@sunflowermade asked: ✂️ owo
Send me ‘✂’ and my muse will kill yours.
Stubborn child. They had always encouraged Mitsuki to follow his own will, to do as he pleased. There were never any repercussions when their son blatantly ignored their guidance and stirred trouble. Being a parent had certainly turned in to a more difficult job than they had imagined, and they had been in their fair share of careers. This time however, childish defiance had toppled Mitsuki from being labelled rebellious in to criminal. Intervening, was no longer an option, but a necessity.
They had cornered their child, in the hopes of explaining how his innocent perspective had made him blind to the charges he would face. Shinobi had a strict protocol to follow, to swear an oath and break it, punishable by death. If they can convince him to change his mind, before anyone within the village is any wiser about his almost-crime, then they have done their duty as a parent. It is amid the heated debate between parent and child, that the serpent realizes they are not alone. And how tragic it is, that she may be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
When last had they seen her? A few years ago, when she had been without a headband, when she had boldly asked them to keep their son safe. She’s heard everything, they can tell by the way she looks at the two, by the way her training has stopped. She must have been practicing water walking, her feet planted neatly atop the slow moving river. Impressive, for a genin of this generation. But the serpent is not focusing on her evident skill and potential, not this time. This time, they focus only on the most pressing bit of information: she had heard everything.
And the man who they hope never finds out about their sons latest ploy happens to be the same man who kisses her goodnight. They tell their son to leave, to cover his trial while they request the girls silence. And how Mitsuki assures his parent that she would give them just that. His friend, he had called her. But children, no matter how sincere, had a habit of telling secrets. It was just too much pressure for someone so new to the world.
“I won’t hurt her.”
Parents shouldn’t lie to their children, but the viper sees no better alternative. When it is only the genin and Sannin, they approach her, offering a light smile before joining her on the water. The motion of walking atop the river is no effort for them, but it would still take some thought for someone her skill level. They halt a few feet away, as to not startle her, as to not appear threatening.
“You heard everything, Himawari-chan?” they ask, watching the light breeze ruffle her dark hair, “then you also heard the importance of keeping this a secret? You heard what I told him would happen, should your father find out?”
Concern flashes passed golden eyes, and they avert them briefly. Her speed is no match for theirs, no matter the brilliant blood than runs through her veins. A slender figure is behind her, looking down at the younger shinobi with a touch of apology. They took no pride in killing a child her age, but they take no shame in it either. Defenseless as she is in the coils of their power, she had vowed to accept death when she donned her forehead protector. And in this situation, a child had to die, let it be someone elses, rather than theirs.
“I’m sorry my dear.”
Fingers tangle in her hair, before they push her down. It isn’t terribly hard to topple her shaky balance, to have her body breaking the waters surface. When she is submerged, the hand in her hair keeps her head below water. Drowning wasn’t a pleasant death, not quick or painless, but it would prove to look accidental. Another unfortunate case of circumstance. Bubbles stream up, frantic splashing, a desperate effort to stay alive.
Perhaps it would be easier if they didn’t look her in the eyes, if they didn’t peer through the clear blue water to meet her gaze. They watch her anyway, having seen death so many times, that they do not feel quite as sad anymore. She was a sweet girl, had a bright future, a family that would miss her terribly, but they loved their son more than they did their morality. Her eyes seem to scream the question ‘why’, but her struggles are becoming less and less energetic. Water, by now, has flooded in to her lungs - and at this age, her lungs must have been rather small. She would lose consciousness before she died, there is that small mercy. The water stings their hand, it was a winters day after all, how biting it must be to have ones entire body wrapped in the icy river. They watch her until she is still, and then a little while longer, before standing up.
“I said I would keep him safe, I intend to keep that promise.”
