Perhaps he should have listened to his friends he thought to himself as blood dried around his lips. He looked up into the sky the sound of steel clashing still loud as failed to move. He laid there bloodied and broken. Rinao had told him not to go so soon after his last near death experience only moments before his latest mission. He had to look into Toraika’s eyes and tell her he would be okay and be back soon. The enemy had made a liar out of him. Dameon had been the weaker swordsman of the bunch but he had thought he could by the others time to prepare by talking to the enemy leader. Dameon had apparently hit the wrong note in his psychological evaluation of the man and the fight had begun before they were even prepared. To be fair Dameon had lasted longer in the fight than he had initially thought and had only been incapacitated by inexperience. He was sure he had more than a few broken bones and moving anything felt like a waste of time. His vision was blurry from his head having hit the tree so hard, an apparent concussion. Dameon closed his eyes feeling them grow ever so heavy.

Hours had passed with Dameon sitting there against the tree unconscious and oddly hidden by the fallout of the fight. Between toppled over trees and craters in the ground and ice still clinging to the leaves it was surprising he had been located at all. The others had already gone back or had been medically helped as well until a lone man had found him out of the corner of his eye. Not long after that he had been placed on a stretcher and carried back to the village hospital. The nurses and doctors rushed Dameon immediately into intensive care his injuries being far worse than the others and the fact he had been unattended for so long made it even worse. The injuries he had sustained had made things even more complicated between the blood loss and risk of infection. Yet while even undergoing surgery his mind was in another realm dreaming completely fixated on something else. As the surgeons cut into his skin and put him deep under an unable to wake up he knew nothing of what was actually going on.

Opening his eyes he could see the place where he had been left on the battlefield broken. Except his strength had come back to him. As he stood up slowly using the trees to brace himself a man in a cloak had come from the forest shrouded in an aura of white. He recognized the man though it had been many years since he had seen him.

“Zeta?” Dameon asked the hooded man to which the man had nodded as he lowered his hood revealing a much older man in appearance in his late seventies at least. Yet it was the same way he had looked so long ago. White beard and white long hair and he moved as if he was still a shinobi in top shape. Dameon looked at the man in shock and back to himself he had known how bad he had been injured and yet he seemed fine now.

“Am I dead?” Dameon asked unknowingly.

“No, not yet. That’s the very thing I am here to prevent. Dameon do you remember what you told me all those years ago? Why you wanted to become a shinobi?” Zeta asked in a very slow thought out way. The way Zeta spoke revealed just how wise he was, every word carefully chosen for hundreds of reasons.

“I do. To prove that power can be used for good and to prove my clan wrong for thinking I could be corrupted by power. Why?” Dameon asked as he stood completely upright and looked into the man’s eyes.

“You have spent your whole life protecting others before yourself bravely risking your life for those weaker or powerless and have been in and out of the hospital more times than either one of us can remember. In doing so you met someone very precious to you. Someone you could spend the rest of your life with and share everything with. You’ve made good friends along the way. Yet you would give it all away to protect them. My friend you have achieved your goal and proven to me as the creator of the Shikyo clan that you should be the successor of my power.” Zeta spoke carefully as he crossed his hands in front of him.

“Your power? Creator of the Shikyo clan?”

“You remember those stories I told you a while ago about the strongest Shikyo being revealed the elemental sword and being a symbol of their clan. That would be passed on to you by me. Truth is Dameon. I am but a ghost in the minds of all Shikyo, I have watched over you carefully. In the end I was never their physically to help you, you in fact helped yourself. Now go and find the power of the Shikyo and life I have carefully protected for you, and stay away from the darkness or you will no longer be alive.” Zeta said as he raised his hood again and turned around before vanishing completely.

Dameon looked around and finally decided to walk in the direction Zeta had appeared from. Hoping it was the correct direction in which he had to travel. Behind him he could see the darkness creeping toward him like a wall of black completely absorbing everything it touched. He needed to find everything quickly if he wanted to return to Toraika and his friends again. With determination he set off in a sprint as he worked his way in and out of the slowly dying trees.

Meanwhile as Dameon searched in his mind for the power to live two days had already passed since his surgery and he had been in a coma since. The doctors went to notify any of his former teachers or higher ranked officials of his condition. They remain skeptical of him ever recovering.

