The Hi no Kuni Border. The first step to returning to the Leaf village began here. Breathing in deeply Sousetsu could feel at home once again. He walked peacefully, slowly, just so he could take in the surroundings. His armour that he so commonly wore was left at his home as he ventured into the world once again as he had no need for it, leaving a black sleeveless jumpsuit in its stead. He was a mercenary, something that representing your clan meant little and could pose a threat to the great nations. He did, however, place a bandanna with the Senju symbol emblazoned on his forehead not long before arriving. His high frequency blade lay dangling at an angle across his lower back giving off a thud with each passing step as it bounced off of his lower back. 'It has been so long...Will I still be remembered as I once was? Or remembered as the man who had forsaken his village?' Sousetsu asked himself. He thought of this quite frequently. Who was he to these people? Another wandering ninja or still a man of high esteem to his neighbours? In a way, he had to know but also, he didn't.

Before long, he realized where he stood. Within plain view was the place where he had fought the infamous Uchiha, Hao, who tried to make his way to Konahagakure to wreak havoc on those who gave birth to his clan. The hokage at the that time and close friend, Takeshi, along with himself, and Mitsuo, who was an ANBU agent and also another close friend, accompanied by a young female Senju who Sousetsu can't bear to name. The fight with Hao was a frightening event to most but the Senju kept his ground, taunting Hao with a line he forged with his blade across the earth, claiming that he would not cross it. Little did he know, he grew stronger from that point on. A rival of the Senju, and infamous murderer who had taken down villages in an instant, was taken down with Sousetsu's aid. A proud feature indeed if one spoke of it. But Sousetsu thought otherwise. He thought that this man went through enough pain to come back and cut off the very source of his hatred. The village that gave birth to him. In a way, it could have been righteous in the eyes of the sharingan user. He suffered much. But the village was under his protection as the Sannin and he gave his life on the line for each chance he had to defend it and the people that resided in it.

It was also the a time where regret came into place. Who would have known that the young female Senju was also about to cross paths with the Sannin. She had him on the ropes. Her abilities were strong and she was one with nature, more so than Sousetsu. Sousetsu hit her with his strongest abilities and yet she still stood tall, it was impressive. But the pain of fighting someone from the same clan etched its way into his heart. He felt sorrow during the match until the end where he had to warn the village and exile her. Neither won that day. They both lost.

In the distance, as Sousetsu scanned the area reminiscing of the battles he was once part of, he seen a very young man in the open. Black hair and dark clothes were all he could make out but still thought of little harm that could come from him. What was he doing here all alone? He continued to wonder that until he was finally within earshot of the boy. He raised his hand, "Hello?" he spoke loudly and clearly awaiting for the young male to turn his attention to the Senju. He leaped over and before he knew it he was not one metre from the boy. "What are doing here all by yourself? Are you lost?" Sousetsu asked intriguingly. He scanned the area once more to see if there might have been an item that the young man had lost but instead found what only memories could have. A faint line in the earth. Sousetsu did dig deep with katana that day, it was the same line he claimed that Hao would not cross. 'So this is the place after all.' he thought seriously for a moment, taking in the air once more. It still gave off the essence of that day, at least to the Sannin.

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Training: Perception - E > D 750/750

He had rested well and was out to find some information on the location of the Hokage, Uzumaki Mitsuhide also known as the White Star. As he was putting on his new blue hoody which he was planning to have work done on, he stretched out as he heard rumors of a place of importance near the border. It had some connection to Kirigakure as apparently it involved a legend, the legend that his grandmother said they had once feared would come to their home, beneath the safety of the lake. It was unclear what more he could learn, but he figured any people of importance would be linked to the Hokage of the village. This legend seemed like a myth people made up to give children nightmares at night, they said he burned down the entire village of Kirigakure merely by looking at it. He thought this was all just made up and he had not in his life witnessed anyone with that much power in just their eyes alone. As he was looking around noticing a scar across the earth he picked up on two figures as he then hid behind a tree looking from a distance. He kept a close eye as he looked carefully as the one figure looked important. The man was not too tall and at best maybe was thirty centimeters taller than him, with white hair that seemed a bit spiky which he figured was some ancient shinobi fashion trend.

