Naruto Ten Swords for Solace
- Thread starter Zephyrus
- Start date
Nah, you're too modest, Zeph. These drabbles are making me cry unmanly tears. They're really insightful, though I disagree with you about Sakura's initial motivations. By the start of the series, on the other hand, she's totally an Uchihatard....
Keep up the good work (and deal with the text blocks).
Keep up the good work (and deal with the text blocks).
Wata!
It's been too long since I've talked to you. I've not seen you on IRC for some time and I've missed your general silliness.
I appreciate your comment. There is, perhaps, a better (read, more logical) reason why Sakura initally signed up for the Academy than the one I've presented, but this is the belief that I subscribe to. Sakura might have had a crush on Sasuke pre-series, but it took a competitive instinct awoken by Ino to turn her into the raving Uchiha fangirl we love to hate.
Actually, I take that back. I don't hate Sakura. I pity her. She is one messed up chick. To think, still liking the guy that has outright stated he is going to kill everyone in your village and raze it to the ground.
Also, everyone is free to offer suggestions as to what the last three "swords" should be. If I am inspired by a particular suggestion, I'll be sure to credit said suggestee in my next post.
It's been too long since I've talked to you. I've not seen you on IRC for some time and I've missed your general silliness.
I appreciate your comment. There is, perhaps, a better (read, more logical) reason why Sakura initally signed up for the Academy than the one I've presented, but this is the belief that I subscribe to. Sakura might have had a crush on Sasuke pre-series, but it took a competitive instinct awoken by Ino to turn her into the raving Uchiha fangirl we love to hate.
Actually, I take that back. I don't hate Sakura. I pity her. She is one messed up chick. To think, still liking the guy that has outright stated he is going to kill everyone in your village and raze it to the ground.
Also, everyone is free to offer suggestions as to what the last three "swords" should be. If I am inspired by a particular suggestion, I'll be sure to credit said suggestee in my next post.
Heya Zeph. I've seen you around on IRC recently, but you're always a zombie... :blue:
Three last swords, hmm? I've always been interested in the parallels that pop up between the various Team 7s over the years. Expanding on that is a possibility.
Notice that out of the Team 7s we've seen, half of them end with a student killing the teacher. Orochimaru and Sarutobi, Nagato/Yahiko and Jiraiya. It's always the genius who does it.
Maybe the only reason Kakashi doesn't kill the Fourth is that Obito died for him first.
Maybe Sasuke will be the one to kill Kakashi.
Three last swords, hmm? I've always been interested in the parallels that pop up between the various Team 7s over the years. Expanding on that is a possibility.
Notice that out of the Team 7s we've seen, half of them end with a student killing the teacher. Orochimaru and Sarutobi, Nagato/Yahiko and Jiraiya. It's always the genius who does it.
Maybe the only reason Kakashi doesn't kill the Fourth is that Obito died for him first.
Maybe Sasuke will be the one to kill Kakashi.
BRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAIIIIINNNNSSSS.....
And I'm back from the dead. Mostly just popping out of my grave to eat some brains.
Also, I'm quite rusty with writing, having not updated in a very long time. Any C&C you fellas have to give, sock it to me.
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8. Have you ever heard of the Hedgehog's dilemma?
It states that a hedgehog, though it might desire to become closer to another hedgehog for warmth and comfort, cannot avoid both inflicting and receiving pain from the spiny quills that cover its back. That which protects the hedgehog also ends up hurting it. A hedgehog will never truly experience the intimacy and feeling of safety that comes with sharing a warm burrow with another hedgehog.
In this, humans are quite similar, though they have no physical protrusions or natural defenses that prevent them from becoming close to one another. Instead of tough skin, an imposing demeanor, or natural body armor, humans have to be wary of one another's emotions, words, and actions. The pain that can be inflicted on the physical self is as nothing compared to the savagery that humans inflict upon one another's soul, whether unintentionally or not.
For shinobi, this is something that they understand on an unconscious level. It is why shinobi rarely associate with anyone outside of their close circle of friends. Even then, it is rare for a shinobi to have close friends beyond the members of their cell and perhaps their family or clan.
