I Know Where You Live And I've Seen You Sleep (Private)

[Kairyuu]

To say that things had no gone as planned would be putting it lightly. He hadn’t expected to have everyone agree and be met with multiple volunteers; but to find out that he’d bypassed the branch’s head entirely certainly put him on the wrong foot in regards to everyone else. Still, perhaps it was a simple mistake on Sousuke’s part to misinform him of said leadership. Enzeru could let mistakes slide, Sousuke was a busy man with a lot to do and none of those things was holding Enzeru’s hand through learning the village. So he would let bygones be bygones.

That was the initial idea until he found himself outside of the apartment and knocking on the door. He had no idea who owned it, only that Sousuke was inside. He would like to think the leader of the village was asleep but knew better. Sousuke had a very specific sleeping pattern. It was called “when I’m dead” and he seemed to stick to it like it was a religion. Still, asleep or not the new member of Sand was intent on having a talk. To keep things from seeming like he was out for an apology, he brought some food with him. Grilled salmon with a Cajun rub, and some fries. Simple fare, but good.

Enzeru was still in his own formal military dress. He found the outfit suited him, it gave off a good impression of the man wearing it. Military to the bone, and yet loyal as they come. And while Sand was his new home, he could not deny his own roots. Mist might be gone, but he would still carry it in his training, his behavior, his physique.

”C’mon Sousuke. I know you’re in there.”

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke would emerge from the apartment room. Yes. He was living with Yume. It was not a shameful thing. People lived with their loved ones right? His grandmother called it shacking up, which was a term he didn't like, but there was little he could do about his grandmother's always colourful word choice. Sousuke was drinking a steaming hot coffee. He blinked lazily at the medic. "I assure you."<i></i> He began. He stopped suddenly. "I... I was sleep working. Sort of. Kind of."<i></i> He spoke in a very uncertain way. Sousuke could have been telling the truth. Sleep working was one of those things he ... maybe did? Who truly knew.

"I uh ... ... was trying to use universal numbers in an end-game effect revolving around two unrelenting forces and trying to figure out what happened when those two forces collide and result in a force event."<i></i> He tried explaining as he opened the door revealing the room to be a mess of papers. Well, maybe not mess. They were floating. Chakra attuned papers were floating and other circling about. Sousuke was putting his knowledge of paper jutsu to work and instead of using it as a combat technique, he was using it as a research movement technique. In Sousuke's metallic hand, he had a bowl of coffee which was steaming hot. He was in a daze of sorts. Not quite awake, and not quite asleep. "I then had to factor an error thirty-seven which was in fact Kuro's power set which ... seemingly is an infinite equation that is constantly evolving. It hurts my head."<i></i> He motioned to have Enzeru join him at the couch. He wasn't sure if this was a social visit, pep talking, or a scolding. Sousuke sat down and raised his hands his fingers making small movements as he was shifting papers about and away. "You know. This isn't even my own apartment. This is my girl friend's. She invited me to live with her... and yes we do sleep in separate beds."<i></i>

 

[Kairyuu]

If Enzeru were the type to show it when they were startled, he definitely would have here. Not at Sousuke being in the apartment, but at the man actually acting tired. There goes the theory that the Kazekage-Steward was simply a robot programmed to do whatever someone in the village thought it should do. Still, it also meant that Kimi was correct in her constant badgering at Sousuke to take a break. Enzeru just gives a smile and chuckle at the idea that his friend was taking at least a modicum of time to rest.

”I do believe they wipe out everything around them and then some before one or both finally loses momentum and dies.” Enzeru follows the man inside, taking a seat himself and giving a noncommittal grunt at the mention of Kuro. That one seemed nice enough to smother an elephant, but Enzeru knew that too much soft heartedness was just as lethal as not enough. And he felt that the Border Sennin was going to kill someone with his bleeding heart. It was quite an impression to be obtained after meeting the man exactly once, but that meeting certainly painted a picture.

