Open Welcome back!

[Uchiha Asuka]

How long had she been standing in front of that door? At this point she didn’t really know. The only thing she could think of were the times she had spent inside of this place. Having pleasant conversations with Yukio. Or bickering with her older sister. She didn’t know why it was hard to open the door. It was simple. Placing in the key and turning it and just walking through. Clinching her teeth, she took the next step and placed the key in, opening the door.

Having a quick look around it was evident that this hadn’t been taken care of for a while. There was a thick layer of dust covering most of the furniture, she didn’t remember if even had a full inventory of goods. The power still worked thankfully.

With a heavy sigh she cracked her fingers. “All right let’s do this.” She spoke, weaving hand signs as there was a poof of smoke. More Asuka’s appeared. Quickly, tasks were given out and work started in restoring this wonderful place. First was all the dust. Sweeping the floors, cleaning the tabletops, and making sure all lose items were cleaned and properly placed. Glasses rinsed and washed. Inventory checked which for all intends and processes wasn’t empty, but a lot of things did go bad. Although alcohol does indeed last quite a while, left untreated can spoil and either have heightened effects or get someone sick.

It took a while, but she was finally able to get everything on track. She got her special tea set out to celebrate and started brewing. Her clones disappearing. Now, she only had to wait for new costumers.

 

[Chikamatsu Shin]

Heading home the young Yamanaka overheard a few citizens talking about rumors they heard about the 5th Hokage's bar opening back up soon. His eyebrow twitched. Was she back in town and done hiding? He turned around and essentially yelled at them. "Hey! You there! Where is Lady Fifth's Bar located?" Startled, the faceless NPCs that no one really cares about give him the vague general directions in this city that doesn't actually have a map to get him to where I needed the boy to be.

Darting down the street he could feel his chakra swell inside of himself. It had been some time since he last seen his sensei, The Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Asuka. He had found himself in embarrassing moments trying to speak with her without realizing that she was apparently on vacation or something of the sorts. Finally making it around the last bend he found himself in from of a small bar. He settled down for a moment and let out a deep held sigh. It was now time.

Pushing the door open into the bar, Shusuke's Yamanaka Clan Secret Technique: Phantosmia Style would insantly fill the room with the aroma of sweet scented flowers. He called out. "HEY HAG!" His eyes peered around the room until he could lock onto where Lady Asuka was working. He swung his arm violently and pointed his finger aggressively at her.

"Where have you been Grandma! Did you know I almost died recently?! And that damn Takeshi you had me shadow acts like he doesn't even know me! What's the deal?!"

Walking into the room and slamming his thumb to his fist he continued. "When the hell are we going to continue my training, huh? In case you forgot I am going to be the Sixth Hokage so I think it is about time you get off your ass and do something!"

He let out a sigh as he calmed down slightly. He was clearly aggravated. He pulled out a small summoning scroll from his pouch and tossed it at her. "I am tired of carrying this around for you Sensei." If Asuka would open the scroll and activate the summoning seal a intricately made and painted gilded tea seat would be summoned. He did afterall owe her a new tea cup, and he may as well just get a matching set for it.

In all honesty he was very excited to see Asuka again. She was one of the first Sensei that he had that actually taught him valuable lessons.

 

[Inuzuka Keiyaku]

Hey! You there! Where is Lady Fifth's Bar located?

"What on earth...?"

The young, brown-haired Inuzuka stared down at the Shiba puppy at his feet, blinking in surprise at the sudden burst of yelling. There was a kid, close to his age, darting around and demanding to see some 'Lady's' bar? This couldn't be good, whatever it was. Far be it for the Inuzuka duo to horn on on somebody else's business, but... all the same.

"Come on, Moru," he whispered, "we're technically ANBU now, right?"

The Shiba puppy groaned uncomfortably.

"And we've gotta keep people safe, right?"

Moru groaned even louder.

"Come on then!"

Using their keen senses of smell, both boy and dog began to surreptitiously shadow the other boy, the curious aroma of flowers making the task rather easy. Down several streets and around a few bends, the duo tried to remain as discreet as possible, sticking to the edges of the pathways, acting on their training in the wilderness effortlessly. They were brought to a bar which looked as though it hadn't been in business for a fair time. The woman inside was older, at least 10 years or so, brewing a pot of tea. The blond kid was already in full throw, aiming a stream of consciousness vitriol at whom Keiyaku assumed to be the owner. Dutifully sticking his nose right in where it scarcely belonged, he announced himself with a little cough, meanwhile Morutobu was trying to look as though he had no idea who Keiyaku was.

