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joshhhhhhhhhhhhhhh · 4 years

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Rating Every Magia Record Design

Yeah it’s this post, the one I promised that anon. Pretty intuitive what this’ll be, just read the title.

Except actually we’re ignoring crossover girls, including the various Tart, Kazumi, Suzune, Oriko girls, and the Holy Quintet and stuff. And variant girls too, that’s your swimsuits, haregis and yukatas, Christmas, rumour Tsuruno and Holy variants, yeah. Basically this’ll just be every girl original to Magia Record as they originally appear in Magia Record. Simple, yeah?

Also the order this’ll be in is just left to right, top to bottom of this list of magical girls + Ashley Taylor at the end, hence why it’ll look fucky. I can’t be bothered doing unreleased girls since it’s like a teensy weensy bit harder to find good photos of them

Obviously this post’ll be long as fuck but I’m not actually super good at talking about character designs so chances are all I’ll really have to say is “I like this one” or “I don’t like this one”. Hope that’s fine. Also I don’t really know anything about the majority of these girls since I’ve not read game stories and the anime doesn’t have anywhere close to this many characters so this really will mostly just be about designs. Also there’s no fucking WAY I’m proofreading this.

Anyway, let’s go.

Hikaru Kirari

Starting off pretty strong, I like this design quite a lot. It looks appropriately magical girl but with a pretty obvious marching band aesthetic, nice colour scheme to boot I’m not huge on how the little fluffy cape thing has sleeves as well since I think it might just look better as a little trimmed robe of its own, moreover she’s got a ponytail I like but that just means she’s got a lot of shit hanging from the back, but eh whatever. Overall solid. I’m not actually scoring these honestly but if I were like, 7/10?

Yukika Nanase

Honestly not huge on this design, it wants to be this sorta sexy playboy casino thing with the diamond garters and tubeskirt and bunny ears, but then the entire upper torso area with the really normal looking shirt and its tit pockets, plus the weird shape the jacket looks, idk I’m not big on it. Also don’t like how her Soul Gem is dangling from a really long chain around the neck, that just seems ridiculously dangerous and inconvenient. So probably like, 3/10 for this design or something.

Sayuki Fumino

EASY 10/10. How do you expect me to give a magical idol girl as top tier adorable as this anything less? It’s great as an idol outfit and it’s great as a magical girl outfit, uses frills minimally but to great effect and instead has diamonds as a sort of key motif for the outfit and I love them, plus outfit aside Sayuki’s just ridiculously cute looking in the first place, so that’s just a win all around.

Rumor of the Ten-Thousand-Year Sakura

I fucking hate to say it but this is like a 9/10 for me. I absolutely adore this entire aesthetic, Sakura’s fucking gorgeous and is my exact aesthetic in a waifu, and I love the sort of cyberpunk-ish aesthetic going on with the bracelet, sock I guess, and what I assume is her Soul Gem on her chest. The only reason it doesn’t get higher is because of the skirt, which if it was just filled in, you could even keep the diamond aesthetic by making it white or that lighter blue she’s got around her waist, would be enough to get a 5 from me. It just looks silly, and obviously it’s a magical girl outfit so it doesn’t need to be ridiculously practical or anything, but there was definitely some practicality being sacrificed for fanservice there and I’m not huge on it. Oh well. Rest of Sakura’s design is more to my taste than Sayuki, mostly because of long white hair, so we’ll still call her design my favourite so far even if it’s not got a perfect score from me.

Riko Chiaki

Yeah okay I really like this one too, because this Riko-chan is just mega fucking absolutely super adorable and I am a big fan. She’s got a sort of, I guess Alice in wonderland look with the frilly apron and whatever that cloth on her head is called, and the bands holding her sleeves rolled up too, I like it. But the big ass white cloak with that nice blue frill trail, they keep it magical girly enough to where you’ll notice that she’s a magical girl way before anything else, and hey that matters to me so. Probably... 8/10.

Kanagi Izumi

Yeah no wow the boss of the east or west I can’t remember is a fucking queen, I love her. Very obvious naval influences in this one and I think it looks sick as hell, don’t know what the fuck that eyeglass is but who even cares. Magical girl emphasis is still retained with the skirt, frills obviously, and whatever the fuck her boots are up to, and I think it looks really nice. Also a very simple and effective colour scheme I like a lot too. Only things I’d really say against it are that the belt’s probably a bit more complex than it needs to be and I don’t think her shirt needed to be sleeveless, but then that works with the garterbelts and the 5 star card art is pretty hot so honestly I’m not gonna complain. 8/10.

Kokoro Awane

I stand with most people on this design in that I’m not a fan. Main reason is that it looks fucking ridiculous, that like skin tight latex behind this weird not-full skirt that’s like 3 skirts at once looks dumb as hell, and yeah the fact that it’s got pantsu at all just, looks weird. I think going by the latex and that upper body jacket thing, they did want her to sort of dress light, but again that doesn’t work with the skirt and the gigantic fucking scarves, also that scarf like goes into a cravat with the usual magical girl collared shirt and it’s super busy in a way that looks ugly and cheap. Also her hair’s fuckin weird, why have the loops on each side but then have a side ponytail on one side as well, looks stupid as hell. Colour scheme is okay and that’s all the praise I can give. 2/10.

Tsukasa Amane

Order of this post means I’ll be talking about Tsukuyo way later than her sister but yeah I hate twin designs in anime and while it’s not like these two don’t look different, there are enough broad similarities versus kinda minor differences for me to call it lazy and complain about twins as always. Anyway yeah otherwise I think her design is neat, it’s got a super sort of, yamato nadeshiko but for combat instead look, I like it.She might actually be better off without the frills honestly, but they’re not really distracting so eh. Like the little blue sash that breaks up the colours around the middle, though with that being there I wonder if the bow really needed to have such lengthy ribbons? Uhhhhhhh 6/10.

Iroha Tamaki

Hey we’re finally at the main character! The ever controversially designed Iroha Tamaki, so controversial because of whatever the fuck semi-transparent cloth she has around pretty much her entire body. And to just get my stance out there immediately, I like it. I think it looks good, the colour goes really well with her and stops any one colour from dominating the design, which is a problem that most redesigns I’ve seen people do of this run into. I don’t think the presence of a midriff that’s obfuscated by fabric anyway is even close to enough of a problem for it to deserve the response it gets, especially since unlike many other instances of fanservice in MagiReco designs this one isn’t even like, dumb looking. They didn’t need to stretch anything to have fanservice, it just looks like that and I’m fine with it. Moving past that fabric, I also just love the hooded cape looks with the colours gives her this real rogue-cross-paladin look that I’m a huge fan of. Also I’m not mentioning Doppels but her cape splitting up gives it this bird-ish look that compliments her Doppel super well. There are a few times we see her without the cape on at all, more specifically mid-transformation in the anime, and I think that sort of black top with the pink cross around in just looks so cool, it’s got a really nimble look to it that befits a crossbow magical girl so well. I just overall really like Iroha’s design. 9/10.

Hazuki Yusa

Feels like I’ve not really disliked one of these in a while. So good thing Hazuki’s here to provide. So I think the artist for the Azalea cards draws some really beautiful art and they all have some damn good colour palettes too. But uh, this design is otherwise not very good to me. I think the skirt, gloves and head are fine, and I don’t mind the dress in general even with the fuckin massive obvious cleavage spot. Bow in the middle is cute as well if unnecessary since whatever the fuck coat thing she’s wearing over it all provides enough black but whatever. The problem is everything else, not the least of which is that fucking, thing she’s wearing over it all. Literally what the fuck is that? It looks ridiculous and has no place staying on her. Also hate the uneven lengths of the socks or whatever but moreover I hate the fucking whatever those are around each leg, they’re fine on the gloves since they’re symmetrical and not stupid big but those leg ones are neither of those and it’s messy as hell. And those white things on her right leg too, I don’t get the point, they just busy the whole thing up. Like 3/10.

