[Log] Drunken Babbling [Itae, Kisa]
Set sometime after this thread.
The day had passed relatively slowly, but that left Itae with plenty of time to consider the last fight. The Kyuubi Jinchuuriki had been right there. All she had to do was snatch the brat up and they could be ripping the demon out and be nearly done with it.
But that stupid brat with the weights.... Itae kept seething and kept her face stiff and her pace steady.
The fact that they were no longer surrounded by desert was no comfort to Kisa. She was still frustrated at their defeat and would have gladly taken it out on the nearest moving thing. This, unfortunately, happened to be Itae, and though she could be reckless at times, Kisa did not have a death wish.
But the silence was starting to get to her. There was only so long she could be content with imagining the many ways she would deal with the Azure Beauty of Konoha, if they were to ever meet again.
It wasn’t right to be this irritated after a fight. She was supposed to be at her last breath or severely wounded before she lost a fight. Though Itae preferred not losing at all. She appeared to do it gracefully, but that’s only because no one could see her mental processes. No, the mind of Uchiha Itae was a dark and terrible place at the moment. She usually held some regard for Kisa, it was minimal at best, but at the moment she was far too self-absorbed and focused on seething to spare her companion a thought.
Silence was perhaps the best course of action for Itae at the moment, though. Words could be a dangerous thing. And perhaps spark her to act. And there was plenty of pent up frustration waiting to burst out with chakra and fists.
They would reach a small town sometime after sunset. Kisa was looking forward to staying at an inn, as they had been camping out for much too long. It would be nice to have some decent food, a warm place to sleep and maybe some human interaction, because Itae definitely didn't count at the moment.
She knew better than to make an attempt at conversation. And she wouldn’t have… if it hadn’t started to rain.
“Wonderful.”
Itae had thought Kisa knew words weren’t necessary right now. But apparently she chose to speak anyway. She always was more vocal. The Uchiha swiveled her twirling Sharingan towards Kisa and didn’t bother to hide her scowl, though the collar of her coat hid most of her face.
She wished they had the straw hats, even if they leaked most of the time. At least it would keep water off her neck and her hair. She blinked irritably and shook her head once to get rid of a particularly large drop that was sliding down her bang and threatening to land on her cheek.
She still was not feeling much for words, no, she would much prefer to Tsukiyomi a particular Konoha-nin. Or three. Itae turned her eyes again and glared into the distance. She was mentally daring someone to try and attack. She’d have a few choice jutsu for them.
Now all she needed was a victim.
Kisa hadn’t really expected anything other than a glare in reply, but it didn’t stop her from being slightly irritated. Itae probably blamed her for not getting rid of the green brat sooner. Which, admittedly, she should have, but it seemed that things never went as planned when it came to the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. There was nothing she could do about it now.
They reached the village without much incident and Kisa found herself feeling a lot more cheerful at the sight of a dango shop.
It was likely due to such a long silence, but seeing the dango shop - especially with it being one of the first shops - made Itae’s Sharingan stop twirling. She even considered dropping it. Maybe. Possibly. But not likely.
“I’m buying dango,” she said in a low voice, quiet enough that it like she was talking to herself more than Kisa.
Without waiting for Kisa’s response, she walked into the shop and got her dango. No words were exchanged with the shopkeeper, even though he looked at the stack of boxes filled with dango curiously. When she didn’t even meet his eyes, he gave up and simply took the money. She emerged from the store scant minutes later, tossing a box of them at Kisa and continuing down the street.
If one were to look closely, it would look like Itae was clutching the dango to her protectively. But it was doubtful anyone would look too closely if they knew who she was. As it was, she was an agitated wanderer robed in a desert cloak and restocking half of a small dango shop.
Kisa caught the box and smiled as they continued down the street. Things were starting to look up. The rain had eventually become nothing more than drizzle; she had dango and… was that a bar? Her smile slowly turned into a smirk. It made several passers-by scurry out of her way, but that was hardly new.
“I’m getting a drink,” she announced. “I'll see you later, then. Unless” - a quick glance at Itae - “you would like to join me?”
