Tag: naruto

Merry Christmas! Thanks for all your hard work. That’s some good bones for the Temari/Shikako snippet, I’d love to see more! Thanks again!

jacksgreysonLeave a comment

A/N1: Merry Christmas to you too! I’m grateful for your continued support and also your own wonderful artworks 🙂

I’m glad you like the snippet. Unfortunately, I can’t think of much else to do with that ‘verse that wouldn’t just be a remix of Dreaming of S(omething).

However there is an AU that I’ve kind of been wanting to play around with that I think would suit Temari/Shikako, so please enjoy:

~

Temari lets Kamatari roam free, only keeping half an eye on him as he darts beneath unsuspecting pedestrians. He’s smart enough to know not to go too far from her, and quick enough to avoid actually getting trampled.

And besides, as a manifestation of her magic, it’s not like he can even be seen by normal people.

She turns her attention back to the stall in front of her, perusing the little trinkets for sale. She knows what to get for Kankurou–an authentic Fire Country style puppet and, more importantly, the book on how to make them–but Gaara has always been more difficult to read.

Maybe a tooled leather wallet? But that seems kind of impersonal, especially for her baby brother. Well, no longer a baby. If he were still a baby–or even still a teenager–she’d get him a stuffed toy, but Gaara has been quite firm about being an adult lately and she doesn’t want to undermine that.

With a polite shake of the head, she disengages from the stall owner and continues her search.

The concept of an open air market isn’t unfamiliar to her, Suna’s bazaars are extensive and world famous, but Leaf’s night market is a seasonal thing, coinciding with their winter holidays, and it’s apparent. There’s a sense of cheer in the air–the twinkling lights and decorations, the sounds of music and the scent of sugary treats–as if this were a month long festival and not just a place of commerce.

Unfamiliar, but far from bad. One of many new experiences she can appreciate during her year abroad.

A frisson of excitement runs through her, stopping her in her tracks. Baffled, she glances around–only stall signs and the shoes of strangers.

Where is Kamatari?

—

Every year for the Konoha Holiday Night Market, the Nara clan run an unusually successful deer petting zoo and sleigh ride.

Unnaturally successful, some might even say, except there aren’t any detractors to the Nara deer display. There have never been any accidents and there’s something irresistibly delightful about having a normally skittish animal eat from your hands.

“… and make sure you keep your fingers flat,” Shikako finishes instructing, demonstrating for the group of kids eagerly waiting for their turn. Gemmei, one of the herds oldest and thus calmest members, is perfect for the excitable audience, delicately taking the apple slice into her mouth and chewing demurely.

With gasps of awe, the children circle around, each armed with apple slices or carrot sticks of their own. Shikako extracts herself, confident that Gemmei has the situation handled, before walking over to Heijomaru and leaning against him with a tired sigh.

He deigns to acknowledge her with a fond lipping to her hair, before resuming a majestic surveillance of his herd. It’s not likely there will be any incidents, even with little Nagaoka new to the display this year, but this is the one time a year that the herd can receive attention from non-magical people.

Heijomaru is old enough to remember when the general populace were not so kind to his herd–deer and humans both.

Still, even with the relative ease that comes from running a petting zoo with sentient deer, it’s still tiring. Draining, more precisely.

Her family and relatives are the ones doing most of the manual labor, but she’s the one whose magic is sustaining the herd’s presence.

Slouched over and near to hanging off Heijomaru’s ornamented saddle, Shikako is the first one to spot the sleek furry body of a weasel winding its way around the fence posts of the herd’s display.

—

Temari follows the connection between her and Kamatari, curious more than concerned. The ebbs of emotion from Kamatari aren’t nearly as potent as that first one, but they’re still giddy. Burbling as if he were still a young kit and not a hardened combat familiar.

Their bond leads her to the far end of the market, filled more with the activity and entertainment stalls that she had originally declined.

Perhaps that had been a mistake.

Approaching a penned off area filled with the scent of animal and straw, she watches as Kamatari clambers over the back of a massive deer. He leaps, flamboyantly, from deer to fence and back,  as the large animal trots arounds patiently.

The most bewildering part is that, from the cheers and applause from the crowd of people around her, others can see him too.

~

A/N: Unsurprisingly influenced by the holiday. And again, more pre-shipping than actual shipping… But basically, modern witches with animal familiars! 😀

Hey, so I was thinking on the whole Sand Sibs x Nara Sibs thing and I realized that a pairing I’ve NEVER seen before is Temari/Shikako. I have no idea how this would even happen but, eh. It’s fine if you don’t do this, it’s mostly just my brain spewing things late at night. Nice Haku/Shikako snippet btw!

jacksgreysonLeave a comment

A/N1: I like the way you think, anon! I suppose I also never considered a Sand Sibs x Nara Twins recombination that would lead to Temari/Shikako. And at first, the Shikaara shipper in me was like wait, what, why? But then that what became a hm… And then that led to this little snippet.

Hope you enjoy!

~

It is known that fools fail to recognize competence. In theirselves and in others.

A long lived saying in Sunagakure, most recently applied to those who might look down on them: the Wind Daimyo who could not truly understand the scorpion he was taunting. The other villages for dismissing their true power. Leaf especially, for thinking Suna a tamed creature at their beck and call.

How embarrassing that she would fall prey to that very mistake.

—

In enemy territory on the cusp of an invasion–at ground zero of the main force, in fact, holding the exploding tag but not the trigger–she is constantly on edge. Stressed out, a step away from panicking constantly, and all of this threaded through with strangely potent homesickness.

Temari hardly notices her, really. One out of what seems like a thousand Leaf nin too childish to know what being shinobi actually means.

She didn’t have time to commit to memory that first meeting, not when Gaara toed that line of violence and madness and Kankurou could easily misstep into the line of fire.

There will be other chances.

—

She had been raised knowing that, one day, she would have to take up her father’s mantle–inherit his mistakes without any of his glories–simply because there was no one else.

