Congratulations! [Private, Siu]

[Senju Shizuka]

Unsure if this was a good idea, Shizuka circled the area for a bit longer while trying to get the necessary courage to approach her target. Usually there wasn’t a lot of shyness in any of her behavior, but walking up to someone older who had already graduated the Academy and talk to them as if she knew them, well, that was slightly out of the comfort zone of the ten year old Senju. Hence, she waited a bit longer while hanging back with a stick of half-eaten dango between her fingers.

As the time went on, and the dango looked less and less appetizing, she decided to simply walk up to Hikari Siu and .. talk. Couldn’t be that hard, right? Right. So she set out to get to the older girl before the latter would leave. Dropping the remains of the sweet into a bin on her way, she drew closer to the taller girl. Hopefully the genin wouldn’t find it odd that a girl from the Academy to whom she’s spoken probably once, if not twice by accident, was interrupting her day.

“Hikari Siu?” Shizuka carefully asked, green eyes slightly widened with cautiousness and a bit of admiration. “I’m Senju Shizuka,” the bow was way to express her respect to Siu, who in Shizuka’s eyes was well on her way to become a strong kunoichi.

“If you don’t mind me stopping you here, I eh..” Losing some of her usually aloof look, the young Senju paused briefly, looking a little bit embarrassed. “I would like to congratulate you on your graduation.” With her cool evaporating bit by bit, she lightly scratched the back of her head while giving Siu a half-smile. The possibility of having bothered Siu didn’t left her mind. She really hoped that she hadn’t, because she hated obnoxious and annoying people. They were such a drag, and that’s why even the idea of being one herself was frightening to Shizuka.

“Thanks for your time,” nodding at the raven head she took a step back. “you probably have things to go back to, so I’ll let you be.” More nodding. Her dark brown locks shook with the motion of her head. She offered another smile, then got ready to disappear into the business of the street.

 

[Siu]

Re: Congratulations!

Casually strolling the crowded streets of the Cloud Village, the young Genin had her hands rested behind her head, her view slightly gazing upward, while her mind contemplated in deep thought. She demeanor and walk had been changing overtime, a large portion of it without her even realizing it. Her previous usual walking style before her extensive and rigorous shinobi training had been rather reserved, purposely aimed to draw as little attention to herself as possible, and more composed, having been wary and heavily conscious of the opinion and outlook of those around her. Yet, these days she seemed to walk with noticeably more confidence, now slowly becoming become less sensitive to the opinions and judgements of those around her as her strength and aptitude as a shinobi grew.

Today's venture took place after extensive book reading at the library. Siu initially had a mind to go home afterwards and relax, yet the angry protest of her growling stomach had obtained victory over her, leading the young girl to head in to town first in order to grab a meal.
Though her demeanor seemed casual enough, there was a lot more going on within the young Genin's mind than meets the eye. There had been a number of positive experiences accompanied with her recent promotion, yet also a number of self re-evaluations and doubts. During her time as a student, she had deemed nothing as demanding and arduous as academy training. Yet, now in comparison to her life as a Genin, that life actually seemed a lot more simpler.
Academy life for her generally consisted of studying books, taking part in various training exercises, and enduring harsh scoldings. Yet, Genin life was a lot different from that. Genin life required her to question her very morals and ideals, not just as a shinobi, but also as a human being. Siu was truly realizing that life as a shinobi was not just a profession, but a way of life that demanded every fiber of her being and commitment, and she pondered if she was qualified for it all.
A wearied sigh escaped from her lips, perhaps the after effect of mental strain, before suddenly an addressing voice was heard through the crowded streets of the village.

"“Hikari Siu?”

"Hrm?" The young girl noised curiously, as she turned around to observe the addressing voice.

“I’m Senju Shizuka,” Came a second statement came followed by a bow of respect. Siu's eyes widened somewhat, before she quickly returned a bow of her own, finding herself caught off guard by the sudden display of respect, despite being the oldest and higher ranked. As the sudden new figure continued, they looked somewhat embarrassed, though Siu couldn't quite tell why; her facial expression showing that fact, as she curiously gazed at the rather unfamiliar younger girl with slight bafflement.

"I would like to congratulate you on your graduation.” Siu blinked a few times, again caught off guard. It wasn't everyday she'd heard that. In fact, not everyone she'd previously attended the academy with were even aware she'd graduated. It was likely that once she stopped showing up to classes, many might have assumed she simply had been deemed unqualified for the program, or died during a trial of some sort. The young Genin was quite surprised to meet another youth who actually recognized her promotion, and even knew her full name. After all, it wasn't like she had been the most popular in her class, nor boasted her feats. In fact, popularity was perhaps the last association with Siu's name, as the girl routinely kept to herself.

"I--Uh, oh, well, t-thank you." The young Genin found words to eventually reply, perhaps coming off as even more awkward than the younger girl herself.

With that, the younger stranger had quickly turned around, preparing the disappear just as suddenly as they had appeared. Siu watched the occurrence for a few seconds, looking rather dumbfounded by the whole event, before her burning curiously eventually prevailed. "Er...excuse me!" She suddenly called out, "But were we possibly in the same class? I'm sorry but I..." She paused, looking down at the ground a moment, looking rather guilty. "...I can't seem to remember you."

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Re: Congratulations!

