Welcome to the Digital Age! [Open]

[Kazu]

That's it. It's done. Yatamaru was more nervous than he'd ever been. This has to work.

Yatamaru was working in a common area. Yes, he had a workshop somewhere deep within the bowels of this giant glass and metal beast of a building; yet, whenever he tried to work down there he just ended up feeling constricted. Ideas can't flow without room for them to occupy, and thus the Sunan tinkerer had setup his work area in one of the main halls. Underneath the vast stained glass ceiling, Yatamaru toiled away on a secret project of his: he wanted to make the big, clunky computers that were currently used for clerical work smaller and more compact. Small enough to carry around in the field, even. For months, the puppeteer had drawn up plans, mocked out designs, and had even managed to invent a few new circuits while planning everything out. And now, the culmination of his hard work was staring him in the face.

Sitting in the middle of a large table was a small device, clunky and crude, but possibly functioning. Strewn around it were containers filled with wires, transistors, capacitors, inductors, and all other sorts of electronic components. Circuit boards, some fresh and some scavenged, were spread about and stacked on top of each other. Various cordless tools could also be seen — soldering irons, multimeters, and function generators — all powered by small carmot crystals. The only things that looked out of place was the one empty handle of whiskey, another half-empty bottle, and a few ash trays filled to the brim with spent cigarettes. How long have I been here, exactly? That didn't matter. It was time for the maiden voyage.

Grabbing a nearby tape recorder, the puppeteer started his recording. He took a moment to calm his nerves before proceeding,

"Day...fuck it, it's been a really god damn long time. I think this is Test #17..." The sound of pages turning and equipment being moved around filled the recording. "...no, wait. This is Test #18. Anyways, I've re-designed my Portable Computation Device, or PCD, and I think this version might be a winner. I just need to power it on..." A loud clicking sound and the dull hum of electronics could be heard in the background. "Power consumption seems stable. Temperature is nominal. Holy shit, it's actually working! Okay, now the data drive is engaging..." A few more moments passed, in which the hum continued to increase in speed. Then, a clicking sound. "Oh fuck." The clicking got louder, and more frequent. "Fucking hell! Are you shitting me?! No, no, nononono!" It was too late. Several loud pops could be heard, and the humming quickly died down. "AAAAAUGH!" The tape's recording ended there.

Yatamaru was not happy. He'd been really counting on this iteration to work, and now that it had literally blown up in his face he didn't know what to do anymore. Sulk for a while, probably. Definitely get more drunk. Speaking of which, his salvation was but an arm's reach away. Soon, the only sound that could be heard was the glugging of liquids. How the fuck else am I supposed to deal with failure?

[ooc: For reference, [this] is roughly what the contraption looks like, but with cruder electronic parts and not as clean looking.]

 

[Takahashi Aki]

In Yatamaru's current frustration he would find himself in the presence of another. Takahashi Sousuke the third. Sousuke would have in hand two cups of cinnamon coffee. He placed one of them down on the table which Yatamaru was labouring upon. The coffee cup would find itself moving as Sousuke moved it with his mind towards the frustrated tinkerer. "Wrong on both ocassions. This was test twenty-one."<i></i> He corrected the man who was perhaps lost in his own head. Sousuke would hike up his thumb and make a motion to point in the direction behind him. "I hit an all time level of frustrating too when trying to repair my Mach-47B. Let's vent for a number of moments before we both collect ourselves and throw ourselves back at our labours and our passions."<i></i> Sousuke would conjure metal from his lab forward to turn into a chair which he took a seat upon. The coffee in his hand was far too hot for him still, and the steam was steadily rising from it. "As a fellow journeyman first and foremost, but not as your Kazekage I would advise you to not yet resort to the alcoholic beverage. At least not at this point in the day."<i></i>

Sousuke would begin then to sip from his coffee. He looked at the steaming ruin of the Portable Computation Device. "Who did you go to for parts?"<i></i> Sousuke would ask. Part of them problem might have been where he was going to for parts. If he was going to someone who was of ill repute or of cheap quality ... well that could indeed be the answer to his problem. He awaited the response. Instead what happened was that Yatamaru instead proceeded to drink from his bottle instead of the coffee. Yes ... that did infact happen. Sousuke would stare at the man across from the table as he gave into drinking. Well there was little he could do about the man's life choices, drinking was an answer. Lord Nobu called it 'drowning your sorrows'. Sousuke always wondered how one drowned an emotion, as it did seem like a very impossible thing to do. He thought about it, perhaps if one situated a sad person in a metaphorical sea of happy people, then their sadness would be drowned out entirely. Sousuke would point to the bottle. "Are you drowning your sorrows? I have to ask because it is a thing people do from time to time I've heard."<i></i>

