endgames | 037 -- [Voice

[With Naruto MIA (and if he's being experimented on, he hopes his pal fries the Rogues good in the process), Shikamaru can't afford to cut out at the convenience store, much as he wants to. He takes the morning shift, debating whether he should look into hiring more people again, before finding his journal returned to him halfway in.

Yeah, returned. Don't ask. ...it got eaten, okay. Don't ask.

Later in the day, when he's off, he decides to mark the occasion.]

[Voice]

Congratulations, Luceti. As of today, it's been a year since TERRACE, and so a year since this village's seen a draft. They've been happening less and less frequently, but that's a record even for us. [Which is a good thing, if you can't tell from how pleased he sounds.]

Speaking about misconceptions... Let's play a game. Pretend I'm a New Feather here, freshly arrived and working on the half-naked problem. A couple dozen people have explained the thing about the wings, don't worry, but I still have no idea how I got here, or where 'here' is.

How do you explain the situation? What's the first thing you tell me about the world, or the Malnosso? If you don't feel comfortable saying it on the journals, you can find me at the playground if you want to say it in person. Any of you who've been here for less than two years, I'd be interested in your response especially.

[/end]

[True to his word, Shikamaru will be at the playground all afternoon, hogging the roundabout while school's still in session and begrudgingly giving it up when the kids are out for a spot in the sand. He'll have his journal and a separate notepad with him, scribbling in both.

When the sun goes down, he'll hang out for a little while longer for latecomers before calling it a day and going to the bar. He has no intention of getting sloshed, but he'll stick around long enough to have some fun and knock back more than a few.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

...My, has it really been a year since that draft? [Hm] I highly doubt this taste is fitting of the expression "time flies when you're having fun", but it's still a curious matter when you consider it.

[...Oddly enough, Cilan doesn't seem to be interested, or perhaps automatically prepared, to come up with an answer to that hypothetical scenario of yours yet...]

[TAKE YOUR TIME, BRO.]

It's a change in our favor. The Malnosso we're losing before, which is why we keep getting called. They were spread to thin before, which is why we kept getting dragged into it.

Now that the Third Party's taken a hit, they're getting a handle on this war again, so they don't need us so much.

Oh, I see! In that case, I hope this taste will continue to have a fortuitous flavor to it!

You and me both, man. I think the missions might be helping our case too, but I haven't seen a lot of big ones either lately...

Neither have I, though I admit that I haven't paid as much attention in regards to what missions were available as of late. [Not that Cilan has ever really been on any missions, but he does make a note of them when there are any just in case anyone he knows left for one, but lately he's been too distracted trying to keep an eye on his brother and Ash to do that...] Perhaps they wish to handle the matters that they believe to have the most important taste to them on their own for now.

I'll take it as a sign they're getting a grip on things again. The usual missions are still going, so it's not like they don't need us. I can work with the small stuff.

[Oh? Hm...] Just out of curiosity, what kind of missions do you consider to be "small stuff" to contend with here?

They have some routine gigs. Patrols and defense of areas that are still contested, for example, or for specialized skills like cooks or medics. They're never gonna say no to a strong back willing to play pack mule for them either.

Oh, I see. [He seems to be thinking for a moment, before--]

...Ah, I'm sorry, it occurs to me that I didn't give an answer to that question you posed earlier. [The one about the hypothetical scenario of how he would explain the world and the Malnosso.] For you, I'd try to tell you everything I know regarding the tastes of Luceti, like how everyone was brought here from different times and places, and that the Malnosso are keeping us here in Luceti because of a war going on outside the barrier.

[...But that's because, in this hypothetical scenario, you're Shikamaru. If you were, say, Ash or Iris or any of his young friends like them, he might have mostly left out any intimate details regarding the part involving a war...]

[Oh friendship, and spoiling young minds.]

Would you say that's for our protection?

[Well excuse us for not wanting to traumatize ten-year-olds with details about fighting and, god forbid, killing people in wars!]

Hm...personally speaking, yes, and no. While being here does offer some security, once in a while there will be people that are drafted to fight, sometimes whether they'd like to or not. It's hard to say that it's only for our protection in that particular case...

[True true. Even ninja wait until you're twelve.]

Mm, good point. [He's glad to have found someone who recognizes both sides of the issue.] Though that begs the question: if protecting us is a goal at all, why send us in the first place?

Hm. I can't say I would know their exact frame of mind, but...I must admit, it's hard to consider an optimistic approach to their reasoning, given how dreadful these drafts tend to be.

[He's certainly had some pretty bitter thoughts about it once or twice that are definitely coming to mind now, but...he's Cilan, the quirky nice guy who is usually more interested in talking about dorky things instead of spreading any negativity, so...]

I see. [There's a bit of quiet on the other end, as Shikamaru pauses to write something down.]

Thank you for that.

[...?] There's no need to thank us. I'm glad that I was able to be of assistance.

[Even if we're not entirely sure what exactly you're thanking us for here...]

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