"Hey, hey, buddy, couldya chill out for a sec? We could hear you all the way from the other end of the district."

He turned his attention to the bar's owner, "eh, is everything all good, er... m-ma'am?" he then pointed down at the Shiba puppy, "mind if I get some water for my little bro here?"

 

[Shion]

"Uh... that old ran down bar is opening up again? Are you sure? That thing has been vacant for so long sir." The young shinobi sounded and heard that indeed it was opening up. He got rather curious and slowly started to make his way to the bar location. "It indeed seems to be open..." And not even moments later he heard sounds and all coming from the inside. "What the.." 'Hag? So this place is run by an old lady?' He thought as he pushed the door open.
As he glanced inside he could see two children- shun. He saw shushuke. ' He sounds so mean now, was he mean to me for just courtesy... I hope he doesn't think I am a she..' He would walk towards a table or a barstool whichever was nearer and watch was starting to unfold in this place. His eyes looked everywhere, really taking up the details from around him.
' Seems like the brown-haired child tries to soothe stuff down, but the old lady should be keeping herself checked right? After all... She is older.' he would eye from the inuzuka to the puppy. 'Puppy... The mission now: pet the puppy!' With that he got off his spot and walked closer to the inuzka. "Sorry for the interruption. But may I pet your puppy?"

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiriyomi decided to take a stroll through the Oak District to distract himself today. Ever since the mission, he had been on edge and constantly found himself wandering through the streets of the village, almost as if looking for confrontation. Every time a stranger gawked at his missing arm, Kiri would stare them down or offer a biting comment that often changed their look of pity into one of wariness or disgust. He just couldn't take people stepping around him as if he were fragile as glass. He knew that there was a chance of being hurt on a mission, he just hadn't expected it to be so severe. Rather than seek help from a professional, Kiriyomi decided to withdraw into himself and become rather unpleasant to be around.

Therefore, when he thought that he heard a familiar voice, a smile crept across his face. If there was one person that he could trust to treat him the same, it had to be Shusuke. Wandering towards the sound of his voice, the Aburame finds himself standing outside of a bar that appeared to be a little rundown. Normally, he wouldn't dream of stepping inside. He was a child, after all, and had no reason setting foot inside of one. But that was the Kiriyomi of the past. Taking a deep breath, he steps inside and glances around. The first thing that he notices is that Shusuke is seemingly yelling at a woman that was working. Or rather, several of this woman were working across the bar. She must be the owner, and she either comes from a large family or she is using some sort of clone jutsu.

Kiri catches the word "Sensei" and look at the woman with interest. This was Shusuke-sama's teacher? What kind of person was she, to be able to put up with such a large personality? Also, why had Shu never mentioned her before? Curiosity piqued, he slides along the wall to stand in the back of the room, completely ignoring Keiyaku and Nova in the process.

 

[Uchiha Asuka]

Not even turning her head once she was insulted. A vein just popped in her head. It took a millisecond for it to register who it actually was. Taking a deep sigh, she looked at the direction of the loud individual. Not really giving it much to think about, she kept preparing her tea as Shushuke continued to speak. Talking about training, complaining about Takeshi. She wasn’t exactly the one she should be complaining to. Heck, you want to get to Takeshi get to Sensei but who knew where she was. Finally letting the tea rest inside the pot, she looked at him.



“It’a good to see you too Shushuke.” She said without turning to him. “I don’t remember agreeing to train you.” She needed to have fun though. “If he doesn’t acknowledge you then you gotta find something to get his attention. Not exactly given for free.” She looked down at her pot. Catching the scroll with one hand.



She turned to look at the newcomer. She doesn’t remember much about him. But seeing the dog she had to assume he was an Inuzuka. “Everything is good.” She smiled at him, grabbing a bowl from her sleeve. “Shushuke here is just letting out some steam by yelling out random comments.” Filling the bowl with water and placing it next to the puppy. “Here you go.” She said petting the dog in the forehead.



Flowing a bit of Chakra into the scroll, a tea set appeared with a small puff of smoke. “HA!” She gave out a bright smile. “I had forgotten about that. I do appreciate the gesture.” Grabbing one of the small cups she took turned her head to look at the other newcomer. Another child? Man, she may need to change the decorations.



