#passing on

[animeloverskylarmoon]

Madara Uchiha (Naruto) - Oneshot

“So I died again.”

Madara’s eyes were trained on the wall. He wasn’t sure how he’d gotten into this particular building, all he remembered was the words of Zetsu claiming that he would not be a savior.

“How fitting.”

He couldn’t be angry. Everything that he’d done, it was a wonder this life was so calm. He expected something more dire. Yet, he was standing inside of a school compound, dressed in a suit. From the looks of it, he was a teacher.

The irony of the situation was almost laughable. After all, he’d taught Obito. Looking back on it, if his guidance had been led by something other than revenge, hatred and rage, maybe things would have turned out differently. It is possible the war would have never happened.

“You’re much calmer than I expected. Souls typically don't take to this very well.”

The woman that stepped into the room made his head turn from the open window. The glow of the sun lowering in the sky illuminated the room, and he released a sigh.

“Given the life I’ve led, it was only a matter of time.”

He supposed you were here to take him to his true destination. This must be some kind of veil. It’s not possible for someone as corrupted as him to live such a peaceful afterlife.

“I supposed that is true.”

When you looked up, Madara was startled, your eyes were slitted, similar to the..

“Kyuubi…”

He mumbled in astonishment.

You smirked.

“The tailed beasts aren’t just entities in one single place or time. Realities differ, but power is power. Regardless of how it is distributed.”

He blinked and you were standing right in front of him. Everything in his body told him to move. Maybe it was instinct from his past life, but he no longer had any power, or chakra. You placed your hand on his shoulder and he gasped at the surge then ran through his body. Ready to accept whatever fate was on the other side.

“Ni-san wake up!!”

The yell startled him awake, and he jolted upright in the bed, staring in confusion. The child jumping on the bed right next to him was shocking.

“Ni-san!! Come on, we're going to be late!”

The younger boy staring back at him didn’t make sense.

“Obito..”

There was no mistaking that dark hair, and those eager eyes. He couldn’t have been older than maybe fourteen. His smile was big, and he was practically glowing as he continued to tug on the sleeve of his shirt.

“Hurry up slowpoke!!”

Obito dashed off the bed and into the other room and all Madara could do was gape.

Nothing was making sense. Surely he should be boiling somewhere right now.

Staring down at his hand, he just sat there for a moment, trying to figure out what his next course of action was.

“You’re pretty slow for a smart guy.”

He flinched.

“Gyah!! W-Why the hell are you here!!” Madara demanded pointing at the woman.

You smiled as you moved off the wall.

“I’m here to watch over you. My job is to guard warrior souls. Especially the good ones.”

He thought it was a joke. Sure, he was a warrior, but good, that had to be a mistake.

He rose from the bed, a glare directed at you.

“I’m done playing your games, take me to where I have to go. I’m ready.”

“You’re already here.”

“Bullshit!!”

The yell made you fold your arms.

“What is it that has you so anxious, is it the fact that you’re powerless here, or that you think you don’t deserve happiness.”

He gritted his teeth, and when he crossed the space and shoved you to the wall, you barely blinked. He looked pissed.

“Take me to whatever afterlife you have in store for me!”

“This is your afterlife.”

Your calm words were unnerving. He was holding your shoulders pretty tight, and when you stepped forward, he was shocked when you kicked his feet right from under him. His body hit the mattress, and he just stared up as you pinned his arms. Once again, your eyes were those prominent slits.

“You may have been misguided, foolish, ruthless, but some part of you, it’s not as dark as everything else.”

You pressed your forefinger right on his chest, over his heart and his eyes shook as your gaze softened.

“Sometimes light is possible to see if you look hard enough.”

He wanted to believe it, question further, but he blinked and you were once again gone.

His fist tightened at his side as he stayed there, trying to process it all.

Two months, that’s how long he’d been there. When it became clear that there was nowhere to go, he decided that he needed to gather as much intel as he could.

His profession, a high school history teacher.

Obito, his younger brother.

Hashirama, Tobirama, Kakashi, Tsunade, Gai, Sarutobi, Minato, Kushina, and everyone in between, they were all here. Living modern day lives. There was no chakra, no wars, no blood.

Everything here was as he expected.

It was unnatural how nice it all felt. There was a part of him that was convinced that he was stuck in a genjutsu, at least that would make sense.

But it wasn’t.

He lived a casual mundane life in a house with his brother Obito and other Uchihas that resided close by. For the better part of his time here, he kept running himself in circles, waiting for that other shoe to drop, but it didn’t come.

Seated at the table in his living room, his eyes were trained on the bowl of soul in front of him. Obito had returned a while ago and crashed the second he’d been fed.

He hadn’t truly moved from the spot since then.

It was aggravating being played like a puppet.

His jaw clenched.

“I know you’re probably hovering around somewhere.”

