A newfound determination [Tutor w/Uri]

[Otani Ryuichi]

It's been dark for a short while now, and Ryuichi had been walking though the Nimbus Delactatio looking for some kind of hint for the man from earlier in the day. He was trying to keep up a decent pace despite the pains all over his body from earlier that day. His sides were starting to visibly bruise, and he was pretty sure he hurt his ankle a bit due to a small pain every time he stepped on it. Regardless this didn't hinder his movement, and it wouldn't even come close to what Uri would do if he chickened out. Soon he saw a large hill made of stone that just out just past the treetops.

The student thought this would be a good chance to get a bird's eye view, and started climbing. Of course, he had no grasp on any jutsu to get up easier but he used to climb rocks like this all the time, so he knew what to do. He didn't, however, consider the condition of his muscles, and injuries and quickly had to jump back down to prevent any accidents. He then realized something. 'wait. I was never given a direct location. If I can't find him then....'

his memory flashes before his eyes, showing a recently extinguished Uri flicking his head. "Don't chicken out. I’ll boil that blood of yours until you feel nothing. And maybe by then, you can tell me again, what exactly it is you aspire to."

The memory of his blatant threats of murder sent a chill down Ryuichi's back. He decided to just suck it up, and push through. He untied his trusty grey hankerchief from his ankle and rolled it up before putting it in his mouth to bite down onto. He then began his climb up the steep rock formation, hoping to find some clue of Uri's location.

Every few seconds or so after he hit the halfway point he was almost to a point of breaking his teeth he was biting so hard. Every time he pushed himself up is was like razors flowing in his muscles, giving him a terrible shredding pain. He would randomly slip due to not grasping too hard, and it was obvious he was struggling. When the top was in sight, he spit out the hankerchief and screamed at the top of his lungs, and went for the top at full-speed. He found himself gasping for breath at the top of the 30 foot rock formation, seeing past most trees. Still no Uri in sight.

And now he was too tired to even think of climbing down.

This wannabe shinobi was royally screwed.

[wc:444]
[post:1/5]

 

[Kiri]

“The boy’s got guts, I tell you that,” Karura spoke as the small firebird flew overhead before landing on his shoulder. Uri was seemingly busy rummaging through his backpack, not really in the mood to talk. Karura noticed this and inched further to the side to look at what it was that the redhead was busying himself about. “He almost fell to certain a few times but he managed not to.” Uri only replied with a light murmur and a nod, still busy clawing through some books and papers that were stacked inside the backpack. “I bet you’re thinking: ‘Of course. If he died, then what’s the point?’ Or maybe ‘It would have been troublesome if he fell and broke his neck, so he passes for now.’ Really, can you be a little bit more responsible?”

“I am,” Uri finally answered as he brought out a thick book and then finally stood. “I sent you there, in case he fell.”

“Babysitting… this wasn’t part of the agreement. Where is the fight? I am a guardian of warriors. My blood boils in the heat of battles.”

“Don’t worry. We have a headhunt tomorrow. Don’t be so angry right now,” assured the redhead as he began to run along the landscape.

It didn’t take long before he found the rocky hill and scaled it without much of an effort. On top, he found the boy seemingly in despair and probably thinking he was lied to. He didn’t make his presence known just yet, covering even his chakra pulse until he was behind the boy to drop the heavy book to the side with a loud thud.

“Why did you pick this spot of all places?” Asked Uri as he glanced about. “You’re very much open to any possible attack. That’s poor strategy for you. Fail.” Then, Karura would take flight and hover in front of the boy and stare at him with such expressionless face before adding, “Poor flexibility. Almost fell so many times,” then an eyebrow arched as Karura glanced up to Uri, “But I supposed that’s because someone was rough and broke a few bones.”

The flaming bird would then land and then flap its wings that gathered some chakra to form along the boy’s side, creating a sense of warmth, and healing treatment. “Fortunately, I am the Guardian of Warriors, young and old, so accept this small blessing so that you won’t die immediately.” Rather foreboding, the firebird then flew up and disappeared, seemingly vanishing into a trace of chakra pulse.

