Unraveling Planes of Existence [Private]

[Takahashi]

Hours had passed. The young girl had been deeply affected by what she'd witnessed. Meanwhile Jin'ichi took the time to bandage and wrap his wounds, as well as reset few bones that he felt were out of place. It had been a long and painfully drawn out process, but a scream never left his lips. The minor grunts failed to penetrate the room's door, too low to spill into the hall just outside. Without any official medical training, the Takahashi clansman went on instinct more than anything else. Each devastating pop was worth the pain, for becoming handicap was counterproductive to his goals.

He wanted to keep her alive, and he knew that he alone didn't have the strength alone. As a novice, it would be impossible to keep an eye on her at all times but with Sousuke injured who could he trust? When the girl awoke, she would see him standing on the right side of the front door. With arms folded and his back against the wall, it was clear that he expected trouble at any moment. His coat and hooded sweatshirt had been left on the couch, left him wearing merely a white tank top beneath his bandages about his torso. Blood soaked the gauze beneath his right side, but had darkened enough that he couldn't have still been bleeding. The earsplitting shriek that followed only caused him to flinch slightly, remaining otherwise motionless. Once she stopped the the disoriented moan slipped out he wondered if she'd faint again. Instead she tried to get up.

Unsuccessful in her attempt, the dark skin girl would not be caught. His pale flesh made him seem inhuman, the grayish blue veins riddling his arm were dark and looked poisoned. His breathing was steady, but the wheezing from the night before remained. "Don't worry about me..."<i></i> He muttered loud enough for her to hear, down there. Although he carried no ulterior motive for the young female, he wouldn't want to give her any ideas if he approached her too familiarly. She had a fiery personality, and already proved that she didn't quite trust him. Scaring her off was the last thing he wanted to do. Knowing that she hadn't suffered any damage during the attack, he wouldn't baby her before he strength returned. She wouldn't be able to survive if that's what she needed, and he wouldn't prolong the inevitable.

Hobbling over to the window, he would lean against it and peer out into the district. The lights weren't tainted, meaning it was daylight for their kind. "If you go to your aunt you'll be bringin' death to her doorstep. You're marked."<i></i> He was as straightforward about it as one could be, but clearly took no joy in delivering the news. "I can't keep you safe much longer while I'm in this sorry condition."<i></i> He voice carried the same nonchalant sarcasm albeit marred by the occasional pause. It was better for him to choose his words carefully. "What's your name?" Jin'ichi needed to come up with a plan, and that would be borderline impossible if he didn't even know who he was dealing with. Although he was stable and in no danger of dying anymore, if they were attacked he'd be no more than a meat shield.

 

[Sunaku Hoshiko]

Hohsiko knew that his words we're true... She hated putting that old hag into to much worry. It was bad for her aged heart. But if she went back, her aunt's heart would completely stop. Hoshiko laid her head against the wall/bedpost done trying she was just 10 and didn't feel like going through through all of this. She closed her eyes resting for one fleeting moment before she opened them and looked at the dark haired man.

"It's Hoshiko." She stated simply, "What is yours?" She thought it would be polite for him to tell her his name. For the time being she was just calling him dark haired fellow or just simple man. If she was going actually take him seriously she needed to know his name. And since they've been through so much together she needed to know his name. She closed her eyes once more thinking about that monster and being 'marked'.'

She didn't even know what 'it' is.... It was just something straight out of a nightmare, and it scarred her honestly. Not much ever scared Hoshiko like it did. Especially that devoured corpse that sat the on the concrete. She didn't want to something so grotesque ever again. Atleast not till she ever became full fledged ninja. This brought her back was this man even able to protect her? He seemed strong, but looks can be deceiving.

Hoshiko didn't even care anymore, if worse came to worse she was a fast girl. All she had to do is out room him not it. Hoshiko wondered about the man some more, Like his sword skills and one red eye, she had never seen anything like it before. It kind of reminded her of something she learned in class, but she couldn't put her finger on it at exactly. Maybe she would remember it later.

"If I stayed my butt at home this wouldn't be happening." Hoshiko said out loud as she let out a heavy sigh. She really wished that her puppet was here, it always made her feel safer when it was under her arms. Her auntie probably would've have thrown it away by now if she didn't know ho much Hoshiko loved that thing. It was all she had left of her mother. Like her father no body was found only torn pieces of cloth and blood. Presumed dead. A lot of time that's her family members died like that. No body found just evidence. It made her wonder.
[MFT]

 

[Takahashi]

He unflinchingly accepted her name, and had enough pause after she asked his to complain. Never having much of a childhood himself, the feeling of having one's innocence taken away was hard to imagine for one never having been innocent. For the first time, he really thought about how it would affect a normal person to see such cannibalization. It didn't matter how monstrous the creature was, it was humanoid and it spoke. That was enough to make the act far more difficult to conceive as natural. Ever since he was a boy Jin'ichi had known the horrors that mankind were capable of, and these monsters were just a different breed of the same. He remembered once hearing people in his neighborhood talk of a man that was arrested for chopping up children. The bastard even kept leftovers in his refrigerator.