About to melt into the mix of shoppers and whoever else was out there Shizuka was pulled back by Siu’s voice. Having been so absorbed in her own awkwardness and weak attempt at coming across as confident and calm, she had barely noticed the somewhat puzzled look on the older girl’s face. Only now, with all of her attention on what the other one had to say instead of the soup of thoughts in her own head, she realized how weird all of this had to be. Especially when her brain processed the fact that Siu didn’t even remember her. Not that it was a huge surprise, for one Shizuka wasn’t a loud or outstanding student, and then there was the whole being-younger-thing. Still, the already pale Senju turned even bleaker.

“No, we eh, haven’t, I mean, I’m younger than you,” Well, this was going amazing so far, she bitterly thought to herself while inwardly cursing the dumb idea which had led to this predicament. “You’ve helped me finding a book on the village’s history once.” Offering a smile she hoped to not come across as some weirdo. It’s why she didn’t add the time when she had thought Siu to have waved at her, because that would probably sound slightly insane. If not stalkerish.

Oh god, oh no.

“So when I recognized you here.. eh and the forehead protector,” she gestured toward the item with an apologetic look. “I’ve decided to congratulate you on the achievement.” Nodding, she didn’t mention how she had been hesitating about it for too long. Didn’t even dare to think about how she had followed Siu for a little while silently discussing the best strategy at saying what she thought without sounding retarded.

“One day I hope to step into your footsteps.”

Mentally slapping herself for being so honest about her plans on becoming a genin Shizuka felt her smile falter a little. While she didn’t know Siu enough to say that she wanted to be like her, she did know that she didn’t want to remain a student forever. Hence, the comment made sense, or at least that’s what she hoped. Otherwise it would probably be wise to leave and pray to never cross Siu again, just to make sure to avoid embarrassing herself any further.

That’s why.. she tried to clarify. “I mean, as a genin.”
**

 

[Siu]

Re: Congratulations!

Digging through her memory, in a attempt to recall the mentioned book-helping event, Siu had quite a difficult time associating the younger girl's face with any memory of some sort. Sure enough, she'd remembered helping people to find books in the past, yet, as she generally spent a large amount of her time reading books in libraries anyways, she'd ended up helping quite a few others aside from the young Senju, making recollection of her face in particular all the more difficult.
As her eyes followed the younger girl's gesture, they would eventually be found gazing down at the the forehead protector lazily hung on her side. "Ah right..." The young Genin mused to herself, the logic seeming convincing enough. And then another statement followed...

“One day I hope to step into your footsteps.”

At that a moment, a rather startled expression appeared on the young Genin's face, her eyes widening a bit, revealing her sudden surprise. The older girl didn't quite know how to react to the statement, as she'd never come across anyone who actually looked to her as a role-model of any sort before. She always figured, it would be the exact opposite case. In fact, it was difficult for her to even imagine why anyone would want to step into her footsteps; even 'she' didn't want to step into her 'own' footsteps.

"As a genin" The younger girl later clarified.

There was quite a few moments of silence, as Siu began to noticeably examine the girl more thoroughly with her gaze, a somewhat solemn expression her face, communicating she was in deep thought. The busy crowds of the streets continued to pass by the two, yet Siu continued to gaze at the young girl as if she were the only entity that existed at the moment, and their surroundings were nonexistent. The solemn gaze could have easily even been interpreted as possibly judgmental, although that was not quite the case.

After a noticeable silence, the older girl finally spoke. "You should enjoy your academy days while they last." Her solemn expression remained after the words, and her tone was rather neutral, making it difficult to determine whether her words were a reproof of some sort, or simply a statement.
"The life of a shinobi is not an easy path to walk, despite the glamour so many people associate with it." The older girl paused, continuing to gaze at the youth as the words of her statement settled. "In fact..." She quietly began to continue, making careful examination of the younger girl's facial expression during the midst of her statements. "..Nevermind." She abruptly finished, looking downward somewhat.

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Re: Congratulations!

Clenching her fists a bit tighter, she tilted her head further toward the ground to hide her face a bit better. The ability to curl inward so easily had always helped her to pass time in noisy places she didn’t like to be in, but right now it was simply preventing her from embarrassing herself any further. Siu’s look had said enough; she wasn’t pleased with what she had heard and probably found Shizuka pretty creepy as well. None of this was turning out the way she would have liked it to. Maybe that was the problem with spontaneous actions, they frequently didn’t have the desired effect.

“Mhmm,” she hummed to herself.

The burning sensation in her ears intensified - the young Senju nodded. Only daring to speak up when her superior took a break. From the way she had stopped, it appeared that she didn’t think that wasting her time any longer here was a good idea. It slightly stung the younger girl’s pride.

“I didn’t mean to sound disrespectful, Siu-san,” carefully looking up again, she tried to look confident without coming across as rude. Mostly, she ended up like a confused, slightly scared kitten with a somewhat hurt look across her face. “being a shinobi is not something I think to be easy, it’s not like I see you as some sort of celebrity, I eh-” she looked for the right words, feeling herself getting lost in her thoughts. It was hard to convey what she felt like, and the last thing she wanted to do was make Siu mad. Unfortunately she had stumbled too far now to be able to go back. Hence, she continued with an apologetic look.

“The work you’ve done has paid off, and I think that it deserves recognition. Hopefully one day so will mine.” Concluding awkwardly she straightened up a little. A bit of the paleness returned - she felt herself slowly relax, thinking that she hadn’t done too badly, Shizuka gathered herself bit by bit to face whatever Siu would say. A scolding she could take, she thought, she had to be able to if she wanted to become a genin - working together, listening to your superiors, learning from mistakes made; improving wasn’t always easy, but you could do it if you were up for it.
**

 

[Siu]

The Genin's eyes lifted up from the ground, as the younger female began to finally speak. A wave of guilt came across her, as she took notice of the the younger academy student's facial expression, in response to her statements. Her words had unfortunately come off more strongly than she had realized.
As the younger girl pleaded her case, the Genin's eyes seemed to continue their careful observation of her, all while the busy crowd of the streets continued to disinterestedly pass the two youths by, seemingly too occupied with their own individual concerns to care what was going on.