Which might not be such a good idea. She knew that Itae’s tolerance for alcohol wasn’t exactly high, but after the whole fiasco with the jinchuuriki… She’d probably still say no. Shrugging, Kisa headed towards the bar.
What was she…she wasn’t. She couldn’t possibly be planning on getting drunk. And inviting Uchiha Itae along? Unthinkable. Stupid. Pathetic.
…and yet very tempting.
She could at least keep an eye on Kisa and bars were prone to fights. Perhaps Itae could work off some of her frustration on the patrons. And they would be fools to stop her from eating her dango there.
Kisa had headed towards it on her own and Itae scowled for nearly a minute before she pivoted, slid some of the boxes into hidden compartments people would never know about, and kept out two boxes to consume once she got inside. Of course, a good bashing of some civilian morons might take precedence, but only with the promise of dango afterwards.
Kisa had better not make her regret this.
It wasn’t exactly a pleasant surprise, seeing as how Itae was still scowling, but Kisa was glad to see her nonetheless. Shaking her head a little at how the other woman immediately turned heads the moment she entered, she poured herself some sake and waited.
It was a surprisingly common feeling to have most of the eyes shift to her. Itae ignored them all and went over to Kisa, taking a seat next to her and starting on her first stick of dango. She was going to enjoy herself, no matter to her environment or situation. Escaped Jinchuuriki or not, Itae would revel in her dango - meaning she would simply linger a bit - and get a lot of sleep tonight. Kisa could get as drunk as she pleased, but Itae had no interest in alcohol.
She never liked remembering glimpses of the time she had gotten drunk. Let alone the hangover had risked several people's lives. Itae's not included.
Kisa’s, unfortunately, had been included. And although it had been a rather amusing experience, it wasn’t one she cared to repeat. The fact remained that those who dealt with Uchiha Itae, especially when she was drunk or hung-over, were unlikely to live to tell the tale.
Therefore, when an extra sake dish was suddenly set down in front of her partner, Kisa carefully ignored it and went back to what she had been doing before: examining her chipped nail polish. She didn’t know what had possessed Leader-sama to include it as part of their uniform, but she did know that they were expected to appear their best at all times.
“We should get some more nail polish,” she mused, ignoring the unspoken rule of…not speaking.
Why Kisa was thinking of nail polish was not within Itae's understanding. She blinked once and looked over at the taller woman before returning her eyes to the counter in front of her and continuing on her dango. "I've never been fond of the nail polish," she murmured and examined her own hand. The polish was mostly intact, though she saw it was beginning to fade on her left hand. Itae was very good at being pristine, but nail polish was not her favorite thing to maintain.
She let the stick of dango dangle in her mouth for a moment and held both hands out before her. Yes, her left hand had more faded nail polish. "If we must," she said around the dango, and then lowered her hands, pulling out the dango and spotting Kisa's still full sake dish. She knew getting drunk would not be pleasant, but the option still seemed appealing at the moment. Perhaps just one.
Her free hand snatched up the sake and she had taken a sip of the alcohol before Kisa could stop her. The burning and buzz was almost pleasant.
Kisa could only stare in surprise. Itae was unpredictable, certainly, but that had been unusual even by her standards. “Itae-san,” she started hesitantly. She doubted that either of them wanted a repeat performance of last time. “Are you sure that is....wise?”
In response to Kisa's question Itae merely met the woman's eyes and threw back the rest of the sake. "I have no intention of repeating the drunken brawl," she murmured and set down the sake dish. She pushed the porcelain back to her companion and blinked once. "Why dirty another glass when that is all I'm going to drink?"
She turned back to her dango and idly ate them, acting as if nothing had happened. The sake was still burning and working its way through her system, but Itae hoped it would coax her into calming down instead of inflaming her to another embarrassing incident.
“Why indeed.”
And it was a good point, which was the reason Kisa found herself wondering, an hour or so later, why Itae had snatched her sake dish yet again. The Uchiha had also started on a second box of dango and didn’t look like she would be stopping anytime soon.
She watched the other woman with a resigned sort of amusement before pouring the last of the sake into both her dish and the one in front of Itae.
“Cheers,” she said dryly.