Not Kankurou, who would fracture under the pressure. Not Gaara who was a sword with no sheathe or hilt.

Just her, a master of wind, tied down and grounded because of blood.

But that was before.

—

Second contact, not so much a meeting as a mutual observance.

The Leaf are as weak as she had been told–it’s only because the Exams are in their own home that so many of them have reached this stage. Most of the fights are overdramatic grandstanding or silly kid’s spars. Even Temari’s opponent, who looked perhaps the most dedicated to her chosen profession, falls easily enough during the preliminaries.

Second contact, Temari knows in hindsight, shows just how foolish she was. She couldn’t exactly throw stones when it came to not wanting to fight her brother.

A specific brother, at least.

Though no doubt Temari’s reasoning is very different from the Leaf girl’s.

—

She is no stranger to change–the winds ever shifting, the vast sands constantly in flux–people of the desert are sturdy, yes, but survival comes from adaptability not stubbornness.

Even change, though, can be predictable. The mapping of stars and weather forecasts, winds following patterns that can be harnessed.

All her life, Temari was in free fall, never expecting the updraft that would let her catch the currents.

—

The invasion has started, Suna lost before it begun–manipulated by a serpent far more poisonous than they, their ultimate weapon proven nothing more than a scared boy with more power than sense.

Her father is dead. Has possibly been dead for a while.

She is the head of her clan now. The head of her family.

For that is what they are, despite their depleted numbers and strained bonds. She and her brothers, running from a fight their father started, and Leaf nin on their tails.

Power isn’t everything when all other factors–strategy, numbers, environment, exhaustion–are working against them.

They are losing, another man’s pawns in someone else’s war, and Temari knows very well what might happen next.

Their third encounter, Temari learns just how much of a fool she’s been.

~

A/N2: So not outrightly shipping, but sort of pre-shipping?

I guess it’s mostly just me trying to see what the main aspects of a Temari/Shikako ship would be and, in this case, it would be that Temari respects (and appreciates and is attracted to?) competence in other people. And Shikako is, despite her occasional blunder and social insecurities, a highly competent person.

Need me more Haku/Shikako, please. This au is gold<3

jacksgreysonLeave a comment
image

A/N1: I see what you did there, anon. “Gold” indeed. ;D

Anyway, hope this sates the Haku/Shikako hunger for now, anons! (Again, being a SoCal child means I am as familiar with winter sports as I am with capybara… possibly less so seeing as how I’ve actually touched a capybara.)

~

–It’s said that love can push you to the greatest heights–

“Representing the Land of Water,” says Koyuki Kazahana, Land of Snow’s princess and this year’s guest commentator, “Haku Yuki, performing for his short program, ‘I Follow You’”

There’s a false hush over the crowd, house lights low and a single spotlight on the rink. Poised with statuesque stillness yet, with all the kinetic potential of a storm, the skater waits for the music to begin.

The audience knows this may very well be Haku Yuki’s most ambitious routine.

It’s success has yet to be seen.

–or the lowest lows–

Skeleton is an aptly named sport, as dangerous as it is thrilling. Rigorous and demanding an athlete’s full attention.

Shikako may not be as focussed as she ought to be.

Kakashi-sensei, ever observant, raps his knuckles against her helmet: fondly reprimanding and casually reassuring both.

“There will be recordings,” he says, “and you can trust Naruto to be a loud enough spectator for the both of you.”

Shikako smiles, more for the intended comfort than the words themselves. Though the idea of Naruto raucously cheering at a figure skating competition as if it were one of his hockey games is an amusing thought.

It’s a short lived smile, though less out of melancholy this time around and more out of determination:

She’s an Olympian about to go hurtling over 130 kilometers per hour (if she’s both lucky and unlucky) down an icy track with nothing but a helmet and a sled half her height. She can’t afford any distractions.

And plus, it’s not her fault that their events are scheduled at the same time.

–Passion is a fickle creature–

Timing is key to a routine.

The smallest of lags can throw off a jump. A missed landing can then escalate to a faltering mood. Low spirits can drag down an entire performance.

A poor performance can cost a skater their ranking. Their medal.

But Haku is, above anything else, an ice skater. In his blood and in his bones, inherited from a family he can barely remember, carved into him daily by Zabuza-sama.

Emotions are important–some other coaches may even argue that they’re vital–but they’re not everything. Haku has more discipline than to rely on the budding feelings of a new romance.

The first triple axel is easy as breathing, a move he mastered a decade ago. A decade ago, all he had was the ice and Zabuza-sama. The applause is loud, but expectant.

The combination jump is more difficult, but not actually challenging: a quad salchow into a triple toe-loop. The jolt of adrenaline as he sticks the exit, skates scraping against the ice. He hears the cheers, but sets them aside for now, preparing.

The entire rink seems to hush, too, in the steps leading up to his final jump.

It’s here and now that emotions come into play, for all that it makes Haku’s coach scowl.

If he can pull this off, he’ll be the first skater in history to successfully land a quadruple loop.

Before Shikako, he’d never have reached so high. He was already at the top, his competitors so far away. Before her, there was no point.

–but love can be the foundation for great things–

“Shikako Nara, representative from Land of Fire, has maintained her standing, setting, yet again, a new track record!” the skeleton commentator announces, after a tense and eagerly waiting silence for the time to be posted.

Shikako, sans helmet but plus blanket cocoon, shouts in excitement. It quickly turns into a shriek of delight as Kakashi-sensei, perhaps forgetting his blasé reputation, picks her up and swings her around.

“Her total time is three minutes and fifty one point nine six seconds, placing her at a record shattering two second lead!”

Cameras flashing and the noise of the spectators, Kakashi-sensei puts her down quickly, only for her to be scooped up once more by Sasuke then passed onto her brother without her feet touching the ground.

“First time Olympian, Shikako Nara, has won gold!”

