Love and Other Drugs [Beloved] [Private] [Suzume]

[Samejima]

[One week ago]

It was a rather small place that her aunt managed to purchase a long time ago, just after her heyday when she thought she would stay in Tea Country forever due to her lack of reflection before she quit the geisha business. As Naoki unlocked the door, she noted that there weren't many furnishings in the house--while not very sizable as a house, it would make for a fine training area. Her aunt had lent it to her with a caveat that she not completely trash the place and cleaned up when she left. Naoki snapped her fingers a few times, pacing through the place before trying to decide what she'd do with all this space. One room can be for chakra training, another for physical... or should I do that outside? And this one, I think I can just unscrew that bulb and make it perfect for sensory enhancement training. Naoki was rather excited; she'd never tried to train another before, and it was an interesting concept, albeit one that she might need to come to grips with. She had confidence in herself here, since she figured she trained herself so well there couldn't possibly be anything too tough for her to figure out.

Naoki spent a couple of days renovating the house. She left the bedroom alone as it would be used to house both her and Suzume for the duration of their stay, placing a small futon where she would sleep behind the main bed, which was just about twin sized. The general training room would be given a general set of dummies and such to practice techniques on, the chakra training area would have chakra-insulating drapery which Naoki would nail onto some wooden boards that are easily removable post-training session, as well as a large mattress to cover the entirety of the walls over the chakra insulation should the young Storm Lady be shot around due to the force of her chakra, which even Naoki has heard happened a good amount. The physical training area had dummies too, but these ones had force-measuring apparatus that would be used to gauge how heavy the girl's punches were. They were built to withstand quite a bit of force too, much more than the general dummies which were generally meant for techniques and not raw strength. All the training rooms were fitted with mattress-covered floors for grip and cushioning, and it cost Naoki a pretty penny, but she managed to save up a good chunk of cash due to her now non-existent sweet tooth. Makes me wonder how much I'd have if I hadn't spent all my cash on toys and shit. Ah well. Satisfied, she sailed back home for some much needed R&R before heading right back out the next day with Suzume.

[Present]

As Naoki stepped up to the main entrance of her aunt's house, Storm Lady in tow, she remembered an announcement about some kind of poison having seeped out of the control of some scientists that she heard when she was sailing back to Suna. It's been a couple days since then... But just in case-- "Ah right, I just remembered but I think there was a warning about some kind of poison that was accidentally released out here. Let me know if you start feeling woozy or somethin' alright?" There, she should be fine now. Naoki would then show Suzume around, explaining the purposes of each training room as well as the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom, ending with an enthusiastic, "Any questions?"

 

[Kazumi]

Suzume was a late arrival to the foreign village. She had turned into one of those tourists who had to stop and puase for a moment at every spectacle, no matter how mundane they actually were. Had she seen anyone else, she would have mocked them, albeit lightheartedly, but now she had been assimilated into the fold. IT had taken some time to adjust to a blind woman showing her around, it was even more remarkable when she had made a brief demonstration of her capabilities at the Dojo. Along the trip she had tried to mimic that, closing her eyes and trying to perform the most basic of tasks, which all resulted in either pain or embarrassment, oftentimes both in equal measure.

Now, as she found herself in the foreign shinobi village, she felt odd and out of place. The spectacle was still there, but on the seas as they had traveled she did not have the feeling of trespass, of not belonging. The architecture, the climate and customs were very different from that of Sunagakure, and while it was interesting and exciting, it was also somewhat alienating. While Naoki did serve has her escort to the village, she still did not know the woman very well, but Kuro had faith in her and she seemed to be genuinely nice and considerate. If she was a close friend of the head of the Toraono clan, Suzume had to give her the benefit of the doubt, even though she had heard through the sands that she had been a missing-nin for a time.