 

[Kazu]

Gulp. Gulp. Gulp. Gulp. Gul- *pfffffffft*

Yatamaru wasn't expecting anyone else to be here, especially not the Kazekage. it had taken every ounce of his willpower to aim the inevitable spit take away from Sousuke, which would have been downright mortifying, though it was still incredibly rude. Holy fuck, thank Suna I'm off duty. Yatamaru didn't like to advertise to work colleagues how incredibly drunk he constantly was in his free time, especially not to his Chief in Command. Suffice to say, Sousuke's sudden appearance had really thrown off his usual cool.

"Lord Kazekage! Uh...I...thank you." He was referring to the coffee, though the way he was verbally tripping over himself seemed to suggest he was far more concerned about the events that had just transpired. "Wait, what did you just say? That can't be, I would have written it..." His voice trailed off as he frantically checked his notes again, only to discover that, of course, Sousuke was correct. "Suna give me strength, I've been in here way too long." Physical exhaustion was no longer a concern of Yatamaru's, but mental exhaustion sure was — right now, his brain was totally fried. Rubbing the bridge of his nose, he tried to relax his racing mind as Sousuke regaled him with an engineering war tale. "No kidding? Somehow I always pictured you as a model of perseverance when it came to this stuff." Yatamaru grabbed a chair for himself — seeing as how Sousuke had already made himself at home — before completely succumbing to gravity's sweet embrace in the form of a comfy, padded seat. "A break sounds really nice, though. Thank you, again, for the coffee." Yatamaru didn't need to wait for the beverage to cool down. There are some things I'll never miss about having a body. Waiting for coffee to cool is definitely one of them.

Then the dreaded subject came up. Sousuke would be able to tell, just from his shift in body language, that Yatamaru wasn't a fan of this subject. The puppeteer avoided Sousuke's gaze, keeping his eyes locked on his coffee as he responded with a polite, "You're probably right." That was all he had to say. Raw nerve, much? The silence would stretch, permeated only by the slurping of liquid hangover cure.

Sousuke was the first to make small talk, inquiring about whom Yatamaru had sourced his materials from. Such a simple and benign question, yet the mere fact that his leader was asking it made Yatamaru feel this was a life or death struggle. Ever since he was young, Yatamaru had a strong sense of pride in his heritage — as all Sunan's did. It was this pride, and his unyielding belief that the village existed to serve its people, that pushed him towards a life of public servitude. In Yatamaru's eyes, the Kazekage embodied that passion, acting as the symbolic heart of the village at the metaphorical cost of his own life. Naturally, one tends to get nervous around those they admire.

"I mean, I didn't really 'go to' anybody. I...uh...actually, quite a few of the circuits I designed myself. The rest are leftovers from other projects." Yatamaru was quick to infer his meaning. It was a question of quality. "You're right, though, there's a good chance it failed because of over-worked parts..." There it goes again. His mind was back in project mode, trying to figure out what the most likely answer was. Was it a problem with the design, or the parts? There might still be hope for this project after all! Agh, wait, I'm supposed to be relaxing! Needless to say, the puppeteer was a bit of a workaholic.

Then the subject resurfaced; again, Yatamaru got squirmy. Why this topic, of all the things we could talk about? Still, Yatamaru couldn't ignore the question forever. Sighing, heavily, he worked up what little courage he had left. His eyes looked sad and tired, aged far beyond the expected wear for one his age. Surely, Sousuke would understand.

"Does it count as drowning your sorrows if it's the only way you feel anything anymore?"

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke would put down his coffee cup and look back at Yatamaru from across the table. "I did say, as a Journeyman not as the Kazekage."<i></i> He repeated first and foremost about the alcohol. "As Guardian Protectorate of the Realm and as Kazekage, I understand the need for drink at times. I say this because there are things that I wish I could have unseen. There are certain horrors out there that are not meant to be seen by our eyes. Drink sometimes helps one to forget these things, but ... let's just say I have once experienced liquid courage and it helped me to ... communicate to a particular series of nobles in a way that I normally would not. Unfiltered completely in its prime."<i></i> He tried to explain. He hoped that Yamataru could relate in some fashion. He made a shrugging motion of sorts, he would then go to regale Yamataru of another tale he shared with ... very few. "Of course there are other times when you have had too much to drink and wake up in your own bed very naked with a foreign witch who is also very naked."<i></i> Yes. Yamataru allow that to sink in your mind. At this point Sousuke was looking not at his fellow man, but rather the table. "Hakumei. The name of the witch was Hakumei. It was the first time I was ever truly drunk, and she brought me home. She thought it would be a sporting laugh for her to make me think that we had slept together. Suffice to say ... I learned a very hard lesson the first time I went drinking."<i></i>