From his bed, Sanosuke was taking in the peaceful and less mind straining sounds of Kiri even though they were in war with someone whom could easily wipe Kiri off the map if he focused hard enough. The sound of the birds twittering in the air, the sound of the common people that were bellow his apartment in Kiri, the smell of whiskey that somehow mixed in with the smell of perfume that rolled off the naked body of the woman that was currently rolled against his bareback sleeping peacefully. She felt warm to his touch as her messed up, blonde hair was tangled in his long black dreadlocks. Sanosuke let out a yawn as he stayed just like that. Navi must have been going for a walk around Kiri to take in the sighs as usual. He didn't have to worry about the tiny wasp that was almost as strong as he was. Until then he would just take in the peaceful scene that he was experiencing after all of the fighting he had done in the war. Of course he would have to go in and fight once more in the war to continue the amount of work that was expected from him a high ranked and rising war legend. But for now he was perfectly content with laying in bed with yet another woman whom he met at the bar. The blonde woman stirred herself awake and gently kissed Sanosuke's neck on the same spot where she bit down from the things they did last night. "Good morning" she said as she kissed him softly.

Before he had the chance to return the greeting, a loud knocking could be heard from outside of his apartment door. It had both of the occupants of the room look towards the source of the door. The woman looked at Sanosuke and giggled before pushing him out of the bed playfully to answer the door. Letting out a tiresome moan, Sanosuke got up and put on some pants before answering the door. When he got to the door, he was given a scroll by a young man whom looked to not be a shinobi but dressed in the attire that was very similar to someone who would work at the Kirigakure hospital. That was strange indeed. He had never been given a mission by the hospital so it made what the contents of this scroll that much more interesting. When he opened the contents, Sanosuke's eyes opened in shock. Turning around quickly to the woman that was in his bed, Sanosuke met with her blue eyes that were filled with worried.

"You have to go now. An idiot of mine has some explaining to do." Sanosuke answered sternly as he got himself ready to the hospital to see exactly what was wrong with his student.

It was as if the sun had been completely blacked out, yet everything was still visible. The maze of trees never ending as the darkness kept moving in to Dameon to attempt to take him away. Over seventy two hours had passed or so it has seemed and he was exhausted sweat poured from his skin but he felt no need to eat or drink. He only needed to keep moving and even that was becoming increasingly difficult with each step he took in the realm of his mind. He had never fought so hard in all his life to simply live and even a part of him felt like he wouldn’t be able to make it. As he tripped and stumbled through the forest’s ever changing landscape he still had found no sign that he was even running in the right direction. He simply let his gut instinct lead the way. One thought kept him going through it all, if he simply died now and gave in he wouldn’t be able to see the people he had grown fond of again, nor the woman he had fallen for. Only a year ago if he had been put in this situation he would have gladly chosen death, but now everything had changed.

Meanwhile in the hospital room the doctors continued to perform their checks on Dameon who laid there unconsciously hooked up to machines that were keeping him alive while he laid in his coma. They continued to shake their heads skeptical anyone could recover from the injuries he had sustained. Outside the room there were two Chuunin guards making sure no nosey civilians or enemies came close to him. With Dameon being a Seven Swordsman extra care was being taken for his safety as well as the medical attention. People were catching on though and couldn’t help but look through the window to see him as they walked by the room. Quickly rumors of the fight had circulated through the hospital and telling the story.

“Apparently he and a couple other of the swordsman went toe to toe with seven bells for more than a few hours. He wasn’t so lucky,” said one of the onlookers as they passed through the somewhat crowded hallway.

Tatsumi awoken to the beam of the sun in his eyes, and the noise coming from the village outside his home. He got out of his bed in an excited way, knowing what today was. Today was the day he was going to visit on of the ninja who was able to survive the attack of the seven bells. He was so excited to meet that man. The only problem Tatsumi was going to have was how was he going to get this man to train him and become his sensei. He thought about just asking the man but then he might say no. Tatsumi wasent going to take no for an answer either.

As Tatsumi left out of his place he sucked in a big gulp of air, and breath out. He was now ready to take on anything. On his way to the hospital he spoke to friends and other people that spoke to him. It felt good to be acknowledge by poeple of the village even though they like to talk behind people backs. Tatsumi entered the hospital and spoke to some of the nurses and doctors and made his way to Dameon room. He got close to the room and could see two gaurds blocking the entrance to his room. Tatsumi cursed under his breath, but he knew he had to get in there. He had to come up with a plan, but what. Just as he gave up on all the ideas that came threw his head a beautiful nurse walk past.

Her name was Ashley. Tatsumi knew ashley for ah while now and decided it was the perfect idea. He would have her distract them while he get in. Tatsumi pulled her to the side and told her how he wanted to get in the room but he couldnt cause of the gaurds. Tatsumi sat back and watch as she had made the gaurds leave and go with her. He smiled and knew he was in her debt. He walk to the door, knocked twice and twisted the handle.

