Today truly marked the start of Kashizudoto's career as a chuunin - kicking off with a long-term mission to escort Lord Hokage himself, along with another very powerful associate, to the Land of Earth so that Lord Kenta could not only conduct standard diplomacy but could see the new Tsuchikage for himself in order to expel any previous biases he'd had about the village and its people under the rule of the previous Tsuchikage. It was refreshing to see such a liberal and open-minded Hokage in a shinobi world where most people in power used violence - or the threat of it - to rule from the shadows with an iron fist. After all, the word Kage meant "shadow" in the old language, so the Hokage's transparency and relatively libertarian nature showed a lot about his defiance of the normal social order. Ever since the private meeting they'd had in Kenta's office, where they both learned a lot about each other and their similar thinking and attitudes, Kashizudoto had definitely taken a liking for the Hokage, and he was almost sure that the same was also true the other way around.

Now Kashizudoto was serving as a forward messenger for the arrival of the Hokage and his associate, intent on getting the sealed letter to the Tsuchikage unscathed.

WC: 222

As he ran across the well-beaten road from Konohagakure to Iwagakure, Kashizudoto couldn't help but reflect on all that he had done during the short interim period between his meeting with the Hokage and his departure for the mission. In the discussion, Lord Kenta told him that he had recommended Kashizudoto for chuunin; soon enough, the council regulating these rankups indeed promoted him. However, Kashizudoto privately didn't feel all that ready for the job of a chuunin without having a blade that he could call his own; however, not just any blade would suffice for him. He needed something unique that would truly stand out; that would reveal his art in battle, his style, his personality. Thus, he gained a short apprenticeship under a retired shinobi known as the Blacksmith, where he ended up forging the first-ever katana made from meteorite. He called it the Tentetsutou, or the "Sword of Heaven" if translated into the modern variant of the language. With a katana in his right hand and a black swordsman's robe (an additional gift), Kashizudoto's appearance and mannerisms had now changed, with a more mature, independent, and creative air around him.

WC: 420

This was not the time to reminisce about the past and what got him up to this point; that could be done at a later date. To succeed in the mission, he had to focus on what was in front of him. As a rather progressive individual, it was only natural of him to want to focus on the future alone, but he also had to look at the present with the same energy or his life would be cut short before he even got to the future.

The mission was relatively simple: deliver a message to the Tsuchikage. After that, he was free to pretty much dick around in the village or even around it, so long as he didn't cross the borders of the Land of Earth. However, his task was easier said than done. What if there was intensive border control there, something on par with that of the isolationism seen in the Hidden Village in the Rain a few centuries back? This was a new Tsuchikage, and the last one apparently wasn't such a great person. What if he was uncooperative, or even directly hostile? He definitely wouldn't be able to hold his own, or even be able to alert the Hokage, if the Tsuchikage attacked him. He could only hope that he wasn't walking into a trap, doing the best to stay on his guard.

WC: 654

[Exit]

Travel: 600/600