It had been a pretty uneventful day in the Village Hidden in the Sands. Kuno Uchiha had taken the day off from doing missions for the and taking care of other shinobi business in favour of helping his mother out around the family shop. The day had gone by pretty slowly, and as much as the young Uchiha enjoyed helping out his mother around the store, he had grown pretty bored near the end of the day. When it finally came time to close up the shop for the night, Kuno turned the key in the door to lock up and looked over his shoulder at his mother, Eishi Uchiha. She was shorter than him by quite a bit, standing at 5’4”; Kuno had gotten his height from his father. She had the big, black eyes of the Uchiha clan and black, long, straight hair that fell down to the middle of her back. The young man smiled, “Well mom, another successful day in the shop I’d say. Who knew that a bunch of foreigners could end up doing so well around here.” His mother smile and laughed softly. “It is pretty impressive! But after all, what are we Uchiha if not impressive.” She laughed louder this time at her own joke. Kuno could not help but chuckle along. He loved to hear her laugh; she never used to do that when they were back in Konoha.

Turning to face his mother, Kuno handed her the keys for the shop. “You’re okay to walk home right? I think I’m going to go out tonight. There’s a lot of new Genin around the village these days and I’m hoping to meet some of them so that team mission can go smoother.” She nodded, still smiling. “I’ll let your sister know, though I doubt she’ll come out too. She’s not one for…socializing.” Kuno nodded at that, gave his mother a quick hug and then turned to head toward the Dragon’s Tongue, a curry house that he had been to once or twice before. He had heard that some of the Genin had been hanging around there as of late, so he was hoping to find some there to at least get acquainted with.

As soon as he opened the door to the curry house, immediately his senses were almost overwhelmed with the tantalizing smell of, well, curry! He could not stop his mouth from starting to water at the idea of some of the stews that this place was famous for. His eyes darted around the room, looking for any familiar faces, of which he found none. The place was pretty empty, but it was still a little bit early. He seated himself at a table from which he had a clear view of the door and picked up the menu in front of him. He glanced up at the door every so often, hoping that his forehead protector that he had strapped on would attract the attention of any other shinobi that stepped through the door.

I really hope this wasn’t a waste of a trip…

WC: 527

Dragging himself inside the Dragon's Tongue, Kiyoshi slumped a little now that he had finally arrived. Being outside a whole day with the typical blistering heat, running through the sand while being chased by a crazy ninken, and then later while searching for ancient ruins of awesomeness had tired him out more than he had expected.

As if coming home, he removed his white scarf from around his face and mouth and draped it over his shoulders as he took a good look around. The place looked empty - much like his stomach - with the exception of a stranger with spiked red black hair sat on one chair, wearing all black clothes in Suna for some reason Kiyoshi couldn't exactly place, and the sizzling of cooking pots betraying the presence of the cook prepping his dishes. Was he this early? Or late? It was only know Kiyoshi wondered what time it was, but seeing as the tables still looked clean and orderly, he assumed he had arrived a bit on the early side.

Not that it mattered. He'd have a good drink first, matter of quenching his thirst and chilling down a little, then he'd order his favourite dish: Scorpion Curry. It was not the most spicy dish the house had to offer, but the way it stung his tongue was golden, and the way the glazed chitin crunched under his teeth made him feel like he was eating something solid.

"Yo", he greeted Kuno casually, a matter of being polite. The guy looked definitely older than him. Perhaps jounin age or something. A bit odd that he had never seen a jounin like him around Suna, but then again, Kiyoshi hadn't been here for about three years as he travelled the desert with his father, so who was he to judge anyway. The guy wore a Suna forehead protector, and that was all that mattered.

Kiyoshi took a seat not too far off Kuno, resting his crossed arms on the table as he waited for someone that would take his order. He had no need for a menu as he already knew what he'd take, but that also left him with little else to do than to watching around for something of interest. Like a crack in the ceiling, or something.

wc: 387

Aiden would wake up and get ready for the day, sluggishly grabbing some new clothes. Ah yes, finally, clothes that don't have holes and stains in them. It was something he was certainly thankful to finally have once more, let alone a decent bath. His muscles now that he was finally able to unwind somewhat were a tad sore, and he himself still felt terrible, but considering how he felt since he returned, he was starting to recover at least, and he no longer just wanted to stay at home and sleep. Thing have been relatively calm so far, though for how long until a retaliation is made? The Infinity Gang most certainly would be wanting his head as well, now that he thought about it, and then there are those that are loyal to Chu-Bu as well. It wasn't exactly a trip across the country in order to reach Sunagakure, especially from a neighbor like Iwagakure, so how long does he have until he is someone that ends up under attack or, even worse, dead?

These were thoughts that continuously worried him since he had returned home, especially considering Zaiaku and his family were here. It was something that would most certainly put them all in some sort of danger and, ever since that incident in the bath house, he's been trying harder to repress his urges around them for their safety. Perhaps it would be better if he stayed in Iwagakure and waited it out, see whether or not they would attack him before he bothered returning. Perhaps the world was just better off with him dead, even? All he seems to be able to do is mess up when it's vital that he doesn't, and to attract trouble where it wasn't needed. He had to shake these thoughts away however as they came. He didn't deserve to be in this position, and this cage was enough to make him already down from finally acknowledging its' existence, there was no other need to put a further damper upon it.

