Unless there was something she was going to do first...[break][break]
Well, the hard honest truth was that the reason she had come all the way out here was to conquer her fear and see the dungeons one last time.... and she could still do that. But rather than going into the dungeons, she met someone and she felt content meeting him. Furthermore, she now had taken up the responsibility of helping him by giving him a place to live. She was excited![break][break]
Kyoufu wanted to know more about him.. to learn who he was and what he had become after their shared experiences. For the two of them, they were both likely kids since they'd last had true freedom. He could probably relate that they'd never gotten the chance to grow up. To some extent Kyoufu felt like she was still 9 years old, but she wasn't. She had superficially matured, but she also didn't quite feel like she fit in with her age group. She had things to learn and she knew it. It was just fortunate that she also didn't feel like a nine year old any more, lest she knew she'd look odd running around with them on the playground.[break][break]
"There's nothing I need to do," she answered him. "Lets head back to the village."[break][break]
With that, the girl started walking away, hopefully with her new friend standing either beside or behind her. [break][break]
"So... you said you don't know ninjutsu. Then, what do you know? Like, what skills do you have?"
The Lightning Country? Kyoufu didn't know politics very well but she never would have imagined a whole country could disappear. Hidden Villages were a different story though. She knew from her parents that the Village Hidden in the Leaves had been destroyed long ago, as had the Village Hidden in the Sand. But destroying villages was different from destroying a country, right? Certainly he could go home to Kaminari no Kuni if he really wanted to... but whether or not he wanted to was a completely different story.[break][break]
However, from there he made quite the leap... that the only person he had in this world right now was her. It may have been a strange statement, but it was also true that the two of them held a shared experience that very few other people in this world probably had. And for all Kyoufu knew, there were no other prisoners in the dungeons down there.[break][break]
"Well... if that's the case..." the girl paused for a seocnd as she pondered some things. "You can live with me!"[break][break]
The girl suddenly smiled with a certainty that she was making the right decision. [break][break]
Kyoufu released her grip on him and took a step back, only to laugh at his remark that her life was worth saving in comparison to some of the other uses for his chakra. This made her curious as to what else they actually had tried to use his chakra for in the past outside of healing... or maybe he meant that they had him heal some nasty people. Either of those were a possibility. In any case, she was happy that he had managed to keep her alive because hat was what had brought her to this moment in time. [break][break]
Without him, she would have been a pile of organs somewhere most likely because her captors had done things to her body that should never have been able to be healed, or so she assumed. And they also did a terrible job at managing her pain, likely because they didn't care about it. So she was certain she would always be thankful for all that Kaji had done to keep her going, even if he didn't have a choice in the matter from the beginning.[break][break]
"Oh... that's actually a really good question," she responded to him, knowing that he probably had pretty poor insight into how they had all been released and how everyone had died. "We were saved by Tengfei of the Hidden Mist Village, my home. He and his squad came to kill the leader of this organization, freeing us in the process."[break][break]
It was serendipitous at best, and the two of them were lucky that Tengfei's squad had decided to release and not to kill the captives here in this godforsaken place. Either possibility would have made sense, honestly, especially in the world of shinobi.[break][break]
"And that's my home... I'm from the Village Hidden in the Mist, Kirigakure no Sato," she expanded upon her answer. "And given that you've lived here... I take it you don't actually have a home, right?"
She loosened her grip on his hand, but didn't quite release him yet either. To hear that his parents thought of him as a failure was unfathomable to her, and Kyoufu was certain that maybe he had misinterpreted their love in some way or another. She wished for nothing more than to see her parents again because she understood and believed that no love could be so pure and true as the love of a parent for a child. Although she was much of an adult now, even if she hardly felt it due to those years in isolation, it felt strange to think she needed to be independent. She felt like she needed her parents now more than ever.[break][break]
What shocked her the most was that this man standing before her seemed to relish in his independence. He didn't even seek any type of society. Was he just going to live out here in the forest like some kind of animal? Away from the harshness of humanity?[break][break]
But what's more, after telling her that he couldn't use jutsu, he then went on to explain that he had discovered an ability. An ability to heal... and then the light bulbs were going off in her head. [break][break]
"OH! I do know you!" The girl nearly jumped forward and threw her arms around him in a tight hug. "I mean, I don't know you, but you were really the only pleasure in my life..."[break][break]
It was a weird thing to say considering that they'd never actually met before. But in a world of isolation where her only purpose was to be dissected down to her organs, the best part of her day was the bite when not only was her body healed, but she could feel a powerful high that there was virtually no other way to attain... and no other form of entertainment.[break][break]
"I must have bit you a thousand times then..." she said... before her expression softened. "I-... I didn't even think about... I'm sorry. I never even really consciously thought of you as a person. And they probably didn't even give you a choice. All I can say is th-thank you for healing me. Please forgive me."
