Kaito slid the keys into the door with mild difficulty. His mind was clouded after his argument with Maeko over his moving out and he wanted the distraction of having a new environment to distract him. He was ready to start setting up an office for work as well as a nice personal cove to help him relax and regain his identity after letting it depend so much on his mother and Maeko's influence.
"Home sweet home," he murmured with a weary voice. It was a pre-furnished estate with a tasteful modern, glass-centric design all over the room. The colors were a little too grayscale for his taste, but he had plenty of time to change that. He didn't mind all the glass, either, but he did personally find that a cabana/beach-side aesthetic spoke to his sunny personality more.
Though, that was subject to change. He shrugged to his internal monologue, unsure who he would be after all of this. Maybe he would be the kind of guy who preferred impersonal glass designs, who didn't get written up at work and who didn't destroy entire neighborhoods.
He walked up the stairs, eager to pick out rooms and their purposes before he called it an early night. He decided to head to the left and explore that side of his home, though he only made it to the second room before he found significant evidence that someone had been here before him. He stiffened into attack-mode, ready to intercept an intruder. However, all the food and clothes scraps - and there were plenty - seemed rather old. Perhaps the transient had found somewhere else to hole up?
"What horrible taste," he mused with humor at the sight of the darker palette clothes. He laughed aloud, clinging to the sliver of levity in the ocean of negativity he'd been drowning in lately.
They slipped through one of the opened windows on the eastern tower. They purposefully left this window open for easy access in and out without surveillance. Although this castle was easily going to remain on the market until the end of days, Avalanche had to make sure to have hidden entrances in case someone discovered their squatting. When they first moved into the location the fear of being noticed was much more drastic. Now it was more of a formality than anything, as it was a habit.
A habit, as it turns out, may have saved their life.
Their silent footsteps allowed them to remain in the shadows. The front door of the central entrance was recently opened. The doors were nearly glued shut due to countless years of inactivity, which meant that someone had recently entered. Furthermore, the subtle noises from the western wing alarmed them that whoever it was, they found Avalanche's master room of brilliant tacticians. Their sword was drawn as they slid behind the corner. Chakra gathered in their blade to make their the sword coated in a sinister aura. Whoever it was they had to take down in one, decisive strike. They took a deep breath as they roared and entered the room...
Only to find Kaito.
"Kaito?!" Avalanche exclaimed with their sinister coated weapon drawn back to be swung. Their voice radiated confusion as they stood just inches away from the boy who they worked together with back in the residential district. "What in Mercy's name are you doing here?" They asked as they resumed a more casual stance. Their sword was still in the grip, but it was now in only one hand and by their right side.
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Kaito whipped around to see Avalanche with their signature coated sword. Oh Heavens, Kaito thought. Why did it have to come to the vigilante again? Wasn't he in enough trouble as it was without getting another mark on his record?
"I'm home," he said as he held up the keys in his hand, tiredness evident in his expression, voice, and body language. It was a pitiful sight, seeing the excitable Kaito so down in the dumps. "What are you doing breaking and entering into m-" An idea popped into Kaito's head as he noticed the darker garb Avalanche wore matched, roughly, the materials on the ground.
"Oh, Avalanche... please tell me you haven't been crashing in my brand new home." He closed his eyes and rubbed them, blinking dramatically at the scene unfolding before him as if it would all disappear into a more reasonable picture.
Avalanche's eyes darted between the boy and the keys in his hands, although their mask shielded such a bewildered observation from being noticed by Kaito. Out of all of the people to buy this place, HE was the one?! But there was no tour, no lease signing, nothing! Who was the back alley real estate person who sold this place to Kaito? More importantly, why was Kaito... not Kaito? "This section is closed off. Trespass and you will forfeit your life." Avalanche said coldly. Their head tilted just a bit to the side of Avalanche as they noticed the door to their room was left only slightly ajar. In a needlessly dramatic fashion Avalanche threw their sword at the door to slam it shut.
"And if you even THINK of going into my room, just remember that there are things worse than death." Avalanche said in a flustered tone. Taking a deep breath, they focused their attention on the boy. "I'll make some tea downstairs. We have things to discuss. Both about our living arrangements... and about whatever it is which has sullen your mood." Avalanche said as they moved past the boy. "Assuming of course, I am not the source of your lamenting." They said causally. While they were partially sure that had to be the case, they also said it in a tone which could almost be implied as humorous. Avalanche did not really have social skills as people would consider them such. Therefore, the only thing that they knew without doubt was that tea was warm, and that warm things made people feel better.
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Kaito's face was so blank, it must've hurt to look at. He shrugged, suddenly, apathetic to this situation entirely. He didn't really care about forfeiting his life, but he happened to not care about 'trespassing' here more.
