Open Slow To Wake

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

A full day passed from the incident, Kino was given treatment throughout the night and received a surprising amount of blood. A simple kunai wound had in fact not been so simple, having ruptured his appendix and resulted in internal hemorrhaging. In reality it was a miracle he had made it through the night, if Sota hadn't called it in he very likely would have been still in the forest amongst the carnage of the missing ninja he had killed. But what was so important that these, while admittedly amatuer, three ninja needed to visit the mine?

Kino's eyes finally began to open as the sun was well into the morning. His torso wrapped cleanly and his body stiff from the pain of it all. He looked around the room, confused on how he had wound up here in the first place. Had, had Sota made it? What happened to the third ninja? Many questions of this nature stuck in his brain as he was laid up in that bed, but one more pressing than the rest... What happened to his hands? They were still scorched and tender from the night before, though a significant amount better. He was confused but, he was also worried that he might not like the answers he got.

'Was.. Was this the deal I made.. my neck is fucking killing me.. damn it..'

 

[Inuzuka Keiyaku]

Last night hadn't been too good for Keiyaku either; after leaving the poor, broken kid with the hospital's staff, he'd had a job, racing through the village, up into Hokage Rock in time to seal himself in a bunker, where he could rampage all night without causing damage to life nor property. Getting himself back together after a full moon night was always a task, but he felt he needed to sort himself out fast. He owed it to Kino to check on the poor guy after what had happened, and hopefully to further investigate this strange rage Sota had hinted it.

Knock knock.

There was a rapping at his door and in came Keiyaku, swiftly pursued by Morutobu in all his floofy, doggy glory. The maskless man watched Kino cautiously, before finally clearing his hroat to speak.

"Hey... uh, the door was open. How... are you feeling?"

Moru was already trying to get up onto the bed.

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

Kino gave a small smile as the dog scratched at the bed and then looked up, seeing Keiyaku the smile stayed. "Been better, how's Sota? Is he alright?" It was the first thing on his mind. He had no recollection on what had happened after he was tossed in the air, for all he knew Sota had to handle the last guy alone. He hoped that it would be something he could manage, but the reality was he knew that guy was leading the group so he could've been far stronger.

The worry was clear on his face as he spoke. He genuinely had thought Sota and him were moving along in the right direction so he hoped, prayed even, that he was at least okay. He saw the worry in keiyaku as well, which was reassuring but also troubling to Kino. Was it for him, or for Sota, he'd have to find out.

 

[Inuzuka Keiyaku]

Probably against all hospital regulations, Morutobu finally succeeded in crawling up atop the bed contenting himself by laying right next to the younger boy's arm, in a not-so-subtle attempt to solicit ear scritchies. Keiyaku, meanwhile, still looking sickly and pale, and there was a sombre tension in his face. Gone was the proud smile that he gave Kino when the kid bashed him up in class.

"That's good, kid. That was a pretty gnarly shank you got last night," said Keiyaku, rubbing at one of his temples to soothe his pounding headache after last night's private episode, "Sota's... well, Sota. He's all in one piece though. You guys... were pretty remarkable to get jumped like that and see 'em off, no trouble."

Even know, Keiyaku's eyes were searching what portions of exposed skin he could see for some trace of a tattoo, some tiny piece of evidence to justify his vague suspicions. Between the first time he met Kino, and now, something was very different.

"So.... you don't remember anything else, aside from the fighting? Sota... well... he didn't go into detail but he kinda told me that you... let's say, got a little carried away."

Moru whined in the way he usually did when he felt he wasn't getting enough attention.

"Is there anything I should know? A-As your teacher, I mean."

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

Kino gave Moru some scritches to appease the winy guy. He appeared to be thinking for a minute, "Well I'm glad that Sota managed to finish the fight. I am gonna have to keep training so I don't wind up here again. Other than the obvious concussion I must've gotten from being thrown, I don't think I have any intel." He was lying, unfortunately it was second nature for him, as he had lied so many times to the orderlies over the past two years. "Oh, I got this." Kino pulled something out of his pocket, a small scroll. "I don't know what it is or why it was so important.. I don't know how I got it but I managed to.. Here I shouldn't be holding it. I don't know what it says but it's why they were there I'd imagine."

