Gen fic part 2

[finnimbrun]

Title: Apropos of the Wet Snow
Rating: PG-ish (K+)
Genre: General/Drama
Characters: Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi, Sai, Pein, Kurenai, Shikamaru, mentions of various others, strong references to Sasuke, Obito, Minato, Itachi, Jiraiya, et al (no pairings, really, unless you count implicit Pein/Konan)
Spoilers: For the recent manga chapters, though at this

Comments

[dustbunny105]

Oh, this is exquisite. I love the style; poetic and almost whimsical, so simple while saying a lot. In retrospect the piece feels both longer and shorter to me than it is.

I love Pain from Naruto's perspective, failing to make any kind of real sense. It made me wonder a bit about what Pain would be saying if it was someone else listening, but ultimately he wouldn't be telling them what he tells Naruto. The little snippets of everyone else are all lovely touches. I especially like how Naruto sees Sakura and Kakashi.

The pace and buildup are beautifully constructed and played out. It's languid and even, and the whole time the feeling that Pain really is waiting for something from Naruto is resting just on the edge of everything else; the fact that we the readers get to figure out what that something is as Naruto does makes the whole thing seem more personal. The sense of not-healed-but-healing evident throughout packs a powerful punch all on its own.

There's more I'd like to say, but I'd just be babbling and gushing and grasping for ways to put into words how I feel about this, which I can't. In short, beautiful work and I thank you for sharing.

PS: It rocked my world that you made Kurenai's baby a girl, because I've had my fingers crossed in regards to that possibility ever since Shikamaru said that the baby would grow to be his apprentice ^^

[hieronymousb]

Oh, wow, thank you for this lovely review. Yeah, I rather like Pein's loopy not-entirely-making-sense aspect in canon, but I . . . ahahah, draw the line at really dumb puns. XD [It's more the somewhat off-in-space/another plane of reality mindset that fascinates me. I like Itachi for same.]

I feel bad that Kishi seems to have forgotten about pregnant Kurenai, because I sure haven't. ;-; I've been wondering this whole invasion what happened to her and the kid. It'd be cool if the kid is a girl, yeah. New generation = newer ideas about kunoichi's roles. LET US HOPE. [Srsly, what was with that flower arranging stuff in the anime? XD;]

In my mind, the only person Pein is really open with is Konan. Or, rather, she's the only one who understands him. Writing him from anyone else's PoV and still getting a point across kinda is ... TRICKY. XD Ahahaha. Again, thank you so much.

[dustbunny105]

Heh, I actually like bad puns and I still get embarrassed for Konan for having to be seen with the guy sometimes XD Granted I prefer for the puns to be intentionally bad, which I somehow don't think the puns in question are.

Yeah, I was waiting to see Kurenai for, like, the whole invasion. I wanted to see her being moved to safety with the civilians and hating it or something. I have to admit that half the reason I want the kid to be a girl is because I want to see the look on Shikamaru's face. New ideas about kunoichi roles sounds good too, though. (Was there something anime-specific about the flower-arranging? All I remember of it from the manga is that the girls had to know how to do "girl stuff" for undercover missions-- because people who arrange flowers for a living would totally have the build and hands of people who kill stuff for a living, I guess-- and even that seemed like a convenient way to set up a flower metaphor.)

I know what you mean, I feel the same way about them. I personally can't imagine trying to write pin from anyone's point of view, never mind from the point of view of someone other than Konan. And you're quite welcome ♥

[hieronymousb]

Heh, I actually like bad puns and I still get embarrassed for Konan for having to be seen with the guy sometimes XD

I'd be more embarrassed if she didn't always enable all the crazy! Like, oohweee, I see you are nuking the village in a TTLY IMMATURE WAY AND ALL, NAGATO, BUT INSTEAD OF SAYING THAT, I WILL JUST WORRY ABOUT YOUR SAFETY. And thus not help your emotional growth at all by not disapproving much. [But I actually find it quite sweet in this weird way... it's just enabling as all hell!] I often wonder how all the PAIN stuff reads in Japanese, actually.

(Was there something anime-specific about the flower-arranging? All I remember of it from the manga is that the girls had to know how to do "girl stuff" for undercover missions-- because people who arrange flowers for a living would totally have the build and hands of people who kill stuff for a living, I guess-- and even that seemed like a convenient way to set up a flower metaphor.)

That's what I was referring to. I don't actually remember the specifics, but I was like, lol, are you fucking srs? I don't have any issue with "girl stuff" and "girly stuff" myself, in and of itself (and I quite resent the insinuation one sometimes gets in fandom that all females have to be stone cold killers), but the idea that kunoichi have to have SPECIAL FUNCTIONS WITH "GIRL STUFF" AND PICKING FLOWERS? Lollll, wtf.

[dustbunny105]

Fair enough. She does sort of bring it on herself by never taking him aside and saying something about it. Yeah, I've been wondering how this reads in Japanese myself. Maybe Kishimoto gets away with the puns because they aren't as blatant in the original language?

That's what I was referring to. I don't actually remember the specifics, but I was like, lol, are you fucking srs? I don't have any issue with "girl stuff" and "girly stuff" myself, in and of itself... but the idea that kunoichi have to have SPECIAL FUNCTIONS WITH "GIRL STUFF" AND PICKING FLOWERS? Lollll, wtf.

Yeah, I know what you mean. I didn't really think much of it at first because it made sense that they would have to know how to behave as "normal women", but upon looking back at it I started boggling more and more. Aside from the fact that I find it a little skeevey that these special classes are basically telling little girls that they aren't normal (though that could just be the translation I read), why can't they just go undercover as, I dunno, women who don't arrange flowers? I mean, I could get where this was coming from if the kunoichi in Naruto were trained more like real kunoichi, but they aren't. Besides, surely among the pool of active kunoichi there will be a few who know the basic skill sets required for posing as geisha or whatever; why make it a shinobi thing? And just where are the boys during these classes? Off learning to lounge in a Laz-E-Boy and belch, maybe?

[hieronymousb]

I would hope it reads less loltastically in the Japanese, but I have no idea.

"And just where are the boys during these classes? Off learning to lounge in a Laz-E-Boy and belch, maybe?"

Okay, Naruto would be number one in the class on that second point, I'm sure. But that's a good point. There's no sign that the boys have to have any special skills for masquerading as "normal boys". I really try to overlook the sexism in this manga, but stuff like that is kinda "sigh, rolls eyes".

[dustbunny105]

Yeah, I've been wondering if maybe it's the sort of thing you have to be learned to get in Japanese or something. Like some English series give people Meaningful Names in other languages as an extra little touch, but if it was translated directly it might induce eye-rolling and groaning from people who have those languages fluently.

Oh, didn't you know? Boys can be anything but girls have to be this, this and this-- in that order-- or else something's fishy. Makes me wonder if unfeminine civilian women ever get executed for being poorly disguised kunoichi or something. I get that he's trying to keep them somewhat like historic kunoichi (at least that's what I'm guessing), but it just doesn't work when they're not otherwise based on that model. I try to give the manga the same sort of pass I give old movies/shows regarding sexism, but there are times when my head just needs to hit my desk.