"The work you’ve done has paid off, and I think that it deserves recognition. Hopefully one day so will mine.”

Siu folded her arms, and slightly tilted her head curiously to the side. Such an expression, may have made the young Genin appear as if she were quite confused by the statement, yet in fact it had been quite the opposite. The young shinobi had actually realized more about the younger girl and her outlook from her words. However, while it had become more clear just how strong of a desire the younger girl before her had in becoming an official kunoichi just as she had, Siu was now more curious on the aspects of 'why'.

There was a silence after the young academy student finished all her words. The once solemn expression on Siu's face now slightly shifted into one of guilt. The older girl had realized that her inner conflicts with shinobi-hood had managed to outwardly manifest themselves; unfortunately upon the young stranger.
If the young academy student had approached any other average Genin, the outcome would have very likely been quite positive in comparison to this one. Any other youth would have most likely accepted the praise happily, and either left the young girl to be while they themselves departed on their own merry way with a greatly enhanced ego, or began spouting some overzealous and grandiose speech about how with enough hard work and dedication, she too would also eventually reach their status, making sure to include details of their own individual struggles and difficulties during their own process in order to further boast themselves.
Yet, this was Siu she had approached, whether fortunately or unfortunately. Siu was a very different case, in that she never willingly wanted to become a shinobi to begin with. In fact, constantly she felt herself pondering whether she actually despised the art or not.

The older Genin's eyes left the girl for a time, as she stared out into the continuing street passed the aspiring youth in front of of her, her thoughts seemingly occupied. Suddenly, a smile shifted upon the young girl's face, as she turned her attention back to the academy student. The smile looked more like something of reassurance for the younger female, rather than actual happiness. "I'm sorry." She suddenly spoke, her light-hearted tone seeming to return.
With that, the Genin again turned her attention away from the younger girl, back onto the street ahead of her. Given her behavior, it appeared as if the older girl were completely done with the interaction all together, and now in the process of continuing her previously interrupted journey. However, once she came parallel to the younger girl's side, her height over her now making itself even more apparent, the young Genin suddenly paused, turning her head to her side in order to again look at the youth with light-hearted smile. "Are you hungry?"

 

[Senju Shizuka]

The arm folding didn’t look like anything bright and happy to Shizuka, it reminded her of mom getting slightly upset when she was late for dinner or got a less than average grade on some class at the Academy. But, staying true to herself, the little Senju didn’t budge. Standing as straight as she could while nervousness uncoiled itself in her stomach she wondered if Siu still saw her words as an offense. The silence dragged on. By now she really felt lost and was about to say goodbye when the Genin spoke up.

“No need to apologize,” She made another bow, feeling like it was time to go. “I was the one out of line.” Even if she didn’t really know why she had been, she still said it to be polite and show her will to admit her wrong. Older people were frequently a bit mysterious. Not everything they did and said always made sense to Shizuka. Right now the situation was similar to a riddle, well, aside from the possibility that her approach and enthusiasm had come over as if she saw the whole Shinobi life like some amusement attraction. Which she didn’t.. She had tried to make that clear. Unfortunately Siu hadn’t caught on that, or maybe didn’t really want to. There was nothing Shizuka could do about that.

With her hands loosely in her pockets she waited for Siu to move on before doing the same. Then something unexpected happened. Instead of walking away the Genin actually stopped next to her and appeared to be inviting her to get something to eat. As her young brain processed the implication her jade colored eyes widened in surprise and excitement. Perhaps Siu wasn’t mad at her after all!

“A little bit, I guess.” Too polite to say that she was hungry, Shizuka didn’t want to reject the invitation either. When a Genin was willing to hang out with you there really was no way to reject it, not unless you were dumb. And Shizuka had always, silently, found herself above the average mass.

“But only if you have the time.” Nodding, she looked away to hide the bit of fear at Siu actually walking away now that there was a chance they could hang around and talk a bit more. Acting tough, appearing calm, those were all things a kunoichi had to master. This here was just practice, but it was a start. One day she would need to carry the mask for real, and then it would have to be flawless.

Turning back to face the older girl, she smiled. “I wouldn’t want to be a burden.”
**

 

[Siu]

Siu's expression remained relatively unphased as the younger girl began to provide her answer. However, at the final statement, her light-hearted smile seemed to shift into a somewhat baffled look. "Burden...?" The older girl repeated back. "Why would you be a burden?" She continued, seemingly sincerely perplexed by the statement.

"I was just on my way to get something to eat. But it's a lot more enjoyable to eat with others sometimes, don't you think?" Seeming to muse on her own words, the Genin suddenly took another step forward in the midst of her statement, turning on her heels at the same time in order to begin a backwards walk further towards her destination, still facing the younger girl in the process.

"We'll go to my favorite restaurant..." The older girl continued, the pace of her backwards walk gradually increasing, "....Try to keep up!" She finished, a playful smile widely apparent upon her face and in her tone, before she suddenly turned around and could be witnessed swiftly darting down the busy and crowded streets.

The route would not be easy to follow, as the older girl could be observed ducking and weaving through heavy crowds, her smaller visage difficult to keep sight of through the multitude of larger sized adults. Narrowly avoiding a number of human collisions, generating quite a few onlookers, startling quite a few residents, and invoking a number of startled shouts and gasp, the young shinobi could be observed rather enjoying the chaotic run. Glancing back a few times, in order to observe the younger girl's progress, a few entertained giggles could be heard every now and then.

