there is such a thing as an unflattering light [open]

[haruno]

Sakura figured she should probably be more annoyed than she was, crossing her arms and staring down the statue of her that was, consequentially, also crossing its arms and staring her down. Life imitating art was usually an expression she'd heard, not something she'd expressly seen. (Given the artists she knew, art wasn't even something held back

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[eradicating_war]

"Haruno Sakura." Hey, he's lived in Japan, he knows the proper way to pronounce her name.

His eyes went from her to the statue, then back to her. He didn't say anything further, but the way he was looking at her, it was almost as if he was waiting for her to explain.

[haruno]

Sakura stepped back, looking at Setsuna... and then back at the statue of herself. She preferred the one of her glaring right about now. It would have required no explanation.

Not that this strictly did either, if she guessed he wasn't simply saying hello. "I didn't hear you come in," she said, smiling.

He could try asking if he really wanted to know. "Have you been in here before?"

[eradicating_war]

That one would've still required an explanation. As does the current one, but he didn't bother asking for one. At least not outright.

"Only once," he responded. "I didn't find anything of interest." Not that he was ever much into things like art to begin with. "Though you've seemed to."

[haruno]

"There are better subjects to try and capture in stone." She regarded herself for a while longer, debating how much she cared to say. What was noncommittal enough, as her history as a fighter wasn't something she had divulged often (if at all) to other son the ship.

At least not in detail.

"Several seconds of one battle isn't worth it." The effort, or the pretense of it. So far, the ship's decision -- or the technology responsible for this -- felt almost arbitrary.

[jesus_is_gundam]

"Depends on the battle," he responded, and looked back at the statue once more.

"How many have you been in?"

[haruno]

"I stopped counting." She had an exact mission count, but that didn't tally actual confrontations, and in the war alone it was unending movement. Battle in the greater sense? One hand counted the major ones. Orochimaru, Pain, Sasuke, the War Front... "And you?"

[eradicating_war]

That wasn't as easy a question to answer as it should be.

"I never kept count." Sure, he could pinpoint the exact moment where it all began for him, when his life turned into one long war for one thing or another. But as for how many battles he's had between now and then? It'd probably be easier to count the grains of sand in the desert he once called home.

[haruno]

She nodded, accepting his answer as it was. What she wondered about the machines of war, and the people who acted as their catalyst for movement, stayed within her own mind.

The statue was shifting again, as queasy to observe as the last time. Sakura didn't exactly want to see what it'd form, considering she had no idea how to directly influence. Something with flowers, she thinks, staring hard and opting not to take a step back. Remembering learning how to arrange bouquets, how to pass themselves off as normal women.

She ends up seeing herself at six, sitting next to another little girl. Ino, she recognized, from one of their flower arranging classes. Sakura had a cosmos in hand, looking more melancholy than she remembers feeling at six, eight, however old.

Ino was frowning. Her own bouquet was held in two hands as she looked over at the child Sakura, disapproving of whatever was being said. "This is just disturbing."

[eradicating_war]

Setsuna seemed nonplussed by the changing images, though he was that way about everything, at least on the surface. Inside, he was just as bothered as she was. He was a private person; anything that would put parts of his life on display for others was something he'd continue to remain a respectable distance from.

"But you keep looking at it," he pointed out. "What were you hoping to see?"

[haruno]

His question gave her pause. Why was she sticking around?

It's the easy way out. Not as invasive as the sensoriums, and just that off chance of seeing familiar faces again without having gone looking for them specifically elsewhere. She wasn't sure it was something she liked, as she pushed it off to the side. "I don't know." An honest enough answer. "I'm not sure I want to stick around long enough to find out."

She took a step back and to the side, turning away from the statue display.

[eradicating_war]

"Like I said," he stated, watching where she was headed next, "I never saw anything of interest here."

[haruno]

"Where have you?" She asked, taking another step away.

[eradicating_war]

He didn't answer that question immediately. Partly because he was wondering whether or not he even could answer that question. Outside of his Gundam, nothing much held his interest.

But...

"Have you ever been to the Spacewalk?" He wasn't sure he'd call it something of interest, but the view has kept his attention for a few hours.

[haruno]

"I've passed through," she said, "On the way to Hydroponics." To be honest, she'd usually been distracted passing through the corridor to find herself in Hydroponics proper. "I haven't spent time there for the sake of the view."

She looked back over at Setsuna, curious. "You enjoy it there?"

[eradicating_war]

He considered that as well. Things like joy, fun, happiness, and friendship had come to be measured in very different ways by him, considering a good chunk of his formative years were utterly devoid of those things.

"Its peaceful," he remarked. It was as good a place as any to think.

[haruno]

Peaceful was something she could appreciate. She hesitated, then smiled. A small one, but sincere enough. "Were you heading over that way?."