Private Start A Fire [Kano]

[Nanami]

Nanami should have paused, maybe gone back to her room and taken a nap, rested up, enjoyed her moment of triumph in quiet reflection, but she didn't she was far too excited.

She finally did it, Nanami Hideaki, Genin of the proud Kumogakure tradition. Every night she spent in training, fists flying, quiet meditation, attaining her chakra, learning techniques. She did it all for this day, and the days to come. She was Genin.

She clutched the headband tight, not yet ready to put it away, or to tie it on her just left it in her hand, stole glances at it as she made her way out of the Aurora Eruditio, well past her dorm and away. She had to share this with someone, tell someone she had finally achieved her goals but who?

There was only one person who came to mind.

The only question was how to find her. She could potentially be anywhere, but Nanami was certain if she was close she would be able to tell. Kano was the type of person whose presence was hard to miss.

She tore her way across the city core searching every nook and cranny, across rooftops and stalls until at last, she spotted a familiar face. It wasn't Kano, but someone unmistakably associated. A young boy in a dark cloak, chasing around a gaggle of other kids. Not much younger than Nanami, but definitely younger.

"Behold a power great enough to challenge even the Queen herself!" he declared, jumping on top of a box. He then dove after another nearby child who squealed and leapt desperately out of the way followed by a peal of laughter. Nanami stepped in and grabbed his swaying cape, nearly yanking him off his feet.

"Hey! Leggo! Who do you- no cape grabbing! That's against the rules!" he declared.

Nanami released the cloak as he flailed around trying to free himself, nearly sending him sprawling for the second time. She winced briefly and stood up tall as he turned to face her. "Hey. You know Kano, right?" she asked.

His eyes narrowed immediately, eyes flicking up and down Nanami as he stepped back and he gave her a conspiratorial look. "Who's asking?"

Nanami folded her arms. "Listen, it's important, okay? I just need to know where she is."

"Nuhuh! Top secret, no way. I don't know who you are-"

"Nanami."

"Well, I don't know any Nanami, and even if I did know where she was I wouldn't tell you! An enemy!"

"An enemy!?" Nanami responded indignantly. "Okay! Forget this, I'm not playing around, tell me where she is it's important, I'm not her enemy!"

"No way!" he sneered and did his best to stand tall.

Nanami stepped forward abruptly, fists balled.

"Okay! Okay okay okay! She left to go to the firework's shop on the edge of Susukino!" He flinched back, protecting himself. She almost scoffed. She didn't even get to do anything!

Nanami beamed a toothy grin and turned to leave. "Thanks!"

"Don't tell her I told you, okay!" he called after her.

The sound of children playing resumed moments after she stepped away.

Nanami closed on the shop quickly. With any luck, she'd be able to catch Kano before she entered. Her mind raced with possibilities, fireworks? Stealing them? Maybe without an audience, Kano might just...pay for them? It was a soon dashed hope, Nanami had a pretty good hunch that Kano was just Kano, audience or no. She smiled at the thought as the shop came into view. Whatever the fireworks were for, she was excited to find out.

She took a few minutes to scan the exterior, making a slow orbit as she checked for signs of Kano. The unmistakable sight of a white-haired girl slipping in through the back delivery door. Nanami almost cursed and immediately moved to follow after making sure the coast was clear. The last thing she wanted was to follow Kano here only to get her into trouble. Let alone the embarrassment of failing to pull off something like this quietly, they were Ninja, after all.

A few minutes after Kano, Nanami pushed the door open gently and stepped in, keen to catch her quarry off guard, she gruffly whispered.

"Hey, you there, what do you think you're doing...!"

 

[Kushinada Kano]

Kano was always just Kano. It was a concept she had never lingered on for long, but one she could see others oft debate in the back of their stares while they watched her. Even if she paid them little mind, she knew her truth.

There was the game, of course: the Queen of Darkness, the Dark & Terrible Ruler, the Incarnate of Evil -- whatever boisterously strung-together titled she presented herself with that day. There were, too, the times where she struggled to meet that ideal with her specific reactions to circumstances; such as when her family or friends got hurt, or otherwise found themselves in any form notable trouble. Those moments where she had more concern than resolve within her.

Being loud and obnoxious and fun doesn't make it less her -- her thoughts and her feelings and her desires were the ends of these means. She might throw on more airs than anyone should ever need - might stamp down her feet and right hook the idea that she could ever be soft or caring or small - but the game had never been anything less then her being as loud as she could be. The point was to be noticed, to be at the center -- and no one who truly wanted that, deep in their heart, ever had to reach far to act out. She might not be the dark heart of any infernal force ... she might not be dark at all, but she would lavish and exaggerate and twist anything that would make other people smile, or fret, or even care.

That's why she was here. Everything she did was faceted yet directed, splintered along a spiderweb of thoughts and instincts that eventually impulsively led to the exact same point of focus -- do something. Kano Kushinada was fairly always going to be Kano Kushinada, and what Kano Kushinada is is a reckless, excitable, chaotic force of nature.