Finally arriving at her home from home for the next week, Suzume stood and once again marveled at the architecture. It was a small building, but it was its own, not like the Dojo which had communal housing for all of the Toraono clan in its massive and sprawling estate. There was something to be said about privacy and the intimacy of it. Underlying her enthusiasm was a desire to sit and rest. Traveling on the high seas was extremely taxing on the girl, who had never seen the ocean, much less ridden across it on a ship. To her credit, she had never been taken by sea sickness, but her legs wobbled and a sense of unease had drift along with her on the entire trip. It had been an exciting and yet draining experience, and one she would be happy to not repeat for quite sometime.

She was about to take the first step towards the small home when Naoki spoke up with a warning, "poison?" Her first reaction was one of worry, but as she stopped and looked around she quickly dismissed the concern. "That is silly, everything has seemed fine. I mean, the docks had a lot of people and if that was true then there would like... be a lock-down or something." Waving off the concern, she made her way past Naoki and up the stairs to the house proper. Suzume slid the door open, slid her shoes off and slid inside the private residence. She reached around the side and felt for a light switch, eventually finding it before she flicked it on with her plastic tipped gloves. Sousuke had provided them for her after hearing of her ailments. They served well enough, mostly to not short out every appliance she touched, but they were cumbersome and embarrassing to use.

Dropping her pack near the door, she raised her arms and let out a wide loud yawn, settling into the place rather quickly. The furnishings were of Tea Country design, but it had a familiar feeling to it, liekly due to its residents hailing from Wind Country, as far as she was aware. Naoki proceed to follow her inside and gave the girl a quick tour of the place, and it was surprising how much consideration the woman had made for her arrival. When she had implied there would be training taking place, she had expected a few hours of failed excercises at some public grounds. The fact that she had gone so far for her was surprising, and she wasn't exactly sure how to respond to it; so she treated it how she normally did, by not mentioning it at all.

"Don't think so." Suzume responded to Naoki after her prompt for questions. "So... I am going to go take a shower. I feel super dirty after all that boating." Pausing only for a moment to allow a brief response, she turned and picked up her bag, toting it with her towards the bathroom to do as she had announced.

 

[Samejima]

"Ah hang on, let me make sure the shower's workin'!" Naoki jogged along after Suzume, pulling ahead to step into the bathroom first as Suzume would likely have continued to walk normally with her tote. Snapping her fingers to make sure there weren't any drafts or openings to the outside world that shouldn't be there (there was a fan leading to the outside for ventilation purposes), Naoki also proceeded to bring out some towels and other such toiletries that she kept here during her time refurbishing the place. "Feel free to use these if you didn't bring any of your own, though it's not exactly high-quality stuff, milady," she laughed as she said the last word, hoping Suzume wouldn't construe it as her mocking the latter's status or anything silly like that. "I'm gonna go and get the first part of today's training ready, so go ahead and take your time in there." There wasn't much to take time with however--the only bathing apparatus was a shower with a curtain, no bathtub or anything fancy to occupy one's attention. The bathroom would be well-insulated against sound and temperature, though Suzume might feel a draft upon exiting the shower from the fan mounted on the upper-left corner of the bathroom.

Naoki would then leave the room waving, off to get the mattresses dusted and clean from her time placing them a couple of days ago. She noted a strange scent coming from it, but she chalked it up to the air around Kurosawa. Bustling place. Wonder why Oriza-san never came back out here after she left the first time, I think a cafe would probably do great here. Speaking of the cafe... She visibly cringed from remembering its name. It was cool when she was 12, and she didn't care much about it until after she returned from her... sabbatical. What would she have named her kids, Urami? I gotta talk to her about that name again when I get back.

[MFT]

 

[Kazumi]

Suzume appeared a little confused as Naoki rushed past her with a shinobi's grace, weaving her way into the bathroom with no effort. She slowed her gait, following after her until she saw Naoki snapping around in the bathroom. She knew the basics of what she was doing, but it still made little sense to her. Before too long Naoki would deem the room appropriate and move to allow the girl to have her privacy. "M'lady? Seriously?" Her tone was a mixture between amusement and embarrassment, as if it were a bad joke a relative of hers might have made. Rolling her eyes, she stepped past Naoki and into the bathroom, setting her bag down she went to close the door, not even giving the woman a simply thank you before she closed and locked it from the inside.