They are quite aware of the risk they run to their minds and their souls when they venture out on a mission with a team, a friend, or worse, a lover. There is no mental preparation on Earth or in Heaven that can prepare a soldier for the loss of a beloved comrade. Years of training and conditioning can only soften the blow so much. It leads many shinobi to the conclusion that it is ultimately safer and less painful to simply have no friends at all. Even in Konoha, where the bonds between comrades are almost as strong as or stronger than that of any pair or trio of siblings, there are those who take solace in the solitary life.
Kakashi is one such shinobi.
He had already suffered a grievous blow to his psyche with the loss of both Obito and Rin. Even though he had become closer to them, more so than he'd ever thought it possible, there was still that sly whisper in the recesses of his mind that insisted that it was folly to let two people through the nigh impregnable defenses he'd been building ever since he was a child. Their deaths lent the whisper a mocking quality, chanting in time to Obito's rapidly fading pulse, I told you so, I told you so.
As with most shinobi who had suffered a loss so great, Kakashi was never quite right afterwards. He became firmly convinced that human contact of any sort was a mistake that he'd never commit again.
Surprisingly, it wasnÆt Team Seven that helped Kakashi regain a semblance of his humanity and his sanity. It was Maito Gai.
Kakashi had been staring at two familiar names on the Memorial Stone when he was startled from his memories by approaching footsteps. A man roughly his own age came bearing a small bouquet of daisies and wearing a hideously green spandex suit. The bowl cut of his hair and his blindingly white smile did nothing to ingratiate himself to Kakashi. Like many of his peers, Kakashi immediately dismissed Gai as a fool.
Kakashi canÆt quite remember the words they exchanged as Gai carefully laid his flowers at the foot of the stone. He only knows that he blithely insulted Gai without really thinking about it and suddenly found himself on the ground with a ringing in his ears and a scowling Maito Gai towering over his prone form.
Kakakshi sat up, rubbed his jaw, and then proceeded to beat the everliving green out of Gai.
Their battle lasted approximately 3 hours and near the end, Kakashi found himself eying his opponent with something akin to respect even as Gai lay propped against the ruined form of a training post, lips split, one eye blackened, and one broken arm. Kakashi was in just as bad a shape as the other shinobi, but heÆd never admit it.
HeÆs not quite sure why he does so, but he limps over to Gai, favoring his broken ankle, and bends down, silently offering the man a hand up. Gai hesitates a moment, peering into KakashiÆs one exposed eye for what seemed like an eternity. He grinned suddenly, as if satisfied by what he found in KakashiÆs gaze. Gai took KakashiÆs hand.
ôI forgive you!ö Gai proclaimed in his boisterous manner, beaming and happy only as a child who has made a new friend could be.
They both limped to town, Gai loudly proclaiming that KakashiÆs Hip and Cool manner would never temper GaiÆs own Power of Youth.
Gai gained an Eternal Rival that day.
Kakashi regained what made all Konoha shinobi great: a friend.
And I'm back from the dead. Mostly just popping out of my grave to eat some brains.
Also, I'm quite rusty with writing, having not updated in a very long time. Any C&C you fellas have to give, sock it to me.
----------------------------
8. Have you ever heard of the Hedgehog's dilemma?
It states that a hedgehog, though it might desire to become closer to another hedgehog for warmth and comfort, cannot avoid both inflicting and receiving pain from the spiny quills that cover its back. That which protects the hedgehog also ends up hurting it. A hedgehog will never truly experience the intimacy and feeling of safety that comes with sharing a warm burrow with another hedgehog.
In this, humans are quite similar, though they have no physical protrusions or natural defenses that prevent them from becoming close to one another. Instead of tough skin, an imposing demeanor, or natural body armor, humans have to be wary of one another's emotions, words, and actions. The pain that can be inflicted on the physical self is as nothing compared to the savagery that humans inflict upon one another's soul, whether unintentionally or not.
For shinobi, this is something that they understand on an unconscious level. It is why shinobi rarely associate with anyone outside of their close circle of friends. Even then, it is rare for a shinobi to have close friends beyond the members of their cell and perhaps their family or clan.
