章 5: Chapter 5: Probation: Stolen Breath & Report
As for the songs in chapter 2, this is the list if anybody wants to look up the full versions;
'"Hello mother, hello father.
Here I am at, Camp Grenada...'"' is Camp Grenada by Alan Sherman. I chose it because the song is about an awful summer holiday camp, and let's face it, neither TI or Orochimaru's bases are going to be particularly pleasant.
'"They're coming to take me away, haha...'"' is They're Coming to Take Me Away by Neurotic Fish. Similar reasons as Camp Grenada.
'"...And it's so easy when you're eeevil,...'"' is When You're Evil by Voltaire. I just liked the song. Once you've gone and got it stuck in your head, I recommend the colour animatic for it on Youtube by halley42
'"Like a tunnel that you follow to a tunnel of its own...'"' is Windmills Of Your Mind by Noel Harrison. I think I was inspired by the Yamanaka for that one. Morecambe and Wise(famous British comedy duo) did a sketch of it that I recommend.
For this chapter, part one probably veers a minuscule amount towards horror; and yes, I know 'Anko's prank backfires' is a Naruto trope that's probably been done to death, but it gets the job done. Part two is how Kimi is faring mentally. Because his Kekkei Genkai only protects him from trauma while he's using it.
Probation Month No.2
Stolen Breath
Shinobi are notorious gossipers. After all; information withheld could spell someone's demise, so any and all information is shared out to pretty much everyone. Needless to say, the arrival of Kimimaro Kaguya and Juugo of the Scales made it round the gossip circle faster than you could say 'nosey bastards'.
Izumo and Kotetsu were the first, sharing the news of the day with the rest of the Chunin lounge. The mention of the name Kaguya had rung a few bells and at least one person had hit the library and come up with the info that the Kaguya were a presumed recently extinct clan from the Land of Water.
The TI staff had contributed, saying what they were allowed about the two refugees. The news of a new Kekkei Genkai in the Village spread fast, as well as the fact they were running from Orochimaru.
The Jonin lounge got much the same amount of information, but the ANBU barracks were a different story. Security recordings from the TI cells were viewed and passed on, as well as the transcript of the council meeting and the medical files. As well as that, the news was that the ANBU Watch for the two newcomers was the Copy-nin himself and his kohai, Tenzo of the Mokuton. Murmurs of 'half-duties', 'red flags' and 'psyche report' floated around the groups of white masks.
Of course info was all well and good, but nothing beat confirming it for yourself. So the apartment block housing the two boys became the most-watched location in Konoha for a whole month. That the Kaguya was on amiable terms with the Hokage spread fast, but it was the spar in training ground 2 that set everyone buzzing(literally, in the case of the Aburame).
It had long been rumored that the Kaguya clan had a body-altering Kekkei Genkai, but this was solid proof. Although, a few of the more squeamish Chunin had felt slightly disturbed by the ease at which the boy removed his own bones. Those who were close enough to hear the squelching of wet flesh were rather unsettled. The boy was so young. Although, given Orochimaru's pursuit of prodigies and bloodlines, was it really all that surprising?
It was the Juugo boy who gripped everyone's attention though. The shapeshifting was completely unprecedented, as well as the apparent mental side effects and lack of control.
Those who did watch the apartment afterwards were slightly disappointed. They seemed to be normal children, albeit mature, living a vaguely threadbare existence while adjusting to a new place. The constant use and doodling of seals made interest pique for a while; the shinobi who muttered he was grateful they had a seal practitioner on hand should the worst ever happen, was quietly shushed.
Juugo spent most of his day bird watching, seemingly having a strange affinity for animals and even holding conversations with them. Kaguya spent his time writing in notebooks or calculating a budget while teaching Juugo basic math, reading and kanji.
Interest died down, but at least somebody thought it prudent to warn one Anko Mitarashi about Konoha's new residents when she got back from her long-tern infiltration mission, a few days after the first month ended. Unfortunately, they forgot that Anko had a very different sense of tact to most shinobi. And they didn't notice how her eyes sparked mischievously.
There's a sound of hissing and suddenly oh godohgod he'sfoundme as snakessnakeshissingcoiling, squeezingarmstrappedtrapped can't move notagainnononono snakes look at me goldsliteyelikehis he'sherehe'scomeforme. Woman, stranger. Shouldknowcan'tthinkhe'shereformeohgod. Whereishecan'tseehimsnakeseverywherenonononononononono...'
At first, Anko smirked in amusement as the kid started then froze as her snakes coiled around him. Her smile shrank rapidly as the kid's face paled and his eyes took on a glazed deer-in-front-of-a-katon look, instead of him getting himself free and calling her out like she had intended.
She came out from her hiding place and stepped in front of him to get his attention. He didn't even notice she was there. In a horror-struck split second she realised that his breathing was rapid and his lips were flushed blue, before his eyes rolled back in his head and he slumped.
Immediately, two ANBU were at his side, slashing her snakes to make them dispel and lowering the kid to the floor before one snapped to the other "oxygen deprivation; oxygen bubble, now!"
The other promptly held his cupped hand over the gasping mouth and summoned a sphere of green medical chakra. The half-conscious boy sucked in the suddenly oxygen-rich air gratefully as the first ANBU gradually pulled him into a sitting position.
Anko's stomach felt like it was floating somewhere in the region of her ankles. She hadn't mentioned to scare the kid; okay, she had, but she hadn't wanted to scare him out of his wits! She knew the Kaguya had spent time with her bastard of a sensei, so she had realised that the snakes would be associated with him, that was the point of the surprise; she didn't knew that they'd trigger a flashback that severe!
