"Don't you find it strange, Yuuto?" Onsei's voice resounded in Yuuto's mind, as he wanders through Kumogakure's streets, no particular destination or purpose. He was doing this more and more often, taking long walks by himself. There weren't many people to talk to, not many people he felt at home with...but was there ever? The crew had felt like many, but in hindsight it was just three people he was friends with, and then Maru. Those antics were mostly over, though he had stuck his nose into gate business in homage to them. Maybe he'd bump into one of them on his aimless walk.
"Hm?" Yuuto makes a curious noise, not too fussed about whether people heard or not. It felt more natural than just thinking it.
"Isn't it strange that your demonic abilities are a little...well, generic? Sure, you've got your special chakra, but there's nothing really distinctive, nothing special."
"I hadn't really given it much thought. Why, what are you getting at?" This time he kept his talk internal.
"Well, there really isn't much to do when you're a disembodied voice in a thirteen year old demon boy's head, so I've been doing some thinking. Shocking, I know, but I can think of other things than the satisfaction of beating someone into submission, bloodying up their nose..."
"You're getting sidetracked. What have you been thinking?"
"Right. So, what if the state you're currently in is a first stage of sorts? It's like a cocoon, maybe. Your blood could be making your body grow accustomed to the general powers of youkai before it really starts bringing in the good stuff you'll get."
"That's...interesting. And honestly, I'm surprised you've come up with this. How long have you been sitting on it?"
"To be perfectly honest? I'm a little surprised too. Maybe me coming up with this theory is proof? Or maybe I've just been trying new things. Either way, it's been going on for quite a while, not too sure on the exact times and stuff."
"Right. So...what do I do with this information, then?"
"Ah, now you're asking the good questions. So, your body has gotten pretty used to those demonic abilities of yours, wouldn't you say? You've used it to gain a resistance to genjutsu, you can properly channel it into taijutsu..." Yuuto gives a nod of affirmation, and feel as though a grin spreads across Onsei's face...if it had one. It was a strange sensation. "So, I say why not try giving this theoretical next stage a little...push?"
Yuuto frowns. He did not like what Onsei could be getting at, not one bit. "What do you mean...?" He says, trying to give his thought-speech the inflection of suspicion.
"Don't worry, my little friend. I'm not going to try and get you to slaughter a thousand innocent souls in a single night, although...kidding, kidding!" Onsei hastily adds after a glare meant for him. "No, I'm thinking more along the lines of going somewhere that might be naturally helpful to this - and by the way, thank you for being a lonely little bookworm, it really helped with this part. Now, think. Where here might be the place I'm- no, we're looking for?"</COLOR><i></i>
Yuuto thinks about the different places he's read about in Kumo and Lightning Country in general. After a short while, he comes up with the answer.
<COLOR color="#bb0a1e">"The Cronopolis. It's said to be where Raiden slew Cronus, an evil demonic god. People say it's cursed, and that's why it's poverty-stricken."
"Exactly. What better place to make your powers come out of their shell then at the place where an immensely powerful demon died?"
For the first time in a while, Yuuto took in his surroundings. They were dark and ramshackle. The Cronopolis. Onsei appeared to be right, though. It did feel ominous here, in a supernatural way. There was a gentle unease that the Notamashi simply couldn't shake.
"If this was just a first stage, wouldn't I have been tol-" Yuuto cuts off, suddenly wracked with a pain that makes him wince. Nausea grips him, and he reaches out to find something to steady himself, putting his weight on the wall of a building. It feels...strange. Hollow. He opens his eyes, and everything seems so...dull, distant. Some emotion stirs in him, fear? Confusion? It too feels hollow, as though he is watching and feeling from a distance.
"You raise a good point, there. Maybe it's rare, and you're just strong enough to have it happen? Maybe-" Onsei's voice is also hollow, distant, muffled. Yuuto just about manages to catch what he says, then cuts him off.
"Everything's hollow. Colours are grey, touch is so faint, sound is muffled. What's happened?" He speaks aloud, monotone.
"It must be like from before you mastered your abilities. Your new-found ones are out of control. You just need to train them. Why don’t you try using a jutsu or something, see how that’s different?”
Yuuto gives a nod, then weaves the hand seals for a simple Infernal Maw. From what he can discern from his muted feelings, nothing is different in the build-up. The fireball is fired, and Yuuto suddenly lashes out towards it, feeling a strange surge of nothing, before his jutsu simple disappears, as if it was never there.
”...Huh.” Is all Onsei says.
