Ninpocho Chronicles

Ninpocho Chronicles is a fantasy-ish setting storyline, set in an alternate universe World of Ninjas, where the Naruto and Boruto series take place. This means that none of the canon characters exists, or existed here.

Each ninja starts from the bottom and start their training as an Academy Student. From there they develop abilities akin to that of demigods as they grow in age and experience.

Along the way they gain new friends (or enemies), take on jobs and complete contracts and missions for their respective villages where their training and skill will be tested to their limits.

The sky is the limit as the blank page you see before you can be filled with countless of adventures with your character in the game.

This is Ninpocho Chronicles.

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Open With Grave Intent

Inari Shiren

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The Memorial Stone Gardens: a tribute and resting place for the fallen heroes of Konoha. Most children rarely came here except for the visits the Academy students took here at least once, as a sort of pilgrimage to show due reverence to the heroic ninja that came before them, and to gain inspiration to join their ranks. But for Shiren, after coming here once, he had always felt a strong desire to return.

It was as if when he had left the first time, after his own class visited the Gardens, he had been forced to leave too soon. There was a calling, almost; not anything he could actually hear, but some pulling in his heart that brought him back. Not just for the purposes of curiosity about those resting here, or just to contemplate how much Konoha owed them...but...it was as if he had been forced to cut off a conversation that never actually started, when he first left. And in some place in his heart, he knew he had come back to finish that unheard discourse.

Shiren breathed in deeply, his chest filling with autumnal air as he passed through the archway that led to the Gardens. Though the trees of Kitsune Park peppered through the area hid any others that might have come to pay their respects, he somehow felt as though he was not alone.

He wasn't entirely sure what he should actually do, of course, he had just come back on a whim of his mind, a calling in his heart. But, perhaps like how he was told how to train his chakra system by his academy teacher, it'd be best to begin by centering himself.

Finding a tree to sit underneath, he crossed his legs in a lotus and rested his back against it, his green eyes looking around at the grave markers surrounding him as his black hair, verdant coat and patterned, grey scarf fluttered in the forest breeze. Soon, he closed them, opening up his chakra system and just sitting there, feeling the life-giving force flow through his body; he had no idea what he could actually do or find here that had called him so strongly back, but he imagined a little mindfulness and calm would be the best place to start.
 

Sugihara Aki

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Hikaru took each step carefully, slowly making her way up to the flat grass of the Leaf’s quiet burial gardens. A crisp wind swept past, causing her to shiver for a moment through her jacket, but the air was on the warmer side of autumn today and she continued her walk without stopping. She had come to visit her mother- or her grave, rather, since her body wasn’t able to be recovered. That had only worsened her father’s grief, but she didn’t mind talking to a tombstone with nobody underneath. It provided a good focal point.

As she passed under the garden’s archway, she took a moment to look around for anyone she might know. Many ninja lose their loved ones for one reason or another, and students in particular don’t usually like to mourn alone. No familiar faces seemed to have chosen today to visit the gardens, though, so Hikaru traced the 23 steps from the gateway to her destination. She stood beside the cool stone that bore her mother’s maiden name- another curiosity with her burial, this time at the fervent request of her clan- and she watched the clouds break apart and reform for a little while. With time, the traditional deep sadness associated with the grave had given way to a pensive understanding, one colored by loss but not eclipsed by it. This wasn’t her conflict anymore; she had moved on, and lived as her mother had wanted her to.

Hikaru turned back to the archway, filing out of the row of headstones, when she noticed a boy sitting cross-legged at the base of a tree. She had never met him before, and he looked quite peaceful there, meditating under the cover of leaves. Hopefully he wouldn’t mind an interruption- if he did, she was planning to return home and make a trip to the Academy anyhow. She walked up to the tree, trying to make at least a little noise on the ghostly-quiet grass so she didn’t startle him. “Hello there,” she began, standing just beyond the shade, “I’m Miyazaki Hikaru. You looked interesting sitting under this tree; what’s your reason for visiting the gardens?”
 

Inari Shiren

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Shiren manually pushed his chakra through his body as he sat underneath the tree, feeling it flow through each internal vessel, through each extremity, connecting himself to the very life that flowed through him. It was the first exercise he had ever done that merged his consciousness with the chakra that most non-ninja never got the chance to connect to, and it had always calmed him down whenever his mind was wandering. So, he used it whenever he needed to center himself...whether to practice jutsu, calm himself before an exam, or like now, to listen to whatever had called him back here.

Like before, he could hear nothing. But the feeling of pulling only intensified as he spent more time emptying his mind and opening his senses. It was if someone or something had lassoed his mind, and they were dragging it incessantly. But, it wasn't in any particular direction, not anything like up, down, left, right, forward or back...it was just...towards them.

He spoke at this...presence, this thing, whatever it happened to be. He couldn't put his finger on it...his father had told him stories of yokai when he was a bit younger, of course...and he wasn't blind to the fact that he was in a graveyard, a place where the spirits of the dead were laid to rest. Or, it might even just be a really powerful shinobi around, he'd always felt that sense of...of there-ness, whenever one of the elite Jonin or Sannin that were in the parades Konoha sometimes had that he watched with his family. But it was hard to tell through this veil of uncertainty that clouded his awareness.

Where are you?

What are you?

Please...answer me.


The grass beside him began to rustle; he opened his eyes and turned with a nervous jump. But he breathed a small sigh of relief as he realized that what was beside him, some feet away, was a girl just about as old as he was.

“Hello there, I’m Miyazaki Hikaru. You looked interesting sitting under this tree; what’s your reason for visiting the gardens?”

Shiren smiled amiably as he returned himself to reality, laughing a bit under his breath. "Well there goes me tryna be more aware of things, I didn't even notice you until you were right there!"

He got up, dusting his pants off as he leaned against the tree a bit and offered his hand to shake; his dad always told him it was polite to do so when you first met someone. "Im Inari Shiren, nice to meetchu!" he said, his smile never wavering. "But I...uh...I was just here because something was bothering me when I first came here a week ago with my class. I mean, no, not like bothering, but, like, have you ever...like...um..." he, said, trailing off as he struggled to put the odd feeling into words. "Like...when you go by a shop, right, and there's something cool in there. A style-y new set of kunai, or a book with a ghost dragon fighting a fire demon on its cover, like that. But you're walking past and you can't stay to look at it, so you spend the entire rest of the day wanting to go back? That's kind of why I'm here...I think? I'm not really sure. I normally wouldn't be here cause my mom isn't really buried here, her ashes are in our clan shrine at home...she was the best...dad really can't make ramen like her, but I always say he does so he doesn't get sad...but...uh........I dunno."

He looked off into the distance as he once again trailed off into a separate train of thought, before remembering he was talking to someone, looking back with a start as he smiled again. "S-sorry, I do that sometimes...but that's why I'm here, how about you Hikaru?"
 

Sugihara Aki

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Hikaru took his hand to shake, returning his smile as he offered it. She found him to be quite entertaining as he tried to explain his specific feeling that drew him to sit under the tree- in fact, he reminded her of herself a little bit. As he trailed off after explaining about his mother, Hikaru nodded, saying, “I’m sorry to hear that you lost your mother, too. That’s why I’m here, actually… there’s a tombstone for my mother over there.” She indicated the direction with her finger. “Well… that, and one more reason.”

She glanced around the graveyard cautiously in both directions, quickly checking for any bystanders that had suddenly become quite an unwelcome sight. When she saw no one, the girl took a final glance at Shiren, motioning for him to stay quiet, and withdrew a small bag from her jacket with a colored logo in the shape of a smiling fish. They were cat treats, obviously. Hikaru showed them to the boy, and said, in a much quieter tone than before, “I also came here to hopefully find a stray cat that I’ve seen around before… his fur is mostly this nice yellow-orange color, with white around his paws and on his face in the shape of a beard. If it helps you figure out more about your feeling of missing something, would you like to find him with me? He doesn’t answer to the name I gave him yet, so we’ll just have to look around.”
 

Inari Shiren

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"Your mother's here?"" He asked, responding to Hikaru's commiseration. "I'm sorry," he said in a gentle conciliatory tone, before following the direction of her finger to where the tombstone was located; it seemed to be very close to the entrance, within sight of where he had sat to meditate. "Our clan has always believed ninja find peace in death, cause they're busy in life fighting for their villages and families...wherever she is, she's happy, I know it," he said with an innocent smile. It had helped him get over his mother's passing 2 years ago, and he hoped it would help his new acquaintance as well.

Though it seemed at the very least Hikaru had already done so, as she had also come here for a much happier reason. Shiren nodded along as he listened about the cat; he had to admit, he was itching to practice some of the Art of Silent Movement that got taught at the Academy, and sneaking up on a stray kitty seemed like the perfect way to do it. "Sure thing," he responded quietly. "Honestly I don't think I've ever seen a cat except in books, our family never had one. But if this one lives in a graveyard, you know that mean they must be, like, a serious badass."

He gave a grin at that: seems like this kid was ready and excited for practically anything. But as he prepared to enter his patented Sneak Mode™, once again he began to feel that strange tugging in his mind. It felt gentler this time, less urgent. But he could definitely feel where it was coming from this time around.

"Do you mind if we see your mom's grave while we're looking for the kitty? I don't wanna intrude or anything...it's not what I came to look for, but I feel something similar about it. It's probably nothing I guess...but it's hard to get out of my head."
 

Ryu Hime

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Kuren was born within the Crater City, The City of Thieves. This was home to people who perform less than honorable acts and Kuren was no exception to that. Under the shroud of night she would go out shovel at hand to the graveyard. Digging up graves was an exhausting task, but she often found it rewarding. Some of these graves have been there for hundreds of years and each body she uncovers tells a story. She often calls herself an archeologist and claims her acts were in the pursuit of knowledge.

Kuren was now in a burial site much grander than any one that she has been to before. Crater City had some big graveyards, but this place was simply immense. She instinctively took her shovel along with her even though she had no intention of disturbing the dead. Kuren was well aware that this place was a bit stricter than her previous home. She had her doubts that she would be able to pull off such a task without punishment her. However old habits die hard and thus her trusty companion rode on her back to the Memorial Stone Gardens.

Kuren walks among the tombstone scribbling into a note book as she jotted down names and dates. She plans to create a chart showing the average life span for each decade. She had done such thing with Crater City and was curious how these two villages might compare. Her concentration was disturbed by a hissing sound and she takes a step back. It seems there was a cat sitting on the tombstone, who was threatened by Kuren’s approach. As Kuren cautiously backs off in a retreat the cat goes back to grooming itself. Mostly like the cat would scurry if she continues forwards, but she rather not risk getting scratched if she was wrong.
 

Sugihara Aki

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Hikaru responded to the boy’s condolences with a smile- it was always nice to share a loss with someone else, even if it happened a long time ago. It was also interesting to hear that his clan seemed to respect death instead of dreading it, as was the duty of Shinobi that many claimed to follow but few truly achieved. Back to the cat, though, she was glad to hear that he was eager to help. “I guess that does make him pretty brave,” she replied, grinning now, “but I don’t think he knows what this park means to all the humans walking around. Some people say that cats are wise, ancient spirits… well, uh, not this one. The only higher calling he listens to is his stomach, which is why I bought some treats earlier.” Hikaru gestured with the bag in her hands.

She looked around her, passing a quick, sweeping gaze around the park to check for any obvious signs of cat activity. Finding none at the moment, she picked a direction and began to walk when Shiren asked if they could stop by her mother’s grave. “Oh, sure! She isn’t actually buried there, like your mother, but we can take a few moments if it helps you.” Adjusting her course, she led him up a ways to where her tombstone sat, motionless. She sat down, cross-legged, allowing him to do the same. There she rested, letting her companion take in the area, when she heard a hissing noise from somewhere behind them.

Hikaru spun around, searching for the sound’s origin. Sitting on an elaborately decorated gravestone, grooming himself haughtily, was Chobi the cat, in all of his fuzzy orange glory. She stood quickly- unfortunately quickly enough to make a noise, which she hoped wouldn’t have disturbed Shiren. The sound made the animal look up from its washing, first staring at her, then at another girl who she hadn’t noticed standing near his perch. Although he was usually placid around her alone, he wasn’t fond of strangers who had not yet proven their cosmic alignment by feeding him. He scampered away, running for the edge of the park and stopping to curl himself under a bench.

“There he goes…” With a little exasperation, the student stuffed the cat treats back into her coat and took a proper look at the girl, who appeared to be around their age. She figured she may as well introduce herself- the more people she could familiarize Chobi with, the better. Besides, if this girl was going to the Academy, she hadn’t seen her yet, and Hikaru wasn’t opposed to a new friend. “Well, hey there. I’m Miyazaki Hikaru! What brings you to Kitsune park?”
 

Inari Shiren

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He smiled widely and chuckled as Hikaru talked about the kitty. He too had read somewhere that cats were spiritual guardians of the dead and that some ancient cultures revered them as such, but judging by her words, this one just seemed to be a jovial little cat with a penchant for trusting people with food.


Meanwhile, as he felt the slight pull to the gravestone in his mind, he was pleased to hear that Hikaru was willing to indulge him in letting him go see it. He knew it was a little weird; in fact, he was often a little self-conscious about being too weird and forward with others. But he had to figure out what exactly was going on before he turned his attention to this cat, otherwise he wouldn't have a snowball's chance in hell of being able to properly focus on entering Stealth Mode.

"Many thanks," he said to Hikaru gratefully. "I won't be long, I promise."

They then set off for the tombstone, as Hikaru sat before it in quiet memoriam. Shiren knelt in front of it, closing his eyes as he reached out to gently touch the base of it. While she told him that her mother wasn't actually buried there, something still seemed to drag him towards it. And as he touched it, a bit of the haze of uncertainty he had been under lifted.

It wasn't so much words as it was a feeling, but he felt something nonetheless. It was if his emotions were temporarily following that of someone else's...because while he was feeling contemplative and slightly excited to go search for the cat afterwards, just moments after he touched the tombstone, he was feeling...feeling...

"Proud? I...uh...it feels proud, here. Like when you've finally got a new technique down pat, but when you watch someone else do it. I'm...well, no, it's really not me feeling it. I dunno who or what this is but it's like someone's really, like really proud of you."

Almost immediately, he felt the egging on in his head subside a little bit, the tension inside of his head dissipated as though the other end of a taut rope in his brain had been released. "That was weird...uh..." he muttered, trailing off. "I'm sorry, I dunno what what was...I keep getting weird emotions in places sometimes. Might have to see a doctor or something, it keeps happening more and more...anyways, about that ca-"

HSSSSSS!

Shiren's perception jumped to the noise, which just so happened to be that orange, mustachioed cat they were looking for. It had a graceful, holier-than-thou air about it that most cats seemed to, while at the same time looking awfully adorable. The compulsion to run up and try to pet it was real, even though he knew that would only result in this cat getting spooked again. But what spooked him to begin with?

It seemed there was someone else in the graveyard with them. He raised an eyebrow, seeing them carry a notepad and shovel around, but overall they seemed to be a student, just like Hikaru and Shiren were. He smiled and waved at them: "Heya! Looks like you found that kitty before us...whatcha doin'?"
 

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Kuren’s eyes were locked on the feline sitting on the tombstone, till she heard a noise. Both the cat and the girl quickly turn there gaze to Hikaru. The animal makes a hasty retreat, while Kuren just stands there. She was not exactly expecting to see another soul during her trip to the burial site. They confronted her: Hikaru giving her name and asking what she was doing here. From the boys words kuren gathers they were after the cat. Kuren would assume they were on a mission. Recovering lost cat seems like an appropriate mission for their age. She can’t imagine that they would be that high in rank.

She gives a polite bow and introduces herself, “I am Ha Kuren. As for what I am doing… Well, see for yourself.” She would hand the note book to Hikaru open to the page she was currently on. Looking at the page she would find names and dates of the tombstones Kuren has passed on the way to this point. If she flipped to earlier pages she would see names and dates from graveyards in Crater City. “I’m sorry for scaring off your target. Do you need any assistance on capturing her?”
 

Sugihara Aki

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Hikaru sat cross-legged, watching the formless clouds for a moment as Shiren situated himself beside the tombstone. “Proud, huh…?” Her very first thought was that she hadn’t known this boy for very long, and yet here he was telling her that someone was proud of her in front of her mother’s grave. He seemed admirably down-to-earth for someone who could supposedly discern emotions in another plane, though- even on the off-chance that he was making it up or something, she had a feeling that his intentions were good. Why had her first reaction been to doubt his authenticity, anyway…? Unusual abilities like his were far from uncommon in the kinds of things she read for fun, and apparently there were some pretty amazing people right here in the village as well. Who knew… maybe her mother was proud of her, wherever she happened to be.

“Sorry about that, I kind of spaced out there. No, it’s fine… it gave me something to think about.” Then the cat-related commotion ensued behind them, and Hikaru jumped up.

The girl introduced herself politely as Ha Kuren, and presented the other students with a notebook of hers, filled with notes detailing specific names and dates… those of the gravestones around them, Hikaru assumed after a moment. She flipped through the book as the girl continued, noticing a section with names she didn’t recognize. Returning the notes to their owner (after Shiren had gotten a good look as well), she told herself silently to ask the girl about her origins, if she got the chance. “That’s okay. His name’s Chobi, and he’s an enormous glutton. To start… how about we put out some of these?” She grinned, holding up the bag of cat treats again and distributing them among the three students. “Just pick a spot on the ground nearby and put one of these down. We’ll watch from somewhere and wait for him to come out- like a wild animal handling mission, actually, but for a cat!”

“Thanks for your help, by the way. Once we’re done, I’ll pay for some ramen as a celebration!”
She had purchased the kitty treats on the way over, and still had some money. As her dad said occasionally, it was always more fun to celebrate over food!

[MFT]
 

Inari Shiren

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Just as Ha Kuren began showing the book she was carrying around to them both, he was reminded about halfway through taking a look at its pages that he had forgotten to introduce himself. "I'm sorry by the way, I'm Inari Shiren. Is this kind of a research project of yours?"

He flipped through the notebook's pages with Hikaru, scanning the names here and there. In Konoha's section he saw some names and titles he recognized from learning about the village's history in class: very powerful ninja were either interred or memorialized on these grounds, and Kuren had perhaps unwittingly recorded many of them. He even recognized the name of his clan's original patriarch from centuries ago, Inari Zashi, in the notebook. His body was impossible to recover after the mission that claimed his life and earned the Inari Clan a place in Konoha all those years ago, but a marker of remembrance was placed here nonetheless.

After Konoha's section, there was a larger, seemingly more complete one from with names and places he didn't recognize. He was tempted to inquire further, but he didn't want to pry too much. But he would venture a curious "what got you into this, anyhow?" should Kuren be willing to answer.

Then, the subject turned back to the cat they were after, having now recruited the record-keeping girl into their makeshift mission. The cat, meanwhile, was still staring at them haughtily, his perked up ears and slightly sniffing nose the only indications that what the students were doing was of any interest to him in the slightest.

"That's too kind of you, Hikaru, thank you!" he said in thanks at her suggestion of ramen later on, already spreading out the cat treats here and there. "But to be honest, it'd be nice. Been so busy training at the academy I kind of...forgot the talking to people part."
 

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The both of them flip through the pages of her note book and she could tell they were curious. “Inari?” She recalls passing by a person with such a family name. Accepting her book back she takes a look at her note. “I passed an Inari Zashi. Any relation?” Kuren would love to hear some stories behind some of the names here. There is only so much a tombstone can tell her. Shiren asks if this kind of a research project, which causes her to smile. “Indeed it is. I’m collecting some insight on konoha and planning on comparing it to my birthplace.” The tombstone both here and in crater city had full dates for both birth and death rather than just the years. There are many things she can observe with this data: birth rates, death rates, average life span, popular names. Most people might find this information pointless, but she finds value in it. “I’ve always been curious by nature and my parents were grave diggers.” And grave robbers, but she was not going to say that out load.

Kuren takes the shovel from her back and hold it out. “This belonged to my mother. She gave it to me on my fifth birthday.” Kuren had a grin on her face as she remembers some of the good times. “I was deemed old enough to learn the family business and was given a pet cemetery to manage.” Is was a small little place with only a hand full of animals. She then looks back at the two and apologizes. Oh sorry, you probably think me weird or creepy telling you this.” Kuren then straps the shovel back on her back.

It was around this time Hikaru devises a plan to lure the cat into the open and hands cat treats between them. It was a start but Kuren found it lacking. “We have bait, but where’s the trap? That is to say, how do you plan to catch it once it takes the bait?” Kuren has some experience with cats. They are quite skilled at detecting movement. Grabbing one will not be as easy as it sounds.
 

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So the notes were for some kind of research project… Hikaru looked over the names and dates, fascinated by Kuren’s dedication to this kind of thing. She didn’t know many people who spent their free time researching things, so it was nice to find that she wasn’t a complete weirdo for doing so herself. She beamed, handing the book back, “That’s really cool! Konoha is a great place for a control case, I agree- all kinds of people have lived here, and I suppose have died here too.” She appreciated that Kuren was following in the footsteps of her parents, as well- she’d be perfectly content spending her life assisting her father’s facility with all kinds of projects.

The girl mentioned her own pet cemetery, and a few uncomfortable images popped into Hikaru’s mind of a collection of shoddy gravestones marked with gloomy depictions of animal faces. Definitely not a profession she had considered, or even heard of… Kuren apologized after, though, and Hikaru caught herself, replying, “Not creepy, no- I think it’s interesting, I’ve just never really thought about grave digging as a profession.” She hoped that didn’t come off as a blockheaded thing to say. Her two companions seemed very closely associated with death, in their own ways, and she found them intriguing to be around.

In response to Kuren’s question about her proposed cat-trap, she explained, “Well, we don’t really need to catch him, just find where he ran off to. He’s mostly friendly with me, so I should be able to just walk up and pet him for a little bit. My goal is to introduce him to some other people to make him more friendly- that’s where you guys come in! For now, just spread the treats around, and keep an eye on them.” She gave them both a grin, and set off in a random direction to do just that. “Oh, and if you see him, just approach slowly and try to let me know. He’s not too skittish with loud noises- he just isn’t familiar with people smells yet,” she called over her shoulder.

[MFT]
 

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