Day 40: Lunch

[whiny-egomaniac.livejournal.com]

*hobble wobble*

"Damn that SCOURGE!" Starscream cried out, the slowly-filling cafeteria producing a jarring echo of his raspy voice. His limping, already bad enough from not knowing how to properly use his crutches, was now exacerbated from the injuries he'd received the shift prior. Despite the gauges in his non-casted leg so lovingly provided by the aforementioned 'patient', Starscream could still put some weight on it, but not so much that he could really stop and rest; relieving the soreness under his arms was out of the question. The nurse that walked behind him with his tray, already upset at having to deal with yet another troublesome inmate, was growing rather impatient as his charge slowly made his way down the food line.

"Just...give me a standard serving of the aquatic creature's flesh, some of those fried potato slices, two bananas, and three bottles of juice," Starscream sighed, his anger from just a moment ago assuaged by the physical exertion needed to move the way he did. "I'm going to sit down here...bring it to me when you're done."

He was hardly surprised to find that one of the bananas was completely bruised along its inner curve, or that the handful of 'chips' on his plate were all on the small side. Tired and frustrated as he was, however, he could barely muster a 'damned flesh-creature' before moving his fingers to the plate, picking one of the longer 'chips' and shoving it into his mouth listlessly.

There was an unusually high concentration of sodium chloride crystals on it. Of COURSE.

[For Tony Stark]

Comments

[see-my-back.livejournal.com]

"I can respect that," Sakura nodded, memorizing what she'd been told. "Even that much is helpful actually." She had an inkling about the doors, and if she had to relate them to something, it wasn't too much of a stretch to say they were like the doors in the Chuunin exams. Having some kind of pre-requisite before they were allowed entry wasn't all that uncommon.

"You really know where he is?" she repeated, somewhat surprised to hear it. If she was tight about the basement information, there was probably no way she was going to get the info on Landel, but it was certainly good to know that there was a person who knew his location. "It's not the basement, is it? That seems so obvious..."

[quickdrawbkiddo.livejournal.com]

"Answer this, Sakura," the Bride said, resting her head on her hand as she watched the girl. "If you were a power-obsessed megalomaniac that liked nothing more than rubbing it in the faces of your prisoners how helpless they are, where would you wait for the worthiest of your toys to show?"

[see-my-back.livejournal.com]

"I... suppose I'd wait at the end of the trials," she answered, not really thinking about it. Was he really that dumb though? Maybe he had barriers, but to be that confident? Even if they were weak, there was always numbers.

"-to... to see who finishes first, right?" she finished. Ew, what if he was like Orochimaru? What if he only wanted to see who got through first so he knew what body he wanted next? If that was the case, she definitely had to keep Sasuke away! But that would be almost impossible! And if she could put that much together, surely Sasuke had already...

[quickdrawbkiddo.livejournal.com]

"Not to finish first, but to see whom among his captives has the arrogance to believe they could remotely defeat him," Beatrix clarified.

"He stylizes himself as a god, whether he states it or not. But gods bleed."

[see-my-back.livejournal.com]

Corrected again. She might've been annoyed, but the information she'd gotten was worth the exchange. It seemed like it was just the woman's abrupt nature and not an intentional slight. The motive though, reminded her a little of Akatsuki. Hadn't they set themselves up as gods over the other villages? And she'd seen them bleed and die just as easily as anyone else. Okay, so maybe Sasori didn't technically bleed, unless it was oil and lubricants, but it was the same idea.

She was silent for a moment, processing the information, "is that where he makes his announcements? Or has he been found other places?"

[quickdrawbkiddo.livejournal.com]

Beatrix cared not one bit if she inadvertently offended Sakura; the girl was young and still had a lot to learn. Though it may irritate the girl, she should take the corrections to heart. They will only make her keener in mind.

"He has made an appearance in the chapel before the populace once, though that was during the day when all the controls were in place," the Bride answered. "As for where he makes his announcements... It is not confirmed, but it is believed to be on the third floor if he even makes them from within this building."

[see-my-back.livejournal.com]

Another mental note. Memorization was one of Sakura's strong points, so she absorbed the new information like a sponge. She wasn't sure yet what it all meant, but having the info on hand would help.

"That's helpful, thank you," she nodded, offering a small, grateful smile. "If there's anything you need to ask me, let me know and I'll see if I can help too."

[quickdrawbkiddo.livejournal.com]

Shifting a bit stiffly in her seat, Beatrix adjusted the sling, a small frown forming on her face. A moment later and it disappeared.

"What are your group's intent in the basement?" If they weren't competition, perhaps the Bride could let them be.

[see-my-back.livejournal.com]

"Right now we're just focusing on exploration," Sakura said truthfully. Naruto might enjoy jumping into things, but in this case, it took a more planned, careful approach.

"I heard one of the obstacles was a riddle," she explained, "that sort of thing is right up my alley. Though I don't know how well it'll translate from one world to another."

[quickdrawbkiddo.livejournal.com]

A riddle. That must be on the other half. Beatrix wasn't surprised the warlord hadn't expressly stated that half was a riddle. Perhaps, the assassins should follow this group down and observe them attempting this riddle.

"I see. Riddles in general should translate over given they are generally play on words and such," she replied. "I am curious, what drew your attention to the basement and not the places over the wall?"

[see-my-back.livejournal.com]

That was exactly why Sakura was afraid they might not translate. What constituted a pun or play on words in one language wouldn't always be the same in another. Well, if Arlene decided to try out the riddles, then she'd find that out for herself.

"When I arrived here, that was already the location my teammates had decided on. We worked together closely back home, so I guess... I felt obligated to do the same here."