"Mm," she murmured and curled her fingers around the sake dish. It had become a habit - if this short visit in the bar could be long enough for a habit to form - to drink whatever was placed before her. Fingers around the dish, arm lift the dish, touch it to her lips, part the lips, and tilt the head back just enough to let it trickle in. The burning no longer bothered her, she hardly felt it anymore.
Itae wasn't thinking of the Kyuubi, nor of the present. Somehow she had drifted back to Konoha. To the quiet back porch and Sachiko pestering her. Her mother giving her those looks that demanded perfection. Fugami always received it, there was never a doubt about that. There had been some trite phrases, something she'd been taught as a very young child. Before the kunai fit perfectly into her hand and the glisten of blood was natural.
Her lips moved slowly, working out the thoughts silently before Itae felt comfortable enough to let the air reach her vocal cords. "To not watch the ground is foolish, but to stare is shame." She furrowed her brows and pursed her lips. "Shameful?"
Kisa arched an eyebrow. Usually, Itae only spoke when spoken to and sometimes not even then. Mission briefings and reports didn't count. She supposed the alcohol would have done something about that, though it didn’t make Itae’s choice of words any less unexpected.
“Where did you hear that?” she inquired mildly.
"Kaasan," she said, looking down at the empty sake dish. Part of her mind couldn't remember when she had drank the sake and the rest of it seemed to not care. For once, she almost entirely at ease. This rise of memories was starting to agitate her, but not enough that she was the least bit alarmed. Itae was used to being annoyed with things, what more was a little bit of her past?
"One of those mindless Uchiha trites. Things to tell children how to behave and be good Uchiha little." Itae frowned. "I said that wrong." How much alcohol had she consumed? That fact was unknown. And while this would normally have bothered her, the matter did nothing to her mood.
“Hm…” If Itae was tripping over her words and reminiscing about her past, she was even more inebriated than Kisa had thought.
It was technically her duty to back up her partner, or in this case, not let her do anything stupid, but all Itae was doing so far was talking. Kisa didn’t see a problem with that. Besides, the sake had her feeling more relaxed and perhaps a little curious as well. It wasn’t often that they had what could actually count as a conversation, so she might as well make the most of it.
“Were there a lot of those?”
"Too many," she nodded and Itae refocused her eyes on a half-eaten stick of dango. Why was there some left? She always ate an entire stick before putting it back down. Apparently the alcohol really was affecting her. She looked over the parts of the bar she could without moving and then gave Kisa what the taller woman could interpret as a curious gaze. It wasn't seen often, but the emotion came to Itae on rare occasions.
"Would," she paused, wondering why she was even thinking of offering. "Would you like to hear more?" This new talkative mood was odd, but not entirely threatening. No, the moment it was dangerous to her reputation, she would stop. But Kisa looked more stable at the moment. Or at least Itae thought she did.
How drunk was she?
Kisa was wondering much the same thing but shrugged it off. She was still sober enough to deal with any sort of threat, even if Itae wasn’t.
“Certainly,” she replied.
What sort of mindless trites had Uchiha children been fed to turn out so… Well, 'unique' was putting it lightly. Perhaps she shouldn’t have come to that conclusion after meeting only two of said children, but it wasn’t like there were any left to compare them with.
It took far more effort than she liked to remember the actual phrases. For a moment she merely forced her mind to recollect one of the numerous phrases she had memorized for the sake of keeping the Uchiha clan happy. "To show a good face is to..." Itae narrowed her eyes in irritation. "These phrases should not be so difficult to recall."
For a moment she closed her eyes. "To show a good face is to show..." Itae's sharingan swirled in agitation. "It tells Uchiha children to not show their emotions and control situations by such self discipline." She held the dish tighter and frowned. "To show a good face is to show control? To show a good face is...to control?" Itae nodded at the latter, starting to spin the empty dish. "That must be it. To show a good face is to control."
“I see.”
Watching the Sharingan swirl, Kisa decided that letting Itae talk about her past wasn’t such a good idea after all.
“Itae-san? I think you've had enough. Perhaps we should leave now.”
"Hn, perhaps we should." Itae stopped the dish as it spun once more and then rose to her feet, surprisingly steady for how unlike herself she had sounded only moments before.
