i'd like to make myself believe

[daimeinashi]

CHARACTERS: Sai and Naruto
DATE: early Woodhurst
WARNINGS: nnnnnone, probably?
SUMMARY: i herd u liek ninjas so i put some ninjas with your ninjas


[It takes Sai about fifteen minutes to find him, walking normally--though he does cheat and body flicker a couple times in the final stretch, having seen that there are no unrecognized jewel dots anywhere in the vicinity. It's a brief brief burst of sentimentality that he doesn't stop to analyze. He hears him before he sees him, really, mid-some manner of Naruto-esque complaining...and takes the opportunity while Naruto's not looking to sneak behind him.

Then, abruptly:]

Hello.

[Is this Sai for 'I missed you'? Probably.]

Comments

[thinhammer]

[ Naruto is standing at a curbside, half trying to subtly gawk at the strange transport zipping past him and half keeping an eye out for Sai (or maybe it's 60/40), so when Sai sneaks up Naruto is only a little surprised. ]

Sai! [ He shouts like he hasn't been expecting to see him. His face has lit up though, with relief at seeing a familiar face and happiness that it's one he's friendly with. ] It really is you, huh? [ :D ]

[daimeinashi]

[That excitement catches him a little off-guard. It's been months since they last saw each other, for him. And the people here...they're not Konoha. They're not shinobi, which has made it hard to find common footing with them.

Needless to say, it's been a very long time since he last had someone so enthusiastic to see him. He can't help it; he smiles, and it's faint, but one of the rare real ones, the kind that change the shape of Sai's whole face, giving him a trace of the youth that's buried beneath all of his typical severity.]

It is.

[thinhammer]

[ Naruto can't really differentiate between Sai's smiles, but that one looks a ton more realistic than some of the others he's seen Sai's face contort into, so it only makes him that much happier. He grabs Sai by the shoulders and gives him a little excited shake. Maybe he's trying to shake the excitement into him, or maybe he's just double checking he's real. ]

Ah, this is cool!! I'm glad you're here, y'know. It woulda been hard to get used to stuff by myself, but now you can tell me how everythin' works!

[daimeinashi]

[Naruto, u really should be careful grabbing at a guy without warning like that; Sai only tenses for a moment before his mind takes back over--Naruto isn't a threat, is what he reminds his body.

Once the shaking stops, he merely nods, an amused tinge coloring his expression.]

I do not know about "everything", but I can most likely answer most of the questions you have, at least. [..except, of course, for how to get home.]

[thinhammer]

Aah, that's okay too, I guess. [ He releases Sai's shoulders, but Sai better get used to unannounced physical contact fast; it's a Big Deal for someone like Naruto to find out he's not totally alone. ] But I don't think I have many questions right now... Other than what's goin' on around here...

[ It's unclear whether he means the vehicles and people in general or the overarching looming chaos, or both. ]

[daimeinashi]

[There's. A pause. Like Sai's trying to figure out if Naruto means what he thinks he means, because he can't possibly mean that, right?

...Right?]

You read the mission brief, correct?

[Even Naruto wouldn't go into a mission without brushing up on the details of the mission, would he.]

[thinhammer]

[ Naruto pauses for a moment, his face kind of firm like he's doing mental maths. ]

Of course I did. Everyone knows you gotta know what's happenin' where you're going before you go there. [ Duh-doy, Sai. ] I mean what's started all this, it can't have just happened for no reason.

[ His voice is low and grumbly because ouch, that kind of hurt. He's not the same quick to act knucklehead he was when Sai knew him... Well, he is, but he likes to think he's improved maybe a little. ]

[daimeinashi]

[Look, u can't blame him for asking, okay!!! It was a very vague question!]

I presume if we knew the answer to that question, our mission would be a great deal more straightforward...unfortunately, we currently do not have any leads on the source of the Bristol Virus, nor how Adam-san might have come into contact with it.