He did recall however some talk about some of the Genin hanging around the Dragon's Tongue as of late. He couldn't read, but he did still remember where the place was, so perhaps these thoughts would be better removed from his mind if he went and talked to some of these Genin. He himself was still a newly made Chuunin, someone that still sees himself as around the skill range of a Genin, if not a little bit higher, so if anything, he should still be able to head over there and see if anyone was up for socializing. Yeah, that's what he would do. Putting on a black shirt with a white jacket, he would head out, his four foot long Otter-like tail wagging slightly behind him as he made his way towards where he recalled the Dragon's Tongue being, where he would see someone just enter as well, his blue eyes barely catching who it was. Walking towards the door, he would enter as well, his nose already catching the delicious smell of the curry. Thankfully, today the place was relatively empty, something that doesn't happen all too often, and he was able to actually scan the room with his blue eyes, looking for a table the was ideal to sit at.

Scratching the left side of his head, barely exposing his pointed ear before it was covered once more by Raven hair, he would see someone that had a forehead protector on, and someone else that was seated not too far off. He would sit across the person wearing all black as a result, looking at the two as he would place his forehead protector on the table. "Heya." He would say as he looked at the menu, though not reading anything off of it. He had certainly wished there would at least be a picture, but he guessed he'll just order whatever these other people were ordering instead. Closing it, he would look at the two once more, deciding he might as well introduce himself. "I'm Otter, you're both Genin, right?" He would ask the two as he waited, wondering if anyone else would come in. While one of them, a seemingly younger looking individual, was decently dressed for the weather, he himself and the older looking guy clearly weren't, but hey, style meant discomfort, right?

Wc 749

Slash. Cut. Strike. Slash, slash. Stab.

Rhythmic sounds echoed from a training dummy in the courtyard of an apartment building in the market district. Anon was using his two short swords in tandem to slice, stab, and strike the dummy he was practicing on, training himself to use them better than he normally did. Since his museum talk with Kei, he had begun to get more serious about his training. Spending day and night with the dummy and his weapons to make himself much stronger than he was, so that he would be able to follow through on everything he'd told the other male. He rarely took breaks to eat or sleep, and when he did food was wolfed down and sleep was cut short by an alarm so that he could get back to training more and more. He was vigorously pushing himself to become better and better, making sure that he would never again be passed up by others or outshone by people his own rank. He wanted to change things for the better and the first step was to train as hard as he possibly could and hope that it made a difference in his abilities by the time it came down to using them to protect.. or destroy. Whichever came first, he wouldn't fight the situation, and instead look to resolve it quickly. He huffed as his arms grew heavier. He was getting weak from lack of hydration and food. But still he pressed on, a kindly and rather plump rotund woman who was watching from afar rushing up to him with a glass of cool water. He thankfully drank it down quickly, stabbing his swords into the sand and kneeling when she took the glass back, rubbing his forehead to wipe the sweat away. It was getting rather late but it was still hot outside, something that came with the territory.

"Anon, dear you need to eat something! You're wasting away every day, training and putting on no new muscle because you barely give your body sleep or nourishment!"

"Really, I'm fine Miss Akihiko. I just need to rest for a few minutes and I can keep going."

"Here, dear. This is a coupon for the Dragon's Tongue. Half off their specials and meat curries, as well as breads. Take it and take a break dear. Go change and wash up then eat something, you'll drive me to an early grave otherwise."

Anon took the coupon and nodded in thanks, looking up at his training dummy, contemplating his options for a moment. Inevitably, he made his way into the apartment building and up the stairs, reaching the fourth floor. Once there he walked down the hallway to his apartment, and upon opening the door, he stepped inside. Once inside he took his swords to their sheathes and tossed them on his bed, making a mental note to take them off later. He went about changing out of his tights and gi top, for a fresher, cleaner version of the two items, still all black. Once that was done he did the same to his black shinobi tabi and refitted his belt to his waist with the hitai-ate combined into it. His eyes scanned his tool pouch for a moment and he decided to attach the pouch to his belt in the front on the left. The pouch only housed his set of five scrolls, one of them bearing his shuriken and kunai sealed inside them. It would take a user of fuuinjutsu to know that much though, so if any problems arose he would be armed and ready. At the very least it made him feel better and more safe in going out tonight. He moved to his door, cutting off the lights and locking it on the way out into the dimly lit hallway. Once he moved down the stairs and out of the building he waved to Miss Akikhiko, making his way into the market district and heading out towards the Dragon's Tongue's location.

It was about twenty minutes before the young genin had reached where he was going, standing in front of the shop quietly, while staring up at the sign. His hands were in his pockets while he stared apathetically. He held the coupon in his right hand while his left came to scratch underneath the mask on his neck. He had forgotten to change his mask or simply leave it at home but lucking he hadn't sweated much underneath it so there wouldn't be an odor or dampness. Which was good, but expected. His mask didn't hold liquids whatsoever. They passed through without leaving residue and wouldn't stick around after a second or two. Maybe that was the reason it didn't have an odor? Either way, he was thankful for the material that he had, whatever his mask was made of it was quite the useful garment. Shrugging to himself, the man moved towards the shop, pulling open the door and stepping in to be assaulted at the nose by intoxicating aromas that told him the house special was stewing, not to mention a few soups and even stews! He understood that a lot of people preferred freshly made everything, but there were a lot of curries or stews that had to be cooked hours in advance before they were ready. The house special 'Dragon Breath' was one such dish. It was supposed to be the spiciest curry in the village, if not all ninja nations, and many attempted to finish the thirty-two ounce bowl, only to be defeated by the heat.