He walk in and seen Dameon on the bed with machines hook up to him keeping him alive. He walked over to the bed and look at the report on the dresser to see that he was in a coma, due to the damage he took from the fight. He sat down in the chair behind him, and wandered how was he going o get this man to train him if he is asleep.

Doctors, doctors...DOCTORS!! That's all he saw whenever that he was in the hospital trying to find the room of his student. The way that the medical ninja came into his apartment, it was as though that it was at the utmost importance for Sanosuke to be there. The medical ninja's face was caked with sweat and the boy looked as though had seen a ghost. Was it that he felt almost guilty and pity that he was to be sending a war hero of Kiri such a forboding message that he couldn't bare to try and put himself in Sanosuke's position? Probably, but that was what Sanosuke was thinking as he made his way through the hospital trying to find Dameon's room. But to his narrow mind, they all looked alike! From the constant hustling and bustling of the hospital of new patients coming in from the battlefield. Sanosuke had to stop for a stretcher that had a poor shinobi with most of his limbs blown off and barely holding on to the embers of life to try and cling on it for dear life. Sanosuke quickly went into sage mode to sense the life force for the shinobi. What he saw made him open his eyes and deactivate his senjutsu using formation; the 12 year old kunoichi wouldn't even make it to the operation table before dying.

Letting out a pitiful sigh, Sanosuke made his way to the general direction of where Dameon's chakra had flickered. He had a student to wake up because then Sanosuke was going to make the stupid fool explain how he got his ass kicked up and down Mizu no Kuni by some mad man...

Yet another seventy two hours had passed in his mind. The dream world making it seem like an eternity of running through a never ending forest, still unsure of what he was even looking for to begin with. He just imagined he would know when he saw it. Dameon had noticed in his days of sprinting through the trees that even the sky filled with darkness was closing in on him. He hoped it meant he was getting closer to his destination or at least that’s what he told himself as he continued to endure the trial. Every half hour in the real world was about an entire day in his mind. It was a good thing he felt no hunger just tiredness and even then he was surprised at how long he could keep going despite it having been over a month in his mind since the start of the coma. He could imagine if all patients fighting to survive had this problem why some would never make it. It was exhausting mentally and the darkness no doubt signified his brain shutting down, if he allowed himself to be taken by it there would be no coming back. The trees around him also died ever so slowly as he ran noticing them only over the course of the days passing by. They started as full and beautiful trees and now were mere barren trunks with dead branches littering the path he ran on causing him to evade and be careful not to trip and fall. In the distance he could barely make out a glowing yellow light which gave him a new purpose as he began sprinting as fast as he could feeling like he was getting closer and closer to getting out of his own head. Though as he picked up the pace so did the darkness from all directions and above him as well as the ground itself seemed to start dissolving and falling apart. The darkness right on his heels he knew this was it, now or never.

Meanwhile as the boy rushed into the room a Doctor and a nurse were nearly right behind him as they pushed past him and to Dameon. The monitors and machines were displaying something different now his vitals were dropping. His brain activity was fading and the heart monitor was also slowing down its beat. The Doctors focused little on who was around them as they went to work trying to do whatever they could to prevent Dameon from fading away. A crowd was gathering outside as well not sure what was going on other than what they could see through the window.

No more than ah couple of seconds went by when Tatsumi walk into the room, a Doctor and a nurse were nearly right behind him as they pushed past him and to Dameon. The monitors and machines were displaying something different now his vitals were dropping. His brain activity was fading and the heart monitor was also slowing down its beat. The Doctors focused little on who was around them as they went to work trying to do whatever they could to prevent Dameon from fading away. A crowd was gathering outside as well not sure what was going on other than what they could see through the window.

Tatsumi stood there in awe at how in a matter of a couple of seconds a man life can go away. He never seen someone struggle for there life in person before, he had only heard about it. He was wandering what could he do, but he knew there was nothing he could he would just have to leave it into the trusted hands of the doctors. So he continued to sit down in the chair he was sitting in and watch the doctors try and save this man life.