The concept of his problem being parts seemed to be taken into consideration, but given what the puppeteer said it seemed to be that he was limited on resources and was thus using old parts over and over. "Should you find yourself in need of parts, I hope you may consider my own. Takahashi Fire Forged steel may prove too dense for your project, but I want you to know I will share it with you."<i></i> He chose his words carefully. He did not wish to insult his fellow man. There was an unspoken agreement between the Kazekage and his people. Sousuke looked after his people, and in turn they would look after him. It was symbiotic, always was and always would be. It was no real secret that Sousuke was a challenged man. Some got it, some others didn't. Simple as that as it always would be.

Sousuke's inability to connect with the human nature was ever evident. The conversation would take a turn for the worse seemingly. It took Sousuke several moments to figure out that he had erred. Yamataru did not look old, in fact he looked young for his age. The truth in all was that he was as much a machine like Sousuke was in some regards. He produced a very difficult question for Sousuke to answer, one which made the purple haired man look deep within himself. He would motion for Yamataru to walk with him for a moment to his work station. There the man would see an armour broken in the most ... impossible of ways. Cracked unnaturally, wires hanging out of places, with a broken chakra crystal where the 'heart' would be. "Sorrow is a very strange emotion. It is deep and long. It has history. The man who damaged this armour in this manner was the notorious Ishii Shouki. The man who killed no less than thirty Anbu and put them together as a human totem swaying in the wind during the Cabal crisis. I fought him some time later, and the very contract creature he forcibly made a pact with devoured him. He emerged ... naturally ... two years later. He then went on to murder another series of our companions and co-workers. I fought him again after he had put a black pit full of scorpions in this very building. I fought him in the Ranger Order Hall. I watched him die, I watched his god interfere with us trying to be rid of him for good. I watched him dissolve into worms and debris. He did this to my armour using methods given to him by his god. Jashin. His god then proceeded to laugh at us and taunt us upon Shouki's death."<i></i> He would motion for the man to follow him now back to the table. "Sorrow for you is a deep pit, like it is for me. I am full of sorrow. I suppose, yes it does count. That's just a fraction of my sorrows, not that I'm trying to ... ... as a crass person would put it have a pissing content. Why people do such things seems quite vulgar to me, considering you're violating the concept of public decency."<i></i> He waved his hand, this was a weird and strange place he was going with this. "I suppose how we get out of the pit doesn't matter, so long as we're not directly hurting others, but more importantly we should not injure ourselves grievously while doing it?"<i></i> He would look to Yamataru, "What may I ask, can I do for you?"<i></i>

MFT 873

 

[Kazu]

Yatamaru raised an eyebrow at his commander. Is it possible? Is the Kazekage really a lightweight?

Sousuke’s cautionary tales and personal recounts were met with equal amounts of empathetic pain and sadistic enjoyment. Yatamaru was well acquainted with the intensely embarrassing situations one could find themselves in when highly intoxicated, though he usually called that ‘Tuesday night.’ He wouldn’t say as much, as he was too busy taking a sip of coffee to keep himself from chuckling at the expense of his Kazekage. Thank god for my ANBU training, or I’d have lost my cool already. Yatamaru empathized with the man — he truly did, and wished never to have such scenarios befall himself or anyone — but it sounded like Sousuke’s experience with booze was rather biased. Letting yourself get that drunk on your first time? No wonder he dislikes the stuff.

”So, did you take her up on the offer?” Suffice to say, Yatamaru found the whole situation rather hilarious. ”And a foreigner, too! Good thing she wasn’t a spy.” Of course, he said this all in jest. Yatamaru’s sly smile and relaxed speech made it obvious.

When Sousuke extended an offer to share resources, Yatamaru was surprised the offer took as long as it did to come up. The Kazekage had a reputation for having an almost parental bond with his citizens, doing more for them than was ever expected — such abnormal behavior was rarely seen. Sunans were prideful, rarely accepting help for fear that they might be seen as weaker. Yatamaru, on the other hand, saw opportunity. By pooling their resources, the two Journeymen might be able to make a breakthrough together. And therein lies the problem. With a heavy heart, Yatamaru raised his hand in polite rejection.