He didn’t have to look around to recognize the footsteps of the person that walked up behind him.

“For the record, I don’t stay here looming around for you. It’s pretty arrogant to assume so.”

An irk mark popped on Madara’s head.

“You’re the one that keeps popping up in my place!!”

“Ah, progress, you’re calling it your place.”

He grumbled, leaning back in the chair.

“Why the hell are you doing this? What point are you trying to prove?”

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

“ENOUGH WITH THE GAMES!!”

He was fuming, and you just smiled, taking a seat.

“You’re the first.”

His brows furrowed, a glare still prominent on his face.

“The first?”

You nod.

“You’re the first to question why life is so nice. Usually the ones I meet thank me excessively and enjoy their time. But since you’ve gotten here you’ve just complained. It’s kind of annoying. You’re pretty ungrateful. “

“Don’t screw with me.” Madara threatened.

You just continue to smile.

“You’re also the first one to openly threaten me even though you know what I’m capable of.”

Madara’s expression had not evened out, and this time, your look is much more gentle.

“You were a product of war, had things been different, it’s clear your journey may have changed. You’re far from the perfect man. There were others who faced equally challenging paths and they still chose the right side. Your decisions might have been misguided, but if you were truly heartless, you would have abandoned that boy already.”

His eyes subconsciously moved to the door where Obito was sleeping, and you relaxed in your chair.

“Even now, you’re protective of him. All those years ago, you wanted to protect him, possibly save him. That’s why you’re so diligently looking after him now.”

You stood, and he could tell you were about to vanish again, so he jumped to his feet. You stopped, back turned to him.

“This place, I didn’t create it. You did. This is your desire made into reality. If you were truly this horrible person you’re trying to make yourself seem like, you would have wished for power, domination, but you’re here, living a simple life with all the people that you have encountered, respected, cared for. This is your eternal resting place. Even if you think it’s not something you deserve.”

Madara’s head lowered, and a smile tugged at your lips when you glanced over and saw the many droplets that fell at his feet.

“Enjoy your rest, Madara Uchiha.”

You vanished right before his eyes, and his shoulders shook as he stood there, letting the tears fall freely.

“Thank you..” 

[patchwork-crow-writes]

92 - Immortal

(content warning for allusions to death and burial)

You were taken all too suddenly, your soul slipping through the imperceptible gap betwixt light and dark... The void you leave, the shadow you cast, shall ache in the hearts of everyone you know for years to come.

...but isn't it strange, though your light should now be extinguished, and your journey now at its end, that my final task should only just be beginning?

You know of the custom, don't you? For a treasured object to be buried alongside the dust of their former owner? I wonder if they ever told you why... or if they themselves ever knew. Perhaps you could consider it a darkner's highest calling, to watch over and keep their beloved light company until the end of time. And so it is now for me... and so it shall be with you.

...does this seem barbaric to you? That a sapient being should be condemned, as you see it, to an eternal, lonely vigil over the dead and gone? But surely you must realise that for us, to be consecrated with the quintessence of our heart's greatest love is to become forever bound up with them? And from that union, something new and wondrous is born.

You seem confused, my light, but I assure you I speak the truth. Though your body and SOUL are gone, the love and memory of those who survive you will persist. They will tell stories of you, your triumphs and your tribulations, that echo down throughout generations - and in those stories you shall live on, reincarnated at your most vital, the best and truest version of yourself!

Do you understand? No-one truly dies, as long as there is one soul in the world who still adores them. After all, how do you suppose we are having this conversation right now?

That's right... there is nothing more to fear, my sweetest angel, for you are shielded from all mortal suffering. Now at long last you may sleep, knowing that I shall stand always by your side, swaddling you evermore amidst my immortal adoration.

______________________________

The Dark Menagerie No. 92

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[catboygirljoker]

i hate driving. here are the laws! if you break them there will be consequences! except youre also expected to break the law just a little bit. people will get mad at you if you dont. you dont have right of way but the person who does is waving you forward for some reason. here's the speed limit! it's not the speed limit, the actual speed limit is that plus ~5-10. the light is green but you're in the turning lane. can you go? should you have gone just then? the person behind you is honking at you. there's a weird noise coming from your engine; if you try to do the right thing and get it checked out, will you get scammed? you are driving a 1-2 ton metal machine rocketing at speeds unknown to humankind for most of history. around a million people die in car accidents every year; that's about one person every thirty seconds. if you take that seriously and try to drive safely then people get mad at you.