"Tea could be nice," Kaito mumbled without much feeling. "It's not really you that has me distressed," he assured as he meandered around, unaware where the kitchen was downstairs. "It's more the APD. Yeah, taking the law into your own hands creates problems, but what we were doing with those thieves... that's my JOB. That's what I swore an oath to do. And... and I don't know. I guess I've been loose with the rules since I started, since the rules are just... so rigid. People don't fit into rigid. We're squishy," he said as if that made perfect sense. "I don't want to give a teenager a thousand-ryo fine and community service for graffiti, especially when I know that kid and I know he's already working to support his family. Like, why is there no give? No stepping back and saying, hey, I don't think you were trying to do something horrible and mean but you were feeling stressed and you needed an outlet and you chose graffiti so now let's clean it up, apologize to the property owner, and get you set on the 'good' path." He sat down in a chair in the kitchen if he had discovered it by then and let his head fall into his hands, upset at the village and himself and his superiors, and he hadn't even gotten to Maeko yet.
Maybe he should see a therapist.
"That white-haired woman at the fight... with the bone manipulation techniques... she's Maeko. I've known her since I was a wee genin. She had my back during the war. She's had my back for a long time," he said as he lifted his gaze to the empty space ahead of him, but they were seeing something miles and miles away, years in the past. "And I pushed her away," he gritted his teeth in an attempt to stave off the guilt he felt at admitting that, despite his well-founded frustration towards her and her clinginess.
Avalanche did Kaito a favor by bringing the tea halfway to him. Despite the intense heat from the tea, Avalanche did not seem at all perturbed to be holding two cups of tea. This was actually a benefit of their bloodline, which drastically reduced their body temperature. Unfortunately as a side effect, the tea would only be lukewarm by the time it was in Kaito's grasp. However, the tea seemed insignificant to the weight of the problems the boy was just dropping on Avalanche's front door. Despite the calm, collected persona Avalanche composed on the outside, on the inside they were a giant mess of confusion.
'Oh Mother he's talking about real stuff again.' Avalanche thought as they took a sip of their tea. Avalanche was someone who was used to superficial, mostly rude comments. This was their experience with dealing with the APD and people in general. Kaito, on the other hand, was someone completely unique to them. The way that he could articulate the struggles and tribulations he endured was so organic. It was like he had some kind of valve that allowed him to just dump out the problems which plagued him. Avalanche wasn't sure whether to be impressed or worried. One thing which did draw concern, however, was how much Kaito was blaming himself for these actions.
Avalanche waited until Kaito finished. Avalanche then took a seat across from the table Kaito sat, filling the space the boy's thousand yard stare was venturing. They took a deep breath before they spoke. "You're making a mistake, losing your mind to more than one thought at a time." Avalanche said more coldly than they would have liked. In their head it sounded more supportive, but out loud it ended up being judgmental. Their head tilted to the side as they took a moment to compose themselves. 'Channel your inner Saichi. How would she say it?' They repeated to themselves in their head like a mantra. When they were sure they wouldn't screw it up again, they faced Kaito once more.
"What I meant was, when we get depressed, our mind spirals into all of the things that are wrong, or that we've done wrong. It's typical, but to do so hinders your ability to solve the problems which you have power over. This is why it is a mistake." They elaborated. Avalanche slowed down their speaking so that the judgmental undertones were diluted by genuine attempts at affection. "With your two thoughts, focus on Maeko, and less on the APD. You are doing your job correctly, and there is no reason to doubt yourself. Justice is not the same for every circumstance, and to believe so robs you of your morality." Avalanche said. This was something which was fundamental to their own truth, which is why it was easier to say than the emotional support content. Still, Avalanche was left with no idea of where to go with the Maeko information. They figured that Kaito would open up more about that after he had more time to compose himself. After all, Kaito seemed rather good at doing so.
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Kaito accepted the tea with a polite incline of his head but whatever composure he was trying to have was flinched away when Avalanche criticized him sharply. Kaito took a deep breath, trying not to appear to be the scared little boy he used to be - the one that really died on the battlefield.
At least Avalanche's advice made some sense. "I don't know how to fix Maeko," he blurted out, accidentally insinuating that she herself was the problem and not her actions. But... it was kind of true, he realized with significant guilt. "I've had her at my side for so long that I almost don't know who I am without her. But, more importantly, when I am away from her, she finds all these ways to come back to my side, even when it isn't appropriate. I can deal with the teasing at work about us being star-crossed lovers but I can't deal with her constantly expecting me to spend all my time with her. I mean, I haven't trained in months."
He took a sip of the tea, barely able to enjoy the taste with all of the thoughts plaguing his mind. He wasn't sure what to say to Maeko. He wasn't entirely sure what he thought of Maeko, either, since he never had time away to study her. "I just feel like I'm doing everything wrong. I want to do something right." He shrugged helplessly, avoiding eye contact with Avalanche.