Hnnn? A crowd of people, I wonder why there's so many people gathered around Dameon's room? Sanosuke thought to himself as he made his way through the lines of people. His reputation seemed to proceed him as people weren't supplying Sanosuke with resistance as he made his way through the room. It was as though the very second they say whom was pushing their way through, they instantly moved away out of respect. That was another thing that the kumogakure jounin liked: the respect he got for all of the things he's done in the war. So many people wanted to please Sanosuke and do what he said just because of what he was doing for the Seven Bells War. It was flattering really. Sanosuke soon made it to the operation table where Dameon was laid out unconscious. From the heart beat monitor beside his bed, he wasn't looking so good. Normally one would have panicked and gone into a flurry of emotions at seeing someone they knew hooked to a machine that was monitoring their heart; and said machine was slowly dying out. But not to a master sage like himself. Sanosuke knew that his eyes could deceive him at any moments rest, so he had to rely on the aura and chakra of others to determine what was truth and what was not when he had trouble distinguishing the two.

Focusing chakra once more from the surrounding objects, Sanosuke once more went into sage mode very briefly and discreetly so that no one would notice. From the small instance, Sanosuke could see that Dameon still had some fight with in him. His chakra felt rough and shagged, as though death was slowly tugging him away from the conscious and living world. Most strange. To think that Seven Bells messed up Dameon that badly was something to take note on. This man literally knocked the yin yang out of Dameon. Letting out a sigh, Sanosuke got out his sword while it was sheathe and applied a bit of raiton chakra into the sheath. Many of the people watching looked in concern at what the sage was about to do. Then with a smirk, Sanosuke laced his sheathe with senjutsu chakra as well. This should be enough to wake Dameon up from his slumb. With a mighty swing from his sheathed sword, Sanosuke brought it down on Dameon's head.

"WAKE THE FUCK UP!!"

The golden light was even closer now. Just around the other side of a set of trees. He was exhausted and his body drenched in dirt and sweat from days of constant running. As he cleared around the other side of the trees he could clearly see a temple of some kind. He tripped as he entered onto the grounds of the temple and ran in through the large erect pillars the darkness stopping just shy of getting him. He let out a sigh of relief as he looked up at the ceiling of the old temple before he slowly got to his feet though his body reluctant to even move. Looking around the temple it was clearly abandoned and very old. Unlike most temples there weren’t even any writings or pictures anywhere to let anyone know exactly what it was. The golden hue of light coming from a second level just above the main lobby in the open setting of the temple. Dameon knew this was the place Zeta had talked about simply because he was not dead and as he looked out where he had come from the darkness had completely surrounded the temple but didn’t enter. He forced himself up the stairs and the source of the golden glow was an orb that sat there on top of a large chest. Unsure of what exactly to do he placed his hand on the orb the glowing light running up his arm and up into his brain the orb giving information in the form of a map and giving him life again. He blacked out.

He slowly drew in air as his eyes slowly opened just as a sword sheathe bashed him in the head hard enough to wake him up from his groggy state the electricity running into his body giving it a jolt as it mixed with his own natural electricity. His eyes flew open as he slowly rubbed his forehead. Wondering who had hit him and why. In fact he had no idea where he was or what was going on. Getting slightly defensive he tried to sit up abruptly and he felt his muscles tense up in pain from the bandages and bruises he had wrapped around his body. The injuries he remembered as he looked up and saw his sensei as he collapsed back against the pillow. Moving felt even worse than it had in his dream a dream that had seemed to last week’s vividly, he could still remember everything that had happened and even that map that had been placed within him. He looked around the room looking at the nurses and someone he had never even seen before.

“Sensei how long was I out?” he asked and before Sanosuke could answer the Doctor had actually opened his mouth.

“Almost four days. How do you feel?”

“That’s a silly question Doc. I was thrown through a few trees after a few hours of fighting. I’m pretty damn sore. Sanosuke, it’s good to see you. Is Toraika okay? I have been out of commission is she safe?” He asked hoping to god that she had survived the war so far. He also looked to the other random ninja that was in the room with them not recognizing him at all.

“And who are you?”

Gin had been tracking Sanosuke for a while. He owed her a favor and had promised to pose as her stable significant other so that she could get a lease for a decent house with at least six rooms. Chie and Reiko could share a room, but Shinji needed his own room. Consequently, so did Kiku, who had renamed herself Misao in the past couple of months when she became a priestess, not that Gin knew that, of course. She was just planning on getting her family away from the grasp of the politicians in the Wind Country. Finding them a place to stay was the first step. Dealing with the fact that they possibly now hated her for having abandoned them for the past two years out of the blue would be her second concern. That, of course, after she managed to safely extract them from a village that would use them as bait to get her to turn herself into its false authorities. She hadn't anticipated that some of her children would want to stay in Suna, forever dedicated to the village they grew up in. That, of course, Gin would realize afterwards.