In the crowd, still in his performance costume, she spots Haku cheering and waving. Unpatriotically, he’s holding one end of a Land of Fire flag, and around his neck is a gold medal of his own.

~

A/N: … please no more for this AU, or at least no more that need me to decipher the regulations for sports that are integral to the AU. I had a lot of help from @lazuliblade’s post here with some fudging about and also because only a few months ago Yuzuru Hanyu literally became the first skater in history to successfully land a quad loop and I don’t really know what that means, but I am impressed as hell.

I’ll be honest, I was a liiiiittle tempted for something to go horribly wrong with the skeleton event. Given… well… Lucky Sevens and all. But that seemed like unnecessary drama and also, why not let them have matching golds.

I also have no idea if skeleton has an area equivalent to ice skating’s kiss and cry but I know barely anything about winter sports in general so I feel like this is a minimal sin in comparison to everything else.

Aaahhh!! So that’s what was happening, stupid undetectable genjutsu! Someone save Shikako! Or she can save herself, but, the point is Shikako needs to be saved. Hurrgh, suspense is not good for my heart.

jacksgreysonLeave a comment

@donapoetrypassion: Ooh- this is awesome! Is this the final one, or is there another after this? (I see how it CAN end here, but I’m so intrigued. Was she hit by Danzo’s undetectable mind-control genjutsu and has the ghost of Sai’s brother been helping her fight it? ‘Dark, then light,’ also sounds very much like a reaction similar to the one Shikako had in Yakumo’s genjutu, when Shikako just started splitting apart.) But mostly, I found the ‘killing all your friends’ imagery so creepy- whats she been doing in rl?

😀 Not to worry, Danzo does not win.

Lies Beyond The Morning is complete as is, but maybe I’ll come back to this universe? Or do a post-script type thing? Not sure of what, though, it’s just sort of my take on how Shikako might react to the Kotoamatsukami–especially given how much anti-Tsukuyomi techniques she/her family have developed (including, as you mentioned, her shadow splitting).

Thanks! I really aimed for creepy during the killing all her friends part 🙂 Luckily, what she does mentally is not reflected into reality. Actually, I’m pretty sure IRL Shikako and Danzo are just staring at each other awkwardly? Because time is wonky in mental space so probably all of the events takes place in a matter of seconds/minutes.

HOLY SHIT THAT IS SUPER CREEPY AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IS GOING ON BUT I LOVE IT

jacksgreysonLeave a comment

A/N1: Nyehehehehe…  Part Three! 😀

Also, now with title, “Lies Beyond The Morning”

~

Something is wrong.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Across the room stand three creatures, so colorful and defiant against the stark impossible room.

She doesn’t want to approach them.

They do not move and do not speak.

She doesn’t want to break them.

“What do I do now?” she asks, though she knows the not-Sai creature will not say anything.

He only smiles at her, sad and apologetic.

“Upwards and onwards,” she says, walking forward.

There is only one way to go.

If she has to spend an eternity in this strange place, she will not spend it waiting for nothing to happen.

—

She comes to a stop in front the three familiar creatures, not-Sai following behind her.

“I’m sorry,” she says to the creature that is not Ino, reaching out for its hands. The creature is neither warm nor cold, lifeless and empty like the room around them.

But as she pulls at its hands, its arms move. No longer is not-Ino covering its mouth.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Something has changed.

In not-Ino’s eyes pale blue eyes are a matching set of thin slit pupils.

—

She steps sideways, in front of the creature that is not her brother. Here, she hesitates.

Under her fingers, not-Shikamaru is lifeless and empty, neither warm nor cold. But at least he’s whole.

She doesn’t want to break him again.

Sensing her hesitation, not-Sai moves, walks around these fake Ino-Shika-Cho and stands opposite from her.

Sad and apologetic, he no longer smiles.

She pulls at not-Shikamaru’s hands, its arms moves. Not-Sai nods, silent.

No longer is the creature covering its eyes.

“I’m sorry,” she says, turning away, tears forming in her eyes.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Her cheeks are wet.

There is only one hand in her own.

—

Another step to the side, and not-Sai follows, an inky reflection defiant against the stark white room.

Between them stands not-Chouji, hands over its ears, face blank and empty and lifeless.

Nothing like the real Chouji.

She hasn’t broken him.

Not yet, anyway.

There is only one way to go. Upwards and onwards.

She takes its hands in hers and pulls until it is no longer covering its ears.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Nothing changes.

—

The silence spreads.

“I don’t understand,” she says, looking around.

There is nothing here. Not-Sai watches her, waiting.

“What do I do now?”

—

“Upwards and onwards,” a voice says.

Startled, Shikako springs away.

In this strange eternal place, there are only two sounds: the noise, like gears in a machine, and her own voice.

Something is happening.

“What?” she asks, glancing around. The fake Ino-Shika-Cho have not moved.

Neither has not-Sai, who stands and waits, watching.

This is different.

“Fight,” says not Chouji. But not the not-Chouji that is silent and lifeless and empty.

“Who–?” –are you–do I fight–have I forgotten–is doing this to me–

“That old fool,” the not-not-Chouji voice says, sad and apologetic.

“Fight,” it continues, as a noise, like gears in a machine, sounds off.

The doorway appears, and not-Sai walks toward it, waving her forward.

She follows. She remembers what happened in the room with not-Sakura.

But on that first starlight step, she looks back.

Ino-Shika-Cho, unmoving, broken.

“Upwards and onwards,” the voice finishes, as the doorway seals itself shut, impossible room lost to the eternal void.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Not-Sai walks ahead of her on stairs neither stone nor metal.

Something is happening. Something is wrong.

But it’s not her.

Above her the helix spirals forever, but in front they appear only a few steps ahead.

Starlight and the endless void of space.

Colorless, lifeless, silent.

It’s different, and yet…

“I’ve already been here,” she says out loud.

“This has happened to me before.”