“That was Karura, my partner. He’s off to return to the realm where chakra pulses are stronger. In other words, my summoning has ended,” explained Uri before glancing at the boy. “You do look like you’ve seen far better days. You should take care of yourself better.” Then, as if he was about to begin the most mundane of tasks, Uri settled down his backpack and sat across the boy, picked out a book from his pack, and then motioned for the boy to do the same. “Obviously, you’re not even ready to fight, let alone strategize. You were telegraphing your moves like a child reading comic books all day. So, your first lesson is simple… that book contains random murder reports. Don’t ask where I got it or it’ll be your last. It’s a specific report block that were never solved… at least as shown in the reports. I already know. So you choose one murder report, tell me the details and why it is difficult for the authorities to solve it. You have thirty minutes.”

Then, Uri produced a lollipop from his jacket’s pocket, unwrapped it, and then placed it in his mouth before opening his own chosen book– something about child-rearing.

[WC: 627]
[Post: 1/5]

 

[Otani Ryuichi]

Even if Ryuichi had noticed the redhead walking behind him he still wouldn't have responded. He was far too exhausted to give an immediate answer to his supposed instant failure. He simply sat straight up to see the whispy..."A man bird...." he said under his breath with a deadpan expression. Of course he wouldn't question it as he was healed to a certain extent, making everything feel a bit better aside from his looming exhaustion.

When the spirit vanished, the white-haired boy picked up the book, and looked over at Uri. "You see him often right? I don't get the deal with contracts, and summoning but could you thank him for me at some point?"He asked before opening the book. When he was told to figure out the struggle with one of them he was kind of confused, but tried to stick with it. "Just any of these?" He asks looking them over. Some seemed really simple, but quickly spiraled into madness. For example there was one case of a family of four that were all found dead. They all had their lips removed, and half the teeth in their mouths were pulled. There were no more clues, no more evidence. The only thing known was that one) the bodies were outside during the time of the murder an 2) the exact date of death was known for each.

This could be the right example. He just needed to read through the rest of the book.

26 minutes of reading, and thinking, Ryuichi put the page back to the case of the murdered family, and tapped it with the back of his nail to get Uri's attention. "This one is a single case. Usually people going as far as to kill in this way kill for a reason. This seems like a case of someone trying to mimic the actions of a crazy serial killer to seemingly cover any real ties to the family. It was most likely due to a grudge more than it is murder for murder's sake." He flipped through more pages to find another example. "Here. These three murders are thought to be because of the same person, and that person has a tell when he kills someone,and in this case it's burning their left hands to a crisp. he has a very clear target being around chuunin-level shinobi, and there's multiple cases of this happening. However this means that this case will be solved eventually with time, as now there's a known target, and a known mark to see where he's been." He said, forgetting Uri's previous statement on already knowing everyone who did these things. This could only make him seem stupid should he be wrong.

He returns back to the first murder case he pointed out. At this point his voice has gone monotone while trying to figure everything out in his head. "This, however is a single isolated case. It's too gruesome and obscene to be just an accident trying to be covered up, and there's no other murders involving this supposed killer. Well, that is unless he decided to deviate from his usual 'tell'.. .On top of that this was just a normal mining family, which isn't the current target of any known, or unknown serial killers. Plus, the family had no supposed known enemies."

"So I guess with this one, it's just....a lot of puzzle pieces that don't fit together just right. If you look at any of these really it's the same...I don't put it past shinobi to get all the data possible, but some people are smart enough to turn that data-gathering into a wild goose chase by giving them too much info." He looked at Uri once more hoping that was the right response

[WC;444+628 (1,071)]
[post count:2/5]

 

[Kiri]

Uri raised his head up and looked at the expecting Ryuichi. He could tell that the boy had tried his best to make up of things on the fly. It wasn’t like he was expecting this kind of lesson right from the get-go, nor where they in the library well-equipped with other resources to take notes from. Besides, he could tell that the boy was already exhausted from the day and this additional mental strain may not have been what he had expected. He smiled.