Next to that man he noticed a boy who was about as small as him who also looked somewhat meatier or in a more polite term just slightly heavier. He looked on as he wondered who they were and what they were doing here, as he held on to the tree carefully just watching from the distance. Whether they would notice his presence would be hard to tell. He was definately down wind so they would not be able to smell him or hear his breathing, however the man appeared experienced as he just remained safely looking on with his heart racing. It was not looking good as his instincts kept telling him he had to run away, that he had to avoid these people, but the curiosity deep within him kept pulling him towards these strange people. He wanted to know what they would talk about and if they could help him on his quest to find the Hokage, as well as his true reason for being here. He wished to find a path that would make him strong, a path that many great people had followed. Sadly this path often lead to death soon after reaching the peak of greatness, for one strong man will always be faced by several weaker men and taken out. The path to be the strongest and live was a path not yet found, unless you were the second legend shown within the Bingo Books of several villages, the man who may have been responsible for the death of several Kage, though proof was sometimes non existant or hardly there. Tame was considered so dangerous that when someone in Kiri asked him about that guy he just said they should run away. Sometimes you have to be brave enough to run away, which never made any sense but it was true in ways many would never understand.

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“Yo.” the boy replied briefly. Sousetsu raised an eyebrow before crossing his arms and maintaining his stoic look as he stood tall, almost towering over the boy. Upon further inspection he noticed that boy possessed light blue eyes steering him completely the opposite direction in suspecting him to be an Uchiha. Maybe the boy did not belong to the ninja at all. He knew too little about him. He suspected, however, that he had met this boy before. It seemed like a distant memory trying to reach out for the Senju. Telling him that he knew the small child but could not place him. Sousetsu had been on many travels of course so he could well have crossed paths with him before. On the other hand, he may just be chasing ghosts with this train of thought. It was somewhat unnecessary to dig any deeper of course. The first thing he had to do was to find out why the boy was here and if he was lost so that the Senju Sannin could help him find his way home.

The day was still young of course. The sun seeped through the clouds and the birds still sang their daily chorus. As the sun began to kiss his back once more, the boy opened his mouth but no words escaped. Sousetsu's other eyebrow decided to join the other, his eyes widened fully wondering could be wrong. The boys eyes however, began to show his emotions better than his expressions. Something had upset him. Was it the Senju? It couldn't have been. For he just arrived moments ago. But something ticked this boy off and the situation grew more curious by the moment.

“I’m not lost. I’m travelling. Thought I’d come for some sightseeing into Konoha, for I have some memories of this place.” he revealed. Travelling? At this age? Sousetsu never wandered far from home unless he was supervised by an adult at this young mans age. It wasn't until he was Chuunin by the time he left anywhere on his own outside the village. Questions were growing as answers were lowering and Sousetsu was not sure to be meddling in with this boys intentions as of yet. He could however, assist him.

"Well if there's anything I can help you with... he began before forgetting to introduce himself. "...My name is Senju Sousetsu." he gave away freely. He let the boy know of his clan name, providing him the information subtly that he was a villager of the Leaf. He bowed formally, a customary tradition that Sousetsu upheld before returning to his stoic stance once again. "I have many memories of this place also." he added, reminiscing of the dark times he once had here. He looked to his side slightly, just enough to catch another sight of the faded line that he created once upon a time.

Still in hiding he was listening in on them only to hear something about wandering in memories. He knew he must have heard wrong and so decided he would make his way closer, but he stopped when he noticed the man raising his eye brow. Did the man see him or was he seeing things. The two did not speak much it seemed and he could not figure out if they were friend or foe. He did hear the name Senju Sousetsu, as he remembered reading something and the Clan was listed as one of the strongest clans within Konoha as he gave a more serious look. Ever closer and forever careful as he makes his way towards them, the down wind changed direction and in a small gust the young little boy Ren was nudged by the wind into a small ditch as he tripped an fell. The noise would give him away as he just say with his legs crossed before them as he said, "Sorry , is this the Hokage Monument?"

