How long had it been? How many years? Decades? Hours? Seconds? He didn't even know anymore, not really. There was some sense of the passing of time; of aging and growing and losing and lost; but that didn't mean much to him anymore. He wasn't who he was when he left, that much was sure. He wasn't the same man, he wasn't even sure he was human anymore sometimes. He'd long ago given up any guise of humanity; it was too difficult to be a human in the wildlands; even more so given everything he'd done and seen and been since he'd left in the depths of that night so long ago; so many forgotten years ago. Did anyone still think of him?

Did anyone remember he'd even existed?

Did his children?

Did his husband?

Did they even exist, or was it all just a fever dream, concocted by the depths of his subconscious mind on the long nights of sickness and pain and fear; when a fire was beyond his ability and he could focus only on the next wet, painful cough that brought the idea of oxygen into his screaming lungs and aching veins. Ideas to sooth a lonely heart and shattered soul; lost to the animal within just to survive the long hell of his exile.

No... not exile. He wasn't exiled, was he? Why had he left? Something about.. danger... and plots to kill the kage... and... his children... keep them safe...

His children...

Little Hiroyuki, so tiny and pale... the picture of his father. Yuki, dark and strong and just like her grandmother, but with her father's golden eyes and her dad's red hair. Temaki, loud and bright eyed and so focused even at a day old, troublemaker from the moment she took her first breath.

Would they even know his name, after all these years did they know their father, they loving dotting father that spoiled them silly and coddled them like no Inuzuka had ever been because he couldn't imagine them suffering as he had for so many years...

Could he ever be father to them again; he'd left them without a word and without explanation; with only a letter to Michizuka sending his love and promising to be home one day soon to keep his memory alive. If his replacement had kept to the plan, then Kenta's legacy would have been wiped from the records; reduced and minimized and crushed; anything to keep his family safe from those that would target them just for being associated with him; those that had haunted him and forced him to leave to protect his people.

Everything he did was for them; to protect his village and his people and the ones he loved.

Or... was it?

He couldn't remember, not anymore. Not really. He doubted everything about his memories now; he doubted his own name half the time. Who was to say he really was Kenta, the real Kenta Inuzuka that had been a leader and a hero to some. Who was to say his memories were real and that he wasn't some brainwashed sleeper agent or something.

He would find out soon enough. He was home, or nearly so. He was in the village anyway; slipping back into the country was easy enough. Only a Senju had more claim to the forests of the Konoha than an Inuzuka; there was nothing that could stop his clan from moving through the forests unseen and unknown but another Inuzuka, and he'd avoided them all. One of the few major problems his clan had, they were creatures of habit and conditioning, as all dogs were; so they used the same trails and paths and relied on their senses for the overlap, but with god timing and the right knowledge, that could be used against them. No one noticed him sneaking past, no one saw or heard or sensed him moving up the mountain and into the village. The forest was ancient and unchanging, humans only saw the small plants wither and die away, they never noticed the old trees that stood guard and marked the paths that the true beasts of the forests used to understand the world around them. Nothing really ever changed in the deep woods, not really.

The mountain was guarded, but not more so than anywhere else. For all the world to see, he was just a cloaked being walking the public paths by the time he reached any sort of civilization, not that unusual in a village of ninja to find someone walking along is a full cloak. He was causing no problems, and not in a restricted area, so the civilians just ignored him. He was fine with that, really; he didn't feel the urge to deal with civilians; nor really the ninja of the village, so being ignored was a good thing. So long as he worked within the laws of the village, he could pass right back without being noticed. He needed that animoty until he was ready.

The top of the mountain, the Hokage Mountain with the faces of all the Hokage that had ever protected the village; from the legendary Hashirama Senju up to whomever was running the village now; he'd heard of at least two since he'd left beyond the boy he'd appointed to replace him... what was the boy's name again... Takao? That sounded right. Takao was a good kid, he had the potential to be an effective Hokage in time. Young, but then again, so was Kenta, even after all these years; the youngest Hokage in how many generations? Only 18 when handed the hat... not that long ago the very idea would have incited a war from sheer shock; but now? Shit... between him, Yui, and Hikou... all snot nosed brats compared to the classical idea of a Kage... even Midnight had been pretty young, and that imposter Dengen... barely any better. Jurou, Gin... all so young. So very young, and so very green. No wonder the world had gone to shit over the years. Kids playing at being generals and leaders; not since the last Great Ninja War had people so young been leaders on these levels.

