Opportunity of a Lifetime [Ryou]

when she's lit the whole wide world i want to know if you will beg me and then tell me how to love you like anybody else would i know you're risking failure go run for cover you better start to love her

Oh, my. It certainly did not sound like the ANBU Captain was in a pleasant mood... Already she was nervous and beginning to rethink her decision to come here. If he was this foul-tempered already, she wasn't sure she wanted to enter the room and possibly end up provoking him further.

But it would be very foolish to turn back now. She had to at least make an effort at this, because it could completely change her life for the better. This was something she really needed to do.

After a moment's pause, Eri opened the door and slipped inside his office, pushing it shut behind her. Nervous grey eyes rested on the ANBU Captain and his casual posture. Before moving further into the room, she offered him a polite, respectful bow. After all, she already knew that this was a man whose bad side she did not want to get on.

"Pardon the interruption, sir... We met the other day, at a pub in Tsumi Town. You offered me the possibility of joining the village's ANBU Corps, a-and I'm here to take you up on that offer." She remained standing, avoiding looking him in the eye, arms crossed over her chest so he couldn't see how badly she was shaking.

She still wasn't entirely sure she had made the right decision in coming here, but at the moment, she couldn't take it back. She couldn't just turn tail and flee and forget that he had ever offered her anything. If she tried, she had no idea what he would do, but she had an inkling that it would not end well for her, and that was just the last thing she needed.

Biting her lip, fingers tracing the patterns on the hilt of her blade, she awaited his response.

words:
300

tags:
ryou

will it change your life if i change my mind?

when she's lit the whole wide world i want to know if you will beg me and then tell me how to love you like anybody else would i know you're risking failure go run for cover you better start to love her

"It was a prudent, easy to make decision, sir. What would be the sense in waiting longer?" she commented. In all honesty, the amount of times she had nearly chickened out and returned to her cozy little cottage in the middle of nowhere to put it off for at least one more day was rather embarrassing and certainly not something she would admit to. Not to mention that she had a feeling that admitting to cowardice around this man would be a terrible idea.

Even with her limited interaction with the ANBU Captain, Eri had known he was not a man to take lightly. She didn't doubt that he would carry out that threat, if ever such an occasion did occur - which she didn't foresee. She had never been the sort of person that could disobey commands for any sort of reason. Especially when they came from such an intimidating man.

She flinched when he rested his hand atop her head, an automatic reaction that she had issues quelling. As her steel grey eyes stared into his dark ones, she had to wonder if he was trying to terrify her. Whether he was or not, it was certainly working. Eri had never been the most brave or resolute of people, something that she doubted would change - at least, it wouldn't change quickly or easily.

"Nagase Eri. I helped to form the village of Yokuchigakure and served as a jounin there for five years. The village's council framed me for treason and thus I became a rogue." There wasn't any point in going into more detail with that story. If he really wanted to hear it, he would ask. "I'm fast and my skill with a blade is second to none. I possess the legendary Kusanagi no Tsurugi, one of the strongest blades in existence. And I am a talented healer. Little ninjutsu or genjutsu to speak of, however. I'm purely a short-range fighter."

A pause. "Despite having been trained to kill my entire life I am not fond of it. I much prefer using my medical skill." She wasn't sure whether he would care about that or not, but clearly it was worth a mention. She wasn't to hide anything, after all.

words:
374

tags:
ryou

will it change your life if i change my mind?

when she's lit the whole wide world i want to know if you will beg me and then tell me how to love you like anybody else would i know you're risking failure go run for cover you better start to love her

His comment that they had more in common than he thought was intriguing; she was tempted to ask what he meant by that, but at the same time she had a feeling that he would not be very accommodating to her curiosity at the moment. It was best to keep her mouth shut until he asked her a question, because speaking out of turn and saying something he didn't want to hear, well, that certainly would not endear her to him in the slightest.

From the way he was talking, it didn't seem like working for him would be very pleasant... But, then again, Eri wasn't in the habit of disobeying orders, especially when they came from a man as terrifying as the ANBU Captain. She was certain he would have no issues beating that lesson into someone that needed to learn it. Thankfully, that person would not be her.

She still felt like he was trying to intimidate her, almost like he wanted her to lose her nerve. But that was ridiculous, wasn't it? Why would he have offered her the opportunity in the first place if he was just going to run her off? She really was overthinking things here because of her nerves.

"Don't forget that I was an active member of a shinobi village before. Just because I don't like to kill doesn't mean I am not capable of it," she replied quietly. Surely he was being a little too dramatic... forsake the future of mankind, really?

"I take loyalty quite seriously, sir." Despite the whole deserting her village thing. Really, she did. Circumstances out of her control had caused that situation, and while she couldn't say for certain that it wouldn't happen again, or that this village was any better than Yokuchi, it was to be her home. She wouldn't forsake that lightly. "Rest assured that if anyone becomes a threat to the village, I will put my blade through their heart."

She didn't look all that confident still, but surely he would be able to tell that she meant every word she had spoken.

words:
350

tags:
ryou

will it change your life if i change my mind?

when she's lit the whole wide world i want to know if you will beg me and then tell me how to love you like anybody else would i know you're risking failure go run for cover you better start to love her

Well, she had made the decision. She couldn't go back now. Part of her was terrified that she had made the wrong choice, that somehow this would end up biting her in the butt. The rest of her was one big bundle of nerves. Her future was still uncertain; what if the Captain decided that she wasn't worthy of joining the ANBU after all and disposed of her?

She knew that was probably just the nerves talking, but you could never really be certain.

Gingitsune, the silver fox. She took the plain mask from the Captain, admiring it for a moment. And she decided that she liked it, not that he would really give her a different one if she didn't.

Next, however, came the real test. She knew she was skilled, but she had to prove it to the Captain, who was, if the katana he had were any indication, also skilled with kenjutsu. Thus began her fretting. Eri didn't know if he expected her to be able to beat him - which she couldn't gauge as possible or not because she didn't have a clue as to his skill - or just managing to hold her own against him. The latter was more likely, but that didn't stop her from worrying that it would be the former.

Her lack of confidence would be the death of her one day.

The mutters of the other ANBU didn't help anything. Eri's cheeks turned a bright scarlet as she followed the Captain down the long hallway, which felt miles longer because of the comments she could hear, the not so quiet whispers of those who questioned her worth.

She knew she didn't look like much, but that didn't mean she was worthy of their ridicule. But she would never have the courage to say that.

Imagine her surprise when the Captain halted in his tracks and told them off for speaking badly of her. She certainly hadn't expected him to defend her... Ignore them, maybe, but not tell them off. All the same, she appreciated it.

Even if he was exaggerating a little when he said she was, perhaps, the finest addition they had. She was certain that that was laying it on a little thick.

"That's a little easier said than done, Captain," she remarked quietly a slight frown on her face. She had always been sensitive - perhaps too sensitive, some would say, and she wouldn't disagree - but that wasn't something that could easily be changed. Several people over the years had tried to help with her confidence issues, and it was easy to see that they had had little success.

She set the Kusanagi down by his katana and slipped off her shoes, joining him on the tatami mats. The bokken was a little different than her sword of choice, but that didn't mean she would be any less apt at using it. Hopefully.

words:
487

tags:
ryou

low muse ;w;

will it change your life if i change my mind?