Noriko couldn't stand the heavy noises of construction, she didn't quite understand the loud noises that persisted throughtout all parts of the day drowning out any chance to take in the breathless nature around them. It was disgraceful to say the least... why couldn't they just mold the very nature to be a home rather than disrupting it with their so-called innovation. Though again it wasn't uncommon for toads to build elaborate structures or weaponry, so perhaps it was more the qualms of a hermit than those of sage. That was to say all of this comes about as she and her sister had once again found themselves assigned to another job this time they were to rebuild birdhouses for the birds around the village that had been left homeless after the attack. Some would call the task foolish and a waste of time but there could be no better job for those who cared about the state of nature, and the balance of life.
That was to say the sage was more than thrilled with the idea as it meant they would far from the sounds of stonework and could focus on the simple task of making simple homes for the animals of Konoha. Though the sage was clearly distraught as she looked upon what they had to work with... what were these tools they were to use? Again while it was common for toads to use tools... Noriko had no such privilege as all her time was spent on forging her connection with nature. Her face would contort with bewilderment as she stared upon the hammer, nails, and wooden boards they had been given to work with. Some would call her an idiot for not understanding something as simple as the creation of birdhouses... but she hadn't been with society for ten years so perhaps her sister would cut her a break. They would at least be far from the rest of the construction workers, in the backyard of an elderly ninja who had long since retired and had dedicated his life to caring for the birds. What was more surprising was the elderly man was without a home and was more ready to lend his support for the birds behind his home before caring for the state of where he was to live. Though while his sacrifice was admirable, that didn't help Noriko figure out how to use a hammer.
Nozomi furrowed her brow as she started down at the pile of wood and nails in front of her. Hn...she really didn't want to do it. It wasn't as though she didn't like birds; quite the contrary. They were one of the few creatures that could bridge the gap between her and the outside world. But...
Motivation seemed like an uphill battle. A never ending climb towards the unachievable dreams of reaching something far grander than ones self. Tatsuo nudged Nozomi's arm as she slumped over next to a nearby lake. What was she expecting? Definitely not this. The fish keeper rolled her head back from side to side, looking up and down the water ways and picking up a hammer. Oblivious to any confusion and stricken with an intense curiosity, Nozomi began to craft a tunnel like structure. Perhaps, no one said it absolutely had to originally be for birds.
Noriko hadn't seen a whole lot of birdhouses, much less ones that were made in the Konoha village. Her eyes would lock onto the tunnel that her twin was building, she couldn't help but wonder how much birds liked tunnels but it was a better place to start than any. The sage would begin hammering together her wooden planks into the vague shape of a tunnel very similar to that of her sister's, albeit with much more shoddy craftsmanship. All the while Noriko couldn't help but wonder just how the birds would enjoy their large tunnel of a birdhouse, perhaps they would build their very own bird society within it. Have such things as small talk and communal showers, much like Konoha seemed to have. Did birds like to have big communities like that? Or perhaps they could fly through the tunnels to show off their skill to mates. The ideas were endless. All the while the old man would be watching them from his back porch... what remained of his back porch with an equally bewildered look on his face, these girls know that we're making houses for birds, not flying fish right?
Nozomi glanced over at Noriko, giving two short nods before placing the house in the water for Tatsuo to check for size.
....Birds were around the size of a koi fish right?
The fish keeper tilted her head from side to side before carefully lifting the tunnel up onto the trunk of a tree and started securing it there...not that it would ever protect the birds from anything at this stage. It was the perfect vertical bridge....which might as well have been useless fodder for the woodpeckers at this point. With a couple affirming nod, Nozomi turned around and began work on more of them, carefully measuring and securing them to the trunks of trees. Her design was flawless for koi fish after all. If it's not broke, don't fix it.
Her actions were only fueled by her sister making a very similar structure. Clearly, Koi and birds have a lot more in common than she thought!
