Open Slow To Wake

[Kiriyomi]

Kiriyomi stood up, walking to the head of the bed and attempting to move Kino's head to the side so that he could see the back of the boy's neck. If allowed a glance at the seal, he would pull back in surprise. This wasn't a normal seal at all; this seal came from a Dark Sage. As far as Kiri knew, there were few others in the village. Immediately he thought of Akira, but there's no way the boy would be so careless as to curse a child like this. Would he?

"What did he look like? Describe him to me. You also didn't tell me WHY you got this seal. Do you realize what, exactly, you have done to yourself? How this will drain your life away, and if left untrained, you could easily turn on your allies? Rip them apart at the slightest provocation because the cursed energy is corrupting you?!" Kiri thought back to when his seal activated, and how he had been flaying his own arm, only for it to heal itself in the process. Had Asuka not saved him then, he likely would have bled out on the ground of her basement. Shaking his head, he stalks over to the wall and punches it before turning around and glaring down at Kino again. "Were you not warned about the dangers of such a thing? I'm not mad at you, don't get me wrong. I just want you to understand exactly what you are getting yourself into. If you need help controlling it, don't hesitate to ask. I myself had a cursed seal, thankfully someone stepped in and helped me to remove it. I'm not going to force the same decision onto you, if you want to keep it. But at the very least, you need to learn to control it so that you are not a danger to those around you."

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

Kino would reluctantly describe the entire event, how he traded this for a dragon scroll but didn't fully understand what it was, how the dragon talked him into whatever deal he made, but most importantly how he still doesn't understand what it is. After info dumping for what felt like forever he turned to face him once again, "I don't know if I want this? I felt.. awful.. I could have killed my partner, I could have been the problem.. I murdered that man. It wasn't like I was doing it in a fight, I hunted him down.. and.." Kino began to choke on his words, no matter how badly he wanted to hold it all in he was starting to cry.

"Am.. Am I a monster? I didn't want that.. I don't want this.. fuck" he began to actively sob uncontrollably. The weight of a decision he made in a moment now feeling like a lifetime of sorrow and guilt piled onto him. He'd never killed anyone before, and then.. two men in one night, one of which was trying to run away from him. He felt sick to his stomach as the man's face was all he could see in his head. The screaming man, the dying man.

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiriyomi's eyes softened as Kino began to sob uncontrollably. He walked over to the bed, holding a hand out for the ants to crawl back up his sleeve, before placing his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Listen. You're not a monster, you just don't have control over this seal yet. If you would like, I could introduce you to someone that has learned how to harness the power of his own seal and is in control of the cursed energy coursing through his body. If you decide that you don't want it, well, I'm sure we could find someone to help you remove it as well. It was irresponsible of both parties involved, but without informing you of the dangers, I'm more angry with the one who gave you the cursed seal. Don't worry, I am going to talk to him about what he's done and make sure that something like this doesn't happen again."

Dropping the barrier around the room, Kiri would drag the chair over to the side of the bed and let Kino get all of his emotions out. "I know how you feel. When I first took a life, I felt exactly like you do now. Do I regret my decision? Absolutely not. He was a rogue shinobi working against the village, and he killed my father on top of that. But, as a wise man once told me, it's good that you feel this way. If you had killed someone and felt nothing, then you would truly be a monster. Instead, you have feelings and a conscience, so all hope is not lost. I don't know the details of what happened, and if you don't want to share them that is fine. If you need someone to talk to, you could always speak to one of the mednin in the psychiatric ward or even to Sennin Nao. They are all understanding of the burden of being a shinobi, especially when it comes to taking your first life. Or, if you want, I could always spare some time to listen to your worries as well."

Kiri would then give Kino the location of a small clearing inside the village, and where to leave a note for Kiri to find if the boy wished to speak with him further. He promised to check the tree every day until he received a note stating that Kino wished to speak or that he was doing fine and that Kiri no longer needed to keep an eye out for a future note. With that, he would stand up and walk to the door. He would end the Snapshot jutsu and use his Active Camo again before slipping out the door in search of his next target.

[Topic left unless stopped]

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

Kino took this information and would need to think about all of it. For a while he just sat and grieved, he didn't know it was that but grieving one's loss of innocence is exactly what was happening for him. After a while the doctor came in and told him to take it easy for a while, mandatory physical therapy and only indoor nonconfrontational classes for at minimum two weeks. He reluctantly agreed and left the hospital with a defeated look.

[topic left]