025 -- [Action || Voice]

[endgames]

[When Shikamaru heads down to Asuma's apartment Monday morning, he finds it empty of everything but Kurenai's things and a silver lighter standing on the table. It's wrong, but he doesn't give in to the false hope.

Of course it would stay. Even though Shikamaru gave it back to him, the lighter stopped being Asuma's the moment he picked it off his dying body.

Kurenai must've stepped out before it happened. She's a ninja, and not so senseless to have left the door wide open and run off in her grief. And so he waits for her, and tries to find his words.

After he leaves Kurenai, he has to tell Ino. Team 8 he'll find in person too - he has a request for them on top of this. It's been too long since they've heard a stir from their enemies.]

[It's well past midnight before an announcement comes, after he's made this post and spent a few hours going over the discussions there. When people are either busy with the information he gave them, or asleep.

He smokes a cigarette on his way back to his apartment in the night air, putting it out before he steps into the building, his posture falsely relaxed until he steps into his own room.]

Sarutobi Asuma is gone. [There's a pause and- no, he doesn't think it was mentioned.] Also, Haruno Sakura returned to her world a few weeks ago, for anyone who knew her.

Funnily enough, I haven't seen that masked Akatsuki guy in a while either...

[Too many people to filter that too. It's vague enough, but anyone who needs to know should get what he means. It would have been better news if he'd known before.

He'll answer journal comments in the morning.]

Comments

[generalflirt]

Good, because I hated that.

[People need to break, need to shatter before they can be reborn. They need to destroy their preconceived notions and values before they can accept something which is grander, something which exists beyond the world that they've invented for themselves.

"Masaomi Kida" is no longer the general of the Yellow Scarves.
"Masaomi Kida" is no longer the failed son of Yori Kida.
"Masaomi Kida" is no longer a "bad boy" you warn girls away from.
"Masaomo Kida" is no longer so fragile, so weak, so irresponsible.

He owes it all to a shattering. He owes it all to the build up and love he's received here, and to the courage he thrust into himself following his world collapsing around him. He owes to to Saki breaking his heart, to being rejected by Katara, and to killing her. He owes this strength of a giant mountain of failures and lies - not ones he learned from necessarily, but ones he survived. He owes it to Sokka, and to Katara, and to others.

He takes a step forward and wraps the one arm he can use around his best friend, his own voice faltering somewhat. Cracking]

And I'm sorry I felt I needed to make my point like that.

[endgames]

[He already forgave him once for that; he doesn't think he can say it again. He tucks his head down, though, until the crown of it is pressed against Masaomi's good shoulder. Lets the anger subside, and lets him know its fine.

Shikamaru hasn't shattered yet, but it's a crack. A large one straight across his heart, and it's seeping something he's not sure he wants to understand, something more than grief.

But this feels okay, though. He can fix it with this. With Naruto, and Ino, and everyone else here. With Katara, and now with Masaomi.]