Or near enough.

At the top step, not-Sai waits for her, sad and apologetic smile on his face.

“I understand,” she says out loud.

Not-Sai looks at her, startled.

“You’re not Sai,” she continues, catching up.

“You’re his brother.”

—

In front of her is an invisible wall where a doorway will appear. Beside her is a ghost.

Not-Sai… Sai’s brother fades, image changing as he does. Instead of the familiar ink dark features, she sees dimming starlight and a smile that is no longer sad or apologetic.

“Thank you,” she says as he dissipates, “Thank you for helping me this far.”

Sai’s brother nods, as kind in death as he must have been in life.

A noise, like gears in a machine.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

The doorway appears as well as the last impossible room.

—

She is not surprised by what she sees, the worst of it yet.

A tableau of her nightmares meant to break her and stop her and keep her trapped.

Across the room are two figures, frozen in time: mid battle, mid death blow. 

Sasuke as he might have been, Curse Seal fully bloomed across his skin. 

Naruto partially transformed, caustic red chakra cloaked around him.

Chidori against Rasengan.

These are not her teammates.

She walks toward them, neither move, as empty and lifeless as the room.

The corruption of natural chakra should claw at her skin, should burn in her lungs, but it does not.

Because none of this is real.

These empty creatures, this strange place. Impossible starlight and eternal voids. Ink and color like defiance.

Something is wrong.

Just not here. There is nothing for her here and so there is nothing here to be wrong.

Something is happening.

Out in the real world.

“Kotoamatsukami”

—

Shikako blinks. Light then dark.

Im the haunted house anon! THAT was super awesome & freaky, thank you!!! It had this gradual sense of loss, and it’s even more frightening b/c Shikako’s going through this madness blind. Like, it feels really ominous, aaaa. HOly cow, I can’t wait for part 2 * v *

jacksgreysonLeave a comment

A/N1: I’m glad you liked it anon! 😀 Freaky and ominous was what I was going for. I hope you enjoy part two as well 🙂

“Sai?”

Shikako looks around, the two of them standing on impossible stairs. Smooth not-stone not-metal steps.

Starlight against the void of space.

“What is happening?” she asks him, reaching out.

For some reason, she feels alone. She wants to confirm she isn’t.

But Sai steps back, away, silent. Shakes his head.

He gives her a smile, one far more emotionally eloquent than he’s usually capable:

A little apologetic, a lot sad.

He climbs the stairs and waves at her. Upwards and onwards, he doesn’t say.

She follows.

—

“You’re not Sai,” Shikako says, as they climb impossible starlight stairs.

“But you’re not like that not-Kiba,” she continues.

She doesn’t know where she is, or what is going on, but she’s exhausted.

She feels like she’s been here for a long time. An eternity.

Maybe she’s gone mad, maybe this is her breaking point.

“This isn’t real.”

The not-Sai ahead of her stops, looks at her. Shakes his head.

Confirmation or denial, and for which statement, she’s not sure. Doesn’t have the time to ask.

A noise, like gears in a machine, and a doorway opens in front of them.

—

A stark white room that goes on forever. Smooth floor neither stone or metal, and walls she can never reach.

Not-Sai’s dark hair and dark clothes stand out defiant, even his pale skin somehow contrasting.

He stands behind her, even as she walks as far as she can, forever.

Silence spreads.

Something is wrong.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Across the room, a riot of color. Pink and green and red and black.

Sakura. Not-Sakura.

Not the Sakura she’s come to know.

Pink hair cropped short, armored gloves but no medic’s uniform.

This is the Sakura she replaced.

But this creature with Sakura’s face doesn’t move, doesn’t attack.

Shikako steps forward. Not-Sai behind her.

Something is happening.

This is… different.

“Sakura?” she calls out, but the creature does not respond.

Behind her, the not-Sai figure stands his ground.

Silence.

Where is the doorway?

—

Maybe this is different for a reason.

Maybe there’s a reason why not-Sakura isn’t attacking her.

Not-Kiba did so immediately, as well as the previous encounters against [|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||]…

… something was wrong, then.

Which means it is not wrong now?

“Come with us,” she tries, reaching out to touch not-Sakura, but stopping short of contact.

The creature’s face remains blank and empty.

A part of her is afraid. That as soon as she touches not-Sakura, it will spring to life, try to kill her.

And she will have to kill it instead. Just like [||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||]…

… Shikako is exhausted.

She doesn’t want to fight anymore.

—

“Please,” she tries again, and this time commits, hand curving around not-Sakura’s arm.

Beneath her fingers, the creature is neither warm nor cold. As lifeless and empty as the room around them.

Not-Sakura doesn’t move.

But a noise sounds off, the only other noise here besides her own voice, and the doorway appears.

Not-Sai leaves his position and walks to the doorway, starlight stairs already assembling.

On the first step, upwards and onwards, he stops and waves toward her.

“Please, Sakura, come with us!” she tries one last time, tugging, futilely, as if against a statue.

A noise, like gears in a machine.

Something is wrong.

On the other side of the closing doorway, not-Sai waves at her impatiently, frantic.

Scared.

There is nothing for her here.

Shikako runs.

—

On starlight stairs in an endless void, Shikako stands.

Breathless.

Exhausted.

Crying.

A few steps ahead, not-Sai watches. Sad and apologetic.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Something is happening.

Her cheeks are wet, and she wipes the moisture away. Droplets falling into eternity.

She moves. Upwards and onwards, there is only one way to go.

Not-Sai watches her. Stopped ahead, waiting. Sad and apologetic for some reason.

She catches up. Then keeps going.

Not-Sai follows silently behind her.

—

On the top step, before the invisible wall and the noise and the doorway, Shikako turns to not-Sai.

“It’s going to be worse, isn’t it?” she asks, already dreading it.

Not-Sai nods, confirmation, ever sad and apologetic.