“Well well. Who might you be?” She asked the blond child. She didn’t recognize him at all. Maybe a new student? Or hell, a Chunnin with how quick the children where growing.



Taking a quick glance at Shushuke, she flicked the teacup with her finger. A precision shot to her forehead. She didn’t know how much she had grown but that cup was going to be hard to dodge. “That’s for calling me a hag. Again” She simply said as she poured a cup of tea. Storing her, now incomplete, new tea set. “Come in! Come in!” She spoke loudly inviting everyone to sit down at the seats in front of her. “Tell me your stories. I wanna hear them. This is a place for sharing! What will you be having?”

 

[Chikamatsu Shin]

Shusuke's brows furrow as his sensei said she didn't remember agreeing to train him. The Yamanaka stares at his old sensei remembering that traumatic incident he had experienced at her hands. He crossed his arms and and looked away slightly. What did he need to do to get his attention? What would Asuka-sensei do?

His gaze shifts the other AiT he didn't realize he had met before now due to the secrecy of the ANBU Branch. "Clearly you aren't involved in this, so unless you want to get involved I suggest you stay in your lane."

His gaze looks back to Asuka-Sensei as she summoned the tea pot. With a shift in his tone of voice he would respond to her. "I hope you like them, took me three missions to save up for it."

This point he noticed Nova and Kiriyomi entering the building, Shusuke noting the new arm that Kiriyomi was wielding. His eyes shift slightly as he sensed something traveling quickly towards him. Unable to react quick enough the teacup pings right off of his forehead, causing his body to fall back and hitting the ground below. A few feet away the teacup lands. "What the hell?!" He sits up and a clear red mark was on the boy's forehead. His eyes narrow at the Uchiha.

Shifting his weight to jump back onto his feet he would walk over to grab the teacup. Stepping up to the Fifth Hokage he placed the cup down. "Which ever kind of tea is your favorite, hopefully something floral."

HIs eyes over to Kiriyomi. "Kiriyomi-kun, come sit with me." He sits down at one of the tables nearby.

 

[Inuzuka Keiyaku]

The Inuzuka boy's eyes narrowed suspiciously at the Yamanaka, somewhat recognising the boy's scent, but still not quite able to place it. Again, flowers, hardly a rare find in a village encircled by forests. He was going to half-heartedly persist, but the shop owner insisted all was well, taking the wind out of his sails. Even Morutobu looked to be about to complain, but the offer of cold water on such a hot day combined with a scritch behind the ear was plenty enough to keep him mollified.

Only at that point does Keiyaku noticed the entourage of other children forming around the shop, and the bemused expression on Asuka's face at this. Another boy whom he was sure he'd scene at the academy, dark hair and missing an arm, seemed to pass him by without a second glance. Then, a voice all but made him jump, speaking in his ear. Whipping around he saw a young blond boy...? Girl...? No, boy.

"Pet my p- Oh, Morutobu? Eh, I dunno, not my call, you'd better ask him. He speaks Human too," said Keiyaku with an amused smirk. He wasn't at all surprised to look down and see the little Shiba puppy already laying on his back, soft fluffy belly exposed, "eh, there's your answer I guess, man."

Morutobu let out a little purr-like growl; not at all aggressive.

"Ahaha, he's saying I don't scratch him enough, so someone probably should," Keiyaku interpreted, giving his little brother a side-eyeing smirk.

Finally, Keiyaku turned his gaze to the Yamanaka boy who had fetched a teacup and taken his seat.

"Stay in my lane? Buddy, you're about three; have some tea and then it's beddy-byes."

 

[Kiriyomi]

Kiriyomi blushes slightly at Shusuke's attention, not realizing that he had been staring at his senpai. He notices that Shu's gaze lands on his new arm, the insects undulating slightly, and tugs on the sleeve of his shirt to try and cover more of them. While he was still new to using his Kikai as a prosthetic, it was proving to be quite handy so far. It was at least passable under a long sleeved shirt, and didn't often draw more than an occasional glance. Leave it to someone as perceptive as Shusuke to notice it immediately.

