Kantaro looked down at the grave at his feet. "Akira Etame. Loving brother and uncle. Mighty Jonin. Fell in the service of his Kazekage. Missed by all." His voice didn't choke or crack, but Kantaro still felt incredible sadness when he read aloud the words carved deeply into the grave stone. He reached up to touch his forehead protector. It had been his uncle's.

"Thanks for all those practice missions we went on. Soon I'm gonna be doing a mission for real, you know. Gonna have some team mates and a sensei. Maybe I'll be able to make some new friends. You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

He pushed the sand around with his feet. "None of them are gonna take your place, you know. Don't worry about that." Kantaro sighed, plopping down beside the grave stone listlessly. "I'm nervous, Uncle. I've never done something like this without you. I'm afraid I'm not going to do well at all."

The dark stone, warm from hours in the sun, did not respond. Still, its heavy presence was comforting against Kantaro's back, like lying against a giant cat on a cold night. The Genin just sat there, thinking and pondering nothing in particular.

Shimo had no where to go and so explored the less crowded parts of the village hidden in the sand. He always felt the need to walk, explore and learn. And so he took a right and began making his way up toward the mausoleums and crypts. It was a not very frequented place but had history and the architecture was well depending on the age of the building gave an idea of the different techniques used to make them.

As he walked he saw some one he thought he recognized from his genin graduating class. Adjusting his coarse he passed through a set of mausoleums and began passing by one tombstone after the next.

As he neared with in talking range he spoke "If you have gone through the kind of training the rest of the academy has had than you should do all right." Shimo strode towards Kantaro. It was a nice day the wind wasn't kicking up dust so Shimo had his face uncovered.

Finding a spot that didn't place on top of a body he gave a lazy wave in greeting he said "Hi there I'm Shimo Rai."

Kantaro glanced up. He hadn't expected anyone else to come to such a desolate place. To be honest, he didn't really want to talk. However, he would try to be nice.

The Genin rose to his feet, meeting the newcomer's gaze with what was intended to be a friendly smile but turned out to be more of a grimace. "Eh, hi. I'm Kantaro of the Etame clan." He stopped. This Genin looked familiar, but with all the time Kantaro spent out of the village he couldn't be completely sure. He brushed the feeling aside and addressed Shimo Rai again. "I was just visiting a grave here. What brings you to the cemetary?" He stopped again, aware of how weird that sentence sounded out loud.

Pulling a leathery looking piece of fruit from his pocket he began to pull the rind of of the meat revealing bright orange fruit. Taking a bite he pulled another piece of fruit from his pocket and offered it to the acquaintance.

"Me oh I was just passing through exploring a little seeing what I can see you know." Shimo shifted his foot here and there as standing in one spot he was not able to do for very long. "So looking at us we have graduated the academy. Where do you come from before the village hidden in the sand and the academy and all that?" That was a normal question for any one in a military situation and fairly innocuous.

"Any way I enjoy walking around and exploring and this place was least crowded and lest traveled. So I started walking this way. Who's grave is it?" The family couldn't have been that close there was little pain in the face of Kantaro.

Kantaro grinned as he took the fruit. He silently peeled the skin off, tossing it to the side so the rind could decompose and return its nutrients to the earth. As if that was going to happen in a desert... But oh well.

"Thanks." He bit into the fruit, its sweet and tangy juices cooling his throat and bringing saliva to his mouth. "Oh, I've lived here my whole life. But I've spent a lot of time in recent years away from the village traveling around with my uncle." He gestured to the tomb stone he had been sitting against. "That's him, there."

Kantaro glanced over to Shimo's uncovered face. The Genin seemed to be trying to read Kantaro's features. He obviously was more used to hiding behind that mask strapped to his helmet than exposed like this. "Hey, remember rule 25? A ninja must never show his emotions. Yeah, I still miss him. But I'm never gonna get anywhere if I keep dwelling on the past."

He shook his head. Now he was just rambling, probably looking like a fool in front of a stranger. "Sorry about that." He took another bite of fruit. "Wow, this really is good fruit. Did your family grow it?" It occurred to Kantaro the newcomer wasn't wearing any special identification. "Say, what clan are you part of, anyway?"

"You're welcome" When he was asked about his family and the fruit he replied "My family has a place in the high desert between here and the Land of Fire. There they grow sheep, goats and have a small orchard of fix trees..." He lifted up the fruit they were eating "Also dates and pomegranate."

Thinking a moment "As for the mask I wear it to keep from breathing in sand and dust when I'm wondering the desert it also helps to keep my opponents from seeing me smile." Adjusting his stance "See I'm from a nomad family and well you learn these things." Shimo shrugged "I'm from the Etame black sheep clan."

Kantaro suddenly stopped chewing. "Hm?" Black Sheep branch? He'd never heard of it. Then again, Kantaro had spent far more time reading about adventured than about clan history. "You say that like it's a bad thing. To my mind, I just came across a long-lost cousin. Funny that I've never heard of you though."

He gestured to the tombstone behind him. "So, I guess this would make Akio your uncle too." He thought hard. "Wait, is the Black Sheep branch the one my mom sometimes talks about? The ones who don't do all our weird traditions?" The Sand genin laughed. "Hey cousin, care if I come over some time when it all gets too much?"

Then he sobered. "Sorry. We just met and all. Just cause we're family doesn't necessarily mean we're going to be friends. Still, I'd rather make a friend than an enemy." He took one final bite of the fruit and then tossed away the core. "That really was good fruit." He wiped his mouth. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out a loaf of bread. Splitting it in two, he gave one half to Shimo.

"It's no fruit," he grinned wryly, "but I might as well share some of my food too."

Shimo smiled a bit "It's not a bad thing or a good it's just a thing, A nothing thing really. Just the ninja of my part of the family summon animals to fight along their side. It took a bit of doing and forty seven sheep, thirty five goats and four ox to get the contract but since then spiders have been my thing." He smiled a bit.

"I actually think your uncle is like a second cousin once removed I think any way. It's so hard to keep track. Any way I do believe we are some how related at any rate." Shimo finished his fig and accepted the bread.

"As for coming around my families place we don't mind one bit. With that place being right on a main trade road we trade food and board for ryo or if the place needs protecting they send some off duty ninja to help. So they wouldn't mind." Shimo took a bite of bread and shifted.

"I see." Kantaro didn't get why his family made such a huge deal about tradition. If someone like Shimo needed animals to keep him company, why not let him summon them? Easier than dragging them around everywhere... "Spiders, huh? Never cared for them one way or another. Maybe when I come over you can show me some of them."

He thought about it. His mother would probably have a fit if she knew he was talking with one of "the heretical and disrespectful branch," so it might be a good idea not to mention it. "If you ever need help, I'd be glad to assist. It's not like I'm going to see much action any other way for a while, and I might as well get to know the other side of the family. I'd invite you over to my place but my mom's one of the ones who's always complaining about your side."

Kantaro felt like he was babbling again. He wanted to stay on good terms with his third cousin or whatever he was so the genin changed the subject. "Do you have any idea who your sensei's gonna be? My uncle was gonna be mine, but he kinda can't do that now... And having been gone so much, I don't really know anyone well enough to have a guess."

Shimo smirked, snorted and began to chuckle a bit and in-between chuckles he explained "You know I could always meet your mom and try to impress her by summoning my jumping spider. Let him bounce around the place scare the animals scatter the chickens." The mental image he had was one of a bit of slapstick comedy with furniture being toppled over and animals going nuts as the jumping spider had its fun.

But on a more serious note after he finished laughing "Sure, I could always use a sparing partner. Sometime in the future if ya wouldn't mind we can train together....Not here though I don't like to bother the dead. But the training grounds or some where would work quite well. You'll probably even meet one or two of my spider friends."

As the subject changed so did Shimo's stance and he shrugged "Well I have no idea who my sensai is or my team mates. But I figure i'll find them or they'll find me before to long."

Kantaro laughed a bit along with Shimo at the mention of jumping spiders. Now he had to meet this spider.

"Yeah, I'd love to have someone to train with. Just name the time, and I'll be there." He noticed how Shimo's weight seemed to shift whenever he changed topic. Kantaro wondered if he had any habits others might consider odd. "Actually, I have nothing better to do today... How's this afternoon sound?"

Shimo smiled and replied "Alrighty I'll meet you over there." With that he bid his cousin farewell and began to make his way back through the village and towards the Sandy Arena.