"Leaving would be good." And the past would stay where it was. Where it belonged.
The day had passed relatively slowly, but that left Itae with plenty of time to consider the last fight. The Kyuubi Jinchuuriki had been right there. All she had to do was snatch the brat up and they could be ripping the demon out and be nearly done with it.
But that stupid brat with the weights.... Itae kept seething and kept her face stiff and her pace steady.
The fact that they were no longer surrounded by desert was no comfort to Kisa. She was still frustrated at their defeat and would have gladly taken it out on the nearest moving thing. This, unfortunately, happened to be Itae, and though she could be reckless at times, Kisa did not have a death wish.
But the silence was starting to get to her. There was only so long she could be content with imagining the many ways she would deal with the Azure Beauty of Konoha, if they were to ever meet again.
It wasn’t right to be this irritated after a fight. She was supposed to be at her last breath or severely wounded before she lost a fight. Though Itae preferred not losing at all. She appeared to do it gracefully, but that’s only because no one could see her mental processes. No, the mind of Uchiha Itae was a dark and terrible place at the moment. She usually held some regard for Kisa, it was minimal at best, but at the moment she was far too self-absorbed and focused on seething to spare her companion a thought.
Silence was perhaps the best course of action for Itae at the moment, though. Words could be a dangerous thing. And perhaps spark her to act. And there was plenty of pent up frustration waiting to burst out with chakra and fists.
They would reach a small town sometime after sunset. Kisa was looking forward to staying at an inn, as they had been camping out for much too long. It would be nice to have some decent food, a warm place to sleep and maybe some human interaction, because Itae definitely didn't count at the moment.
She knew better than to make an attempt at conversation. And she wouldn’t have… if it hadn’t started to rain.
“Wonderful.”
Itae had thought Kisa knew words weren’t necessary right now. But apparently she chose to speak anyway. She always was more vocal. The Uchiha swiveled her twirling Sharingan towards Kisa and didn’t bother to hide her scowl, though the collar of her coat hid most of her face.
She wished they had the straw hats, even if they leaked most of the time. At least it would keep water off her neck and her hair. She blinked irritably and shook her head once to get rid of a particularly large drop that was sliding down her bang and threatening to land on her cheek.
She still was not feeling much for words, no, she would much prefer to Tsukiyomi a particular Konoha-nin. Or three. Itae turned her eyes again and glared into the distance. She was mentally daring someone to try and attack. She’d have a few choice jutsu for them.
Now all she needed was a victim.
Kisa hadn’t really expected anything other than a glare in reply, but it didn’t stop her from being slightly irritated. Itae probably blamed her for not getting rid of the green brat sooner. Which, admittedly, she should have, but it seemed that things never went as planned when it came to the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. There was nothing she could do about it now.
They reached the village without much incident and Kisa found herself feeling a lot more cheerful at the sight of a dango shop.
It was likely due to such a long silence, but seeing the dango shop - especially with it being one of the first shops - made Itae’s Sharingan stop twirling. She even considered dropping it. Maybe. Possibly. But not likely.
“I’m buying dango,” she said in a low voice, quiet enough that it like she was talking to herself more than Kisa.
Without waiting for Kisa’s response, she walked into the shop and got her dango. No words were exchanged with the shopkeeper, even though he looked at the stack of boxes filled with dango curiously. When she didn’t even meet his eyes, he gave up and simply took the money. She emerged from the store scant minutes later, tossing a box of them at Kisa and continuing down the street.
If one were to look closely, it would look like Itae was clutching the dango to her protectively. But it was doubtful anyone would look too closely if they knew who she was. As it was, she was an agitated wanderer robed in a desert cloak and restocking half of a small dango shop.
Kisa caught the box and smiled as they continued down the street. Things were starting to look up. The rain had eventually become nothing more than drizzle; she had dango and… was that a bar? Her smile slowly turned into a smirk. It made several passers-by scurry out of her way, but that was hardly new.
“I’m getting a drink,” she announced. “I'll see you later, then. Unless” - a quick glance at Itae - “you would like to join me?”
Which might not be such a good idea. She knew that Itae’s tolerance for alcohol wasn’t exactly high, but after the whole fiasco with the jinchuuriki… She’d probably still say no. Shrugging, Kisa headed towards the bar.