”I wish I could accept. However, this project is very personal. I cannot and will not share these designs, which I’d be forced to do by accepting your assistance.” And what a design, too. He’d spent hours reconfiguring the circuitry in some of the older archival computers, trying desperately to shrink them to a portable size. It’s just that, at this scale, the electrical signals were prone to jumping across wires — such disturbances made it impossible to accurately send instructions through the machine. In the end, no matter how clever the wiring was, it was all useless if the machine couldn’t store information properly. That’s all the computer really is, anyways. A fancy information manipulator. Maybe the problem isn’t the method, it’s the medium? Electricity certainly had its downfalls, but what in the world could he use that was more reliable? Something predictable and manipulatable, and yet abundant and portable. He’d need to think on this, but not right now.

Sousuke had motioned for Yatamaru to follow him, without mentioning where or what they were doing, in response to his question. Fine, I’ll play along. Finishing the last dregs of his coffee, the puppeteer followed until they had made it to the Kazekage’s work station. There, a modern miracle of technological achievement lay dead and broken at the hands of a monster. A dark eulogy was told, speaking of the dreaded Ishii Shouki, an infamous and hated name within the ANBU, and his deeds of horror — Sousuke’s answer to his question was hidden between the lines of his stories. Shouki was a part of Sousuke’s sorrow, just as Mikaboshi was a part of his. Meaning within meaning, truth within truth.

”So, you’re saying I should face my sorrows head on? That there’s no point in running, because unless you strike your problems down they’ll simply come back to haunt you?” I suppose that makes sense. How he was meant to wage war on darkness itself, however, was a mystery. Either way, the seed of an idea had been planted in his mind.

Yatamaru lingered near the Kazekage’s work station, for some reason unable to tear his eyes away from the broken suit. Something about it called to him. Something obvious. What can he do for me? That was a good question. In fact, there were a few things Yatamaru could do with.

"Mikaboshi,” he hissed, his voice dripping with disdain. ”I want to find him." Yatamaru was neither angry nor calm. He looked upset, yet spoke clearly and with no impatience. At this very moment, he looked as if he was a man at odds with his own common sense. "Any information you have might help me find him." His gaze never left the broken suit as he spoke. It was eerie, how compelled he felt to look upon it.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

The inventor did not accept his help. All he could do was to offer him help. "I understand, I suppose if you gave me a list of items you need I would be able to reverse engineer the item you are working on."<i></i> Sousuke seemed to frown at the notion of it. His mind worked faster than he realized. Sousuke could create things at will. At times he merely needed a direction, and a few choice supplies. The Takahashi never truly had a defining bloodline ability. They were not like the Uchiha or the Hyuuga who had dojutsu and a particular combat style.

His fellow inventor questioned him. He was asking if Sousuke meant to take things head on. Sousuke shook his head no. "Time. Time is a funny thing. I have remained the same person for the most part. People around me change, for a time. They grow stronger, better, sometimes they have terrible things happen to them. Time is ... it's not linear. Time is a flat circle. How many times will we have this conversation? How many times will I find myself with a broken armour? All these things we do? It would happen again and again."<i></i> He would hold out his index and thumbs and with them he would form a circle. "Eternal return."<i></i>It was a pessimistic viewpoint. Yes. He full heartedly believed peace with Ancients was not going to occur. They would just continue to eat souls. Dominate others. Then a Primus would occur and fight. Humanity would hunt all Ancients almost into extinction, but then humanity would turn in on itself. "Maybe in a decade. Maybe two. Maybe less than that we're going to be here again talking ... just talking about this. It will ... be worse but that is to be expected. Inflation happens for good and for the bad."<i></i> This was a rare conversation to be had. Why Yatamaru of all people? Perhaps it was because the two of them were more alike than others realized. Both of them were machines. Perhaps he had a weird sense of faith in his fellow man to understand this concept of time, seeing as the two of them were deeply trapped in a pit of sorrow.