At the moment, she found herself scourging the halls of the hospital. How she had gotten there in the first place, she forgot, exactly. All she knew was that she had asked around the halls if a large man with dark skin and dreads was around and they had all pointed her in the same direction. She hated the fact that she was in the hospital, which was made clear by the death-glares that she shot every single nurse and doctor that got in her way. Like Moses and the Red Sea, they would essentially open the way for Gin to pass without even a split second of hesitation. The aura she exuded was one of sheer destruction, evidenced by her last visit to this very place. The room she had trashed and the hall it was in were likely still under heavy repairs.

The young woman cracked her knuckles as she stood in front of the door that she was directed towards. In the reception nearby, she could see a couple of nurses cowering from the corner of her eye. Gin kicked the door in, effectively blowing it out of its hinges. Lo and behold, there was Sanosuke, accompanied by some guy she had never seen before in her life and visiting someone that Gin recognized as that guy that got his ass kicked by Bells alongside her. "You promised to buy me a goddamned house, Sano-teme!" She accused, pointing her index finger at him. Gin's face was, of course, covered by several bandages in order to hide her identity. She had already made a name for herself using the alias Shinobu. The fact that she wielded one of the Seven Legendary Blades of the Mist helped in that endeavor. But she was infamous, seen as a source of chaos and destruction. No one in their right mind would sell her a house. She needed Sanosuke, a well known war hero pretend to buy it alongside of her. "Ah, where are my manners? The name's Shinobu," she said to the complete stranger. As for the guy in the bed - Dameon, she believed his name was - she needed to present some sort of peace offering for not having jumped into the fray and saved his ass sooner. "Uh, here's a get well soon card thing,"[/b][/color] she said, pulling out a scroll from her pocket and tearing some of it off to write an improvised message. The piece of paper read "Get well soon so you can kick your Doctor's ass. PS: This was totally Iyata's fault." Below the message was a drawing of a chibi Gin holding both her hands up in a peace sign.

Was he going to wake up from Sanosuke delivering the powerful swipe of his sheathe sword down upon Dameon's head? Maybe not. But Sanosuke believed that he would be able to awaken him, so it was worth a try. His theory behind his actions was sound after all. Striking him with enough senjutsu chakra would be enough to pull Dameon out of the internal world of his mind and into the external, living world where he would be conscious. It would either do what he wanted or it might end up with his student dead on the very same hospital bed that he was going to die on in the first place. Well he was already about to die anyways. So even if it failed, at least it would be in the form of a mercy killing. Based on the multiple medical instruments surrounding him Dameon's body was in pain and withering. There was no way that Sanosuke would allow for his student to just suffer the way he is currently. True he was a bit of an idiot, a blow hard, a bit emotional, can barely hold a normal conversation, and too sure of his skills. But he was his student. Whether it be the gift of life or just the relief of a mercy killing. Sanosuke wouldn't allow for his student to go through this pain any longer.

Damoen's eyes opened slowly as he got himself up. He just now was getting himself up as Sanosuke felt himself relax. Good, his planned worked. Sanosuke let out a sigh of relief as he took the time to put his sword's sheathe back on his back so that he can observe the people who were watching him. The doctor was on the ground cowering for a few minutes as he noticed that his patient was about to be killed in cold blood in his hospital. When his patient woke up however, he got himself up from the ground and composed himself. Typical civilians, they lack a back bone. Some of the people surrounding the two let out the breath they had passively took in when they saw Sanosuke draw his sheath out. He was safe. The boy was safe.  Tension eased as the room was cleared besides Sanosuke, Dameon, the doctor and some shinobi he had never seen before. Sanosuke chuckled as he crossed his arms.

"Take it easy gaki." Sanosuke informed his student while clamping his right hand on Dameon's shoulder delicately but forcefully so that he would understand that he needed to rest. Before Sanosuke could answer, the doctor answered for him. To be honest, Sanosuke was also shocked by the answer the doctor gave him. 4 days; and nobody told him? Sanosuke will have a talk with this hospital for leaving him in the dark for that long. But right now, Dameon was safe and he was thankful. And just like that Dameon was right back at snapping at him for questions upon questions. Sighing to himself, Sanosuke chuckled a bit as well. Young love. "Toraika went back to Suna after the war to make her report about what occurred here in Kiri. She's safe."

Now this was usually the time where Sanosuke would tease Dameon humorously so that he might get a laugh out of his student. Life had other plans unfortunately. In the form of a door being launched at the wall that was directly across it, the woman from his past appeared in all her angry glory. Gin Kuroka. The woman pointed at Sanosuke and immediately began barking orders at him. No "hello", no "how do you do", no "is Dameon all right?" Just something about buying her a house. "You promised to buy me a goddamned house, Sano-teme!" Gin roared at Sanosuke thus causing one of his eardrums to pop from the yelling.

