It was only Nayoko’s third day in the Village Hidden in the mists, and already he needed a break. After the mission he had undertaken with a shinobi of Kirigakure no Sato, he could not bring himself to work any more until he could process what he had seen. The man who had been assigned as his partner never gave a name, but the young Hattori was confident that he was a ninja of the village. The prowess and cunning he had displayed showed as much to be true. Though he also had shown something else that had Nayoko feeling like he did today; he showed a bloodlust. The man had slaughtered all of the smugglers they had been sent to kill, not that killing them was the issue. It was how he had killed them. The men were torn in half and left to suffer at the hand of the mystery man from the mist. It made Nayoko sick. He understood the necessity for killing, but in his mind there existed a difference between killing enemies and torturing victims. No matter how dark the message you want to send it, there is no need to forsake your own morals to prevent others from doing evil.

With those awful thoughts filling his mind, Nayoko had awoken early and decided to spend the day outside of the village, just relaxing and taking in the sights of this foreign land that he had found himself in. Throwing on his classic blue jacket and tucking his Hattori necklace inside of his shirt, he left the hotel to venture out into the wilderness of Mizu no Kuni. He asked around town for decent places to train while also taking in the sights, and his investigation eventually led him to a place outside of the village walls know only as The Lake.

The lake was more like a small ocean in Nayoko’s mind, its diameter spreading to be almost a full kilometer from shore to shore. Looking out across the body of water, Nayoko could see it peppered with various small islands that were scattered across the mist covered surface. The young Hattori glanced about the mist filled area surrounding him and was able to spot almost a dozen different shinobi practicing with one another. Whether they were sparring or showing of new techniques, this was a great place to do it. He smiled ever so slightly as the comradery that could be seen in this place reminded him a little but of the training fields back home in the Land of Fire.

Sighing to himself, Nayoko eventually wandered closer to the water’s edge, and was soon able to spot a young man all on his own, seeming collecting supplies from the surrounding area. He seemed quite a bit younger than Nayoko, with nearly shoulder length straight black hair that fell over his face in the front. The young man also wore a black jacket over a black shirt with black pants and shoes. Gloomy was the only word that came to mind as the young Hattori man approached him. Most notably though were the bags under his eyes; the stranger seemed exhausted and upset, though Nayoko could not place why he immediately assumed the latter.

Stepping up the young man, Nayoko waved and offered a quiet greeting. “Good morning friend. Forgive me for interrupting you work but you seemed to be the only person out here with out a companion! Seeing as I was alone myself I figured I’d come on by.” Smiling, the young Hattori took a seat on the ground next to where the stranger was working. “It’s quiet out here despite the training that seems to be happening all around us, isn’t it?” He asked without expecting a response. “What about you? Are you a shinobi of Kirigakure no Sato?”

WC:645

Nayoko followed the boy’s finger to where he was pointing at some nearby people speaking out loud. “That young man is courageous speaking to the family killing traitor." His eyebrows raised as he turned back to the stranger who had not stopped gathering the nearby objects that he was probably being paid to collect. "Yes, I was born in Kirigakure.... But the people here hate me. Please, you should hit me and go. Otherwise, the people might suspect you're my friend and hate you." Nayoko could not believe what he was hearing. A supposed family killing traitor that expects me to beat him openly? Who is this guy? He stood up from the ground, dusting himself off and glancing over at the group who seemed to be patch what he would do. Shaking his head, Nayoko stepped over beside the boy as he heard him say, "Tha-Thank you for talking to me." as the saddest smile that the young Hattori had ever witnessed spread itself onto his face. With that, Nayoko waved his hand dismissively at the group of gossips and began to help pick up some logs and bring them over to where he was piling his supplies.

“Alright guys, the show is over!” He yelled over to the group as he continued to help the stranger. “Hey man, the best part about me not being from here is that I don’t really care what those guys think of me. So I think I’ll stick around for a while if you don’t mind. My name’s Nayoko Nozara, and it’s a pleasure to meet you!” Nayoko’s heart broke for the boy. He was a big softie when it came to people that were on their own, and that side of him seemed to have manifested itself more frequently as of late. Just in the past few months he had met Shimada, a woman who had been without friends for a long time, and Kaiji, another person who desperately needed companionship back in the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Seeing the boy in front of him in a similar state, Nayoko could not help but hope that he could at least make this one day better for him.

After working in silence for some time, Nayoko set down a haul of supplied at the gathering spot and wiped some sweat from his brow. “Whew, do you do this all day? It’s exhausting. Let’s take a break.” With that, he would wander over next to everything that the two had collected and let out a big sigh. He then glanced over at the young man from Kirigakure no Sato. Going over his features once again, the most notable of them seemed to be how tired he seemed. It was as if a heavy weight was constantly on his shoulders so that every step he took was a battle in and of itself. It was a look that Nayoko could recall seeing on only one other face in his life, and that was his own father’s. After Nayoko’s mother had passed away, his father had fallen apart for some time. Every day he would just sleep, eat, and go back to sleep. He didn’t even work for almost an entire year while he tried to cope with the loss. At the time, Nayoko had been upset with him because of that, until one day when he had finally snapped at him, and pulled him out of the depression that he was nearly drowning in. But thinking back now, Nayoko could see that same pain in this boy’s eyes. He was hurting, and he felt guilty, but of course Nayoko had no way of knowing why. He assumed that it had something to do with what those strangers had said earlier, but instead of making assumptions, he decided to find out for himself.