”Really? Separate beds? You should fix that. Even without relations, being able to fall asleep or wake up next to someone makes sleep better. And your secret is safe with me. Curious that I’ve not seen her though.” In truth he’d not been keeping much of an eye on the place. His time was mostly spent keeping one on his betrothed. Kimi was his world, and if anyone tried to harm his world he wanted to be present to make them rethink that idea.

”The Mednin seemed to take my idea in stride. One even volunteered for training. Though they did get onto me for not going through the branch leader first, which is odd since I was told there wasn’t one.” And it was out. Enzeru usually didn’t mince words , but he did want to know why Sousuke led him to the conclusion he did.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Enzeru gave him an answer. "Right. Entirely true. You see, eventually we're going to be in the middle of it, and we're going to be the everything around them."<i></i> Sousuke explained. It was going to be a brawl of sorts. Maybe it would be Mikaboshi, maybe it would be Kuro, maybe it would be Suna itself. Someone or something was going to blow up, and fight the Daimyo. Maybe it might even be himself? It was something he was considering. "But here is the thing, Kuro does have the ability to resurrect everything. This is the like ... it happened once, but I have to factor into it happening again. There is a precedent for it."<i></i> Sousuke chewed his lip for a moment. Kuro was powerful yes, but he had limits. He had seen those limits in the Dojo when he battled against the Cabal. "I myself haven't been resurrected, not that I know of at least."<i></i> He added. He did consider that one particular battle out in the desert, and the time when Shiori had gotten him out of the mirror. He had been passed out, or was he dead? "Have you ever had that happen to you?"<i></i>

Enzeru seemed surprised at the notion of sleeping in a different bed than Yume. He didn't say anything at first. "I try to keep my private life, and my job separate, an impossibility really. Her ... uncle was a member of the Cabal, and ... well Urufuu is dead now. Not by my hands, it could have been by my hands. I could have snapped his neck during the battle in the Dojo. I didn't though. I told him to become superior... which is something I've been trying to become my entire life. A superior version of myself... which sometimes I feel like I'm failing at."<i></i> He frowned. He rubbed his forehead with his index and middle finger. What Enzeru next said to him confused him quite a bit. "...I didn't mention what my grandmother said ... Oh! You're referring to Koichi."<i></i> He knew that Kimi's father was a slightly more liberal man, whereas Sousuke was conservative. "I once had a cruel joke played on me once by a foreign Witch. This was before I was ... a true item with Yume. I had to attend one of Nobu's drinking parties, and didn't quite last the night. This Witch had brought me home, and played a joke on me being that she got in bed with me. Naked."<i></i> Sousuke's face made a very deep frown, "I woke with her arm across me, and I very quietly tried to escape... only to have a telephone call wake her up. My ward walked in on me trying to escape her ... and yes that got odd. "<i></i> His eyes shifted to the side. "I'm old fashioned."<i></i>

The conversation would then go into med nin territory. Sousuke in his shame covered his face with his hands. His hands would slowly slide off of his face. "You would be right, except that was sixty-one hours, forty-two minutes, and six seconds ago."<i></i> He shook his head apologetically. "I've decided to re-work things in the Suna government. I've disbanded branch sennin and titled sennin. I chose to have sennin instead, since my last medical sennin which was when I was ... uh ... maybe twenty-one? Seven years ago and counting. Uh ... she got pregnant, and then went missing, had a daughter, who claimed her mother was now a slave and ..."<i></i> Sousuke's brow furrowed. "Essentially the position was never filled, and rather than seem like I was ignoring the branch I decided to re-arrange things. I did appoint a new medical captain. His birth name is Akujin, but he goes by Kyuiji. I guess someone didn't send the memo. Yes. Sorry about that."<i></i>

 

[Kairyuu]

He thought for a moment about the response. Two forces of that magnitude meeting anywhere near Sand meant bad news for any village, much less one undergoing the restructuring this one was. That was something that would easily spill into Sunagakure if they were in the middle of it, and while he had no clue what forces were involved, he did know it would not help the village in the short term if they were part of it. But then Sousuke goes on to mention Kuro being able to resurrect people. Enzeru looks up sharply at that, his eyes taking on a look that Sousuke would only have seen before when they were hunting a pirate and a psychopath.

