Emeraldxsplash - INVICTUS

生存院のケロイドが描きたかっただけ 腹のケロイド描き直そう…もうちょっとフラットで良かった気がする

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Another hotel room, another stop.

Time seemed to be slipping away from them, from him. They were in one of the many countries on their list - Pakistan, if he remembered correctly. He could have been wrong. A lot had happened within that day, too much so to remember a name of a country that he had not really bothered to care for. Another night of sharing a hotel room with the only other person his age there.

"You don't have to continue on this journey, y'know?"

Jotaro's words caused Noriaki to pause, his half-folded gakuran gripped between his hands as though he thought he might need to bring it to bear as a shield.

That it had been an exhausting journey was a given. All optimistic estimates of time spent simply arriving to their destination (nevermind completing their task) had long since vanished like a fistful of sand on a turbulent day, and each sunrise brought perils unlike anything they could have predicted. Such was the nature of Stands, yes, and such was the nature of the one who gathered them.

The one they needed to kill.

Maybe if it were someone else making the suggestion, he'd be indignant. He would likely find the insinuation insulting. But Jotaro didn't tend to speak uselessly, and knowing that was enough to give him pause. The question, then... was why? Why would he say something like that? Thousands of kilometers from home, after how much they had been through together, why say something like this now?

He shook his head firmly, as if to shoo away the clutter threatening to close in on his mind. He'd made himself useful; of that he was one hundred percent certain. He was not a burden, and was, in fact, an asset to the group. And as for within, his resolve burned as strong as ever. No— stronger. All that was remained was the outside perspective, then. Was the other worried? About what?

❝...Do I seem like the sort of person who runs away or leaves things half finished, Jotaro?❞ Despite the way the other's words had chafed him, his own tone remained more level than he had expected it to. Good. Even beyond the bitter taste giving up would leave in his mouth, he had personal reasons for pressing on. He didn't need the other to understand them or even know about them in the first place, but he wasn't keen on being second guessed this way.

He finished his task, setting aside the green cloth with a measured pace before turning an intense gaze on his companion, his eyes betraying his vexation.

❝You don't need to worry, because I'm not. Never once has the thought of turning back crossed my mind. I'll see this through to the end.❞