Who let the dogs out? [Open?]

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke's eyes looked skyward If resources were unlimited there would no longer be a need for war. Unfortunately those with the potential to do so were ... most likely going to be exploited. Ransom held against them, something. "Possible."<i></i> The Kazekage would answer in a single word. "People ... ... if it were possible to have that ability."<i></i> The child continued. "Sometimes."<i></i> Sousuke would answer the first question about limitations. People could be exploited, loved ones used against them. "There is an unlimited capacity for right and wrong. That much is true. Things can be kept secret for so long, but ultimately there may be a time when the secrets you have are ripped out of you, stolen or something or someone is held against you. It's a difficult situation to be in."<i></i>

Sousuke frowned when Kichiru asked him if there was someone who he would want to see again. The answer was Okibi. She was not dead though. She was out there, somewhere with Tama living a very different life and away from him. Maybe they were happy and with a couple of kids living a simpler life. He paused for a moment when Kichiru proposed he maybe create a new ... form of vegetation. It was something that made him stop and think. End the need for resources. End wars, or future wars. "You have me there. I'm certain somewhere or somehow I can ... reverse bio-alchemitate a rock into a cabbage or a radish."<i></i> Did he just make up a word? Maybe. "I meant ... transmute."<i></i> He answered being slightly embarrassed now. It was an odd feeling. His cheeks ever so slightly turned pink. His thoughts turned onto the scientific procedure on how do to do it.

During this time Kyou had left. Sousuke looked up and around. Hm? When did she leave? Did he simply space out into scientific thought and it had occurred. Kitchy at this point would look at Sousuke who seemed quite at a loss now as a giant dog had gone missing. Kichiru explained his dream. Sousuke thought about it. It was indeed a warm and fuzzy dream. Simple in some ways, but simple was not necessarily a bad thing. "Er... how long has it been since Kyou left?"<i></i> Sousuke would inquire first and foremost. "Your dream though ... it is something we do need at this moment in time. That was the old covenant unto which Sungakure was built upon."<i></i> Kitchy would turn and now and give the boy a lick across the face. She would then nuzzle into him. The boy's positive nature was truly infectious. "It is a long and sometimes difficult thing to pursue. It is unending, but sometimes one just has to keep at it."<i></i> Sousuke was speaking from experience. "There are sometimes monsters that need to be vanquished in order to save others."<i></i> The scary part? Sometimes those monsters were human.

 

[Amano Hikari]

It didn't take very long for Kichiru to reach the realization that would be sparked by the Steward's words “Use people against us.. Like my mother and father. I see..” The boy's face would get quite sullen at this point as he considered the situation in which his actions could put the two people he cherished the most at the risk of being hurt simply to receive information from him. “I understand... Sometimes we can't risk having secrets.. But if we must, we have to be prepared for what might happen and do our best to prevent it. We have to be strong, not for avoiding our own pain but for avoiding theirs.” Still not looking quite as chipper as he had a few moments ago, Kichiru patted Kitchy once more. “Not you Kitchy. Nobody is gonna hurt you. So don't you start worrying, okay?” Worrying that his sudden change in mood may have worried the mecha-pooch he put on a bright smile as he spoke.

The self-correction caused Kichiru to look upward and notice the reddish hue enveloping the Steward's cheeks. At this, the young boy couldn't help but smile even wider, this time showing a genuine happiness rather than simply a concern for Kitchy's. “Y'know. I like it. Reverse bio-alche... Alchemitate . I mean, if you create the process can anyone really tell you what to call it? Right?” He started laughing at the thought of posters throughout the village advertising 'The Amazing Reverse Bio-Alchemitater and his Magical Taters!'. The imagination of a child was truly a wondrous thing. His laugh stopped soon after as he tilted his head in confusion “Huh..? She left a few minutes ago. You didn't see?” However, as would a sickness that simply wouldn't pass, his laughter continued “You're very silly Kazekage-Sama.”

It was then that Kichiru was about to respond to the Steward regarding his dream when Kitchy moved closer to the young boy and licked his face before nuzzling into him. At this Kichiru's cheeks would light up a deep crimson, not out of embarrassment but out of rapid excitement as he patted his lap for Kitchy to jump up onto him. As Kitchy would settle into his new position atop the boy's lap, Kichiru wouldn't take much more time before responding as he meant to “I've read stories about those who founded Sunagakure. At least, anything I could get my hands on. I only hope to be a fraction of the Shinobi that they were.”

Monsters... If the Steward had finally broken away from his thoughts regarding the scientific processes regarding cabbage then he would likely notice Kichiru's face freeze for a split-second. It would be rather minuscule, most likely wouldn't even realize it unless they were truly paying attention. Just the slightest inclination that the word had sparked something only to be quelled a second later. He felt the tingling sensation once more arise from his back. He hadn't shown his mother yet... Nobody knew except for them. Yet he wasn't quite sure if the tingling sensation was real or he was simply imagining it. Regardless of the observation of his reaction, the Steward would likely notice Kichiru's face turn quite serious as he held out a single hand with his pinky-finger stretched out.