”Perhaps he can. But the barrier between life and death is not something trivially broken. It takes much power to breach that wall, and even more to mend it when done.” He knew there was a cycle in place, he knew it had a purpose. That which was dead was meant to stay that way. But then Sousuke asked him the one thing that brought Enzeru short. His eyes drop as he stares at his own feet for a moment, letting Sousuke pick up the slack even as his mind turns that one over. How to explain what was going on, what he was and had been.

For now, don’t. Instead he looks back up and briefly chuckles at Sousuke’s words. ”One thing I’ve learned is that, as a shinobi, your job and your private life are one and the same. That goes doubly when you’re leading a village. You’re more than just the Kazekage, you’re the standard to which people would hold themselves.” Sousuke would go on about his grandmother, then the tale of how he got with Yume which simply made the Hunter give a smile. He imaged it must be terrible waking up naked, hungover, and with a woman beside you. ”I can only imagine that you continue to have nightmares about that night. Still, I do suggest giving it a try. Don’t have to be naked to enjoy someone’s closeness.”

”As for Kyuji, or Akujin I suppose, no need to apologize. I’ve seen first hand how busy you get, I can well understand that the memo in question isn’t a priority. Sounds like the Medical Sennin was a space that was in dire need of competent help. Still, if you’ve disbanded them altogether, I can then assume the branches are being run by the captains? It would make sense for the remaining Sennin to have authority above that, but the day to day wouldn’t require them.”

He thinks for a moment before looking once more at Sousuke. ”I have been resurrected. I don’t remember it. I don’t remember anything about what I was like before it. It wasn’t in the sense of I died and came back to life, however. I was reborn instead. But I assure you, there is nothing pleasant about knowing you should be dead. We were not made to glimpse the beyond and live to tell about it. If those forces do come to a head, I shall stand with the village and do as I can to alleviate the blowback onto Sunagakure.”

 

[Takahashi Aki]

"Oh I have nightmares over worse things than that."<i></i> In part, it was one of the reasons he did not sleep. It was part of this annoying thing called PTSD. Sousuke was certain that if he had in fact went to go see someone about his mental health, he would be declared unfit. That was a frightening thing, considering the alternative was to let someone else take responsibility. Mainly it was due to fear. Sousuke was terrified of someone doing something and screwing it up, mainly it was due to the fallout in the aftermath. Kuro seemed to want to take over responsibility, but Kuro's reputation was growing infamous. He didn't quite see the real problem is ripping people limb from limb and then putting them back together. Who was Kuro, or the Ancients to drain the souls of people for power?

"Ideally, yes this was meant to empower captains, mind you I said captains."<i></i> He paused for a moment. "I think ... "<i></i> He paused. "You have a point and a good idea to have medics trained in combat. The Cabal member known as Urufuu broke out of the hospital, and the medical team ... well I'm going to say for future situations we need to be able to control dangerous patients. He was a danger, not because of what he did, but what he had ... which has gone missing for better or for worse."<i></i> He narrated. He did not fear the tome, but he feared who may put their hands on a tome that knew everything but spoke in maddening riddles. Sousuke's eyes narrowed. Most of the Cabal members he reviled. Katuso wanted to keep them alive. In his heart, Sousuke knew that Katuso was right, or was he? If Kaito was dead they would not have known where to put an end to the storm. Urufuu was Yume's uncle and if he was dead -- Sousuke may have been capable of destroying that infuriates tome, or forcing it to disappear and return sometime later when he was longer alive to deal with it. "What I'm saying ... which is taking far too long to say is ... you're Medical Captain as of now along with Kyuji."<i></i> There were others yes, but Enzeru had a strong head on his shoulders. "You will answer to myself, and to the sennins of course. If something goes down, and you need to chat, you know where to find me."<i></i> Sousuke stopped talking at that point. He rubbed the side of his head. He wondered if Enzeru was going to react to this like Roku and question his better judgment. Sousuke suspected the two would get along together, considering their inherit distrust of certain others.

