markofthebrave | [ Action ] .061

[ Action ] .061

[Days 1-2]
[The experiment catches up with Katara slowly - first through teleportation, then through the advent of (thought bubbles)]

[Day 3]
Meet the bitty:

[She's been in Luceti for two years now, along with her much older brother Sokka. She's totally adapted and probably playing hide-and-seek. Warning: She's also still teleporting.]

[Days 4-6]
[More thought bubbles. More transportation. Katara is starting to get very tired and frustrated at this point due to lack of sleep and various emotional issues. She keeps popping up in the most inconvenient places! Sorry about that...]

[Days 7-8]
[Today, Katara woke up a bit different: she has been AU'd to another world, that of the Konoha ninja (complete with forehead protector!). She chalks waking up in a strange bedroom to the experiment that's been going on the past couple of days and ninja!vanishes into the dawn - she'll apologize later. She'll do her best to move back in to her regular apartment and keep to her regular schedule - a few classes at school (despite having told Raine she would not be in attendance that week - and depending on if school is in session) - practice in the forest, climbing on some trees; and making dinner on Floor 8 of Community Building 1, where she has claimed the sole empty apartment.

The next day, she decides to take a break from her regular training to practice an art more specific to kunoichi: Ikebana. At around six in the evening, Katara heads down to the flower shop. After gathering her materials, and dressing for the occasion, Katara heads out behind her apartment complex to make the best use of the natural light to form her arrangements.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Why the curiosity?

Isn't it natural to be curious?

[The batting away of an inquisition is automatic. But then...]

The truth is, it's only the beginning of an idea.

[...]

She's a lot like you, but her thinking is more black and white. Make what you will of that.

Mmm.

[Two, one two, one]

[He's watching her without looking like he's watching now. Looking for patterns. Tics. Similarities.

She uses her fingers where she used to remind herself to breathe.]

[Decision made, her fingers find rest.

Her attention returned to the clouds.]

You were one of my proctors, you know.

[Of course he doesn't.]

For my chunin exam.

[Point of note: he's never actually told Luceti Katara about this job. Or about chunin exams.]

That doesn't surprise me.

[...sort of. He knows exactly what he's told the other Katara, and that that isn't it. But he'd assumed this one to be a chuunin, and he's been assigned proctor duty for the last few exams.]

Haven't been a chuunin for long, huh?

[She shook her head.]

Since about fourteen.

[...where does she even start.

Does he even want to hear any of this? Can't be easy for him...]

[Can't be easy for her, is his logic. But people want to be remembered. He can't help but think back to that other Luffy again too.]

So right about coming into Luceti. Unless you're older than I think.

A bit before.

[She started to stand up.]

You were highly intimidating.

[He's not as eager to move - yet - and stares up from the ground.]

Oh, past tense.

That was before I knew you liked to clean out your ear with your finger in public.

[That's said casually, and she barely glanced at him. Instead, she's turning around and looking at the surrounding trees.]

[Oh, some things never change. He shakes his head.]

[And some things do.

Because about now is where she walks over and starts climbing up a tree trunk using chakra.]

[You'd think that'd be less surprising since he saw her do it earlier, but nope.]

Oi, oi, one race was good enough for me.

[She glanced at him from her position horizontally attached to the tree trunk.]

If this was a race, I'd be going a lot faster.

Talk about a waste of effort.

[>explain to him what she's doing
>sarcastic comment
>ignore him and keep walking up the tree.]

[WELL FINE THEN. He just watches from here. 8|]

[From the top of the tree, Katara moves lightly among the high branches to find a seat.

Can anything beat this view?

She smiles a little wistfully. This first victory had felt so sweet, once upon time.]

Any clouds up there were you're at?

A few. The ones you can see through the leaves, anyway.

Tell me what they look like.

[Yeah, right.]

Come up and see them yourself, if you're so curious.

Won't be the same. Clouds look different to everyone, that's what makes them so great.

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