Mitsuhide lounged in the corner of a small park inside the Village Hidden in the Clouds. He had his travel sized board of shogi layed out in the grass next to him and his Nodachi, Ikazuchi lay next to him. He silently contemplates his next move, while the Invisible orb that was Mitsuharu floated across the board from him. The days had gone by slow of late, all he seemed to do was sit around and play Shogi against his spirit companion, but one could only play against a spectral opponent so many times before it was over played. He sighs rather boredly and moves a piece across the board, before flopping onto his back and looking up at the sky while Mitsuharu thought about his next move.

“Mitsuharu, what do you think about leaving the village? Going out on our own and find something more interesting to do. These Shinobi aren’t going to help us further our goals.” He says aloud, knowing that no one could see his spectral companion. Mitsuharu harumphs and hovers over the board. It was Mitsuhide’s idea to take refuge in the Village Hidden in the Clouds, as he knew the rest of his clan were likely not to come here in search of him. But So far he hadn’t been able to find himself a teacher so he could begin learning the way’s of the Shinobi. He knew deep down that the only way for the Miyamoto to survive was to merge Their outdated belief’s and strength with the power of the Shinobi.

“It’s not safe outside the Village Mitsuhide. The elders likely have put a bounty on your head and outside these walls we will be hunted. You know this.” Mitsuharu says and swoops down motioning to the board. “If you will.” He says to Mitsuhide explaining his move on the board. With a sigh, Mitsuhide props himself back up on his elbow and moves the piece that Mitsuharu wanted. He was right, outside these walls, Mitsuhide was likely to be hunted but something had to give. He couldn’t just sit here playing game after game of Shogi by himself.

“And if we are hunted then so be it. I can handle myself, especially with your help. But I cant just sit around here doing nothing much longer. Something’s got to change.” Mitsuhide says, running a hand through his black hair. He wasn’t the type to just sit around and thus far thats all he’s really done, except taking that one mission. It was time for a change.

WC: 435

Change.....


Change was an odd thing. Beloved by some, feared by others..... and yet by others still it was a thing hungered for like nothing else. Like a full, clear drink of water to a man wasting away beneath the scorching rays of a desert. Nil Raiu was once such individual. With tentative purpose in each and every step did Nil survey the streets of The Village Hidden in the Clouds. A place that, while he had been raised there, he felt as if he had never even been there. A particularly forceful gust of wind pulled Nil from his reverie, causing the loose fabric and sleeves of his kimono to flap and billow around him as he closed his eyes... and smiled. He took a moment to simply inhale, luxuriating in the sensation of being among the clouds... free.

A soft smile came to Nil's lips, his glacial storm blue eyes widening in a contented happiness only a caged bird let to the sky could know. It was only after the wind passed that Nil once again began to take in his surroundings. People, walking to and fro about their daily lives, giving him pleasant smiles as Nil did the same in kind. It wasn't until Nil came to one of Kumogakure's small parks that he paused, getting the sensation he was being watched, and turned. Looking up at Nil from the grass, beneath a moderately sized tree, was a small, white snake with ruby red eyes. Nil smiled, kneeling down somewhat close to the creature and chuckling in amusement.

"Oh... well hello there. Nice to meet you."

The snake, merely giving a small tilt of it's scaled head, flicked it's tongue a few times in the air in answer. This made Nil blink and tilt his own head in confusion. Generally speaking white snakes signaled rebirth and fortune though as the snake stared back at Nil he couldn't quite shake the sensation that the creature... knew something. It was at about this moment that the snake turned and slithered away around the tree, which Nil stared after for only a moment, before deciding to walk around the tree and locate the creature.

Nil was.... more than surprised to say the least when, having rounded the tree, found no sign that the snake had even been there. In fact the only thing in sight was a lone, black-haired individual laying on his back and... talking to himself? Nil didn't mean to peep, honestly he didn't, but the act caught him more than a bit off-guard. Furrowing his brow in confusion and, if he was honest more than a small amount of curiosity, approached the boy laying down before him. An idle glance being cast toward the Shogi board as Nil approached where he lay. His loose-fitting kimono dangling from Nil's small, lean frame as another gust of wind whipped through the small park. Revealing brief flashes of the bandages Nil kept wrapped securely around his midsection.

In truth, in the brief interim before introducing himself, Nil was more than a little... unsure of how to introduce himself to someone who had a habit of speaking to themselves. Would they even want to speak to someone else? Well... if whoever this was wanted nothing to do with him then Nil could understand, not everyone enjoys meeting strangers, especially when they're engrossed in a... conversation. Stepping up a bit closer does Nil gently clear his throat, put on a bright smile and bow slightly as he introduces himself.