Much like Nozomi being affirmed by Noriko's complacent agreement in her design, Noriko would be affirmed by Nozomi beginning to hang the "birdhouses" onto the man's tree. Yes if they were fit for fish they had to be fit for birds, there were no two doubts about it. Though what they actually were was glorified bridges for woodpeckers to destroy whatever hope this tree had of surviving. There was no place for bird food, no place for a nest, and much less space for birds to easily get in and out of in a timely fashion. It was more like they were making a fish themed amusement park for birds. Though the toad sage would use her infinite wisdom to assist her sister in hanging up a vast amount of these tunnels onto the tree.
The elderly man could only look on in horror at what they were doing, his thoughts had turned from were they making houses for fish to, do these girls even know what a bird is?
Nozomi lifted the tunnel up to the trunk again before stopping herself...staring at the trunk.
Mmm....there's already one over there.
"No matter." Without even a second of hesitation, Nozomi began to stagger the "bird houses" to wrap out the tree in a strange wood armor that the tree definitely didn't need. Where was she going with this? Was there a purpose to the madness? Well more bird houses meant more birds right?? And the old man wasn't stopping them so clearly this was what needed to be done. Nothing else could be helped!! Not a moment would pass until one by one the trees gained their own let of armor. A terrible terrible sight to the scenery as the Sato Twins wrecked havoc on this poor old man's soul. No one could stop them now. They were far too powerful. Even as the tunnels became more and more inexpiable, nothing could stop their flawed logic.
What had been a koi-fish themed amusement park had began slowly descending into a gerbil's wonderland. And still had nothing to do with birds, as Noriko witnessed her sister began making armor for the tree she would follow suit. Not even bothering to setup the so-called nest's where any bird could reasonably rest in it, instead she began lining them vertically up and down the tree to provide it maximum protection. At this point the elderly man submitted to his fate and instead of trying to built regular bird houses he began creating furniture for the interior of the birdhouses, feeders, nesting, and seed were all part of his process. With his knife he figured he could probably cut out some holes put in some interior liners and fix up what had become a nightmare situation of a birdhouse... but he didn't wanna stop the kids they looked like they were having a lot of fun!
But in fact they were dead serious about providing the best furnishings possible for a bird, after all they cared a lot about animals. They just knew literally nothing about birds, and much less about how they slept.
As the last nail in the metaphorical coffin was hammered...
The deed was done.
An orange glow washed across the armored tree laden sanctuary as Nozomi finally leaned backwards and gave a thumbs up to her older sister. She tossed the tools to the side and began to make her way back home. And once again, the force of nature known as the Sato Twins echoed throughout Konohagakure. It was only a matter of time until such a thing would take over the Land of Fire and destroy all as we know it. Perhaps the toad sage knew what he was getting into. Perhaps he understood that only by separating the two could he delay the inevitable path of destruction them together could bring. And yet...somewhere the threat of it happening was blanketed by the deep concern of a family-less child. Whether it be pity or fear, there is no doubt in my mind that he had made a mistake.
While the two were a walking natural disaster, that much was undeniable, even to the old man the blanket amber glow among the birdhouses brought a swell of joy to his heart. There wasn't any practicality in what they had done, in fact one could say they made the situation unbearably worse. But he was getting old he, he could fix something like this, getting up he'd pick up the tools that Nozomi left on the ground and begin making the place suitable for birds. Drilling holes and separating areas off to help the more territorial birds. Putting nesting in each one making them from houses to a home. He couldn't tell what feeling he had when the walking nightmare that was the Sato twins walking out of his life, but there was something different about seeing two youthful siblings happy that made him not question their actions.
Noriko would have an eye on her sister as they walked, would this have been how life was if she didn't go to the mountain for ten years... for but the briefest moment she felt a second of regret. Yet... they were here in the moment, a sage has to keep her eyes ahead and not worry about what could've been. Because now they were living in the moment... and god could everyone feel it.
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