"GOD DAMN IT WOMAN, I'D DO IT WHEN I FELT LIKE IT. DON'T RUSH ME!" Sanosuke barked back at Gin.

Dameon looked up at his sensei a little confused and raising and eyebrow as he tried to hold Dameon down and keep him from moving. Sure he had a few stitches,, been cut open, cracked bones, probably a concussion, and had just woken up from a coma but he didn’t feel as nearly as bound as it sounded. Resisting he at least managed to sit himself upright just in time to see the door flying off the hinges. He was a little surprised but remained unfazed compared to Sanosuke. Simply refusing to stop watching the entertainment he could only assume was coming he focused in on the two of them as they began to yell about something involving the promise of a house.

“Yeah he promises a lot of things to try and get with…” he said stopping as he turned to Sano.

“Is she another one of those women you lead on than ditch because you’re not from Kiri? Because if so, you picked the wrong one to mess with,” he said as he picked up the card his fellow swordsman hand handed him. He looked in it taking a bit of enjoyment from the part about Iyata, though it wasn’t entirely true.

“If I recall sometime before I was kicked through four different trees you had almost taken out the entire swordsman by ‘accidentally’ wanting to try something new,” he joked as he kept his eyes on her looking for any signs of injury.

“We were all beaten pretty bad. I know I was injured the most and oddly the last to be treated but you don’t look too beat up at all,” he said raising his eyebrow a bit.

Gin could have sworn that she saw Sanosuke cringe as soon as she appeared in the door. She had never been one for being subtle. All subtlety was completely lost on her. She therefore tended to assume that everyone else operated in a similar way, despite the fact that experience taught her otherwise. Of course Sanosuke would find that horribly frustrating. Their almost equally demanding and authoritative personalities clashed constantly because of their similarities. In any case, she supposed she could spare a few minutes at the hospital while she was already here. Out of all the people that fought Bells, she was arguably the one that had come out with the least amount of injuries. Experience had taught her to know when to retreat,when a battle was lost. Of course, she would never leave behind her comrades in arms for the sake of her own safety. There was nothing quite as disgusting as someone willing to do that.

In any case, she had been able to fend off Bells for a few minutes while the others retreated. And she had then decided to run at the top of her speed once the rest were far away enough. The biggest injury she suffered was that to her pride. Nevertheless, that wouldn't take all that long to heal. "Hey, me mastering that largely saved your ass later, I'll have you know," she said nonchalantly, smiling underneath the bandages that covered her face. She had turned from a raging maniac to a happy schmoozer in the span of a few seconds. Of course, she had yet to address Sanosuke's yelling. "SHUT UP YOU INSOLENT BASTARD! DIDN'T YOUR GODDAMN PARENTS EVER TEACH YOU THAT A MAN HAS TO KEEP HIS WORD?!" She yelled back. And once again, a second later, she was looking at Dameon with a pleasant smile.

"HOW ABOUT YOU MAKE ME YOU OLD HAG?! IT'S NOT MY FAULT THAT YOU NEED SOMEONE SANE TO HELP YOU BUY A HOUSE BECAUSE YOU'RE TOO BAT SHIT CRAZY TO GET ONE YOURSELF!"

There was no one other than Gin Kuroka, that could get under his skin the way she did. The way she does it just makes Sanosuke want to yank out his own hair in fury and frustration. Every time he would do something, this woman would be there just show him up. EVERY TIME! Just about anyone could annoy Sanosuke, he did have a short fuse. But Gin was a special case. Navi could push Sanosuke's buttons with ease and get him angry. But Gin, a woman, could push his buttons and set him off far quicker than Navi ever could. It must be quite terrifying for Dameon to see these two shinobi battle it out with wills and words in a hospital. But then Sanosuke knew better; his student went toe to toe against Seven Bells himself and barely survived. Even though he would outwardly pin the blame on Dameon's own weakness; he knew it wasn't true. It was his fault. Sanosuke should've been there for Dameon. He promised the child that he would take him under his wing and teach him all he needed in order to be a strong shinobi that would protect the Kiri, his home village. It wasn't like Sanosuke didn't try. There was the mission where Sanosuke had saved Dameon from captivity and saw a darker side of Dameon. A side that Sanosuke wanted nothing better than to wipe clean off of the boy's personality. The problem was just that: it was his personality to feel nothing towards people he hasn't met one on one. Never for a country, or to shed empathy for those whose lives he ended. Maybe he saw a bit of himself in Dameon when he lost himself. It was those eyes of his; it held nothing. Just looking at Dameon now pulled at his heart. Dameon needed a teacher and he let him down.

