Temptations

18

Silver listened as he spoke, and blinked. Something you had to feel.. She thought it over a moment and the other words he had spoken. Listening beyond typically hearing. "I think I get it.." She murmured, and closed her eyes again. Instead of just listening, she also focused a little on how the breeze felt around her, and the ground beneath her, while trying not to focus too hard on it. Her main focus was the sounds around her.

Of course, with focusing on the village life, she also found herself trying to push aside the negative emotions that began to rise. 'Just focus on the village..' She thought to herself.

--

Shikamaru smirked some as shrugged. "Managing, I guess." He murmured in a tease.

Jiraya smirked as he watched her, this was something she would have to push through the negativity to find. "Tell me about the negativity you feel as you focus. Where its focused on, why you feel it to be so intense." He requested.

--

Kaida chuckled softly at the tease. "Well, you could always ride Kouen if you need to." She teased back lightly.

Silver stifled a small frown when he asked her to tell him about the negativity, knowing that if she started to talk about she'd lose her focus and have to worry about her chakra spiking. "The elders.. I blame them for how the others were always watching me, and why Koga turned his back on the village, on the anbu, and tried to fight that snake all by himself.. And why he's dead." She murmured softly.

--

Shikamaru chuckled and nodded some. "I just might.. My ribs are stiff, but it's not like they hurt." He murmured, being rather annoyed by the stiffness.

Jiraya nodded his head as she spoke. "Keep listening, Silver. Sometimes speaking about the negative while listening helps." He spoke softly, reaching out and ruffled her hair. "I know you can pinpoint the negative emotions, now, tell me why you want to stay here, despite everything."

--

Kaida smiled and nodded her head. "Best you take it easy a bit. We'll also stop by the hospital after taking with Tsunade, so you can get your ribs fully healed." She offered softly, pulling out some fruit from her pack and handed him one.

Silver smiled some when he ruffled her hair, while trying to keep listening. When he spoke, her mind drifted to the kiss she gave Naruto before getting the surgery and her face heated up a bit, but she also thought about the time spent with Jiraiya, and Sakura, and Tsunade. Were they the reason she wanted to stay? It bothered her that she really couldn't pinpoint the reason for coming back, and wanting to stay, other than those few people.

"The few people in my life that haven't judged me since I was brought here, even after leaving.. But.. I'm afraid of the bond we share.. I'm afraid of breaking it, and hurting the people closest to me." She admitted quietly, keeping her focus on listening.

--

Shikamaru nodded lightly and thanked her for the fruit and biting into it.

Jiraya chuckled softly as he watched her, smiling at the way she reflected. "Those bonds can help you fight the negativity in your heart. And your fear about breaking them shows how deeply you care about them. But you know you wont be able to sever them, you have one very lucky and stubborn guy on your side." He reminded her softly.

"Now, one last question to reflect on: who here is it that you want to protect?"

--

Kaida nodded her head a bit as she began eating the fruit. The light breakfast would hold them until they were ready to have something else to eat while they traveled.