Kirigakure was alight like fire behind the darkened mask, the Burning Eye guiding his movements through the thick mist and pale light that shone upon the village from above. His cloaked figure blended in with the night seamlessly, and paired with the cautious movements that carried him from one location to another, he remained entirely undetected. Takao hadn't been out enjoying a quiet night on Kirigakure by chance, no. It was not the first time he had observed Kirei’s nighttime vigilantism firsthand either. This particular scenario was a planned encounter, with a very specific purpose in mind. Takao had planted the seed, and he wanted to see whether or not it would take root.

He observed from a distance as four thugs felled with relative proficiency and left after the spoils of their crime were retrieved. Solid tracking skill, proficiency with the weapons at his disposal, respectable combat skill given the context, and an eye for justice were all facets observed by the shadow-clad shinobi. Takao had only recently been made privy to Kirigakure’s methods with taking care of criminals, and although he disagreed with it fundamentally, it was not yet his place to interfere. They would be picked up by the local authorities before long and processed in whatever manner the Bloody Mist deemed proper. Given their crimes, it seemed likely that their lives would not be cut short by the naivety of Kirigakure’s judicial system, though he had started to have his doubts. The Jōnin refocused his attention on Kirei, who had departed following the retrieval of the stolen goods, and taken to the decrepit rooftops of the Hidden Mist’s outskirts.

The usage of a single shadow clone ahead of time ensured that Kirei would be unobstructed on his way to his perch that overlooked the zone in which he enacted his nightly justice. The four that wandered in were an unplanned impediment, but proved to be of relative use in further determining more about Kirei firsthand. The young shinobi made his way up the framework of a dilapidated building and claimed his roost, casting his watchful Sharingan eyes down upon the emptied slums.

Takao ascended the neglected ruins of a building from the outside, hidden from sight by a thin cloak of chakra that ensured he went unnoticed until decided otherwise. Silently dismounting from the outer surface of the building, Takao approached Kirei whilst still cloaked. With each step he took, the chakra making up the cloak that shrouded him began to disintegrate, revealing him as he came to a stop just behind the shinobi.

“Uchiha Kirei.” Takao said, his voice sounding vaguely metallic as the words passed through the rebreather of his mask, slightly distorted by their obstruction. He stood close, ready to intercept whatever reaction the shinobi might have had in response to Takao’s sudden and unexpected appearance. The use of the name in the manner he had used it was largely psychological; it was made clear that the person standing before the blonde shinobi knew about him whilst revealing precious little about themselves through appearance.

“I have an offer for you.”

Fight or flight was a response he fully expected and subsequently prepared reaction to, which lead to his binding of Kirei’s one arm and subsequent disarming of the other. It would have been considerably more troublesome if a reaction along those lines had not been had, as Takao was of firm believe that they were a basic fundamental mindset for shinobi.

“Rest assured that if I had meant to harm you, I would not have revealed myself in the manner that I did. I am not your enemy.” Takao said as he released his arm and took a step back, his hands held up and at either side as a nonverbal way of communicating he meant no harm. “I am a friend; a shinobi of Konohagakure.” From within the cloak, he produced the Konohagakure forehead protector that he had carried with him since his own time as a genin. It wasn’t exactly a convincing argument, one might have even deemed it inappropriate to approach a young shinobi in the manner that he had, but the precautions needed to keep himself and his intentions from the light were necessary. Perhaps Kirei would come to understand, or perhaps he wouldn’t; only time would reveal the answer.

"I will not reveal who I am, for reasons that you may come to understand later. I am here to offer you an opportunity to serve Konohagakure in ways that most will never be able to. A special sort of training that will only be offered to select few genin from the village." Takao said, his glowing eyes trained on the younger shinobi from behind the mask that almost shrouded them entirely. Because of the darkness that enveloped them, staved off only by the pale moonlight above, the glow of Aibāningu was just barely visible behind the heavily tinted mask.

“Stealth. Espionage. Subterfuge. Sabotage. Reconnaissance. You will be trained in those and more, if you choose to accept. If not, rest assured that there will be no consequence to you. The decision is entirely yours, but make it knowing that your actions will never benefit the village at the same level without this offer.” It was a fair pitch, at least from the Jōnin’s perspective. He abstained from any identifiers, even speaking with a naturally increased amount of articulation as to differ from his typical, more casual manner of speaking. ROOT was not mentioned either specifically by name either, and it would remain that way until Takao deemed it otherwise appropriate. He was treading a fine line with his actions, and it required careful footwork moving forward, lest the entire operation be uprooted before it was given the chance to grow properly.

“All you need to do is say the word, and you won’t hear from me again. But if you accept, your unique talents will be honed, and you will be a greater asset to the village than you could ever have hoped to be otherwise.” Takao continued, eventually lowering his hands to his sides. Even without the technique that had cloaked him previously, the cloth worn upon his shoulders and over his head shrouded him in the darkness, so much so that if he hadn’t specifically stood where the moonlight could reveal him, Kirei would have had a difficult time seeing him unaided by the Sharingan.

A faint smile crossed Takao’s lips as he observed the young Genin’s response. Something that had started out as the faintest ember of an idea was slowly beginning to take to the tinder he fed it, and with any luck, it would turn into a raging fire. But each step forward he took was a risky one, and he was wary and cautious with each decision made. Even reaching out to Kirei in the manner that he had posed a myriad of risks itself, beginning with trustworthiness. He had taken more steps than necessary to ensure that his identity was unknown to those that he approached in this manner, further reinforcing the mystique that would become a modern day ROOT.

What Kirei’s interpretation of their meeting was, or the purpose of it all, was largely irrelevant to Takao at present. All that he needed to be sure was that Kirei understood the basis of what the training in the future would entail, and that he understood the importance of the secrecy of this task.

As a bitter cold gust of wind ripped through the deathly quiet ruins of Kirigakure’s outskirts, Takao’s gaze stayed trained on Kirei, who knelt before him. While the senior shinobi found the gesture in line with tradition, he hardly followed tradition himself.

“Good. Stand up.” He commanded bluntly, reaching into the cloak whose fabric disguised his movements from the naked eye. From within the wind blown cloth, he retrieved two items, both of which were tossed to Kirei when the Genin had risen and was prepared to receive them. One was a mask, stylized vaguely in the manner that Konohagakure ANBU masks were. The other item was a scroll, wrapped tightly and sealed with paper.

“In one month’s time, there will be a training camp held in Konohagakure. You will be given word when it is to begin, and your presence is expected. That mask must be worn at all times while there, as the concealment of your identity is akin to safeguarding your own life. It will allow you to manipulate your voice and disguise yourself more thoroughly. The scroll contains a technique that you will be expected to learn before the training begins, and to demonstrate when you arrive.” Takao explained, keeping things relatively vague in terms of more detailed information.

“When the time comes, additional information will be relayed to you, such as the destination for the training. Until then, continue to develop your skills, either on your lonesome or with the help of others, but this conversation between us stays between us. Not even a word to your closest family.” It was difficult to ensure the loyalty of a child, who was more or less green to the realities of a shinobi lifestyle, but trust was something that had to be built. He gave Kirei little to go off of, so even if his intentions were betrayed, precious little would connect him to ROOT.

“Do you understand what I have explained to you thus far?”

As Kirei examined the mask, Takao took careful and silent steps backward, his darkened outline slowly beginning to fade into the dim shadow of the furthest ruined wall that was cast upon the rooftop by the dull moon glow. His pace slowed and halted when the bottom half of his cloak was consumed by the shadows, the special properties of the cloth allowed it to seem as though it was gone from sight entirely.

It seemed as though Kirei had posed a personal challenge upon himself, spurred on to some degree by Takao’s request at prematurely ending his exchange program. In truth, he cared little for the program itself, and hardly considered it to carry precedence over what he would deem to be ROOT’s duties in the Leaf, so Kirei’s declaration was well received, albeit silently.

How much could he truly divulge without risking the covertness of the organization? He pondered his answer for a moment, glowing eyes remaining unwavered from Kirei’s thermographic image. The whole truth could not be spoken, not quite yet at least. The core of ROOT needed to be eased into, once they had been trained, and certainly not upon first meeting. He settled on his answer, and spoke from behind his mask.

"Brute strength and reckless destruction have failed to defend the Leaf, both in past and present, and it will continue to do so in the future. If we are to progress, then new methods must be developed. A new breed of defenders is necessary for us to move forward, with skills that can properly defend Konohagakure.” Takao explained, his wording remained relatively vague for the purpose of maintaining confidentiality.

“Your skills, your talents, and your devotion to the Leaf have been deemed appropriate to aid in achieving this motive, and thus you were chosen. Continue to develop them on your own. The stronger you are when the call is given, the better off you will be.” He added before taking another few steps back into the shadow.

“Any further questions you have will have to wait until the training camp. Good luck.” With the last words to escape his mask, Takao stepped fully into the shadow, and recast the technique from earlier that would shroud him from sight and sensory entirely. Silence befell the rooftop as Takao leapt from the building and landed on a smaller roof below, eventually leaving the ruins and progressing back toward Kirigakure proper.