“Very perceptive, but if you simplify things like that, you’ll have problems discerning judgment in the future,” said Uri as he put aside the book he was he was reading, tagging a dogear marker on the page in a chapter on early childhood education. He then pulled out the lollipop and held onto it as he addressed the boy. It would be rude to speak with food (or in this case, candy) in his mouth.

“True enough, the cases are bizarre, almost-random murders but there were signatures and traces left of a uniformity. Perhaps it is the trademark of the culprit. Perhaps it was negligence. Or it could also be a message. You can’t really tell because the personality of the suspect isn’t entirely revealed in his handiwork. Not yet anyway,” he pauses and then looks the boy, seemingly taking in his reaction, if any, “I hope you understand that the moment you chose to become a shinobi that your life is forfeit. Any developments and actions you take in the near future are bound not by your personal principles but by the policy of the village. Should you err away from the dictates of your superiors, you are likely to receive punishment. But there’s also the case that you may have to throw your life away for such dictates even if it is against your will.”

He pauses, trying to negotiate in his mind how to best approach this matter to a boy who was pretty much optimistic. He wasn’t trying to break his will, but he simply wanted the boy to understand that there is no such individuality in a village that was dictated by the reigning shinobi government. This was no hometown village. It was a fortress.

“Now, going back to your assessment. Firstly, the cases are all done by a single perpetrator. While the dates of the murders are written in the order of the time, day and month, there is the lack of the year. This is due to these cases having been filed accordingly to the specific book of which year it belonged. But what you have in your hands is a collation of reports. The incident of the fire happened years ago, and the incident with the family happened a few months ago. Of course, you would never hear such reports in newspapers. No detailed conclusion means no reason to report. But also, there’s a far more important reason to this decision. In the world of a shinobi, no one is truly safe. As I said earlier, you’ve already forfeited your life, no matter how young you are, and you must abide to the code of your village. Going otherwise would brand you as a rebel.”

He took a moment to consider again as snapped the fingers of his free hand, creating a blue flame to hover and dance between his fingers. “I’m a very terrible teacher, you see. And most of the time I always resort to blatantly pushing those around me into a corner. To be honest, I’m not sure why they pushed you towards me, knowing who I am, but I guess being honest with you is the best way to do it. My flame is quire special, not because it is a bloodline, but because it is intrinsic to who I am in a spiritual level. My first summary execution mission was very flawed, and on three random occasions, I had to become better. That didn’t mean I was perfect. Far from it, I was so mediocre that you could very much tell what already transpired. A single defect in the emotional stability and I left traces on my work. But I’ve been studying recently, and have been into more missions– as much as possible, according to my guardian– because a shinobi is only as good of an asset if they can fulfill the requirements without flaw. So when the task was given to find the potential traitor, it was to be done swiftly. And when there was news of a group behind it, answers were needed. Adult or child, it doesn’t matter. When you’ve aligned yourself to a cause, you see to it through. In your own words, “you’re willing to die for others" and so did they. One tooth for each resistance. The pain was torture and it would be something to trigger your mind to compromise your actions. But they persevered to the bitter end, until the father saw that the daughter was about to die and so he gave in. This created a problem for the eldest son who was very much loyal to their cause and in the process, lost his mind. In that moment of fury and desperation – perhaps thinking of ending everyone’s lives would at least spare those who are still in hiding – he released a striking jutsu that aimed at their heads, missing and slicing across their mouths instead. It’s not just lips, if you would see. Some had parts of the nose cut off, or the chin, or even broke the jaw. In the end, bleeding to death was what he chose for his family and for the silence, but we gathered enough information to locate the rest anyway.”

He paused again as if in deep thought, “Well, I guess, thinking about that, it was not done by a single culprit, but the nature of the incident allowed for two factors to create the severity of the damage. In any case, the report remains unsolved because of the root cause of it, that being a potential coup may become widespread, and so the newspapers never hear about it. A simple flame would burn all evidence, including the house in one night, especially when it’s controlled but violent. Not even cinders would be left. And until the matter of the rebels would be solved, this is but one of the unfortunate incidents that must be considered when dealing with potential hostilities and unknown factors.”