Anon looked around after noting the smells to see the place was mostly empty. A familiar waitress approached him and bowed. He'd been here quite a bit before when he was up and coming out of the slums, and was happy they had remembered him. He smiled underneath his mask, his hazel hues showing this smile and he handed her the coupon from Miss Akihiko. She looked at it, smiling, and waved him over to the only table with others at it, well save for the one almost parallel the table with two males at it. Sitting with strangers wasn't exactly on the top of his bucket list but he understood that since not many were there tonight, yet, they'd want to only have to clean up two tables instead of three or four. With a shrug he made his way to the table, sitting next to a black and red haired male sporting the traditional style hitai-ate on his forehead instead of his arm or something. The other one across from the two had set his on the table for whatever reason and he couldn't tell just by looking, but he was sure that the other guy was another sunagakure ninja. For some reason they'd all gathered here tonight and it would be strange if Anon hadn't realized suddenly how very hungry he was. He waved away the menu the waitress offered and made his order.

"I'll just have my regular snake stew with a few dango sticks, and a nice green tea. Perhaps a large bowl instead of the normal. I haven't been eating much."

He actually hated eating reptiles as it was his favorite species of animal. But snake was impeccably delicious, especially in their stews, so he had to get it every time he'd come here. As she wrote down his order and waited for the others to place their own, his hazel eyes with blue flecks moved slowly from one form to the other, taking in the two strangers at his table with immense detail. He memorized their hair and eye colors, how they sat and looked around, as well as how they carried themselves. He'd like to ask who they were, but wasn't really much for introducing himself when he was dog tired from training and hungrier than the dog he was tired as. What really bothered him was the other male that sat away from the others. Wild cards were always dangerous, but maybe he was just being paranoid? Time would tell.

WC: 1,378

Kuno had just barely taken his seat when the door opened again as another customer entered the room. The Uchiha glanced up from his menu to take a look at who had walked into the restaurant. The boy appeared quite a bit younger than himself, his golden blonde hair messy enough to remind Kuno of his own. He wore a tan coloured tunic and linen pants, and when he removed his scarf and looked around the room, Kuno saw the boy’s piercing green eyes. He strode into the Dragon's Tongue like he had been there a million times before, which probably was not far off, as he walked right in and sat down at a table not too far off from Kuno. "Yo", he offered casually, to which Kuno replied with an equally casual, “Yo.” The Uchiha’s suspicions were reinforced further as he sat down and waited for someone to serve him, not even looking at the menu on the table in front of him. Kuno smirked as he watched the boy look around for something to attract his attention while he waited for a server. If this kid already knows what to get from this place, I really need to get out more. He sighed and shook his head, returning his gaze to the menu and he heard the telltale ding of the bell on the front door opening once more.

The next figure to step into the famous curry house was another young man, still younger than Kuno by all accounts. He was fair-skinned and sported a messy head of navy blue hair to match his eyes. He walked into the room, his white jacket a stark contrast to the black shirt he had on, but most surprising of all was his four foot long otter-like tail. If that’s not a product of some sort of clan bloodline, I don’t know what is. The stranger did not hesitate in walking right over to Kuno’s table and taking a seat, which Kuno did not mind at all. "Heya." He offered to the two of them while flipping through a menu himself. Kuno nodded to him in response, smiling. It was not long before he closed the menu as addressed the two patrons directly. "I'm Otter, you're both Genin, right?" At that, Kuno lowered his menu and placed it on the table, raising a thumb and pointing to his forehead protector with it. “Hi Otter, I’m Kuno Uchiha, and yes I am a Genin.” He glanced over at the other boy at the nearby table, “Though I must admit, I’m a little ashamed to admit it. I’m so much older than you guys but I’m still the same rank, if of course you both aren’t chuunin already. I got a bit of a late start around here.” He chuckled and glanced up at the door as it began to open yet again. “Looks like the evening rush is starting!”

The next patron to step through the door was yet another young man, through this one appeared to be older than Kuno even, standing taller than him as well. His hair was purple, an it watched the colour of the mask on his face, which was the most surprising part about the stranger. As he handed something to the hostess, he was guided down to the table that he and Otter were sitting at, which he joined with a shrug. The first words out of his mouth as he sat were not a greeting like the others, but an order for food. "I'll just have my regular snake stew with a few dango sticks, and a nice green tea. Perhaps a large bowl instead of the normal. I haven't been eating much." Kuno’s eyebrows raised as he watched the man’s hazel eyes move about the room. And yet another interesting person to greet this evening. “Hey, I’m Kuno Uchiha, we were all just getting to know each other.” He turned back to the other, un-introduced kid once again, “Why don’t you join us, might as well spend some time with the other ninja while we can right?” He turned and flagged down the waitress as well asking for the house special before turning back to the group.

“I must admit, it’s nice to get to see some of the other village ninja. Sometimes it seems like we are all out on missions and never get to spend time together. The better chemistry we have, the better we can fight back the crime in the village, right?” He looked around the group, hoping to get some sort of reaction. He was not one for making friends or for starting conversation, but he meant what he said, and he believed that getting to know these people would not only help himself as a ninja, but perhaps the rest of the village as well. “So…how’s everyone else doing tonight?”

WC: 840+527=1367

OOC:

Kiyoshi wasn't sure if he was too tired to be impatient for his food, or too hungry to care he was tired. Whichever it was, his mind was quickly distracted as more people entered the Dragon's Tongue. First, there was a skinny looking guy coming in. Pink shirt, blue sweater, white jacket, black pants and a tail... A tail. It didn't reach Kiyoshi's mind just yet. He knew something was out of place, but his mind didn't seem to register the guy had a TAIL. Somewhat absent-minded, his eyes followed the oddity for a while, brows frowned as his mind slowly registered the presence of the appendage. The guy was wearing a tail...

And then it finally hit him. Kiyoshi's eyes darted to Aiden's eyes with a questioning glance, just briefly, as if to see the chuunin was actually aware of the tail he had hanging. And, upon catching his name - Otter - Kiyoshi guessed he did. Then the red black haired guy spoke up, acknowledging his rank and presenting himself as Kuno Uchiha. Once again, Kiyoshi's tired mind seemed to have a little difficulty understanding what exactly an Uchiha was, but he assured himself everything would get better once he had some food and a drink. Thinking's hard on an empty stomach, after all.

Oh. Huh. So the Uchiha, despite his age, wasn't a jounin? In fact, he was a genin just like himself? Cool. That meant Kiyoshi had found a potential sparring partner already. Not only would it allow him to get an idea of what an 'Uchiha' exactly was, but a little casual brawl once in a while was always a fun thing. It was the golden way to getting stronger.

His thoughts were cut short briefly as yet another guy wandered in, searching for something to fill his empty stomach with. He was promptly moved to the table of two, which was now a table of three, and ordered his food and drinks without so much as a greeting. Man. If there was anyone who would have to do that, it was him. He was downright starving. Instead, the hostess didn't linger around and left the table. His eyes stoically followed her, as his stomach complained at the poor treatment of the fellow hungry.

Kiyoshi shifted his gaze back to the table of three and the Uchiha presented himself again. Uchiha. Right. Weren't they a Konoha clan? And he was a genin? How did that work exactly? Genin were generally not allowed to travel. Alone. Right, so perhaps someone much stronger was with him. Not that it mattered to Kiyoshi, the guy was welcome. And if he wasn't, it wasn't as if a genin like him would have much say in it anyway. So it was better to make it a good time, right?

On Kuno's request, he grinned and nodded in agreement to his statement, and proceed to take place at the table of three, which had now become a table of four.

"I'm Kiyoshi. Or Yoshi, if you will.", he raised his hand in silent greeting. "I'm a genin, yeah. Suna born and bred. And from the looks of you two, you're not exactly from around here...?", he asked Kuno and Otter with a feint smile, nudging in the direction of their clothes. Black? Jacket? These guys had to be sweating waterfalls down their armpits. Of course, the exact reason for his question was more a means to pry loose their origins than anything else. If anything, he was quite curious about where an otter-man lived and why a genin Uchiha was in Suna.

He'd have to wait for that answer though, as a waitress appeared at their table to pick up the order of the remaining few hungry.

"I'll have a Scorpion Curry, and a beer.", Kiyoshi said with a bemused smile at the waitress, a girl a few years older than him, and a familiar face since he appeared here regularly. She smiled back at him and sighed playfully. "Nice try, Kiyoshi. What if I gave you a lemonade, and you just pretended it's beer, hm?"
"It was worth a try..."
"Right. Can I get you guys anything?", the waitress asked the others at the table.


wc: 726 + 387
Total: 1113

Otter was relatively relieved to see that this older looking individual was actually friendly, even lowering the menu and motioning to his forehead protector, introducing him as Kuno Uchiha, a Genin, though he shamefully admitted to being older than them both and only being the same rank if they both aren't Chuunin already, since he got a late start. Otter in response would cock his head to the side for a few moments, having never actually considered age to be a factor for a Shinobi. He met older people that are weaker and he was sure there were younger people that are stronger, so honestly, age in his eyes didn't mean much in regards to ability. "That's nothing to be ashamed of at all, I think. It all goes down to experience, age being a factor is like saying clothes are, least in my eyes." He would respond. Hopefully the way he said it didn't come off completely different than what he meant.

Seemingly the friendly Genin was looking towards the door once more, and just in time as well, too, as the door would open, prompting the older male to make a comment about the evening rush coming. Looking towards the door, he would see an individual that actually looked pretty cool, like one of those classic ninja guys he had seen in the picture books he found in Zai's room. His hair color matched his masks, and he was definitely taller than him as well. He sat down with a shrug at the same table Otter and Kuno were at, and would order a snake stew with some dango sticks and tea, mentioning how he hasn't been eating much. Kuno seemingly would introduce himself to this guy, explaining how they're all getting to know one another before turning to the other guy the entered before Otter, offering him to join them.

The guy was seemingly excited about joining them as well, as he would grin and nod in agreement before taking place at the table, not making it a total of four. He introduced himself as Kiyoshi, but shortened it to Yoshi, which is nice. He would then go on to say that he's a Genin as well, someone born and bred in Suna, and Otter and Kuno both look like they're not from around the village. A pretty nice analysis, actually, since they're both dressed oddly for the weather. Before he could respond though, the waitress came to pick up the remaining orders. Kiyoshi had ordered something called a scorpion curry, and even included a beer to boot, though the waitress already told him nice try after a sigh, seemingly already knowing the guy, whom of which was suggested a lemonade instead. The joke flew over Otter's head, at least, as he never had a beer before himself, so he didn't understand why Kiyoshi couldn't have one, but hey, it's whatever.

In regards to what Kuno said previously about it being nice to see some others ninja and how better chemistry helps them better fight back crime, Otter would nod his head. Honestly, he only came out here so he can take off his mind off of certain things, to help him rest a bit, and Kuno made a pretty solid point, even if he didn't feel much towards Sunagakure, himself. It would be when he along with the others would be asked how they're doing that Otter would pipe up, seeing an opportunity to speak. "Yeah, it would be nice. It's nice to just see others that actually do this stuff too. Not exactly someone that was born here or even was here for long, so I can't speak much on crime myself, but it's still pretty nice just to actually sit down and talk to others every once in a while."

Looking at the waitress, he would place his focus back on her. "I'll have what Yoshi's having." He'd say before looking back at the group. "Chuunin myself, I was recently made one, for some reason." He'd say as he would stretch his arms before returning back to his previous position.

Wc 709

Twc 1458

OOC: My bad, been under the weather

Anon looked around as the others talked amongst themselves as the one kid from afar was introduced. Kiyoshi, eh? Not someone he'd ever heard of. He sighed, waiting on his food before he looked around at the rest of the table for one more time, his hazel hues shifting between the three faces that sat at the table with him. He contemplated for a moment just taking his food when it arrived and moving to another table, completely ignoring the meet and greet these other guys had going on. One of them was a chuunin, but that wasn't all that interesting to the young ninja. If one of them had been a jounin or something he could be interested. With a shake of his head to ward off the sleep he felt coming on, Anon yawned and laid his head back against his seat. The training tonight had taken a lot more out of him than he thought. He really should have stayed home to go to sleep, but he had really wanted his stew. He needed to sleep and eat much more or he would never get to where he wanted to be.

"Anon Brier, of clan Mitarashi. Genin. Nice to meet you all. I didn't catch anyone else's name, save for Kiyoshi's. You'll have to forgive me, I've been training a lot recently and haven't been able to keep my mind on anything else. I don't mean to seem disinterested."

He quietly rubbed his eyes to get the sleep out of them, rubbing his face with his hands to wake himself up. His mask stayed in place somehow, but that could be attributed to being very close on his skin. His eyes moved towards the back of the shop, to where the kitchen was, watching it for his food expectantly. His stomach let out a loud, low grumble followed by a bubbling noise. He was incredibly hungry and this wait was going to be the death of him. He'd never had to wait so long for food, or at least it felt like it'd been so long. He couldn't tell how long it'd been since the waitress took his order but all he knew was that he didn't have food to quell the rumbling in his stomach, the small pains he got from it being empty and needing something to fill it.  Anon sighed and closed his eyes, quietly trying to distract his mind as he waited for the lady to bring him his food so that he could devour it.

WC: 1,387 + 437 = 1,824

The one who had introduced himself as Otter was the first to reply to Kuno’s comments. "That's nothing to be ashamed of at all, I think. It all goes down to experience, age being a factor is like saying clothes are, least in my eyes." The young Uchiha nodded along, but he could not help but disagree slightly with the younger man, thinking that he should at least be able to boast the strength of a chuunin at his age. Regardless, he did not want to seem rude by dismissing what his new companion had said.

Kuno nodded his approval as the man who had been sitting alone joined the rest of them at the group table that he had started. Finally, he introduced himself. "I'm Kiyoshi. Or Yoshi, if you will.", he raised his hand in silent greeting. "I'm a genin, yeah. Suna born and bred. And from the looks of you two, you're not exactly from around here...?" Kuno chuckled along with that, but before he could answer was interrupted by the waitress that had arrived. Kuno waited, unsure of what to order for his meal. Hearing Yoshi mention the scorpion curry and the beer, he could not help but smirk. The exchange was between the two of them was entertaining to say the least. Before Kuno could express interest in the scorpion curry himself, Otter caught his attention by answering one of his previous questions. "Yeah, it would be nice. It's nice to just see others that actually do this stuff too. Not exactly someone that was born here or even was here for long, so I can't speak much on crime myself, but it's still pretty nice just to actually sit down and talk to others every once in a while." Kuno could not disagree with that. It had been a while since he had just sat around a table and chatted with other people from the academy. Seeing these shinobi now made him proud to be a part of that community again. After hearing Otter order what Yoshi had decided on, Kuno decided it would be a safe bet and asked for his own serving of the same, but with water. That was one thing he had noticed in his years here. He still needed to drink a lot more water than the people native to the Land of Wind, probably because of the drastic change in climate that his body had to acclimatize to.

Continuing the conversation, Otter informed the group of ninja that he had in fact been promoted recently. Kuno smiled and nodded his approval in the young chuunin’s direction. “Well, I’m sure if you were given some time you could figure out why they let you get promoted!” He chuckled, and turned his attention back to Yoshi to answer the question he had asked earlier. “As for your question Yoshi, I’m from the Land of Fire originally actually. I moved here with my family a number of years ago; the hot weather all year ’round is nice but I mean…sometimes it can be a bit much for me. But for now, it works.” In the brief silence that followed, the young Uchiha took the opportunity to survey the group of them that had gathered around the table. They were a motley crew to say the least, but they all bore one thing in common. They were all shinobi. It was a strange link to have with another person, considering how different most shinobi were, but this connection was real regardless. After taking in details of nearly all of the group’s members, his eyes fell on the man that had entered so abruptly before. It now seemed that he was beginning to fall asleep, and only woke up because he could here the constant chatter around him. [color:3512=#orange]"Anon Brier, of clan Mitarashi. Genin. Nice to meet you all. I didn't catch anyone else's name, save for Kiyoshi's. You'll have to forgive me, I've been training a lot recently and haven't been able to keep my mind on anything else. I don't mean to seem disinterested." Kuno watched on as he rubbed his eyes and the young Uchiha let out a sigh of relief. “Ya I know that feeling, but there isn’t much better than training all day to let yourself loosen up once in a while.”

Nodding along with the group, their dishes finally came, and almost immediately Kuno began to dig into it.  It was very good food, and he was thankful to Yoshi for ordering what he did, otherwise Kuno may have ordered something else and missed out on such a meal! The table had gone a little bit quiet as the group began with their individual meals. After sitting for a little while longer than Kuno felt was appropriate, he decided to ask a question that was on most people’s minds of late.

“So…what do you all think of the new Kazekage?”

WC:849+1367=2216

Woah. All these new people, and already there was competition for the Scorpion Curry. Cool. Hopefully this sudden raise of demand wouldn't lower his portions. This was his favourite dish, after all, and not matter how nice it was to meet people, he'd fight for his food with claw and tooth. That said, hearing someone having moved from the Land of Fire intrigued him. Nice weather, heated baths, water. It sounded like a place he'd love to visit some day, especially because water was rather scarce here in the dry lands of Sunagakure.

"Land of Fire, huh? Cool. I'd like to go there some time. Perhaps we could go back together some time later? You know the area, and I'm dying to see those lakes and heated baths. As you're probably aware by now, water here's... a bit on the scarce side."

To be fair, Kiyoshi couldn't swim. It was one of those downsides about living in Sunagakure, most people bothered to train other skills instead. In fact, he couldn't really remember having seen a single river in his life at all. So while he surely knew they were blue and fluid like suiton chakra, the real deal had to be rather impressive compared to suiton jutsu.

His thoughts got distracted as the unknown fourth one introduced himself as Anon Brier, a genin of the Mitarashi clan. There wasn't a lot to say about that clan, but then again, there wasn't a lot to say about his either. The two clans were all over the place, and of all sorts of shinobi. Simple, and as good as their training proved them to be. Kiyoshi could already respect the guy, since his exhaustion was exactly by that latest point: training.

"You should treat yourself to a good one, Anon-kun. Nothing beats a good dish and good drinks after a firm training.

Or after running away from a crazed coyote ninken, Kiyoshi guessed. He still wondered what was up with that dog, and who had send it after him. He couldn't exactly remember who had a coyote for a ninken after all the years he had wandered the desert with his father.

When food arrived, the whole world was shoved aside out of his mind as he dug into his meal. Picking up one of the glazed 'scorpion' chitins with his hands, he scooped up some rice and stuffed it into his mouth. As he enjoyed the bite, the crunch of the chitins sounded like music in his ears. And then came the soft sting on his tongue of the spicy juice. After all this time, Kiyoshi wasn't really used to it anymore, and that could be seen by him blinking his eyes a few times and his cheeks flushing a soft pink as he took in a deep breath.

This. Was. The. Best.

Taking a few more scoops, Kiyoshi looked at the others quietly enjoying their meal for a while. The soft cheeks of the other Scorpion Curry eaters proved that the dish hadn't failed, but Kiyoshi hoped most of all that they enjoyed it as much as he did. Seeing the four of them like this, though strangers, Kiyoshi wondered if they'd make a good low-rank squad. The young chuunin could call the shots, if need be, but since they were otherwise all about the same rank, they could learn a lot from each other in addition to have sparring partners and friends.

Before he could throw the idea into the group, Kuno asked about the new kage. There was a new kage? He hadn't really paid attention to that since he had only briefly returned, but at least it explained what the general fuzz was about. Honestly though, he had no idea. He was 14 and didn't really care for politics just yet. Only fighting, girls and dreaming about finding an awesome buried tomb full of treasure and danger were his current desires. But wait! Wasn't she that young lady they had been talking about?  Midori... Midori... Ningyou? Well, she was out of his league, but Kiyoshi guessed she looked kinda cute.