Eventually, after about five minutes or so of the chaotic sport, Siu's shoes suddenly pressed firmly into the ground as she brought her speeding run to a sudden stop. Sliding across the ground a few feet due to the force of her sudden stop, she could be observed turning around in the midst of her slide, in order to face the direction of younger girl again, checking her progress.
Outside of an open establishment could be seen various fish tanks and clam baskets, making it was obvious where the young Genin's venture had taken the both of them; to a seafood restaurant. "I'll bet you're more than just a little hungry now!" She jested, her light-hearted smile reappearing upon her face, before she turned around again and began making her way towards one of the outside wooden tables of the establishment.

 

[Senju Shizuka]

“Because. ..” She hesitated a little, but forced herself to continue while slightly averting her eyes. “you might have been doing things and I’m distracting you from them?” Unsure if being honest was a good thing or not, she then gave Siu a look of complete confusion. Perhaps this hadn’t been an actual question and it would have been better to have kept quiet. Well, it was too late for that now. Adding a shrug just in case she came across as if she cared too much, Shizuka felt the smile blooming on her lips when Siu softened the circumstances and cleared up the connection between them.

“Hmm, it often is, yes.” Too honest, again.

Luckily she didn’t get the time to worry about being an awful kunoichi when it came down to conversation for long. Unlike various others of the same rank Shizuka had met so far, Siu chose to play a game instead of acting mostly serious. The break between her somewhat scary quiet aura, aloof behavior, and the sudden enthusiasm displayed through the means of an offered game of tag baffled Shizuka for a moment. But the moment her brain had processed the challenge her feet moved as her body switched gears. Running around town was something she was used to. Right now she was on familiar ground, but Siu was god damn fast.

Doing everything in her power to keep up with the Genin Shizuka ended up crashing into a large lady, before stumbling over a crate of possibly raddish, or maybe some sort of beets, and moving on before any of the adults present could get their hands on her. At times it seemed as if Siu was testing her, making sharp turns, diving between things, and making the route unnecessary complicated. Even so, there was not even a split of a second where Shizuka had hesitated about continuing this chase. She would give everything she had to make it to the restaurant even if doing so was quite the hassle.

By the time she noticed Siu coming to a stop she was sweating heavily. At least the fresh breeze made it bearable, she found herself thinking while slowing down to a jog. Clearly her new friend didn’t plan to take off any time soon - she was sitting down behind a wooden table - so there was no need to push herself any further.

“More like..” She drew a long breath. “dying, thanks to you.”

The younger girl flopped down on the bench opposite from Siu, and playfully placed her face on the cold wood. It felt soothing against her burning cheek. After a couple of moment her breathing had turned normal and she straightened up again. “That wasn’t quite..necessary, was it?”

Eyeing Siu she grinned a bit, but soon forced her lips into a little pout. All of this energy lost because of a game, one that- Her mind was interrupted by one of the tanks being opened. A huge, slimy octopus was pulled out with the help of a stick. Water dripped from the tentacles and Shizuka’s frowny face showed her disapproval of that being a dish. For a brief moment she couldn’t even think, her eyes firmly set on the curling creature. To imagine that people ate it just like that, while it was still wiggling and capable of getting stuck in your throat.. She shivered.

“I hope they have some tempura.. I really like the vegetables.” Nodding, her eyes turned to Siu, wondering what she would get.

 

[Siu]

The chosen establishment was al fresco styled, consisting of a number of wooden benches, chairs, and tables for residents to dine ate, predominantly sheltered under a large wooden canopy serving as protection from various weather conditions. Aside from it's quite large extension, the establishment seemed common and humble enough. However, a viewing of the various wall-menu prices would reveal otherwise, The prices were unusually expensive for a seafood restaurant, especially for a country located so near the sea, most likely meaning that the quality of the food there was quite high in comparison to other restaurants.

While the chaotic run had caused the more experienced Genin to breath slightly more strongly than usual, beyond that, she appeared predominately unphased, most likely being quite well accustomed to such exercises. Another entertained giggle could be heard escaping from Siu's lips, as the younger Senju finally approached and flopped on the bench. Placing an elbow on the table, Siu rested her chin atop her palm, observing as the academy student struggled to catch her breath, a highly amused expression on her face.

“That wasn’t quite..necessary, was it?”

The older girls amusement seemed to increase with the statement, her smile enlarging somewhat. "Not necessary," Siu answered with a nonchalant tone, "But fun."

Following the academy student's eyes, Siu turned around to also observe the live octopus being pulled from out of the tank. Her own reaction however, would be very different in comparison to the younger girl's. "Waaah!" The young girl noised excitedly, her eyes following the creature and it's carrier as the they walked through the establishment. "Looks so delicious!"
Turning back towards the younger girl, her brightened eyes communicated her enthusiasm for the meal ahead. "They have lots of stuff here!" She continued, "Tempera included!" "Order to your hearts content--My treat!"
Around then, another female would appear to take their orders. She was a rather plump lady, appearing somewhere in her thirty's, with a water soaked apron stained with remnants of various sea creatures and sauces.

"Well, there's a pretty little face I haven't seen in a while." The women greeted.

"Hii Miss-Izu! it's very nice to see you again!" The young Genin greeted back politely, "I've been really busy with missions and training lately!"

"Ahh, I see!" The older woman responded with a nod, "Your parents must be very proud of you!"