"Hello there. Umm.... I couldn't help but notice you seem to be alone. I'm Nil, it's nice to meet you."

Word Count: 624

Word Count Total: 624

"That may be true, Mitsuhide. But I just think we should proceed with caution." Mitsuharu says as he moves down to eye level with Mitsuhide. "If we leave, it will have to be on good terms. The last thing we need are these pesky shinobi on our tails too." The spirit was generally concerned for his young ward. After spending the boy's entire life with him, Mitsuharu knew how brash Mitsuhide could be and he knew that even together they couldn't ward off both Shinobi headhunters and the bounty hunters sent by the elders.

"Yeah yeah, Haru. I get it. Look before you leap and all that. All I'm  saying is I can't just sit here and get fat." Falling silent, Mitsuhide would study the board again. While Mitsuhide knew his spectral companion was just looking out for his well being, but there was also some self preservation there too. If Mitsuhide were to die then Mitsuharu would be trapped alone in Ikazuchi unless it too were destroyed. It would be a lonely existence for Mitsuharu as the only person able to fully see and speak to him was Mitsuhide.

Mitsuharu floats away for a moment, moving around the fairly large tree. Mitsuhide moves a peice across the board and looks around for his floating companion. After a moment Mitsuharu comes back around the tree and motions behind Mitsuhide, just as someone  begins to speak. Mitsuhide studies Mitsuharu as the young sounding voice introduces himself, waiting to see if the spirit would warn of danger.

"He's just a kid. Why don't you try and be nice?" Mitsuharu says to the young man who shrugs his shoulders.

"I'm always nice Mitsuharu." Mitsuhide would say out loud before turning his head to look at the boy who spoke. He really was but a child, probably barely a teenager, with silver hair and blue-grey eyes. Lazily climbing to his feet, Mitsuhide eyes nods toward the boy that stood before him. "Mitsuhide." A gruff introduction that gets a stern look from his spectral friend. "It's uh, nice to meet you. Nil was it?" His voice had softened slightly but his eyes betrayed a very uninterested look.

Mitsuharu floated found the boy, eyeing him for hidden weapons and things of that nature. Once he was finished he would float behind Nil and shake from right to left signaling Mitsuhide that the boy had nothing of note.

WC: 410
Total: 845

As Nil had suspected the first thing this stranger did was address this "Mitsuharu" figure he had been speaking to earlier. Making Nil tilt his head in genuine confusion and glance over to where the floating being was, but shrug in confusion and continue to smile at Mitsuhide. The older boy's gruff introduction simply earning a small nod in return from the young Raiu who, even with his limited interaction with strangers, could tell Mitsuhide was used to much more exciting things than he.

"Mhmm."

Nil would answer simply; hands folded peaceably in the too-long sleeves of the kimono that did not quite fit him. Though despite the seemingly passive nature of the motion Nil would get slightly flustered as he continued.

"I... well.... just happened to notice you here alone. I mean, aside from your friend... umm... Mitsuharu? But I can't see them so....."

Nil trails off, shrugging and glancing about in all the wrong directions to actually look at Mitsuharu before offering a tentative.

"Hello Mitsuharu. I apologize I cannot see you but I am sure you are great company."

With that said Nil turned his attention back to Mitsuhide; studying him idly with a naive curiosity before glancing up to make eye contact with him.

"Well umm.... I know how boring doing things over and over can be."

Nil made a brief motion to the Shogi board before smiling bashfully.

"Plus, well, even with Mitsuharu around it's always nice to meet new people. You can never have too many friends, I think. From what my instructor told me it's always better to talk to others, train with others and work with others whenever possible. You end up learning more about the world than you ever could have alone.That way you can become an even better Shinobi."

Nil gives a distinctly bright, pleasant smile, making small creases work at the edges of his young eyes. The thought never particularly occurring to him that this 'Mitsuharu' may or may not exist. Even he was aware that there were a wider array of particular Jutsu and abilities than most people could even imagine, so if his new acquaintance insisted on the existence of this 'Mitsuharu' character then Nil would believe him.

Taking a moment to once more look about, Nil hummed quietly in thought before a slight blush overtook his paled features. A small shrug hunching his shoulders as he turned to look across the empty park before glancing side-long at Mitsuhide rather sheepishly. His tone suddenly becoming more halting and uncertain as Nil self-consciously shuffled his feet.

"A-Also.... I don't... suppose you've seen a small white snake have you? I thought I saw one before I came over here b-but... well.... maybe I'm just going a little crazy."

Nil nervously rubbed at the back of his head, giving a smile equally as nervous and uncertain as he sighed, wondering exactly what his new acquaintance thought of his attempts at socializing. While it was true Nil liked people and, generally speaking, tried to be as kind and warm to them as possible Mitsuhide obviously seemed less than interested in what Nil had to say.