She paused, leaned against the door and took a long deep breath. This had been the first real bit of privacy she had for the better part of the week. Running water, a toilet that was more than a bucket with sea water, and a hot shower, it was glorious. She stepped over to the towels Naoki had fetched for her and brought them up to give them a long sniff to see if they were clean and fresh. Clean yes, not exactly fresh. She had no idea how long they had been sitting out, but they were not the warm fluffy towels she had dreamed of. Unraveling one, she fluffed it out, scattering some dust and other things that had settled in the fabric as she tried to fluff them up some. Suzume's nose twitched and she let off a small sneeze. Her nose was not used to things such as pollen or other greenery, and this country had it in abundance, especially compared back to Wind Country.

Rubbing her nose, she hung the towel over a towel rack before she went and got the shower ready. Checking the door again, she undressed and tossed her clothes into a pile in the corner, far enough away to not get dripped on when she got out. Her hair felt like it was practically glued to her head, and the thought of the shower was extremely enticing. Grabbing a washcloth, smelling it, and fluffing it up as well she curled her nose from what she presumed was dust. Had no one lived in this house for a decade? Tossing the thought aside, she stepped into the hot shower and began to clean herself. It felt heavenly, the first hot water on her skin for days was magnificent. Twenty minutes passed as she took her time with washing her hair and scrubbing her body clean. Once she was satisfied with everything she clicked the shower off and opened the door.

Stepping out, she grabbed the towel and began to work on haphazardly drying her hair. She felt quite flush after having taken the shower, her skin slightly red and she even felt a little lightheaded. She did not have the water up that high, yet her chest and head felt rather warm. Was she catching a cold? If so, she had absolutely wonderful timing, and with her luck she would be locked away in a room, sick, until it was time for her to head back to Wind Country. Muttering a quiet curse, she continued working on drying off, feeling faintly light headed as she did so. She tied her hair up and pulled another fresh towel off the rack, fluffing it before she wrapped it around her body to help her dry. Suzume proceeded to kneel down next to her bag, searching for her change in clothing, only to find that she had already run out of outfits. She had forgotten that her... unintentional dip in the sea had put her one set of clothing behind, and she didn't have anything was wasn't sweaty or mildly damp to wear. Wonderful...

"Naoki!" She called out, securing her towel as she hoisted the bag up, her skin still flush even after it had cooled from the brisk air from the fan. "I need some laundry done... I forgot I don't have anything to change into." She called across the house as she opened the door and glanced around. She felt somewhat shy to step out, but Naoki couldn't see anyway, so what would it really matter? Even so, she kept the towel tight as she stepped out into the cold air, looking around for her housekeeper. "Think I might be catching a cold or something... is there anything I can put on until they are done?" Chores such as these were not her strong suite, and she did fully expect Naoki to tend to such things, she was the guest after all. Especially after the 'm'lady' joke earlier.

 

[Samejima]

Hearing the younger girl call out from the bathroom, Naoki turned somewhat sharply, thinking she might have seen something dangerous, but it was a request for fresh clothing. Unfortunately, she didn't think that far and laundry will need to be hand-washed due to the lack of an actual washing machine. "Uhh, hang on, lemme try to find something!" Naoki rushed about, going through what she figured were her aunt's old clothes, but they all seemed to be moth-eaten due to a lack of proper storage. Gah, what can I give her? I don't want her to get too uncomfortable while she's out here... Plus she's really young, and pretty, can't let her be unclothed for too long... Then an idea clicked in her head, and she went over to where Suzume was, taking her own shirt off to reveal a set of bandages binding her breasts, wrapped to make her seem at least a full cup size smaller than she actually was. It was technically underwear, but it looked like a strange tube top so she figured Suzume wouldn't mind. "It's a little big on you I'd think, but it should be enough to cover you up for... now..."