“Why can’t you speak?” she asks. Perhaps, if she were not so exhausted, she would be angry.

But she has been here for an eternity, and she just wants to hear something besides her own voice and that–

Not-Sai sticks his tongue out, black ink on pink flesh

–noise, like gears in a machine.

The doorway appears.

—

This is different.

The room is the same–an impossibility of stark endless white–but inside, immediately, it is not empty.

Across the room, like colorful statues, are three unmoving silent figures.

Ino-Shika-Cho

But not hers. Just like the not-Sakura from before wasn’t hers.

The creature that is not Chouji stands, hands over its ears, face blank and empty.

Not-Ino stands next to it, hands over its mouth, eyes a solid intact blue.

Between them is her brother. Or, rather, the creature that is not her brother, eyes covered by two hands.

This Ino-Shika-Cho is not hers, because hers are broken.

She was the one who broke them.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Nothing has changed.

She tries again. Dark then light.

Still no change.

She doesn’t want to do this.

She turns around to where not-Sai stands behind her. Surely because he followed her in, the doorway would still be there.

But behind him is an endless expanse, no stairs spiraling down and away.

No escape. There is only one way to go.

She’s exhausted.

Something is wrong.

“What do I do now?”

That something might be her.

~

A/N2: … I guess there will be a part three to finish this off?

I once had this weird dream, where Shikako & Co. are on a haunted house mission. Turns out there’s an actual ghost taking people away into a parallel space, so Shikako starts panicking when she starts feeling chakra signatures just disappearing, one by one. Haha, I really can’t remember further than that, but I’d love to see if this can be extended?

jacksgreysonLeave a comment

A/N: I’m a bit late for your prompt, anon, because I considered it for few days and slept on it as well–which seemed to be in the spirit of it–and this is what my own weird dream shook out, so I hope you enjoy!

~

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Three kunai headed her way, she darts to the side.

Where is she? What’s happening?

More kunai follow. Trace the flight path. Keep moving.

Across the way is a smudge of color against the stark white room. Pink and brown and red. TenTen?

Ah, a spar, that makes sense.

She should pay attention.

TenTen isn’t saying anything, but that makes sense. Neither of them are particularly chatty.

She unfurls a scroll–a serious spar then.

“Earth Style: Earth Wall!” she calls out, chakra flaring, but nothing happens. The strange smooth floor is unchanged.

Where are they? Something is happening.

Shikako makes the sign for a timeout, but TenTen keeps going. She tries again with a forfeit sign, “Stop!”

That fails, too.

TenTen releases her armory, Shikako drops her resistance seals and runs.

Something is wrong.

They aren’t sparring, they’re fighting.

To the death, apparently.

—

Shikako wins. TenTen loses.

Which means TenTen dies.

Except.

Something is happening.

Shikako rushes over because, despite the fight, they are friends and she is so confused. In her arms, TenTen–still so strangely silent–begins to disintegrate.

“I didn’t mean to,” she says as particles of TenTen fade away into the expanse of the room, “I don’t understand.”

Before the body disappears completely, Shikako has one last thought:

Something is wrong.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

She’s on her knees in an impossible room, so empty and endless.

What was she doing?

There is a noise, like gears in a machine, and a doorway opens in front of her. Stairs.

There’s nothing for her here, and so she leaves.

Behind her, that same noise, the impossible room seals itself shut. Gone to the void like it never existed.

Upwards, onwards.

The stairs are smooth, white, surrounded by a void. They spiral up and up, unconnected steps of not stone and not metal.

A few more steps and the stairs just stop, nothing ahead but more darkness.

She extends a hand forward, meets resistance, and a noise like gears in a machine opens a doorway in front of her.

Another impossible room.

She looks back, there’s nothing there.

She goes in.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Dodges out of the way of a chakra covered hand aimed at her heart.

“Neji?” She asks, startled, bewildered.

He doesn’t answer, but the silence makes sense. He isn’t particularly talkative.

But what is going on?

That was definitely a killing blow.

Of course he’d want to kill her, she thinks, she did just kill [||||||||||||||]…

… what was she doing?

He makes another move–no doubt as lethal as the last–and somehow Shikako knows better than to try and reason with him.

Taijutsu is out of the question, she would surely lose (would surely die?) but she’s always been better at a distance.

—

This time (was there any other time?) Shikako watches silently as Neji dissipates. In comparison to the room, even his white clothes and pale skin stand out, the black of his hair a long tail of defiance.

Even then, the room wins out. And she watches in mute horror as he fades away.

Something is wrong.

She feels like she had that thought before.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

A noise. Then a doorway. Then a curving set of stairs.

Upwards, onwards. There is nothing for her here.

The stairs are continuous, spiraling for eternity. If she looks up, she can see the helix continue.

But if she looks ahead, there are only a few steps in front of her. A new one being added for each one she advances.

What a strange place. How did she get here?

The stairs come to a halt, impossibly, nothing in front of her.

And yet.

She reaches out. A noise. Then a doorway. Then an impossible room.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

She knows immediately that the creature in front of her is not Lee. Oh it looks like him, its green and orange outfit almost blinding in this stark emptiness, but it is not him.

Never mind that it is trying to kick her head off her shoulders, clearly trying to kill her. She knows this is not him because its face is blank and empty.

If this were a spar, Lee would be smiling. If this were a death match, he would be angry.

The real Lee would be furious at her for killing [|||||||] and [||||||||||||||]…

… why does she think Lee should be angry at her?

No matter. This obviously isn’t Lee, which means that she has nothing stopping her from going all out.

It is faster than her, like the real Lee, but she has a few tricks up her sleeve still.

—

She doesn’t feel remorse as this not-Lee creature fades away. Particles and pigments disappearing as if it were never there.

If it were really him, then she would. She would be sick and horrified at herself.

But it is not him, she is sure of it.

Something is happening.