Looking downward after the statement, Siu rubbed her arm somewhat uncomfortably, "I-I guess." She replied, her tone losing it's confidence for the moment.

"So what will it be?" The woman inquired, the spunk of her personality revealing itself in her voice. "Your favorite, then?"

"You know it!" Siu swiftly responded as she looked back up at the woman, her enthusiastic demeanor seeming to return in an instant.

Taking a few moments to write down the request on her notepad with a pencil, the woman eventually looked back up to finally give attention towards the young academy student. "Haven't seen you around here before." She spoke as she curiously eyed the unfamiliar youth with a slight head tilt. "Whose this, a little cousin of yours?" Came an inquiry towards Siu, as the woman's eyes remained fixated upon the young Senju.

Slowly leaning forward, closer towards the young academy student, the older woman's expression softened. "And what'll you be havin, little lady?" She inquired with an amused smile, her tone having drastically softened in comparison to the way she had spoken with the older Genin; likened to the way parents spoke to fragile and sensitive little children.

 

[Senju Shizuka]

The place wasn’t unlike something she had been with her parents at, but nothing she had gone to on her own. Whenever Shizuka got food after classes or before training she always ended up with dango, ramen or ice-cream. Perhaps an apple here and there. Nothing like this, though. While the establishment wasn’t anything too fancy, it had an aura of adultness over it. Maybe that aura was in the form of too many slimy sea creatures, she soon realized with a faltering smile.

That octopus was definitely nothing she could ever consider delicious. It didn’t even come in the edible area if you asked her.

Apparently there was something wrong with Siu. At least she confirmed there being tempura. So, Shizuka would survive this little lunch break without having to puke her guts out behind the porch.

“Thanks,” she had wanted to say that it wasn’t necessary, there was some yen in her little wallet, so she could use that to pay for her snack, but she was cut off by a tall woman who was there to take their order. From the conversation quickly flowing, Shizuka knew that these two were quite familiar with one another.

Staying silent until it was her turn she’s had the time to wonder what this ‘favorite’ of Siu would be. Clearly their tastes didn’t match, so it might be pretty much anything. Perhaps even an octopus just like that. The idea had goosebumps forming all over her body, she squirmed in place.

“Good afternoon,” Shizuka spoke, eyes following the woman’s gaze but that one remained on her. She shook her head ‘no’, replying in case Siu wouldn’t. Unsure what to call herself in relation to the Genin she simply decided not to reply to that. Perhaps the woman took that as her being shy, because next thing she knew the lady’s tone had switched entirely.

“Tempura with vegetables and some with shrimps, and some seaweed salad, please.” Puffing out her chest a bit while giving her order, she straightened her back wanting to appear a bit taller. Even without the headband she was a little soldier, and didn’t want to be babied.

On the edge because of the dramatically soft approach, she found herself doing something rather silly. With no logical connection to the food at all she mentally slapped herself for saying the following: “Soon I’ll be a Genin just like Siu-san.”

**

 

[Siu]

As her table guest made her order, Siu simply rested her chin into her palm again, observing the two as they made their exchange. The Genin had not immediately replied to the question, seeming to delay her reply for whatever reason. A visible smirk could be witnessed upon her lips, as she observed the younger girl provide her silent response. "Not a little cousin." Siu coolly replied, "Just a friend."

The academy student's shifted gesture of puffing out her chest and straightening her back in order to appear taller, while perhaps intended for the purpose of making her appear more mature and 'adult-like', seemed to actually have quite the opposite effect. The older woman seemed to find the gesture completely adorable, the smile on her face enlarging as she witnessed the act. The youth's food order, however, would find itself met with an raised eyebrow.
"Is that all?" The older woman spoke, seeming rather surprised. Leaning away from the younger girl, in order to stand back up straight, the woman placed a fist on her hip. "That's a snack, hun, not a meal. It's no wonder you're all skin and bones." She spoke with a rather blunt, motherly-toned like manner. "You should really eat more.."

Raising her notepad and pencil, in preparation to record the new list of orders, the woman abruptly paused to look back up at the youth as she spoke her seemingly spontaneous statement.

“Soon I’ll be a Genin just like Siu-san.”

There was a silence after the statement, as both of the older females gazed at the young girl. While the woman appeared rather surprised, Siu's face held quite an interesting expression; one which could best be described as what seemed to be an expression similar to that of parental-like concern.

"Ohhh!" The older woman audibly gasped, eventually breaking the silence. "A kunoichi as well, huh? Well you little thing, I never would've guessed! You're so adorable!" She excitedly exclaimed, before reaching out a hand in order to pat the young academy student on the head.
Orders taken, the woman now prepared to make her departure. "I'll have both your orders out soon!" She informed them. And off she disappeared..

Siu had continued to remain silent for quite some time after the statement, continually gazing at the youth with her chin still rested in her palm. Perhaps the academy student might have even began to question whether the Genin was thinking that something was gravely wrong with her at this point. It was the kind of look similar to the one teachers gave students when they provided an answer which revealed themselves to be the kind of children which required 'extra attention' in comparison to the rest of the class. Siu genuinely appeared to be quite concerned for the young girl's well-being.
After this long session of silent gazing finally came to a completion, the young Genin would eventually open her mouth in order to finally speak something. "Shizuka, wasn't it?" She began, a tone similar to one who might interview someone for a job. "What is your purpose for becoming a shinobi?"