Naoki was suddenly painfully aware of Suzume, a kind of heat building in the pit of her stomach. "Uh..." She hesitated. Why was she thinking about how slender Suzume's legs were? They seem really smooth though. Wonder if she uses anything to keep 'em that way? "S-so..." she stammered, suddenly nervous for some reason. "W-why don't you hand me your clothes? I'll get them soaked in uh... Soaked in some clothes soap--I mean, uh... Detergent? Yeah." The hell is going on? I can't think straight... "There's no wash here, so... yeah." While her mental capabilities seemed to have been shot, the genin's senses, on the other hand, were heightened, seeming to home in on this girl in front of her. The smell of the soap wafting off her was beginning to affect her, she decided, and stood somewhat dazed... Until an irresistible urge to feel Suzume's skin caused her to step closer to the Storm Lady. She managed to suppress it for a little, "I... know it's weird but, I... J-Just let me..."

Naoki reached out to cup Suzume's face in her hand, looking unseeingly into the other girl's eyes with an intensely (though she wouldn't have recognized it at the time) lustful expression.

 

[Kazumi]

Suzume didn't have to hunt for long before she found the blind woman, one of the benefits of being shacked up in a small house. She only caught sight of her in brief passing, but something about that brief moment seemed to cause a knot in her throat. Her breathing deepened as she took a moment to lean against the door frame, waiting for her to return. She really must be coming down with something for it to be affecting her this strongly, hopefully she would at least be able to shake it off overnight. When Naoki reentered the room, empty handed, her initial reaction was to make a quip about how a host could not have spare clothing, but the comment tangled itself up with the knot and it too hung in her throat. Instead she found herself staring into the woman's eyes, she wasn't sure how she hadn't noticed before, but there were absolutely enchanting.

When Naoki took off and offered her own shirt to the girl, Suzume could barely managed to take her gaze away from Naoki's eyes to the shirt in her hand. "Oh, yes, of... shirt, thank you." Had she been of her right mind, she certainty would have mocked the woman for giving her her own shirt straight from her back, even if it was a chivalrous gesture, but the need for snark and sass didn't seem to be present within her at the time. With one hand on the bag's handles, she reached out with the other and took the shirt slowly, a small spark jumping from Suzume's uncovered wrist to Naoki's hand for the briefest of moments, nothing painful but enough to cause a momentary tingle.

She looked down at the shirt and stared at it for a few long seconds, random thoughts racing through her head. For reasons she didn't fully understand, that shirt seemed almost holy to her, given that it just came off this gorgeous woman's body. "Huh?" She suddenly proclaimed, time speeding to catch up as she suddenly registered Naoki's words about Suzume's own dirty clothing. "Y-yeah, here you go..." she clutched the shirt to her chest, keeping the towel up as she began to lift the bag. Her efforts were interrupted when Naoki stepped closer to her, unprovoked, Suzume's heart suddenly felt like it was going to either explode or stop altogether. She was close enough to smell that enticing scent wafting from her skin, lively and intoxicating.

Her mouth drooped open slightly as she looked up, suddenly finding Naoki's hand cupping her chin. Again, tingles would be sent through Suzume's skin and into Naoki's hand, over a large enough area to not cause any notible pain, but with her heart now racing, it was certianly sensationally tingly. Her breathing stopped all together for what felt like an eternity. Her hand felt warm, soft and yet and firm, strong yet still tender as it softly held her head aloft. Her head stopped fully supporting itself, letting it rest in Naoki's palm. With a small push she would have easily collapsed forward into the woman's arms without a second thought. Her eyes drifted to Naoki's lips, which seemed so soft and inviting. How had she not noticed all of these things before? She had spent days with her on that boat, but it all seemed to cloudy compared to the clear and transparent allure that this woman radiated before her. Suzume was frozen, like putty in her hand without any will to move on its own.