”I guess you were right, then. I wonder what kind of youkai possesses this kind of power…”
”All these questions can wait. You’ve got to learn how to use these new abilities. Maybe we should find someone to try them on…”
Ignoring Onsei, Yuuto tries to discern why exactly his senses are like this, making his way out of the Cronopolis. It was like...there was something overlaying everything, something else he was looking into. Was this what he was tapping into? He’d have to do some work to figure this all out.
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"Hm?" Yuuto makes a curious noise, not too fussed about whether people heard or not. It felt more natural than just thinking it.
"Isn't it strange that your demonic abilities are a little...well, generic? Sure, you've got your special chakra, but there's nothing really distinctive, nothing special."
"I hadn't really given it much thought. Why, what are you getting at?" This time he kept his talk internal.
"Well, there really isn't much to do when you're a disembodied voice in a thirteen year old demon boy's head, so I've been doing some thinking. Shocking, I know, but I can think of other things than the satisfaction of beating someone into submission, bloodying up their nose..."
"You're getting sidetracked. What have you been thinking?"
"Right. So, what if the state you're currently in is a first stage of sorts? It's like a cocoon, maybe. Your blood could be making your body grow accustomed to the general powers of youkai before it really starts bringing in the good stuff you'll get."
"That's...interesting. And honestly, I'm surprised you've come up with this. How long have you been sitting on it?"
"To be perfectly honest? I'm a little surprised too. Maybe me coming up with this theory is proof? Or maybe I've just been trying new things. Either way, it's been going on for quite a while, not too sure on the exact times and stuff."
"Right. So...what do I do with this information, then?"
"Ah, now you're asking the good questions. So, your body has gotten pretty used to those demonic abilities of yours, wouldn't you say? You've used it to gain a resistance to genjutsu, you can properly channel it into taijutsu..." Yuuto gives a nod of affirmation, and feel as though a grin spreads across Onsei's face...if it had one. It was a strange sensation. "So, I say why not try giving this theoretical next stage a little...push?"
Yuuto frowns. He did not like what Onsei could be getting at, not one bit. "What do you mean...?" He says, trying to give his thought-speech the inflection of suspicion.
"Don't worry, my little friend. I'm not going to try and get you to slaughter a thousand innocent souls in a single night, although...kidding, kidding!" Onsei hastily adds after a glare meant for him. "No, I'm thinking more along the lines of going somewhere that might be naturally helpful to this - and by the way, thank you for being a lonely little bookworm, it really helped with this part. Now, think. Where here might be the place I'm- no, we're looking for?"</COLOR><i></i>
Yuuto thinks about the different places he's read about in Kumo and Lightning Country in general. After a short while, he comes up with the answer.
<COLOR color="#bb0a1e">"The Cronopolis. It's said to be where Raiden slew Cronus, an evil demonic god. People say it's cursed, and that's why it's poverty-stricken."
"Exactly. What better place to make your powers come out of their shell then at the place where an immensely powerful demon died?"
For the first time in a while, Yuuto took in his surroundings. They were dark and ramshackle. The Cronopolis. Onsei appeared to be right, though. It did feel ominous here, in a supernatural way. There was a gentle unease that the Notamashi simply couldn't shake.
"If this was just a first stage, wouldn't I have been tol-" Yuuto cuts off, suddenly wracked with a pain that makes him wince. Nausea grips him, and he reaches out to find something to steady himself, putting his weight on the wall of a building. It feels...strange. Hollow. He opens his eyes, and everything seems so...dull, distant. Some emotion stirs in him, fear? Confusion? It too feels hollow, as though he is watching and feeling from a distance.
"You raise a good point, there. Maybe it's rare, and you're just strong enough to have it happen? Maybe-" Onsei's voice is also hollow, distant, muffled. Yuuto just about manages to catch what he says, then cuts him off.
"Everything's hollow. Colours are grey, touch is so faint, sound is muffled. What's happened?" He speaks aloud, monotone.
"It must be like from before you mastered your abilities. Your new-found ones are out of control. You just need to train them. Why don’t you try using a jutsu or something, see how that’s different?”
Yuuto gives a nod, then weaves the hand seals for a simple Infernal Maw. From what he can discern from his muted feelings, nothing is different in the build-up. The fireball is fired, and Yuuto suddenly lashes out towards it, feeling a strange surge of nothing, before his jutsu simple disappears, as if it was never there.
”...Huh.” Is all Onsei says.
”I guess you were right, then. I wonder what kind of youkai possesses this kind of power…”
”All these questions can wait. You’ve got to learn how to use these new abilities. Maybe we should find someone to try them on…”
Ignoring Onsei, Yuuto tries to discern why exactly his senses are like this, making his way out of the Cronopolis. It was like...there was something overlaying everything, something else he was looking into. Was this what he was tapping into? He’d have to do some work to figure this all out.
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