What he said did make sense. They had been there long enough to become disoriented and to really feel like they had no place to belong. However, on the contrary, Kyoufu definitely felt like she had a place to go when she left and it was straight home to her parents. Unfortunately, that bubble had been burst before she could take one step toward them as she had been informed that her parents had been killed trying to rescue her by her savior, Tengfei. It was because of that she had no where to go.[break][break]
"Well, you definitely shouldn't just be staying here... that much I know," she explained to him. Obviuosly he was a stranger and she had only just met him, but she could also feel some empathy for him, having been through a similar situation herself. The only difference was that someone had taken notice in her and brought her along after this facility had been ransacked. [break][break]
Kyoufu reached out, taking the red haired Uzumaki by the hand.[break][break]
"Well, you don't have to be alone. You can come with me, I think," she nodded in affirmation. "Though I do have to ask, why would you think your family's given up on you? They probably just don't know where to find you."
Eight years. It was a magic number, apparently. That was the exact amount of time that Kyoufu had been locked in that prison as well. She wondered if Kaji had been brought there at the same time then. As a matter of fact, Kyoufu wasn't even aware that there had been other prisoners there, but now Kaji had her wondering just how many people were being trafficked down here and if there was anyone else like her in that way.[break][break]
She didn't doubt his story, especially not given his physique. Kyoufu had come out pretty weak as well initially, and she was still working on redeveloping her own muscle mass and getting strong enough to resume life as a kunoichi. [break][break]
"So if you were trapped down there too... then why are you just trying to leave now?... they've been dead for like at least a week?" She questioned. Surely he didn't want to just live down there for the fun of it. They had all been in prison for so long that it seemed he would have jumped at the opportunity for freedom.
Kaji Uzumaki? She certainly didn't recognize him by name... and she couldn't recall any particular individual with a bag over his head either. She was coming up pretty short on knowing who he was, but that also didn't matter to her much right now. After all, he was introducing himself... and if he was one of her captors would he really be wasting his time trying to talk to her and tell her who he was? In any case, she wasn't about to fall into a trap either by trusting him too much too early. She kept her guard up.[break][break]
"Kaji Uzumaki, huh?" she reaffirmed, while gazing up toward him. She scanned down his body before meeting his eyes once again. "Well, I guess if you were a bad guy you would have just attacked me, huh?"[break][break]
So he was a member of the Uzumaki Clan... Kyoufu was somewhat familiar with the clan, it being referred to as the sibling clan of the Senju... however that was long ago. These days all of the clans were removed from each other in a way they hadn't been in the past. Now all of the members of both clans were spread across multiple different countries throughout the world.[break][break]
"I'm Kyoufu Senju," she introduced herself politely as well. "How long were you in there? Do you know?"
You?! The red-haired male called her out as though he knew her... but she didn't know him. In fact, Kyoufu couldn't remember meeting anyone for the eight years she was imprisoned in this facility. For her it had been a largely solitary experience... unless something had happened which she was forgetting. Or, more likely, maybe he had been one of the people working with her captors. The majority of them, after all, wore ANBU masks covering their faces. [break][break]
She stood before the male, quite nearly ready to draw out the kunai that she held on her person, however she decided it would be better to pretend she was defenseless, if need be, so that he wouldn't get a chance to take precautions if he wanted to harm her. After all, a ninja's best defense was her deception.[break][break]
Her eyes were locked onto his, and she was reluctant to speak... however the silence eventually got the best of her.[break][break]
"Who are you? And what do you want?" she asked upfront. "How do you think you know me?"
And she did want to have fun and hang out with him, although she felt a bit conflicted in their choice of activity... as a matter of fact, as of yet she didn't know what their choice of activity was. She definitely didn't want to spend time doing laundry when she could be doing something more constructive... but she also wondered if where he was taking her would be constructive to her growth as a shinobi, particularly proving her worth to Tengfei.[break][break]
As Kyoufu trailed along, she noticed occasional glances of people gazing toward her and Tsukiya as they made their way through the village. Kyoufu's cheeks tinged red at the mere thought of people noticing she existed after all of this time in darkness. What's more, she knew she had the freedom to talk to any of them should she decide to. It was almost overwhelming. And now with Tsukiya's hand on her head, suddenly there were even more onlookers.[break][break]
"Thank you, Tsukiya-kun. I'm not worried though," she answered, quite unsure if she was expressing genuine feelings. She reached up, playfully grabbing the wrist of his hand placed upon her scalp. "Do I have something in my hair?"
Who would have thought that Kyoufu would ever come back to this place again... the hideout where she'd been held prisoner for years. It simply didn't make sense to return to it, and yet she felt herself drawn to it. She needed closure, and to see this place from the other side. She had survived and she had escaped, and her captors were dead. But she was back.[break][break]
Staring at it from the outside, the building looked like simply a wooden shack, however Kyoufu knew the truth. Beneath this shack was a complex series of tunnels. It was a dungeon, and Kyoufu had learned that if you were on the wrong side of a door in there then you may never be able to get out.[break][break]
The young girl took a step closer to the shack, venturing toward the door but remaining outside of it. She wondered if she could ever take another step inside. Would that be dangerous? Or would it take away the power that this place still held over her?... but she didn't take that step. She remained frozen, only a couple feet away from the inconspicious wooden door.