Curiously the man continued to look at the broken armour. He asked him a question about his former sennin. The Ancient of Deep Court. Sousuke raised an eyebrow. He knew the two of them had a very long and terrible history. Sousuke by proxy was responsible for it, and thus felt a great sense of shame in it. He exhaled and ruffled his hair. "I do not know where he is. I suspect, he is in his element. Perhaps he is haunting the landscape and bringing misery upon the Daimyo's men who would preferably like to see him chained up and used as fuel for the Sovereign Academy."<i></i> Once upon a time Sousuke could call out to him, or if Sousuke was in distress he would emerge. "I am by proxy responsible for you, and for him. Little known fact about the truer history of the Ancient called Mikaboshi. Humans who proved their worth and power were not slaves in Deep Court. He did not take a side when it came to our ancestors besting Homura and Fuujin during that particular ... cycle."<i></i> He spoke in reference to the concept of eternal return. "Our ancestors imprisoned him because they feared him even though he was at ... what one may call a peace or truce. They held a captive, a human friend of his, and they promised to free her."<i></i> He shook his head. "They killed her, and imprisoned him anyways."<i></i> He paused, "I know it because I saw it. He shared a memory with me."<i></i> Sousuke's eye contact broke off. He spoke lowly. "Some day sooner or later, it could be years but Fuujin and Homura are going to return to full power because someone was lonely."<i></i> He spoke in riddles seemingly. Was it exhausted nerves? Yes? No. Maybe. Mother Suna sent him a message speaking of the return of those two powers. For a time Sousuke seemed to phase out. His mind trapped elsewhere, frozen in a sort of memory. He wasn't certain if it was real or not.

 

[Kazu]

”Exactly,” would be the puppeteer’s respectfully curt response. ”Give me a little more time, to turn the science into magic; then, when I show you, you’re free to wonder to your heart’s content.” Of course Yatamaru wanted to share his secrets with his superior and, hopefully, friend. However, secrets were worth more than ten times their weight in gold — prematurely sharing such a precious resource would be both foolish and careless. Once I work out the kinks, and really develop it out a bit more, then it will be ready for scrutiny. He could only hope the Kazekage knew he meant no disrespect.

Sousuke had a clarification to add, in response to Yatamaru’s interpretation. Time, huh? How ironic. Since becoming a living doll, he’d also become a man out of time. He didn’t age anymore. He didn’t sleep anymore. He didn’t eat anymore. The only reason he consumed anything at all was for the raw pleasure — he’d designed a modification to his body years ago, based on the Akimichi Clan’s calorie to chakra conversion ability, that rapidly broke down any food, liquid, or chemical he ingested into chakra. He could still feel their effects, but it affected nothing more than his consciousness. Back when I had a body, I knew what to avoid: pain, hunger, extreme cold, extreme heat, dehydration. I don’t feel any of that anymore. When you feel nothing anymore, how do you know you’re okay?

To lose touch with one’s sense of pleasure and pain is to lose sense of all meaning. Time breaks down, and so does the self. Without something to ground him, Yatamaru could easily see himself falling into a pattern of endless repetition. Living without perspective is meaningless. Without an understanding of the past, the present, and the future together, how could he possibly strive to improve?

Did Yatamaru understand what Sousuke was saying? Unfortunately, yes.

”Time is funny, indeed.” Yatamaru mimicked Sousuke’s hand gesture, creating the infinite loop that drove men to madness. ”However, it’s not a circle. It’s a point.” He held the circle up to one of his eyes, like a looking glass that peered into a hidden realm of wonders and fantasy. ”All we ever get is this one point. A culmination of points make a line, and a culmination of lines makes a circle. It’s not that we’re doomed to repeat the cycle, it’s that we’re doomed to forget the whole in favor of the point.” Yatamaru’s philosophy wasn’t much more optimistic than his counterparts’, though they seemed to both belong to the same school of thought. ”The funny thing is, the circle is nothing without the points. It would be so easy, and yet so difficult, to change.”

Yatamaru continued to peer through the impromptu looking glass he’d made with his fingers, staring right back at the broken armor. But, more specifically, he was looking at the chakra crystal. Points. Arrangements. Structure. The whole through the points. A moment of calm preceded a feeling that could only be described as having the floor ripped out from underneath him. I just had an idea. Oh Suna, I just had an amazingly brilliant idea! His eyes darted around haphazardly. Paper. I need paper! Without asking, the man jumped toward his superior’s workstation, grabbed a blank scratchpad that was laying around, a pencil, and began furiously scribbling notes depicting geometric lattices, binary conversion equations, and an incredibly complicated formula that described how one might produce multiple, distinct, frequencies of chakra. I was right, it’s the method that needed tweaking — forget wires and electricity, I’ll use the structure of a crystal to stabilize the chakra nodes! Encoding information directly into the structure of a chakra crystal…this changes everything.