Did any of them still live? Was he the last of the children Kage? They had all vanished over the years; even in exiles Kenta had heard rumors and seen snippets of news; it was hard to know what was real and what wasn't; but he was willing to take the information with a grain of salt. Maybe... maybe...

The edge of the trees, the edge of the forest; the top of the mountain and the open space above the Monument; he had to reach it, he needed to see his village again. See the sprawling mass of humanity that he'd once dedicated his life to; that had taken his life away from him so many times yet he couldn't forsake, not truly. He was too much the child of his blood, he was too much the Inuzuka who's name and mark he carried; a 'bastard' half-blood; stupid words by stupid people, he'd known and loved and been loved by his father, a hero in his own right that history saw as a traitor because he'd left his birthplace and come to Konoha out of love and want and a loyalty to something beyond the land; a loyalty to people and family and the true loyalties of the heart. His father was a great man, and it made him burn with anger whenever his father was slandered the way some did.

His mother, his beautiful, kind, loving mother; she'd lost her birthright and her life to protect the family that she wanted and refused to leave behind. Her place at heir to the clan, her commission in ANBU and very nearly her rank as well, her job as ambassador... all lost to stay with the husband and son she loved more than her own life.

The lives both gave to protect him from the family that tried to kill him.

So much sadness in this place, so much pain and anger and grief.

So much good, so much love and happiness and joy.

His home. His loss and his love and his life.

He was home.

He was never home.

He was a ghost of a memory, walking the paths of his childhood.

Was he really Kenta? Was he just a ghost that wouldn't let go?

What was he, really?

The little park, the top of the mountain; how little the village had changed. The same little bench, the same little garden, a single marble stone carved with the names and dates of the ruling kage... familiar and aching and such a welcome sight.

It hurt so much to be home.

It felt so good to be home.

Home...

WC: 1506

Patrol. Such a mundane part of his duties of Anbu, but vital. As a captain of Konohagakure no Sato's ANBU, he was required to perform it while on duty. It wasn't bad, though. Where as most Anbu members often picked a single high-profile area to monitor, Hanzo liked to stay on the move. He often used it to check up on the few people he liked within the village; checking to make sure that Jinx was not getting into trouble, seeing if Amaya needed help with something or the like, and keeping an eye on a particular little Senju-tobi to make sure he was alright. Often times, he would leave the Senju-tobi a small gift of his favorite fruit, or something new for him try out.

Even without contact, some things never changed.

Stopping for a moment high atop a telephone pole on the outskirts of the village, the male would adjust the mask that covered his face and tug the hood of the cloak tighter over his head. He was dressed in this full ensemble of his patrol gear, complete with the Statikk Shiv mounted on his left forearm. To most people, he was simply a ghost, appearing only when he wished to be seen by the common people, and even then, he was usually gone before they could process what they just saw. But this time, he would take his time, casually gazing around the area. Usually, the sight of an Anbu member was enough to deter most criminal activity in an area for a for a period of time; where there was one Anbu member, there was usually more.

Usually.

Hanzo preferred to work alone, and others tended to avoid him, once they realized whom he actually was based on his skillset. It was perfectly fine for him; he hated having to 'pull his punches' in order to try and avoid killing a team mate. Hanzo tended to favor wide spread destruction when he fought multiple enemies, or pin point assault when fighting one on one. As he liked to put it, he 'did not have time to babysit children who barely knew how to walk'.  He was quite content as a lone-wolf, and preferred to keep it that way.

With a leap and burst of chakra, the male launched himself forward through the air to land on a rooftop. Another leap and burst of chakra later and he was well within the treeline, moving through the forest.  He moved at a good pace to ensure that he could keep it up all day without tiring himself. He'd been at it for a while when something caught his eye; a broken branch high up in the canopy. After adjusting his movement mid air to launch himself up to land on a nearby branch, he would take a closer look. He knew this to be common Inuzuka route, yet they tended to keep to the forest floor. To his knowledge, no other Anbu team patrolled this route. Perhaps it was just a ninja looking for a new place to train?

Perhaps, but with another quick glance around the area, he would discover another broken branch, followed by an indentation of a footprint headed deeper into the forest. The trail seemed fresh, so the person could not be far off. It would be in his best interest to investigate it, and err on the side of caution. He would rather not find out later than his negligence lead to a criminal slipping into the village. Mentally preparing himself, he would set off into the forest, following the light trail through the treetops.