Masara Kagami

This design is another one that’s just a little too busy for its own good. I like the use of the transparent fabrics, her colour scheme is really nice actually, which obviously I’d say about a silver haired character but whatever. It’s just the everything else. Those weird tendrils hanging from the back, the frills around the base of the skirt, the star studs all over the transparent things, whatever the fuck the frills are doing around her neck and collarbone, it all just looks close enough to off to bother me. Also while I said I like the use of the transparent fabrics, they’re still used weirdly because like, so much of the upper body is either not transparent or there just aren’t clothes there because we need cleavage, and then the skirt’s short enough while also being over booty shorts to where you wonder what the point of the transparency was since it looks so imbalanced. Don’t really get the leg accessory either. It’s just overall a design with good ideas but the execution kinda hurts all of them. 5/10.

Shizuku Hozumi

Here we have another girl that’s pretty popular with redesigners. I’ll concede that her 4 star card art is probably a bit much, but I think she looks decent enough here. Gives the impression of a girl who fights light though the gauntlets suggest she still packs a punch. Real nice colour scheme as well. The scarf could probably do without the bow though since that looks to add more clutter than anything, and on that note having like two different cloth types hanging around her waist, one of them having its own belt on top of the other belt that’s already there, and her Soul Gem being this weird waist piercing that’s off to the side, that entire area is busy as hell and it’s not great. But a decent design overall I’d say, 6/10.

Sasara Minagi

And finishing us off for light girls we have Asuna Yuuki. Wait fuck sorry, Sasara. But nah I like her design. It’s not super to my taste but it looks knightly enough and red and white is a tried and true colour scheme, the golds giving it an especially regal feel and the leathers keeping it clear that she’s still more a fighter than a noble in spite of that. Probably could’ve went without whatever the thigh highs are doing, also feel like the area around her chest is super boring because they kept it plain as fuck to emphasise her tits and we didn’t really need that. Mostly solid though, 6/10.

Mikura Komachi

Starting off dark girls is this, which obviously has a sort of graduate/teacher aesthetic to it that uh, I don’t like here. And that’s mostly because I cannot work out what shape is actually going on for the entire lower half, cause we’ve got way too many frills going absolutely fucking wild on top of I guess a dress skirt she’s got on? And then that has a black pattern across it but also is being cut into to see more leg and, are those pockets or straps of some kind at the side? I don’t know what this design is. Actual girl’s pretty though so, 4/10.

Hanna Sarasa

Actually thought this was an Oriko girl because of the art style but while it’s the same character designer and artist, she’s still MagiReco original so. Yeah. Anyway this is another design that, it looks deceptively simple, but there’s still kinda too much going on for me to be into it. Her hair’s too big, I’m weirded out by the open shoulders since they definitely don’t seem like they should be open, those fat bastard arm frills look weird and don’t work with the cape, which doesn’t work with that semi-skirt that’s there too, we didn’t need the frilly skirt and the suspenders, she just kinda looks awkward all around. 3/10, not really a fan.

Ui Tamaki

Ui is very, very, very adorable. And her design is also on the simpler side too, whic I can appreciate. I love that her sort of outer cape ends up matching the colours of the top and skirt so when she just stands neutrally like that she’s got a mega nice look to her. Really nice colour scheme too. I think her top probably didn’t need to bare her midriff, and I’d probably personally prefer that her cape thing dangled from the shoulders rather than around the sleeves, but then it’d be harder to see her adorable collar so I don’t mind the compromise. Very cute as well that tops off the design nicely. 7/10.

Ikumo Makino

This is actually another one I like for the simple reason that it’s a really good conversion of a maid outfit into a magical girl outfit, the vibrant pinks specifically giving it a lot of life. It’s also one where the problems are really easily identified in that, if we’ve got that giant bow on the back, do we really need to have those sort of winged frills coming from the shoulders and sleeves? Makes me think the design would look way too wite from behind and it doesn’t look that good. Might’ve been better doing away with the frills coming from the sleeves and the ones on the shoulders being shrunk. 7/10.

Mifuyu Azusa

To get the main source of good out of the way, I love the colour palette, gives Mifuyu this very literal morally gray look that befits what I know of her character. And then outside of that there’s nothing I’m all that big on. Design just seems a little too, I guess fluffy? It’s more pyjama like than magical girl, just connect the sleeves to the rest of it and you’ve got a nice comfy robe. Like it’s not bad per se but I think it looks a little too goofy to take seriously. Also the skirt does that one thing a lot of MagiReco skirts seem to do where it’s fucking convex for some reason and it looks weird and I don’t like it. Plus while I appreciate them wanting to give her hair some love when she’s transformed, those fluffy whatever the fucks also just look silly again. 5/10.

Kanae Yukino

This design is so close to being something I absolutely adore, extemely simple colour scheme with a very coherent aesthetic that more than befits the face of the girl wearing it, the punk look is just to die for. Except that lingerie texture on the glove things and whatever that coming out of her pocket is, it’s an attempt to retain elements of traditional magical girl designs with no consideration for how that would actually look, that being fucking ridiculous. The entire gloves look ridiculous in fact, why the fuck do they get so huge and gross and I hate it, completely ruins the entire design. 6/10.

Tsukuyo Amane

Everything I said about her sister again, but the blue here looks better than the blue for Tsukasa, but also the cloth draping down from the skirt doesn’t go well with said blue sash and the ribbons I mentioned for Tsukasa, just to much shit draping down basically. 6/10 as well because even if I like Tsukasa’s design more there’s not actually enough meaningful difference for them to get different scores.

Ren Isuzu

10/10. She’s my exact moe. This design is impossibly adorably cute as fuck and it makes me happy to even look at. It’s a sort of bigger, poofier looking outfit that suggests she’s still distant, but the loose sleeves and fucking mega cute camisole show she’s opening up to people and I love it so much. Ren’s my favourite ever. I already said it but the 10/10 bears repeating, I love her so much. She’s so cute. Look at the flower in her hair it’s mega great, she’s so pretty. Fuck. I love her. Very possbibly my favourite Magia Record design.

Felicia Mitsuki

We’re finally at another main character, and just like Iroha, Felicia’s design is a controversial one. And unlike with Iroha, I’m not as interested in defending it, because I don’t think it looks super great. But just to get what I like out of the way, it’s mostly a super cute design, I love the horns a lot since they’re kinda like devil horns which hints at her super gremlin energy but then her backstory involves cows in some way or whatever which contextualises the horns nicely. I’m also big on the hood since it’s super cute and whatever the fuck the massive fabric ponytails are, they’re pretty nice too. It’s also a great colour scheme and I like the fairly minimal use of blacks - most redesigns address the entire front of her body being exposed by covering her with a black fabric that hurts the colour scheme and honestly I’d call the bare midriff better. But honestly what looks goofiest about it to me is just the weird two belts going on, the chain going between them that looks off, and also because of how the purple area on her chest cups over the black fabric beneath she just genuinely looks like she’s wearing a bra over everything else. It’s a design that leans into fanservice to the point of just looking stupid, and I think it’s very unbefitting of a hammer-wielding berserker as well. Overall I mostly like the aesthetic but that holds it back a good bit so, 6/10.

Emiri Kisaki

Yo I fuckin love this one, right, because every single element of it goes super well together for me, the colour scheme is really really good and I love how well it blends this like devilish girl aesthetic with magical girl stuff too, like her hair bangles or whatever taking a horn shape, and the heart tail, and the collar being spiked like bat wings, the whole thing just looks super fucking great and I love it. Also midriff doesn’t bug me in the slightest because it just looks good, plain and simple. Big fan. 8/10.