Closing his eyes as she did with her's, he exhaled and tried to clear his mind. "My name's Takahashi Jin'ichi, cousin to Takahashi Sousuke III."</COLOR><i></i> His tone was dull and serious, it felt wrong using his family's name to get a point across. However; Sousuke was the acting Kazekage and leader of the village for years now and all knew his name in Sunagakure. It mattered very little whether or not they knew his countenance. If he was going to get her to trust him, he had to start acting like a real Shinobi, like he knew what he was doing. "From now on, you're in Shinobi custody. Before you're taken to a safe location, I'm gunna' need your full cooperation."<i></i> It was about time he started acting his age, a little girl's life was on the line because of him and his cursed family. <COLOR color="red">"This means giving me your full name, after that we'll stop by your aunt and see if she's willin' to come along." He didn't know where he was going to take her, but as long as he acted like he did there wouldn't be any reason for panic. His demeanor was calm and relaxed in comparison to her fear and confusion.

Thoughts of taking her to the Toraono Dojo crossed his mind, for many an orphan and student found shelter there. However; with the realization that the Sennin was in fact a demon, could he trust him? There were morals and ethics that went beyond rank and duty, what things were acceptable for a demon and not a child of man? After all, a demon as powerful as it might be, was merely a fallen thing. Perhaps there was more humanity in the Beast King than in most people these days, and what other choices did he have? However; things would take a change if she happened to mention her surname. There was another man, someone Jin'ichi did not know but had met once before. Among all those he felt were merely lost souls, there was one person who seemed to genuinely be a good person with a spirit that wanted to do the right things. Perhaps tragedies lead to great beginnings after all.

Getting up from his seat he'd make his way over to a closet. Pulling out a white dress shirt and black vest, he seemed like he was getting read for a business meeting more than facing death. Nonetheless, the extra clothing would do well to hide the veins spreading across his limbs. He might have almost been killed by the creature before, but he knew now that it could bleed. That it could be hurt. He also knew that it was somehow connected to his father, and owed him answers before he stained his white shirt with its blood. Vengeance was the only thing he had to hold onto, having more things to avenge was simply better for him any way. He masqueraded around as a decent and normal human being, but he knew that deep down he was something else. He was hollow, and he'd always been so. Despite all that he managed to care what happened to others, and if he could take the pain from everyone else to end suffering, he would.

 

[Sunaku Hoshiko]

When the man, or Jin'ichi she should call him now, said his name and relation she didn't seem surprised or startle... The reason why the last name didn't instantly click. She hadn't gone through the I want to be the kazekage! phase yet. After consulting if that name ringed a bell she figured it out and a gasp expression followed and the ordinary response a ten year-old would give about a relative to the kage. Hoshiko wondered if she should bow since hes technically royalty... "does it even work like that?" She decided she wouldn't bow... because she realized she still couldn't stand.

Hoshiko got really sick of Jin'ichi when he started talking like that. She hated when people started talking like a handbook. Anyway she assumed he was a Shinobi, so it was necessary, "I guess." When he asked for her full name she gave it, "Sunaku Hoshiko." She knew of her clans kekkai genkai, but she felt like that didn't make her special. She didn't know anyone in her clan. The only person she knew was her mother, but she's dead. Her Auntie is on her Father's side, so no blood relation to Sunaku there. When he said the next sentence, she moaned. She knew that old bag wouldn't leave that house even if the cabal came knocking at her door.

Hoshiko started to get out the bed, which she noted to smell like cigarettes and cheap perfume when she looked at Jin'ichi. She wobbled on her feet for few seconds before she got her footing. She patted down her skirt. When some of her hair fell down in front of her face while she was doing so she realized it had came out of it's braid. She hadn't gotten a hair cut recently so it was hanging all the way down to the middle of her legs. She held one strand of blackness. "I'm going to cut it." he thought to her self. She knew she wouldn't. Her mother had long hair just like her daughter. Hoshiko wanted be a spitting imagine of her Mother. It was a attachment that was just above the point of a Parent and child relationship. Now Hoshiko was alone, no one was left.

No... That was wrong her Aunt was left! But Hoshiko could tell for her slow movements, shedding of hair, and sudden tiredness. Her aunt would soon be sleeping with the sand. It made Hoshiko scared to think about it. Where would she go, who would care for her? She would end up on the streets just like the others. And probably grow up earning her money on her back. She shuddered as she pushed those thoughts out of her mind. She looked at Jin'ichi, her amber eyes shinning with mix emotions about the situation. Fear, loneliness, sadness, and just a hint of happiness?