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Calling Shizuka a friend was quite generous of Siu, not that you would hear the little Senju complain about it. What she did, however, mind was the approach the woman had when it came to her. “I eat a lot, I’m just still growing,” she pointed out, not wanting to be call skinny, because she wasn’t. She was muscular and quite lithe, basically what a ninja had to be. The older woman just didn’t understood, she thought slightly grumpily, but tried not to show her emotions. In the end getting her right wouldn’t be worth the commotion. As long as nobody tried to stuff with food she didn’t like Shizuka could take the little side dish of grown-ups’ ignorance. Or was it arrogance? Sometimes she really couldn’t tell those two apart.

‘I am not adorable’, she wanted to say. The words were on the tip of her tongue, but she reminded herself of the hassle that would come with it. Either the woman would turn out to be a stubborn one and refuse to accept the reality, or.. she might get upset, and Shizuka didn’t want that because this appeared to be Siu’s little spot to go to for fresh seafood. So, with green eyes burning brightly, she bit her tongue, managed to smile weakly, and then turned to meet Siu’s gaze after the woman had left.

After a couple of seconds of sitting in silent, she wished that she had argued with the waitress instead. This odd look that the older girl was giving her made her feel uncomfortable. Unsure if it was worry, criticism, pity, or exasperation that she was met with, she found it hard to look straight back at Siu.

Briefly busying her with one of the cards she slowly put it down when the Genin decided to speak. It was a bit unexpected, both the talking and the question. Somehow Shizuka had figured that the silence would continue until the food would be brought, but that didn’t appear to be the case.

Oh. ..oh. She had forgotten her name.. Well - she blushed, looking down at the table in mild discomfort and disappointment - they didn’t know each other, and Siu hadn’t remembered her. It wasn’t too bad, it was.. only natural. There was nothing to grow upset about.

In fact, it was better to gather her thoughts and think about the real question posed to her. So, after nodding her response to being, indeed, Shizuka, she slowly chewed on the much more complicated topic. Purpose.

“Everyone in my family is a part of the forces,” she slowly started out. Being careful not to make it sound as if she had been forced into joining the Academy, because she hadn’t been, she thought about what her own thoughts were on the matter. “so.. it.. eh it came natural.” That was true as well. Nothing else had been discussed or expected, but Shizuka hadn’t thought about any other path either. Things were just the way they were, and being a kunoichi wasn’t half bad.

“I’m not sure about the purpose but..” Hmm, this would sound a bit cheesy, and she looked to the side in order to look more indifferent toward the matter than she actually was. “if I can do something others can’t, then why not do it, right? It’s like.. if you saw an old lady who couldn’t carry a heavy bag, then you would help her, right? Even if it’s a bit of a drag. Then.. the village is a bit like an old lady, many the whole country is? Some people can’t control chakra or don’t even have it. So hmm the ones that do, like me and you, we can carry their bags while they do different things for us.”

Rambling on, she hadn’t even noticed that their food was there. Happily accepting it she wanted to hide behind her dishes in case Siu would find her reply hilariously bad. Honestly, she hadn’t deeply thought about the matter before, and forming a decent reply that was honest at the same time was quite hard. She blinked while staring at her dish as if one of the tempura pieces would be able to help her out. None of them moved or spoke, they really were only good for chewing on. A second later, that’s what she did.

“Enjoy!” half averted eyes stole a glance. The shrimp tasted awesome. She was really glad with her food, suddenly realizing that she was quite hungry. Siu’s food.. well, she tried not to pay too much attention to it.

“What about you, Siu-san?”


**

 

[Siu]

Siu's gaze did not break as the younger academy student provided her answer. She listened with a rather attentive expression on her face as the younger girl spoke. When her explanation took a suddenly unexpected turn towards old ladys and bags, however, Siu rose a curious eyebrow in response, perhaps attempting to mentally unscramble the younger girl's rambling logic. After the academy student had finished her explanation, Siu's eyes narrowed. It was the kind of eye narrowing people did when they were in deep thought trying to solve a problem.

After enough contemplative silence, a faint and brief exhale could suddenly be heard escaping from Siu's lips just as the academy student began eating her meal. Another faint exhale followed, more audible this time, followed by another, and another, each gradually increasing in volume. If Shizuka looked up, she'd realize it was the sound of growing laughter. Soon enough, Siu could be witnessed laughing in an almost hysterical manner. This bout of rather audible laughter continued for quite a time. Siu became so engrossed in this laughter, that small tears even began forming in her eyes.
As he eventually calmed down, and the intensity of her laughter gradually decreased, she had to take a few strong inhales in order to regain her breath and composure.

Wiping a tear with her finger, the same hand could suddenly be seen travelling towards Siu's pocket. After fishing around for a few moments, the young Genin eventually pulled out what appeared to be a tiny notebook with a pen attached to it. Opening the notebook, she licked her index finger, in order to more fluently flip through the pages, eventually stopping on one blank page in particular. She then removed the pen from it's holder, and began to write inside it; it was the contents of Shizuka's answer.

"Helping old ladys carry heavy bags, huh?" The Genin reiterated back, a clearly amused smirk still upon her face. Finishing the the task, she placed the pen back into it's holder, and the tiny notebook back into her pocket. "Well, that's definitely the first time i've heard that one."

Two hands could then be seen moving to the side of her waist. After a few moments of what appeared to be the untying of something, another object would eventually be held up for the young Senju to see; Siu's Genin headband. The piece of metal and cloth slightly dangled in the air for a few moments, as she held it up for clear display. "Do you see this thing?" Siu began. Suddenly, an audible 'thud' could be heard on top of the table, as the older girl quickly reached over to somewhat slam the object next to the academy student's dish. "I hate it.." She solemnly finished, moving her hand back to leave the object on the table in front of the younger girl. The gesture seemed almost as if Siu was giving her the thing. Despite the solemn tone of her statements, a cheery smile oddly still remained upon the Genin's face. Her facial expression and behavior, seemed almost completely contradictive to her tone.