Kiri walks over and takes a seat next to him, looking over the other children that had also wandered into the shop. He recognized Keiyaku, now that he took a moment to look at him, from their lunch together after class one day. He had seemed kind enough then, but was being rather rude to Shusuke today. Maybe there was some bad blood between them? Shu was known to step on toes, and didn't apologize for it. But that was of no concern to him; Shu could handle himself and didn't need Kiri to fight his battles. His gaze moved over to the other... boy? He was asking to pet Keiyaku's companion, who had rolled onto their back and presented their stomach. He isn't quite sure now why he was scared of the dog at first. He seemed rather well behaved today, hadn't rushed anyone yet.

As for their host, she seemed to be just as volatile as Shusuke. She took the berating in stride, flicking a tea cup into his head in retaliation. Kiriyomi made a note not to anger her, and smiled up at her. "Do you have any specialties? I would love to try something unique to your shop, if that is at all possible. My name is Aburame Kiriyomi, by the way. It is nice to meet you, Miss....?"

 

[Shion]

"Heah... really? That is awesome and odd... Human language, that is... wow..." He looked to the puppy who was already on his back. "Haha, then I guess I will give you some attention." He giggled. At one moment he heard Shu talking about missions... That was right, he was supposed to be doing some too at some point. It was only a moment later he saw a cup flying to Shu and saw him fall on his behind. ' Ouch...' He kept petting the little puppy, on the tummy, the sides but also on the chest area. "You are cute you know..." He spoke to the small creature before commenting further. "tell me if you don't like it... Without teeth please." He just softly said as he kept petting him.

'I guess hag and him go way back... But I have to say, except for shusuke I know no one here...' and it was right at that moment that they were all invited to the spot available. "Sorry, got to go... I will pet you later alright?" he spoke to Moto and stood up again, walking to the table before sitting down. "Do you have mint tea?" He asked before asking something else. "Sorry to ask... My name is Nova, but... is your name Hag? Quite... an odd name. I heard Shu yell it earlier." He tilted his head rather innocently as he asked for it.

 

[Uchiha Asuka]

Asuka took a sip from her tea as she listened to the Yamanaka basically issue a threat to the other shinobi. "I do find it soothing that things have not changed much." She spoke with a smile on her face. "Kids are still as lively as always." She gave a slight giggle as she looked nodded. She indeed did like the new tea set she was given. Although she didn't foresee that it would be used as target practice but that's what you get for insulting a low patience shinobi. "That's what you get for calling me a hag. Not only bad manners but also personally insulting." She poured tea into one of the empty cups. Thinking about what Shushuke had asked for. This would probably be something she would like. Sliding the tea cup to her over the counter she described what it was. "Although unusual. This is a Sakura blend. Tea is infused mint leaves, sakura buds and a smidge of cinammon to give it that extra kick. It surprisingly taste better than it sounds. Recipe from a small village near lightning country."

She liked the banter going on between Keiyaku and Shushuke. Even though it didn't seem they knew each other much it seemed as though they at least could work well together. They just needed to drop the hostility down a notch. In the end it wouldn't do them much good in the field. But it wouldn't need much to build a good relationship. "Any specialties?" She had to ponder in thought for a few moments. She did have a couple of things that would be considered "unique" but she needed something new. Rummaging through her sleeves she took out another seal. Pulsating chakra into them and with a small puff of smoke another tea kettle appeared, water already hot. Pouring the tea into one of the cups she slid it towards Kiriyomi. "This is called Genmaicha." She said "Aside from cocktails, I have this. It's green tea with a blend of roasted brown rice. It gives it a nutty and slightly toasty flavor. Quite interesting if I do say so myself. Not what I would call common." Giving a smirk she giggled "I'm Asuka. It's nice to meet you Kiriyomi."

Although she found the blond kid interesting. Curious about the world. "I do have mint tea. Give me a minute." Repeating the same process, she started preparing mint tea. She gave a loud laugh as she heard Nova call her Hag. She wouldn't be able to punish him for it considering he got it from Shushuke. "No no. My name is Asuka." She sad, sliding the mint tea towards Nova. "Shushuke just calls me Hag because his an idiot with a death wish. Which will certainly make his stay in this earth brief if he continues."

 

[Chikamatsu Shin]

Shususke's eyes lock with Keiyaku's. "We can take this outside if you'd like, Mutt, but I can promise you, you won't like how it ends." He looked own to the vaguely familiar dog and grins slightly before looking back up at Keiyaku. "Would hate to have to put you down in front of your only friend."