Ria Ami

So like, I like the torso area of this design, it’s got a very stage performer look with a good colour palette and a great Soul Gem, but then the moment we get to the lower body it’s just, kind of a mess, with the way the coat tails out and curls around the frills just looking way too busy and goofy. Plus the massive bow on the back needing to tail down as well just adds to the excess and I’m not huge on it. Also I get that the skirt wanted to break the colour palette up but, it probably would’ve looked just fine if they stuck to pink of white. Idk. Not huge on this one, 4/10.

Ayaka Mariko

This is another design that’s kinda, almost there for me. I’m biased anyway since she was designed by AFRO but she’s got a really cute sort of clown aesthetic that I actually really like, and while the skirt is pretty wild I do think it works. She’s also got a nice colour scheme, the contrast between the kinda pale blues and vibrant pinks actually looks really good. My main problems are the hair, because two sets of twintails just looks off, and uh, that same problem with the coat thing that everyone else has - that split in the middle that rides all the way up to her chest with no indication of anything beneath. The thing is it looks fine at a glance, but the moment you put any thought into what you’re actually looking at it just looks dumb, if that coat should fly up in battle would we literally just see her entire tits? It’s another case of fanservice going weirdly far at the expense of me being able to take the design seriously. 5/10.

Kanoko Yayoi

This is a design that mostly just, I don’t personally find appealing. I’m not really big on those huge skirt-like shorts that she’s got, if it were just a skirt I’d probably like it exponentially more, also those things dangling from the back of her thigh highs are actually trails from a ribbon on her back and I just think that’s unnecessary clutter. And then everything else about it I just find kinda, I guess boring. Which I could say anything more productive about the look but since it inspires nothing in me, that really is all I’ve got. 3/10.

Kuro

Should I be including Kuro? It’s just the Magius robe. Is that special enough? Eh, sure. It’s fine, sorta standard cultish look, but I like the wings on the hood. They tie into the Wings of Magius’ identity in a very unsubtle way, but they’re kinda positioned like eyes from that perspective which is certainly ominous. Nothing about this stands out much but it doesn’t look bad or anything either so. 6/10.

Ao Kasane

It’s, a fuckin swimsuit. But she’s got dumb looking sleeves, that dumb looking scarf that might be connected to those dumb looking hair-tie things, another dangly Soul Gem that looks dumb, and those boots that aren’t that dumb but don’t go with the outfit at all and especially don’t go with those dumb fabric whatevers around her knees. 2/10.

Sunao Toki

This outfit’s so unbelievably cluttered that it hurts to look at lol. I think it wants to look like old royalty? As in like some real Macbeth era shit? But it looks really bad, the skirt is way too much, it’s dumb that it’s longer at the back and the transparent fabric is way too much, plis the bow she has on her torso looks dmb facing forward and the mesh she has on like her entire upper body is a nightmare. I hate it. 2/10.

Mayu Kozue

I really like this one. It’s a super pretty design for a super pretty girl and I like the colour scheme a lot, it’s really cute and pleasant and I love the black used that compliments her hair. Plus that like open waistcoat or whatever she has on her top, it’s really nice looking and gives her waist some good variety. Also just the bubble aesthetic with the spots on the dress and bubbly gems dangling from the end, it looks nice. Only real point against it are the like, paintbrush things in her hair, they look bad and you could’ve put them somewhere else if you wanted to show she’s an artist. I’m also not big on the leggings being that shade of blue, cause they use that for the bows and the bracelets and it looks good as a minor colour there but the leggings is too much for me. Otherwise good though. 7/10.

Konoha Shizumi

To get what might be obvious at this point out of the way, I adore this colour scheme, it’s so unbelievably pretty and another one that’s just very to my taste, I especially love that black is very much the dominant colour, it looks super good. But not unlike her Azalea peers, Konoha just has a few oddities to the actual shape of her outfit that throw me off. More specifically the weird fuckin coat thing again. Also having the winged sleeve things right below another set of sleeve things, it’s just a bit much. I also don’t think the gold chain at the top of the skirt is necessary either. But honestly other than those things it’s a really pretty design, literally just shape that top better and it’d be a favourite. 7/10.

Rena Minami

Rena’s design is really cute and pretty! I like it a lot, it’s kinda got a magical idol feel to it, befitting of an idol fan such as herself. I really love the simplicity of the stripes, it makes the dress stand out quite a lot against many of the other designs from MagiReco. I do think we probably didn’t need the huge ass tailed fabrics coming from the back since the bow does that purpose much better and in a more simplistic way, but eh. Black arm things is also weird, doesn’t mix the palette in a good way. I also think the frills in her arms either should’ve been removed since they look kinda odd anyway, or at least changed to pink to match the bit in her skirt and also her scrunchies. Overall a few oddities but still very nice to look at, I’d go 7/10.

Meiyui Chun

This is another design that looks, mostly pretty good, it has a very obvious Chinese influence that looks nice and while the blue and white colour scheme is super basic it works. But the problem is absolutely how big the entire lower half and also sleeves are. They’re impractically long for combat in the case of the sleeves, way too frilly given that what’s her weapon again? Oh yeah fuckin Wolverine style claws! Bit ridiculous to combine something like that with sleeves that huge and frilly. Design’s just a lot sorta, poofier than the lightly dressed look you’d want for someone who fights with those as weapons. 5/10.

Asuka Tatsuki

This one’s not bad. I like the obvious samurai influence with the plate armour around the skirt and torso, and I’m fine enough with the tits being taped up for achieving a similar idea, but then I feel those two are different approaches to the same idea that doesn’t really work. What I mean is you might associate the taped up tits with a samurai in training, while the full armour is for going out into battle. It’s all samurai influence but it’s different influences that mesh poorly. Commit to one side or the other. Also because the tape tits are all white and then she’s got that ugly unnecessary robe cloak cape whatever on, her upper torso is really plain and it’s kinda boring. 5/10.

Nanaka Tokiwa

First of all, adore the colour scheme, it’s nice having a water girl that isn’t blue and I love that her palette sorta gets a little brighter as you approach the top, it’s got a nice gradient feel I really like. And then the obviously traditional Japanese influence looks really pretty as well and I do think the more magical girly top is a nice touch that’s super cute. That being said it could probably tone down the frills maybe a little bit around there since like, yeah, and also, I’m not feeling the open shoulders. The Japanesey bit and the magical girly bit both look good on their own but the shoulders being so open makes the cut between them feel off, and also like, those sleeves are so low and big for a sword wielder that it feels stupidly impractical. 6/10.

Yachiyo Nanami

Next main character arrived! I really like Yachiyo’s design, I think the dress is super pretty and befitting of a model, with its slight gradient and the stars lining it keeping it from being too visually stale. The huge slit makes me think it wouldn’t suck for combat too, and like she wields a spear anyway so, plus the little golden banglet brings some good colour as well. The entire upper body is super pretty too, I love the armour and the like black latex whatever underneath, like Yachiyo just looks experienced and it’s super great. I think her headdress is real pretty but I might actually prefer the anime’s way simpler cloth thing to all these beads, though they both work well. 9/10 honestly.

Maria Yuki

This is just another design with way too much going on for me to know what to think. I’d say it’s overall pretty, but mostly just because the actual girl is super beautiful. But the dress is just, utter hell. We’ve got a huge bow on the back, the aprony skirt, a tighter skirt below that, an outer skirt thing behind the bow, it’s just so much to take in, and then the frilly shoulders clash really badly with the whatever those are around her upper arms, there are so many patterns of clothing and objects around her chest, it’s just too much information to digest. 4/10.

Temari Kira

This is another one where I wouldn’t really say I think the design is bad, but it’s not really my thing. Kinda just don’t like the girl’s face honestly. And she has a pretty cool coat even if the inside design of it doesn’t match the rest of her outfit, but I also don’t think the coat needs to be as open as it is. Like the parts of the coat above her tits that are only rolled up so we can see more of her tits, but then there’s a collar for the coat above that and it just looks off for me. Her neck area’s just busy anyway, we’ve got the coat collar, she’s got a collar, a chain links the coat, and her Soul Gem is there too with loads of studs and stuff. Just not big on it really. It also annoys me that the ribbon in her hair is the only usage of that colour in her entire design, a bit more matching would be nice. 3/10.

