes a set of baseline truths about a population. homra’s there for the people who fall through the cracks, either because the law doesn’t apply to their problems (see: yata “my mum’s new family doesn’t need me and i’m dumb, who am i even and what am i good for” misaki) or because they’re in a position where they can’t go to the law. they solve things with violence both as a deterrent and because it’s the way mikoto needs to blow off steam. you and i understand this, but munakata likely wouldn’t: at the r:b timepoint, the system is everything to him.

but let’s step back for a moment. there are three core principles to the munakata-suoh conflict: (i) suoh lives outside of the system and munakata within it; (ii) suoh and munakata have people to protect; (iii) suoh and munakata are the slate’s chosen kings. 

as such, totsuka’s options for defusing the homra-s4 conflict are three: (i) bring suoh into the system and make sure he lives by it; (ii) remove suoh’s people to protect; (iii) get suoh to step down.

(i) and (ii) are instantly out of the question – (i) was contrary to suoh’s character even before he became a king;** (ii) would never be true for as long as totsuka was alive, and losing it (per s1) could drive mikoto to burn out instantly. that leaves us with (iii) – which is difficult but not impossible. totsuka’s understanding of mikoto as ‘king’ began long before the slate chose him, and arguably has very little to do with mikoto’s slate-granted powers. what totsuka wants, at his core, is for mikoto to be king and to have human bonds with others. neither of these require that he keep powers that are killing him. munakata’s in an especially good position to convince him of that.

if i were going to do reitotsu in any kind of canon setting, i’d start there.

(** i mean, there’s a workable au in which the japanese parliament sees the rising tide of strain incidents and strikes back against the gold king’s ‘shadow government’ by passing a set of laws that require strain registration and restrict travel for registered strains/clansmen. in the ensuing power struggle, shizume degenerates into territories divided between the rule of separate kings. munakata wouldn’t like it, and frankly totsuka would have to grow the fuck up before he could cope with such an au, but at least then munakata’d have to recognise mikoto as a king with specific grounds for rights. while the catalyst for s4 and homra’s constant battles comes down to totsuka + principles, their actual conflict derives from the fact that homra, in theory, falls under s4’s governance. give them a system in which they maintain separate spheres of power and negotiating peace gets a lot easier.)

IN SUM

i realise the above is very negative. this isn’t to say that i don’t find the relationship interesting in its own way. the canon theme is that nobody ever calls totsuka out on his shit – mikoto periodically sees through it (see: again, their scene at the amusement park) but really doesn’t challenge him. kusanagi’s in a similar position to see through the facades, but arguably has too much to lose by trying to change his dynamic with mikoto and homra. (remember – kusanagi thinks it’s important for homra to have a weakling + a restraint, something that only works if he lets totsuka play his games.) munakata’s as close as we get to a bystander who’s nevertheless involved enough to tell totsuka exactly how much damage he’s doing by using someone else to play kings – and more than that, how little totsuka’s doing for himself by perpetuating a system where his only role is supposedly ‘support’ when he’s capable of so much more.

as for munakata’s interest in totsuka – well. totsuka’s one of the few characters we see who’s fearless with his king. supplemental materials make munakata’s quest for just such a person fairly clear.