They are quite aware of the risk they run to their minds and their souls when they venture out on a mission with a team, a friend, or worse, a lover. There is no mental preparation on Earth or in Heaven that can prepare a soldier for the loss of a beloved comrade. Years of training and conditioning can only soften the blow so much. It leads many shinobi to the conclusion that it is ultimately safer and less painful to simply have no friends at all. Even in Konoha, where the bonds between comrades are almost as strong as or stronger than that of any pair or trio of siblings, there are those who take solace in the solitary life.
Kakashi is one such shinobi.
He had already suffered a grievous blow to his psyche with the loss of both Obito and Rin. Even though he had become closer to them, more so than he'd ever thought it possible, there was still that sly whisper in the recesses of his mind that insisted that it was folly to let two people through the nigh impregnable defenses he'd been building ever since he was a child. Their deaths lent the whisper a mocking quality, chanting in time to Obito's rapidly fading pulse, I told you so, I told you so.
As with most shinobi who had suffered a loss so great, Kakashi was never quite right afterwards. He became firmly convinced that human contact of any sort was a mistake that he'd never commit again.
Surprisingly, it wasnÆt Team Seven that helped Kakashi regain a semblance of his humanity and his sanity. It was Maito Gai.
Kakashi had been staring at two familiar names on the Memorial Stone when he was startled from his memories by approaching footsteps. A man roughly his own age came bearing a small bouquet of daisies and wearing a hideously green spandex suit. The bowl cut of his hair and his blindingly white smile did nothing to ingratiate himself to Kakashi. Like many of his peers, Kakashi immediately dismissed Gai as a fool.
Kakashi canÆt quite remember the words they exchanged as Gai carefully laid his flowers at the foot of the stone. He only knows that he blithely insulted Gai without really thinking about it and suddenly found himself on the ground with a ringing in his ears and a scowling Maito Gai towering over his prone form.
Kakakshi sat up, rubbed his jaw, and then proceeded to beat the everliving green out of Gai.
Their battle lasted approximately 3 hours and near the end, Kakashi found himself eying his opponent with something akin to respect even as Gai lay propped against the ruined form of a training post, lips split, one eye blackened, and one broken arm. Kakashi was in just as bad a shape as the other shinobi, but heÆd never admit it.
HeÆs not quite sure why he does so, but he limps over to Gai, favoring his broken ankle, and bends down, silently offering the man a hand up. Gai hesitates a moment, peering into KakashiÆs one exposed eye for what seemed like an eternity. He grinned suddenly, as if satisfied by what he found in KakashiÆs gaze. Gai took KakashiÆs hand.
ôI forgive you!ö Gai proclaimed in his boisterous manner, beaming and happy only as a child who has made a new friend could be.
They both limped to town, Gai loudly proclaiming that KakashiÆs Hip and Cool manner would never temper GaiÆs own Power of Youth.
Gai gained an Eternal Rival that day.
Kakashi regained what made all Konoha shinobi great: a friend.
Great snippet man. I always enjoy seeing this get updated, it's always a nice little surprise.
Also, your update gave me an idea. It's cliche, it's short, but I wanted it out of my head so I wrote it out. Figured I would share.
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The night Minato died, Kakashi finally scattered.
Sakumo made him look in the mirror of his life- a long hard look at himself.
When Obito died, it cracked. A long, deep gash that cut bloody, obscuring sight and tinging his reflection with red.
When Rin died, it finally broke, the pieces dropping the floor, still just as sharp, and bloodier than ever.
But when Minato died, taking the hellspawn beast with nine tails with him, the pieces scattered, flying all around, ripping and rending, slashing apart all that neared him.
Friend or foe.
Kakashi had lost everyone that had ever mattered to him, and really, he never did have a problem with the status quo.
Kakashi broke a long time ago, and he's been using the pieces ever since as both shield and sword, keeping all back.
Even in his rivalries with Gai, he couldn't help but examine the fact that he only let Gai in after nearly getting beaten unconscious by the man. He tried not to dwell on it, but he didn't have much practice in it.
But then one day he found himself looking at another mirror. Bright, pristine, and reflecting a loudmouth with goggles, a girl with a crush, and a boy looking only towards the future with odd hair.
