logs | (catchall / open)

[ The deep woods are nostalgic in an odd way; the ghostly silent encampment he's stumbled across is pitched with decaying tents, their spines standing out as the canvas walls rot and grow moss. If he squints, it reminds him of another time in his life. The bodies here are more fetid than his memories, less charred, but just as lifeless.

Maybe that's why he feels obliged to haul up a corpse in his arms, the stink and rot of its caving flesh sticking wetly to his clothes. It takes time to gather the bodies in a place where the earth is loamy and soft enough to dig, but soon enough he has a good collection of them.

It's easy to fall into the task like a routine, even when another leaf slices past his face, blood slipping down from his brow. That is, until he hears someone else nearby. ]

...You ought not to linger, stranger.

[ There's a roughness to his voice, on-edge with this place's tricks, but it's a genuine suggestion. It's not a safe place to rest, or a pleasant one. ]

[He slows, allowing the main hunting party to continue charging ahead through the treacherous woods without him. Though he originally joined them to search for the stolen lantern together, the shinobi senses his efforts might be better applied elsewhere. After wandering for a short period, he stumbles across the present scene: a young man ripe with the stench of death and decay, surrounded by corpses. Naruto warily scrutinizes Dimitri—trying to determine whether or not the lordling might have been responsible for killing these people. Judging by how rotted the cadavers are, he concludes they’ve been dead for quite some time.]

Could say the same thing to you, [he points out, drawing closer to inspect Dimitri’s work. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what his new companion is doing, yet Naruto questions it regardless.] You’re…gonna bury them?

[Inexplicably, he is reminded of his youth—digging graves for Haku and Zabuza, so that they might rest peacefully together, for all that Zabuza claimed they would not be going to the same place in the afterlife. After a moment of consideration, he drops to his knees and begins to assist Dimitri. With only one usable hand, his progress will be slower, yet it feels important to do this traditionally than to employ chakra-arms through special abilities.]

I’m Naruto. [Briefly, blue eyes assess the blood dripping from the cut on Dimitir’s forehead. He ultimately chooses not to comment, though Naruto remains poised to intercept any additional leaves that might sail their way.] Who’re you?

[ This person... doesn't look much younger than he is. Maybe one of the many combing the woods for signs of that missing lantern. He's taken aback enough by Naruto's abrupt presence to nearly fumble his practiced introduction. ]

Dimitri. [ ... ] Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd.

[ What a place to get acquainted. His arms are already black with rot, his hands dark with dirt. It doesn't visibly faze Dimitri, but he knows that anyone else who can stay composed at the sight and smell is no average civilian. ]

Naruto. [ He restrains himself from speaking unkindly, even if his shadow rumbles low in his head, suspicious. ] Unless you killed these people, you needn't push yourself.

[ The atmosphere here is foul, not to mention that digging a grave out two palmfuls of dirt at a time is hard enough, much less one. No matter how capable this stranger may be, it is taxing on the spirit. ]

[Well, that’s…certainly a name. Maybe it’s some kind of title? Regardless, Naruto only manages to catch “Dimitri” and quickly forgets the rest. Hopefully this guy’s culture introduces people with the given name first and family name last—like most of the Restless here (and quite unlike the Konoha shinobi or people from Japanese. From “Japan,” corrects Kurama helpfully.)]

Geez. [The blond tosses a wriggling worm over his shoulder, then continues digging.] You kinda seem to like stating obvious things while treating yourself like the exception. What’s up with that?

[There’s a forced nonchalance to his tone, one that may be difficult for a new acquaintance to pick up on. Between the Shadow and the atmosphere here, Naruto is hard pressed not to feel melancholic. But he’s trying to stay as unaffected as possible, nonetheless. As a shinobi, he’s been dealing with death since childhood. He can do this. It’s the right thing to do.]

Are you suggestin’ that you killed these people? I mean, you’re pushing yourself.

[ His name is impossible to pronounce and worse to spell, it's fine. Naruto should forget it forever.

Anyway, it's not everyday he's called out so immediately and directly for hypocrisy, hands stilling for a moment as he crafts together an answer, glancing over at Naruto before he claps some soil off his hands pointlessly. They're just going to get dirty again. ]

I did not. But I didn't save them, either. That obliges me to be here, just as much as if I had slain them myself.