She decided let hair stay as how it was, "I'm ready." She stated like she was going to war. She felt like she was, she was being dragged into something deep she hoped could escape, but she felt like she couldn't. She didn't want to think about it anymore if she did she would go hide under the bed and never come out. She had to face life and kick it in the balls when it tried to give her lemons.

 

[Takahashi]

While the girl was busy wondering about whether or not Jin'ichi should be considered royalty, he'd be looking with disinterest at the clothes. He hated the very idea of there being classes among people in society, and the attire itself looked like something a civilized man would wear. Titles meant absolutely nothing to him, with his allegiance to Sunagakure being based on far more than hierarchy and duty. Sousuke, while the Kazekage and an estranged relatively entirely, had welcomed him into the fold. Very few people knew his reasons for joining the village, but his cousin had shown him no disdain for his quest of vengeance. There was a kinship between them, and their familial traits of intelligence allowed each to reason with the other for a time. After he was done, whenever he did kill his father, he had still signed his life away to the desert. However; memories of the family he had left behind clawed at him from time to time. Regardless of his relations, he was little more than a mongrel soul with a name that meant nothing to him in truth.

Just like an average adult in the presence of a child, he seemed unconcerned with the thoughts of the latter. Jin'ichi wasn't good with children, or perhaps he could be, but loathed the idea of being left alone with them in general. It was always fine if it was someone else's offspring, while that someone else was there to handle the fruit of their own loins. He was far more likely to punch an unruly youth in the mouth than to waste time doing otherwise. He had no children of his own, and his siblings hadn't been much younger than he was. If her life hadn't been on the line, or more specifically if she hadn't save his, their initial meeting would have been very short. He smoked, drank, and the bed he'd set her down on had been used frequently. Only the other night he played host to a working woman, one that had at times managed to satiate his thirst for intelligent conversation. It was one of the many urges he had that remained mostly buried deep inside, knowing all too well that saying the wrong thing to the wrong person could bring an empire crashing down.

By the time she announced her willingness to proceed with their plan, Jin'ichi had already donned his shirt and vest. He'd finally turn to face her, fixing buttoning his cuffs and merely looking at her with dead eyes for what seemed to be eons. Whether he was conscious of it or not, his lips had formed the slightest frown possible. He could see how weak her legs were, but it was likely a lingering symptom of trepidation. Her hair was now untamed, framing her youthful brown face and flowing down to about her knees or calves. Fear was not what he saw when he looked at her, but internal strength that had the potential to change the world one day. He saw no such thing in himself. The reality of time passed had been only about thirty seconds or so passed, before his gaze shifted towards the door. "Sunaku..." He muttered as placed a hand on the doorknob. With his back now facing towards her, thoughts flooded his psyche and an idea sprouted within. Unsure of whether or not his plan was even an option, he'd gamble on it later on. Looking back over his right shoulder, with only a single eye visible he let the silence linger a bit more before actually speaking clearly.

"I know someone that'll take care of you. Someone much more qualified than me."<i></i> Opening the door and taking a few steps back to hold it open for the little girl, he'd add another line. "Let's go see your aunt first, lead the way."<i></i> If and when she passed through the doorway, he would look back at the room in pause before closing and locking the door behind him whilst stepping into the hallway. The two of them would likely take their time walking through the crowded streets, streets that would soon be empty once Sousuke finished Project Rebirth. There were many Shinobi dedicated to helping rebuild, Jin'ichi was not one of them. Instead, he focused on the things he lacked, perhaps an erroneous move but his move nonetheless. Without any powers to speak of, there would have been little for him to do constructing buildings or moving them... There were more than enough people available for that, so the best way to remain useful was to keep his head on his shoulders and his blade in reach. Having never visibly shown or made reference to the blade in front of the girl, perhaps she'd notice its absence. For all intents and purposes, he seemed more like a civilian and wasn't wearing his forehead protector around his neck like usual. Instead, it was neatly placed in his back if needed. He'd let the girl take the lead for now, having no prior knowledge of her nor her aunt, thus would have been wandering around aimlessly otherwise.

 

[Takahashi]

OOC: So, it's been roughly two months. However; rather than just shutting the topic down I'll tailor an ending.

IC

Jin'ichi would take the girl to collect her things. He wasn't much for people or their families, so he waited outside while the girl dealt with her aunt. Once she emerged, he would then disappear with her into the vastness of the village itself... The village outside the rundown Grand Palais. The idea he had? Well, he name was Sunaku Hoshiko, and if there was anyone who could help... Well, he had remembered one Harupia from a meeting with Sousuke some time ago. While not leaving her in his care specifically, he knew she'd be safe among the clan until he could take care of... Whatever it was, that his father had somehow aligned himself with. Would he ever see the feisty little girl? Perhaps not, but then again... Stranger things have happened.

[Topic Left]​