Avalanche had no basis on which to understand how Kaito felt. For what felt like a thousand years Avalanche has been alone. They had no one to tease, no one to be star crossed lovers with, nothing. It never bothered them, but for some reason it did when Kaito talked about what he lost. For a long while, Avalanche was silent. "If its what you need now, then it cannot be wrong to do." Avalanche said hesitantly as they looked away. It was clear that this was something which they too have struggled with in their life. Avalanche took a breath before returning at the boy. "When you asked me to work with you, I agreed because you proved yourself to be a competent, honest, good person. I recognize that you need to figure out who else you are apart from that, but in my eyes you already are everything you need to help bring justice back to this world." After saying this, there was a glint of Avalanche's icy blue eyes which became more apparent for only a brief moment. It was then that Avalanche chose to stand. "You will need time to unpack your belongings... as well as sort somethings out. I will be only a call away." They said as they left the table. A thought crossed their mind as they stopped in the doorway. "I do not know if you have any pets, but if you do then they are permitted to enter my wing. Especially if they're cats." They said with a slight blush of embarrassment, almost admitting to having an interest in a pet. In truth Avalanche enjoyed the companionship of animals, and often fed strays they found. However, since they did not even own the home they were loitering in, it would be hard to raise a pet. Regardless, Avalanche departed into the shadows of the castle.
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Selina appeared in a stream of petals. Her clothing was clean and she was ready for business. She appeared at the front door to the obscenely large mansion. She was here on official business, but the building was impressively large. She wondered if it would even work for her to knock on the door to get Kaito's attention. However, since she had to do so, she was not going to meekly knock on the front gate. Her incredible strength shook the foundation of the door enough to not damage it, but definitely to draw any attention from Kaito, who she could sense inside. "Kaito! It's Selina. Please open the door." She shouted through the thick wooden doors. She kept her gaze eye level at where she knew Kaito would be. Her face displayed an impressive sense of composure. She knew that she had to be the adult in this oncoming request.
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PassiveEffects: _โ Invigorating Kaiser Armor Training | Rank B | Training ___โ The user's armor retains it's former effects. Now, the armor emits a crackling, bright, white hot chakra that appears like a thin aura around the user. The chakra causes mild burns on contact. In addition, the user gains a slight increase to strength and speed per rank of the armor. _โ Bolstering Kaiser Armor Training | Rank A | Training ___โ This training adds to the previous effects of the Kaiser armor's technique. In addition to that, the target's armor now allows them to regenerate 10 stamina per rank of chakra applied to each technique while the armor is active. The user may not generate more stamina than their reserves may hold. _โ Kaiser Armor Mastery | Rank S | Training ___โ The final stage of training for the Kaiser Armor. In addition to it's previous effects, the Kaiser armor now causes searing burns upon contact that blister due to the crackling chakra. Additionally, the user's strength and speed are increased mildly per rank of the armor instead of it's original slight. Taijutsu and bukijutsu techniques used while this armor is active create shock waves five feet in the direction of the attack per rank of the technique. _โ ___โ _โ ___โ
Kaito woke from his small nap at the sound of thunderous knocking. After Avalanche's advice, Kaito had stuck to drinking tea, taking his sick leave from the department, and finding small pleasures like indulging in stupid novels or taking 'personal time'. He rose to his feet nevertheless and moved from a couch towards the front door, failing to even look through the peep hole as his sleep-weary brain told him to hurry up and answer to avoid another loud knocking.
"Mmmhello?" He was clearly just awoken from sleep, though he rubbed his eyes and quickly fixed his posture upon recognizing Selina. "Er, sorry about that. Midday nap and all. How can I, uh, help?" He originally stuck an elbow up on the door way to give the impression of a casual, calm collectedness, but then fixed himself by taking a step closer to the door, permitting space for her to enter if she chose to. "You wanna come inside?"
ooc:
Mattysandwich
Posted: Tue Oct 08, 2019 6:19 pm
"I'm afraid we don't have time for such formalities." Selina said in rushed tone. The shift in her expression was something Kaito would easily notice about her, despite only knowing her for a brief exchange. "Kenshin and I have reason to believe that Avalanche, the vigilante, has gotten themselves attacked by a group of corrupted APD officers." Selina gave Kaito a moment to process the words she said, as they were undoubtedly a collection of strange words he could not have anticipated. Selina felt equally disrupted by the news when Kenshin brought it to her insight, although the woman did her part to compartmentalize her emotions for the sake of the boy. Since he was only a young man, Selina needed to be the emotional foundation for him. "Their trail ran cold at the temple of the gods. There are a lot of locations there which bypass sensory techniques, so if you know about any locations Avalanche may have traversed there then that may help us find them." She said, keeping her emotions neutral. Her tone also implied that she expected Kaito to help her and Kenshin find Avalanche and save them from whatever danger the corrupted APD posed. Ultimately that would be Kaito's choice to make, however.
