Left to my own devices [open]

[tetsuru]

x. Normally, while he didn't often get a lot of sleep, Tetsuru was a very heavy sleeper. When he had been a baby, his parents had joked that all of Sunagakure could have fallen around him and he still would have slept on. Perhaps that was why it was such a surprise to him when that morning, he had woken early to the repetitive rattle of the old ceiling fan that hung in the center of his ceiling. It was a new addition to the room, relatively speaking and he was still getting used to the noises it made whenever the wind blew in from his window and caused it to swing ever so slightly back and forth. Nevertheless it was enough of a change to pull the Genin out of his slumber and cause him to lay on his back staring disdainfully at the thing as it loomed overhead. He was about as much as fond of change as he was of small details and held a similar opinion on how to deal with it - just avoid it. He blinked a few times to bring the dark world around him into focus and then turned his head to the left a bit to see that his baby boar had apparently not been affected by the irritating sounds coming from above their heads. But Tetsuru wasn't used to falling back asleep after waking up. After a moment of contemplation, he rolled to the side and reached out to touch the boar's shoulders.

x. "Buta-san! Hey, wake up. C'mon," he had to pause as a yawn escaped him and as the creature began to stir and stretch he rubbed at his eyes. "Let's get out early, before it gets hot." Buta's large ears flicked backward and slowly he turned his head around as much as he could to squint sleepily at Tetsuru. "Sleep." he said quietly. Tetsuru smiled and sat up in the bed, tossing the thin sheet off of himself. He scooped the little boar up into his arms and set him down in his lap."Please, Buta? I can't sleep now. Besides, it's really nice outside. We'll find some tumbleweed. Dad's been wanting to work with that for a while."

x. But Buta only curled up and buried his furry little snout into Tetsuru's sweatpants. Frowning playfully, Tetsuru picked him up under his short front legs and sat him upright on his butt so that the boar's head rolled forward sleepily. "What about going to the market and getting some prickly pears from the market? They're your favourite. We'll do that first." That seemed to do the trick. Buta's ears pirked a bit more and he lifted his head up to look at Tetsuru, tail wagging happily. "Yes! Butasan like pear!"

x. Ten minutes late, after Tetsuru had made his bed and quietly crept down the stairs and through the restaurant, the two of them were stepping out of the blue-framed front door. Tetsuru held it politely until his companion had hopped out onto the pourch excitedly and then shut it as quietly as he could to avoid waking his father. He paused to adjust a small 'closed' sign and then followed after his bouncing boar. He had dressed lightly and nondescriptly in a pair of brown shorts and a navy-blue long sleeved shirt that had a collar that covered loosely most of his neck. He had not intended on doing anything more than to go to the market and had opted to leave the headband that marked him as a shinobi in his room.

x. It was still very early. The sun had not come very far up over the horizon yet and the tall buildings around them still blocked most of the light that had begun to stretch over the sandy dunes surrounding Sunagakure. But as Tetsuru looked up, he could see the some of the clouds that were turned red and orange by the rising sun. They reached out into the blue dawn like fire on water. He grinned and stretched, appreciating the temporary break from the scorching heat that would lay over the Village like an oppresive blanket during the day. Tetsuru didn't hate it, nor did he ever try very hard to avoid it. But it was still nice to walk through the streets without being baked and burned.

x. He looked down at Buta and smiled at the little boar as he trotted quickly next to Tetsuru with his nose twitching and tail wagging franticly back and forth. Catching his friends eye, Buta looked up and with several little anxious squeeks interrupting his thoughts, he asked, "Pears today!" Tetsuru laughed and reached down beside the door frame to grab a small satchel and slung the strap over his head and adjusted it. "Haha! You know the stand won't be open for a few more hours?" Buta stopped at the end of the stone walkway that led from the door to the empty street and nibbled absently at some of the desert shrubbery that was growing on either side of it as he waited for Tetsuru catch up. He seemed to be considering the situation for a moment before he snuffed that the roots of the plant and then looked back up at his friend. "Train today? Tetsuru blinked and gave pause. "Yeah, I guess I should. It's been a while, hasn't it?"

x. He looked back toward the side of the restaurant where his father had allowed him to section off a small part of the yard to dedicate to his mother's old training equipment which was now his. It would be better if I wasn't by myself. That had been the problem with his motivation as of late. Tetsuru was a social creature. Even if he didn't enjoy the limelight and never looked to show off of compete, it was nice to interact with people he knew. But most of his old friends were busy with their new Genin teams. He couldn't recall having seen very much of his team mates or even his sensei since he had first been assigned to Nibuntai. He wasn't upset by it, really. It didn't help that he was often preoccupied with helping his father to clean or cook or run errands. He was still getting used to making time to train. These were things that, while they were distracting from his training as a Genin, he really didn't mind doing. There was no incentive to pick beating a punching bag into the ground over cooking vegetarian dishes with his dad.

x. He was pulled from his silent thinking by the little piglet tugging on his shorts. "Train today?" Tetsuru tilted his head in exaggerated contemplation, humming to himself before he answered, "Mmmm, I don't know. I don't think I want to train here. It's kind of boring now. Maybe at the cliffs? I need to work on boosting my Chakra amount anyway." Buta's facial expression, although it was typically inflexible and hard to read, changed into something conveying irritation. Tetsuru stared back in confusion while he watched his pet turn and start quickly down the street toward the market, grunting and squeaking as he walked. "Pear today! Pear!"

x. Tetsuru realized what Buta was upset about almost at once and a slightly chuckled quickly turned into a heart laugh as he jogged forward until he had caught up with the determined little piglet. Anytime the two of them ended up leaping and climbing over the rocky canyon cliffs just outside of the Village, it was generally a day-long adventure. There wouldn't be time to get back to the market in time and Buta knew it. Begging playfully for his forgiveness, Tetsuru reached down and scooped up the disgruntled boar and allowed him to clamber up onto his shoulder.

"Alright, alright. I'm sorry, Buta. We'll get your pears first. As soon as the market opens."