Uri reached out and flipped the book over, shutting it and retrieving it from Ryuichi. “This is a collection of my flaws. A constant reminder to vigilant and to be aware of one’s actions. Not even years of experience could truly make one perfect in their craft.” He then places the book back into his backpack and then picks up the child-rearing book and continues to read from. “So, any thoughts of it? I can tell that you already know any word of this information will pretty much helpful to anyone with the right condition. You can sell it to an anarchist and expose my identity and my sins. You can also expose it to someone in the main branch because obviously this isn’t something you can attribute to the pristine glory of the main branch. And you can very well save your life when the time comes when you need something to spill to your enemies in exchange. But you also should be aware that the moment you persisted to train under me that the notion of death should become as natural as air.”

He smirked at the thought and began to eat on his lollipop again. “I’ve become too talkative. Anyway, any thoughts? Anything new? I did tell you you’ll have to tell me again what exactly it is you aspire for.”

[WC: 1,306 + 627 = 1,933]
[Post: 2/5]

 

[Otani Ryuichi]

Hearing all of this information all at once seemed like a massive wave trying to flow through a river that was already too full. Ryuichi's head was starting to ache to match the aching soreness of his previous actions. He decided to go over everything in his mind once more to make sure he could give a clear answer to Uri. To start, these were all done by the same person; or rather group of people. Rebels. People who's own ideals clashed with the village's and had to be taken out due to this. The village. The end all-be all mind of the shinobi. It decides what happens, who does what job, and who has to die for what's right for the masses.

Were his own ideals clashing with the village's? Is that why Uri was being so rough with him?

'No. my ideals are the same.' He thought, standing up. He suddenly felt partially refreshed mentally. As if a thick fog was easily blown away to reveal the now calm river of his mind.

"My ideals...The end goal is the same. I want to protect, and serve the village. If the village deems an enemy a threat, and sends me for the job then I will kill. If they say one civilian is a danger to the masses then I'll make them vanish. But..." He steps towards Uri, and slams his right fist into his left open palm. "That doesn't mean I can't me a symbol. I'll do the dirty work, I'll do the unthinkable. But the people aren't supposed to know about these things to begin with. They can still see a ninja as an awe-inspiring image of the village, and show neighboring lands that we have a name for ourselves."

Uri. It seems like he's been sent on countless execution missions. The things he was saying to the student were things that would only assure his own assassination should anyone else have heard. But for some reason, Ryuichi had to much respect for Uri hit him like a tidal wave. Uri is someone who knows what the village really is, and what needs to be done in order to maintain it.

Then it clicked. A determination in the young pre-teen urged him to push forward. To push towards the fiery blue light at the end of a long path. "...I want to follow after you. I think I found out what you've done for the village, and I want to show that I have the determination to see it through." Before Ryuichi could continue to ask something he was hit with a wave of fear for his own life. The next few words he said could mean instant death. Be it by Uri's hands, or anyone who was listening to them. he brought his voice down to a whisper. "...You....you're ANBU.....aren't you? The assassinations, the secrecy, having all this hidden knowledge...." His voice caught in his throat. He dared not say another word for a few seconds before taking a deep breath.

"Please. U-" he shook his head. "Aoi sensei. Train me. I want to show that this village is my number one goal." He then bent his body at a near 90 degree angle in an attempt to bow. This was the first real sign of real formality he had shown to his elder, and it was one from the heart. The heart that most shinobi quickly lose when on the field.

[wc: 1,071+576=(1,647)]
[post3/5]

 

[Kiri]

“Stop right there,” said Uri as he raised a hand in front of Ryuichi’s face. “Don’t get me wrong. Having such a pure ideology and your stubbornness has its charm, but I’m not here to pick on you to become the next me. Heck, I don’t want another me. One is enough,” For a moment, he suddenly slipped into a bit of a panic. The last thing he wanted was for word to reach his guardian that he’s amassing a private army. Sounds ideal but not really what he wants. Besides, the boy is just too much of a kid at the moment. All the more as the boy began to speak in one of the few taboos of the village law. No such revelations of ANBU related matters.