"You carry bags willingly," Siu continued again, breaking her chopsticks. "I'm forced to carry them like a slave."

With that Siu's chopsticks reached out for the delicious meal in front of her; Sesame squid and live octopus, the latter being alive and squirming in all it's glory. As she brought one of the squirming delicacies to her mouth, a clearly pleased smile could be witnessed upon her face as she chewed upon it's contents. "Mmm.." The young Genin noised, leaning her head back in delight. "Delicious.."
Shortly after, her chopsticks could then be seen travelling across the table, in order to reach for a new target; one of Shizuka's tempera. "Wow!" Siu exclaimed, upon chewing it's contents."This is also really good!" Returning her chopsticks back to her own dish, she picked up another one of the moving delicacies. It would be then, that Shizuka would witness a a wonderful sight in front of her. "Try this!" The older girl spoke with a large and enthusiastic smile, as she held her chopsticks out in front of the young Senju; the octopus tentacle squirming in between the sticks in all it's glory. "They're my favorite!"

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Unsure if she was to feel offended by the laughter coming from her elder, Shizuka narrowed her eyes a fraction and dug into the food in front of her to rein in any potentially dangerous feelings. She hadn’t meant the things she had said to be funny, she had simply lacked a good comparison so her mind had constructed one of her own. Glaring a little at the notebook pulled from Siu’s pocket, as if it was the cause of her embarrassment, she stubbornly chewed on -the rather delicious- tempura while silently cursing herself for her silly imagination.

Lost in her sulking and food, she only looked up when Siu’s voice made it clear that she had to. The time seemed to stop when the headband was brought before her. The pride of every Genin, or so Shizuka thought, now dangled in front of her nose before being carelessly dropped onto the wooden surface of the table.

‘Excuse me?’ She had wanted to say, figuring that she had misunderstood Siu, but the look on the older girl’s face matched the words that’s been said, so Shizuka kept quiet. Surprise and confusion was written all over her face as she blinked, trying her best to process the words she was hearing. Something akin to worry stirred in the pit of her stomach. She no longer tasted the tempura. All of her attention was now concentrated on the band with its shiny piece of metal in the middle. Carefully reaching out to touch it she jerked into an unnatural stillness when Siu spoke again. A part of her had expected to be told not to touch it, but that wasn’t the case. Despite of that she didn’t, pulling her hand back and letting it lifelessly rest in her lap.

Like a slave?
Could it be?

Instead of being proud of her achievements she felt enslaved by them? Forced to perform against her will because.. because.. why? Shizuka couldn’t grasp why someone, anyone, with their potential would want to do anything else. Not that everything about what they were destined to become was beautiful, it was just.. natural. They were the top, the predators.

“I don’t understand,” she mumbled, paying no attention to how Siu stole some of her food. Shizuka didn’t mind sharing, as long as nobody tried to put anything back after taking a bite from it. The last thing she could handle was someone’s drool on her plate.

“N-no,” she dodged the stick, leaning back, away from the slimy goodness. “thank you,” making sure that Siu knew she was declining the curling tentacle, or whatever that was (she didn’t really dare to look at it up close), Shizuka then continued to chew on Siu’s confession.

“How can you hate it if it’s.. the proof of your skills?” Unsure if she had worded it right, the small Senju continued to look for better words while carefully keeping her distance from any chopstick-full-of-slimy-thing attacks. Because honestly, Siu could keep all of that to herself.

 

[Siu]

Siu's eyes widened with surprise as the young Senju could be witnessed quite unmistakably declining, what she assumed to be, an extremely delicious experience. She stared at the younger girl with a blatant look of confusion written upon her face, while still holding the chopsticks and squirming goodness between them in the air. "Oh...okey.." The kunoichi mumbled, seeming almost heartbroken from the girl's decline, as if she herself had been directly rejected, and not the actual food. The chopsticks returned back to her side of the table, as Siu disheartedly ate the rejected offer herself instead, looking back downward at her plate in disappointment.

Soon afterwords, the young Senju would then voice her confused inquiry; “How can you hate it if it’s.. the proof of your skills?”

Siu looked back up from her plate, her wounded expression now shifted into one of deep thought, as if she'd immediately put the previous injury aside upon hearing the statement. The young academy student would receive another silent, contemplative gaze from her, as was Siu's habit. "Hmm.." The Genin mused, with her chopstick still in her mouth. Perhaps she may have appeared deeply contemplative upon the actual question itself, however, that wasn't quite the case. Siu very well knew the reason behind own her words. However, what she was contemplating on, was a way to answer the younger academy student without coming off too strongly, and possibly damaging the younger girl's feelings.

"Do you have any good talents?" The Genin finally settled to inquire, removing her chopsticks from her mouth, "I mean aside from being a shinobi." She clarified, resting her cheek in her palm while holding up another squirming tentacle in front of her face with her utensils, in a bored looking fashion; quite literally, 'playing with her food'.
"Maybe drawing, writing, cooking, building." She continued, giving attention back to the inquisitive Senju. "Surely, you are skilled in something more than just shinobi arts. Yet, do you even know everything you're skilled at? Very likely not. And why? Because you haven't tried them all. Any yet..why do you not?" She paused, allowing time for her words to settle, as she more deeply gazed into the academy student's eyes. "Is it because you can't or....perhaps you don't care?" She continued, again giving the young Senju some time to more deeply ponder upon her words.