But the loudmouth was orange-clad, not blue. The girl had pink hair. The boy had black hair.
But it was a mirror all the same, and for the first time in years, Kakashi saw himself. Not the fractured, disjointed breaks of his sanity, not the bloody red cracks of the past, and not the bruised little boy cleaning a sword.
Kakashi didn't really like what he saw, but he saw it nonetheless. And he swore that he would keep that mirror as it was- clean, pristine, and unbloodied.
So he took his shattered glass and jagged fragments, and he spread them around the mirror.
They got slices, they got cuts. But he was never anything but sharp, so they never were seriously harmed by his teachings. Everyone else though, they had to go through the entire dustfield of his regrets.
He vowed that their mirror would not be broken, shattered and utilized as just another weapon to be pointed.
His daydream ended the day one of them broke the mirror himself with a lightning coated fist.
The next day was the first day he brought the Fang to team training. They had been sliced before, and improved from it.
After all, they might as well get some use from that mirror.
Also, your update gave me an idea. It's cliche, it's short, but I wanted it out of my head so I wrote it out. Figured I would share.
----------------------------------------------------------------
The night Minato died, Kakashi finally scattered.
Sakumo made him look in the mirror of his life- a long hard look at himself.
When Obito died, it cracked. A long, deep gash that cut bloody, obscuring sight and tinging his reflection with red.
When Rin died, it finally broke, the pieces dropping the floor, still just as sharp, and bloodier than ever.
But when Minato died, taking the hellspawn beast with nine tails with him, the pieces scattered, flying all around, ripping and rending, slashing apart all that neared him.
Friend or foe.
Kakashi had lost everyone that had ever mattered to him, and really, he never did have a problem with the status quo.
Kakashi broke a long time ago, and he's been using the pieces ever since as both shield and sword, keeping all back.
Even in his rivalries with Gai, he couldn't help but examine the fact that he only let Gai in after nearly getting beaten unconscious by the man. He tried not to dwell on it, but he didn't have much practice in it.
But then one day he found himself looking at another mirror. Bright, pristine, and reflecting a loudmouth with goggles, a girl with a crush, and a boy looking only towards the future with odd hair.
But the loudmouth was orange-clad, not blue. The girl had pink hair. The boy had black hair.
But it was a mirror all the same, and for the first time in years, Kakashi saw himself. Not the fractured, disjointed breaks of his sanity, not the bloody red cracks of the past, and not the bruised little boy cleaning a sword.
Kakashi didn't really like what he saw, but he saw it nonetheless. And he swore that he would keep that mirror as it was- clean, pristine, and unbloodied.
So he took his shattered glass and jagged fragments, and he spread them around the mirror.
They got slices, they got cuts. But he was never anything but sharp, so they never were seriously harmed by his teachings. Everyone else though, they had to go through the entire dustfield of his regrets.
He vowed that their mirror would not be broken, shattered and utilized as just another weapon to be pointed.
His daydream ended the day one of them broke the mirror himself with a lightning coated fist.
The next day was the first day he brought the Fang to team training. They had been sliced before, and improved from it.
After all, they might as well get some use from that mirror.
Thanks for the input, guys. I always enjoy hearing from my (few) readers.
Gai always struck me as the kind of guy who never judged anyone, held no grudges, and was always there to help a friend in need.
Kind of like Naruto, actually. When you get down to it, Gai and Naruto could be kindred spirits of a sort.
The point of this fic is to make people cry, either by sheer angst, nostalgia, or sappiness. Some of these snippets were written when I was feeling especially emotional or inspired.
Shiro, awesome little snippet. You have no idea how flattering it is to see someone write something based off of what I wrote.
Gai always struck me as the kind of guy who never judged anyone, held no grudges, and was always there to help a friend in need.
Kind of like Naruto, actually. When you get down to it, Gai and Naruto could be kindred spirits of a sort.
The point of this fic is to make people cry, either by sheer angst, nostalgia, or sappiness. Some of these snippets were written when I was feeling especially emotional or inspired.
Shiro, awesome little snippet. You have no idea how flattering it is to see someone write something based off of what I wrote.