Whether or not the young man decided to take a break with him, Nayoko would begin to speak. “So, what was that all about before? Why were those guys making fun of you? Why did you tell me that I should hit you? I mean that is a pretty messed up thing to say to a stranger.” He would let the question hang in the air, and he hoped for a reply.

WC:726+645=1371

Nayoko nibbled quietly on the rice ball that had been given to him by the young man who had finally identified himself as Natake Tatsumi. While he at the rice ball, he tried to recall what he could about the Natake clan, which was not very much. He knew that they came from humble beginnings, like his own clan; farmers if he recalled correctly. He also knew that thanks to the defense of their simple lives, they were able to unlock their abilities that involved a strong connection to ration chakra, an element that Nayoko himself was not very familiar with. Other than that, Nayoko only knew that there were many Natake in the and of Fire, where his home was.

His pondering was interrupted by the boy responding to his question, and the answer was one that Nayoko certainly did not expect. “I killed my family....” His voice broke off midway through the sentence, and Nayoko turned to make sure that Tatsumi wasn’t just joking or something. He could not believe his ears. Not only did this kid kill his family, but he openly admitted it?? What have I gotten myself into…The boy then started to lift his short and roll up his sleeves to show Nayoko a series of bruises, scars, and marks that each told a horrible story. “I killed my family by my own hands. Everyone in the village hates me and they are right.....I don't deserve to be alive I tried to kill myself  many times but I keep failing.” Nayoko say silently, unsure of how to respond to what he was witnessing. After all, this was the first time that he had ever met the young man, and to have him lay all of this out for Nayoko to see was staggering to say the least. “I told you to hit me so they wouldn't hate you and bully you.... I don't want them to hurt you.”

Nayoko was speechless. He sat there, rice ball in hand and eyes wide as he processed what he had just heard. This boy had just confessed to murder in front of him. According to him, he had killed his family with his own hands, and was so wracked with guilt that he had tried to kill himself over and over, failing each and every time. Looking over some of the scars that Tatsumi showed him, he could not imagine how the attempts failed. As he looked on at the boy, who now seemed close to tears, he slowly closed his mouth and lowered the rice ball to his lap. If he told me this…I can only imagine how alone he must feel. The young Hattori’s mind wandered to Shimada, his close friend who had also told him how alone he felt, and then to Kaiji once again, who had been so moved that Nayoko would be his friend that he had broken down and cried in front of him. I guess I’m just a friend to the friendless, and an ear for the lonely to speak to. I don’t think I mind that.

“Tatsumi, is It alright if I call you that?” Nayoko asked, not wanting to be rude. “I think…well to be honest I’m not sure what to think. I can’t even begin to imaging hurting my family, let alone killing them. But one thing that I can see is that you are sorry for it. The scars all across your body prove that much.” He sighed, unsure if he should be consoling a murderer. “Listen, regardless of what you did, you must know that everyone makes mistakes. And yes, yours was umm…bigger than most. But it looks like you want to move past it. Maybe it’s time for you to stop worrying about what everyone else thinks, and its time for you to change how you think. If you’re truly sorry for killing your family, then try to atone for it. Help your village. I doubt you family would want you to kill yourself too.”

With that, he took another bite of his rice ball, munching and thinking carefully about what he had said, all the while having a single question running through his mind. Why?

WC:717+1371=2088

Nayoko looked over at the boy, who seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. He wanted to say more, he really did. But Unless the boy could tell him more, or at least react…there was nothing more to be said. He stayed there, sitting with Tatsumi until he had finished eating his rice ball before standing back up. “Tatsumi, I hope I helped, at least a little bit. If you’re ever around the Village Hidden in the Leaves, be sure to look me up.”

With that, Nayoko turned and headed back into the village. This had been a depressing turn of events, and he hoped that he would find something a little more cheerful to do once he was back inside the village proper.  As he finally arrived at the village gates and turned down the road that would lead him back to his hotel, he paused as a new, completely unrelated thought crossed his mind. His purpose for being in the Village Hidden in the Mists was a dangerous one in the first place. He had to find the man who held a mysterious link to his past and his mother, and he had to find out what he was hiding. But the last time he had done something at the whim of this man, it had ended with an ambush that had put himself and two of his friends into danger.

Perhaps… the young Hattori thought to himself, looking around at the building of the foreign village. Perhaps it would be a good idea to try and find out where the Kirigakure General Hospital is. It was a good plan, considering that if he ended up injured in whatever confrontation was to come, he would want to know where to go to be healed. But more important than that, if Shimada ended up injured because of him, or because of her kindness toward him, he needed to know where to go to make sure no permanent harm was done. Nayoko sighed at the possibility; he did not know what he would do if Shimada was ever hurt because of his carelessness. Or worse yet, because of his request for help.

With that thought in mind, Nayoko spun around and headed back into the more central part of Kirigakure no Sato, hoping that the trip to the hospital would be a quick and easy one. His thoughts of the young Natake who was a self proclaimed murderer left his mind very quickly, though Nayoko remembered the boy, and hoped that they would met again someday. Perhaps when Tatsumi had decided to forgive himself for whatever atrocities he had committed in his life. After all, he thought to himself. We can live in the past if we want to; wallowing in our despair for an eternity. Me? I've decided that's a waste of time, and I've wasted enough already.

[Exit Thread]

WC:485+2088=2573

Training

Partially Training Taijutsu to S-Rank (1000/4000)

Unused WC: 1573