A compilation of some of the sayings I've come up with to flavor the cultural worldbuilding of my sand sibling-centric fanfiction series for Naruto, Fade to Black.
All Roads Lead, Ch 35: I grieve a future lost to the winds as I grieve for ashes laid to the sands. May his soul find peace in the skies. - Suna's standard condolences to offer a person in mourning
All Roads Lead, Ch 83: The waters welcome you - Water Country’s traditional (and ironic) greeting for foreigners, but occasionally used domestically to welcome extremely formal company
To Rome, Ch 35: There are four things one can be in the desert: one may be great, or one may be deadly, one may be a survivor, or one may be a sacrifice. - a proverb used by the desert-faring folk of Wind Country
All Roads Lead, Ch 35: What will we do with a kunai lacking a handle, but bleed by the blade? - an idiom encouraging the concession of something that will only hurt those who pursue it
All Roads Lead, Ch 50: Beating a dead camel - an idiom used mostly by those who live in Wind Country's deserts to imply that someone is pursuing a moot point or foolishly trying to take something they've accomplished even further
To Rome, Ch 38: The scorpion underfoot - a metaphor referring to an obvious problem, usually one that has not yet been acknowledged or addressed with due urgency; inspired by the real English turn of phrase, "the elephant in the room"
All Roads Lead, Ch 64: What you've grown from the ashes - a turn of phrase used in a variety of regions about the fruits of your actions concerning the things or people that a dead person left behind
To Rome, Ch 6: From saplings to trees - a Fire Country proverb used to acknowledge positive development or growth, typically on a large scale or over a significant amount of time
To Rome, Ch 6: To raise a wall amidst the wind is the work of many - a Wind Country proverb used to humble braggarts or to deflect praise or a compliment to others (usually one's parents, partners, or comrades)
To Rome, Ch 22: What you don't know can kill you, but what you do can make you step into the fire. - a Fire Country proverb about why and how people willingly lay their lives down for a cause
All Roads Lead, Ch 4: My blood is iron, as are my kin— stronger than even a desert storm. - a personal saying of the Third Kazekage's (originally written by @lyricfrost13 in the outtakes of their fic, Glass Marionette)
All Roads Lead, Ch 6: Skies above - a general exclamation, usually expressing surprise, incredulity, or exasperation (based off a similar exclamatory phrase in Chinese)
All Roads Lead, Ch 34: Blessed skies - a general exclamation, usually out of gratitude, similar to "Thank God"
All Roads Lead, Ch 37: Skies wept / Izanami wept - based off of a Shinto myth about Izanami's husband betraying her and leaving her to rot in the underworld (originally coined by someone else in the Naruto fandom, but I don't know who specifically)