Inspiration strikes at the strangest of times. I'm not sure if this snippet is coherent or not, but I just wrote the words as they came to mind and then edited spelling and grammar.
Let me know what you think. One more blade to go, dear readers.
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9. In the Academy, the children are taught that dying for your village is the noblest and most glorious thing that any shinobi could ever hope to achieve. They are taught songs and rhymes that glorify past martyrs of Konoha, the valiant Senju, the steadfast Aburame, the wild Inuzuka, and yes, even the fierce Uchiha who loved their home and defended it unto their dying breath.
The boys longed to be as great as their heroes, to fight against unimaginable odds and somehow come out all right in the end. And even if they died in the course of battle, what was death but the chance to become gods in the shinobiÆs pantheon of deified dead? They lived and breathed the tales of the Wily Professor, their venerated Third Hokage, the Toad Sage Jiraiya, master of fuuinjutsu and as chivalrous as he was perverted, and the Fourth Hokage, the strongest shinobi of his generation and who made the ultimate sacrifice in the battle against the most heinous of all demons. Yes, being a hero was everything. And dying was even more.
The girls, well, they were short on heroes of their own ilk, but they nevertheless were inspired by the tales of tragic romance, sly and cunning female assassins, and women who could level mountains with a single blow of their fists. Who would not wish to be embroiled in a grand romance with a man worthy of their skills as shinobi and perhaps even die alongside them in battle, to be remembered as women of peerless skill, ferocious spirit, and boundless beauty? What girl would not wish to die in the arms of her lover, after avenging his death at the hands of his enemies? Who would not cherish the idea of being an idol to every little girl who ever dreamed that spilling blood was a glorious thing? Tsunade, the Slug Princess, became the pinnacle of every female shinobiÆs ambitions. No girl ever imagined that Tsunade had withstood more pain, seen more death, and spilled more tears than they could ever fathom getting to where she was.
Many children discovered far too late that the songs and stories they had been taught in the Academy were merely that: songs and stories. They did not aid you when the enemy had his hands around your throat, smiling grimly as he choked the breath from you. They did not ease the pain and bewilderment of the walking dead, disemboweled by a slicing blow of a kunai and vainly trying to stuff their insides back under their skin. They provided no comfort to the dying as their vision faded and they cried aloud for their mothers.
As Kakashi lay buried up to his shoulders in rubble, tired, defeated, the life ebbing from him in crimson droplets and waves of weariness, he fleetingly thought back to his childhood, before the death of his father, and marveled at how very much he wanted to be his father, the savior of a village, and a hero to his son. Sakumo never told his son war stories, but Kakashi had heard more than enough of them from his friends and his fatherÆs comrades. How splendid it would be, if the son could follow his fatherÆs footsteps, become a hero, and possibly perish defending the people and the village he loved.
But, as houses built of childish dreams and playing cards are wont to do, it all came crashing down when his father died in disgrace and dishonor. KakashiÆs views of heroism and death were tarnished by the suicide of his father and with each successive death that he witnessed in the War.
Kakashi buried his idealism and his dreams with ObitoÆs corpse, spat on his childhood when Rin became MIA, and he became an embattled soldier, desperate to keep himself, and perhaps what few comrades he could, from a cold grave. There was no glory in dying. There was no honor in killing. You fought for the soldier next to you and prayed that you lived to see the next day.
When his eyes began to droop for the final time, KakashiÆs last thought was that heÆd be damned if anyone sang any songs for him or told stories of his exploits. No child would die with KakashiÆs name on their lips.
Kakashi blinked, and found himself a few paces away from a merry campfire and a familiar figure that sat upon a log, idly poking the coals with a stick. He hesitated for a long moment, then walked forward, finding his own seat on a log.
ôHello, father. I have a story IÆd like to tell you. Please listen.ö
Let me know what you think. One more blade to go, dear readers.
---------------
9. In the Academy, the children are taught that dying for your village is the noblest and most glorious thing that any shinobi could ever hope to achieve. They are taught songs and rhymes that glorify past martyrs of Konoha, the valiant Senju, the steadfast Aburame, the wild Inuzuka, and yes, even the fierce Uchiha who loved their home and defended it unto their dying breath.