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PassiveEffects: _โ Invigorating Kaiser Armor Training | Rank B | Training ___โ The user's armor retains it's former effects. Now, the armor emits a crackling, bright, white hot chakra that appears like a thin aura around the user. The chakra causes mild burns on contact. In addition, the user gains a slight increase to strength and speed per rank of the armor. _โ Bolstering Kaiser Armor Training | Rank A | Training ___โ This training adds to the previous effects of the Kaiser armor's technique. In addition to that, the target's armor now allows them to regenerate 10 stamina per rank of chakra applied to each technique while the armor is active. The user may not generate more stamina than their reserves may hold. _โ Kaiser Armor Mastery | Rank S | Training ___โ The final stage of training for the Kaiser Armor. In addition to it's previous effects, the Kaiser armor now causes searing burns upon contact that blister due to the crackling chakra. Additionally, the user's strength and speed are increased mildly per rank of the armor instead of it's original slight. Taijutsu and bukijutsu techniques used while this armor is active create shock waves five feet in the direction of the attack per rank of the technique. _โ ___โ _โ ___โ
Kaito froze in place at the news Selina laid out at his feet. He put his hand up to his chin as he thought, but he couldn't recall Avalanche mentioning anything specific about their whereabouts. "I'm not sure where they might have gone. I am sure they were hunting down some sort of criminal or other. Let me help, I can be an extra body looking for them." He shifted into work mode, his mind still juggling all the details of the last time he saw Avalanche, scouring for clues like the detective he was. "Let's not waste any time," he asserted with a worried tone, coming outside with Selina and locking the door behind him. He thought about leaving it under the mat for Avalanche, but the vigilante had broken in countless times before so it stood to reason that they could do it again.
"So where have they been looked for, so far?"
[exit w/ Selina unless stopped]
ooc:
Mattysandwich
Posted: Sat Jan 04, 2020 8:52 pm
As Kaito was laid on his bed, a blue hair woman in her early twenties brought her hands over him. Avalanche, who moved away from the medic, watched the girl's hands turn green with healing chakra. "And how again did he end up wounded?" She asked interrogatively. Avalanche folded their arms in front of their body as they leaned against the wall. "What difference does it make? He's a member of the APD, and as a citizen of Arashigakure I expect you to do your civil duty." They said sternly. While Avalanche was trying to play it cool, the truth was that they practically had to beg the girl, whose name was Saichi, by dropping on her doorstep with a bloody cop in their hands. Once she agreed to follow the two of them Avalanche felt more secure in falling back on bad habits. "Yeah yeah. Let's hope your APD friend has less of a mouth on him than you do." She said as she continued to heal. Once the blood faded from his lips and the pain his chest resided, Saichi moved from the boy and looked at Avalanche. She gave the vigilante an up and down look as her eyebrow rose. "How again did you know I knew medical ninjutsu? I'm not listed on the shinobi roster." She asked.
"You have secrets, as do I." Avalanche said sternly. The girl's lip rose into a smile as she looked at him. "Such sass. You kind of remind me of someone." She said with a shake of her head. Avalanche did not respond to this but moved closer to her. They dumped in her hands a high payment of ryo. "I trust this covers the fair of your services?" They asked. Saichi shook her head and placed the ryo on the bedside next to Kaito. "Call it a charity call. And if his condition worsens, go to a hospital." She said as she left the room, then the house. Avalanche let out a very deep breath once she left as all of their body loosened from how tense they were, since it took everything they had to keep themselves emotionally composed while dealing with her. 'You better get better.' They swore mentally toward Kaito. Assuming he did not pass out in transition he would still have been awake for this encounter.
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Kaito shifted in and out of consciousness as he was healed. He caught a glimpse of the woman leaving, then turned to the concerned vigilante. "Who was that? And why... I mean, why would you bother with me?" He was feeling better from the iryojutsu treatment, but his head felt stuffy. He felt out-of-body. He almost died. He should've died. He'd made peace with it, and yet, he was here, at home, very much alive.
"Avalanche, I-" his voice caught in his throat as he sat up in an attempt to explain himself. Water sprung to his eyes and he brought the bottom of his hands up to wipe his eyes. "I don't even know who I am anymore. Gods, I just- I was trying to make things right. She's- she's- Shion's a jinchuuriki. She's hosting a demon parasite and she refused to let me help. And she looked at me like, like I was the monster and it just brought back memories of the Kogarashi war." He hid his face in his hands, disgusted by his own sniffling, by his own inability to man up and act like a proper officer.
"It feels like nothing is the way it should be. It feels like it has been years since I've seen you, Avalanche, and it's barely been two weeks. I don't know what's wrong with me but... you should've let those thugs finish me off."
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