 

[Samejima]

The initial tingle was a bit of a jolt, but as she touched her face and felt the next volley of sparks, Naoki's heartbeat was sent into a frenzy, and she began to breathe a little more heavily. Pulling her hand back from Suzume's face but not breaking eye contact, she felt where her heart was unmistakeably pounding way too hard. "Suzume...chan..." What did she want to say? What could she say here, that would make this yearning make sense? The heat in the pit of her stomach had risen, and she felt like she had to do something, anything, to release the tension... But there was only one thing she wanted to do right now.

Whether or not Suzume showed any sign of resistance, Naoki couldn't hold herself back from her desires. She took a step closer to Suzume, pushing her somewhat roughly against the wall behind her and restraining her wrists above her head. If there was some minor pain from the Storm Lady's innate abilities, it likely wouldn't register too well in her mind as clouded as it was now. There was scarcely time for her to form coherent thoughts about what was happening before she lost control, lost the ability to consider the consequences of today's actions.

 

[Kazumi]

{16 Hours Later - The Next Morning}

It was by a miracle, or by getting too many hours of sleep in the middle of the day yesterday, that Suzume was the first in the house to awaken. It was a groggy process, filled with much shambling and groggy grunts and complaints. Suzume was certainly no morning person, and here it was, barely the crack of dawn outside in this strange land. The poison had been long metabolized by her body, with the effects and side effects having worn off for quite sometime. The day prior had been filled with some questionable decisions and some more well reasoned, though who was to say were which was anyone's guess.

Having made it out of the bedroom that she and her host shared, Suzume stumbled around in the kitchen, opening random pantries and searching around for nothing in particular. She didn't feel especially hungry, but she was compelled to search around for any hidden treats that might be stashed away, even though, or perhaps especially because, this wasn't her house. More than a few times she had stopped to think about the events that transpired yesterday, regrets and smiles came in near equal measures, though they too shifted back and forth on what memories they were assigned.

Suzume had come to Tea to get away from her problems. To have a change of scenery, to watch the tournament, to get some training from a new teacher. The last thing on her to-do list was to make life much more difficult or to make any lasting decisions. Both of which seemed to be determined to come to the forefront of her so called 'vacation'. There was naught she could do about any of it now, however. Whatever had came over her yesterday was in the past, and she had to accept her actions, rationalize them, and move on if she was to ever have a chance of keeping her life together with what little of her sanity remained intact.

 

[Samejima]

The racket being caused in some of the rooms downstairs caused Naoki to awaken, and she stretched as she got out of the little futon she laid out on the ground to sleep in. Trudging downstairs, she managed a tired but kind of cheerful, "Good morning sunshine~" and waved at Suzume with a little sleepy grin on her face, eyes still fully closed because she didn't need them and they were full of eye grit anyway. "Leave breakfast to me, I got some... pancakes and... stuff..." Naoki opened the refrigerator, stocked with some eggs, milk, fruit and some meats, and took out the eggs and milk to make some pancakes with the flour in one of the pantries. "Why don't you go and practice some punches while you wait? We're down a day, but by Mother Suna I will teach you something by the end of all this, can't just take advantage of you and not give you anything in return," she joked, pulling out a bowl to start mixing ingredients into.

If Suzume left to do the morning practice, she would be left there with her own thoughts, and her own thoughts weren't generally something very good to sit with. So... Had my way with a 14-year-old girl. Figures that she'd be so young of all things... I don't even know if she really wanted to do it. She seemed real confused when I got back, didn't even seem to remember it all that well... She mindlessly cooked up some pancakes, stacking them up on a plate before squeezing some maple syrup on them and pulling out some ice cream from the freezer to scoop a dollop onto each of the stacks. Maybe she felt pressured to? I did make the first move... But she would've said no, would've used the storm inside her to push me away if she didn't... Right? She can't control it though... Maybe it just didn't come to her in time? Maybe-- "Suzume-chan, pancakes are ready!" Maybe I'm worrying too much. Or maybe... she was possessed?