He would hold out the scroll for Keiyaku to have and continue to pet Moru. He could be honest, he could, but in this moment he felt as if he was failing his sensei's and wanted no part in whatever caused this lapse in memory. He was already feeling like hot garbage from his recovery, the last thing he needed was to feel like he let them down.

 

[Inuzuka Keiyaku]

Moru, ever the attention hog, snuggled comfortably against Kino's arm before resting his head lazily on his chest. Keiyaku studied the boy's face as he recounted what he could apparently remember, treating him like a suspect, looking for any sign of deception like he normally would in his job. His job was to find the truth and decide guilt or lack thereof based on holes in a suspect's story, or their body language and facial expressions. Keiyaku definitely did not get the impression Kino was being completely truthful, or letting everything. He didn't press him. It would only work counterintuitive to try to force the poor guy to confess, especially after what he had just been through. Still, he needed to keep a close eye on Kino if his suspicions were correct...

"Oh," said Keiyaku in mild surprise, blinking as he came out of his contemplation, only to find he was being handed a scroll.

"Oh... what's this? Where did you find it?" Keiyaku asked curiously, opening it up to see what it was all about.

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

Kino shook his head, "I'm not entirely sure to be honest.. I know it's what they stole from the mine, or what they came for at least. I don't know if it was stolen or.." he'd pause, "I don't know how I came to hold it.. I just remember their boss had it and tried to run off with it.. I.. I remember.. waking up a bit.. covered in blood.. did, did I really get that hurt?" He was confused, part of him knew it couldn't have all been his but he wanted to know from someone who saw what happened.

 

[Inuzuka Keiyaku]

Keiyaku smiled as he took the scroll, looking the thing over, but not finding anything particularly remarkable about it; it could have hidden properties but it'd need to be searched. It could also, just be a spare scroll no one had written on yet.

"Their boss tried to run off with that? That's... very odd," he said, handing the scroll back to Kino, "you should hang onto it. Maybe you'll figure out what it means, or what it is one day."

"Hurt? Well, you got stabbed pretty good. I fixed you up a little and brought you here to get it sorted out. Lucky too, we got back just before I tran-" Keiyaku cut himself off, looking a little panicked. He shook his head and tried to style it out, "...before I..trrrapped you in a sticky spot..."

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

Kino nodded along though the words weren't exactly landing in his brain. He was clearly somewhere else in thought, having stumbled through whatever it was he was thinking about. "Right.. I'll hold onto it then." He smiled warmly for a moment, "Think I'm good to go to class now? I haven't seen anyone since I woke up, but honestly I'm feeling pretty okay."

While this was true, he realized that didn't really add up given what he knew about everything. By all rights he should be resting still, or even put on bed rest. But the truth of it all was that he was feeling fine, and that all he wanted was to get back to training.

 

[Inuzuka Keiyaku]

"I reckon you'll be out of here in no time. I think the medics just want to make sure you're completely healed up," Keiyaku said reassuringly, admittedly impressed at the kid's eagerness to get back into the fray already.

"How's your training been coming along, anyway?"

The Inuzuka let out a sudden sharp growl, and Moru immediately poked his head up, practically standing to attention and letting out a low whine - the two of them were obviously having a private conversation.

"That analytical mind of yours must get pretty bored, huh?"

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

"Very." He laughed out, he had only been awake for a few moments and was already exhausted mentally. THe boredom of being stuck in a bed at thirteen years old, was not something he was handling well. "Do.. you guys need to handle something or.." Kino began to rub his neck as the throbbing ache continued to persist. He looked over to Moru and then back to Keiyaku with a quizative look.

He knew that they could talk back and forth but had only really just been exposed to it this close. It was interesting to him that their bond was close enough that Keiyaku had been able to understand and speak to him, however given the dog he met at the clan home he was starting to think this was normal to Keiyaku's clan.