"Yet, what if, say for example, one day someone suddenly recognized your wonderful talent for drawing after your completion of an academy assignment, and said to you, 'Shizuka, you have a rare and precious gift for art. I believe you have the potential to become a greatly renowned artist.' Yet, you say, 'No, sir. Thank you very much. I am greatly honored to hear that, but i'd much rather become a shinobi than a artist.' Yet, he replies, 'No Shizuka, you 'must' become an artist. It is the path laid out for you. It is your fate. In fact, I am enrolling you in the art academy right now, so that you can begin honing your precious talents immediately. Abandon all previous hopes and dreams as a shinobi, from henceforth you shall now become an artist.'"

Siu's bored expression became gradually more serious the closer her words came to reaching the conclusion of her statement. "How would you feel?" She finished.

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Thinking deeply she shook her head. It wasn’t as if she thought being a future kunoichi was a real talent, it was.. it was just how it was. Drawing was a talent, but she didn’t really have it to the extent she wished that she had, she just liked to doing it whenever she could. Making little drawings for class or maps during trips, those type of things went well with her studies. They sometimes even gained her some bonus points. Sensing herself getting sidetracked, she blinked violently before focusing her gaze on Siu, just in time to shake her head a second time. No, she didn’t know if she had any hidden talents. There were so many things in the world she hadn’t tried yet, perhaps never would. That last part felt scary, she tried to ignore it.

Of course that didn’t work out, not with the direction the conversation was heading into. All of the points Shizuka might have hid in the back of her mind to deal with on another occasion were thrown at her by Siu. Admittingly the Genin had managed to do it in a fairly gentle way.

“I..” she started out, but didn’t know what to say. Her life would be so much different from what it was now, though she wouldn’t have picked it. This had her wondering if she had picked the road she was taking right now. “That’s..”

Was that what had happened to Siu?
Did it make her a slave of the Academy? Of the shinobi world?

The idea was crushing.

“Were you..” the stinging sensation of future tears crept through her nose and settled at the edges of her eyes. She tried to hold back the conflicting feelings, but couldn’t. The idea of being forced, and the fact that she had never thought about it this way, hurt her. She blinked, but it was a little bit too late for that. Some tears fell.

“were you supposed to be an artist?”

She wanted to know with a small voice as the back of her hand rubbed away some of the moisture running down her right cheek.

**
Words: 357
MFT

 

[Siu]

"Not an artist." Siu pithily replied, tilting her head to side at the suddenly unexpected sight of tears revealing themselves from the academy student, seemingly baffled by the younger girl's reaction. "A book writer."

Continuing her rather baffled gaze for a few moments, the Genin continued. "Why are you crying? It's 'my' problem, not yours. My life is my life, and your life is yours. Academy life is already difficult enough, don't make it anymore difficult than it needs to be, burdening yourself with the worry of my own difficulties." Her tone was rather stern as she spoke. She didn't like the idea of her problems becoming a burden upon someone else, especially not a young academy student with aspiring dreams.

Finishing up the remainder of her dish, Siu reached across the table again, in order to retrieve her headband, holding it up again for the younger girl to observe. "This thing...i'm still trying to figure out whether it's a blessing, or a curse. In this village, it feels as if you have the liberty of free choice, yet if you take a closer look past the outer curtain, you'll realize it's the greatest illusion." The youth solemnly continued, before tying the headband back to her side.
Reaching into her back pocket, the older kunoichi pulled out her wallet. After fingering through a few yen bills, she placed her desired amount upon the middle of the table. The amount definitely added up to more than the actual meal price, yet the youth didn't seem to care. Standing up, she placed the wallet back into her pocket, before returning her attention back to the young Senju.

"If you desire to know more about the truth about our country, then I recommend you to read up upon the 'Chakra Potential Screening Service' in the library sometime." Siu informed, as she prepared her leave. "I believe you will become a great kunoichi one day. It was a pleasure meeting you. Have a wonderful day, Shizuka." She finished with a warm smile, before performing a polite bow, and taking her leave.

And yes, she'd left the squid completely uneaten upon the table.

[Thread Exited]

 

[Senju Shizuka]

Wiping some of the tears off her face with the back of her arm she felt a bit ashamed for feeling the way she did. This suffocating helplessness when thinking about the idea of having no choice in how to live your own life really got to her. Shizuka gritted her teeth. It surprised her to see that Siu didn’t know why she was sad. One could feel for another, right? More importantly, one could place themselves into others’ shoes - it was effective if not always really comfortable.

‘Academy life is fine’, she had wanted to say but knew her voice would have cracked. That’s why there was only silence and shaky soundless sobs. She got rid of more tears. Jade green eyes glittered from the moisture while trying to follow the swinging forehead protector when the older girl explained the illusion of freedom. A silent cough helped Shizuka to gather herself together, at least a little bit. She stared, unsure how to feel any longer she barely reacted when Siu got up.

“You too, Siu-san.” her lips formed the words, she found herself adding a couple of more while mentally noting down the law of sorts that’s been mentioned.

“Take care.” The words were so genuine but sounded so empty. One might even think them to be mocking, but Shizuka’s expression wouldn’t have matched that. She looked really sad, confused, and slightly numb. Frozen by the way this Genin walked a path forced upon her. Somehow she still handled it gracefully, if not happily.

After staring at the plates for a moment longer, she slid from the bench and headed to the library. It was time to look up what this ‘Chakra Potential Screening Service’ was all about.


**
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