§ησω

[Ηεηgε]

and I hold my hand to touch
t h e skyline,

With each breath, a puff of white escaped his lips and escaped into the frozen comfort of the winds. The snow at his feet whisked around as the winds kept low, preferring to crouch, rather than run alongside him. The pink and playful blur that stuck to his side day and night was far from similar when it came to the winds. She leapt through the air, nipping and yipping at each snow flake and melted on her little black nose. The triple bladed samurai kept his pace, but rested a wrist over one of his hilts, taking a deep lungful of the frigid air before exhaling it much like smoke. His feet were bare, and his footprints were plain to all who wished to track him. His shirt was open, as always, revealing a scarred chest. He appeared unaffected by the cold, only fueled by it, continuing his pace like it was a summer day.

The fox at his side yipped again, in fright of the large clump of snow that toppled off a roof, landing only inches away from her. Dashing to Banrai's bare feet with her poofy tail wrapped at her side, she insisted on stepping on the samurai's feet, pressing tiny paws against tanned toes. A chuckle escaped the man as he knelt down, gently scratching the fox behind the ears. Her scared eyes shone with playfulness once again as she yipped and jumped through snow, chasing after flakes and whatever animals stayed out in the cold this stormy afternoon. The morning dawn was greeted by a massive black cloud over Konoha, spitting out snow and ice, all while blocking the suns healing rays. Now it was afternoon, and the clouds were beginning to gray, snowing lightly rather than storming.

He had decided to travel from his house to the market district for some tea leaves, being fresh out. Konkon, the pink fox ahead of him, had insisted that he took her with him, this being her first snow. The cold didn't phase her, nor did it Banrai, and her glee warmed his heart while the absence of tea could not. "Henge-chaaaaaaan~" The pink fox jumped up to a fence line and scrambled ontop of it, balancing gracefully on it's thin wooden boards. "Snow~! Snow~!" Every sight was new to her in this frozen landscape. While the trail was familiar, the shapes were not. Houses were stacked larger with clumps of snow, and signs were emptied and appeared replaced with unused canvasses.

They weren't the only ones outside and enjoy the snow. Many children ran about in bundled clothing, some adults grumbled as they shoveled their walkways. Young couples shared the warmth of their bodies with a kiss under a light post. All aspects of life were out and about, throwing snowballs no matter what age, making snow angels, and sipping hot coco. He wouldn't be swayed from his goal however. He'd find his way to the market district and claim the tea that he rightfully deserved. Even if he had to dig through a mountain of frost, he'd—

トサ—!!

A direct hit. The frozen projectile smacked square on to the back of his head, sending him toppling over in surprise. His face fell straight into the snow, and his arms flailed in a comical fashion while he fell. The pink fox didn't even try to hide her amusement, as she laughed with the voice of a young school girl. Banrai slowly rose from his freeze grave, his face red by the sting of the cold and the rush of blood. As he turned to face his attacker, he ducked down and scooped up a handful of snow, patted it down into a ball in less than a second, and threw it with amazing aim. His lips were puckered out, and he let out a mighty whoop as the snowball smacked right into the face of the kid who had thrown the first one.

"Haha~! Got ya'~!!" The boy was not alone however. At least a dozen small heads jumped out of the white hiding places, and a dozen small arms rose into the air, then fell back down as a dozen snowballs flew true towards Banrai. Ducking for cover, he was struck in the side by two of the frozen projectiles, and he went straight to work on crafting his own weapons. This meant war, and a very cold one at that. With a few snowballs crafted, he leapt out of his hiding place and flailed his arms, not missing a single target, sending children into laughter with his silly face as the cold spheres struck them on the chest and belly. One kid got hit in the face, and he fell onto his back, tearing up with his laughter.

Banrai loved kids, and aparently so did Konkon. She sprung a trap and kicked snow off a rooftop ontop of an unsuspecting soldier. It was two against twelve, and numbers kept growing. Adults and other children joined the fight, all siding with the twelve rather than the two. In a matter of seconds, the samurai and fox were up against twenty. The street they had chosen to walk down was extremely large. Large enough to fit twenty more. He had faced worse numbers, but now, he was armed with snow rather than swords. During the gathering of the new recruits to the army of twelve, Banrai spotted the tea stand past enemy lines. If he was going to get his tea, he'd have to get through them first.

So be it.

[Matachi]

winter lane

"Don't go out too far, y'hear?"

Kinezumi froze, his footsteps coming to a halt in front of the door, the hallway to his back. The warning came from a room adjacent to where he stood, the den just to his left. He glanced over his shoulder, scowling, his nose wrinkling, a certain discontent in his eyes. Annoyance and anger.Such was this youth, he had a chip on his shoulder, a bone to pick with life, and a grudge against any supposed god that claimed to control his destiny. Sucking air through his teeth, he swiped his thumb across his nose, muttering under his breath.

"Whatever."

"I mean it, Kinezumi. And I want you to stay out of trouble for once." A man stepped from the den, heading in the opposite direction from Kinezumi, "Bring me some chips while you're out, too." The man's muffled voice spoke behind a bun, disappearing in the kitchen at the end of the hallway. Kinezumi slid the door open, tossing his scarf over his shoulder, his sandals stepping onto the snow that caked the stoop of the small home just outside of Konoha's shopping district. The frosty white crunched under his heels, stepping onto the ledge of the step, beholding the white world that was displayed before him.

Konoha's painted wooden fences and metal fixtures in all of it's splendor was covered in inches of snow. The cold bit at his face, causing him to wince at the brisk wind that stirred the snowflakes that fluttered down from the sky around. It took him five minutes to wander around and come across the old man being pelted with a snowball in the back of his head, frolicking with children and foxes. He arched a brow, noticing the odd color of the fox and groaning under his breath. For now, he stood afar, his hands in his hoodie's pockets. His nose flared, white slipping from his nostrils as a nearby bakery's products slipped under his snout.

"Fuck..." He swore, "I blew the last of my money getting Senpai his chips..."

Crosshairs landed on the pink fox. He could sell that for a pretty penny and buy tons of bread. All he had to do was get his hands on it and he could eat all the baked goods he wanted. In a blur of motion, he lunged out into the clearing, dashing straight for the oddly colored fox.

"BANZAI!!" Cried Kinezumi, diving for the fox--