[thinhammer]

[ Sai you're so literal, it's almost painful. Naruto settles his weight from one foot to the other as though he's a mother about to explain something simple to a child, which is... hilarious given who he is and who Sai is. ]

Then we've gotta start pokin' around, right? There's no time to waste, not if more people are gonna get sick. [ He scratches a whisker. ] Where's Baa-chan when you need her, huh... She'd be able to fix all this.

[daimeinashi]

Yes.

[It's technically not their Prime Directive here, but even Sai, with all his practicality, thinks slaughtering an entire city wholesale to halt the spread of the virus would be inefficient and counterproductive.]

The quarantine will narrow our initial search to some degree, though we cannot entirely rule out external interference.

[sai no don't do the big words thing, ur forgetting ur narutoese here]

Unfortunately, we are required to keep our involvement with ALASTAIR confidential, which limits the resources available to us.

[i.e. don't use rasengan in public bro]

[thinhammer]

So we can't rule out other people gettin' involved too? Do ya mean other people from where we're from -- from uh, ALASTAIR's place, or someplace else?

[ He might be more capable of understanding direction but heck, he can't remember the word for this group of cross-universe heroes. ]

Nnngh, I know, I know. [ He does not look happy about that, his arms are folded and everything. ] But I don't get why. If I was a civilian I'd be happy that someone's around with powers and stuff to keep me safe, why would they be mad about bein' protected, huh?

[daimeinashi]

Other people from outside this city, or perhaps even agents from Zymandis--an organization enemy to ALASTAIR.

[It'd make their lives so much more complicated, though, he really hopes it's not fucking Zymandis. Do you know what he does not want to do again? Deal with another all-out invasion like the one on Perdition's Rest.]

Think about it though, Naruto. The residents of Woodhurst do not even know of the existence of alternate universes. Konoha has been through three wars with other villages since their inception. It is unreasonable to expect their reaction to discovering us would be peaceable.

Not only that, but what reason do these have to trust in ALASTAIR's intentions? Why should they believe we intend to help them? They do not even have chakra. If we were instead an invading force, would they have any means whatsoever of defending themselves?

It would only foster unnecessary tension to reveal our true association.

[thinhammer]

[ Aaah, so Sai means bad guys. That's something Naruto can understand - that there's more to fight than just the infection-- that there could be others, maybe even the ones behind it, to watch out for too. ]

If they saw us protectin' them, then we could show 'em that we don't mean any harm, though...

[ Naruto fails to realise that not everyone is as Pure as he is, and that plenty of people capable of using their powers won't exactly use them for good means, but hey. What can Sai expect, really. ]

[daimeinashi]

That would not prove anything. It would be as if individuals with power equivalent to the Tailed Beasts were to arrive suddenly in Konoha without a pre-existing arrangement with the Hokage, and began to use their abilities indiscriminately.

A ninja must see through deception, remember? What we allow ourselves to be seen doing and what we might actually be doing may be very different.

[thinhammer]

If they were doin' good stuff with their powers, I don't see much problem with it.

[ Yeah, yeah, he knows. Protocol and all that. Stupid protocol. ]

But, fine. Alright, I won't go over the top, I'll keep it on the down low.

[ By it he means.. himself. Which is a nice thought, but will probably be very unlikely in practice. ]

So... These Zym-- The bad people you were talkin' about.. You've met 'em before?

[daimeinashi]

[He's not sure if Naruto understood the point he was trying to make there, but whatever. He'll be keeping an eye on Naruto anyway; if he catches him doing anything ridiculous, he's sure he can take care of it before it becomes a Problem.]

Yes. They were our adversary in the previous mission. They used a species capable of commandeering other sentient beings' bodies, the Taraxa, as a means of infiltrating the society of Perdition's Rest. They meant to dig into the core of the planet and destroy a crystal, which according to ALASTAIR would've resulted in the elimination of all life in that sector of the multiverse.

[thinhammer]

[ Haha, good luck, Sai...... ]

So.. they took over some people in that place, Perdition's Rest, an' they wanted to destroy a crystal that'd kill everyone.