“Promise me that you will never let the monsters hurt Kitchy. He is your creation and is a spark of light in this world that can break away the darkness the monsters bring. Promise me, Kazekage-Sama, that you'll protect him.”

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Kitchy let out a confused whine of sorts. The dog gave him a hard stare of sorts. This all happened during the last sentence spoken by the boy. The canine seemed to be suggesting something to him. She tilted her head. Somewhat. I'm not a boy. I'm a girl. I am a LADY. Was what was being suggested here. Kitchy was ... quite proud? Yes. Quite proud to be one of the female gender. Sousuke coughed, and would attempt to clarify in the event there was some sort of ... miscommunication. "Kitchy is a girl."<i></i> He raised an eyebrow. He and Kitchy swapped glances. "She's not a photonical based being either ... unless you're referring to the metaphorical light?"<i></i> Usually the metaphorical light was some sort of religious thing. Sousuke was once a ... religious person. He wasn't overtly religious, but he was. That was of course until everything came hurtling down upon him. God might as well have been dead, and God ... or rather the Goddess had killed herself. "But yeah... Kitchy is going to be around for a long time. She is going to be well, happy, and ... that sort of stuff. "<i></i> The husky let out a sound bark so as to reassure that as well.

Sousuke knelt down and placed his mechanical hand on Kitchy's head and rubbed behind the ears. He did ultimately make the pinky swear motion. "My son makes me do this things at times. A curious way to make a deal with people."<i></i> He shook pinkies not once but twice. "Do we do this a third time? I don't know, let's do it anyways."<i></i> Sousuke would get back on his feet now. "You wouldn't want to be a shinobi of the past. No. What you want to do is become a Shinobi of the future. I've learned something about desiring to be something of the past. Live in the past too much and you're trapped by it, live in the future and there is unlimited and untapped potential."<i></i> Sousuke spoke. It was the idea of Shoki that had pushed him to reinvent the Black Blade into something more, something more powerful. The colour black was something Sousuke found himself wearing or using in his designs when his anxiety and dread was at its highest. Silver on the other hand, silver was what represented Sousuke when he was at his high points. Primus was in the past, but Sousuke was attempting to become something more, something greater than Primus who defeated both Homura and Fuujin.

 

[Amano Hikari]

“Oh! I'm sorry Kitchy! Forgive me?” Kichiru said, looking genuinely displeased for potentially insulting his new canine friend. He placed his hand out, palm-side up, hoping to receive her paw in a sign of forgiveness. Looking upward back towards Sousuke “Huh..? Pho..tonical? Are you making up words again?” He smiled in his blissful ignorance “I meant the light that people have in their hearts. What drives us to do good in the world. That feeling that brightens your day when you do something for someone else. The thing that manages to lift us up when the weight of all the darkness in the world comes crashing upon our shoulders. That's what I mean, Kazekage-sama.” He nodded as he finished his explanation. This concept of 'light' had only come to him recently after the events at Soon's Haven; his first encounter with this so-called 'darkness'. His survival gave him a new-found strength that drove him stronger than he had ever been before.

“Well if you make a promise like this then it means you have to keep it. Sometimes people lie, but you're not allowed to if you make a pinky-promise. It's the rules.” A third-shake was of the utmost importance. Without it the other two would be essentially meaningless, but it was good to see that at least the Steward Kazekage went to the efforts of truly making the pinky-promise official. His eyes turned rather serious for a moment as he stared directly at Sousuke, slowly moving a hand towards his back “Plus, I heard someone at the academy say that if you broke a pinky-promise you'll have to have your pinky cut off as payment.”

He managed to hold in the laughter for about a second or two after finishing before he could hold it no longer, allowing the childish laugh to escape from his mouth. “Just kidding! I crossed my fingers, see?” He said as he revealed the hand he had hidden behind his back, with which he had crossed two of his fingers over one-another. His grin faded soon as he listened to the Steward speak once more, advising the young Kichiru to focus his sights on being the type of Shinobi that the village will need in the future, rather than idolizing those of the past. It had been a few moments after Sousuke had finished speaking, yet Kichiru had not responded as he observed the emotional state of the Steward Kazekage. He wasn't as skilled as some at reading others, but he knew that there was something behind the man's words that revealed something. He simply wasn't sure what.

“The past may be painful painful, but we can learn from it if we know how to look back. My sister is stuck in my past, but she drives me forward to this very second, and she drives me to do my best to help the people of this village for every day I am alive. Maybe you have someone like that too, Kazekage-sama. Someone you love and care about. Maybe they're in your past. Or your present, or maybe they've yet to appear and they're in the future. Wherever they are, that's what gives us the most potential. Those who love us are what make us stronger because we have something worth being strong for.”