Naoki isn't exactly logical when it comes to this sort of stuff.

 

[Kazumi]

Suzume still acted, and felt, somewhat awkward. She had partly come to terms last night, but ii still hadn't settled in completely. Part of her wanted to keep going they same as they were before, but another part, one that she wasn't aware of before, wanted to go down a different avenue. Those two mindsets clashed and the resulting amalgamation was the current confusion and faint unease that plagued her. "Morning" was her only reply, not tacking on any flirtatious titles, not that she minded them exactly, or rather, not that part of her minded.

This all was just too much for her brain to handle, much less handle at this hour, and so, Suzume took Naoki up on her offer and recommendation and devoted the morning to training. She had wrapped her hands up nice and tight to keep her hands from being damages and began on a mourning routine of stretched that eventually evolved into CQC training with the specially prepared dummy. It helped to clear her mind, for brief periods at least. The thoughts came back, they always did, but forcing herself to direct her attention towards her training helped to keep it from lingering, at the least.

By the time Naoki had finished the preparations, Suzume had already worked up quite a sweat and was relatively exhausted, a fact she did not realize until she took a minute to stop working. Out of breath, she stumbled her way into the kitchen where Naoki was making the final preparations. She already felt like she needed a shower, but given what happened last time she took one, she was strangely hesitant to do so, lest it happen again. Leaning against the door frame to the kitchen, catching her breath, Suzume commented, "is that... ice cream?" She took a moment to examine it further before concluding that was indeed what she presumed. "How do you stay so... fit?" For better or worse, Suzume was getting back to her blunt self, speaking far before she considered what it was she was going to say.

 

[Samejima]

"Yeah, I call it pancakes a la mode. Because ice cream is a happy food!" she giggled. Upon hearing Suzume's question, she nodded thoughtfully and replied, "Worked up a good sweat huh? Come eat, then if you want you can take a shower, or I can show you firsthand how I stay this fit and you can take the shower then."

Naoki would take a seat at the simple wooden dinner table where she'd set the plates down, gesturing at Suzume to take her seat as well. Once they were both seated, she would go into a little more detail about her training regimen. "See, 'cuz I'm more focused on my taijutsu, I have to train a lot harder physically than I do mentally with chakra and shit. I've got a pretty rough training table, and I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have been able to get it up to this level without Kuro-dono and the Byakko family's training giving me such a head start, but I did work real hard on my own to keep up the progress so you should be prepared to do a lot of upkeep exercises with your chakra control stuff too, if it works in any way like physical training." She took a couple bites of the pancakes, and was satisfied with the amount of sugar in them this time. These would keep her fed for the rest of the afternoon. "I've got a couple plans in mind, but what'd you wanna learn?"

 

[Kazumi]

"A la mode?" she repeated, sounding as if she believed Naoki made the whole term up. "Oookay," was all she got out before Naoki invited her over to the table to eat, which she gratefully accepted. Sitting down, she wasted no time in starting on her food, finishing off the cold ice cream before she was even half-way through her food. She nodded along with Naoki as she ate, seeing no need to chime in and interrupt her meal, which was very enticing now that she was actually eating it. "Surprise me," she commented between bites, nearly done with her own food in less than a minute. "I won't hold my breath, but the only one as odd as you was Riyota. He couldn't get it to work, but maybe you can? I don't think it is the same as punching though."

Less than fifteen seconds later and she had completely cleared her plate of the pancakes and most off the remaining syrup, which had been carefully soaked into the last few bites. "So what was it you had in mind? Maybe I've already done it all and we can save the effort-" she paused, seeming like she was about to say something. A few seconds later, after some silent contemplation, she continued, "like I said yesterday, I don't think it will work out. I am just not shinobi material." She said it with an air of resignation, like her fate had already been written and it was pointless to try and resist more than she already had.