Seika Kumi

Magia Record seems to have quite a lot of girls that just, look perfectly fine and inspire no other thoughts in me. This design is one of those. I like how the coat opens into a heart shape, but then it also opens down into a big tailcoat that looks kinda silly on the inside and then opens into a collar at the top and it’s like, why this bitch gotta open her coat so much. Also the colours, location of the frills, that fluffy neck thing and just the sorta style of jacket makes me think she’s supposed to have a winter theme, but maybe it’s the hat or something but I just don’t feel it. This girl’s design is like, so little more than fine and that’s so boring. 4/10.

Akira Shinobu

Water girls sure are plagued with sleeves too huge for their main combat option to be practical, huh? And that’s my main gripe with the design of this fistfighting character, but otherwise I think she’s fine. I like the sorta sports bra and shorts since they’re reminiscent of like MMA clothing which fits this girl, and honestly I quite like the look of that belted down fabric around her torso as and the strung up socks as well, silly though they may be. That being said, the aforementioned sleeves are dumb, and I also don’t really like her hood, nor the sort of frill cape she has around it too? Mostly a design I like but that sorta business around the upper torso holds it back. 6/10.

Natsuki Utsuho

And to finish up the water girls, we have this absolute nightmare. To just get the good out of the way, I do like the colour scheme. There’s a consistent application of colours for the most part, with a dominant blue, white as the main secondary colour, black and yellow to compliment those, and then the green is only used for those uh, bracelet things she also has as a collar. It’s honestly fairly simple but with a bit more expression than just “water girl so = blue”. But when we get to the actual design it’s just a cluttered mess that I hate looking at, the dress and especially the entire arm region are just so unbelievably busy and it’s impossible to get anything out of any of it, it’s just garbage everywhere. The only part of the actual outfit I like is the visor but that’s because it’s the only thing that looks decent, even if it ends up sticking out like a sore thumb because of that. 2/10 honestly.

Hagumu Azumi

And to open up flame girls is this bitch, and she’s an okay start? I like the colours, I like a lot of the shapes, the leather in general looks pretty nice, mostly I just don’t like how the red dress thing pokes through the, I’ll call it armour, and also I don’t like that the skirt is full at the back but open at the front, that I just don’t like that look in general should be clear by this point lol. Happy to have opened with a girl that’s not needlessly complicated and busy to look at at least. 5/10.

Ryouko Natsu

Continuing on from the last okay design is another okay design, one that just reminds me of Nanaka but worse. It has the same problems with the sleeves being weird, all those frills that make up the skirt are a horrible clash with the otherwise very Japanese look, and she’s got that bow around her waist that splits into two dangly bits, but also a scarf dangling around a similar location, and an extra tiny bow just to keep the pattern going. It’s just a bit much. Also I don’t really like her colour scheme either, red and blue can go well together but here they just, don’t, she honestly would’ve looked better had her blue stuff all been black as well. 4/10 with the biggest saving grace being that the actual girl is hot.

Touka Satomi

Happy to say we’ve found a design I really like! It’s been a while huh? Touka’s just super cute and I really love everything about her outfit. It’s got a sort of autumnal colour scheme almost, albeit with a sinister feel coming from the dominance of black. The cravat and waistcoat, plus whatever the name of that frame keeping her skirt stretched is, it all gives her this very pretentious look that fits her super well, and I can even handle the open skirt since it transitions from the open coat that looks super great. All I’d really say against it is that she probably doesn’t need the bows on her sleeve, but that’s such a small thing anyway so, who cares? 8/10.

Himika Mao

You ever see a design that so obviously wants to be as ridiculous as possible but it literally gets too ridiculous that you can’t even take it seriously as a ridiculous design? Yeah this is that. Imagine coming up with this design, let alone doing so and being happy with it. Imagine being the absolute fucking buffoon who decided that this was acceptable as a character design. It bends over so fucking far to try be hot and it literally can’t be because fucking look at it! If you don’t like fanservice you’re gonna complain because look at the fanservice and if you do like fanservice you’re gonna laugh at how hard this one had to try to be hot with the goofy fucking clown pants. Absolutely trash design. 1/10. I’m writing these as I go through the wiki and I’ve not really “seen” every design yet but I’m very confident in calling this one the absolute worst in the entire game.

Karin Misono

This one’s really cute! I really love the Halloween witch aesthetic, and ‘m a big fan of the hat’s tip that just sorta, keeps going, such that it dangles near her hand, it’s super cute. And despite the witch look. from her white skirt and that cute old bow, we can tell she’s still a very good girl. Just looks real nice really. 7/10.

Momoka Togame

Honestly I’m not huge on Momoko’s design. I like the sort of flower petal look she has going around the skirt, the white looks good and then Momoko herself is quite pretty, but uh, that’s about it. Otherwise I think her colour palette is kinda ugly and the outfit isn’t that great either. Particularly I don’t like that the nature of the outfit is such that we can see her little spandex pantsu, it’s not even the fanservice that bothers me I just think it looks dumb, oddly reminiscent of what old caped superheroes have and it just prevents her lower body from looking good. It’s not horrible, but it’s not great either. 5/10.

Tsuruno Yui

Hey look, another main character! I really like Tsuruno’s design, it’s another one that’s just really cute and there’s a sort of elegance yet flamboyance to it that works with her character and weapon, I also really love the hair whatever in her ponytail, it goes super well with the big ass bows around her hips. The only thing is that I’m not personally super into orange, so even though I think she’s got a great colour scheme it doesn’t actually do a lot for me, which unfortunately holds her back for me. Honestly though she’s still an 8/10.

Meguru Hibiki

It feels like we’ve had quite a few girls with a sort of circus/stage performer type look, but this girl takes the cake as the best one. I just think this is a design that looks good, the shirt’s simple and cute, the jacket’s really pretty and eccentric without being needlessly complex, and then I think the cape and bow tie it all together really neatly. From the real short shorts and the midriff it does want to be hot, but it doesn’t go to ridiculous lengths to try be hot, so it works. And her colour scheme is really good too, blonde hair is a particularly good choice with the rest of the outfit. Saying that, I think the actual design of her hair is, a bit much, a problem accentuated by the hat, so that does hold her back a little bit. 7/10 though. Still solid.

Ranka Chizu

Hahahaha she’s a gamer! Honestly I fuckin love this design. The gamer girl is pretty as hell and I adore the design on her top, specifically the Soul Gem placement is really really aesthetically pleasing. Speaking as a a gamer, this design is very peak gamer, though with a degree of magical girl flair that I obviously love, the cravat in particular being very adorable and establishing he as a class above the rest of her kin. U love it. Strong 8/10.

Seira Mihono

So is this girl supposed to be like, somebody who wants to make kaiju movies? Cause that hood is really monster-like and she’s got the clapperboard pockets (I like those btw) which seem to suggest that she’s into kaiju movies to me. This design’s weird and I feel like it wants to sorta combine a few different aesthetics inways that don’t really work. The shorts are super baggy but get cut off by what look to be rings, and then they’re tied together in a way reminiscent of boxing shorts, and then there’s the aforementioned pockets, and it’s like, I don’t actually get what image they want with the shorts. And then the upper body’s also weird with the big sleeves and hood not really going with how form fitting the actual top part is. I do mostly like how this looks but it’s got enough weirdness going on for it to not warrant anything more than a 6/10 from me.

Ryou Midori

Is this another one of those “the split rides up to her tits” looks? Seems like it, but honestly the suspenders save it for me, so this design has that going for it. But then outside of that she looks super, I guess plain to me? The striped whatevers on her arms and legs are the only real standouts but I don’t like the asymmetry on the leg ones and the arm ones just look bad to me. I also don’t ike how she has the big collars around her wrists but then fingerless gloves don’t connect to those. I feel like that’d look a lot better. Idk. 5/10.