[ That's a personal decision, not an expectation of others. It's hard to dig around earth and gravel and clay until your hands bleed; it's hard to be around the reek and despair of death. It may be hypocrisy, but he'd never wish this on anyone to experience. He wishes it weren't so clear that Naruto already has before. Dimitri can't decide whether it's more comforting to have the help, or if he'd feel better for relieving Naruto of the task entirely.

More quietly, ]

...And responsibility aside, no one deserves to rot in the open air.

[ Better that they're burned or buried. At least they'll be resting, somehow. ]

[The reasoning that Dimitri offers is unexpected. Naruto pauses, bright blue eyes appraising the other young man with a kind of quiet solemnity. After the Fourth Shinobi World War, he’d felt a similar sense of responsibility concerning those who had died. If only he had arrived sooner, if only he had been stronger—how many lives might have been spared? Neji’s sacrifice still continues to haunt him. But though guilt gnaws greedily upon his insides, Naruto understands that only madness awaits should he continue bearing the weight for all those deaths alone.]

Yeah.

[Though not the most eloquent of agreements, it’s sincere.]

Someone important to me died, [he goes on to say, brow knit together unhappily,] and we never recovered the body. I made a memorial for him, but… [Naruto trails off. Then, with a chuckle, he shrugs.] Dunno what I’m tryin’ta say. Just guess there’s closure in being able to bury someone, ya know?

[ The worn, on-edge weariness on Dimitri's face softens. ]

...I think I understand, yes. I'm sorry.

[ It's silly, because it doesn't change anything. Dead is dead. But a body is something you can say goodbye to. It's some tiny mote of control in a siege of loss: the dead aren't completely ripped from you, both body and soul. You can give them to the earth or to a flame. You can chose how to let them go.

He wishes these victims could be tended to by their loved ones, and not a pair of total strangers. But at least they can both sympathize. He studies the face of the body nearest to him. ]

And the dead deserve closure too. Though it's difficult when I do not know so much as their names. [ The corpses are wet and rotting enough that it'd be practically impossible to tell, even if he could recognize them.]

[And it does seem evident to him that Dimitri understands—viscerally, even. The exhausted pinch to noble, handsome features speaks of a reluctant familiarity with death. Naruto wonders if the other young man has had to bury friends, too. It seems so cruel, especially the more that he learns of the different dimensions; too many of the Restless here come from civilian worlds.]

…Maybe we could take photos of ‘em before we bury ‘em? [suggests Naruto, tone somewhat uncertain. He isn’t fully committed to the idea yet.] Some of the bodies probably…are too far gone, but people back in the city might recognize a few. Might give closure to the families, if we can find ‘em.

[It’d be a grim job, that’s for sure.]

What’dya think?

[ He considers Naruto with a curious expression before he nods. ]

...The last body I came across, someone else had the same idea. That one was in a less terrible state of decay, but it's still worth a try.

[ Their camera reel is going to be a bunch of rotting corpses. So that's fun. ]

We can do that for each of them as we lay them to rest.

[ And though it feels silly to say this when they're already hands and knees-deep in dirt, he pauses. ]

Thank you, by the way. The woods are dangerous right now, and I would not begrudge anyone for wanting to escape them as soon as possible. [ Rather than milling about, helping a stranger bury strangers. ] It's kind of you to help.

[Brightening as his idea is received positively, Naruto pulls out his phone and sets it aside to remind himself once the grave is deep enough. As he does so, another wayward leaf—edges deceptively razor sharp—glides innocently through the air in their direction. In response, the jinchūriki’s aura becomes tangible; raw, red chakra forms a wall between the two young men and the attacking leaf. Said leaf disintegrates upon contact, though the barrier itself is harmless to both blonds. Naruto winks at Dimitri, his only response concerning the moment, and then addresses the gratitude.]

No thanks necessary. I can handle myself, and this kinda thing is routine for people like me.

[Except Naruto is meant to be keeping his background as a shinobi a secret from others. Well, what Sakura and Sasuke don’t know won’t kill them.]

But if you’re thanking me, I should probably thank you too. Says a lot about you that you’d stop to do this for people you don’t know.

(catchall / open)

naruto ; oakwoods

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so sorry for the wait!

no worries!!

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we can work on wrapping this up! SO sorry about how slow i was :sob: