Continued from Splintering Cells.
Being stubborn wasn't always a good trait, no matter how often they glorified it in books and television. Sometimes, being stubborn was just plain stupid. More often than not, a man had to suffer the consequences of his stupid actions a few times before they learned their lesson. Jin'ichi was in the middle of learning one of those lessons, and literally paying for it in blood. Blood that dripped down his forearm and stained his red-spattered kimono even further. It was one thing playing the enforcer against some extortionist losers in the Grand Palais, another thing entirely to travel from Sunagakure to Soon's Haven and brawl without much forethought. It was almost as if he had a death-wish, and was close to having it granted. Despite a few weeks of training, he wasn't the sort of man you'd see spitting balls of fire or walking on water. Not yet, he was just a guy with a blade and his instincts.
With his abilities being gauged at that of an average Shinobi child, it was no wonder that he was still banged up. Though his fight had been with regular men, there were a lot of them. When it was all over with, he was sporting a new bandage beneath his left eye to cover a deep gash, as well as other wounds all over his body. Not willing to stay the night in Soon's Haven after his exploits, he decided it would be best to return to the village. It would have been funny to see the look on the faces of those who thought such a task would keep him out of their hair for a while. More important than that, was an opportunity to seek some medical attention from one of those skilled Medics. None of this was going to be on the table for him, because wandering the desert late at night while bleeding constantly wasn't smart. It didn't matter what kind of resolve or will you had. You were an easy target for anyone at that point.
The more he lost blood, despite his lame bandaging attempts, the hazier his vision became. It wasn't long before he wasn't even sure which direction he was headed. His sense of smell, hearing, and just about everything else was sharp- But, it wasn't as though he had any training in putting those things to use. Even without the Diamond Maelstrom in full swing anymore, the desert was such an ever-changing and fickle place. His nose wasn't on the level of a canine's and so sniffing out his cousin and familiar scents leading to Sunagakure wouldn't be an easy task. Not that he'd even consider such nonsense... What did happen though, was the numbing of his legs and body. He couldn't tell when, but eventually he found himself laying with his cheek against the cooling sands. Telling himself he'd only be resting for a moment, he lost all consciousness.
That would have been the end of the story for just about anyone else, but Jin'ichi had a strange kind of luck that couldn't really be called good or bad. There was a traveling merchant caravan passing by, and once they'd taken notice of his body brought him aboard. He wasn't carrying anything that they could find that would imply his affiliation. The leader more or less assumed that the traveler was simply lost, and that he'd stand a better chance with them than with the desert. The caravan was headed towards Lightning Country, but Jin'ichi wouldn't find out about that until much later. For now, he'd sleep and be tended to by strangers for days. Life had a strange way of putting a man on various paths, but just what would find him out there in Lightning Country? Furthermore... How would he find his way back?
Being stubborn wasn't always a good trait, no matter how often they glorified it in books and television. Sometimes, being stubborn was just plain stupid. More often than not, a man had to suffer the consequences of his stupid actions a few times before they learned their lesson. Jin'ichi was in the middle of learning one of those lessons, and literally paying for it in blood. Blood that dripped down his forearm and stained his red-spattered kimono even further. It was one thing playing the enforcer against some extortionist losers in the Grand Palais, another thing entirely to travel from Sunagakure to Soon's Haven and brawl without much forethought. It was almost as if he had a death-wish, and was close to having it granted. Despite a few weeks of training, he wasn't the sort of man you'd see spitting balls of fire or walking on water. Not yet, he was just a guy with a blade and his instincts.
With his abilities being gauged at that of an average Shinobi child, it was no wonder that he was still banged up. Though his fight had been with regular men, there were a lot of them. When it was all over with, he was sporting a new bandage beneath his left eye to cover a deep gash, as well as other wounds all over his body. Not willing to stay the night in Soon's Haven after his exploits, he decided it would be best to return to the village. It would have been funny to see the look on the faces of those who thought such a task would keep him out of their hair for a while. More important than that, was an opportunity to seek some medical attention from one of those skilled Medics. None of this was going to be on the table for him, because wandering the desert late at night while bleeding constantly wasn't smart. It didn't matter what kind of resolve or will you had. You were an easy target for anyone at that point.
The more he lost blood, despite his lame bandaging attempts, the hazier his vision became. It wasn't long before he wasn't even sure which direction he was headed. His sense of smell, hearing, and just about everything else was sharp- But, it wasn't as though he had any training in putting those things to use. Even without the Diamond Maelstrom in full swing anymore, the desert was such an ever-changing and fickle place. His nose wasn't on the level of a canine's and so sniffing out his cousin and familiar scents leading to Sunagakure wouldn't be an easy task. Not that he'd even consider such nonsense... What did happen though, was the numbing of his legs and body. He couldn't tell when, but eventually he found himself laying with his cheek against the cooling sands. Telling himself he'd only be resting for a moment, he lost all consciousness.
That would have been the end of the story for just about anyone else, but Jin'ichi had a strange kind of luck that couldn't really be called good or bad. There was a traveling merchant caravan passing by, and once they'd taken notice of his body brought him aboard. He wasn't carrying anything that they could find that would imply his affiliation. The leader more or less assumed that the traveler was simply lost, and that he'd stand a better chance with them than with the desert. The caravan was headed towards Lightning Country, but Jin'ichi wouldn't find out about that until much later. For now, he'd sleep and be tended to by strangers for days. Life had a strange way of putting a man on various paths, but just what would find him out there in Lightning Country? Furthermore... How would he find his way back?
[D-Rank | 4 Hours (240 Minutes) to leave country.]