 

[Takahashi Aki]

The husky would give Kichiru an answer not through a bark but a snuggle of sorts. The canine would in time withdraw and place her paw on his hand to further illustrate how forgiving she indeed was. Sousuke would then adress Kichiru's questions. "No... no photons are ... it's light. It's the scientific word for light."<i></i> Sousuke had to remind himself that he was dealing with a child, who would need a very simple explanation of things. The child in time explained to him what he had meant when it came to light. He thought about it for a moment. "Inspiration."<i></i> He stated more for himself. It did seem like that is what he had meant. Then again ... how was it the light?

As Kichiru spoke of the repercussions of breaking a pinky promise being the snapping off of a pinky finger, Sousuke would unscrew his own pinky finger. His mechanical arm did have removable digits. It was a thing ... mainly due to cleaning really. He held his metallic pinky finger with his thumb and index finger. He looked at Kichiru and then the pinky finger again. When Kichiru said he was kidding, Sousuke's brows furrow. "Huh... okay."<i></i> Sousuke would screw his pinky finger back on and blinked not once but twice. "So... what we did has no meaning them?"<i></i> He didn't get it. Not one single bit of it. Such a strange thing to do really. Sousuke made a fist with his metallic hand. All the digits moved properly. The boy would speak of how the past was painful, and that the past was something they had to deal with. Okibi was stuck and the past and she remained in the past. His ward. She just could not take it anymore. She didn't want to be a mother. She didn't want to help him save Sungakure. He was never quite sure why. It was her homeland, but ... an adopted one. "Mmm."<i></i> Sousuke said nothing at first. He loved Yume too. That too was evident. Yume was not in the past, well she wasn't someone missing from his past. She was in his present. Sousuke's thought pattern was broken though as he received a headset call. Sousuke raised up his hand motioning one moment. He took the call, part of his face became encased in metal. "I'm here ... ... ... no. No I have yet to do that. ... ... ... ... Okay. ... ... ... ... Alright. ... ... ... Yes I'm on my way. Okay then."<i></i> Sousuke would turn to Kitchy, he would nod his head. He would end the call, and shake his head. "Unfortunately I must be going now. My next appointment has ... been moved up and I should have been there seven minutes ago, but they've kept me waiting most times, so seven minutes won't hurt... but yes Kichiru we will meet again and hopefully we will exchange more insights. Onward and forward then, but never forgetting the past."<i></i> With that Sousuke would head out. His dog letting out another woof and then bidding good bye to Kichuru.

[Topic left]

 

[Amano Hikari]

Kitchy's actions caused Kichiru to let out a gleeful noise of joy as she placed her paw in his hand “Thank you Kitchy! You are an honorable lady.” He nodded in gratitude for her quick forgiveness of his earlier mistake.“Oh! Well I guess that makes sense. So photon means light for scientists.” Scratching his chin, he attempted to make sense of why they wouldn't simply use the word light if that's what they meant. He clearly had much to learn from the Steward Kazekage, including the reasoning adults had for replacing perfectly useful words with other words for seemingly little reason. He only nodded towards the word 'Inspiration' as a reaction towards his own definition of what he meant by his usage of the word 'light'. It was true that inspiration could be thought of as what he felt, however there was something deeper than that, something more passionate. “Inspiration.. Partially. The light that I feel inspires me, but it also quells the feelings of darkness that I have felt. It helps me get through pain, whether it's emotional or physical.”

“Wah!?” Kichiru would have likely jumped back several meters if it weren't for Kitchy's presence at the removal of Sousuke's pinky-finger. “You. Finger. What. How?” All he could do was sit there wide-eyed as he looked between Kitchy and then back towards Sousuke. Was it possible that.. He had done this to himself? That, just like Kitchy, he was also partially some sort of creation of his own design? The world was a strange place, and Kichiru had only scratched the surface of it it seemed, if that.

His brow furrowed as he stared back towards Sousuke “No meaning? No, it means you promised! And if you break a promise then that person won't trust you again! There's plenty of meaning behind that! You can live without a pinky, but living without the trust of someone you might respect or care about is far worse!” He seemed genuinely upset at the idea that a pinky-promise held no weight, especially as he had often done it with his sister, however he had only learned the silly rumors of losing ones' pinky whilst in the Academy. If this promise held no meaning, then all the promises his sister made to him held no meaning, and he would not accept that as reality.

“Oh! You can't be late! You're the Kazekage! Go, go!” He quickly jumped upward and pointed off in a random direction, clearly unaware of where Sousuke actually needed to go. “Yes! We shall meet again. And next time maybe I can show you some of the stuff I learned at the academy! Maybe I'll even be a Bashar by then; my exam is coming up pretty soon.” He smiled as he waved towards Sousuke as he left. “Bye Kitchy! Remember to make sure he keeps his promise!” He laughed out as he returned the farewell to his new canine-friend. Today had certainly been an amazing day, meeting two new people, two dogs. More than that, it seemed that the Steward Kazekage might actually want to meet him once more! The thought alone excited Kichiru beyond belief. Once they were out of sight, his eyes widened dramatically at a sudden realization.

The groceries! Mother is going to kill me!

[MFT]
[Topic Left]