As he moved, he could not help but wonder as to what he would encounter; part of him hoped that it was merely a ninja of the village, moving through the area a bit carelessly, while part of him wished it was something more. While he didn't want anything to come to harm his village, he was itching for some action. He'd spent too much time on the sidelines, and he felt as if he was growing dull. Though he still exercised, he felt that his skills had reached a plateau in terms of growth, at least as far as his Taijutsu skills were concerned. There had to be something else out there for him to undertake to make himself stronger. Perhaps, he would do well to learn how to utilize weapons? Maybe.

As he followed the trail, the male would note that it began tot turn somewhat, angling itself towards the Hokage Monument, and the male felt a fleeting tinge of apprehendsion. While it was not outright restricted to train on top of the Hokage monument, it was heavily frowned upon, as the use of jutsu could have an eroding effect upon the stone. But then again, if the person the Anbu Captain was following happened to be someone with ill intentions in mind, then causing damage to the Hokage Monument would surely be a devastating blow to the village's morale. That was something that could not be allowed, and so the male increased his pace.

Up ahead, in the clearing stop the monument, the male could see someone standing, wearing a cloak and looking over the village. With a final burst of chakra and leap, the male would land in the clearing some 10 meters behind the hooded figure. He was silent for a moment – he made his entrance no secret – before speaking up and alerting the persona to his presence, if they did not realize already. As he spoke, he took care to change the pitch and tone of his voice from normal, so that this figure would not be able to have a confirmable audio record of his vocal pattern. The words he spoke were simple, and well within his rights as a captain of the Anbu

“Do not make any sudden moves. Turn around slowly, and present your identification papers.” Beneath the mask, his eyes would mutate and swirl, turning the iconic red of his clan, complete with three tomoe as indications of his visual prowess. If this person meant harm, he would see it coming, and react accordingly...

He had no idea what would happen when this persona turned around, but he would not take any chances. If he was up to no good, then this persona would be put down in the name of Konoha.

1,067 Wc

It would seem he was being followed, then. He was almost surprised it took this long for anyone to pick up on him; but then again, the chances of finding a patrol this far into the village where definitely slimmer than had he stayed outside the walls and in the deep forest. Oh, there would be plenty of military police floating around, maybe a few Chunnin that drew the short stick at the mission desk. That was common enough, and he wasn't really bothering to hide his trail at all. If anything, leaving such an obvious one would have him written off as a civilian or Genin by most patrols; only someone with proper tracking skills would notice the deliberateness of the trail and discern that it was no accident.

It would seem he'd be found by one such.

Delightful.

There was a deliberateness to the other's movements and approach; this was no police patrol, nor anything like a Chunnin or even Special Jounin. No... there was more to this. Even without his eyes to see, he was able to smell and hear and taste the air and feel the chakra aura; or the lack there off. Yes, it would seem he was... how did the kids say it now a days... boned?

This was an ANBU, he was almost sure of it. More to the point...

Oh.

Ooooh.

Oh this was going to be hilarious fun.

He smelled fire, pent up rage, arrogance, and chakra,

Tee hee.

It was an Uchiha.

Oh man, did he ever have great luck.

For the shits and giggles he humored the other ninja; a male, if his nose wasn't lying; he knew better then to instantly trust his senses when dealing with ANBU; so his assessment of the other being an Uchiha was tentative at best; he began to raise his hands above his head in the classic 'I am no threat' gesture (which he was anything but no threat; he was former Hokage for frick's sake), and began to slowly turn his body. He was moving evenly and calmly; and his deep hood gave him a bit of an advantage here; as he was able to turn his head without it being easily seen, so that he could see what he was dealing with.

Yep, ANBU.

Neat trick not many knew; there was a way to see through the eye-slots of the ANBU mask even when an ANBU didn't want you too; something only ANBU captains and such where ever privy too; and he had been one for a while before becoming Hokage. Yes, he was well versed in gathering intelligence from ANBU that they didn't want shared. Sharingan... three tomoe? Very nice, really; he could admire a potential enemy for their gifts and strengths; and not many Uchiha ever gained three tomoe anymore. In fact...

Wait.

Did he smell ozone?

Ozone, wind, fire...

Lion?

Oh.

Oh frick.

Oh fucking really?

Was he seriously that (un)lucky?