The boys longed to be as great as their heroes, to fight against unimaginable odds and somehow come out all right in the end. And even if they died in the course of battle, what was death but the chance to become gods in the shinobiÆs pantheon of deified dead? They lived and breathed the tales of the Wily Professor, their venerated Third Hokage, the Toad Sage Jiraiya, master of fuuinjutsu and as chivalrous as he was perverted, and the Fourth Hokage, the strongest shinobi of his generation and who made the ultimate sacrifice in the battle against the most heinous of all demons. Yes, being a hero was everything. And dying was even more.
The girls, well, they were short on heroes of their own ilk, but they nevertheless were inspired by the tales of tragic romance, sly and cunning female assassins, and women who could level mountains with a single blow of their fists. Who would not wish to be embroiled in a grand romance with a man worthy of their skills as shinobi and perhaps even die alongside them in battle, to be remembered as women of peerless skill, ferocious spirit, and boundless beauty? What girl would not wish to die in the arms of her lover, after avenging his death at the hands of his enemies? Who would not cherish the idea of being an idol to every little girl who ever dreamed that spilling blood was a glorious thing? Tsunade, the Slug Princess, became the pinnacle of every female shinobiÆs ambitions. No girl ever imagined that Tsunade had withstood more pain, seen more death, and spilled more tears than they could ever fathom getting to where she was.
Many children discovered far too late that the songs and stories they had been taught in the Academy were merely that: songs and stories. They did not aid you when the enemy had his hands around your throat, smiling grimly as he choked the breath from you. They did not ease the pain and bewilderment of the walking dead, disemboweled by a slicing blow of a kunai and vainly trying to stuff their insides back under their skin. They provided no comfort to the dying as their vision faded and they cried aloud for their mothers.
As Kakashi lay buried up to his shoulders in rubble, tired, defeated, the life ebbing from him in crimson droplets and waves of weariness, he fleetingly thought back to his childhood, before the death of his father, and marveled at how very much he wanted to be his father, the savior of a village, and a hero to his son. Sakumo never told his son war stories, but Kakashi had heard more than enough of them from his friends and his fatherÆs comrades. How splendid it would be, if the son could follow his fatherÆs footsteps, become a hero, and possibly perish defending the people and the village he loved.
But, as houses built of childish dreams and playing cards are wont to do, it all came crashing down when his father died in disgrace and dishonor. KakashiÆs views of heroism and death were tarnished by the suicide of his father and with each successive death that he witnessed in the War.
Kakashi buried his idealism and his dreams with ObitoÆs corpse, spat on his childhood when Rin became MIA, and he became an embattled soldier, desperate to keep himself, and perhaps what few comrades he could, from a cold grave. There was no glory in dying. There was no honor in killing. You fought for the soldier next to you and prayed that you lived to see the next day.
When his eyes began to droop for the final time, KakashiÆs last thought was that heÆd be damned if anyone sang any songs for him or told stories of his exploits. No child would die with KakashiÆs name on their lips.
Kakashi blinked, and found himself a few paces away from a merry campfire and a familiar figure that sat upon a log, idly poking the coals with a stick. He hesitated for a long moment, then walked forward, finding his own seat on a log.
ôHello, father. I have a story IÆd like to tell you. Please listen.ö
Zeebee: I guess she doesn't matter, per se, but I like to mention her, if only to remind people that Kakashi had a female teammate. >_>;
Doc: Thanks! I appreciate it. These shorts are really only loosely connected. I tried to keep them true to the canonical timeline and still expand on what we already know. For instance, I'm sure the majority of my (few) readers will recognize the scene in this short from right after Kakashi had expended the last of his chakra to poof away the missile that Cyborg!Pein fired at Chouji.
Doc: Thanks! I appreciate it. These shorts are really only loosely connected. I tried to keep them true to the canonical timeline and still expand on what we already know. For instance, I'm sure the majority of my (few) readers will recognize the scene in this short from right after Kakashi had expended the last of his chakra to poof away the missile that Cyborg!Pein fired at Chouji.