She had slipped into the delivery door after her due of surveillance had concluded she was safe. This heist had been staked out over multiple ... minutes, and she felt very assured that she would be able to get in and out before the owner returned from his lunch. It was that thought of lunch that loosed a rumble from her stomach just before she passed the threshold, an inclination she quickly suppressed. After. During. It was going to be wonderful, you just wait. You can do this, Kano. It wouldn't be her first - or last - sleight of hand.

A quiet snicker breathed between her teeth as she inched into the storage, running her finger along the wall and allowing her indulgence of grandeur. She felt so powerful, so in control. So absolutely infalli--

"Eh!?" She swung on her feet, fists balling and lifted defensively in front of her face. Her eyes had instinctually squeezed shut in momentary terror, doing her best to maintain her balance on the pivot and barely catching her legs from catching on each other. "You'll never take me alive!" She yelped, scampering backwards on her heels and in the motions of a hand-seal before she opened her eyes again. Her fingers froze, as did her face, halfway into the Ram seal with a twitch at the tips of her digits and a flickering light within her violet gaze.

"Nanami Hideaki?" She muttered, brief flashes of emotions behind her eyes and at the turn down of her lips. It passed as fast as it came, Kano slowly adjusting herself into a more suitable - and comfortable - position, taking her normal stance of a high stride and a tilted chin. "I see."

Her head cocked to the side and sent a tendril of white hair from its nest behind her ear, swinging across her cheeks and framing their bones while she focused intensely on the girl before her. She had a lot she wanted to say. It had been awhile since they last saw each other ... she had thought about her friend often during the days and nights following their first meeting, but had eventually given up the idea that they'd talk again. Not in the same way they had that night. It was a fluke, she realized. Nanami had already grown ; there was something about her Kano noted, flitting her sights across the younger girl. Nanami didn't need to play with her.

How do you tell someone that they left you when you knew they wouldn't be able to see it that way? Perspective. Kano was used to flash in the pan receptions. She was fun, she knew that. So fun, for a night.

Still, her crooked smirk lit up her face and her arm threw itself to the side -- she didn't proclaim her next words so much as strongly spoke them, wary of alerting anyone passing by that she was in here. It was the difference between running and power walking. "I knew they got to you, my Underworld Bruiser. Those darned forces of Good! It was the perfect play on their part ... ! We had shown to be far too powerful together ... I can only imagine how they waylaid you from returning to me!" A crinkling at the side of her eyes, the slightest of signs. Push through the hurt feelings. Don't be weird.

Just be you, Kano Kushinada. "Yet you've managed to return to me -- such dedication! Your loyalty will be rewarded, Nanami Hideaki! ... With these!!" And her other arm joined the first, spreading wide and showcasing the cases of fireworks stretching out on the floor and shelves behind her. "With a bang!"

"You in?"

 

[Nanami]

Quickly dropping into character, Nanami giggled and nodded. "Sorry it took me so long to return to you! I faced many deadly foes, they held me prisoner for a week! In survival classes. and then I had to break out, but really I heard the exam was coming up and panicked. I'm glad I found you." She smiled brightly and looked at Kano with a twinkle in her eye and considered the matter settled. She didn't want to dwell on her guilt for leaving Kano hanging for so long any more than Kano seemed to want to.

With a flourish, Kano made her request of Nanami and without missing a beat she shot her a thumbs up, replying "Do you even need to ask?" She held the headband slightly behind herself to avoid calling attention to it. Her question, what she had sought Kano out for could wait a little longer. "Whatever you need, I'm here," she declared, albeit in a whispered shout.

She tucked the headband into her belt, nearly emptied of supplies after her exam earlier in the afternoon and took a few steps towards the collection of fireworks, mind abuzz with possibility. She loved the fireworks. During celebrations she'd find the highest spot she could climb and sit and watch for hours, as long as they'd last. She loved them but always watched them alone. Despite that, somehow she knew that they'd be better with someone else besides her.

A sudden creak nearby tipped Nanami off, someone was coming. Fearing they'd only have a moment Nanami turned sharply to Kano and shared a knowing look. "I'll distract them, meet you down the street! I won't be long," she said, already moving towards the door towards the store proper. "My queen~!" she added with a giggle as the door began to creak open.

It happened quick, her body coiled tight. The door opened fully to reveal a very tall, very confused, looking man who began to say something along the lines of "Hey what are you doing here?" or "Hey, what do you think you're doing?" but got as far as "Hey-" before a five-foot-tall, not even hundred pound, white-haired missile slammed into his midsection sending him toppling backwards certainly stunned by relatively unharmed.

"Sorry!" she shouted abruptly as she hit the ground and moved to the front door. "Playing hide and go seek!" she said, already shoving the door open and moving outside.

He didn't even notice Kano inside, too busy staring at the front door Nanami last occupied, storeroom door swinging shut behind him.