He was still new here and was now lost in his own world while he was here, he was a bit dirty as you could see brown between his blonde, as the strong little boy just sat before them and asked a second time for directions. Whether he interrupted them or not he looked up to them then back down again as he said, "I am Yuzu" as he looked up to them as the hood of his blue hoody fell back a bit. His bare feet an example of how little armor he wore, in no way did he seem a threat other than the fact that snuck up on them. He enjoyed the fresh konoha air which was different from the thick misty mass of air he was used to in Kiri, almost no humidity was here.

The boy remained calm during their meeting process, not a muscle moved in response to the stature of the adult that stood facing him. He did not seem worried what type of man Sousetsu might have been and luckily, he was an honorable man at that. “Uchiha Susumu.” As those words seeped from the little boys mouth the Senju's eyes widened slightly, unsuspected of the response. Their eyes kept gazing into each others as the Senju realized that looks really were deceiving. The boys eyes were not common within the Uchiha Clan household. The light blue hue within threw him off guard entirely, but were the boys words even true? His story however, supported this argument. He had been here before to the land of fire, the village hidden in the leaves. As he unknowingly glanced back at his mark that he had left in the dirt not far from the two, further words began to assist his previous. “Bad memories, I suppose?” he asked him.

Sousetsu looked back. "To some, yes..." he replied cautiously. He was of course, referring to the late Uchiha Hao and how his death left many happy while those who fought him were still in the process of the fear that he had brought with him in his venture. That day that could not be so easily forgotten. He could not shake this feeling of this boy knowing something about what happened however. His choice of words accompanied by his expressions told the Senju in the back of his mind that he was being mocked in a way. A play toy of some sort. Or it was an uncomfortable feeling that they were not alone. A thud was heard from the distance close to their perimeter.  Sousetsu watched the little boys reactions before gazing towards the direction of the sound also. His hunch was correct.

They made their way over to the cause of the disruption only to find another child who could not have been much older than Susumu. "Sorry, is this the Hokage Monument?" the boy spoke. A sharp response was given by the Uchiha telling off the boy for peeping into the conversation, allowing formal introductions to be on hold for the time being. The boy's name was Yuzu however, one that Sousetsu was unfamiliar with. Sousetsu's eyes closed as if he was trying to close his anger along with it. He could not tolerate rudeness and spying was among the top of this list. "Yuzu..." he said deeply. "Never do that again. Why were you spying?" he finished with his jaws clenching. He opened his eyes and look down at the boy with a piercing glare and arms folded, like a father would scolding his child.

A gentle breeze rolled by causing the loose wrap of the bandanna to swing lightly. Maybe he could still answer a boy who was 'lost' after all. "Obviously you are not from here. Where is it you're coming from?" he asked still slightly enraged by his actions. Still curious about where the boy resided however and seeing if he could narrow down the course of actions he could muster up. "The Hokage monument would be within the village, wouldn't you think?" he answered Yuzu to a point.

The boy gave a somewhat hostile answer to the boy who just looked up to him cluelessly not even beginning to think of standing up as he was a bit surprised to see someone shorter than him, though he felt he needed to gain some weight after eyeing the boy who was an Uchiha. The Uchiha clan were the holders of the feared and somewhat attracting Sharingan eyes. While he was a bit blanked out hearing the boy's answer after an eye twitched with a sarcastic response as he asked if the young boy could see any monuments around there. This somewhat annoyed the young Ren who began raising an eye brow of his own then pulling a pouty face at him.