 

[Inuzuka Keiyaku]

"Oh uh, sorry, yeah. Moru's getting hungry, he says," Keiyaku explained, standing up out of his chair and stretching. Moru did the same, arching his back, to which Keiyaku quickly commented, "ooohhh, big stretch."

The Inuzuka gave Kino one last look, thinking about the scroll he'd just given back to the boy, and the strange feeling he'd gotten when he touched it. He shook his head, and gave a little grumble, to which Moru leapt down from the bed and stuck to his side, almost like a police dog to his handler.

"We better head off, actually. We need to catch up on a little sleep; been up for the past 48 hours. Come see me when you get out, okay? Need to make sure you're caught up on your training after all this bedrest," he said with a little smirk. He clapped the boy playfully, albeit quite hard, on the shoulder, and headed out of the room, Moru at his side.

[Topic Left unless stopped]

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiriyomi waits until Keiyaku leaves the floor before stepping out of the shadows of the stairwell, following the chakra signature to a room where a boy was lying in bed all by himself. He appeared to be no older than 13, which granted was older than Kiri had been when he'd made the same decision it appears that this boy had. But still, he had to confirm this for himself. Making a few quick handseals before entering, he starts to record this conversation so that he may revisit it later and possibly use it to out the culprit.

Sliding the door open and stepping into the room, he lets his Active Camo drop so that Kino is able to see who is walking into his room. A feline mask placed upon his face, dressed in all black robes, with no defining features visible. Shutting the door behind him, Kiri steps up to the side of the bed, eyes scanning the boy's body. It would seem that the mark wasn't somewhere obvious, but no matter. He could feel the corrupt energy from Kino's chakra signature, so he knew that he had the right person that he was looking for. "Good afternoon. I have a few questions for you, and this process will proceed smoothly if you simply answer my questions. Let us start with something simple. What is your name?"

[Topic entered]
[Snapshot used, Active Camo dropped]

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

Kino's brow furrowed at the mans entrance, "Uh.. are you the doctor?" He was confused as the man was clearly not but maybe this is just how they looked. He hadn't ever needed actual medical treatment until now, so how would he know? "My name is Tanatsu Kino, and I was on mission.. I'm sure the files say all this right? Is this like a psych eval or what?"

Kino's gut feeling was that he was in a bad spot. His stomach churned at the idea this man might not actually be a doctor. He had no way of knowing, and that in itself was the cause for his worry. If he could prove it one way or another, at least he'd know then what he was dealing with.

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiriyomi smiled behind his mask, as the boy seemed to be forthcoming at least. A little nervous, which was understandable, given his appearance. He let out a low chuckle, stepping to the foot of the boy's bed and lifting up the chart tucked there. Perusing it for a moment, he slid it back into the holder at the foot of the bed and stared directly into Kino's eyes. "Tanatsu Kino... I take it you are a student at the Academy, yes? What exactly happened on this mission, how did you become injured?"

Kiri dragged a chair over to the foot of the bed, propped his feet up on the end of the bed, and continued to stare at the boy. He wasn't going to make this easy on him. Remembering how Asuka had treated himself and Otakemaru, teaching them the dangers of what they had done, he decided to instill a little fear in the boy first. Let him understand completely what he had done to himself, before finding out who had done such a thing. There was no way, at his age, that he fully understood the implications of what he had done. Someone must have been reckless in giving this boy a seal, and he was determined to get to the bottom of it.

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

Kino's eyes pinned, the man hadn't given him an answer. That was worse than if he had, naturally Kino's throat and mouth became dry with the panic. He swallowed his words before he looked to the man and spoke, "I was out on a recon mission, I was stabbed and then I guess there was something less vital that was hit and resulted in some internal bleeding? That's what I've heard at least. As for how it got so bad I'm not sure, it looked like a normal enough Kunai at the time, but obviously it must have been serrated or had some sort of augmentation to it."