A certainty that has been building ever since she fought [||||||||||||||] and [|||||||], cemented further after her fight with [||||||]…

… something is wrong.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

A doorway is open ahead of her, an impossible exit from an impossible space. Stairs leading upwards and onwards.

She stays put.

“I don’t understand,” she says, looking around, “This doesn’t make sense.”

Nothing changes.

“What’s happening?” she asks, instead.

Nothing changes.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

A doorway is open ahead of her, an impossible exit from an impossible place. Stairs leading upwards and onwards.

She leaves the room.

There is nothing here.

—

After an uncountable number of stairs, steps spiraling for an eternity upwards and yet never complete ahead of her, Shikako stops.

The steps appearing for every one she advances also stop.

“No,” she says.

“Something is wrong,” she says.

She stays put.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

She is on a set of stairs, smooth and pale and impossible like starlight. They spiral upwards and onwards in the void.

On the step in front of her is a little ink bird, black like defiance.

It hops about and flutters its wings but doesn’t make a noise.

She picks it up and sets it on her shoulder.

She begins climbing the stairs until she can no longer, the steps ending at an invisible wall.

She reaches out, meeting resistance, before a noise like gears in a machine sounds off.

A doorway opens.

Shikako walks through.

—

In this room empty of anything, with smooth floors that are not stone and stark walls she cannot perceive, only Shikako and the ink bird exist.

No matter how far she walks, there is no end. An impossible room.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

Immediately rolls out of the way of a swarm of tiny creatures.

The ink bird remains on her shoulder, but it tugs on her hair, impatiently. Frantic.

Scared?

Something is wrong.

Across the room is Shino. Or a creature that looks like Shino. It hasn’t moved and it hasn’t spoken and maybe that isn’t unlike the real Shino, but she learned her lesson with [||||||]…

… the swarm attacks her again, and she backs away, confused.

The swarm of creatures, dark against the starkness of the room, somehow feel strange. Wrong.

They are not like her ink bird, a different sort of defiance. They are not like real kikaichu either.

These aren’t kikaichu and that isn’t Shino.

Which means she won’t feel guilty when she destroys them all.

—

The room is immaculate despite the battle.

The creatures that were not Shino and his kikaichu disappear, as if they never existed.

The ink bird on her shoulder remains. Now that she has the time and space to give it attention, it has stopped its antics.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

A black blur whizzes past her face. Reflexively, she ducks to the side, but nothing follows.

Bizarrely, it didn’t come from behind her, it came from her shoulder.

An ink bird flies ahead of her, a single point of defiance in this impossible room.

It flutters its wings and hops about, as if waiting, impatiently.

A noise. A doorway. Stairs.

The bird flies ahead, upwards and onwards.

Shikako follows.

—

Upwards and onwards, Shikako follows the bird. Against the void, it is difficult to see, but there is only one direction for it to go.

After an eternity it stops, landing on a step made of starlight. Waiting impatiently.

When she reaches the top step, it flutters to her shoulder.

Together they watch as a doorway appears.

Together they walk through.

—

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

The chakra covered hand aimed at her heart almost seems familiar. As does the movement to get out of the way.

A creature that looks like Hinata stares at her blankly, before moving to attack once more.

If it were really Hinata, Shikako would hesitate.

If it were really Hinata, they wouldn’t be fighting.

The ink bird on her shoulder tugs at her hair.

But none of them (none of who?) were really themselves.

In comparison to [||||||]…

… no matter.

This creature that is not Hinata is trying to kill her.

There is no hesitation.

—

It is not Hinata, but Shikako still looks away as it dies silently.

Something is wrong.

She does not feel horror, nor remorse, but there is still a sense of familiarity.

Of exhaustion.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

She cannot remember how long she has been in this room, but it feels like a very long time.

A noise. A doorway. Stairs.

The ink bird on her shoulder flies ahead and she follows.

There is nothing good for her here.

—

The stairs are a helix continuing upwards and onwards.

Even with the little ink bird, it feels as if she is alone. A small, insignificant existence against the impossibility of this place.

Void and starlight and a spiral to eternity.

Where is she? How did she get here?

Something is happening.

What is happening?

Something wrong.

—

At the last step, the ink bird stops and waits for her.

It hops and flutters and, when she catches up, flies to perch on her shoulder.

A noise. A doorway. An impossible room.

She doesn’t enter.

The ink bird tugs at her hair.

As she steps through, she thinks:

Haven’t I done this before?

—

Next (after what?) is Kiba. Or not-Kiba as the case may be.

“You’ve gotten shoddy,” Shikako says to the creature that is not Kiba, as it swipes a clawed hand at her face.

“Where is Akamaru?” she asks, dodging and weaving away.

The ink bird on her shoulder tugs at her hair. Impatient and frantic and not-scared.

Probably.

If it were scared, it would fly away, wouldn’t it?

“You’re not even trying!” Shikako shouts at it. Something is wrong.

“You don’t even know how an Inuzuka fights!”

Without their ninken, Inuzuka are half of themselves. It’s part of the reason why they can’t be ANBU, too loyal and honest to a fault.

The creature that is not Kiba stops.

So does she.

A noise, like gears in a machine, and a doorway opens behind it.

The ink bird leaves her shoulder and flies past the not-Kiba creature. It remains still.

Shikako circles around it, confused, but follows after the ink bird to the stairs.

As she begins to climb, she looks back.

The doorway is closing, but she can still see the not-Kiba creature standing perfectly still in that impossible room.

—

“That’s not how that usually goes,” she calls ahead to the ink bird.

It stops and lands on a step, waiting for her to catch up.

“The other fights. Before not-Kiba. The ones I had with [|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||]…

”… why did that happen? I remember Kiba. Because I didn’t kill the creature that looked like him?“

The ink bird hops and flutters.

“Why can’t you be more useful?” she shouts.

Shikako blinks. Dark then light.

She is on starlight stairs in an eternal void.

She is not alone.

“Sai?”