Reira Ibuki

If you’ve been reading for this long, you’ve almost certainly gathered that I don’t really care about fanservice in Magia Record unless it looks really dumb. And this is one of those times. Though not quite Himika Mao levels of ridiculous, I do think the “fully covered literally everywhere except the pants” look is really bad. If it’s just her top half, she looks fine, I like the sorta butterfly look and she’s got quite a pleasant palette. I don’t think I’d be huge on the trousers were they properly filled in, her upper body looks like it’d go better into a skirt, but I’ve seen redesigns that address the pants thing and those look decent so maybe not. It’s just that fuckin pants thing is so bad that it destroys my ability to like the design at all. 2/10.

Aimi Eri

Hey! A design I like! It feels like it’s been forever but then I’ve taken a lot of breaks while writing this so it’s probably just that. But nah this design’s great, she’s really cute, it’s got an extremely simple and appealing theme, and the frills keep that magical girl feel without being at all overbearing. It’s just really nice, plain and simple. 8/10.

Rika Ayano

Yeah no wow Rika is fucking adorable. I just love this look, plain and simple. The skirt and collar are super sailor fuku and it’s got loads of really simple yet incredibly cute magical girl-ish additions to it that look really really nice. Fuckin 9/10 honestly this girl’s great.

Ayame Mikuri

Closing off the Azalea girls, fuckin finally, is yet another girl that suffers the problems they all do, but now in white! Yeah those whatever the fuck sleeves going into the whatever the fuck coat are still dumb and I don’t like them. And then I don’t really like the dress she has on underneath it, I’m not fond of how it’s only really connected in the middle, and honestly just the irregular shape of it bugs me. There’s also so much just, weird shit going on around it. We’ve got a bow, those dangling pomfy things, gold little chain, her Soul Gem is ugly, I don’t like those little hearts on her left that appear to be on the coat thing, I can’t really take the rabbit tights seriously, there’s just way more to dislike about this outfit than there is to like. 4/10.

Manaka Kurumi

And let’s close off the fire girls with another good one. Like Aimi we’ve just got a very clear theme with a nice magical girl flair that all looks super cute. I particularly like the little oven glove cape she’s got going on, it’s really nice. Though I think her colour palette is a little plain, which holds the design back for me a little. Still a 7/10 though, I just like cowboys more.

Shigure Miyabi

Moving onto forest girls, and bringing us ever closer to being done with this fucking post, we’ve got Shigure. And like, mostly I think this design’s fine. Her colour scheme’s similar to Momoko’s but I think the stronger emphasis on green gives this the better palette, and then the actual outfit’s pretty cute, I like the light hoodie look, plus the arm warmer things and the leg warmers that match her ear muffs are pretty cute as well. But I’ve got two big problems - the first is that turtleneck-ish collar thing that doesn’t work with the open hoodie and just busies up that area while looking dumb, and the second is, perhaps predictably, that skirt riding straight up and into her vagina. It just looks stupid, it’s so arbitrarily there for the sake of fanservice and I hate it. Again I don’t hate fanservice but I hate when fanservice makes a design look dumb and this is yet another instance of that. 4/10.

Chiharu Hiroe

God I have to wonder if it’s possible to put that super mustardy yellow on anything and have it look good. Cause it doesn’t look good here. Doesn’t really go well with either the blues or reds either, which themselves don’t go together. The colour palette on this girl just makes her awful to look at. Even the shape of the outfit doesn’t save it, that weird overcoat gown thing looks almost pyjama like and clashes really badly with that more Japanese robe underneath, plus the plaid across that robe only serves to make the design needlessly more complicated, and whatever that pomfball talisman hanging by her chest is, I feel like it’d look better if it weren’t hanging so low. 3/10.

Nemu Hiiragi

Remember Mikura? Dark girl with graduate/professor theme? Yeah what if we made the design work and gave it to a cute loli? I really like how Nemu looks, the sorta paler autumnal colours she has make her look a little more inviting than Touka, not that I know enough about her character to know that’s true, but the black cape and graduation hat do keep her feeling a little sinister but also still smart. It’s also nice having a girl whose sleeves go that far over her hands without that girl needing to wield swords or wolverine claws, for Nemu is a ranged combatant and so those won’t get in her way. I like it. I don’t think she’s as cute as Touka, also her hair is a little busy (she’s got braided pigtails and the little loops but she’s got another set of smaller pigtails underneath even that, way too much) but she’s still pretty good and is our first grass girl who doesn’t suck to look at so, yeah! 7/10.

Mito Aino

This girl’s pretty cute! She’s a forest archer and I think the colour scheme really sells you on that, it’s all pretty subdued but it gives her a nice feel, I really like it. And the sweater texture on the undershirt specifically is really cute. I really like her cape too, combined with some of her fluffy looking frills it gives off these sorta moth vibes, and while I’m scared of moths, adorable anime girls wearing clothing vaguely evocative of moths is something I can handle just fine. Also while her hair is pretty big this is one of the few hooded designs where I can feasibly see her wear the hood without her hair being just, unbelievably in the way. I think the open sides and back of the top seem like they’d look a little weird, specifically because she has that sweater texture yet it doesn’t hug her torso like a sweater would, but it’s not really a huge distraction or anything, it’s pretty subtle after all. Beyond that I'm not big on the glvoes-that-suddenly-get-way-wider look, but like, eh. 7/10.

Alina Gray

Remember when I said Ren was very possibly my favourite Magia Record design? Yeah, let’s meet the reason that she’s stuck at “possibly”. Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to Magia Record’s third 10/10 girl. Alina looks fucking brilliant, hats off to MagiReco for giving me a green haired anime girl and having her look not just good, not even just great, but perfect. Her outfit is so simple but so stylish, so cute yet so beautiful, so streamlined yet so Alina. I love the skirt that uses the cold colours of the rainbow between the blacks to give her this villainish look and be reminiscent of a paintbrush and just look super good, the chain around the skirt going into the bow matches the one on the hat and keeps the area from being too simple without overdoing it, compliments her hair great too, and speaking of that area the hat is just, so fucking good, I love it so much. And also, the fanservice! It looks good! Garterbelts and fishnets look hot and I love the little fluffy bit that matches the ones on her wrists, they used fanservice to actually enhance a design and it actually looks good! I love Alina’s design, I already said 10/10 but it’s worth repeating, Alina’s an absolute 10/10.

Meru Anna

Thankfully after Alina, the grass designs aren’t immediately going to shit. I like Meru’s (Mel’s?) design a good amount, it’s got an extremely simple shape and colour palette, but the little stars around the base of the dress keep it visually interesting, as does the bow around the chest keep that place the same. However, I do find that her hand ribbons being attached to one another is a little clunky, and combined with the huge ass veil behind her head gives her a lot of random shit in the way if she’s trying to move about. I know she’s a ranged fighter so it’s not that huge a deal, but it still looks to be a bit much, and hurts the otherwise very simple design. Overall solid though, 7/10.

Kaede Akino

Continuing the trend of girls after Alina not being immediately shit is Kaede, another mega cutie with a super nice design. Kaede’s colour scheme is really nice and makes me feel all warm and comfy, she’s got this sorta friendly forest witch look going on that I really love, the shape of her little cloak is super damn good, I especially love how it sorta capes around the front at the top, it looks great. I think for this sprite, the hat looks a little off, but it’s fine from other angles. I do have to wonder how necessary the hat was with the feathers in her hair though, cause the feather’s look great but having a hat you know will never ever be worn since it’d clash with the feathers seems odd, you know? Eh, she’s adorable as hell either way, who cares. I do like the midriff, I don’t think it’s especially silly looking or anything, though I’ll concede I have seen a redesign that I preferred. Lots of them just shove orange there and it looks bad because too much orange, but this one specific redesign I saw, don’t remember who by, it covered it with some brown fabrics to match the shorts, and it looked super great. So yeah that’s a thing. She still looks fine normally though, I think she’s 8/10, the colour palette being what boosts her up from a 7.