What was she…she wasn’t. She couldn’t possibly be planning on getting drunk. And inviting Uchiha Itae along? Unthinkable. Stupid. Pathetic.
…and yet very tempting.
She could at least keep an eye on Kisa and bars were prone to fights. Perhaps Itae could work off some of her frustration on the patrons. And they would be fools to stop her from eating her dango there.
Kisa had headed towards it on her own and Itae scowled for nearly a minute before she pivoted, slid some of the boxes into hidden compartments people would never know about, and kept out two boxes to consume once she got inside. Of course, a good bashing of some civilian morons might take precedence, but only with the promise of dango afterwards.
Kisa had better not make her regret this.
It wasn’t exactly a pleasant surprise, seeing as how Itae was still scowling, but Kisa was glad to see her nonetheless. Shaking her head a little at how the other woman immediately turned heads the moment she entered, she poured herself some sake and waited.
It was a surprisingly common feeling to have most of the eyes shift to her. Itae ignored them all and went over to Kisa, taking a seat next to her and starting on her first stick of dango. She was going to enjoy herself, no matter to her environment or situation. Escaped Jinchuuriki or not, Itae would revel in her dango - meaning she would simply linger a bit - and get a lot of sleep tonight. Kisa could get as drunk as she pleased, but Itae had no interest in alcohol.
She never liked remembering glimpses of the time she had gotten drunk. Let alone the hangover had risked several people's lives. Itae's not included.
Kisa’s, unfortunately, had been included. And although it had been a rather amusing experience, it wasn’t one she cared to repeat. The fact remained that those who dealt with Uchiha Itae, especially when she was drunk or hung-over, were unlikely to live to tell the tale.
Therefore, when an extra sake dish was suddenly set down in front of her partner, Kisa carefully ignored it and went back to what she had been doing before: examining her chipped nail polish. She didn’t know what had possessed Leader-sama to include it as part of their uniform, but she did know that they were expected to appear their best at all times.
“We should get some more nail polish,” she mused, ignoring the unspoken rule of…not speaking.
Why Kisa was thinking of nail polish was not within Itae's understanding. She blinked once and looked over at the taller woman before returning her eyes to the counter in front of her and continuing on her dango. "I've never been fond of the nail polish," she murmured and examined her own hand. The polish was mostly intact, though she saw it was beginning to fade on her left hand. Itae was very good at being pristine, but nail polish was not her favorite thing to maintain.
She let the stick of dango dangle in her mouth for a moment and held both hands out before her. Yes, her left hand had more faded nail polish. "If we must," she said around the dango, and then lowered her hands, pulling out the dango and spotting Kisa's still full sake dish. She knew getting drunk would not be pleasant, but the option still seemed appealing at the moment. Perhaps just one.
Her free hand snatched up the sake and she had taken a sip of the alcohol before Kisa could stop her. The burning and buzz was almost pleasant.
Kisa could only stare in surprise. Itae was unpredictable, certainly, but that had been unusual even by her standards. “Itae-san,” she started hesitantly. She doubted that either of them wanted a repeat performance of last time. “Are you sure that is....wise?”
In response to Kisa's question Itae merely met the woman's eyes and threw back the rest of the sake. "I have no intention of repeating the drunken brawl," she murmured and set down the sake dish. She pushed the porcelain back to her companion and blinked once. "Why dirty another glass when that is all I'm going to drink?"
She turned back to her dango and idly ate them, acting as if nothing had happened. The sake was still burning and working its way through her system, but Itae hoped it would coax her into calming down instead of inflaming her to another embarrassing incident.
“Why indeed.”
And it was a good point, which was the reason Kisa found herself wondering, an hour or so later, why Itae had snatched her sake dish yet again. The Uchiha had also started on a second box of dango and didn’t look like she would be stopping anytime soon.
She watched the other woman with a resigned sort of amusement before pouring the last of the sake into both her dish and the one in front of Itae.
“Cheers,” she said dryly.