"I heard she's cute, but it's all I know.", he said with a shrug. "I've been wandering with dad for years, so I'm not too sure who she is aside from the rural gossip. Midori Ningyou, right?"


744 + 1113
= 1857

It seemed that whatever Kuno had said in response to Otter's mentioning his getting promoted was a joke, about how if he were given some time he could figure out why they let him get promoted. In response to this, he would awkwardly chuckle himself, thankful that Kuno's attention would be back on Kiyoshi. Frankly, he was a bit embarrassed to mention that he didn't even know that being a Kage was actually a thing until recently. He had never seen any previous ones before Midori, let alone anyone that was of higher rank than Chuunin save for very few occasions. He could still recall his first few weeks being in Sunagakure, fresh out of one cage and fresh in another, and now back then he used to think Zaiaku was the strongest there is. Now that he has traveled and improved and learned more himself, however, he realized how stupid it was to think that.

He hadn't really heard much about a Land of Fire, and wondered if it was like the Land of Wind or Stone, where there's an abundance of fire. It sounds warm, but unlivable, what kind of person would want to live in such a terrible place?! The Land of Fire wasn't something he personally wished to live in, Suna was hot enough. Why couldn't there just be a Land of Cool Breezes or something else like that? The fact that Kuno came from it made Otter wonder if an Uchiha is some kind of fireproof family? Like how Zai looks inhuman, he was curious if an Uchiha was fire retardant. Before he could ask though, the fourth guy, whom of which Otter almost forgot was even present due to a lack of participation in the conversation, spoke up, introducing himself as Anon Brier of a clan of his own called Motarashi, another Genin. He only caught Kiyoshi's name, but it's all good, since he did have the excuse of training a lot recently and, as a result, having not been able to keep his mind on anything else.

Kuno seemingly spoke up first, stating how he knew the feeling, and would address the training. The other guy; Kiyoshi, recommended treating himself to a good one, as nothing beats a good fish and good drinks after training. "Kun?" Otter asked impulsively, his mind instantly latching onto such a word. He knew it was some sort of formality, but he hadn't learned much about them himself, let alone heard them much, as those he spoke to so far have overall acted informal in regards to that. Was Kun some sort of way to address an acquaintance? Hmm, it made him wonder why such words were made in the first place. He was curious to learn more about them but, at the same time, he couldn't understand the point of them, either.

Finally, the food had arrived, and it seemed the scorpion chilling was glazed. He... never had scorpion before. He guessed that even though they literally look like little rocks with pointy bits, they shouldn't be any different from a lizard or any other sort of animal. He would imitate Kiyoshi in how he ate, grabbing a chitlin and immediately biting into it, his fangs helping him pierce through and further aiding him and tearing away at the food, the soft crunching noises created adding white noise to the moment. Kuno however would pose a new question, asking them about their thoughts on the new Kazekage, with Kiyoshi being the first of the group to respond, commenting on how she's cute, but he doesn't know much else than that due to wondering with his dad for years, so he doesn't know much aside from gossip.

"Another handler for the cage." Otter would say as he stopped eating for a moment, staring at the partially eaten chitlin in his right hand for a short moment before looking at Kuno. "I mean, she looks nice enough, dunno much about politics myself, but hey, at least we know she aims to do something. Can't do much worse than having no Kage at all, right?" He would continue, correcting himself before taking yet another bite out of his food. Honestly, he didn't know how to feel about her, politics was never his thing. The largest he was concerned about until recently was himself and Zaiaku, and he's still struggling to come out of that even now.

Wc 754

Twc 2212

Everyone around him began to talk about the new Kazekage as they enjoyed their food. The ones who seemed to just order the same as Kiyoshi mimicked his movements but otherwise they seemed to enjoy something Anon had never tried. One of the others around the table mentioned he should probably treat himself to a cold one and Anon laughed, shaking his head. "I would but I've got to be up early tomorrow for something special. My neighbour is throwing a party for her son and I promised I would be there." Anon looked down at his food as it arrived and smiled at the rattlesnakes that were run through with what resembled dango sticks but much sharper. The stew itself was a bright orange liquid, steaming hot and wonderfully made. He began to reach up to pull his mask down but was interrupted by the hostess coming back and tapping on his shoulder. The young genin turned his head to look at her, quizzically.

"Sorry to bother you but a message arrived from a Ms. Akihiko. She said that she almost forgot you promised to finish repairing that old set of toy swords and armor for her son, Jiuji.  She didn't want to bother you since you hadn't eaten yet but his birthday is in the morning."

Anon sighed and smacked his forehead. How could he have forgotten that detail? He quickly stood, handing his bowl to the hostess who bustled off to prepare it in a to-go container for him. While she busied herself with that, Anon turned to his new companions and chuckled. "Well guys, I'm sorry I have to cut this so short but I guess I still have a few things to do before I can relax. It was nice meeting all of you and I hope to see you around more. If I don't I've probably been killed. Or I'm just sleeping." He laughed a bit, paying homage to their life as ninja with a morbid joke. Once the hostess returned with a large cup that had a lid containing his soup and a container with his rattlesnake in it, he nodded to everyone and ran out the door, hurrying down the street towards the market district. He had to get home, eat quickly and then finish fixing up the toys for his neighbour's kid or he would never be able to forgive himself.