 

[Kushinada Kano]

It was easy, really, simple and reflexive and all too familiar to fit herself into this frame ; especially with Nanami, she found. In so many ways she seemed a kindred spirit, if not entirely similar to herself she was, at the least, a foil. Opposites in their approaches, but true to the same form when they were boiled down to their cores -- this. The fluid smile following the spark of light in her eyes, a languid unfurl of her limbs in complete comfort and familiarity. This was the true heart of Kano's self, briefly yet eternally, encompassing yet subtle. She was very happy to see her friend.

I hope it went well was Kano's silent sentiment expressed in that look, a gentle softness around the outlines of her gaze. She didn't push ; Kano's first attempt at graduation didn't exactly go down in the history books, and she wouldn't want to prod a sore spot for the other kunoichi if she had found herself in the same position. If anything, what Kano did best was what she displayed, now. It was hard to linger on anything hard or sad if you spent your time smiling and laughing the hours away.

Her expression only seemed to brighten - if possible - at Nanami's immediate assertion, that selfsame grin of glee pushing Kano's cheeks apart further until it was splitting her face. "That's what I like to hear, my faithful!" She mirrored Nanami's volume, a booming declaration that came across hoarse in her attempt to stifle its pitch. This only made her laugh when she had to regain her breath afterward, slinking closer to Nanami and treading lightly around her to survey the girl.

It didn't take long for Nanami to kick into action and Kano to find them without the plan she was looking for -- n, not that she didn't have one, of course!! She wouldn't have ventured into the store to ransack its merchandise and not have a solid, fool-proof, unimpeachable course of action to get in and out safely. She swallowed and glanced at the direction of the sound, coiling for a brawl - all while flitting her eyes about in a way that proved she would more likely make a run for it than tussle with any adult - but Nanami's quick response ... well, it soothed her. The way she laughed, and turned away, leaving her for the moment with that bid farewell and resulting title; it was hard for her to not bring her hand to her mouth, briefly overwhelmed.

Truly kindred.

She collected herself as fast as she could - so as not to fail her overarching plan or, especially, Nanami - and used that tense energy to fling herself across to piles of fireworks she began to pilfer. Her nimble hands clumsily filled themselves and then her armpits, the crook of her neck, looping what she could through her belt and then, perhaps poorly, a rocket shoved between her lips and clamped down upon with her teeth. It held firm, and Kano never gave it a second thought, but there was a force out there that felt that spoke volumes about Kano Kushinada as a person.

She flew. She might be unmanageable and chaotic and a bit too overeager to get from place to place, often stumbling in whichever directions, but there was something to be said about the strength of one's will and ambitions steadying their feet. She was out the back before the poor shopkeeper could piece himself back together from his run-in with Nanami Hideaki, and Kano was gone.

She didn't stop running just yet - somehow knowing within her heart of hearts that her friend would be able to find her again - and clammored up a wall, launching herself across the roofs of surrounding villas and barely, miraculously, avoiding spilling her stolen goods.

She came to a rough and excitable halt eventually, foretold clumsiness sending her spiraling over herself and jumbling the contents of ... all of her limbs in a directionless scatter that left her on the ground with the rocket still supported by her jaw. She laid back, staring up at the sky ; and when finally spitting out that singular pyrotechnic and glancing around at the mess she made, she could only laugh. And laugh. And laugh higher still, filling the air with the sound of gleeful pealing bells.

It would take time to drag herself back up and collect everything once more, but she figured she'd have help soon.

 

[Nanami]

Nanami was a lucky girl, she concluded as she spun round past the shopkeeper and out into the street. She had made it through her exam, brimming with confidence and joy. Furthermore, and more importantly, she found her friend with little delay and just like that had found it came naturally between them like no time had passed.

Nanami wasn't stupid. She might have been a little antisocial, and hard to get along with, violent, emotionally turbulent, distant, but not stupid. She had told Kano she would see her soon, and she didn't. She let weeks go by. And it was true, she was busy, she had a lot going on with classes and preparation for her exam all of which retroactively proved useful. She could have found time, made time, to find Kano Kushinada and make good on her word, but as days drifted to a week and more doubt had settled in. At first, she was worried Kano wouldn't really remember her, that she'd be foolish for seeking her out and making something out of nothing. Then, the guilt for avoiding seeking her out grew and grew.

The moment she stepped out of her exam hand gripped tight around her headband she knew who she had to tell, and the doubts were cast away.

Without breaking stride, Nanami zagged around the edge of the building in time to watch a tuft of wild white hair sweep through the alleyway behind the store. Nanami lingered for a moment, long enough to sweep together a set of seals and cast her will outward with a ginger press of her foot against the ground. The ground behind the store shuddered and shook, erasing their footprints and confusing the scene and set off after her friend moments later.

----

Nanami arrived moments later to spy her friend in the process of collecting her stolen explosives and moved to help collect them, ultimately helping Kano up.

"A well-executed mission, if I dare say!" she blustered boldly in good cheer. "But what awaits us at the end?" she asked.