Sana Futaba

At long last, the main characters, the Mikazuki Five, are complete! And Sana’s gonna do us a favour and continue the trend of really good looking grass girls as well. They got off to a weak start in the order of this post but I’m honestly tempted to call them the type with the strongest overall designs, so hey that’s pretty good praise, right? But yeah, Sana. I mean, just look at her. She’s just another strongly themed, strongly presented magical girl with a nice colour palette and basically nothing going against her. All her extra veils and shit go really well with her character and wish, and given she fights with a massive fucking shield anyway it’s not like they’d be in the way which is a plus. She’s obviously a major cutie as well, the turtleneck sweater being a huge highlight. And she’s also one of the most modestly designed MagiReco characters, and again I don’t mind the fanservice but a design with none is a good change of pace, and such a modest look is befitting of her nervous demeanour. I really like Sana’s design, so we’re going 9/10.

Hinano Miyako

God, grass really is just popping off, isn’t it? Hinano once again presents us with a design that’s really simple, cute, magical girl-ish, and a little sexy too without needing to try too hard to be that. However, I would say that the scientist theming is a little weak. She’s got the lab coat, and it look super cute, I could question the practicality of the open shoulder look but it’s so adorable that I don’t even want to, but then if we take off her coat for a second then, she just kinda looks cool, but isn’t obviously anything specific beyond a magical girl. I realise there’s a bit less obviously evocative imagery for a scientist that you could use on an outfit compared to, say, a cowboy or a chef, but still, I wish they’d tried a little harder. Still honestly a 7/10 though.

Kako Natsume

Well, the streak had to end someday. Truth be told, if you were to imagine like, low-res Kako, I think I’d really like it. Like, imagine you can’t see her well enough to make out the detail, and it’s just the sorta cream-beige main cloak with big black sleeves, and some gold highlights. It looks not bad, right? And her actual head is mega super adorable, I love her hair shape and colour, she probably doesn’t need both flowers but if we just take her head only and put it on the low-res bod she looks super nice. And since MagiReco uses chibis for battle, Kako actually does look super nice in game, since that little amount of detail does work with her. It’s the moment you see the full thing in full-res and it just, feels like a lot. Suddenly there are so many weird small details, mostly hidden uses of colours that become too much when you see them, the actual shape of particularly the lower half is really weird, and the general asymmetry of the lower half really hurts the overall thing. It’s just a design that gets a lot worse hte moment you really look at it, and that sucks. Though honestly, the broader thing and Kako’s head are good enough for me to not want to give it any lower than a 6, so we’re still in positive score territory. The streak isn’t over yet!

Moka Megumi

Yeah see? We’re back on track. This very chocolate cake looking magical girl has quite a nice design, with simple shapes that are very evocative of uh, fucking cake. I particularly like the floured texture They use to naturally break up her colour palette,looks really nice. It’s not a theme I‘m super into and I don’t generally like brown as the dominant colour on anything but she looks nice, so you know. 7/10.

Sakuya Suzuka

Hahahaha this girl is a fucking nightmare! Yeah the streak is absolutely over now, wow. So this girl’s supposed to be like a track and field runner I think but the only thing they retained from that element is the shorts and what appears to be one of those sport bra-esque tops they wear for the sport. Except the former is, belted on, with a skirt around it, which looks dumb, and then the latter has that weird crop-top hoodie with the massive fucking strings dangling around it and it also looks bad. I also might just be conditioned into thinking the whole thing is bad but like the girl has booty shorts and thigh highs on for max zettai ryouiki and I’m not even thinking it looks good. Like, Christ. And the obvious elephant in the room are her elephant sized eyes with the flesh coloured sclera, like the fuckin very first Scooby Doo show but having anime eyes makes it so exponentially worse. I’m not gonna bother detailing why I hate them, I think everyone does, I personally genuinely can’t even look at her face because of them, so, that should show what I think of her design. Ladies and gentlemen, we have our second 1/10. Not even sure if this is worse than Himika’s, because while this outfit is a 2/10 at best the eyes really are just that awful, whereas everything about Himika is a 1/10 but at least her eyes don’t look like vortexes that want to suck my soul out of my body.

Konomi Haruna

Thankfully, despite the streak-ending horrors we just witnessed, the last grass girl lets us go out on a high note. Konomi’s just cute, plain and simple. I think her dress is all really nice shapes and I particularly love the sort of cardigan look they go for with the sleeves, and the open dress that’s longer at the back looks good for once. She’s got quite a whmisical, almost forest fairy sorta design, I quite like it. Strong 7/10.

Yozuru Sasame

Finally, we arrive at the void girls. And this girl’s kind of a meh start. Black, white and gold is a really nice colour scheme, but I don’t really like the gold used here, so now one of the key components of the colour scheme is working against the design rather than for it. And then outside of that it’s kinda just, a little boring. It seems evocative of stage magicians again but its usage of those elements doesn’t really, do anything for me I guess. And the diamond sash doesn’t even look nearly as good as Sayuki’s. Diamond cut in legs also just looks sorta dumb. This design is perfeectly mediocre in that it has very little going for it but very little going against it, and so I’d give it a 5/10.

Livia Medeiros

Moving on we’ve got this absolute babe. Magia Record’s first and so far only, even with unreleased girls, dark skinned magical girl. Neato. And I quite like her design as well, which is something you always want. In particular she’s got a really great colour scheme, the blacks and dark greys going really well with the purples, plus the white coat breaking things up in a really nice way that complements the smaller whites used elsewhere. She’s also just like, one of the hotter designs in MagiReco, but not in such a way where they forced in fanservice at the expense of the design looking good, she’s just like actually sexy without making the outfit look dumb to accomplish that. That’s pretty sick. I’d go 7/10.

Mitama Yakumo

At long last, we have the last magical girl from the page I’m using, our coordinator, resident ketchup-mustard drinking bastard, Mitama. I like her design. I think the blue, more work dress looking outfit gives her a look of normalcy among magical girls, which works for someone who’s not really an active combatant. But then the way the coat tails out has enough magical girl flair, plus the frills and shit around the outfit, to remind you that, yeah she is a magical girl so she’ll probably still kick your ass idk. I do think the design gets a bit busy around the collar area though, cause she’s got the actual shirt collar, that’s got a bow around it, that bow has a flower on it, then what appears to be 2 cravats beneath it, and then the coat collar thing rides up around there too plus with there being no sleeves to speak of the frills close in on that areain a way that just, makes the whole thing quite a lot to look at. Mitama’s design looks fairly simple at a glance but there’s some levels of detail I don’t think add to it and some streamlining might be beneficial. 7/10 though, overall I’m a fan. We’re so nearly done.

Ashley Taylor

Except actually, we’ve got another dark girl to get through. Truthfully, I’m not big on Ashley’s design. It’s this weird look that’s colourfully elaborate while being plain, weirdly complicated in places yet simple in others. The type of thing with no real rhythm or reason to what’s where and why, in a way that doesn’t really work but doesn’t not work, you know? It’s a design I can just, look at and be like “she looks decent”. Except from the like, red sleeve things, they really detract from the upper body’s appeal. I also don’t think she needs the little bone accessory in her hair when she’s got her bear with a bow thing and also her hair’s super colourful from the highlights anyway. Idk, she just looks sorta off to me. Nothing I know about her character is encouarging either, so. 5/10 I guess?

And with that...

We’re fucking done!