Word Count: 537
Word Count Total: 1,161

Mitsuhide couldn't help but to chuckle. This kid obviously thought he was completely nuts. Part of him wanted to act like a complete loon, but after a disapproving look from Mitsuharu he decided against it. He watches idly as the boy gets flustered because he doesn't exactly know what was happening. Mitsuhide lifts his hand, palm facing Nil and slowly Raiton Chakra begins to arc and buzz across his hand. As the Raiton builds in his hand, a form begins to appear between Mitsuhide and Nil. It appeared to be an orange ball, with long, spikey hair and red sode armor hanging on either side of it, with the same Raiton Chakra buzzing through and around the air where the spirit had been manifested. Mitsuharu politely nodded toward Nil and offers a spectral smile before the Raiton Chakra is released and he vanishes.

"The Miyamoto are never alone, Nil. That is Mitsuharu, an ancestor of mine that, through a special ritual, has become my companion, mentor, and guardian." Mitsuhide would say before the manifested Mitsuharu vanished. "He is very real, despite what most would assume. I promise I'm  not -that- crazy." He offers a bit more and places a heavy emphasis on the word that, implying he was crazy, just not that sort of crazy. Nil would go on to speak of friends and what his instructor had said about others. Friendship was very foreign to Mitsuhide, as aside from Mitsuharu he had no one he could call friend. Perhaps it would be good for him to make a new friend.

"D-did you say snake?" He nervously looks around his feet, looking for the white devil of a snake. He had somewhat of an irrational fear of snakes and couldn't stand to be around them. If a snake had been what Nil was following, Mitsuhide would habe no part in it. He bends over quickly and snatches his sword from the grass, his grey eyes scanning the grass around him some more.

WC: 337
Total:1182

When Nil had thought about whether Mitsuharu was real or not and come to the conclusion that it likely had something to do with Mitsuhide's clan, well, he wasn't necessarily prepared for how correct he was. As Mitsuhide raised his hand, palm facing towards Nil, he earned a slight, curious tilt of the head from the younger boy. Who blinked in naive amazement at how Mitsuhide channeled the Raiton chakra around his hand, the soft buzzing of the electrical chakra making Nil's own hand twitch in familiar acknowledgement. Noting the rather... well... he would never SAY 'cartoon-ish' to Mitsuhide, but cartoon-ish apparition that answered in kind and nodded to him, Nil would nod respectfully back in kind.

Nil was quickly glad he had spoken well of the apparition, despite there being no real evidence of his existence a moment ago, as Mitsuhide informed him that Mitsuharu was an ancestor of his. As Mitsuhide joked as to his sanity, at least Nil took it as a joke, he blinked in rather open surprise as Mitsuhide seemed..... afraid of his mentioning of the snake. Nil, trying to be as respectful and calming to the frazzled Miyamoto, gently cleared his throat in response.

"Ummm y-yes a snake. It was white with red eyes. I didn't want it to bite anyone so I was going to catch it and release it outside the village."

Nil paused, unsure as to whether he should add this next part, but decided to throw a bit of caution to the wind.

"That umm.... IS why I came over here until I saw you. It came this way.... a-at least I think it did."

Nil too cast a quick glance about, his stormy eyes sweeping over the emerald grass of the park to no avail, before sighing and glancing at Mitsuhide with a small, friendly smile.

"Well it looks like it's gone now. Ummm...."

Nil's stomach gave a slight, grumbling protest, making the younger boy flush softly before coughing politely into his sleeve out of embarrassment.

"Would umm... would you like to accompany me to the ramen stand? I guess I am little hungry."

Another growling affirmative from his stomach, and another embarrassed fidget from Nil, and he glanced off to the side bashfully. Noting the Shogi board still splayed upon the park's grass.

"I could help you carry your Shogi board, if you want. But... But if you don't want to I understand. I'm sure you and Mitsuharu have training to do....."

Nil laced his hands before him, hidden in the too-long sleeves of his kimono, and stared down at his feet in a fit of self-conscious shyness. He didn't want to sound needy for the company, but it was obvious that Mitsuhide wasn't used to talking to people, whether that was because he was just bad at it or because he didn't WANT to was another matter entirely, but even so Nil didn't at all mind the Miyamoto. Crazy as he may try to portray himself Nil was definitely of the opinion that everyone, crazy or not, needed a friend or two in the world. Not that he was any expert in the friend department, mind you, but growing up as secluded and, frankly, lonely as he had it was something that he personally valued quite highly.

Word Count: 569
Word Count Total: 1,730