 

[Samejima]

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Suzume-chan; it doesn't help you to be thinking discouraging thoughts, so just realize that the thought is a negative one, and move on from it." Naoki paused for a moment, trying to think of a better way to phrase the advice. "Hmm... Think of it this way. Mentally catch the thought in your head--use your imagination as to how you'd like to torture that thought as you do--and stuff it in a box, then punt it in your head because you don't need that thought getting in the way of trying your best. How's that sound?" She smiled somewhat sadly, making it somewhat obvious that she's had to think hard about pushing unnecessary thoughts out of her head.

She then pondered the "what" of the day's training, considering it seemed like Suzume isn't in the mood for regular taijutsu training. "Probably not even close to the simplicity that is punching things and making them go splat, but maybe we can try getting it to come out at regular intervals over the course of the day? Have you had any sort of success with getting it out, since you seem to be struggling with keeping it in?" Naoki suggested, munching on another bite of cold ice cream plus hot pancake, a symphony of painful deliciousness for her slightly sensitive teeth.

 

[Kazumi]

Suzume rolled her eyes slightly at Naoki's advice. She heard this sort of stuff before, and while she knew Naoki was just trying to help, it really didn't help in the slightest. Regardless she nodded and gave Naoki a word of thanks for the advice. Telling the woman that she heard it before and that it did not help wouldn't make Naoki feel any better, nor would it help anything, so for once in her life she thought before she spoke. The mention of torture did spark a dark memory of hers, however. "Naoki, have you killed anyone before?" Her question was flat, blunt and apparently not a joke in the slightest.

Suzume had no idea of Naoki's history. Even if she had clearance to look such up, she would likely never be inspired or diligent enough to do that sort of research on her own. Kuro trusted her and that was more than enough for her, but the old drudged up memory reminded her of a question she had asked the Steward before she departed for Tea, and she was curious to her Naoki's answer. "So like... have you ever had conflicted thoughts on killing someone? A really terrible person that one-hundred percent deserved it? Terrible terrible person with no shadow of a doubt, but you still weren't sure if you should have?"

 

[Samejima]

The pause after she'd tried to give Suzume an unwarranted piece of advice was palpable, and Naoki bowed her head slightly as she continued to eat, mood slightly dampened. She registered the question, but was hesitant to answer. What if she ruined the image her little sparrow had of her, even if it wasn't the best after that failed attempt at giving her a pointer? What if she then decided she never wanted anything to do with Naoki again, if she would prefer to surround herself with people who hadn't just killed people because they were told it wasn't real, then later to protect something they didn't even want in the first place? What then, would Naoki be able to justify herself with when the girl inevitably asked yet another question like children her age were wont to do?

She began to contemplate lying and just saying that she hadn't... There would be no downside there. It's not like she would ever find out about her past anyway, considering how small a part Naoki was in Suzume's overall life. For all she knew the girl had just been elated at the new experience and misattributed that with love, bound to lose interest in the next week or two when she finds someone her age to fawn over. Naoki doesn't stand a chance against such potential, such closeness. Then what do I care about how she thinks of me... I should probably just tell her, she probably wouldn't take no for an answer after this long of a pause... Steeling her resolve for the backlash that might be to come, she answered, "I've killed... too much. Too much for any one person, no matter what they say they feel about it." Her eyes, unseeing as they were, found themselves unable to look up and meet Suzume's gaze as they would in polite conversation. "I doubt many of them could claim any different, but I do think every last one of them deserved it. The chance to be freed from that trade they call "entertainment." I..." She had begun to grit her teeth as she said the last word. How does anyone find enjoyment in witnessing the killing of others?

How did she?

As if mentally shaking off the thought, Naoki stood up abruptly, head turned to the side toward the door. "I'm... going to use the training room for a bit. Finish up yer food an' take a shower, alright? We'll start today's training... in a half hour or so." Can't leave her here alone... Need to clear head.