#pmmm #magia record #sao #24.4.20

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sariasprincy-writes · 6 years

Text

Hollow Point 02

One // Two (here) // Three

Chapter Two One part pretty, two parts ‘don’t care’

A gust of wind blew in from the river. It swept over the pier and onto the dock, lowering the temperature another few degrees. The breeze caught the ends of Sakura’s hair and whipped them about her face. She brushed the stands back, tucking them behind her ears before she pulled her jacket tighter around herself.

Why Sakura had agreed to meet at the shipping yard at night, she hadn’t the faintest clue. She hated the cold. She hated being it in. She hated all the layers she had to wear. She just hated it. It made her miss the warm beaches of the Mediterranean with its blue waters and white sand beaches.

What did New York have? Smog and tainted water that didn’t reach above seventy even in the summer?

At least the skyline was something to gaze at.

Before her, the city lights danced across the river like shattered diamonds. The breeze made them dance, twisting and waving like they were performing a private show. It was almost enough to distract from the cold.

Almost.

Sakura wrapped her arms further around herself as she pushed up onto her toes before rocking back onto her heels. Her gaze slipped around the parking lot again. Still empty.

“No sign yet,” Kakashi said in her ear.

Sakura curled her fingers around her cellphone, careful to avoid accidentally tugging on the headphones connected to her ear. “He’ll be here,” she said into the built-in microphone.

“You sound sure.”

Even over the wind, she heard his doubt. She didn’t share it. “He still has another five minutes. Besides, he knows the consequences.”

Kakashi didn’t reply. She didn’t know if it was because he accepted her answer or was choosing not to argue. Likely the latter. He wasn’t one for conflict. Ironic, considering his past.

Instead Sakura just continued to watch the waves until Kakashi came to life again, “Single black van approaching. No markings. Tinted windows.”

She almost sighed. What was this? An action movie? She told him to be discreet.

Headlights pierced the suffocating darkness encompassing the port. A van exactly as Kakashi had described pulled into the wide lot. It stopped some yards from Sakura before the driver cut the engine. The slapping of waves against the docks filled the sudden silence once more.

Sakura stayed where she was, her arms still wrapped around herself. One hand inside her jacket, secured around the grip of her gun, waiting. Just in case.

When Jiraiya stepped out of the passenger door, she relaxed. Even in the semi-darkness, she would recognize that long mane of white hair anywhere. He grinned broadly as he approached, his arms stretched wide. “Sakura.”

With much practice, she avoided his hug and half-glared. “What have I told you about that?”

“Right. My apologies, Tsunade,” he said with a mock bow. When he straightened, he eyed her. “Though Tsunade was blonde and, dare I say, more...endowed.” He was unfazed by her dark stare. “What does she think of you tarnishing her good name?”

Her glare faded as Jiraiya’s attempt at flirting died off. Honestly the man was three times her age - or at least close. She would have thought he’d have grown up a little by now.

“She hardly cares,” Sakura answered, casually readjusting the headphone in her ear. “Tsunade changed her name so she could focus back on her medical career. She works nearly a hundred hours a week at the hospital downtown. Even if I did get her in trouble, the police couldn’t do anything. She has an airtight alibi.”

Jiraiya seemed to consider that a moment before he gestured back towards the van. “I have your shipment for the Senju. Everything else is being distributed to your other contracts now. But I assumed you wanted to double check this one before handing it off.”

Sakura nodded her agreement. She followed him to the van and waited with her arms crossed for him to pull the sliding back door open.

In the back was two large, wooden crates. Sitting on top one was a man about her age with bright blond hair. Black ink peeked out from the collar of his jacket and under his sleeves but she couldn’t make them out. The stranger grinned at her.

Sakura frowned. “Who the fuck are you?”

“This is Naruto,” Jiraiya introduced. “I’m training him to be your new contact.”

“What?” she asked flatly. Sakura took a deep breath in an attempt to keep her temper under control. “I’m in the process of building a connection with the Senju brothers and possibly the Uchihas, and you want to drop a new kid on me? You are my contact.”

“Not anymore,” Jiraiya said, his voice unusually subdued. “Tsunade is not the only one looking to retire. I’m getting too old for this.”

She cocked a brow. “You live for doing this.”

“And I’ll die if I continue,” he returned. When Sakura just stared expectantly, he heaved a sigh, “I’ve been diagnosed with coronary artery disease. And as much as I love dodging bullets and smuggling, I’ve decided to take a step back and enjoy the rest of my years.”

Sakura supposed she couldn’t entirely blame him for that but she didn’t reply.

Jiraiya took her non-answer as acceptance and smiled. “Just please don’t kill him immediately. Give Naruto a chance.”

Her gaze fell to the blond again. He was still grinning at her. She resisted the urge to say screw it and shoot him anyway. “Are you going to get the fuck off my weapons or just sit there all night?”

Naruto immediately jumped up before he lifted the lid of the closest crate. Inside were five rifles lined up side-by-side. Sakura reached for one to examine. The sights were aligned and the grip was still new and easy to hold. She would be quite happy if these guns were being delivered to her.

Pulling out the magazine, Sakura peered inside. “Where are the bullets?”

“Here,” Naruto said. He popped open a smaller box for her. “There’s three crates. About ten thousand rounds total.”

Sakura eyed the ammo. His count was likely accurate. Overall, she was satisfied with the shipment, which unfortunately meant that she didn’t have a good reason to kill Jiraiya’s replacement. For now.

Replacing the magazine, Sakura laid the rifle back down in the crate beside the others. “Alright, get these all loaded and taken to Hashirama. I’ll text you the address.”

“Loaded?”

She paused in scrolling through her phone to look at Naruto. “Yes, loaded. What do you expect them to do with empty guns?”

He eyed the crates briefly. “It’s just that...I had plans and this is going to take a few hours.” When she just stared at him, Naruto wilted. “But I’ll make sure it gets done tonight.”

Jiraiya grinned at the impatient look Sakura shot him. Only once Naruto had climbed back inside the van did the white-haired man slide the door closed. “You heard him,” Jiraiya said. “Hashirama will get his shipment tonight. And you can go off and do...whatever it is that you do on a Thursday night.”

Sakura nearly rolled her eyes. Instead she shoved her hands back into her pockets as she fixed the aging man with a pointed stare. “Make sure it gets done. Correctly,” she added as an afterthought. “I’ll have the real Tsunade on your ass if you fuck this up for me.”

He just waved her threat off before he slipped into the driver’s seat. “Consider it already done.”

Sakura glowered as the van drove away. She’d consider it done when it was actually done.

She was still frowning when Kakashi suddenly spoke in her ear, “Want me to kill him?”

“No,” Sakura said after a moment of serious consideration. “His heart disease will eventually do that. And if it’s true that this Naruto-guy is taking over for him, I want Jiraiya to train him as best he can before he retires.”

“And if the kid screws up?” Kakashi asked.

She watched the taillights of the van disappear around the corner before she answered, “If he screws up, I’ll kill him myself.”

Sakura saw Tobirama the next night. He found her in the bar area of a restaurant that was rumored to have the best burgers in New York. And delicious they were. Sakura had almost finished all of hers, the last few bits of bun left on her plate.

She regarded Tobirama as he slipped into the booth across from her, a french fry still in her mouth as she munched slowly. He eyed the mostly empty plate on the table and then her as if wondering how she stayed so skinny when she ate so much. Sakura herself wondered the same thing sometimes.

“Nice suit,” Sakura said first. “It does wonders for your eyes. Though I have to say you're a little overdressed for a place like this.”

“I'm not here on a social visit.” Both his expression and tone were flat.

She pouted. “Well that’s too bad. And here I thought we were beginning to be friends.”

Tobirama’s face didn’t change. She got the vague impression if she pushed him any further, he was going to find the closest tree and hang her from it. Which probably wasn’t far from the truth. She’d heard on the news that police had discovered some bodies at a park downtown. Judging from the scratches on the inside of Tobirama’s wrists there had been a bit of a struggle.