"Kimimaro!" It was the other kid, Juugo, as he burst through the door, skidding to a halt as he spotted his friend insensate and being cradled by an ANBU. His eyes locked on her as the only stranger in the room. She barely dodged the fist that came at her. Good thing too; it left a small crater in the wall.
"What did you do!? What did you do to him!?" His voice was gradually becoming more garbled and feral, black marks creeping across his face like the insidious tendrils of some deadly vine and staining his eye black and gold. More vines, real this time, burst from the floorboards and entangle him, pinning his arms to his sides and fastening his legs to the floor.
"Shit...Juugo...'"
The voice was quiet, and a little strained, but it broke through the tension like a hot kunai through butter. The Kaguya kid was sitting upright under his own power, but still flanked by the two ANBU. Juugo halted his struggles as he caught sight of him, but the markings still remained. The kid carefully got to his feet and cautiously walked over to his foliage-covered friend. He placed a hand on his shoulder and the markings retracted and Juugo relaxed.
The vines and branches retracted too, and it was then that Anko noticed them for what they really were. 'Wait, Mokuton! Holy balls, did the Shodai leave another descendant?' She saw the ANBU with the red-and-green striped mask lower his hands from a seal at the exact moment the floor returned to normal. So, he was...'
"Bloody knock next time."
Eh? Oh, it was Kaguya who had spoken. She couldn't really blame him for that remark, not after what just happened. Juugo was stilled as he felt Kimimaro bury his face in his shoulder blades so his face was hidden. "Just go, okay?" His voice wavered slightly, and Anko took that to mean she had far overstepped the line onto private, emotional matters. Time to make herself scarce; she jumped out of the window.
Juugo turned slowly, not wanting to dislodge his friend, but Kimimaro stepped away while heaving a great, shuddering breath. "I'm fine," he stated as he preoccupied himself with smoothing out the wrinkles in his shirt. "Just got caught up in a few old memories, that's all."
"Memories don't tend to make people collapse," Juugo said, leaving a way out of the conversation for Kimimaro who very obviously didn't want to discuss these memories.
"I panicked," Kimimaro began. "So I started breathing faster, because your body wants more oxygen when you panic in case it has to run or fight. But when I panicked, I automatically grew a sheet of bone under the skin of my bone and chest. It restricted my breathing and I passed out from lack of oxygen. That's it."
"Do you need to rest?" Juugo asked tentatively. Surely a shock like that would mean he wouldn't be in any state to concentrate for the rest of the afternoon.
"No I...," he paused and thought for a moment, a distant look flashing in his eyes. "I'll just sit on the bed for a bit. I'll do some drawing; relax from the paperwork a bit."
Juugo watched the smaller boy walk to the bedroom and shut the door behind him. Kimimaro had done so much for him, but when something happened, he was helpless. If his friend had choked to death on the floor, killing that woman wouldn't have brought him back. He should have assisted the ANBU, not done something so pointless. Kimimaro had asked him to watch his back and this was all he could do.
"What memories was he talking about?" Asked one of the ANBU. He considered them for a moment. He could always sense them somehow so they could never get the drop on him, which was why he could relax with two strangers following him around. Kimimaro couldn't sense them, yet he never seemed too bothered by either of them. If Kimimaro trusted them like that, he would tell them what they wanted to know.
"No specifics," he said. "Though it's very likely they're from his time with Orochimaru. And there's one thing that gets me about what just happened," he realised suddenly. " Kimimaro automatically grew bone under his skin the minute he panicked. Why would he do that, unless it was a defence to protect his organs?"
The two ANBU glanced at each other, hands flashing into signs, before the white-haired one shunshined away. He could guess that the ANBU had put together what he had. After all, Kimimaro had shot down all of his questions about the Y-shaped scar that ran vertically down his chest and torso as well.
Report
Kimimaro Kaguya(referred to henceforth as K.K) possesses a Kekkei Genkai known as Shikotsumyaku that nullifies Yamanaka mind-probes. As such, this report is compiled entirely from observed behaviour.
The singing is most prominent. No one recognises any of the songs, leading to the belief that they were made up by K.K or an acquaintance, who K.K then learned them from. Every song resembles a children's rhyme or story in the structure and repetition and are simple to remember. However, all have the recurring themes of death, sacrifice, madness and hopelessness. We have concluded that these musical outbursts are K.K's way of working out his internal stress, as well as alleviating boredom - it has been discussed that during such periods of boredom, K.K's mind threatens to turn to distressing memories, hence the singing.
It is also very possible that the singing is passive-agressive retaliation. This seems to be very likely.
From observations by ANBU Hound and ANBU Bear, K.K seems used to taking charge and acts in a mature manner. A different manner than the socially stilted one usually displayed by shinobi prodigies and children forced to grow up too soon. While K.K sticks to a schedule and budget(see attached sample), he displays several outbursts and eccentric behaviours. Again, this seems to be way of blowing off stress. K.K seems to avoid swearwords, instead using various creative oaths. This aversion is bookmarked a a discussion point for next weekly probation appointment.
When speaking to authority figures(e. -sama, Clan Heads, etc.), K.K is formal. If not for the tells of apprehension, it could be misconstrued as obsequiousness. This politeness is born out of fear, not loyalty. Although it is possible that part of it is now from gratitude. This mask has slipped when in conversation about a topic K.K is apparently enthusiastic about; it was soon replaced. Conversation also revealed that K.K finds it normal to be under constant observation, as if expecting to be evaluated.
An altercation with Anko Mitarashi(see incident report attached), revealed that certain triggers can cause panic attacks, presumed to by linked to the various scars on K.K's body(see medical file). K.K refuses to discuss the events that resulted in such scars.
Signed,
Inoichi Yamanaka
Ibiki Morino
Hohetou Hyuuga
週次パワーステータス
-- 推薦
ランキング 
-- 推薦
チケット