{"id":109,"date":"2010-06-01T22:57:42","date_gmt":"2010-06-02T02:57:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/?p=109"},"modified":"2020-05-15T10:49:24","modified_gmt":"2020-05-15T14:49:24","slug":"chapter-1-notes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/?p=109","title":{"rendered":"Chapter 1 Notes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Author’s notes:<\/strong><\/p>\n

In writing this little story, I want to investigate how certain statements can have a different meaning in when cast in a different light. I want to turn situations on their head, assign certain characteristics to characters in unconventional ways.<\/p>\n

Though technically an alternative universe, I’m trying to write in the same vein as characterizations in the manga, keeping most of the details the same. Dress, personality, etc. will be the same. Timeline and bad guys just can’t be the exact same, but I’ll try to make it as feasible as possible. (To note: There are some small changes to timeline \u2014 They are still genin. Right now, Sarutobi is still Hokage. The team would have been home taking the chunin exam had they not been such troublemakers. But they\u2019re not. So they will be staying genin for one more year while everyone else moves up. However, Sakura is already in her Part 2 outfit, and I\u2019ve written her that way.)<\/p>\n

What to watch for: Some things are assigned directly from the manga. Some things are a twist on a theme or a scene. Some things are characterizations yet to be revealed. Some things are hidden characterizations that will never be revealed within the story. (Why? Because they are just another layer of description that you can read into or not. Best example is the torn leaf scene, read below.)<\/p>\n

There are overarching themes I will be weaving in and out throughout the story, as well as a few color cues for changes in activity\/emotional tone.<\/p>\n

\n

Chapter notes:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 <\/span>Sakura had cut her hair before this mission, excusing the drastic change to those around her as a necessity, but telling herself it would be a mark of a turning point in her life. <\/i> \u2014 Sakura decides to cut her own hair as a way to help her feel more mature, ninja-like. A twist on the manga, where her hair is cut by the baddies but ends up helping her on her way to maturity.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 \u00a0<\/span>He ran his hand absently over a cluster of leaves growing beside his foot, plucking off a particularly green leaf. <\/i>\u2014 Our ninja in the tree\u00a0\u201cplucks off a particularly green leaf,\u201d\u00a0meaning Sakura both because of her green eyes and that she\u2019s an inexperienced Konoha nin.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 \u201cHe tore the leaf in two and set off.\u201d<\/i>\u00a0 \u2014 Hidden characterization here. So, I don\u2019t name this ninja for a while, but you should be in no doubt of his identity.\u00a0Only one character in the manga tore a leaf in two while doing his wind element training\u2026.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Mystery ninja\u2019s outfit \u2014 think Zabuza\u2019s face covering, with Kakashi\u2019s fatigues, and Naruto\u2019s goggles.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Third teammate \u2014 Deliberately concealed third teammate\u2019s identity, just not important to the story right now<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Sakura\u2019s age\/outfit \u2014 Sakura is still a genin, however, she\u2019s already in her Part II outfit.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Changes to the timeline \u2014 They are still genin, but their ages are more at the end of part 1, around 14 or\u00a0 <\/span>so. The team is a little more mature than in Part 1 in the manga. Sarutobi is still Hokage. They are genin but on the cusp of becoming chunin\u2026but they couldn\u2019t pass Kakashi\u2019s bell test and got stuck as genins for another year (more on that to come). <\/span>S<\/span>akura has had some standard medic training and shows promise, but it\u2019s not anything out of the ordinary. However she already feels an affinity for it.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Spoiler Notes:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 \u201cSakura had tried to hit Sasuke when he said it, but the punch never connected. He gracefully sidestepped, and she planted her fist into the hokage\u2019s wall instead. The smiling face of the Yondaime still looked handsome in his picture frame, even as it hurtled across the room.\u201d<\/i> \u2014 Much later, Naruto will see the Yondaime\u2019s cracked picture frame, wonder about why a revered leader\u2019s image was so mistreated, then be delighted when he learns the real story and finds out it was Sakura who broke it. Naruto will say the little patch on the corner of the frame is an improvement to the picture.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 \u00a0<\/span>“You cut that one too close,” the captain grumbled behind him. “Next time, just stick to the plan.” He turned smoothly and lunged back into the canopy of the trees.<\/i> \u2014 The scene of him on the branch being scolded by a higher-up will be mirrored later on, after Katsuro\/Naruto has moved up through the ranks. Then, he will be the higher-up, scolding a the lackey.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u201cAs she leaned down to pluck white flowers away from the plant, a warm breeze danced around the kunoichi, ruffling the fringe of pink hair that hung just past her jawline. Leaves rustled somewhere in the canopy above her.\u201d<\/i> \u2014 This is the first reference to a theme which will carry through the whole story. Katsuro\/Naruto\u2019s wind element, and it\u2019s connection to Sakura. Right now, it\u2019s just a background element. But as the story progresses, it will be tied more closely to their interactions.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u201cShe didn\u2019t want to turn into this pitiful plant, only useful in someone else\u2019s more skilled hands. She wanted to be recognized for her own strengths.\u201d<\/i> \u2014 In the last chapter of the segment, she\u2019s going to give it right back to Sasuke. Be recognized for her own strength. So this little thought will come full circle.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u201cBlack eyes glinted behind scraped lenses, watching her work through her situation, only the telling crinkle at the corners betraying his unseen smile.\u201d<\/i> \u2014 I wanted to give Katsuro some humanity. His good-natured side coming through, even here. Later, the expressiveness of his eyes is one thing Sakura will remember about him.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 <\/span>\u201cThe woodland around her shimmered and swayed as if caught in a winter storm. The green leaves flickered out of existence behind the smothering white flurries.\u201d<\/i> \u2014 Sakura is blinded by the white petals in the genjutsu. White will be used to signify a change in the story line. Not just a puffy cloud, but an intense whiteness, that overwhelms the character in some way. Sakura is caught up in a flurry of white petals, and this is the beginning of her journey with Katsuro.<\/span><\/p>\n

<< Return to Chapter 1<\/a>\u00a0 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 \u00a0Go to Chapter 2 >><\/a><\/p>\n

\n\n\t<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Author’s notes: In writing this little story, I want to investigate how certain statements can have a different meaning in when cast in a different light. I want to turn situations on their head, assign certain characteristics to characters in unconventional ways. Though technically an alternative universe, I’m trying to write in the same vein […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-109","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chapter-notes","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5hctF-1L","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=109"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3203,"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109\/revisions\/3203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swirlingpetals.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}