"Mm," she murmured and curled her fingers around the sake dish. It had become a habit - if this short visit in the bar could be long enough for a habit to form - to drink whatever was placed before her. Fingers around the dish, arm lift the dish, touch it to her lips, part the lips, and tilt the head back just enough to let it trickle in. The burning no longer bothered her, she hardly felt it anymore.
Itae wasn't thinking of the Kyuubi, nor of the present. Somehow she had drifted back to Konoha. To the quiet back porch and Sachiko pestering her. Her mother giving her those looks that demanded perfection. Fugami always received it, there was never a doubt about that. There had been some trite phrases, something she'd been taught as a very young child. Before the kunai fit perfectly into her hand and the glisten of blood was natural.
Her lips moved slowly, working out the thoughts silently before Itae felt comfortable enough to let the air reach her vocal cords. "To not watch the ground is foolish, but to stare is shame." She furrowed her brows and pursed her lips. "Shameful?"
Kisa arched an eyebrow. Usually, Itae only spoke when spoken to and sometimes not even then. Mission briefings and reports didn't count. She supposed the alcohol would have done something about that, though it didn’t make Itae’s choice of words any less unexpected.
“Where did you hear that?” she inquired mildly.
"Kaasan," she said, looking down at the empty sake dish. Part of her mind couldn't remember when she had drank the sake and the rest of it seemed to not care. For once, she almost entirely at ease. This rise of memories was starting to agitate her, but not enough that she was the least bit alarmed. Itae was used to being annoyed with things, what more was a little bit of her past?
"One of those mindless Uchiha trites. Things to tell children how to behave and be good Uchiha little." Itae frowned. "I said that wrong." How much alcohol had she consumed? That fact was unknown. And while this would normally have bothered her, the matter did nothing to her mood.
“Hm…” If Itae was tripping over her words and reminiscing about her past, she was even more inebriated than Kisa had thought.
It was technically her duty to back up her partner, or in this case, not let her do anything stupid, but all Itae was doing so far was talking. Kisa didn’t see a problem with that. Besides, the sake had her feeling more relaxed and perhaps a little curious as well. It wasn’t often that they had what could actually count as a conversation, so she might as well make the most of it.
“Were there a lot of those?”
"Too many," she nodded and Itae refocused her eyes on a half-eaten stick of dango. Why was there some left? She always ate an entire stick before putting it back down. Apparently the alcohol really was affecting her. She looked over the parts of the bar she could without moving and then gave Kisa what the taller woman could interpret as a curious gaze. It wasn't seen often, but the emotion came to Itae on rare occasions.
"Would," she paused, wondering why she was even thinking of offering. "Would you like to hear more?" This new talkative mood was odd, but not entirely threatening. No, the moment it was dangerous to her reputation, she would stop. But Kisa looked more stable at the moment. Or at least Itae thought she did.
How drunk was she?
Kisa was wondering much the same thing but shrugged it off. She was still sober enough to deal with any sort of threat, even if Itae wasn’t.
“Certainly,” she replied.
What sort of mindless trites had Uchiha children been fed to turn out so… Well, 'unique' was putting it lightly. Perhaps she shouldn’t have come to that conclusion after meeting only two of said children, but it wasn’t like there were any left to compare them with.
It took far more effort than she liked to remember the actual phrases. For a moment she merely forced her mind to recollect one of the numerous phrases she had memorized for the sake of keeping the Uchiha clan happy. "To show a good face is to..." Itae narrowed her eyes in irritation. "These phrases should not be so difficult to recall."
For a moment she closed her eyes. "To show a good face is to show..." Itae's sharingan swirled in agitation. "It tells Uchiha children to not show their emotions and control situations by such self discipline." She held the dish tighter and frowned. "To show a good face is to show control? To show a good face is...to control?" Itae nodded at the latter, starting to spin the empty dish. "That must be it. To show a good face is to control."
“I see.”
Watching the Sharingan swirl, Kisa decided that letting Itae talk about her past wasn’t such a good idea after all.
“Itae-san? I think you've had enough. Perhaps we should leave now.”
"Hn, perhaps we should." Itae stopped the dish as it spun once more and then rose to her feet, surprisingly steady for how unlike herself she had sounded only moments before.
"Leaving would be good." And the past would stay where it was. Where it belonged.