He sighed deeply, exasperated by the moment. Then he took out a new lollipop and force-fed Ryuichi and ruffled his hair. “Look, Ryuichi. I would prefer it you think more deeply into this. Sure, I may have asked for your aspirations, but that was for you to analyze what you believe. It doesn’t have to be that way though. In fact, I don’t really think you’ll fit…” He pauses and looks away. “You can be a shining example, a good model, a perfect hero if you want to be in the main branch. Otherwise, you can’t really.” He was still cautious on what not speak of. And even if the boy was practically bowing before him made him all the more wary.

“Give it up, boy. I can introduce you to others or recommend you, but I can’t. This is as much as I can go with you. Any more than this and I can’t promise you’ll even live long enough to get closer to what you dream of.” Uri would turn on his heels. “But we might as well finish tonight’s short course. At least to help me know whom to put you into… maybe the medical branch would want to have a noble-hearted kid like you.”

[WC: 339 +1,933 = 2,272]
[Post: 3/5]

 

[Otani Ryuichi]

Ryuichi was going to speak up before being force-fed an already sucked on lolipop. Had this been normal everyday Ryuichi he would have started freaking out, and spit it out along with phrases such as 'Oh god that old guy's spit is in my mouth!' or the like. instead his eyes were locked into Uri's. He wanted to at least make a point.

"You said it yourself. Now I know who you really are, and it could be a high-leveled village secret. There could be someone who tortures me trying to get that information. You've already put me at risk." He slaps away the hand that was ruffling his hair, and quote's Uri's own words with a slightly deeper voice, as if imitating him. " 'True death is knowing who I really am.' Was that right? Well I know you now, and I expect you to give me the tools to defend myself." Ryuichi listens to every single word that this man had said today, and in one instant he had gone and tried to cover it all up. Of course this was expected, considering even he admitted to not being a people person, but it still urked the young kumo-nin. "And let's not forget 'You've already forfeit your life by choosing to be a shinobi'. Are you really going back on what you said just a while ago? Eh?" At this point the white-head was visibly teeming.

He looks down, breaking eye contact and kneels down to his boot to pull out a small elegant blade that looked a bit too old to be an effective weapon. It was a single piece of flat metal that was sharped, and wrapped in a ribbon. This was no ninja weapon, nor did it seem to hold any real significance. "And in return I swear your real name will never be said to a soul you don't trust, and tell me personally." He then cut his palm in a very thin line. not enough to leave permanent damage, or even hurt later on, but enough of a cut to draw blood. "Here. I don't want you to have me follow you directly. I want you to train me as if I were. I will not hesitate to do any training you tell me to without question. If I can keep up, then you can decide what you'll do." Ryuichi shrugged and let a drop of blood hit the rock beneath him. "Or ya know. You can reject it. Have me be sent off to do medical training. But trust me, I'm the LAST person you wanna see near vital organs." His anger began to fade and be replaced with a small smile.

"So? Why not try? You've already screwed my day, so might as well go for every other one."

 

[Kiri]

It was a headache. Uri could tell that a throb was forming in his head. "Look, I didn't tell you all that because I wanted you to follow me. I had to make you learn that there are things in this world that are just not as simple as you may think. For one, being a shinobi isn't all about saving people. If anything, it's about killing. That's why your life is already forfeited. But that doesn't mean it's the only direction you can choose and I'm already trying tk tell you that you shouldn't pick mine."

He frowned and then gave the boy a long good look. True enough that the boy was quickly getting dramatic about this, taking things to a whole new other level. To be honest, Uri couldn't see any reason to truly grant him his request. It was still the same selfish and naive little boy's request. Nothing else.

But he wouldn't be a jerk about it. If anything, he'd need to at least answer the boy in a more serious manner. And to that end, he would only ask something very brief.

"I'll ask you one thing and depending your answer, I'll drop you off this cliff and make sure that any threat to my identity is gone, perhaps burn you to nothingness before you even touch ground... or I'll at least make sure you'll survive the first few years until you've really decided your path." He said, putting a long deadly pause.