It had to be Naota. It had to be. Voice modulation or no, that... it was Naota. He was something in the ballpark of eighty percent sure of this. Oh man.

Fun times would be had soon.

Shit, he could play this game too. It was a simple matter of throwing his voice lower and erasing the natural Inuzuka growl; and he was no longer (vocally, anyway) Kenta; now he was some old man in a full body cloak and nothing but torn fingernails that could have been claws at one time attached to pale flesh giving away anything about him. "You ask for what I do not have; as I have been traveling for a very, very long time, and am not from any sort of area that would issue such documents. I am but a weary traveler that wished to see the village as I passed through, nothing more."

He was fully facing the masked male now; cloak still covering his body save for the hands sticking out of the sleeves of the modified covering; the shade of the trees and size of the cowl kept his entire face deep within the shadows; and he was as adept at covering his own chakra as any ANBU captain was. To anyone with normal abilities of perception and sensory; he would rate a genin, maybe; so easily a civilian with a little training; not that unusual, really. "Tell me, Uchiha; is it policy now to follow old men with no weapons that are peacefully admiring the scenery?" A purposeful slip of the tongue; he was giving away information in his game of cat and mouse; Whether the male would play the game was up to him.

Ah, there was fun to be had before all hell broke loose. Maybe there would even be something left of the area when it was all said and done; who knows?

WC: 820

820 + 1506 = 2326

Hands were raised up into the air empty, and the person turned around slowly. As this happened the eyes swirled behind the mask, analyzing every minute detail of the persona's movements; the way he moved gave the impression of someone young, at least the Anbu Captain's age range. Hanzo's eyes narrowed behind the mask as the persona began to speak from beneath the deep hood.

"You ask for what I do not have; as I have been traveling for a very, very long time, and am not from any sort of area that would issue such documents. I am but a weary traveler that wished to see the village as I passed through, nothing more."

A fair enough response, but one that was not going to fly today. It was a well-known amongst villagers and travelers that frequented Konoha that when you entered the village, you entered through one of the check points. When going through the check points, they issued you identification papers that included your name, the date you entered the village, planned length of your visit and home village. For someone to claim to not have any of these would mean that they entered the village through means other than the checkpoint, and were therefor within the village border's illegally. The Male almost smiled beneath the mask he wore.

"Tell me, Uchiha; is it policy now to follow old men with no weapons that are peacefully admiring the scenery?"

….What? How did this man know that he was an Uchiha? Hanzo did not wear any clothing that denoted his clan affiliation – such were forbidden to wear while on duty. The purpose of the Uniform and mask was to remain anonymous to a certain degree – clan symbols upon clothing and armor shattered the illusion of a faceless horde. If the male wore none of these, how could this man know? Did he know if the small defect in the Anbu masks? Perhaps, but that would mark him a Konoha nin, or rather, a traitor.

For a moment, the Anbu Captain was silent, staring at this man from beneath the nearly blank mask as he contemplated his options. There was no way to signal for reinforcements and keep an eye on this persona, as with any movement, this man could easily run off, ditch his cloak and essentially vanish in plain sight. There was no choice but for him to subdue or eliminate this man himself, and bring in his body for examination/termination. He could only hope he could do this without causing damage to the Hokage Monument.

Ignoring the fact that the man called him out for being an Uchiha for the time being as he didn't want to confirm this and possibly give the persona an advantage of some kind, the Anbu Captain spoke quietly, but the warning was clear in his voice. “If you had entered the village through the appropriate check points, you would have been issued travel papers and identification. The fact that you have none says that you entered the village through other means, and thus are here illegaly.” The Anbu Captain shifted his stance, taking a single step towards this hooded persona. “You are now under arrest. I insist that you keep your hands in the air, and do not move.” He hoped that this would go smoothly, but this then again... Murphy's Law was very much a thing. He honestly expected this to turn into something terrible, he was sure he could handle himself, and given where they were, if a fight broke out, surely someone would notice the Hokage Monument suddenly engulfed in flames, right? Surely someone would see, and someone else would be sent out to investigate, yea? If he were unable to hold his own, and lost his life, someone else would be able to gain some fame off capturing the male who killed the Lion of Konoha.

Or maybe he was over thinking this. Maybe this was just a case of some old ninja sneaking back in after a night out.

....

Surely he was not that stupid? He would not fall for this bull shit. This man was more than likely a traitor come back to harm his former home, and he would be dealt with accordingly. Him dying to the Anbu Captain would be a mercy killing.