[ He thinks? ]

Is there a crystal here too?

[daimeinashi]

If there is, ALASTAIR isn't aware of it. Or at least, they have chosen not to inform us, which is also a possibility. Audentes was not informed of Zymandis' existence until the previous mission, despite their being an enemy to ALASTAIR for millenia.

[thinhammer]

[ Squint. ]

How's that work? How can ya be someone's enemy without knowin' the other person exists?

[daimeinashi]

[Naruto ......]

It is more like they are your enemy than the other way around. Much as the Hokage will be familiar with threats to the village that a newly minted genin is not, yes?

The broader organization of which the team Audentes is a part, ALASTAIR, is well aware of Zymandis. However, Audentes itself was not, until recently.

[thinhammer]

Ohhhh.. Oh.

[ He gets confused with all these new names, okay, and also doesn't quite grasp the gravity of the organisation he's a part of but.. he'll get there. Probably.

Hopefully.. ]

Why wouldn't they tell us about 'em if they knew, though?

[daimeinashi]

That, we do not know. The best possibility for us is that it was simply a matter of classified material for a relatively new team. But it is also wise not to make assumptions in any direction just yet.

[Especially since the IC files revealing ALASTAIR is essentially a rebel faction that splintered off from Zymandis get dropped like, a week after this thread took place, ha....]

[thinhammer]

Hhmm. Guess so.

[ Naruto scrubs his hair with a hand, and does this kind of dramatic deflating noise as he looks around only a little helplessly. ]

It's a lot to take in, this place, bein' picked outta where we're from and dropped here and then one day bein' picked right back up again to go home. I dunno if I'm ever gonna get comfy here.

[ He looks at Sai then, up and down, scrutinising. ]

Do you feel comfortable??

[daimeinashi]

Comfortable?

[He repeats. The question is a strange one to him, one that he needs a moment to try to make sense of. Maybe because he's no stranger to knowing how to shut up and fall in line, as a member of Root.]

I have not particularly considered it, I suppose. Any feelings or opinions I might hold toward ALASTAIR personally are irrelevant. At this time, there is no known way to return of our own volition. There is no choice but to follow orders and fulfill missions in the meantime, to prove our usefulness and gain the favor of those more familiar with interdimensional matters, such as Lloyd-san.

...So I suppose you could say I am not comfortable, by that definition? I have no intention to stay or work for ALASTAIR in its own right, merely to cooperate with our teammates for our mutual objectives.

[thinhammer]

[ For once Naruto is kind of glad for Sai's ability to be brash and to the point without any emotions clouding his view, because it helps put Naruto's rather messy feelings in some sort of line, however vague said line might be. ]

Yeah, I guess that's where I stand too. Though, it's good that we're helpin' people and not bein' made to do something shitty for the bad guys or whatever?

[ Small victories. He also, mostly, just feels better because he doesn't feel entirely loyal to this place despite being one of it's agents - typically he's all for being loyal to the cause but, he's still missing home - and what Sai said kind of affirms that it's an okay thing to be feeling. He's right, after all, they don't have much choice. ]

[daimeinashi]

I would not be so hasty to assume the motivations of ALASTAIR, Naruto. In the previous mission, members of Zymandis claimed to be working under the orders of the same timeline machine as ALASTAIR's, though they claim theirs is a superior version.

[he shakes his head]

The lack of destruction is not necessarily always the same as salvation, is all.

[Too bad Sai missed some of the more decidedly Gray missions this team had, like the one which involved killing goddesses to save a planet, or the one where saving a bunch of dragons doomed a planet down the line ... but Sai is naturally suspicious at pretty much all times, anyway. Occupational hazard of being a Root shinobi, perhaps.]

[thinhammer]

Pff, we're not doin' anything bad here by figuring out what this infection is all about, are we?? We're keepin' people safe, helping them.

[ In other words, he'll doubt ALASTAIR when it gives him a reason to. Because that's how he's wired. Unlike Sai, his trust flows like a river. ]