Kino was intentional and forthcoming, who ever this man was he did not want to make him think he was leaving something out. But the reality was, Kino hadn't the slightest clue as to the exact events that lead him here. He had heard he went a little far, but as far as he knew it was that survival instinct kicking in. Maybe he knew something more in his heart, but as far as he was concerned it was just that. His injuries must have caused him to act out on pure instinct and he doesn't remember from the blood loss, that was what he was telling himself at least.

The alternative option terrified him, and the last thing he needed while still trying to prove himself was for something like that to be happening. Blacking out and killing wasn't exactly on the Shinobi pluses for getting missions after all.

[MFT]
[wc 256]

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiriyomi smirked as he watched the boy's throat bob as he swallowed, enjoying the effect he was having on him. It seemed that his presence did intimidate him, and helped with making Kino forthcoming with the information he was seeking. However, the boy appeared to be dancing around the topic that he wanted to dive into. So, he let a few ants crawl out from his pant legs and start crawling over the bed towards the boys face. Scare tactics ought to work just fine in this situation. It's not as if he were going to drain the boy of his chakra or anything. Kiri just needed to make sure that Kino shared everything with him.

"So. Was there anyone else on this mission with you? How did you get treatment so quickly? Internal bleeding is no joke, that could have killed you if you hadn't been brought in fast enough. Also, why was Keiyaku in here talking to you? Are you a student of his?

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

"Ya, another student was with me." Whoever this guy was, he smelt of bad news. The last thing Kino was going to do was give over his one and only friend, at least in his mind, to this creep. The vibe the man sitting was giving, was unsettling but there was something more Kino couldn't put his finger on. Unfortunately for him, his mind went elsewhere as ants began to crawl on him. "What the fuck" he let out as he started to slap away the ants, "what kinda hospital has ants in it?"

He was less disturbed by them and more annoyed, this tactic seemed to not land on the boy. Maybe he was used to the harsher living conditions, providing him with a lack of fear when it came to insects or rodents. "As for treatment I guess someone was called to get me out of there, it wasn't supposed to be a fight... If you're supposed to be here wouldn't you know what made me alright? It'd be your treatments after all?"

He looked to the hallway then the man, half hoping Keiyaku would come back any second or a nurse would walk in. He wasn't going to call anyone or yell, just hoped that it would happen in the way it had so many other times with perfect timing. But, this time was not like those, he needed it to happen so naturally it would not. Kino's luck might have run out for the week or even the month, either way it was clear he was stuck in this now.
[MFT]
[263]

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiri's eyes hardened as Kino started to slap at his kikai, so naturally he had a few of them try to bite at the boy and drain a bit of his chakra. Showing that they were not just common ants in the hospital, but instead a threat to be feared if he didn't stop thrashing about. He also noticed that the boy glanced to the hallway, as if hoping someone would enter the room to stop this interrogation. Luckily for Kiri, he had just the technique to prevent that from happening. Staring straight into Kino's eyes, he slowly and deliberately made the handsigns for the Black Blockade jutsu. As he finished, a black wall of chakra would grow up in a dome around them, blocking the door and extending over to the windows.

"No one is going to be able to enter this room until we finish our conversation. I think it's about time that we stop beating around the bush and get straight to what I want to know. Where is your mark? Who gave it to you? Most importantly, why did you allow this to happen? Don't you know how dangerous a cursed seal is? It will siphon your life away, and for what? A temporary boost in power? Does your life really mean so little to you that you would throw it all away like that?"

 

[Chikamatsu Nashi]

Kino's eyes widened at the realization of what was happening. He now had a flash of memories running in from that night, the reality of what he had done and what had happened to him. He almost attacked Sota, after tearing a man apart over a scroll that had nothing of use on it. "Y.. My neck, it's on my neck and I got it.. For my dragon.. I don't remember his name.. But, please just.. Leave me alone!" He was terrified, that much was clear, however there was more to this than just fear. He felt a genuine sense of danger and was reacting once again on instinct. Kino was not the one to run, he'd sooner lose than run.

He was preparing mentally for what was happening, counting in his head over and over again. Thinking of anything he could do, say, anything at all that would help change this situation. Even as calculated as Kino is, he couldn't in that moment find anything except be honest and get it over with.