If it wasn't for the years of acting he did with Guru Pathik on their journey to get money, Sanosuke wouldn't have been able to pull off such a skillfully crafted poker face. With a smirk, Sanosuke clunked Dameon on the top of his head hard enough for a bump to appear. "I'm sorry but who was it that saved your sorry ass from being tortured?" Sanosuke said crossing his arms while looking down on his student making sure Dameon wouldn't be able to read the expressions on his face of what he really thought of the situation. "You're in this state because you weren't strong enough to hold your own. As part of the Seven Swordsman, you need to be strong enough to at least leave a scratch on someone. Just be lucky that this old piece of shit over here was able to save you this time." Sanosuke indicated to Gin as he pointed at her carelessly with his thumb.

Dameon looked at the two of them that continued to argue back and forth as he tried to acknowledge both of them but was struggling and slightly become annoyed as he raised his eyebrow. He pushed back Sanosuke’s hand and sat upright and slid his legs off the side of the bed and hopped to his feet at roughly the same time the doctor was about to yell for him not to. He was in a gown after all it wasn’t like he was butt naked. Not that he cared anyways. He walked past Sanosuke and Gin and grabbed his clothes off of the dresser and pulled the pants up under the gown before tossing the gown aside and placing his jacket on over the bandages that wrapped his body.

“The biggest question I have is, why are you going to him looking for a house here when he has no say in what happens here since he isn’t from here? Hell if I didn’t know better he was just going to ask me to help him out with getting papers form the admin office,” he stated as he placed his sword back on his back as well to complete his attire despite the clothes being beaten up.

“Also if I recall you wouldn’t have been able to use that jutsu if I hadn’t distracted Seven Bells long enough. Yet I was left on the battlefield for almost twenty four hours after the dust settled whilst everyone else was able to walk back to the village. Nobody gave a shit about me than so why act like it now,” he said tossing the card aside annoyed as he walked out of the room and proceeded to push through the crowd of people.

Gin aimed a high kick at Sanosuke's head. He would most likely dodge it, she knew, but hey, firing a sort of warning had its own goal. She ignored the comment about her being an old hag. Her skin was still like that of a baby's bottom and she had yet to hit thirty. She was still young. A little voice in the back of her head reminded her that she now had five children and that 30 might as well be 60 by shinobi standards. Why was it that 90% of the shinobi population was still a teenager? Eh, she guessed she would never really know. Whatever. She was a fighter, not an intellectual. Studying crap like what made up the population and why was better left to civilians. The former Kazekage had already proved several times over that she made for a very bad administrator.

A quick flashback of her standing over a pile of burning paperwork while laughing like a maniac came to mind.

The woman shook her head as if to remove the thought. "In any case, we went in blind and paid the price. On the bright side, we all managed to get out alive and with all of our limbs still on, so give thanks for that, kid." She referred to almost anyone younger than her as a kid. She hardly called anyone by their name. If she did, it meant a sign of great respect, earned the hard way more often than not. She had never really pondered why she did that. Maybe it was because she had more experiences under her metaphorical belt than most. She had been to hell and back more times than she could count anymore. Her deformed body - most notably her missing eye and limb - were proof of that. She had known pain of all kinds, she supposed. "And to answer your question, he's a goddam war hero now. The number of medals he has goes over the amount of people he fucked over to get them. That's a lot, mind you. Having him backing me makes me look like a productive member of society instead of someone who's caused over a million ryo in damages," she answered with a heavy sigh.

Without anytime to react, the kick was sent speeding at his face. Sanosuke felt as Gin's well aimed kick blasted his forehead with enough force to knock him backwards on his ass with a heavy thud. Sanosuke felt light headed from recieving a kick like that. It was as though he was going through the effects of Buzz Effect all over again, but this time more intense than the last. For a few seconds, Sanosuke had to wait before picking himself up from the ground. When he did that however, Gin seemed to be talking to Dameon as the boy tried to storm out of his hospital room while he was still injured. The doctor would most likely try stopping him should Gin try to intervene. Sanosuke knew he would.

