A few days had past since Harichimo had made his return. Life had seemed to be returning to the way it was before he had left. But news of a shake up in the Fantomusado leadership made him feel uneasy about the peace between the clans. Karumo had told him to speak with the genin he had only met once before, Fukai. But now that that genin had become part of the ANBU in the months he had been missing the only chance he had of finding him would be to get him directly. Harichimo walked out of the clinic in his usual attire, and arms bandaged tight with fresh new ones. He stretched and clenched his fists almost forgetting what fresh wrappings felt like. He opened his coat to make sure his letter was tucked inside. This letter would eb his key to finding Fukai. He needed to get to the ANBU headquartes of Iwa, only a couple minute walk across the village. Harichimo started his walk at a brisk pace, sliding past people getting in his way and moving without skipping a beat. He needed to make preparations before meeting with Fukai. He stopped at the Stone Slab, the place he did security work for a couple nights. He walked up to one of the waitresses and spoke. "Excuse me Tamina, can you get your boss to set aside that meeting room across from his office? I am going to need to borrow it in a little bit." The girl turned with a sudden smile hugging the boy. "Well christ Hari, not even back in town more then a week and not saying a hello to anyone down here? And yeah I'll get ti arranged, but you owe us all a round for not coming by sooner."

With a nod Harichimo turned to walk out and waved just before leaving. "Will do Tamina"


Harichimo had kept his strong pace and reached the ANBU building, or at least where he heard he could get in touch with them. He entered to see a couple people behind desks as well as what he assumed to be an ANBU member leaning against the wall. He felt confident but humbled at the same time as a strong chunin walking into an elite unit office. He slowly approached the front desk where he opened his jacket to take out the letter inside, presenting it to the man at the desk. " My name is Harichimo Kazako and I am here on clan business on behalf of the Tsuchikage. I need to speak with Fukai Fantomusado. I was informed he recently joined your ranks." The man looked up to Harichimo and tried to take the letter but Harichimo pulled it back to himself. "Well sir we can't quite just willy nilly send you an agent you ask for by name even if he was one of ours for the safety of their family and family. If you want help with your clan issues we could direct you to where you need to go if we could see whatever it is you are holding." "And I am sorry but this is really for the eyes of Mr. Fantomusado. I will need to meet with him and you can have him come to the Stone Slab in the south west corner of the bazaar. I am sure someone here is already sending word that I am looking for him. And if you can't give him the go ahead to come meet me, then you forget the Tsuchikage is also a Kazako and I am sure he doesn't need clan business dropped on to his already full plate now does he?" Harichimo put the letter back into his jacket and walked out, feeling the piercing gaze of the ANBU member leaning on the wall. The gaze following him and looking into his very soul.


Harichimo walked out satisfied he had made enough of a ruckus to get them to send Fukai to him. He made his way back to the Stone Slab and made his way past the bar where the door on his left was left open for him. A medium sized meeting room with a desk and a couple chairs. Harichimo had no clue why this small time bar he worked with needed and meeting room but he wasn't going to argue with convenience and a quiet place to meet with Fukai whenever he showed up. "Tamina, you will be looking for somebody wearing a mask with long white hair. Soon as he walks in wave him down and send him back if you could." He shouted out as he took off his jacket and hung it over a chair showing his undershirt which only covered his torso and showed his wrappings all the way up his forearms. Now to play the waiting game for the man of the hour.


819/819

Fukai had been down the hall when Harichimo had come into the reception of the Anbu offices. He had seen him walk up to the receptionist and talk, able to overhear that his friend was asking after him. He didn't approach because.. He was unsure of himself. It had been a long time since he had seen Harichimo and seeing him again reminded him of how things used to be. The old days, when it seemed so simple. The current Fukai didn't belong in that world. The person he had become, had left behind the people that he used to know, but now Hari had come here to look for him. Harichimo left the offices, out the door he had come in. Fukai still stood there for a second. That being said, if the young man had sought him out, he couldn't just avoid the matter.

He walked out to the reception and headed for the door. He past the man who did little to mask the eyeballing that he gave Fukai every time he passed. It hadn't even been a week since he had met up with Karumo and had accepted the task of investigating the Crimson Elite, and the Anbu overall. He had only begun his investigation behind closed doors but the people around the place knew something was up already. The silver haired shinobi was treated with throwaway contempt. The reasons that people were against Fukai's promotion were many, but the main one stemmed from the fact that he had been assigned by his friend, who was only the interim kage while Akira was off in a different country. It was an understandable concern, but it didn't help Fukai's position one bit. Especially with his current assignment. All of his new peers were under suspicion.

He didn't bother checking in with the receptionist, instead just heading out onto the street. He saw Hari duck off of the road, and Fukai followed. He shadowed him back to some place called the Stone Slab and watched him enter. Fukai slipped in a few minutes, glaring at the girl behind the counter without meaning ill. He walked past her and into the back room, poking his head into each room until he found Harichimo. Without looking at him, he slipped into the room and sat opposite him. "I heard that you were looking for me". His hair hung over his face, straggly and greasy. His charcoal jacked hung unzipped over his shoulders and his headplate tied loosely around his neck. His eyes were a little red from lack of sleep and the burn marks that ringed them were more pronounced than usual. He had gained a certain notoriety within the village, the combination of his work, the exams and now the coup had done well to turn his image into one of a beast, which fit his current look a little too well.

[490]

It didn't take nearly as long as Harichimo had thought for Fukai to appear and track him down. Just as he had sat down the once genin he knew stood across from him. The once snow white hair now damaged and losing its glow. The mask he bore was proof of Karumo's story of how Fukai had accomplished a lot since they last met. The air of the room seemed the thicken with the presence of Fukai. As if nothing in the material world existed besides that very room. Harichimo felt a little bit guarded, being unsure of what was going to happen from this point but tried to keep as straight as a face as he could. He could see the run down look of the man's eyes and without a word Harichimo would arise. He would walk over to a small sink in the corner and grab two glasses, making sure to wash them out before filling them with the coldest water the tap could give. He slid the glass for Fukai across the desk before speaking. "Yeah I have been. And you sure as heck didn't waste your sweet time getting here. Look at you, the once bright and fresh out of the academy genin that could barely stand with my reflection clone, turned into a member of an ANBU division. Good for you, now before we continue..."

Harichimo would walk to the door and peek down the hallway to make sure of who was around. Once he was satisfied that no one would be within ear shot he shut the door and pull a string to bring down the blind for the single window and walked back to his chair. He would flick on a small lamp so they would have some more light to see before he would continue. "If word spreads as fast as I think it does you probably should have gotten word I was back as soon as they sent for Karumo. And last I heard of you, you were heading for the chunin exams. And I take it you did well in them to have made it this far. So my two guesses now are you either were sitting around the place and heard your name and wanted to investiaget for yourself or they had one of those fancy mind link ninjas didn't they? I hope you enjoyed the little show, I had to make everything look legit to want to make them send you to me." Harichimo would take a gulp of his glass to see what Fukai would answer before he got the meat of the arranged meeting. He had to hear this story.

450/1269

Fukai's overgrown body felt uncomfortable in the little booth, his knees grazing against the underside of the bench. The room was quite the quaint hole, the booth taking up about a quarter of the room, with a small kitchen and pantry on the other side. Hari walked over to the sink and poured two glasses of water, sliding one over to Fukai. He took off his mask and tossed it onto the tabletop beside him and sipped at the glass, enjoying the refreshing coolness coat the inside of his stomach. Thankfully he had been offered water instead of some sort of alcohol. He was not one that liked to drink much at all. His years of continuous training had created a personal culture of health in all regards, including what he put into his body. Harichimo returned to the booth and sat down opposite him.

He started to talk, making note of Fukai's progress through the ranks, up to his inclusion into Iwagakure's anbu division. He also mentioned his state back when the two young men had first met. It almost embarrased him to remember how he had been back then. He hadn’t been fresh out of the academy like Hari had remarked, but he may as well have been. His slightly younger self had been so narrow minded. His life was that of a mouse in a wheel, never knowing nor concerned with what lay beyond. He was so much stronger, and worldlier. He was now more concerned with what was going on around him more than his next training session. He had simply been living life, but now he was living for life. He could no longer see that younger version of himself in the mirror in the morning. That man had long gone. A violet wraith stood in it’s place. Looking down at the piece of coloured laminate that now lay to his side on the table top, the mask almost seemed to speak to him, as if he had been lead along this path.

Hari had gone to check if the coast was clear, something that was a little pointless, Fukai's honed ears could pick out individual sounds within thirty metres. And if someone was wanting to listen and willing to go as far as make a good attempt at spying, they wouldn't be picked out by a quick look down the hall. Still, Fukai was content with letting his friend to whatever he felt as to make himself comfortable. It did show that he had something important to share.

Harichimo talked about how he should have known that he was back through some sort of info channel. The fact was, that he hadn’t actually heard anything. It was only recently that he had been promoted and they hadn’t bothered to reach out to him to tell him anything. Karumo hadn’t said anything about Hari, given the immediate circumstance that the coup had thrust upon them. And he had only met him once since then. “I only found out that you were back a few days ago when I was looking through some of the paper records” These were the documents that the village kept on all it’s shinobi to record their comings and goings. It was his starting point for his current task within the anbu. “I had no idea where you had got to”. Truth was that when he had got back from the chunin exams, he had checked to see if his two friends had returned almost every day. But as the days went by and his priorities shifted to his work and Subterra project, he slowly begun to let go, not bothering to check for his friends. For the last month he had not bothered at all. This was part of the reason that Fukai had been awkward since the start of the meeting.

“As for how I got here so fast, I just happened to see you come in and hear your conversation”. His friend mentioned that his note was a ruse to get into contact with Fukai. That was a ballsy move, especially since such a request would be followed up with, and a report given for any event that had occurred. Especially since it involved Fukai, the anbu were more likely to look into it further. “So does that mean that you didn’t have an issue after all?” Fukai was curious whether his friend had just come for a meet up or otherwise.

[756] /1246

Harichimo could see he was upsetting his guest and finished his glass of water off before taking a deep breath and giving Fukai a serious look. "What I need from you may not be village saving or world saving work but it is important to me and I assume the Tsuchikage, as it involves our two clans. You see before I met you, Karumo had sealed a sort of agreement between the clans as a sign of good will. Now from what I hear, someone new is in charge and Karumo has been out of the clan politics ever since. I need you to tell me what the heck happened and whatever you can about this new person in charge." Harichimo would get up and grab one of his senbons. He leaned on the table and stood it upright on the table firmly pressing his finger to the tip with almost enough pressure to pierce his own finger. "Karumo told me that you are the person to talk to about this. I need to know what this new leaderships plans. If they want to keep to themselves, then the Kazakos have no problem going about as we are needed. But if they planned to go that far just to change leadership, I worry what in the heck they are planning for the future. I don't want to make you sell out your clan but if these people are dangerous and pose a threat to my family or any branch of the Kazakos then I want to know so I can at the least try to protect them."



Harichimo would flick his wrist and send the senbon spinning in the air before he would snatch it and launch it into the wall on his right side causing a small thud as it entered an inch into the wood. "Sorry I would just rather not have to do this but I have not heard from lord Tsuchikage, my sensei, about any of this so I am tasked with finding this stuff out. So can you tell me what happened that night? What these people are planning? Do they pose any threat to the village?" Harichimo would take his seat again and try to calm his jittery nerves. He was feeling the heat, maybe he wasn't totally cut out for this diplomacy crap but answers have to be found and he tasked himself with it.


404/1673

Fukai hated having to talk to his friend in this manner, he wasn't that good with words in the first place and he had never been that great at socialising. All the people he had met and friends he had made weren't really his doing, it had more or less just happened. The right place at the right time, seemed like a sentence that summed up his life. He was a bit cold to Hari, but he didn't know how to do much else. Maybe it was because he had been invited under the pretence of business, and he was all seriousness there. But would he have even met up with him if Hari had asked to see him for a casual visit? These days he was so absorbed in himself and his own work that he didn't leave much room for anyone else. He was given a serious look by the young man across the table from him as he started to talk.

"What I need from you may not be village saving or world saving work but it is important to me and I assume the Tsuchikage, as it involves our two clans."
It was something to do with his clan again. Why did it seem like his life kept revolving around it and it's issues? He hadn't even really participated in much to do with the clan for the last 10 years or so but eveywhere he went, it seemed to influence eveything. It was an inescapable part of himself and he figured that he should just deal with whatever problems arose. But surely he would go seek out Karumo's help instead? He was Iwagakure's golden boy, after all. Hari talked about how there was an agreement of sorts between the two clans. Fukai had heard about this, but he didn't know more of the crucial detail. That was, what Harichimo wanted from it in the future.

"I need you to tell me what the heck happened and whatever you can about this new person in charge."
It was fair enough, he wouldn't know much about Ezra, the man that he is and what implications his leadership could put on the current state of things. He also wanted to know what Ezra's plans were, and whether there could be any threat to the village. After Hari had finished speaking, Fukai thought it through for a while before answering.

"The coup had two main leaders, both were killed that night. As far as immediate danger is concerned, there should be none. The man that Ezra is, he won't start anything... probably. He doesn't have the balls to directly challenge the village on his own, but as far as honouring your agreement goes, I have no idea if he will or not. That is one problem that may occur, which is with all changes in leadership. He may have no intention of following through on anything that Karumo has promised at all." This sort of thing happened very frequently in changes of governing power, where one leader wants one thing, and the next wants another. The present can destroy the work of the past. "I'm sorry I cannot provide certainty either way through a description of the state of things as they are." It was a messy situation. All he could really advise Hari to do was to take caution. "It would be best not to assume anything, and treat him as a wildcard."

There was another way that Fukai may be able to help his friend, but he would have to know more about the situation at hand and the agreement that was in place. "Can you tell me what this agreement was about, and what intentions you had for it in the future? Not only that.. I want to know what you are working towards overall." Fukai felt like he should help. No, he wanted to help. Karumo wasn't the only one with influence these days, Fukai had grown into someone with real, tangible power. And especially with the coup that had just happened, he was the strongest purple eyed man on the mountain. Who knows, if Harichimo's intentions lay adjacent to his own, they could help each other achieve what they were looking for.

[724] /1970

Harichimo listened as Fukai unraveled the web of a story about the event he had missed. A coup to try and make the clan back to its sheltered ways. The new man in charge Ezra, who Fukai claimed wouldn't dare cause trouble, may have no intentions of keeping the peace between the two clans. Fukai gave his apologies for not knowing more and gave Harichimo a notion that he should probably watch what develops from this new leader down the road.

Harichimo bowed his hands onto his clenched fists not knowing what he should do since even the elders probably didn't care about all this but he did for the sake of the villages future. And as he did he heard Fukai ask his own questions now. What off the agreement he and Karumo had worked out. Well not really him but the elders and Karumo since Harichimo was still only a chunin. But he was still the closest to Karumo when it came to clan matters. And the second question of what was his own motives to the matters at hand. Harichimo would look back up to his quest before he would speak.

"Well from what the clan elders would tell me. It was more of a welcome back to the real world party for your clan. Since the Kazakos have been around just as long if not longer, be it we have had more influence with the Tsuchikage being a Kazako, the elders decided to welcome the Fantomusado with open arms in an embrace of camaraderie and work together towards the greater good of the village. The two clans were supposed to consider each other almost like brothers in arms and I would think me and Karumo had held up our ends of the deal. Even though now I feel to have let it down with my leave of absence to help a smaller village in the middle of that desert. Causing a rift between the groups since I am the only other active ninja from the clan besides our Tsuchikage. But he shouldn't be bothered with clan business that his student can handle."


It pained Harichimo to admit it all. His moral compass telling him to help everyone in need caused him to bear the weight compared to a whole squad of medic ninjas. He knew he was in Suna for that mission and be more diplomatic but the calls of an unheard child asking for help tore at him. And with his leave of the mission he let down the elders who had made the deal, he let down his sensei for possibly having to burden him with these medial tasks, and he may have let down Karumo in the end making him lose his spot as leader. Always one to want to help and never knowing when to say no and accept he had enough on his plate will always be the weakness Harichimo would carry through his childhood until today. Now he had to make everything right again starting with spilling his dreams to Fukai.


"And my goals in all this? I don't desire money. I don't desire a seat at the hands of the Tsuchikage. What I desire is the become one of the best medical ninjas just as my sensei, Lord Tsuchikage, and the three brothers of legends. I will never be able to become an elder in my clan with how low of a branch my family is, even though we are the ones out here with our small clinic helping to alleviate traffic from the hospital. I want to gain the recognition that I am one of the best Taijutsu users in this village. I want to join the ranks of the Six Monoliths and bring honor to my family group. Lastly i want to help everyone. And for whatever reason in my head, having the recognition as one of the best medical taijutsu ninjas will give me the satisfaction of knowing I can and will help everyone towards the brighter future of the village."



Harichimo ended his explanation with a small smile and decided to get up and retrieve his senbon from the wall and with a tone as sure in himself as he could be he asked to Fukai. "Isn't that why you joined the ANBU divisions? To help keep the village safe and work towards the better of everyone around us?


740/2413

Fukai had never spent time with any political dignitaries, nor had he attended the court of nobility. But what he did have, was a keen sense for people and how they worked. So when Harichimo explained the situation of the relationship between their two clans, he followed along as best he could, while understanding most of the parts in his own way. When he spoke of ‘camaraderie’ and the ‘greater good’, it sounded just like something that a younger Karumo would do. To search for the greater good like it was some treasure hidden atop the highest peak, and it was only attainable by stretching out a hand to his fellow man. While he believed Harichimo’s honest heart completely, his first guess was that the Kazako leadership may have had some ulterior motive for striking up the deal as it stood. According to Hari, he was the only serving shinobi from his clan. Maybe they had wanted to attach themselves to what was at the time, one of the strongest clans of Iwagakure. However their histories were a bit different, the Kazakos having a strong reputation even through their dwindling numbers. The Fantomusodo’s strength had peaked with the generation that came before their own. Maybe this was a reason to suspect Ezra’s commitment to the deal also. He believed that Karumo would disregard this and push for this open camaraderie, but the old man, who was one of the people to get the purple eyed clan to the top of the pile, may not see things in the same light.

But, due to the recent events, the strength that the Fantomusodo brought to the village was now a shadow of it’s former self. The next generation had taken over, thanks to Karumo and Fukai living through the coup while striking down those that had risen up against them. As Harichimo spoke, Fukai watched on in still silence. He could see that this was difficult for his friend, the weight of responsibility that he had placed on himself was stressing him out. The white haired anbu operative leaned down on the table in front of him, his hands coming together in a clenched hold as he looked on at the young man in front of him, spilling his mind.

He spoke of his medical ninja aspirations, and his want to join the monoliths. He spoke of wanting to bring honour to his family and how he wanted to help everyone. The unrestrained way that he spoke of his goals was moving. It looked like he was having a hard time at the moment, and yet he still was willing to open the floodgates completely. Fukai respected this, and realised that this was something that he himself wasn’t capable of, nor had he ever been. Not having the emotional intelligence to interpret his own feelings, let alone be able to communicate them had barriered him in the past. For Harichimo it seemed he didn’t have the same reserve. His story had almost turned into a speech of sorts, it’s raw truth accompanied by the young man’s smile sparked something within Fukai.

"Isn't that why you joined the ANBU divisions? To help keep the village safe and work towards the better of everyone around us?”
Fukai remained silent for a few more seconds, trying to work it out himself. “It seems so simple when you put it like that…” But, after all this time, isn’t that exactly what he had wanted too? Had he not toiled away for the last year trying to work towards a similar and equally ambiguous goal? His head had been in disarray ever since the coup, and he hadn’t been able to get it back in order. Fukai realised that he had simply been existing. His motivation had been what remained of his previous will, with the person behind it being stripped away. But.. after hearing his friends’ earnest spiel, he became more sure of his past convictions. And something he was even more sure of, he wanted to help Hari achieve his goals. Fukai looked directly at Harichimo, nodded and attempted to channel his thoughts through speech. “Yes, you are right. It looks like we are heading towards similar goals. You know, we should help each other and work together on this. If you are looking for a chance to prove yourself, I can secure you some high priority missions. If you do well on them, your reputation will increase and doors will open.” It was how Fukai had made his way up the ladder, by sheer brute force and results. It was much easier if you had a high birth, but for people like Hari and himself, hard work and more than a little luck was what was required.

Slowing down his speech in an effort to come across less rigid and formal, Fukai tried to assure his friend. “Don’t worry too much about how things are, we will change things for the better. I am behind you and I know Karumo feels the same way, even if he doesn’t say it”. Karumo had a round about way of saying things sometimes, but Fukai knew that they felt the same when it came to this particular line of thinking.

[886] /2856

OOC:

OOC:

Fukai seemed to get what Harichimo was saying. Harcihimo just smiled and nodded at first as Fukai spoke. Fukai confirmed their shared goals of the greater good. It was nice to know that even joining the ANBU didn't change the convictions of oneself. His offer to bring Harichimo side work on his higher missions brought him a sense of opportunity to prove himself more. Even at his current rank he felt stronger then most and he felt he could take on an mission that was thrown in front of him. Then his little remark about solidarity between the three of the Iwagakure ninja made the grin grow bigger on Harichimo's face.

Harichimo would just get up and grab his jacket to throw it over his shoulder. He would look to his friend before he spoke. "Well thanks my friend. It's nice to know we agree on some things.  I will gladly accept any opportunity in the future. But for now I am still on vacation until my sensei the Tsuchikage returns from is business. He should be glad to know his ace student isn't buried in the desert somewhere. For any reason even after a mission if you need any medical attention feel free to drop by the clinic. I can tell the elders that some of the Fantomusado aren't joining them in their isolation." Harichimo walked up to the door slowly opening it. "Well I do owe these nice people a round of drinks. Maybe I can convince you to stick around for a bit for some food or refreshments. Maybe even use the dishwashing hose in the kitchen to try and bring back that snowy glow your hair once had." Harichimo would chuckle and hold the door open to let Fukai out first if he so desired.



303/2716

Harichimo would lead the way back into the main room of the bar. The four girls working had already taken seats at the bar with one behind to serve the rounds. The older one stood behind while the three younger ones waved over Harichimo and Fukai. One girl would get up from her seat. She was much like a twig but had the confidence and personality to surpass. Her longer black hair struck a remembrance in Harichimo but before he could say anything the girl had embraced him in a small hug. "Long time no see Hari we were all begining to miss you around here. And now I hear you are finally here for just all business not saying hello to anyone but old Tamina?" The girl chuckled as she let go of Harichimo. "Well yeah i only got back in the village a couple days ago Yorumi. Had to get back into the swing of things and catch up with a friend here." Harichimo would direct their attention back to Fukai, dawned in his ANBU apparel as they approached the bar. "Everyone this is Fukai, a good friend of mine and my clan. Fukai this one with the black hair is Yorumi, She always seems to be up to date on what goes on around here. Tamina is the this nice older woman who will always pour you a little extra if she likes you. Koru is the crazy one over there with the pony tail. She's not the greatest socially but she can cook like a goddess even in that crap kitchen back there. Then lastly Mika, the red head who won't even crack a smile. Don't mind her just the strong silent type like you seem to be if I didn't know any better."

With introductions out of the way Harichimo would take a seat at the bar and look over to Tamina. "Since I owe you all for not coming by sooner, lets have a round of the good saki that no one around here can appreciate to drink and give Fukai a glass of whatever he would like, I don't know if he is as much of a drinker as the other Fantomusado I know." Once Fukai had answered Tamina would pour small glasses of their drinks and once everyone had their drink Harichimo would be ready to talk again. "Now a small toast if I could. Just want to say thank you girls for keeping this place running long enough, even with lazy guy in charge, for me to come visit it now that I am back. Thank you Fukai for coming down and meeting with me now with everything that has happened while I was absent. So now we toast to Fukai, one of the first members of the new Crimson Elite may he always succeed at his missions. And we toast to the better of this village. One step at a time and we can shape the future. Cheers." With that Harichimo slowly let his drink run down his throat and warm up his throat. With a little cough he would put down his glass and take out his wallet to pay for the round of drinks.


"Alright girls I have to go out and make my final preparations before the Tsuchikage gets back and I return to working for the village. And I am sure Fukai will want to get back to his works after I gave him this long of a distraction from his duties. Take care you four. And Fukai I will be seeing you around or I am sure you will find me when you need a hand for a mission or just swing by the clinic sometime even if just to talk, it's always an option." Harichimo would get up from his seat and start to walk out the door. He would wave back to the girls at the bar who would wave back and Harichimo would salute to Fukai before he would start he walk back to the Kazako clinic. He had gotten the answers he had been digging for. Even if this new leader wasn't a threat to the village, Harichimo had to keep his guard up. Being the only active ninja from his family group made his the protector but now he knew he had a friend he could call on in a time of need and have his back just as Karumo. These Fantomusado sure do make for interesting allies. He thought to himself as he walked through the Bazaar, slowly losing sight of the Stone Slab behind the see of shoppers.


777/3493

Training:

Exit Thread

Following Harichimo, they came out to the front of the house. The pair were greeted by a partially filled room. The lunch hour rush had brung in a few more souls than had been here when Fukai had first passed by, most of them chomping on beans on toast and guzzling a cloudy liquid. His attention was brought to the four young ladies that stood behind the bar. Hari seemed to be on friendly terms with them, one of them coming and catching him in a hug. He named each of them, introducing them to Fukai. He was not expecting such a public introduction, out in the open like this, he felt a little naked. He responded, muttering a greeting in return.


He conceded for a small drink of alcohol, feeling a little out of place in this gathering, he didn’t want to refuse the offering. He watched as Hari told a bunch of civilians about his assignment to the Crimson Elite. It wasn’t really a secret, but he was a little uncomfortable with the open sharing of information. Nevertheless, he let his friend continue on, drinking to his toast.


-----
“Someone should do something, that lady is in trouble!” Fukai called up to the shadowy figure.
“What are you going to do, rush in and rescue her?”
“We could call so-”
“Who? Those thugs have protection from their masters.”
“But we have to do something!” Little Fukai had been raised with ideals of brave and chivalrous warriors that charged into danger. Leaving someone in such unjust peril was unthinkable.
“You are too weak. Do you want to know how to survive in this city? You turn around and go back home. Lock your doors and avert your eyes. No one here would risk their lives for your sorry butt.” And so Fukai had gone home, going against what he had been taught, and what he had thought was the way of the world.


From that day on, he had begun to learn the way of this new world, the sinister city of Iwagakure. He lived, and survived only for himself.
-----

Standing there with Harichimo, he realised that he didn’t want to live like that anymore. As his friend got out his wallet to pay, Fukai would lean over, whispering in his ear. “I’ll make sure that the agreement stands. I’ll deal with Ezra”. Fukai would get up, thank the bartendresses and leave. He was sure he could stick his neck out just this time for something that Harichimo cared about.


[439] /4004
~exit~
Thread Closed

1500/4004 Medical ninjutsu learned as third spec from Harichimo