Sousuke soaked in what Enzeru said about the cycle of life and death. Then he added that he had been reborn. He tapped his fingers on the armrest of the couch. He sucked his teeth as he thought deeper and deeper about it. "I guess, you just make the most of what has been given to you?"<i></i> It was the obvious thing to do. "So... did you ever try to figure out your past life? Or do you just avoid it?"<i></i>

 

[Kairyuu]

Nightmares explained a lot. Enzeru knew well the slippery slope of that one. It was a downward spiral where you couldn’t stop thinking about them and that only made them worse. A positive feedback loop of terror that left you awake at night hugging your own knees and rocking back and forth. Well….most people. Enzeru dealt with it like he did everything else. He went out and found something to hunt or worked himself to exhaustion. Kimi likely was the cause of his not doing anything of the sort lately. But Sousuke had no such comfort it seemed. And he could only imagine the nightmares the man before him had.

”It sounds like we might need to track this man down then. Do we have any idea of where he would have gone from Suna? I could likely get together a group of people to-“ Enzeru goes quiet as Sousuke continues to speak. He was being promoted, it seemed. To a rank quite equivalent to the one he held in Mist, though of the opposite branch. Last time he’d had such a position, things spun out of control quickly in the village. One Mizukage vanished, another fled. The riots. The execution of runners. Sendo at his side and being a mirror of Enzeru’s own loyalty to the village. Sendo killing her.

”I…apparently do know where to find you.” Enzeru doesn’t look around the apartment as he says this, but the point stood that he was still, and likely always would be, the hunter. Even if his calling went from ANBU to Mednin, that would do nothing to change a lifetime of conditioning. It seemed, however, that right now each of them was given a moment of introspection for different reasons. ”While I’m not sure how the others will take it, I see no choice but to accept.” He certainly questioned it, but he also saw first hand the dire straits of the medical branch and knew something had to be done there.

”That is indeed what should be done. You never hear about the ghosts of people who lived a good life and died happy knowing so.” Once more he thought about what Sousuke should be told. He didn’t like keeping secrets, but the less Sousuke knew, the less he would worry. In the end Enzeru once more decided it would not do to hide things. Sousuke was a brother, in arms and deed if not blood, and he deserved to know.

”I did. Kashiro did, actually. Apparently he knew me in my original incarnation. Near as I can tell piecing together what he has told me…and what another source has told me, as well as my own nightmares….I was a hunter of men. I was an angel. They sent me to handle people who threatened the power of our kind. And above me in terms of lethality was only one. Oujouittou. Known as Death to his kind.”

Even to Enzeru it still seemed like some made up fairy tale. But his gauntlets proved it at least somewhat true. ”Anyways, Kashiro and I met then. And became friends. And my brothers did not appreciate that. They claimed I was tainted, corrupted. And they struck me down. But didn’t want me to truly be gone. So instead….I was reborn. And when I began to piece things together, they sent Oujouittou to kill me again. And again. And again. I have no idea how many times. I do know that he threatened Kimi when we were in Kirigakure. If I see him again….I will end him.”

There it was. The reason for Enzeru’s changes over the recent year. The bulking up, the change in how he fought, the aggressiveness he was gaining. He knew his former method of fighting, sitting in the back lines and sniping, would not work. So he was working on something new. A fast, powerful offense. And it explained why he stood guard over Kimi. Even when she wasn’t aware of it.