Putting a hand on Gin's shoulder, Sanosuke just gave her a look for her to stop. "Let him be. He has somethings he needs to work out." Sanosuke said simply to Gin before getting his hand off her. There were only a few times when a man can get sometime to think about things. And being in the hospital bed while reflecting on his life just seems wrong. Sanosuke was trying to put himself in Dameon's shoes but he had no right. After all, Dameon was in this mess because of his bad tutelage. Sanosuke sighed himself as he dismissed the doctor, telling him that he should have some doctors watching him in secret in case his condition seems to decline while he is away. The doctor nodded and went to dispatch medical ninja to do such a task. Being a war hero, you get those perks of ordering people around.

Dameon stopped in his track amongst the crowd outside of his hospital room. He had planned on just walking out of the hospital despite his blurred vision coming from the blood loss he had suffered. He assumed perhaps his stitched were coming loose but he didn’t care he was tired of hospitals. He listened to her words and while he didn’t entirely disagree he knew that for him it wasn’t entirely accurate. He scratched the back of neck where his Shikyo brand sat raised on the skin. The brand itself from his positioning would be clearly visible to both of them. He turned around slowly looking to say one last thing before he left to try and describe how he felt because right now he felt that nobody in the world gave a damn about him. While he was used to this normally he had hoped that becoming a strong shinobi and a member of the Seven Swordsman meant that he at least had someone who cared whether he lived or died. He obviously looked sad as his eyes wavered and angled toward the ground. It was unusual for him considering he almost never showed any form of emotion.

“Maybe I am a little old fashioned but I would rather die than fail a mission of such importance. I knew before the war people didn’t give a damn about me and now I know nothing has changed. To me this means the only thing I am is an expendable tool, and what good is a tool that cannot complete its objective,” he said with a bit of a soft tone as he looked into both of their eyes before he turned around again and started to push pass the crowd to leave the hospital.

“In Kiri you need a representative of the village to be assigned a home after so many were lost because of the war, its a policy. I will let them know you are to have one. Just tell them I sent you, that is if you can even remember my name,” he said opening to door to the window and leaping out and away heading toward one of the many places he used around the city to recover. If he was just going to be a tool to the Mizukage he had no problem but if he was going to be one he needed to get stronger.

Gin would hold Sanosuke back if he tried to get the boy any medical help r if he tried to call the doctors or nurses to the room. She could easily understand how he felt. She hated being tied down by the frailty of her own body. If he could walk out of the hospital on his own, he was fine, the way she saw it. Walking in the midst of adversity bred endurance and inner strength. People had to fall and learn to stand back up again on their own. It was neither her place nor Sanosuke's to intervene. She felt strongly about that. Behind her bandages, her eyes softened as she looked at Dameon moving through the room. He looked broken above all else. She spotted his brand - the one on his neck. It reminded her of the one she had. She lowered her neckline, revealing the brand of an ourobourus burnt into her skin. It was the mark of a very well-known company of slavers.

She would show Dameon the mark with a purpose. "You're preaching to the choir there, kid. You think you're the only one in this room that's ever felt used? I've been used and betrayed more times than I can count," She said, covering the mark on the base of her neck once again. "A piece of advice: Find your own purpose and live for yourself instead of trying to live for the people around you. You won't ever please them or yourself. Carve your own way." Her voice was stern and meaningful. What she was saying carried a certain weight with it, a certain amount of experience and pain and suffering. But it also carried strength - a strength that shone above all else. Because in the end, she had survived. That was all that mattered.

This wasn't something that Sanosuke could compare himself too, nor could he pretend that he knew what Dameon and Gin went through. They were both slaves at some point of their lives. Freedom was something that they fought tooth and nail for. Sanosuke didn't know about that at all. True on his journey training with Guru Pathik, Sanosuke had liberated many slaves from their slave owners. Before he even rescued them from captivity, Sanosuke would have to be incognito and observe. The look on their faces were voided of all hope and emotion. They were broken. Sanosuke couldn't even imagine being a slave. So when Gin showed Dameon her marking as a slave, Sanosuke looked with the mindset of an observer. Sanosuke remembered Gin telling how she was a slave, but they were drinking so the information is spotty at best. After Gin's speech, Sanosuke noticed that what she was saying was actually moving and inspirational. To think that Gin had a soft spot was actually quite surprising to him.

When Dameon left, Sanosuke noticed how the circle of people watching dispersed to their own tasks. Looking around, Sanosuke tried to tip toe through the window while Gin was looking to get away from her so that he wouldn't be forced to go house shopping with her. That was the last thing he wanted, besides Sanosuke had a fine date with twin Inuzuka kunoichi whom wanted to badly meet the famous Wasp Sage whom assisted greatly in the war against Seven Bells.