Looking away now and attempting to ignore Keiyaku he would roll his eyes to Asuka-Sensei as if to say "This guy." "Yea you're right, kids these days still don't know how to have basic respect for people clearly superior to them." A cocky grin took to Shusuke's face as he verbally jabbed at Keiyaku again.

"Death wish, maybe, but I'm no idiot. One of these day's I'll be able to avoid your attacks Asuka-Sensei..." He grinned slightly as he said this next part with pride. "...after all it was your teachings that helped me graduate the Academy at 8 years old, and because of you I am going to be training under that ass Takeshi-san. I'll have two Hokage's teaching me." He leans forward towards Asuka and points a finger at her. "You have been the only person I have met that has Genjutsu stronger than mine. I will be here every day if I have to until you teach me what you know Asuka-Sensei."

Shusuke sits back down and takes a sip of tea with that shit eating grin he often has when antagonizing those around him. It was few and far inbetween when he found someone he actually respected, and Asuka-Sensei was one of them, even if the fondness wasn't mutual.

 

[Shion]

"No no. My name is Asuka." He heard the adult speak and they slid a mint tea towards him. He tilted his head as he heard her after. "Shushuke just calls me Hag because his an idiot with a death wish. Which will certainly make his stay in this earth brief if he continues." A slight shudder went over his back as he looked back to shushuke. "Yea you're right, kids these days still don't know how to have basic respect for people clearly superior to them." He saw how Shushuke made a cocky grin and he would look back again to Asuka, before hearing Shushuke speak again. "Death wish, maybe, but I'm no idiot. One of these day's I'll be able to avoid your attacks Asuka-Sensei...after all it was your teachings that helped me graduate the Academy at 8 years old, and because of you I am going to be training under that ass Takeshi-san. I'll have two Hokage's teaching me."

" Two hokage's..? But we only have Uchiha Takeshi..?" The child was honestly confused as this point, as he never had seen Asuka as an acting hokage. He was young after all too. He started to look from Shushuke back to the old lady and without a thought he blurted out. "Has this old lady been an Hokage then?" A simple... maybe dangerous comment to make but innocently he started to blow his tea before looking to the others. He started to sway his legs as he carefully started to take sips and listen around again.

MFT: 259

 

[Kiriyomi]

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Asuka. I take it, based on Shusuke's phrasing, that you are a former Hokage? Would that make you the Lady Fifth that left the village before the Fourth took over again?" Kiriyomi takes a sip of his tea, letting the unique flavors splash over his tongue as he recalls what he had read about the various Hokage of the village. Takeshi had handed the title down to Asuka, before something happened that caused her to leave the village and he took over again. Hopefully this wasn't a sensitive topic, he didn't want to get a tea cup thrown at his head as well.

Glancing back and forth between Keiyaku and Shu, he wonders if there is some sort of bad blood between the two of them. Granted, it was easy to get on Shusuke's bad side, but from Kiri's experience Keiyaku was pretty laid back and easygoing. Wonder what happened there to stir up such animosity. Oh well, again, that wasn't any of his concern. Shu could handle himself and if a fight broke out, he would instead focus on getting the others to safety. Especially the young blond boy sitting near him; he felt that the boy would be the most in danger. Shusuke was very focused when it came to combat, and Kiriyomi wouldn't want Nova to get caught in the crossfire if it came to blows. He would do everything that he could to ensure that no harm would come to the boy and that he was safely out of the destruction that would ensue; he couldn't allow another child to get hurt like he had as a result of being careless.

He glances down at his arm, flexing his "hand" with a thought, trying to pick up his tea cup as part of his daily training to get more dexterous with his Kikai prosthetic. He accidentally applied too much pressure, and the tea cup shatters in his hand. Kiri looks up apologetically, hoping that this wasn't an important tea cup. "I'm sorry... I'm still learning how to use this hand... I'll be happy to pay you for the cup and tea that I wasted."

 

[Inuzuka Keiyaku]

Keiyaku couldn't help but grin at Shusuke's jabs and snide remarks; you can't get mad at people for projecting their inner insecurities, anything could be the cause of it. The solution, every time, was to treat people with some degree of kindness and hope for the best.

"Nah, I can recognise a worthy opponent for myself," he replied, dramatically hand-waiving the Yamanaka's words away like a bothersome fly, "we should definitely hash it out sometime though; it might be super fun!"

Lazy in class, Keiyaku may have been, but when it came to the idea of having a fight, particularly to burn off some of the manic energy he usually seemed to have hiding beneath his skin, he came alive but a rather jovial gusto. Morutobu gave a little bark of approval at Keiyaku's words, but perhaps more to get his attention; having had enough of Nova's petting, the little guy seemed kind of hungry.

"Well, it's been real, guys. We're off to get lunch," said Keiyaku merrily, giving everyone a little wave before heading off down the street.

~Topic Left~

 

[Uchiha Asuka]

“And I would hate to to kick you both into the dirt unless the threats stop.” Asuka smiled as she gave Shushaku a warm smile. It was nice to feel as though she was being complemented. Although some of her words didn’t hit the right note. “Hate to say it to you but you are a one of those kids.” She gave Shushaku a greedy smile. “I would like to see that day. But screaming into the seven winds that you will and no result is not going to help you.” Asuka shook her head. “Sorry Kid. Unless you give me a very good reason I won’t teach. I’m retired.”



“I was.” Asuka turned to Nova. “Main Branch Sennin turned into the fifth Hokage. Takeshi took over after a bit due to circumstances.” She didn’t want to say she outright vanished into thin air but they didn’t need to know that. At least not at this very moment.

Kiriyomi beat her to it. Gods damn it. “Yep. That’s me. I went POOF.” Seeing him break the tea cup ans apologize made her chuckle. “Oh don’t you worry. It’s just a tea cup. Think of it as training for your hand.”

 

[Chikamatsu Shin]

Giving Keiyaku no more thought, Shusuke would flip him the bird as he left before rolling his eyes that settled onto his old sensei. "No need, seems like he decided to stop trying to cause a scene with me and left." Shusuke would bring the tea cup to his mouth to take a sip before muttering softly to himself. "Would hate to have to kill someone on your first day open again..."

The young Yamanaka's attention would be pulled towards the sound of a shattering teacup. Shusuke fully took blame for the incident. It was under his watch that this student was injured to the point where he lost his arm. Shusuke let out a sigh before looking away again. He never wanted one of his own team members to get hurt, but they were greatly outmatched against the two Redcoat Thieves. Lowering his teacup his eyes locked onto Asuka's.

"How about teaching me how to lead so that the Shinobi in my squad don't lose their limbs in the first moments of meeting the enemy?" He sat his drink on the bar's surface. "To be Hokage is my goal, and who better to teach me how to lead effectively than not one, but two Hokages? I can't think of any other ways to garauntee I get the proper training I need. Afterall..." His eyes shift over to Kiriyomi. "I have already started to lead by your example and help the students at the academy learn the harsh truths of the life of a Shinobi." His eyes looked back to Asuka. "Helping train me to become someone worthy of being called your student. What do you have to lose? I am not asking for you to resume active Shinobi duties, but who else do you know that can train me in a way that you can?"

 

[Kiriyomi]

Asuka chuckles and tells Kiri, “Oh don’t you worry. It’s just a tea cup. Think of it as training for your hand.” He blushes a little and looks down at his hand, checking to make sure that none of his Kikai were hurt by the shards of the cup or the hot liquid that had spilled over them. They seemed to have no reaction, which makes him smile. They were tough little troopers, and he hoped to be as resilient as them. That's why he was determined to get his version of a prosthetic to become viable, so that he would be able to stand on his own without having to rely on someone like Nao to make one for him.

Kiri waves at Keiyaku and Morutobu as they leave, thinking about how he'd love to watch he and Shusuke fight some time. He had been on the receiving end of Shu's anger before, and it wasn't very fun. He had a lot of tricks up his sleeve that the Inuzuka boy probably wouldn't see coming, and Kiri would love to see how he tried to counter them. It would help him to create his own strategies on how to counter other Genjutsu users in the future, since he isn't naive enough to believe that any rogue shinobi he faces in the future will stick to Ninjutsu or Taijutsu.

"How about teaching me how to lead so that the Shinobi in my squad don't lose their limbs in the first moments of meeting the enemy?" This statement makes Kiri tense up a little as he glances over towards Shusuke. In no way did he blame his senpai for what happened; it was his own lack of training and situational awareness that had cost him his limb. Had he been paying more attention to what the enemy was doing at the moment, he would have been able to dodge out of the way.