~

A/N2: This is longer than I thought it would be so here’s part one for now, and I should have part two up tomorrow.

But I suppose I ought to explain a little bit. I considered your prompt, anon, and I pondered the idea of the haunted house and I figured that DoS already covered it in a literal sense with the whole chameleon summons castle thing, and a more Scooby Doo interpretation with the Land of Birds. But I liked the idea of Shikako losing people and went a slightly more cerebral route a la Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories.

In part because my brain went Shikako & Co. is Konoha Thirteen… Organization Thirteen? And then, hey wait, Sai was with her on both the chameleon castle mission and the Land of Birds mission. Does that make Sai Namine? Yes, yes it does.

NejiKako is so good for the soul.<3 (Can we make some crazy shipping names for these DOS ships akin to the Pokemon fandom's ship names? Like, Sweet Sunshine for NaruKako, etc etc (that was so bad, i'm so bad at this haha))

jacksgreysonLeave a comment

jacksgreysays:

jacksgreysays:

image

😀 Thanks! My multi-shipping heart greatly appreciates the exercise, so…

I both do and don’t enjoy particularly flowery ship names–because on the one hand, it’s a nice way to describe your ship and it tends to also create and easy aspect that explains why shippers would ship such a thing. But on the other, unless you have a massive glossary explaining which is which, it’s really freaking hard to figure out what ship you are reading and for some people who are not multi-shippers, that can be a disaster. I mean, even as a multi-shipper, I like to know going into a story what I’m reading you know? Yu-Gi-Oh was so difficult for me to navigate, I swear to god.

That being said, I always figured that the “Sunshine” moniker was for Naruto. (And I kind of assume that Shikako is Stars and Sasuke is Moon just to complete the set of celestial bodies). So “Caged Sunshine” would translate to me as more of a Neji/Naruto ship? And “Sweet Sunshine” would be… Anko/Naruto?

I guess for this story, I’d want something that not only reflects the Shikako/Neji ship but also the fact that it’s Hana’s POV? Maybe some kind of scent/smell pun…

edit: Ooh, just spotted it now! @the-grand-gemini​ suggested “Hide and Seek” I think I’m going to tweak it a bit and make it “Hiding and Seeking.” Thanks for the suggestion 😀

Ooh, okay. See I always interpreted the title as Shikako’s POV of Naruto (the series) which is about Naruto the character, so “Sunshine” is Naruto and “Dreaming” is Shikako. So with Neji as the “Caged Bird” I’d probably do something like: 

“Caged Sunshine” is Neji/Naruto because what a relationship between them would be built on is, most likely, the whole “we both of seals and our lives suck but Naruto has remained optimistic/determined and Neji wants to do the same” so the Cage is in reference to their seals and the Sunshine is, yes, reference to Naruto but also the change Naruto’s Therapy-no-jutsu had in Neji’s life.

Shikako/Neji I’d flip it around and do “Dreams of Flight” or something like that since, as I interpret a Shikako/Neji relationship, it would be about the both of them ‘breaking free’ of expectations and oppression. I don’t think there would ever be a Shikako/Neji relationship where, unless Neji specifically asked her not to for some reason, Shikako wouldn’t eventually work on trying to remove the Caged Bird seal. It’s less about accepting the hand they’ve been dealt and more about saying, “no, fuck you, I’m not going to follow your rules.”

So Dreams is reference to Shikako, but also to the hope that Neji would have to change his fate, and Flight is both a freedom thing and about how a relationship between the two of them is more… I don’t know how to say this… verb-y? than some of my interpretations for other ships. Like there’s a sense of, they’re both going to achieve great heights together, or they’re going to plummet to the ground.

This is way more thought than I put into some of my other titles. If I could retroactively rename Dreaming of S(omething) without it being a total pain of tag hunting, I probably would. I mean I hadn’t consciously acknowledged this is what I do, but now that I think of it, I suppose this explains the more recent series like “Waking Up Starstruck” (Naruto/Shikako) and “Stars Also Dream” (Yoshino-centric but with the theme that Yoshino is more like her daughter, or vice versa, than anyone realizes).

I’m not really sure, actually. I just know that Dreaming of S(omething) was my first DoS recursive fic series and I had no idea I was going to be so prolific. I definitely had no idea that I would have actual series as opposed to a cluster of possible chapter responses, and that I should probably give more thought to my titles. It’s why I have Dreaming One Shots as a catch-all. I mean, much like my fics themselves, the titles I kind of don’t know what I’m doing up until the very last bit–and even then, as with Hiding and Seeking, I’ll post something and then title it later.

I would definitely rename Dreaming of S(omething) to reflect that it is a Shikako/Gaara series as opposed to any kind of DoS recursive fic… and while I do like Down Every Road–because it’s a reference to a song that I think fits Shikako/Sasuke perfectly, and it also gives a bit of a hint that each chapter is a different AU–it’s not Shikako/Sasuke specific from the name. Like, any series of AUs for a specific ship in any fandom could probably use the title Down Every Road.

Waking Up Starstruck I chose specifically to flip around Dreaming of Sunshine–because where DoS is Shikako’s POV of Naruto’s story, I thought it’d be nice if Waking Up Starstruck was Naruto’s POV of Shikako’s post-canon story. So Waking [Naruto] Up Starstruck [Shikako] was meant to be a contrast to Dreaming [Shikako] of Sunshine [Naruto]. And there’s a little bit about that particular title that just feels like… Naruto suddenly realizes he sees Shikako in a romantic way. As opposed to Sasuke who already knows he loves Shikako even if he can’t quite differentiate between romantic and platonic.

I mean, there’s a difference between fic titles and ship names, so it’s not a one-to-one thing. I wouldn’t change Down Every Road, but I don’t have that little thrill of pride as I do when I think about Waking Up Starstruck and Stars Also Dream. Then again, Hiding and Seeking works really well for the Hana!POV Shikako/Neji ficlets even though that doesn’t include any of the theoretic ship name, so I don’t really know what I’m trying to say here.