He saw again Sendo before him. And her. Miu. He didn’t love her. But he did care for her. She betrayed the village, however. She tried to get Enzeru to lie for her, to implicate his brother in arms. She failed. And Sendo took the responsibility for her death out of Enzeru’s hands. He saw it, that sword rising and falling. And in his mind, he saw now Oujouittou raising a blade above Kimi. And something inside of him growled in response to that image. He would not let history repeat.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuked upon the learning the revelation of Enzeru's origins, went silent. He was thinking about it for a time. Things got awkward from here on out. "Kuro's sister, his oldest sister is possessed? Yes ... possessed I think is the best term by a Tenshi or angel. Maybe not the same thing as you were. Are they ultra violent by nature, and they make use of photonic weaponry? I was challenged by Kuro's sister by a duel once, and elemental wise I'm on the opposite end of the spectrum. I am capable of using shadows and the darkness. She put me in a position during the duel that had ... forced me to choose between gaining a tactical and combat advantage ... and protecting people present who were not part of the fight. Suffice to say, I chose the latter. I was pierced and sliced into with blades of light. Luckily she regained her senses and took control back but ... ever since I've always been wary of photonic elemental users."<i></i>

It seemed odd that Kashiro of all entities in the world that knew Enzeru in his former life. "So. It sounds like this has been happening you to for some time. It must be maddening."<i></i> Sousuke was surprised it was the Demon that possessed? No, Kashiro was part of Kimi that knew of him. Sousuke was originally wary of the feline spirit. Shade and him both knew the danger that he could present. Fortunately he did nothing. Kashiro knew though that he was being watched by Sousuke, and the spirit of his weapon. Granted the spirit of his weapon now took a different form, or had become something else entirely different. "Well, you know that I will give your weaponry a fix up or upgrade if you need me to, but ... now given your new position you can call me in to fix the hospital equipment. I have had a good few calls back in the day, but most of them were odd gossip runs ... between myself and one Tsukiko. She ... she is a nurse, but she is not quite proficient in using chakra. She's not a civilian either, but she does know her stuff."<i></i> Sousuke explained giving Enzeru an idea as to what kind of staff he was going to be working with. The good thing in all of this? Sousuke knew Enzeru would not put in any weird requirements of the female gender and what they wore. There was this odd thing with the fetish of nurses. He never quite understood it himself, but there were those with a flavour for ... nurse outfits.

 

[Kairyuu]

”Sounds close to the point. Not all of them are violent. I think the best way to describe them would be racist bastards. If you’re not one of them, you’re inferior. They consider it a crime to fraternize with lesser beings. And the people I hunted….they weren’t all evil. They were a threat. I did things that I’m glad I only see in my nightmares. I’m happy for Kimi, and Kashiro, and you.” He looks up from his memories, eyes focusing on Sousuke once more. ”I am not that thing anymore. I am human. And they know not what humans are truly capable of I think. But they fear what we can achieve I know.”

In truth, they kept him grounded in ways they couldn’t know. Sousuke giving him the new position, for instance, would be a constant reminder that people were depending on him. Enzeru was no stranger to the chains of command, to the ups and downs of leadership. He knew he would make calls that ended up causing people to fall. He would minimize this as much as he could, but by no means would he be able to stop it entirely. Kimi reminded him of his own humanity through the emotions she brought to him. The love, the joy, the lightness of soul that only she could provide. Kashiro reminded him of what he was, and that even as that he was capable of more than the others of his kind.

”I’ll keep that in mind. Oh, and I have a surprise for you.” Enzeru smiles, slipping a hand into his pocket and pulling free a square sheet of metal. It looked thin as paper, and was a slight purple in color. He hands it across to Sousuke. ”I am not a smith by any means. My gloves were crafted by another. But I do seem to be capable of creating raw materials. I can make much more of that if you’re interested. I’m not sure if it’s stronger than your own, but I can hazard a guess that it’s much lighter. Something to think about if you’d like to try your hand.”

Tsukiko. She was present when Naganisa was brought to the Hospital. Kuro also. Enzeru grits his teeth as he remembers Kurisu staying his hand. He was no blood thirsty murderer, but the woman’s sins burned brightly in his sight and any future pain she inflicted would be on his hands for allowing them to stop him.

”We’ve met. Though it was when I first arrived. I attempted to kill Naganisa, but was stopped. She was present. I will keep that in mind, however.”