[busket]

I feel lucky that my pet became a meme that was not adopted and used by nazis. everyone that has told me they adore this meme is a cool person and not a scumbag loser. if she became the face of a crypto scam or the name of an illegal government entity id have a crisis

[wayti-blog]

Your dead are alive. You will see them again someday. Do not be afraid of death. How sad the parting may be. The soul continues its way and sooner or later you see each other back in the Spheres of Light.

o

[somebodytolove31]

The problem with playing smash or pass is that there's a lot of characters which I'm not sexually attracted to but I would fuck in a heartbeat out of sheer curiosity and ego, like I don't find Mickey Mouse attractive at all but if he approached me at a bar and went "Hey sexy, want me to show you my mouseketool?" I would say yes because then I get to tell my friends I fucked Mickey Mouse

[nerdpiggy]

i completely understand & agree with the backlash against students using chatgpt to get degrees but some of you are out here saying "getting a degree in xyz means pulling multiple consecutive all-nighters and writing essays through debilitating migraines and having severe back pain from constantly studying at your desk and chugging energy drinks until you get a kidney stone and waking up wishing you were dead every day, and that's just part of the natural process of learning!!!" and like. umm. i don't think that any of us should have had to endure that either. like maybe the solution for stopping students from using anti-learning software depends on college institutions making the process of learning actually sustainable on the human body & mind rather than a grueling health-destroying soul-crushing endeavor

[filibusterfrog]

monty likes to sit in front of an open window and tell the bin men he loves them (they cant see him)

[beholdthemem]

My fellow bitches under 5'5. Whatever the money, do not take a job working at a middle school. A fellow adult tried to put me in detention last month and would NOT give up until I showed her my badge proving Yes, The School Hired Me To Work Here. It's not meant for people our height.

[castielsprostate]

[yaknowlikenyah]

I'm keeping an eye out for heat stroke in my area and I can't figure out what a full body flush would look like on dark skin since all the pictures are just fake training pictures. Anyone have video/pics of a heat stroke flush on black skin?

[anthrophobixx]

I had a dream where Brock was revealed to be a butch lesbian at the end of journeys and he thought that "ash and the others already knew" and the entire internet started losing their minds over it and after a couple hours the pokemon company tweeted "surprise faggots" with a picture of Brock holding a poorly edited lesbian flag

I tried to recreate it it looked smth like this

[faequeentati]

thinking about the time my instacart shopper got Cask of Amontillado’ed

[liminalweirdo]

just an FYI for trans people in the US right now

[id: reddit post by user spaghettishoestrings titled "(UPDATE) Just lost my healthcare !" with the flair "Celebratory."

Post reads:

Original post is viewable through my profile. Apologies, since I’m on mobile, I couldn’t hyperlink. The TLDR: my doctor called me on Monday and informed me that their practice would no longer be providing treatment for gender affirming care as a result of a recent presidential Executive Order, even though the EO was for people under 19. Even though I’m 25.

Also, because it was asked a few times, this happened in Michigan, and I’ve been on HRT for 5+ years. It’s a practice that includes like 15+ physicians, and I think that the decision was made over my PCP’s head, given that she once told me that she literally moved states to be able to provide gender affirming care here.

First off, genuinely, thank you so much for all the replies and messages. I genuinely felt frozen after that phone call and didn’t know where to start, and you all really helped me get my feet off the ground.

A couple people mentioned contacting the ACLU, which, truthfully, I thought, “there’s no way that the ACLU will get back to me” but I sent a message anyway. They actually called me a few hours after my post and we talked about the Executive Orders and my rights. They offered to fax my provider a letter reminding them of my rights and some other legal terms. It’s crazy how a post on reddit resulted in my name being on the official ACLU letterhead.

Anyway, today my doctor’s physician assistant called me and shared that their practice is reversing their decision and they will continue to provide gender affirming care. I’m still keeping a bunch of the resources that y’all shared saved, including Planned Parenthood, Plume, and looking into a private endocrinologist.

This whole experience just reminded me how great this community is. I appreciate y’all <3"

[end id]

source

[id: reddit user copurrs commented:]

You should contact Chase Strangio from the ACLU, I believe he is looking for reports of folks being denied their GAC due to these EOs. He's @chasestrangio on IG and Threads.

[end id]

[odinsblog]

Thread on alternative views of iconic landmarks you (probably) haven’t seen before 🧵

1. Mount Fuji from a plane window.

2. Arc de Triomphe, Paris

3. Aerial view of Kaaba, Mecca

4. A view of the Taj Mahal that you do not usually see, highlighting the stark contrast between opulence and poverty divided by a single wall.

5. Top down view of the Statue of Liberty

6. The backside of Tutankhamun's burial mask

7. The dome of St. Peter’s Basilica seen through Rome's most famous keyhole.

8. The worn steps of the Tower of Pisa

9. Photographer Alexander Ladanivskyy, in collaboration with the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism, captured an extraordinary drone shot of the Great Pyramid of Giza from an unusual perspective.

10. The Shanhai Pass, where the Great Wall of China meets the ocean.

for images 11 - 25, please see the source, here