spandexisyouth | Thirty-second Lotus

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Thirty-second Lotus

I am sorry if anyone has missed me. I did not mean to get injured. But I am recovering! And clearly I am better; they have let me have my journal back! And it is not because I kept asking.

I think I am going to step up my training. I need to. This means that if there are others who would like to learn and train, I could take on more students! When I am doing better. I am not completely back to normal. But I am close enough! I will be back to normal soon!

The wilderness is very nice, for those who have not seen it yet.

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[Hearing the knock, Gai got off the couch with more care than he would have used if Bell was at home. Sure, others knew he was hurt, but if he didn't give in to the pain around them he could pretend he wasn't that bad off.

A bandage-wrapped, slightly more pale than normal Gai greeted Sighted at the door.] Come in! It is good to see you again.

[He saw the wrist. There wasn't anything he could do except sympathize. Gai closed the door behind Sighted when the boy was inside the house.] Can I get you anything? There is water and I can make tea! And I can let the puppies out if you wish for puppy attention. They like guests.

[His eyes passed over Youth, lips upturned in disapproval as he finished his assessment. He ducked his head, removing his shoes absently as he stepped inside and glanced around.]

Tea is fine, thank you. As for the dogs, I'd rather keep my cast clean if at all possible.

[Gai stiffened at the look, even though it hurt some muscle groups. He could almost feel the scorn in Sighted. It wasn't like he'd just fallen over or something. He'd fought and been overcome. But Gai agreed that he should be better than that.]

Then tea it shall be. And the dogs are very clean. Bell takes good care of them.

[He filled the pot and lit the stove, prepping cups, before talking from the small kitchen area.]

Our world is a world of ninja. I am sure there must be some who are not ninja in it, but most of us seem to fit the pattern. I am a ninja, so is Bell, so is Samehada. So were Lotus, my son, and Crow. ...And so is Apostle.

[The names don't register anything akin to familiarity, so he leaves them alone for now as he watched Youth move about with recovering injuries. The shred of guilt was there and he wondered if he should offer to help]

Can I ask how you know we're ninja?

[Only a few of them were still around. And Sighted probably hadn't had a chance to hear about Apostle yet.]

When I was talking with one of my friends, Genius, he wrote the word, and it seemed... familiar. And then Crow wrote saying that Bell and myself should meet with him in the dojo, where he lived, so we could talk. When we met, we discussed our world for quite a while, being careful. Everything he said felt right. He also was the one that said Lotus could be my son, and meeting Lotus confirmed this.

[The water boils, and Gai pours it into the mugs, setting them onto a little tray along with sugar before gingerly bringing the tray over. He felt old. He didn't like this.]

I see... [A quiet, thoughtful murmur, reaching for the tea absently. Fingers curled and pain shot through his arm and he retracted it, having temporarily forgotten the handicap. Maybe neither of them had been as prepared as they liked. He reached for his tea again with his working hand and held it steadily, choosing not to bother with sugar to avoid the extra hassle]

So you're going on a feeling. [Not much to go on, but they didn't have that to begin with so anything was something] What did he say about it?

[He frowned at the recoil. It stung to see Sighted hurt, though Gai wasn't sure if it was more than simple empathy or not.] Would you like a hand with sugar? [While Gai didn't know if Sighted liked sugar in his tea or not, he could at least offer.]

A sense of familiarity, yes. Just as I have with Bell, and Crow, and you. And walking up trees and across water. They are things that seem right, and have been proven to be right. I had a memory, after Crow spoke with us, that proved I am indeed a ninja.

[Gai shrugged, trying not to wince after doing so.] That we are more than just killers. That we served the village in every way we could, which included simple tasks as well.

No. [Sighted bristled, indignant, and straightened, but anything further on the subject was dropped in favor of surprise]

You can walk up trees and on water? [Incredulous, disbelieving, he shook his head and stared into his tea for a moment] We served a village, hm? A military-type force then, I assume? Or more like mercenaries?

I did not mean to imply anything. [Gai's voice is gentle.]

[He nods.] We can! Crow, Itachi, said that we could, and so we worked on it, and now we can. You can as well, I am sure. I feel your energy, your chakra. With practice, you can learn! And we were more military-like. We were loyal to the village, from what I understand.

Chakra... [Sighted glanced at his hand, wondering with a fascinated interest. The word felt familiar, and he held onto it, believing a little more firmly now that what Youth said about being connected to be true- as odd as it still seemed.]

How do we use it?

[Gai paused before answering.]

There are probably other uses, but focusing chakra in my feet is what allows me to walk up or across things that most people cannot. I think it was even implied that there are other uses. But I do not know them yet. We will have to rely on trying and memories to find out.

I see. [Not entirely, but he wasn't stupid enough to try walking on water before learning some semblance of control over his chakra. Even then, it'd be solid surfaces first, then only shallow water if he could find any.

But it didn't matter how long it took, he had a more attainable short-term goal now and something to look forward to and work on- more than the vague 'remember who I am and find a way back' mentality from before. Now he was more content to discover those things slowly and take it with the patience it seemed to require- discovering things a little at a time]

That's interesting. You said you train regularly?

I do. I train every day, running by myself and with Fred, teaching a student or two depending on the day, and work out more in the afternoon. Then for my Watch patrol I make it more physically demanding than it has to be, and I have a light workout after that, often!

[And no mention of working out after he gets home. That doesn't need to be said.]

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Thirty-second Lotus

Action; wheeeee

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Action; (Also, Youth totally listed Book. Totally.)

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