"During a mission, you're to eliminate the threat that is your student who'd lost all control. In that moment you have all the resolve to complete it and you steeled your heart. When it was done, you find your student's best friend witnessing your execution and in effect becoming another threat as the friend exhibits similar conditions of uncontrollable power exacerbated by the loss of a friend. But you easily take him down and just as you were about to cut his throat, he pleads to live in whatever harsh condition so long as he could continue his friend's dream. Considering all the threats, considering your own decisions till now and considering your student whom you felled without shedding a tear.... What is your reply? And you better make it brief because I have lost my patience."

A darkness seemed to have made Uri's expression all the more grim as his red eyes bore through the kneeling Ryuichi's form.

[Sorry, no coding. Post from phone. This is post 4/5. Will update word count in 5th post]

 

[Otani Ryuichi]

Silence. Just three seconds of absolute silence felt like minutes, or even hours to Ryuichi. Quickly he had to answer to avoid Uri's wrath. His outstretched hand kept itself open and in front of him, though now trembling ever so lightly. "Well...I can't answer that." He said, looking down at the stone formation at their feet "I could never answer that. Because you made me realize something. No matter what someone says it means nothing when they do the very opposite. When you pinned me down with that jutsu earlier, and waved death in my face I wavered in what I wanted. I only wanted safety." He looked back up into Uri's eyes. "So I guess that stumps any reason to trust my words..."

"But if they went as far as to kill an innocent, or to try and cause chaos..." He stopped himself to take a deep breath. He had said enough, and this was already far more than brief. "That's all I gotta say. I'm sorry if it's not what you're looking for."

Ryuichi put his hand back down to his side letting a single drop of blood run down his index finger. The cut was stopping the little blood flow it had with clotting, and the little bit on his palm was starting to dry and chap up already. The tanned boy then looked up at the night sky and decided to sit down. The determined look in his eyes changed into that of simply being in though. He wanted to serve the village, and ensure everyone would be safe. But did he want to be covert? Did he want to keep himself in the shadows? In any case Uri was the one who knew what all sides of being a shinobi meant due to what seemed like years of experience.

He slid his slightly matted up and sweaty hair back his head just for it to bounce back to it's previous messy shape, and Ryuchi did nothing more but look at Uri waiting on an answer. It was strange how he was threatened with death for the....second time now? However this time he just wanted to hear Uri's response.

[wc: 365+2114=2,479]
[post 5/5]

 

[Kiri]

The building frown across his face should not have been surprising. He knew that this was a difficult question, even for an adult. And at that moment, it dawned into him that maybe once upon a time this was how Ibaraki-san felt when he was given the choice. It somehow made him angry at the thought of it, though, as if he wanted to shout at the boy to make up a decision right then and there. That whatever answer would be fine but to leave him hanging like this felt almost torturous. After all, any answer with finality would have been better than something so uncertain.

The boy, himself, must have felt the burden for his words sounded anything but how he was earlier. Did things finally sink in his head? Did he finally get his message across? And did he unknowingly push the boy further away? Not just the boy but like everyone else?

Now on the ground, seemingly lost himself, the boy looked up to him as if awaiting for the final decision. But what was that?

“You give up too easily when pushed. The boy from the morning held more promise than the one right now. But the boy right now is more of an adult, I suppose,” answered Uri as he knelt in front of Ryuichi and grabbed his hand that bled. Then the blue flame erupted on his palm as it would burn along the boy’s fleshwound, cauterizing it. Surely, it was painful but only towards that concentrated area. And should the boy flinch and jerk away, Uri made sure to hold him firmly as he spoke, “I’ll make your blood boil… was what I said. Don’t bleed out uselessly.”

Then as the flame extinguished itself, Uri stood up and drew the boy towards him in one motion, pulling him to a stand as well. “When odds are against you, you make it yours. When you’re dealt with challenges, you turn them into victories. So what you should have said was that you’ll mold the threat into something for your advantage. Threats remain as threats only because they are unknown. But not when you’ve become come to understand.”

He then lets go of the boy’s hand. “It’s easy for people for say ‘kill this’, ‘end this’, because it’s actually harder to ask them to learn, to take time, and to give a chance. Soft, coming from me, but I think that’s the best way to it. We’re murderers in one hand, and preachers in another. We’re the perfect symbol of hypocrites. But that’s only in the binary of good and evil, and there is no such in this world. Justice and injustice is the only binary that fits it, and our actions that is called on us by duty must always be aligned. Even if I say we must become tools for the village, but tools also shape the village. Rusted tools waste away. Brittle ones break easily. And new ones would eventually scar and bend and rust and even get lost. Nonetheless, the collection of these tools is what then gives meaning to the village. Is it a village of rusted tools? Is it a village of new tools that are without blemish and therefore have not even been used and just for decor? There is no right answer. But there shouldn’t be a no answer.”

He sighed and zipped up the front of jacket, covering his redhair with the hood. “My answer would have easily been to accept the friend and mold him to my liking. Quite unbelievable when you consider how I am as a person. My guardian would have so easily like to kill him off, but in the end…” He gave another deep sigh and shrugged his shoulders. “Moral of the story, when life throws you a giant burden right in front of your face. You don’t chase it away. You pick it up, and throw it on your bed and stare at it for hours and decide how you’d make it fit in your life till the end.”

He takes out a cig from his pocket and lights it as he watches the early signs of dawn in the horizon. “You’ve got two days to pack up all your things, whatever you think you cherish, then meet me at the coliseum’s training grounds. You need to forget about your acquaintances at the moment and just think of yourself. And I hope you didn’t start any lease for an apartment yet. Get out from the academy dorms as well. And pray to your father and mother that you’ll never have to be indecisive again, because by Shinbatsu’s will, I will make you into an anbu worth known beyond the shadows… and that’s a rather dangerous life, if you know what I mean.”

He puffed and then grabbed the boy so easily and embarrassingly into a princess hold and jumped. No sooner would they land on the ground below and he drops Ryuichi unceremoniously. Patting the boy on the head, he would then take his leave without another word. Only the waft of his cig lingered in the air– a strange mint devoid of anything nicotine.

[WC: 867 + 2,272 + 408 = 3,547]
[Post: 5/5 - complete]

 

[Otani Ryuichi]

Ryuichi listened to Uri's first words after the cold silence, and responded with a nod. He knew this morning he did what he could to seem confident and strong willed, and this was nothing but a contradiction on his end. However being called more adult like did seem to make Ryuichi perk up ever so slightly. Before he could say anything in response to Uri his own hand was taken, and burned giving him a shot of pain that made him hesitate, and his words got caught in his throat as he winced.

When he was told that his answer was unsurprisingly wrong, Ryuichi nodded at what Uri said. 'So even if the friend wanted to go against the village's needs there would be another answer. One that could save their own life, and to have a valuable asset to the village...I see...' he thought to himself.

When Uri let go of Ryu's hand, he pulled it back out of reflex to see a burned over cut from his thump all the way to the base of his pinky finger. Well, on the bright side it certainly stopped the bleeding completely. He put his hand down at his side, and looked up at uri to hear the rest of his little speech.

'Tools. That's all shinobi should be, and it's what they all aspire to become to be great. However there were people like Uri who are complete contradictions. You can't be a tool if you have your own will, and desires. No real person could be a perfect tool without being inhuman.' Ryu nodded, and the emotional determination started to reignite in his eyes, as a small grin formed. He stood up, and winced at his sore body.

"Than-" He was about to thank Uri for giving him a new outlook on things before the redhead gave him his commands. After all of this, he had finally decided to take him in! The white haired boy felt a mix of excitement, fear, and wonder when he heard what he had to do, and didn't say another word while he was taken down the rock formation, and frankly Ryuichi was far too tired to react to the awkward hold he was in. He was, however able to react to being dropped, landing with an "AKCH!" And a small flail on the way down. The last he saw of Uri while he began to sit up was him rubbing his head before leaving.

Ryu spent a few hours resting on the ground, thinking everything over while the sun rose in the horizon.

Eventually he found himself at home just as his own dad left to go fishing again. No words between the two, no questions. Ryu didn't even want to sit on the thought of that and fell asleep almost right away, sleeping the entire day away.

[WC: 476+2,479=2947 ]
[Post: 6]
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