Uncomfortable with the subject at hand, Kiri tries to deflect and learn a little more about Asuka. He had read a little about her time as Hokage, and knew that she left and Lord Fourth took over, but didn't really know the details of what had happened leading up to that. "Lady Fifth... do you mind me asking, what happened that led to you leaving the village? From what I understand, you were here one day and gone the next, and Lord Fourth stepped in to cover your absence. Were you gone on a diplomatic mission that required secrecy, and have come back to take your place as the Hokage again? Also, could I have your autograph? I've never met anyone famous like you before..." Kiri blushes again as he looks down at his lap, nervous to be in the presence of someone as highly regarded as Asuka.

MFT: 468

 

[Shion]

He had made a remark earlier regards the person behind the bar being in such a high position. He had gotten a reaction from her.. “Main Branch Sennin turned into the fifth Hokage. Takeshi took over after a bit due to circumstances.” a moment after he heard someone else make a comment regards of that also. In his mind it now was, this hokage was lady fifth. confirmed by her words regards the fifth Hokage.

A cracking sound was followed by pieces being scattered around, the cup that Kiri had been holding was shattered under the strength of the fake arm/hand. ' Something must have happened to them...' It was then that he noticed the puppy leave and its owner. "A-ah. Goodbye! Thank you for letting me pet your puppy." He made a remark as he saw the other getting out.

Hearing Shusuke moments after he would tilt his head. ' I wouldn't want to be Hokage... seeing how one of them is sitting here after all that had happened...' he thought for a second to regards both his moms, one mom died from the cold storm last winter and not to mention his new mom had died at the gates. They only could gather some flesh remarks and it was a sealed coffin goodbye.

Nova took another sip of his tea before quietly placing down the cup on the bar and just looking back and forth to them all, it was then that Kiriyomi asked an important question and the young blond would stop swaying his legs, just sit quietly while waiting for an answer. He wasn't really starstruck that a past Hokage was with him, after all... She was just another human being.

"If he was only covering... how come she is serving us tea?" He later made the sharp question to the bug-armed child next to him as he looked back to the Lady Fifth, his eyes looking sharp as he hawkeye he was.

 

[Uchiha Asuka]

Asuka listened closely to Shu’s words. His eagerness to learn how to lead. How to become better. Hearing him say his teaching about the harsh truths made her a bit proud and worried. It wasn’t a lesson given with pride. It was a harsh truth people had to learn. That lesson was a difficult one to give. Because it was one thing to teach and learning that everyone absorbed it in different ways. “Well, that is very touching.” Asuka giggled taking a sip from her tea, patting Shu on the head. looking at the liquid for a few moments. She could lie, keep the illusion, and just teach her old lessons. But, in the long run, that could prove to be more of a burden than a blessing. “Unfortunately, I can’t teach you.” She held her hand up before he started to complain. “It’s not that I don’t want to. It’s simply that I am not the one qualified to teach you about leadership.” Asuka sighed “I could teach you about teamwork, useful tactics, and strategies. Even a couple of jutsus as well. But you should go to Takeshi for leadership.” Looking up at Shu she gave a warm smile. “Because you see. I failed as a leader. I recognize my weakness and am constantly working towards perfecting it, but I can’t teach you something I don’t know simply because I do have something to lose.” Taking a deep breath, she sighed. Memories flooding her head. “I could lose my precious student based solely upon the possibility of me taking you in a bad direction. And I can’t have that. Not again.”



Looking over at Kiriyomi she gave a shaky laugh. “Oh, it’s cute that you think it’s that complicated.” She took a big gulp of her tea. “No diplomatic mission, or secrecy.” Again, she could lie. Avoid the reputational backlash that she could have. Heck, she was just waiting for Takeshi to send summons and execute her. What the hell, there was nothing to lose. “I broke.” She simply said. “I lost someone very precious to me and I broke. That simple.” Her eyes became watery as she remembered. “But don’t mine me. I’m sure you all will become even better than me! So don’t hesitate to let me know if I can help in any way.”

Looking over at Nova drinking his tea she gave out a giggle. It was good to see someone so straightforward. “I may have worded that wrong.” Asuka smiled. “He took over from me. Once I left he took over again and his now the one and only Hokage. Why the tea? I always thought that tea brings wonderful conversation. Like this one.”