And at the End of it All

Ming + Yuii

Her voice carried softly, mixing delicately with the louder tune of Yuii’s singing as both weaved through an old child’s song. Ming would pause, Yuii would sing a few words and Ming would pick up the end of the verse as was predetermined. This song was Yuii’s favorite, about the rabbit in the moon, and there was an ease about singing it while travelling through the forest. It was like a charm to ward off the many evil spirits that have plagued her as a youth.

At the beginning of their trek into the forest, Ming had placed Yuii on her shoulders. It gave her the freedom to use her hands, the certainty of Yuii’s safety and a definite comfort that came from having a child close by. It left Yuii to swing playfully from side to side as they walked and clap her hands as they sang. Ming’s joy came from Yuii’s happiness and for now nothing else.

She hated this forest but soon they would be out.

Ming wasn’t the tragic heroine about to be caught up in the arms of her love. There would be no tear felt reunion for her return; she would hardly be remembered. No one would know her walk was wrong, that she limped a little like a cat hiding it’s hurts. And if this dead feeling she felt inside was unnatural, no one would be there to tell her so. It wasn’t unnatural for her, it was like returning back to an old way. Now she understand the full extent of the pain her team mates had gone through. A taboo word and violent action now had many feelings to go with it. No, it wasn’t wrong to feel like this and neither was the guilt over being ruined. It had been her fault in the end, she had been careless, and so it had been her punishment.

The brunette ex-jounin was beyond blaming Tatsuya and Renzo for leaving her behind, they had believed she was capable of finding her own way. She could not blame those men, evil as they were, for she had always known the dark heart of all men. She could not blame Kiyo for not seeing the disgusting garbage that all men were, for encouraging her to accept them fully. Yuii couldn’t have known they would take her easy flow of words and use that information to drive a knife through her heart.

“Neh, Yuii I think we’re almost there,” Ming spoke up after the end of their song. There was the village of Mist and once there they would need to find a home. At least there would be an Inn to stay at or maybe even a hot springs so that they could both rest their travel worn bodies. She had been smart enough to change her currency to have the mark of leaf and not cloud so at least there would be no issues there. And soon she would find a house with a small shop attached, near the sea, and they would find some peace.

“Will we see Renren and the dragon?” Yuii asked with childish delight, her head swinging around to peer at Ming’s profile. Ming turned and kissed her nose then nodded in answer. “They’re important people so I’m sure you will see them Yuii. They’re in the tallest building of mist and on the rare clear day you may see it. Maybe one day we’ll go see it up close.”

“Then… we’re not visiting?” Yuii leaned against her head, Ming could her the pout on her voice. Even her pigtails would seem to droop under the weight of her child’s sadness.

“No, I don’t think so. Not right away. Renren is still mad at me but I’m sure he’ll be better soon,” is she could face him then would be up to the situation. She was changed somehow and it seemed important to go slowly with it all, “But we’ll play in the ocean and I’ll have lots of time to be with you. Wont that be fun?”

“Haiii~ I like that.”


Aoki Seiya

Mist ANBU Captain

"Halt! Who goes there--awwwww!"

A thunderclap, a flash of blue lightning, and Seiya landed a few feet away from Ming and Yuii with an expression of utter adoration on her face, aimed directly at the little girl. No Transformation jutsu detected, therefore she was free to coo. Hands on the knees bent over, slightly disturbing expression. There we go.

"What's a pretty lady and her cute daughter doing out in the forest? It's not exactly safe...you know, this is this time of the year when the jelly monsters come out."

Well. It was actually the time of year when it got very wet, and the air got thick with dragonflies and all the bugs they ate, and it was hard to walk on the pavement in Mist proper without sliding on the ground, especially in Ocean Avenue, but Seiya could blame 'jelly monsters' for that when talking to small children if she wanted to.

And maybe Ming would pick up the 'it's genuinely not safe, tread with caution' scent.

"Anyway...you want to get to the village, right? Do you have passports?"


The guard jumping from now where wasn't unexpected, neither was a womans immediate melting on the sight of Yuii. No, what was strange was to odd warning meant to shock Yuii.

"J-jelly monsters?" Ming blanched and took a step back. Not onlt did she seem to believe it but the idea seemed to genuinely frightenthe older girl. And why shouldnt it? She'd grown up on the edge of these woods with the feeling she was always being sized up and marked for a snack, the spiders had been the worse. A jelly monster would explain the slimey feel of year old leaves and rotting wood, the way some water turned thick when left in the forest.

Yuii, for her part, seemed disinterested while se swatted at a fly that had taken to buzzing around her ears, "Nii-chan, There's a bug! There's a bug!" Ming reached up and grabbed it, and so ended the reign of terror for the bug. She flicked its corpse off her fingers, something would eat it she was sure. Yuii wrinkled her face at the sight of it, "Oh, tuck Nii-chan you touched it."

"Bug's wont hurt you, not like jelly monsters We had better watch out for those,"

Yuii have her a skeptical look from atop her head then slowly inquired, "Do they taste like cherry jelly? I think Aunty said the lemon wones attck you while you sleep and try to take your eyes. That's why your eyes are always gross. Maybe these ones are cherry. Miss, do they taste like cherries? I might like them." Yuii's curious gaze fell on Seiya, her eyes wide and sweet.

The idea of monsters attacking her eyes while she left seemed to make Ming sick.

"The little one doesn't have a passport, she wasn't born here, let me see if I can find mine..." It was near the bottom of her bag, hidden so that no one in cloud might have found it without trying. I was out of date, she had checked it before coming, but that hadn't seemed like a problem when Renzo was traveling with them. She pulled it free with a grunt then passed it off to the guard, it was a little nerve wracking.

"We're going to see Renren." Yuii added happily, a bright smile passing her face. She was rather hung up on the idea.


"Hm?" Seiya blinked. "Oh uh. The jelly monsters don't come out here, they just like to make you trip on the pavement. Especially the stones in Ocean Avenue, they make them very slippery..."

Almost the second Ming tossed the bug a big green dragonfly zipped across the area and snatched it. It was almost creepy, really.

"No, they taste really gross! Sometimes little Genin try and eat them, and we always tell them not to...they taste like slugs and toenails." She wrinkled her nose, but this was mostly to keep Yuii from doing anything like...licking the pavement when she got into town. Yeah... "That's probably because they scoot along the ground and soak up dirt and dust. Maybe ones outside the city taste okay..."

She would be a terrible big sister.

"It's okay! Children under eight don't need passports." Seiya took Ming's and looked it over. It was pretty old, issued under the First, but Mist passports didn't expire so it was still valid. After a quick check, she determined it looked official and passed it back. "Huh, you've been away for a while, haven't you? There's been six Mizukage since you got this...don't know when you left, of course."

Hm? Who's that? Can't mean...nah.

"Is that...your father then? Or a friend?" Seiya blinked large eyes, finding it hard not to look at Yuii. Adorable. "Huhh. Your mother's boyfriend, then?"


Yuii pinched herface in thought then shoock her head.No, the jelly monsters couldn't exist, they were just trying to trick her. Why would a blob let itself taste so bad or roll on sidewalks anyways? That just seems like a boring waste of time when you couldbe rolling onto peoples plates and tricking them into eating you. Nii-chan seemed to believe it but she always believed. "I'll catchone and make it taste like cherries," she announced finally as if thatwould be the easier task in the world, "I bet they sleep under stairs in summer where snow bunnies go in winter."

"Yes, i know, I left at the fifth so... well i assumed before that someone would just tell me when it needed to be fixed up. I suppose I should get the picture changed up though. It is very old," Ming peered at her own passport photo,a morose childish version of herself glared back, definietly a change.

She was fairly certain that photo had been taken while she was still preforming ninja duties. That had been a happy eyt sad time in her life; filled with plenty of trials. She missed then, but then Yuii wouldn't be with her.

"Renren is the moozuKage," Yuii chirped in answer, her tone that os someone surprised she hadn't been understood. By comparing him to her aunty he had seems like a very important person and everyone knew aunty. maybe he wasn't very important at all. Poor Renren... "Yuii doesn't have a mother, you're odd. Renren is a wolf too, he's very strong and and... gets rid of under bed monsters and..."

"Mizukage, Yuii, Mizukage. Please, don't mind her. he likes to babble. Thank-you for your time and we will be on out way," Ming flashed the other woman a smile and made to step around then then continue on her way. She wanted out of the infernal forest.


"That'd be a good idea. Just go get your passport renewed, doesn't take long, the secretary can do it." Setsuko could do it in no time flat, in fact, something Seiya found very creepy at most times. But then, there weren't many people who didn't find the Monolith's main secretary creepy.

Mizukage? Eh? They mean Hasegawa-sama? Aw, she pronounces it wrong! Cute. Huh, wonder if that's his kid...nah, isn't blonde.

Seiya waved them into the village and then went back to her gatehouse. At least this entry had been fairly uneventful, but...

"It's so dull! Why don't I ever have anything fun happen?"