Can I ask for more Shikako/Haku winter olympics – yuri on ice and the deadly cold weather have it on my mind

jacksgreysonLeave a comment

Coat and scarf and gloves, coffee thermos at the ready; it seems odd to be so dressed up indoors, to feel the chill of the ice but not see the open air of the track. This view isn’t so bad, though.

Not many people can say they’ve had a private show with four time gold medalist winner Haku Yuki.

At this time the rink is empty, everything silent but the scrape of blades against ice, lights dimmed low to the barest minimum. Haku’s practice clothes are dark and plain, but he still shines despite it all, enchanting.

Shikako knows how to skate but in comparison to her friends, Sasuke in speed skating and Naruto in ice hockey, she always figured it was simply a matter of needs must. Ice skating as a winter athlete was the same as knowing how to swim–functional, necessary. Nothing as beautiful as this.

During her musing, Haku’s routine has drifted closer to where she stands by the wall, coming to a sharp stop, snow spraying from the force of it.

He smiles at her, gives a little bow, and reaches for the thermos. Shikako, in turn, laughs, hands it over, and gives muffled applause, sound dulled by the fabric of her gloves.

It’s paltry compared to the kind of acclamation he’s received before, even in this very same rink–hundreds of his fans cheering his name and millions more watching him at home–and yet the smile he gives her is honest and appreciative.

“That was fantastic,” she says taking the thermos back, walking along side him as he skates toward the exit.

“It’ll look better with the music playing,” Haku says, extending an arm to gesture at the great expanse of ice that is his stage. “Zabuza-sama says my song choice is too sentimental, but he also says this is my best routine yet, so…” he drifts off, one hand at the wall, the other reaching out as he steps out of the rink.

Used to the way Naruto and Sasuke are when they come off the ice–as if having to remember how to walk instead of skate, the few seconds transition between ice and ground–she takes his hand, steadying him and supporting him through to the bleachers.

But even as he sits, he doesn’t let go, tugs lightly as if to say, sit next to me.

She does so, joined hands between them, looking at the rink where, in a few days time, Haku will win his fifth gold medal.

“Thank you, Shikako,” he says, and she knows he doesn’t mean just for this morning, this moment.

~

A/N: I have only ever been ice skating the once and it was over ten years ago so… winter sports are not really my thing (and while I am hyped up about Yuri on Ice I have yet to actually watch it). Hopefully this is acceptable.

NejiKako is so good for the soul.<3 (Can we make some crazy shipping names for these DOS ships akin to the Pokemon fandom's ship names? Like, Sweet Sunshine for NaruKako, etc etc (that was so bad, i'm so bad at this haha))

jacksgreysonLeave a comment

jacksgreysays:

image

😀 Thanks! My multi-shipping heart greatly appreciates the exercise, so…

I both do and don’t enjoy particularly flowery ship names–because on the one hand, it’s a nice way to describe your ship and it tends to also create and easy aspect that explains why shippers would ship such a thing. But on the other, unless you have a massive glossary explaining which is which, it’s really freaking hard to figure out what ship you are reading and for some people who are not multi-shippers, that can be a disaster. I mean, even as a multi-shipper, I like to know going into a story what I’m reading you know? Yu-Gi-Oh was so difficult for me to navigate, I swear to god.

That being said, I always figured that the “Sunshine” moniker was for Naruto. (And I kind of assume that Shikako is Stars and Sasuke is Moon just to complete the set of celestial bodies). So “Caged Sunshine” would translate to me as more of a Neji/Naruto ship? And “Sweet Sunshine” would be… Anko/Naruto?

I guess for this story, I’d want something that not only reflects the Shikako/Neji ship but also the fact that it’s Hana’s POV? Maybe some kind of scent/smell pun…

edit: Ooh, just spotted it now! @the-grand-gemini​ suggested “Hide and Seek” I think I’m going to tweak it a bit and make it “Hiding and Seeking.” Thanks for the suggestion 😀

Ooh, okay. See I always interpreted the title as Shikako’s POV of Naruto (the series) which is about Naruto the character, so “Sunshine” is Naruto and “Dreaming” is Shikako. So with Neji as the “Caged Bird” I’d probably do something like: 

“Caged Sunshine” is Neji/Naruto because what a relationship between them would be built on is, most likely, the whole “we both of seals and our lives suck but Naruto has remained optimistic/determined and Neji wants to do the same” so the Cage is in reference to their seals and the Sunshine is, yes, reference to Naruto but also the change Naruto’s Therapy-no-jutsu had in Neji’s life.

Shikako/Neji I’d flip it around and do “Dreams of Flight” or something like that since, as I interpret a Shikako/Neji relationship, it would be about the both of them ‘breaking free’ of expectations and oppression. I don’t think there would ever be a Shikako/Neji relationship where, unless Neji specifically asked her not to for some reason, Shikako wouldn’t eventually work on trying to remove the Caged Bird seal. It’s less about accepting the hand they’ve been dealt and more about saying, “no, fuck you, I’m not going to follow your rules.”

So Dreams is reference to Shikako, but also to the hope that Neji would have to change his fate, and Flight is both a freedom thing and about how a relationship between the two of them is more… I don’t know how to say this… verb-y? than some of my interpretations for other ships. Like there’s a sense of, they’re both going to achieve great heights together, or they’re going to plummet to the ground.

This is way more thought than I put into some of my other titles. If I could retroactively rename Dreaming of S(omething) without it being a total pain of tag hunting, I probably would. I mean I hadn’t consciously acknowledged this is what I do, but now that I think of it, I suppose this explains the more recent series like “Waking Up Starstruck” (Naruto/Shikako) and “Stars Also Dream” (Yoshino-centric but with the theme that Yoshino is more like her daughter, or vice versa, than anyone realizes).