Fine wasn't much of an answer from Kyoufu's perspective. She could only imagine how differently she would feel at this very moment had her parents still been alive... how she would love and respect them to levels she never had in the past. But unfortunately they had perished during their attempt to save her. She would never have the chance to see them again. The blonde wanted to reach out to shake her Hyuga comrade by the shoulders only to tell him that he should cherish what he has.[break][break]
However, before she could say such a thing he brightened and walked away, leading her to scurry after him... wherever it was that he was taking her.[break][break]
"Sorry, I don't mean to waste your time," she spoke as she made her way to his side. Of course, she also didn't know where it was that they were going so she would walk only slightly behind him. She had certainly changed quite a bit from the past and even Kyoufu realized that in many ways she was more timid than she had been previously. She could kick herself for not being able to regain that charisma she held previously.[break][break]
A few more seconds passed and Kyoufu suddenly realized that she had nothing to say... she wondered if she should be trying to say something to keep Tsukiya entertained, but nothing came to mind... leaving her feeling more pressure than she wanted.
"Sure," she answered his question quite abruptly. In all honesty she hadn't been anywhere recently so it would be a venture to see any place where other teenagers were hanging out. Simply put, she wasn't sure how well she would fit in with other people, however she also didn't care too much if she fit in well or not. This was more of a social experiment which would have no impact on her shinobi skills.[break][break]
"I guess it would be pretty interesting to see where all the other people are," and by that she meant more than just people in their age group. Given the amount of time that had passed, she wondered how all of the other people from their academy years were doing. Had they all managed to survive and live this far? They'd had nearly 6 years to be shinobi now, and whatever their rank, the shinobi lifestyle could be dangerous.[break][break]
Kyoufu turned away, gazing at the ground for a couple seconds as though she saw something written in the soil; she didn't.[break][break]
"By the way, how's your mom?" she decided to ask. "Still well?"
So, Tsukiya cared about economics. That was pretty interesting. If Kyoufu were to be honest, she would have to say she never thoght about those kinds of things. In all honestly, she only just barely knew what the word economics even meant. It was a word she may have heard her parents use once or twice in the distant past, but it wasn't something that they discussed with her. Whatever the case, it sounded like it was pretty important for either Tsukiya or the village she she wouldn't completely discount it.[break][break]
Kyoufu paused, suddenly crumbling under the pressure of now being responsible for the entire rest of their day. She'd only just regained her individuality, and now she was responsible for another person's too and someone she respected at that. It was a lot to think about. What if she chose something he didn't want to do and then he didn't want to spend time with her again? And at that, it had been nearly a decade since she'd been able to hang out with a peer. What if she didn't do it right?[break][break]
"I don't know... what do you want to do?" she returned the question. "I'll do whatever you want to do."[break][break]
She knew her answer was bland, but it was also true. Simply put, she was that bland. However, she also assumed that with all of his time and experience he must have picked up on some fun and appropriate things for people their age to do. She was smart enough to know that suggesting they hang out at their old playground and pretend to be ninjas was no longer age-appropriate.[break][break]
Laundry? Well that didn't sound like much of a shinobi mission. Perhaps it would serve to at least get her some money to her name, so it might not have been a bad way to start, but she also felt like she should be doing things to actually earn her qualification as a genin... right? [break][break]
She wondered how long she could take him with this formality of Kyoufu-san. Sure, she was older now and that was the more "professional/adult" way to speak to each other, but to her it felt forced... maybe because she hadn't yet had the chance to grow into it or earn it through life experience. She'd heard once from her therapist, Yamanaka-sensei, that people who came out of jail tended to act the same age as when they were incarcerated. Hopefully that wouldn't be the same case for her. She did feel a lot different now, at least emotionally.[break][break]
"Do you think such a mission would be a good use of our time?" she asked him with uncertainty.
well, perhaps to say anyone their age should be jounin was ambitious. Still, she was a bit surprised that he hadn't advanced a little bit higher, but she was proud to see that he was still here and remembered her. The first thing she thought when she learned that her parents had died was that she wouldn't have anything to return to in Kirigakure no Sato. Tsukiya's pleasant company acted was a demonstration in contrast.[break][break]
"Well, before we do anything, you really don't have to call me that," Kyoufu said. Things had been quite informal for the two last they saw each other. "We're still friends, right? You can call me by my name. Don't be too formal."[break][break]
However, she was certain that Tsukiya must have felt differently. For him, he'd probably met plenty of people in the last eight years to where she'd become an afterthought until now. She wondered how many friends he had now. Probably way more than she could ever imagine having. [break][break]
"Anyway, I'm not sure... I've never even been on a mission before, really? What if we end up having to fight or something?" she asked him. Way back in the day, she never would have thought twice about going into a fight, but now after having been powerless for so many years something had certainly changed within her. [break][break]