”Eureka.” His voice was steady, almost unsure. ”I think your suit just gave me the idea of a lifetime. Lord Kazekage, thank you.” Yatamaru was not usually one to bow, but today he felt compelled. From one inventor to another, you have my deepest thanks.

The mood of discovery quickly turned sour, the topic of Mikaboshi calling forth a dormant ire from deep within him. Mikaboshi’s absence had given Yatamaru time to think, grow, and mature. In time, he’d learned to see through the lies the Deep Court Lord had weaved into his mind. He saw now his error. That is why I must destroy him. So that no one has to learn the same lessons I did. It did not surprise him that Sousuke did not know of his whereabouts. Mikaboshi was crafty, cunning, and conniving. He would not be found unless he wanted to be.

What did surprise him, was the revelation of Mikaboshi’s Ancient origins. I’d heard the rumors. There are whispers in the ANBU that Ancients still walk among us. Not like in the stories your mother reads you as child, actual Ancients. Yatamaru had never believed it. It was ridiculous to believe in a tall-tale like this. And yet, here’s my Kazekage, telling me the same thing…

Yatamaru was in such a state of shock from hearing Sousuke deliver such news, he barely noticed that Sousuke was grappling his own demons. Pull it together. Yatamaru grabbed Sousuke’s shoulder, lightly jostling and comforting the man. ”That isn’t your fault, just like I’m not your fault. So our ancestors messed up? They’ve had their points in time, and they decided to continue the cycle. It’s our turn to decide which way the lines of fate will curve. We can make a better decision.” He talked tough, but deep within Yatamaru's eyes a twinge of terror could be seen. Uneasy, Yatamaru's attitude shifted — from passionate, to more calm and lame.

"What you said about Mikaboshi...is it true? Really, honestly, true?" The implications were earth shattering. If Sousuke is telling the truth, then this changes everything. Could a machine, made by an immortal, really destroy its creator? He didn't know, but it seemed like he'd soon find out.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Everything that Yatamaru had said had been indeed recorded, but for the time being Sousuke was trapped in a memory. It could have been shell shock or perhaps exhausted nerves. Luckily no one but Sousuke could see what he did. He was once again fighting Kaito at the dojo. He was cutting into him with the Black Blade. He was cutting through his defenses and leaving him for a better word, surprised at what was happening to him. The Cabal were being broken down one at a time. At the concern of his eye Sousuke saw Naganisa impaled on a blade. Wait. No. That was wrong she was alive not impaled. He remembered talking to her telling her of 'Homura's' betrayal. Not the Ancient but rather a swordsman who had shared his name. He saw Urufuu missing several organs and a head. Again. Not correct. What was this? A trick of the mind? He then looked down to himself and saw wirings and tubes coming out of his body. His left eye the lense was broken as he saw multiple images. He saw Shiori wearing black and standing at a grave, she put down a flower and seemed to be weeping. Sousuke walked through the sands and saw his name on tomb. Perhaps this is how it should have unfolded. If he had been killed by Kaito that day things would have been very different today.

Sousuke with a help from his fellow man snapped out of it. He blinked several times. He exhaled. For a moment it took him to readjust to his surroundings. "PTSD or shellshock some call it. Exhausted nerves maybe. Just seeing things in the past that were not quite right. Not recorded properly. An error in the data."<i></i> He explained. "Sometimes my mind plays things out differently that was ... an alternative to how things went down. It's not something I actively enjoy."<i></i> His mind then replayed word for word the past few moments. Sousuke would nod his head at Yatamaru. "My cousin, before she passed, she used to give me ideas at particular moments in time, so I understand... and you're welcome I suppose?"<i></i> Sousuke spoke as he scratched the back of his head. He was supposed to do that right? It seemed odd, but nonetheless it felt right? Brilliance turned its head and turned back to a slightly moodier times. He had asked if what he said was true. Sousuke would nod his head. "Indeed. I had an agreement with Mikaboshi and made some errors in that. We've traded blows him and I, or not really traded I took some from him. I deserved it ... but I don't think he's ever really come to grasp that humans are capable of being handicapped in the multitude of ways."<i></i> He spoke lowly. He seemed to be unsure of himself for a fleeting moment. There were some things unmentioned of course. Like the fact Sungakure was home to a Half-Ancient or two. That Mother Suna was not indeed the goddess that was promised. "A pixel is a point, but one can argue it is a circle too."<i></i> Sousuke retorted. He paused for a moment. "Ancients are not as dead as we think of them to be. They used human souls for food, but now if you've read the reports on the Daimyo's Sovereign Academy ... humans are using Ancients for food to empower ... humans."<i></i> That was an odd irony. The so high and mighty race of Ancients now on the receiving end of what they had done for a lot longer amounts of time.