 

[Takahashi Aki]

"Sounds alot like some other races I've dealt with."<i></i> Ancients thought the same way, but even there was a caste system. That was how the Black Blade became Mikaboshi's. A Fire Court Ancient pushed his luck and found himself being consumed by what lurked beneath. That same sword would then come to Sousuke hundreds of years later, and now it was a very different looking blade. The weapon was being used to destroy and slain the ones that had created it. What Enzeru said after made Sousuke think. He was happy for him? "What do you mean, you're happy for me?"<i></i> He inquired. It did not make sense to him at all. "It's a trend. Humans being underestimated. We have choice, and some others do not. Primus was able to show us that we are not slaves, that we are something more ... that we have the potential to become something more."<i></i> Sousuke was the descendant of those who promoted and aided Primus the most. Was it all for nothing now? There was no longer a Sunahoshi to promote and to aid. Katuso never did seem to grasp that concept. That his protection and his very being was meant to be taken care of by a Takahashi. To advise and to help him to do great things. That was not going to be happening at all. Now the Takahashi had to become something else entirely now. That scared Sousuke.

Sousuke said nothing as he picked up the purple coloured sheet metal. He ran his fingers along the edge. "I'll put it to the test. We'll see what happens... I ... uh ... have been using a lot of darker colours in my designs lately. It's more due to my mood right now. It's a phase I go through. I get... apprehensions of the worst sort."<i></i> He paused for a moment. "It's a thing that happens at times. Maybe ... this... playing with some new materials will relieve me of this."<i></i> He suggested. He toyed with the metal in his hands bending it, spinning it about between his thumb and index finger. He seemed to be complete absorbed into it as he was trying to figure out his new little toy. He continued to focus on it as Enzeru spoke more of Tsukiko. "She uh ... is kinda dating Yume's brother? I think they may be engaged in carnal activities. I remember Shinji once going on and on about this thing called 'booty call' and wine with her. He claimed to her that it was not a booty call but ... uhm... I have to think otherwise. We played poker once, she has an IOU of mine to fix a mechanical thing of her chosing. It's not like she's ... uh dangerous and vile? She's not in the social grouping that makes me comfortable. "<i></i> By this time Sousuke had folded the metal sheet into a cube that was hollow in the inside. He was then twirling it on his index finger. "Either way she likes results and getting things done. I think she is more aligned with you in the thought process of dealing with the Cabal."<i></i>

 

[Kairyuu]

”Sadly there are far too many with that mindset. And not nearly enough with a better one.”

He had seen the worst of the people he came across. From the angels using their supposedly higher status as justification to do whatever they want, to humans misusing the powers they had been given to subjugate their own, down to the demons torturing for sheer pleasure of doing so. There was no such thing as a truly benevolent race. Nor was any truly evil. But each of them had, at their core, a mindset that lent itself to such things. It was simply amazing to him that of the three, humanity was the one that most often rose to the peaks of both cruelty and charity. Truly it was in their nature to be the greatest of beings, if only they could stop fighting and reach for it.

”I meant that I’m happy you all are in my life. For a while there I was lost once more. I spent months camping outside of my old home thinking that I was doing good by warning people away. But there were so few people to warn. I think….that I was simply waiting to die. I came to Sunagakure looking to help after the Cabal attack. My original plan was to do my part to ease the suffering in some way, then head back to Mist. But you three came into my life and I found reason to stay. For that I am happy to have you in my life.”

It was a lot, and for someone like Enzeru who rarely opened up that much, it was high praise indeed that he chose to with Sousuke. His eyes move to the metal as the other begins to manipulate it in ways that left him confused. While he could create it, utilizing it properly was definitely more in line with Sousuke’s skillset than his own. ”I got the feeling she wouldn’t have been too sad if my blade weren’t stayed that day. While I do understand the importance behind interrogation, there are some people that are too dangerous to try and jail. And it didn’t help that someone was attempting to free her.”

”I think it’s time I said my farewells for the day, my friend. Kimi is going to be back home soon and I need to help her plan for the ceremony. I’ll send you an invite soon.” Enzeru smiles, bowing his head in respect and comraderie before making his exit.

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