 

[Kazumi]

For some reason, watching Naoki during the seconds long pause, Suzume began to feel a little guilty for even asking. It was a stupid question after all. Naoki was a shinobi, a legitimate warrior of the village, of course she had killed someone. From as little as she truly know about the woman, it was obvious she would take no enjoyment in killing someone, even if they did really deserve it, she was just too nice to feel any other way. With these thoughts rolling through her head, her stomach burned and began to knot itself before the silence was finally broken. Suzume looked up from the table between them, watching Naoki struggle to get the words out.

The knot twisted and the tinge of guilt turned into a flood as she watched Naoki stare down at the table. The sound of the chair suddenly sliding across the floor as Naoki stood snapped Suzume's attention ans he head jolted up to watch her speak and make her way to depart. Quickly standing herself, Suzume hurried around the table to follow after Naoki. Catching her before she made it out of the kitchen, without fully thinking of where she was going with this, she reached out and pulled on the back of Naoki's shirt to keep her from leaving. Presuming that worked, she would tug to turn her around, coming face to face with the likely confused woman.

Her attention shifted to Naoki's side, staring at the door frame for a moment as she spoke, "I just wanted to..." Suzume wasn't entirely sure what she wanted, but she did understand she had made herself a nuisance ever since she had gotten here. Her mind racing around, she suddenly looked to Naoki and stepped forward. She reached out and pulled on her poor shirt once again, tugging Naoki down slightly and suddenly kissed the girl on the lips. The intent was likely closer to an apology, but the shock that occurred was likely more a slap in the face that would leave her lips numb and tingly for the next few minutes. Realizing this only after seeing Naoki's reaction she suddenly let go of her shirt and raised her hands, stumbling out a series of haphazard apologies.

 

[Samejima]

It was a long-standing dream of Naoki's to cutely tug on a taller man's shirt to get his attention, entranced as she was in the idea of a classic romance back in her preteen years, and she nearly grinned at the fact that she remembered that little tidbit as she felt Suzume tugging on her own shirt, turning around to ask the girl what she might've found to object to. Instead she noted that Suzume seemed to be debating in her mind about what she had intended to do, when she then got pulled into an impromptu (and painful) kiss, which left electrical currents coursing through her face, numbing her lips for some time.

"Iz fhine, no worry!" Naoki blubbered, unable to fully use her mouth very well. "Juz a zhing, ahm fhine..." She couldn't feel her lips at all, and her tongue wasn't doing well either. It appears she might need to figure out Lightning chakra a little more if she's going to go through any sort of physical relationship with the girl, platonic or otherwise. Rubbing her mouth area until she got the feeling somewhat back in them, she asked, "What's uh... Did you need something? Still hungry?" Do you still love me? Was all that just something you were thinking while the feelings were rushing in? Did you just want me to keep going and that's why you said it? ...Should I be worried that you'll accidentally electrocute me to death? Unspoken questions weren't something Naoki has had for some time, but this situation seemed to demand it with its delicate nature.

Then she smiled faintly, her expression melting into one of protective love, knowing these weren't questions she should be asking. If she was still willing, she still has the headstrong personality that drives her to do things like suddenly kissing Naoki like that, regardless of how painful it was. Heck, she couldn't remember the last time her heart beat so fast kissing anyone anyway, might as well enjoy it while it lasted. Tentatively reaching her hand out, Naoki pet Suzume's hair, the feeling of affection brimming over to cause Naoki to risk electrocution once more. It wasn't as bad up here, presumably because her hair was insulating the lightning, but maybe Naoki could eventually learn to conduct it through the body via lightning chakra of some sort... She would need to think on the matter. "I'll take that as an enthusiasm for training? I have a couple regimes we could work on..."

The genin put her arm around Suzume, being careful not to touch her skin, and gave her a little squeeze as she led her toward the first training menu of the week.

[Topic closed]