“I’m assuming you received my gift then,” Sakura said as she picked through her pile of fries until she found one that was perfectly shaped. When Tobirama continued to stare at her with that guarded look, she wilted inwardly. She was going to kill Naruto.

“Was there a problem?” she asked nonchalantly.

To her great relief, he shook his head. “Hashirama was quite satisfied.”

“Then what do you want?” Sakura asked. She chewed her french fry slowly as she considered him. It quickly dawned on her. “Oh, I see. You don't trust me. So you came down here to…rattle me? Threaten me with the consequences should I screw up?”

“Something like that,” Tobirama said smoothly. As if they were doing nothing more than discussing the slight drizzle that had turned everything the same shade of grey that afternoon.

Sakura smiled. “You don't need to worry. Hashirama has done a lot for me in the past. Consider my service a favor to him that you also get to cash in on.”

“And what has he done for you?”

“I'm afraid that is his story to tell. Not mine.”

His eyes narrowed and he leaned forward just loud enough for her to hear. “That doesn't make me trust you.”

Sakura was hardly fazed. “I don't need you to trust me. I just need you to trust that I can get the job done.”

“I don't trust that either.”

“Because I'm young and pink and bubbly?” His unwavering stare was answer enough. Sakura huffed in quiet amusement before she smirked. “Fine. I have some business to see to tonight. Why don't you come with me and you can see exactly how I work.”

Tobirama was quiet. So quiet that she almost thought he wasn’t going to answer her. Then he inclined his head. “Fine, but I'm driving.”

Sakura grinned around her french fry in reply.

Nearly forty-five minutes later, after battling through the downtown traffic and crossing the main bridge connecting New York to New Jersey, they pulled up to an abandoned building. It was an old ship-building warehouse, long and open on both ends. There were windows lining the walls on either side but they were covered in a thick layer of dust. Only the dim, flickering street lights combated the night.

The parking lot itself was empty, except for half a dozen cars parked near the entrance of the warehouse. All lined up in a rough row. Tobirama parked parallel to them but still some yards away.

“This is the place?” he asked with obvious distrust.

Sakura darkened the screen of her phone and tucked it into the back pocket of her tight-fitted jeans. She glanced over the building before she smirked over at him. “What? Think I brought you here to kill you?”

Judging by the look that crossed his face, it was an option he had seriously considered. In the end, he said nothing. Only slipped out of his sporty, muscle car to follow her.

Sakura’s boots echoed faintly off the walls of the large bay as they ventured inside. She more heard than saw Tobirama follow as his designer shoes clacked uniquely alongside her own footfalls.

At the other end of the warehouse was a large moving truck. Non-description and discrete. There were seven men in total. Three were counting the contents of a heavy crate while the rest were perched on boxes they had pushed together into a makeshift table for poker. Only instead of chips, there were magazines for high-powered rifles, car keys and large stacks of money.

None of the men noticed Sakura and Tobirama approach over their own conversation and bustling. Leaning against the back of the open truck, she reached into the inner pocket of her coat and retrieved a candy cane.

Upon the crinkle of her wrapper, all heads snapped in her direction before the men jumped up to their feet. All but one. Who was trying very hard to remain unnoticed behind the others. A few reached into their jackets, their fingers grabbing guns but not quite drawing them.

“Who the fuck are you?”

Sakura ignored the man who had spoken. Just smiled at the one that had remained sitting. She pulled the candy out of her mouth to speak, “Kabuto, you’ve been avoiding my calls. You know how much I hate being ignored.”

At her veiled threat, Kabuto’s men withdrew their gun. Beside her, Tobirama shifted minutely, his hand inside his suit. No doubt wrapped around his own weapon. Things were very close to turning violent. Too close.

Sighing faintly, Sakura held up her hands in truce. “Alright, let’s just all relax,” she said calmly. “I’m not here to fight.”

A long, tense silence passed before Kabuto gave the silent command. His men relaxed their defensive stances but none holstered the guns. Her gaze didn’t waver from Kabuto.

He was a small man, certainly smaller than the rest of his party, but he was cunning. Like a rat, he could worm his way out of almost every situation. Sakura had no intention of letting him this time.

“What do you want, Tsunade?” he asked.

“You and I both know what I want so let’s just skip the whole ignorance part, shall we?” Sakura said pleasantly.

When Kabuto just continued to look like he wanted to sink into the floor, she glanced around. Her eyes landed on a nearby container where a familiar, black case was laid out on the ground. She wandered towards it, all eyes tracking her as she popped her minty cane back into her mouth and snapped the lid open. Sakura pulled the rifle out of its case and inspected it with interest. The magazine was fully loaded, the silencers she had acquired screwed onto the end and ready to use.

“.308 caliber rifle with an extended mag and a titanium suppressor. Beautiful, isn’t it?” Sakura asked Tobirama, turning around to face him.

He was still standing by the truck. He didn’t answer her verbally, just nodded appreciatively, going along with whatever little game she was playing.

Sakura brushed her long, wavy pink hair over her shoulder before she checked the sights, felt that familiar, comfortable weight in her hands. The weapon was all still new.

“Exactly what you asked for, right, Kabuto?” she asked around the melting candy in her mouth.

Kabuto nodded minutely.

Her mood shifted then. Like the stillness that followed after a gunshot. The millisecond of calm before chaos ensued. “Then why the fuck haven’t I gotten my payment yet?”

The men surrounding Kabuto tensed again. He stiffened, his glasses flashing against the flickering lights, and he quickly held up his hands. “I’m working on it. I just need-.”

Scoffing, Sakura looked out at the water. In the blink of an eye, half a dozen shots fired into the warehouse from across the river. Six bullets. Six bodies hit the floor. Until Kabuto was the only one still breathing around the makeshift table.

To her surprise, Kabuto made no move to hide. Though whether because he knew he couldn’t move fast enough or because he was frozen in fear, Sakura didn’t know. Likely the latter. When she turned back to him, his gaze was fixated over the water, searching. As if trying to locate the shooter.

Dropping the rifle back into its carrier, Sakura approached him. It wasn’t until she was hovering over the table that he finally pulled his eyes away to look up at her. “You said you weren’t here to fight,” Kabuto piped, his voice pitching higher in adrenaline and fear.

Sakura shot him a pointed look. “Believe me, Kabuto, your men aren’t much of a fight.”

When he didn’t reply, she leaned forward, her hands resting on the crate until her face was level with his. He blinked against the burn of her minty breath. “Get me my money or it’ll be your brain matter I wipe off my boots next. You have twenty-four hours. Don’t keep me waiting.”

Kabuto was still too shaken to offer an answer. And Sakura didn’t bother waiting for one. She snatched the new, glittering car key off the table before she swept past Tobirama without a glance. She didn’t have to look to know he was following her. His shoes were making that clattering noise behind her again.

It wasn’t until they were almost back at the cars that Tobirama spoke, “That was a sniper.”

Sakura didn’t glance at him. Just kept walking. “Yep.”

“So the rumors are true,” he said. “You do have a shadow.”

Sakura did look at him this time. If only to flash him a smirk. She kinda liked that he had looked into her. “US Marine trained. Don’t bother looking for him. You won’t find him.”

A quiet, curious look passed Tobirama’s face but he didn’t comment further.

When they finally reached the cars, she stopped and turned to face him. “Satisfied?” she asked.

There was something dark, something sinister swimming in Tobirama’s eyes. He nodded once.

“Good,” she smiled. She pulled the candy cane out of her mouth by the hook, swung it around her finger once before she pointed the end in the general direction of New York. “I assume you can find your way home. Until next time.”

Without another word, Sakura walked away. The instant her back was turned, her smile vanished. She popped the mint candy back into her mouth and glanced down at the car key in her hand.

Mazda. Nice.

to be continued...

#tobisakuita #tobisaku #itasaku #tobirama #sakura #itachi #hollow point #chapter two #crime au #arms dealer au #Saria Writes

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