 

[Kazu]

You too? ”That sounds awful. Is there anything that I can do?” I always smoke ‘em out. But, something tells me that’s not your style…

The Kazekage was an interesting man, to be sure. Despite all the troubles that plagued him, he still soldiered on, and thrived, within this world of shinobi. Perhaps that is precisely what made him suitable for his position? If nothing else, it marks him as a man worth paying attention to. A man who can accomplish great feats, despite overwhelming odds, deserves attention. Yatamaru just wished he could ease his friend’s troubled heart.

He listened, quietly, as Sousuke spoke of the Deep Court Lord. Agreements? Deserved it? Sousuke still thought of him as a friend, didn’t he? Or perhaps it was more complicated than that? Yatamaru didn’t know — what he did know was that he had much to learn. What else don’t I already know about? For a man who wages war with information, he seemed to be largely uninformed in this area. And that’s something I cannot abide by. Soon, I think I’ll take a trip down to the Archives…

”How can this be, though? How could an Ancient, of all things, have made it so deep into our society without us being the wiser? To have such a powerful enemy, with an obvious vendetta against us, so close to home…” Despair was heavy in the man’s voice. An existential, life-threatening, despair. We can’t sit back and let this menace grow in strength. We need to learn how to fight back. ”Lord Kazekage, where can I learn more about my foe? Might there be some knowledge hidden in the Archives? Surely, if anyone would have such knowledge, the Oracles would.” They possessed all sort of knowledge. Even if he had to read through every single book, it’s not like he would get tired or anything. I just need admittance.

”It’s all perspective, I guess. Maybe they’re both at the same time?” His response to the Kazekage’s retort was short and sweet. In the end, who knows for certain how it all works?

Then came a real knowledge bomb. Of course! That’s how they’ve been able to become so strong… There had been no mention, anywhere, that The Sovereign drew their power from Ancients. This was the first time Yatamaru was hearing it. ”Hang on. You mean to tell me there are multiple Ancients, freely roaming about?” Yatamaru didn’t know how many people a single Ancient could empower, but he was really interested in finding out. Mother Suna, I have my work cut out for me…” In time, he’d learn just how ironic his situation was. "Lord Kaz-" No. He stopped himself, realizing he wasn't asking the Kazekage for a favor. "Sousuke, I need you to tell me if there's anything else. It seems...I have much to catch up on... How could the Kazekage trust him with such information? Surely, he couldn't. "These Ancients serve as a threat to our very existence. I need to start learning as much as I can about them, before they do something we can't recover from."

 

[Takahashi Aki]

"I was once that reality is stranger than fiction."<i></i> Sousuke spoke as he looked inwards at himself. "I was young, and I had not really grasped the concept or rather the full gravity of the situation I was in. Vendettas are not made obvious, sometimes they are forgotten for a fraction of a moment when dealing with a new generation."<i></i> He spoke cryptically. For a time Mikaboshi was in a position of think better of humans. Mikaboshi abhorred his own kind, and Mother Suna would perhaps refer to him as traitor. He actively did not participate in the wars against Homura and Fuujin.

"Ancients were thought to be extinct for Mikaboshi. Being the case that they are now empowering his troops, then there are more of them."<i></i> It was a curious thing, "Considering there are ten members of the Sovereign Academy ... it is certainly difficult to figure out how many Ancients remain. I considered their numbers to be no less than eight, no more than fifteen. I highly doubt they are roaming about. I am suspect that they are chained and suffering."<i></i> Sousuke seemed emotionally detached to their conditioning. It was rare to see Sousuke emotionally attached to anything really. He looked to the ceiling of the Order Hall. He quietly considered the two pleas for information on Ancients. Sousuke could if he wanted to demand the archives to be opened up to him, but that would be a gross abuse of his power. "Ancients have always served as a threat to our existence. That being said we need to deal with the Daimyo's troops first. Yes the long term game is important, but the battles to come and the aftermath of that? That has been a long time come. We will always be in a state of needing to catch up so to speak."<i></i> It was a rather annoying fact but one that even he had to accept. "One of the men in league with the Daimyo of Sora resurrected Barnyx. Yes Ancients are indeed a threat, but so is a man who resurrected that old world terror. I was there when Barynx fell."<i></i> It took Roku once to point out to him the largest threat, and like Roku, Sousuke would do the same unto Yatamaru. In order to get to the end game they would need to focus their efforts on the present.