Then just as he was thinking of punching the boy in the face for being so rude the other Senju guy gave him a stern look as he said he should never spy again as he was clenching his teeth. The boy was not sure whether to punch this guy too, but then he remembered his mom told him to behave. He then thought about it again then wondered if it was not Aya who said he should behave, he went from pouty face to blank confused look on his face so quickly as the scolding glare continued.  He noticed the breeze blowing the man's bandana a bit as he actually gave a curious i want to touch it look at the guys bandana. The man then asked where he came from and also told him the monument would be in the village as the young boy then stood up more or less the same height as the equally small boy Suzumu.

"I came from Kiri to meet with Mitsuhide-sensei and i was not spying i just wanted to know what you guys were doing" As he gave an annoyed look to the side as if denying something. He was spying instinctively just out of pure curiosity and not really spying like a shinobi or he would never have exposed himself so easily. He then looked down as he continued, " I knew an Uchiha once ..." as after that the awkward silence began

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"I came from Kiri to meet with Mitsuhide-sensei and i was not spying i just wanted to know what you guys were doing." the boy answered honestly. There were not many lies that could be kept hidden from the Senju but what intrigued him most was the mention of Mitsuhide. "Mitsuhide-Sensei?" he questioned in return. Could it be that this boy was trained under the Leaf's White Star during the great seven bells battle? It must have been the case but still, Sousetsu had to be kept up to date. He ignored the last remark however as his attention now turned back to the other young boy before him. Susumu began to tell the Sannin that his home was wherever he was. He had no parents which might have contributed to this matter and so Sousetsu decided to tread lightly on these terms. Yuzu on the other hand spoke of meeting an Uchiha at some stage of his life to which hiss eyes darted towards him. Was it Hao? Possibly not as the boy would not be standing here before him if it was. But it was still unsettling to find a wandering Uchiha. Much like this little boy.

Susumu however, decided to question the Uchiha's name. It was curious after all and even Sousetsu could not hide the fact that he too, was curious. He kept his arms crossed. His stoic stance strong. And his mind prepared for whatever answer may have been given. He then thought to himself that maybe Susumu was here to find more Senju. What better place the fire country? The very country where it flourished from. "Is this what you are looking for Susumu?" he looked down to the dark haired and blue eyed boy. He gave a rather stern look, maybe it was natural to do so but it was stern nonetheless. He looked between the two in hopes of finding answers to put his mind at ease but what could he expect?

As he was in this rather strange conversation that could border on being informative to being a mixed interrogation. Everyone wanted to know or understand what the other was thinking or in this case what they were up to. As he mentioned the name Mitsuhide the Senju asked him questioningly as the sensei part indicated that he was a former student of the Hokage. He did not hear it clearly but he did take note of the reply as he looked down and mentioned that he knew an Uchiha the other Uchiha Susumu asked for the name of this Uchiha of which he knew. The Senju looked at him as if the name was of great importance, it had been a while since he last said the name of his former best friend.

"Uchiha... Tora...", as he sighed he was becoming a bit angst as he clenched his fist for half a second, which while not easily noticable it would be expected that these shinobi would pick it up. He then looked up with a blank lifeless expression on his face. "You won't know him though he was from Kirigakure, which is my home and i was trained by Mitsuhide-sensei during the war." He gripped his right shoulder as he remembered the battles for a moment as his eyes looked moist, but not a single tear drop would flow down his face. He then looked towards the Uchiha who had mentioned that he stayed anywhere which sounded similar to him, just that he was still bound to his village for personal reasons. He stretched his arm and then waited for the reply from the Uchiha, what would they know of his friend who died cause he was too weak to save him. It was unclear how close or distant the Uchiha were since he did learn that in the past the Uchiha were originally from Konoha. Could he perhaps learn more about what happened or more on the why it happened. He waited for the boy to reply to the Senju when something occured to him which probably should have hit him earlier. He had read in the forgotten library in Kirigakure something about the Uchiha and the Senju but could not remember what it was. Maybe he could learn what he needed from them now and while his main goal is to become stronger, he also longs to learn the truth about himself, his clan and the entire village.