1067 + 724 = 1791 WC

Ah, the jig is up, as they say. Sad, he was rather enjoying the little game; he never got to play them anymore, as everyone he cared to play with was significantly smarter and a far better strategist that he could ever hope to be. Que Sera, Sera; as they said. His only response was to stand silently for a moment, stock still and unmoving entirely. Oh, he wasn't contemplating his next move, or anything so bold; h knew what he was going to do, he was just being lazy and taking a moment to build suspense. Or so he told himself. Really, he was subconsciously deciding how much of a spectacle he wanted to make in such a public place. If it /was/ Naota, then he was stupidly faster and always had been; they were polar opposites in physical prowess; Naota was strong and tanky, Kenta was speedy and quick to react. The perfect team, really. They complemented each other's styles exactly. His water and wind; Naota's fire and lightning; shared wind to boost Naota's fire and Kenta's speed; both taijutsu gods in their own rights; both great at pin-point attacks and widespread destruction; but Kenta had the mid-range attacks to make up for Naota's lack of such, and Naota had better close range to make up for Kenta's weaker physical abilities. Equally destructive at long ranges. Yep; one hell of a tag team.

This was going to be so much fun.

"Well, it seems you've called me, then. Not surprising really; you never where much for patience. That you didn't just try to take off my head with that damn lightning blade of yours is saying a lot for your growth over the years." Still being /that/ guy and dropping hints that would eventually give him away; but without context painted a picture that made him look terrible. Not that he cared, there was a good chance that history looked at him as a traitor and waste anyway. Meh.

Well, time to test his theory, yes. If this was Naota, then he was totally safe in his next move. If it was some other Uchiha, well... he'd been the fastest in the village for a long time, and he was willing to bet that he was still damn close to being the fastest around. As it was, he was flashing across the space between them in an instant, every ounce of raw speed and skill taking him just a hair past the reverse range of the Uchiha's close quarter attack radius, leaving behind nothing but a trail of wind and chakra and the hint of a ghost of wet dog, for a strong nose to find, if they were lucky. Quickstep, his pride and joy; it took his already impressive speed and made it obscene; combined down with his ungodly reaction ability meant he could stop and start on a dime and land exactly where he wanted and needed to without even trying. Yes, he'd been called the second coming of Konoha's Yellow Flash before, but he'd never allowed that to go anywhere; he didn't seem himself on par with the early Hokage, on any level; but he did acknowledge where the idea came from.

"Tell me, Uchiha Anbu; Did you know about the flaw in your mask. I can see your tomoe; all three of them." Another flash of chakra, and he was 40 feet off the ground and in one of the old oaks about 10 meters away. "Do you know what it's like to be sent away from your home, and never called back?" Flash, perched on the stone monument 30 meters behind where he'd started from. "Have you ever watched everything you love and care for taken away just because someone couldn't be bothered to follow a plan?" Flash, standing so close to the male that he could kiss the lips of the mask with his breath, "Have you ever tried to sleep at night knowing your children would grow up never knowing who you are, outside of the deepest fever dreams and memories?" Flash, and back to where he started, arms at his side and a sense of calm before the storm building as his chakra began to build around him.

"You wonder who I am, don't you? I wonder that too, now. Everything I thought I was is gone, a memory of a memory that I can't fully remember. I was like you, once; maybe. I can't be sure. I had a mask of my own, a cloak and a cape, a tattoo on my shoulder. Still do, technically; but it's long since ceased to mean anything. I bet my name isn't even in the records anymore; not even my aliases. I had so many, I had so many names to so many people. I was Captain. I was Friend. I was Master and Teacher and Lover and Friend and Father and Child and Beast and Man and so many things I'm not anymore. Not really. Or am I still? How can I know? How can anyone know? So many questions, so little chance of ever finding an answer."

A last flash of chakra, and he was perched on the head of the Uchiha, crouched like a cat and balanced perfectly so that his weight was settled in the air around him and not on the neck of the male. "Tell me Lion Man, can you catch this little mouse?" And then he was gone; well, not really; he was perched once more behind the male, back in the trees and having moved into a direction that would take any damaging jutsu effects away from the village and the monument. "What's your answer, Lion Man?"

WC: 982

982 + 2326 = 3308

PER E0-C1

So, Naota and I have both agreed to just let this die due to reasons.

-Thread Exit-