damned_institute | Day 40: Lunch

*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]

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The description Artemis gave really was something hard to believe. Kakashi might not have, if he hadn't had so much experience with his own sense that could see much more than a regular eye could. But even so, this was definitely something beyond anything he'd ever heard of back in his own world.

Just something new to add to the pile of incredibly strange stuff.

So he heard things from both Haku and Kakashi. That helped a great deal, since there were very few traits that both ninja shared. "You said you can try to listen. Can you do that now, with me? If you can tell me more of the things you hear, then maybe it'll help me figure out a bit more of what the cause is." Otherwise, Kakashi would have to start sending Artemis to the other ninja, just so he could figure out just what really was going on. "Though I can't exactly say you won't hear anything you don't want to. I'm sure that doesn't come as a surprise."

Artemis nodded. "I'll do my best, though I can't guarantee anything."

The boy closed his eyes, trying to hear better. It was hard, though. He'd never tried to use it before--just block it out or attempt not to hear it at all. It had never occurred to him to try to use it to his benefit. Probably because it was nearly impossible except in the right situations, such as this one.

He drew his eyebrows together in deep concentration. What was coming off of Kakashi? How could he phrase it?

"There's... a warm sort of... No, it's a loving feeling. I think. And--" He winced. Someone chose that moment to start screaming and laughing maniacally. Honestly, could they keep it down?!

"It's okay if nothing else comes of it." Kakashi wasn't going to suddenly dislike Artemis if the boy couldn't tell him anything more. "I still have an idea or two regardless. This might just might get you an answer faster."

When Artemis began to focus, Kakashi remained silent. Though the sounds he might make and the ones only Artemis could hear might not actually interfere with each other, it didn't hurt to contribute as much as possible--in this case, by contributing as little as possible. And maybe it'd been the right idea, since Artemis did hear something else.

Kakashi thought it was strange though. It was true that there were people he cared for deeply, but thinking about those people--Obito, Rin, his Master--didn't bring just love to mind. It wasn't even the strongest emotion for the jounin, who felt an incredible amount of guilt and regret for his failing them all. Not that he focused on that thought too much. Artemis's problem might require him to touch on those nerves, but Kakashi was just as happy to keep his mind elsewhere.

"I'm afraid there's not much I can tell you just based on that. But there is another method, like I said." Kakashi glanced around the room, trying to get an idea of just how much time they had left. "So long as we're still together, I would like you to continue to tell me what you hear. But just in case, there are some other people you might try and talk to. You see, Haku-kun and I don't really have much in common with each other." A shared experience, a shared profession, and a general type of ability. "So if you talk to others from our world, we might just be able to figure out a cause based on elimination."

Kakashi briefly considered the list of people there. There was no way he'd send Artemis to either of the Uchihas if it could be avoided. Itachi was just too dangerous, and Sasuke too angry and focused on revenge. The other Konoha-nin were all possibilities, along with Kankurou of the Sand, though Kakashi hadn't seen him around for several shifts. And there was Naruto's current condition to consider; Kakashi knew the boy was going through a lot thanks to the horrors of the Institute, and it wouldn't do either Naruto or Artemis any good to have that picked up on.

"Haruno Sakura, Nara Shikamaru, Sai, and Jiraiya-sama." Kakashi pointed out each in turn as he named them, glad that all of them were present in the cafeteria. "If you get the chance to talk to them, take note of what you hear. Then find some way to tell me, and maybe we'll be able to figure out something based on that."

Day 40: Lunch

Re: Spoilers for Kakashi's backstory. Just in case.

Re: Spoilers for Kakashi's backstory. Just in case.

Re: Spoilers for Kakashi's backstory. Just in case.