 

[Kazu]

Finding out that literal gods were walking among men was certainly a lot to deal with — frankly, Yatamaru thought he was taking it about as well as anyone could be expected. Paranoia, confusion, terror, worry, and dread. Quite natural, really. And yet, his feelings lingered. There was something more. Excitement? Who gets excited over the prospect of civilization-ending beings? He should be paralyzed in fear. What sort of perverse freak must think that way?

Perhaps he'd let his emotions get the better of him. Perhaps, for a moment, he'd lost himself a little. But that is why Sousuke was here, like Yatamaru was there before. He blinked, his mind stirring away from the fear and back towards reason, as he listened to Sousuke's wise words. He's right. The Ancients don't matter if The Sovereign destroy us first. We need to fight the war at our doorstep, before we fight a war that has yet to occur. He closed his eyes, and took an idiosyncratically deep breath to calm the primal itch that scraped, mercilessly, at the edges of his weary mind. Still have no idea why I do that anymore.

"You're absolutely right — I got a little carried away." His mind wandered back to earlier in their conversation, an ironic foreshadowing adding a twist of amusement. Yatamaru brought his index and thumb back into an endless loop, musing to his friend, "It seems I forgot the pixel of the present; too busy, was I, fretting over the circle and the future. It's a balancing act, the pixel and the circle." The Sovereign had to be their number one priority — while war was unfortunate, Yatamaru welcomed the opportunity to make them pay.

"Perhaps we ought to get back to our work, though. It seems we've...er, strayed a little far off the path of the typical train of thoughts." Yatamaru hadn't expected such an emotional and alarming series of discoveries and revelations today. Somehow, this break felt like it took more out of me than my work does. "I enjoyed it, though, for what it's worth."

[OOC Notes]
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[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke would consider the points discussed again. "A pixel is a part of a picture. Each fight. Each battle. All pixels to paint the picture of the defeat of our enemy. I have been adding pixels to this picture overtime. The death of a thousand cuts is still death, albeit painful and long."<i></i> He closed his eyes for a moment and poked his forehead for a moment. "It is indeed a balancing act, one that we must always be careful of and aware of."<i></i> He agreed with the sentiment. It was a tiring thing. It was an all consuming thing.

At the mention of going back to work, Sousuke would nod his head. "Even a break can be laborious, just in a different way."<i></i> Sousuke considered it further. "Even a consuming a snack can be laborious but we don't think of it as such. Smoking or drinking alcohol can be laborious considering you have to expend resources of various sorts. In both of our cases I would like to think that we have each significantly expanded our horizons in a number of subjects."<i></i> Sousuke would look to the area which housed his armour. "I too enjoyed this. I will continue my undertaking to repair my armour for the next man-made catastrophe waiting to happen."<i></i> It was a matter of time. Some believed in the notion of the Doomsday clock. Yet the question is when does time ever truly come to its full and complete realization that the end is here? Some men and women merely put the clock at 11:55 or 11:59. It didn't matter which it truly was. What could not be solved in four minutes would be impossible to solve in one. What was it that truly activated this concept? Was it that man came to an understanding of time and thus invented the concept of the Doomsday clock? Was it because Ancients failed to realize what time was and only came to such a notion because their time was out? Did Primus bring the Doomsday clock to 12:00 or 00:00 when he fell after fighting both Fuujin and Homura? Was it Primus who set the Doomsday clock of old to 11:55 when he slew the first Ancient? Time was recorded because of Oracles. Was it they who placed the hands of the Doomday clock to what it was? If so, who kept the Oracles in check to make sure they did their job right? Perhaps the Oracles were wrong. Impossible to know. Sousuke was a Journeyman. In terms of Oracles, it was a debate whether it was truly Fuu in control or not. No. Not Fuu. Michi. She spoke of how she was the last one, but did Sousuke not challenge that when he took her knowledge of Oracles? Did Sousuke in fact reverse the Doomsday clock on that selected few? "Indeed. Back to work. May we succeed in our undertakings."<i></i> With that Sousuke would bid a fare thee well to his mechanical companion. He would head back into his vault, and he would do what he must to make sure his armour would see yet another battle.

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