WC: 409 + 1,824 = 2,233

EXIT

Training:

Kuno smiled and began to dig in as soon as his food had arrived. He could not help but sweat thanks to the intense spice of the dish, but it was amazing nevertheless. He continued to eat as his pale skin change fairly quickly to a beat red, and eventually he had to grab some water and down it, not that it would really help the situation. The food was great, but Kuno may have just met his match in terms of spice. As they ate, Yoshi eventually spoke up in response to the question she posed. "I heard she's cute, but it's all I know.", he said with a shrug. "I've been wandering with dad for years, so I'm not too sure who she is aside from the rural gossip. Midori Ningyou, right?" Kuno nodded while still eating, mumble through bites of his curry, “Yup, that’s the one. And I gotta agree there. But honestly…I think being a Kage takes a little more than good looks. Especially in a village like this one.” He chuckled before turning back to his food, waiting for another response.

He was mid bite when the young man with the tail that had identified himself as Otter voiced his own opinion on the matter. "Another handler for the cage." He said, ceasing to eat for a minute before looking up directly at Kuno. "I mean, she looks nice enough, dunno much about politics myself, but hey, at least we know she aims to do something. Can't do much worse than having no Kage at all, right?" Kuno nodded slowly to that, taking in what he had said. A handler for the cage…It was an interesting way to put it to say the least, and to have his next sentence be so complimentary? It made no sense to the young Uchiha, but since he barely knew the boy, he let the thought go.

Kuno had now almost finished his entire dish despite the incredible spice that had now nearly numbed his tongue. Scooping up the last few bites into is mouth, he looked up just in time to see the hostess wander up to their table once again before she spoke to the quieter man named Anon. "Sorry to bother you but a message arrived from a Ms. Akihiko. She said that she almost forgot you promised to finish repairing that old set of toy swords and armor for her son, Jiuji.  She didn't want to bother you since you hadn't eaten yet but his birthday is in the morning."  The young man then smacked his forehead and began to stand to leave. "Well guys, I'm sorry I have to cut this so short but I guess I still have a few things to do before I can relax. It was nice meeting all of you and I hope to see you around more. If I don't I've probably been killed. Or I'm just sleeping." He laughed a bit, and Kuno just shrugged in response, about to leave the establishment himself. “Not a worry Anon, I hope to see you around the village too! In fact,” he said, pulling ryo from his pocket and setting it down on the table. “I think I will also be heading out. Gotta get home to my family, you know how it is. I’m also glad I got to meet all of you. And hey, maybe we can try to take a mission sometime soon! Its always better to work in a team.”

With that, he bid the group another quick farewell before following Anon out into the streets, then turned back toward his home. As much as he liked eating out, he was ready to get home. He had already accepted a great deal of missions coming up, and it was going to be a long day tomorrow…

[Exit Thread]
WC:655+2216=2871

Training

Fuuton from C to B (2000/2000)

Unused WC: 871

Scooping another spoon of rice, Kiyoshi listened to the input the others gave on the new kage. It seemed none of them weren't too impressed, yet all together, perhaps, slightly hopeful to what she had to bring. Kiyoshi pondered upon the option to boldly challenge her just... He didn't know. For fun? He was quite curious how strong a kage was exactly, what immeasurable gap he'd have to surpass to become a solid ninja. It was quite hard to imagine that without something to fall back on.

He took another scoop of his dish when the waitress brought Anon his food. Snake on sticks. Yum. "Shnake? Tashty.", he said, with half a mouth full of rice. Only to see that the guy hadn't even time to touch it before a messenger arrived. Poor guy. He didn't even have the opportunity to eat his own dish in peace. How busy exactly was this guy if he had precious little time to eat and sleep? Or maybe he was just the kind that couldn't say no to people and therefore usually had so much to do he was nearly obliged to forget himself? Either way, the dish disappeared as soon as it arrived, and the genin left the table. Kiyoshi raised a hand and, mouth now empty, said his goodbyes to him.

Then, briefly after, the Uchiha had to go as well. Bummer. There went his plan to offer a low-rank genin team. At least he finished his dish. And his glass of water. Kiyoshi smirked slightly. Hearing no complaints meant it had to be a good dish. "See you around, Kuno. A mission all together sounds pretty cool. We could learn a lot from each other." And with that, the Uchiha left the table as well. It was just Otter and him now. To be honest, after the day in the desert, the hot spice and the bustle of this place's peak hours, Kiyoshi felt he could use some sleep himself. It had been a long day.

Finishing his plate, he gulped down his soda and felt the tears spring up in his eyes as the freshness was overwhelmingly welcome to cool down the heat of the desert and the spice he had endured today. He sighed contently and put his ryo on the table like the others, but didn't leave just yet.

"I'll keep you company till you finished. We can then depart together.", he said as he crossed his arms and rested them on the table. "How's life as a chuunin anyway?"

He'd keep Otter company as he found eating alone so... awkward. When Otter would have finished his plate, he'd then leave the table and the building together, parting ways once they were outside.

[Exit]

wc: 469 + 1857
= 2326

Spoiler: