Yukihara takes in a sigh and mentally calms herself down, she knows what she was about to do was dangerous, and potentially even suicidal. She knows that what she was about to do was probably breaking a few laws at once and one wrong move, the Iwa village Anbu squad is probably going to be on her trail and she could potentially be marked as a Nuke-Nin by the Iwa village, never mind the fact that she wasn't technically a shinobi, still, being marked as an enemy by one of the five great Ninja village is probably not a good way to start anyone's day.

Nevertheless, she needs the information and was starting to get desperate from the lack of progression. After so many years of searching, it appears to her that the Iwa Hospital record room might be the only place that holds the information that she was looking for. And unfortunately for her, she couldn't think of anything else to do beside actually breaking in into the records room, to get the information she needed. As a beginning Ronin, naturally she does not have that much ryo at her disposal to either hire help, or potentially bribed the record staff, which would allows her to obtain her goals peacefully. Instead she has to do this with the more risky way. It will be dangerous but she is not of options, and besides, if she this is quickly she might not alert anyone.

At roughly 3 am in the morning, Yukihara insert her Senbon needle into the nails and picked open the air condition vent. As quickly and quietly as she possibly can, she makes her way towards the record room. A few days before, she had checked in to the Hospital, by cutting herself and calling it a training accident, under a false name, but during the opening hour, and got a good lookout of the landscape before. It was also at that time that she finds out the record room was, not surprisingly, not opened to the public.

Going in accordance with the map in her own memory, she has reached the roof of the record room. Taking a look below from the her position at the ceiling, she noticed a few security cameras and frowned heavily. She had hoped that there weren't going to be any. Having the security camera there means now there's a time limit. But once again, not much options to choose from here.

Throwing her Senbon out towards the Camera, and inserting the needles inside, they should have break the camera so that from the surveillance room's perspective, it would have looked like the video fee has froze in is place. It was so early in the morning and if the staff were tired, they may think that nothing was wrong, since no one was supposed to be in the record room anyway. Nevertheless, upon a closer look, anyone would have noticed the fact that the timer of the video fee would not be moving forward anymore.

That means, if the security staff in this University are as half as competent as they should (or half as in alert), she would have around 1 minute to get the things she needed and get out.

Yukihara dropped down immediately and started going through the records, she needed the central Hospital's records from around a decade ago. A decade ago, when she was born in the Iwa hospital, her biological parents checked in with the Hospital under false personal identification documents, she wanted to see the documents that they provided at the time. But more importantly, after finding out that the IDs were fake, the Iwa village at the time send out a squad to investigate the parents, Yukihara had hoped that the squad send out to investigate were not an Anbu squad, so the report would not be as heavily guarded. Since her parents didn't do anything and should be considered a nobody at the time, she had hoped that it would be a regular Genin squad or even a Chunin squad that went out to investigate and she would be able to find the report or at least a mention of where the report was kept, in the Hospital's record of that time.

Searching through the cabinet, she was keeping a careful eye out on the time and on her surroundings. She hasn't find anything yet and time was already running out. Even though she hasn't felt anyone approaching, with Ninjas you just could never know, and maybe to stay on the safe side, she should retreat right about now.

Closing the cabinet, she turns and was getting ready to leave through the vent again.

One ANBU agent sat lone on the rooftop arch of the entrance to the University, getting stuck on night-watch was always such a drag and nothing ever happened. Aside from the occasional drunkard or vandal wandering around, he sat and stared at the moonlight and clouded sky just waiting for something to happen. Moments went by as he thought and mused to himself, a call out on the radio struck his ear and interrupted all thought and interpretation of that starry sky. Static played to break the silence and end it, "There's been some disturbance in building three, want to go check it out?" the voice played in his ear piece. That lone ANBU agent pressed his finger to the microphone around his neck and spoke quietly as he began to stand up. A slight groan as he rose to his feet, his age getting to him, "Yeah, I'm on it." he spoke and flickered away just down the block to the rooftop of building three.

At first, he began to head for the stairwell to investigate floor by floor, but an interesting detail struck him as he looked towards a nearby ventilation shaft. The cover broken off and strewn to the side, he walked to it and tilted his head in, dust had been moved and left a trail in the metal box. He sighed as he thought it through, it was always such a poor plan but he could move through it quickly enough and could maintain the element of surprise if he needed to. Sliding in head first and using his arms for support, he quickly pressed through and dove in, covering the ground and following the disturbed tracks of moved dust and imprints in the thin aluminum shaft. After a very short moment bursting through the shaft, silent as he ever was, he found another hole releasing to a record room.

In that room, the ANBU agent found a girl with long white hair going through cabinets and different files, the security cameras destroyed by senbon. He looked around and dove down, a quiet landing behind the girl and drawing his kunai and pointing it to her at shoulder level. Soon she would turn around, the ANBU agent in full cloak and mask to greet her sight, what would surely be a shock to some. He would speak up quietly, the mask hiding his true voice, "You're not supposed to be here." he would say and without any hesitation take his hand and strike her in the flesh of her neck, the speed and precision of his strike beyond even his ability as a Jounin, it would take a miracle for him to misplace his blow. His wrist applying the point of impact, if it landed she would be out cold for a little while and if it missed, she would be beyond sore at the very least while he would continue on to arrest her, or worse if she resisted too greatly.

---

If the girl went down without a struggle, it would be a little while before she regained consciousness, plenty of time for the agent to carry her off and secure the little crime scene reporting everything in and taking her to a holding cell nearby. She would find herself waking up in a rather small room, tied down to a chair with her wrists strapped to the armrests and her legs to the legs of the chair as well. In front of her would be a large metal table and an empty chair in the brightly lit room, all white walls and white floors to reciprocate the light. A single door would grave the walls of the room, directly across from the table and empty chair, and a glass window which would allow a person to look into the room but not out of it.

On the otherside of the wall would sit the ANBU agent and another woman, assumedly waiting for the girl to wake up. While they were waiting, a few hours would pass leading to early morning, the girl could wake up at any time but she would be left as they went through and thought about their evidence.

---

Morning approached, Karumo was up early again, the last fews daunting as it ever had been. His recent ascension up to Tsuchikage kept him busy, and today, he had a very busy work oriented agenda. His first stop was an early morning check in with the policing districts across the village, a chance to meet them and give them an opportunity to voice any concerns or questions with the way things are. Entering into the office in his civilians clothes, he knocked on the door as he entered. "Hey, busy right now? Have a moment?" he would ask the two calmly, a bit surprised to see an ANBU agent on the scene, but he was looking for the precinct supervisor more so.

The woman stood up a bit hurriedly, "Oh yes, of course Lord Tsuchikage!" she nodded some. Karumo cracked a small smile, it was still new to him to be called that and something definitely worth adjusting to. Before she could continue on, Karumo would glance through the glass, looking towards the white haired girl whom was restrained within. Interrupting her before she could add on, he would calmly ask, "Busy morning?" he would say and point towards the girl.

"Oh nothing serious, just some girl who broke into the University private records room. We still don't know anything about her yet." Karumo would nod his head, interested by the prospect of it all.

"Have you talked to her or anything yet? Any questioning?" he asked and kept his attention on her.

"No, no. We've been mostly waiting for her to wake up. Someone got a bit extreme in arresting her and knocked her completely out cold. Lucky he didn't break her neck or anything." she gave a cold glare to the ANBU member. Karumo would nod and take the short file from the woman to read in on it, found breaking in and reading through old hospital records. A brief skim and Karumo would have memorized all the information on the page, but it didn't tell him anything of why or what she was hoping to accomplish. Information theft? Those records are all but worthless to their enemies. Theft in general? Still doesn't make sense.

Karumo sighed, "Do you mind if I...?" he would gesture towards the room, a subtle way of asking if he could ask the questions first off. He knew that she couldn't refuse, but at this point, it was more to sate his own curiosity.

Once the girl would wake up and take in her surroundings, giving her a moment to test her strength against the restraints if she wanted to do so. After a moment he would enter into the room, a glass of water in one hand and the folder tucked under his other arm. Without saying a word he would set the glass of water down on the table closer to her side and sit down on the other side of the table, letting the folder land against the table with a smacking sound.

"The water is for you, if you'd like." he added, knowing full well she couldn't get to it while her arms were restrained. He wasn't sure if it was a bad attempt at humor or more of an intimidation tactic, either way, he wouldn't say anything more. Instead, he would set his arms crossed on the table and rest his chin on his arms while forcing his gaze to meet hers. He'd let her run through whatever was happening in her mind, getting worried about what was to come and where things were going before he would intervene in the thought process and begin his line of questioning and interrogation.

[1327 words]

[OOC: So there's a bunch going on here and a bunch of stuff I assumed. First off, the ANBU guy is just random NPC and such, I figured he'll make the arrest and all, which you're more than welcome to try and resist? I figured it would be easier to just get that out of the way. If there's anything you want me to change or have questions about or whatever just send me a PM~]

OOC:

Closing off the last of the cabinet, trying to clean up the small crime scene as best as she can, Yukihara turns to walk towards the ventilation passage, it must have been less than a few minutes since she was there. Walking towards the exit, just then, she thought she heard a faint sound behind her. If she was not on such high alert, she would most definitely have missed it.  

...wait...what was that sound..?

Turning around suddenly towards the direction of the noise, but before she could even get a good look at whoever or whatever that was there, a shadow covered her vision and she felt a sudden sharp burst of pain on her neck.

...Shit....!!!

Biting her teeth, and let out a sound of pain, she struggles to stand but could not. As darkness filled her vision, she felt herself fallen down to the ground. Before losing consciousness, she caught only one look at the attacker, it was a mask. Damn it...is this it...?

------------------

Frowning deeply, Yukihara drifted between the line of consciousness and unconsciousness. The event of the break in flash before her dreaming mind and Yukihara takes in a sharp intake of breath and flash opened her eyes, having her GKK activated on pure reflex and without any thoughts behind it.

Eyes scanning around the room quickly for that Anbu, that was when she noticed that she was no longer in the record room anymore, and the Anbu was no where to be found. Letting out a sigh of relief, at the very least, she doesn't have to fight an Anbu now, but on the other hand, this could be a whole lot worst. Being locked in in what appears to be in a small room without any kind of decoration, grey/white color walls, one door and a large window, however she couldn't see anything through the window, suggesting that it might have been an one way mirror instead, not unlike those commonly used by the police division.

A holding cell of some kind...?

Trying to stand up despite her own dizziness, she noticed that she was tied to a chair with some kind of restrain, turning in her chair, she tries out the restrain, but she finds that it wasn't something that she could break loose easily.

Yukihara frowns at that.

That was when she heard the sound of someone unlocking the door on the other side. Yukihara sits up a bit straighter on her chair, lifting her head and watching the door. Once she saw who was coming through the door, she sighed. Shaking her head to herself. Well, this was a complete lost on her side. The person walked into the room with a glass of water in hand and a file folder under the arm, he walked to the table and let the file folder dropped on the tabletop, creating a loud sound.

Yukihara looks at him in the eyes with a frown, and said quietly. "That was unnecessary."

"The water is for you, if you'd like." The person added.

"No thank you, I'm not thirsty, but thanks for the offer." Yukihara says without a movement of tone in her voice. "Now, this is a bit of an overkill. If I am not mistaken, why would the Tsuchikage be wasting his time here with some no name brat? Don't you have more important official business to do than wasting your time with me? I'm telling you right now to save you the trouble. I'm only breaking in because it was fun. That's it. Earlier in the week when I checked in with the hospital, the staff was being a jerk to me, so I thought it would be funny to get back at them by messing up the files. I didn't take anything and I didn't intent to take anything, so it wasn't thief, just some unfunny prank by a dumb kid. Charge me with juvenile misdemeanor, and I will do the community service hours. That's it, end of the story." Yukihara supplies helpfully.

[OOC: Don't worry about it xD Most of it's fluff, and it's not a competition or anything]

Her voice rang out at the sound of the folder flopping on the table, Karumo pretended not to notice her words at first, going onto his offer for the water and taking a seat, resting his head on his arms and going to his staring. A decline for the water at first, surely she had to see the irony in it, which meant sarcasm? If it wasn't for his own intimidation tactic he was testing out, he would have definitely chuckled at the notion. The girl continued on though, ranting about her situation and motive and such, apparently more than happy to supply them with what she thought would be needed.

A notion struck Karumo though, that she already knew his title, it seemed word traveled fast, only having been named Tsuchikage a few days ago and the village still heavily in transition. Regardless, tabloids needed something to cover in the meantime which meant his level of privacy was surely going to dwindle rapidly, it was just weird to watch it happen in real time.

He listened to her words, file in front of him on the table and his gaze unwavering as he listened in, her story and reasoning. A rant that he could feel the lies hidden behind, if it was truly the 'unfunny prank by a dumb kid' then why was that kid so adamant to blow it under the rug and leave it at that. It was obvious all the way through, her attempts to blow past the subject and draw attention to the 'overkill' of the situation. In truth, it only made him that much more curious about it all, and unluckily for her, he was already preparing 20 steps ahead and thinking through a hundred different scenarios.

End of story? he thought to himself as he sat there, his head down still. His gaze unwavering, he wouldn't comment just yet, instead he would continue to stare for a moment longer, giving her a chance to fidget about or give away her intentions via body language or a chance to recant her statement. Even if she did, Karumo wouldn't be too inclined to listen, if she decided to continue on with a rant, he would interrupt it. If she remained silent, then he would speak up after an elongated moment of silence. Laughing a bit hysterically before speaking, finding the whole thing funny, it was all funny, almost ironic and he hoped that he wasn't just being mean at this point, or appearing that way. His serious tone and intimidation techniques would fall away rather quickly in light of his laughing, calming himself down as he could.

Once he found the right time and caught his breathe, his tone a bit light-hearted, it would be easy for her to talk over him if she wanted but he wouldn't stop his speech to accommodate her own. "I'm a bit of an intellectual type..." he would say, lifting his head up and sitting up straight as he paused. "Always interpreting and detailing the world around me. I'm a little surprised that you already knew about me being the Tsuchikage though, someone must keep up with the tabloids... but you're right I have plenty of things I could be doing, but you shouldn't concern yourself with that..." he let a grin grow on his face, his tone staying calm and just barely above speaking volume.

"That's beside the point though. Don't treat me like some civilian police officer, if you want to be taken seriously, you need to learn to cover yourself in a lie, you've made it too obvious to pick your story apart. No better than a child with their hand caught in a cookie jar, and now you tell me that you just wanted to crush those cookies and leave it at that, huh?"

"You're not saving me the trouble, you're only making this harder, for me and yourself. So, how about we start with the easy questions, who are you? We don't have you in any records of our ninja database, which means you're a foreigner looking for something? Or a civilian with a bit of training... Name would be a nice start. Then, I'm also gonna ask what you were doing in hospital records, ten year old records too. If this is just a prank, then shouldn't you be going after the current administration records and not things locked up in storage from a decade ago?" his grin would fade away as the seriousness of the subject would unfold, he hoped that she would at least do better on the second time around.

Like she said, it wasn't a very serious crime, and she probably could have gotten away with her speech against someone less prepared than him. Perhaps civilians and such, her own bravado and confidence would probably be enough to get away with most, but Karumo was too curious to leave it at that, not for the time. As much as the other officers and agents might be rubbing their temples behind the glass window.

[864 words, 2191 words total]

After her confession, Yukihara had expected things to move on to the sentencing stage immediately, she had thought the officials would want to rush over the small crimes, putting out sentence in one go, so that they could move on to the bigger fish, or maybe there will be a delay in her case, and she will wait in a holding cell or something in the meantime, either way he would have to leave, and she would have a chance to attempt her escape.

But neither things happened as Karumo apparently decided that now would be a very good time for another round of intimidation tactic, staring down at her with sharp piercing blood color eyes, gaze unwavering. Putting on pressures silently without another word. For a moment, there was only silence, and as neither said a word, the silence stretch on. Yukihara sighs. Under normal circumstances, she would have said that his gaze was unnerving. But death by a random road accident is death, death by high ranking Shinobi is also death, there is essentially no difference to a Ronin. When your every waking moment was filled with nightmares that hunts even during daylight, and when every morning when you wake up it could be your last day on earth, the sense of being frighten slowly lost its meaning.

The ability to be frighten is an asset to the human survival and instrumental to a Shinobis success. It inspire people to be more on alert when there is danger, it inspire extra boost of aggression when face with danger, but for Yukihara, it inspires nothing. Too numbed.

Yukihara blinks as Karumo sudden burst out in laughter, apparently at least getting a good laugh at the expense of her situation. (I.e. getting locked in a room with one door and god knows how many Shinobis on the other side of that door, not that she needs anymore Shinobis, one Kage is already enough to ensure her defeat.) Yukihara's gaze shifted to the side at that, waiting for him to finish with whatever it was that he finds so amusing, Yukihara's sense of humor completely failing her at the moment, not that she was here to entertain the Tsuchikage in the first place.  

Well....apparently he's not buying the story, but I'm glad that at least one of us is amused by all of this.

Yukihara sighed as Karumo finished having his laugh and returns back to his initial unyielding expression and started to ask questions, she had hoped that they wouldn't get to that, for no particular reasons, it was just she currently does not have the perfect answer to the questions. In fact, she knows that eventually she would have to come up with an explanation, if not now then later on, but thinking about that gives her a headache so she procrastinated and puts it off until a later day, which never arrives.

It appears that I'm not getting away that easily, well, that possibility was always on the back of my mind.

"...who are you? We don't have you in any records of our ninja database, which means you're a foreigner looking for something? Or a civilian with a bit of training... Name would be a nice start. Then, I'm also gonna ask what you were doing in hospital records, ten year old records too. If this is just a prank, then shouldn't you be going after the current administration records and not things locked up in storage from a decade ago?" says Karumo, apparently looking for an answer and was not about to be trick away that easily.

Yukihara remains silent for a moment, not sure how she should proceed. From what she had heard, the Ninjas are not so welcoming to outsiders, and in truth, she doesn't know why her parents came to this place with a fake identify in the first place, what if they were wanted criminals? If I reveal myself and it turns out there was something serious that they did, what would happen to me then?

For safety reasons, her instinct commands her to came up with an alternative explanation than the truth. But, she knows that there are only so much a wanderer outside of a village could find out just by asking around. Now seated in front of her is someone who has access to just about any document in the village, if she miss this chance, she will likely not get another.  10 years. It was 10 years. She spend over half of her existing life searching for an answer and she was no where near the truth as when she first started, she lost so much time and gained nothing, learned nothing, in fact.

"Have you ever lost someone close to you?" Instead, Yukihara asked the Tsuchikage sitting in front of her by the table.

Yukihara paused. "Because I have."

Yukihara looked down and take a breath of air, she looks up again, eyes still calm despite the internal discussion she just had with herself. "I don't know my birth name, because I have never met my biological parents, all that I know is that I am of the Shihana clan, I believe that it was now scattered, with any surviving members living outside of any existing village system. Naturally, I too am a Ronin. And people usually refers to me as, Yukihara." She finished with her introduction and really hesitated this time with the answer to his question, eventually she decided to wager with fate and see which side of the coin did she land on this time. "Around 17 years ago, I was born in the Iwa central hospital, birth registration no. R8462, my parents apparently checked in with fake identifications, and they never came to pick me up. Instead, I become an orphan, but was eventually adopted. Iwa, at that time, commenced a little search on my parents but apparently found nothing, I was here today to look for the report of that time, to see what they have found out and where didn't they search, I have hoped that it would help me in locating my parents." Having answered his questions, Yukihara gives him a bitter smile. "The truth...as it turns out, is more uninteresting than my little lie previously isn't it? At least it gives you a little chuckle."

Yukihara chuckles to herself, shaking her head. "Then let me tell you another joke that you might like. In pursuit of locating my birth parents, I have abandon my adopted parents and left the group, the group have now all been killed, presumably by the same group of people who are after me. If I wasn't so selfish and wanted to know, and I stayed with them instead, I might be able to helped them, and now I have no one and it is too late for me to go back now."

Karumo finished his laugh and his short speal about her story, for whatever it may have been worth if she would recant or change her story or get at the truth of the matter. A short silence between the two of them, perhaps gathering her thoughts? Karumo would watch with a small bit of anticipation as he awaited her next move, and would lead to whatever else there might be, truth or a better lie. "Have you ever lost someone close to you?" the words resonated out in the room, breaking the silence. Karumo hadn't been laughing at that moment, his expression was rather stern but his attention caught as his eyes rolled up a bit higher to meet her gaze. A small lump in his throat as he sat up in his chair and adjusted a bit.

Karumo's arms crossed as he began to listen, each pause was anxiety pushed into the room, not sure where else to go. "Because I have." the words continued to ring out and resonate with him. Karumo spoke up lightly, "I'm sorry, I don't..." his words faded to nothing as he continued to listen to her tale. The air around her shifted as it seemed that she begrudgingly brought up a bit of her past and reasoning. Her history first, it seemed the truth, at least as far as he was concerned, but he was a firm believer in the idea that 'everyone lies.' It was part of the human condition to lie and cover things up, to varying degrees and for a variety of reasons, there had to be more to it than that, but he wouldn't press the issue. Yukihara had more to say before he would interrupt though.

She continued on, a bit about being born in the hospital here in Iwagakure, that made her a citizen at the very least, but the other details, so specific. It would be easy to fact check if it came to that, but his face was a bit melancholy as he listened in, it resonated with him more so than she could probably imagine. She gave a smile, double edged as he watched, was she patronizing him now? Like some child who didn't know any better, his expression fell far more neutral... At least it gives you a little chuckle." her words stung at him. Was it anger, resent even? He exhaled a bit and frowned at the notion, his intention was never to make fun of her or her situation. Only finding the attempt at covering up the truth laughable as if he wouldn't figure it out, if anything it was truly more of him patronizing her.

She continued on, further pressing her proverbial knife of words in and twisting it a bit as she explained her tragic past. A bit of sorrow hit him as he realized that she was blaming herself for her actions, leading to the deaths of others. Something he knew far more about and haunted his past as well as hers, his conscious actions leading to peoples direct deaths by his own hand and indirectly to other deaths. She couldn't know that though, his frown held, heavy exhale as he gathered his thoughts.

"I'm sorry if my laughing gave you the impression that I am laughing at you. I merely found your attempt to cover it up humorous." he paused shortly as he rotated his neck, cracking the bones and stretching it out.

"As for the rest, I think I understand a bit more than you might expect. You're what... 15 or 16?" he would pause to let her confirm if she wanted to, even if she ignored it he would continue on. "When I was that age, I did the same thing as you. I was a genin for the village, and taking on missions, but on the side I carried on a vendetta against the bandits that had killed my family and left me for dead when I was a child. I remember distinctly as well, that when I was 16, it had been ten years and I embarked on a mission to address a bandit encampment. I took a lot of their lives without mercy, hatred and rage took place. I hunted their kind for what they did, resented them, and through it all, I never felt satisfied at the outcome of it. Every time my sword fell I would flashback to the moment I could remember, lying there and bleeding out, their dead bodies to accompany me and haunt my memories." he paused for a brief second, his eyes down as he thought through the story.

"It wasn't until years later, my rage subsided as I found nothing to console it, all the information and crime fighting I could get my hands on. It was never enough, and I blamed myself as well. When it happened, I was training to be a ninja, I could have stopped it, it drove me to become stronger and never let it happen again. After those years, I learned what justice truly was, the consequences of my actions. The orphans I created and the people that will hold hate for me for killing their fathers, brothers, sons, family members that may never forget me. I knew the truth and it did nothing for me, I blamed myself and tore at my soul to correct every wrong in the world." his gaze would roll up, his arms still crossed as he went to meet her gaze.

"Your story... I don't believe that it's the whole truth, but I believe that it is based in the truth. And I see the same thoughts and actions that were from me. A thirst for knowledge and answers, to why the universe is the way it is. Wondering if they abandoned you... or were even killed." a slight dramatic pause as he shortly debated bringing up the thought to the table.

"But I also know that you can't blame yourself for anything that happened. You say you left your adopted parents and their group, killed in your absence, but do you truly believe that if you had been there then you could have stopped it? It was enough to take all of them down, you seemed skilled, but would it be enough? There is so much uncertainty, the entropy of the universe reaching out and throwing every life into chaos. You can't live in the past of your actions and pretend that if things had been different then the world would be right. If you could change things, then you would only cause problems elsewhere, that chaos would find a new home, maybe you kill their attackers. But then people learn to hate you and you bear that grudge."

He sighed, his words more ranting and lecturing at this point, if she were anything like he was, those words would be lost in the righteousness of ideology. If his younger self had heard them, then he would do his best to offer rebuttal and recant the statement, fighting against it and serving his own self. He'd learned and grown past it, he merely offered the advice and wisdom in hopes that she might resonate with it if only a little. Continuing on he would speak up, "It's certainly a noble and righteous cause to find your parents, but I'm curious as to what you hope happen when you do find them, should you be able to?" he spoke with a bit of command in his tone, instead of his same soft voice he had gradually grown to speak at his normal tone and volume.

"You say that you have no one and can't turn back, but it's never too late to change your path. Create new bonds, form new friendships and serve some greater purpose?" he would offer with a bit of concern. It was the conclusion he came to, to use his knowledge to take students and teach them, pass on his wisdom and save them from what had brought him so far down and save them from that tragic attitude. He would wait to see what she would say, hoping that his words might resonate some, but preparing to be ignored and refuted all the same.

[1396 words, 3587 words total]

Yukihara looks at Karumo silently as she considers his words. "...Just because, that you once walked down the road of vengeance..." Yukihara lift out a cold smirk "...does not, mean that you could understand what I went through."

Yukihara looks away to the side at that. "Someone who graduated from a proper Ninja academy, with classmates, friends, mentors to guide you along, to stay with you and help you. How could someone like that, possibly suggest that you could have anything in common with someone like me?" Yukihara asked while staring at the blank white/grey ceiling with a single light bulb fixed around the center.

After a bit, she turns her head to look at the ground in front of her boots again, and whispered. "I don't belong in anywhere, even when I was with my adopted group, I have always been the odd one out. I couldn't sing, my dance was awful, I have thought that when I find my true parents, I could have finally fit in somewhere..."


.....

Yukihara closed her eyes and bite her teeth.

"I am not like you. " She opened her eyes again and looked up at Karumo again. "You have somewhere that already accepted you, but you choose revenge and of course it didn't lead you to anything that you didn't already have." Yukihara's eyes harden with determination. "I'm not some busy body looking for things to do, I have nothing to begin with and I have only hoped to get something by the end of all this, we might walk down the same path of finding those who are responsible for our situation, but our end goals are not the same."

Yukihara paused before continue. "And once I found them, if I have them and someone were to even try to take them away from me again. I will cut them down." Yukihara paused. "I will let nothing stand in my way. And If I should die, then at least I die with purpose, and I die trying."

But, suddenly, her gaze wavered and she couldn't maintain their previous eye contact again. Dropping her head down and let her bang hides her expression, Yukihara signed deeply.

It was not as if Karumo's words did not have an impact on her. Quite the opposite, he brought up a point that she had been trying to ignore for the longest time back into the light again.

What if her parents were already dead?
....
What if they are still alive but have chosen to abandon her all those years ago, and would chose the same again?
.....

We can't all live in the fairy tales, and there might not be a happy ending. What if after all that trouble that she had went through and when she finally finds them, or their corpses, and it turns out that it didn't change her situation at all? What then?

Will she too, walked down the road of revenge?

She doesn't know.

It is not something uncommon or unheard of in the Ninja world. And Karumo had already told her, from his own experience, that walking down that road, noting good will came out from it.

"You say that you have no one and can't turn back, but it's never too late to change your path. Create new bonds, form new friendships and serve some greater purpose?" After a bit, Karumo offers a new suggestion.

Yukihara blinks and laughed to herself, the first time since she woke up from her dizziness (which she still find it very dizzy), she couldn't even maintain her standard poker face for the moment. "What are you talking about? Who, me?" she's tied down so she couldn't point to herself, but if she could she totally would have point to herself now. Shaking her head as she said softly. "No one told me that the new Tsuchikage was an ideological person. Why would anyone want...." Yukihara shakes her head. "...you said it as if there are somewhere in this world willing to take me in....You know what, since you bought it up, if you are willing to take me in as a student, I would stay and stand guard for Iwa, instead of searching for my parents, sounds like a good plan?" She asked with a smile.
.....

"Don't look so scary. I jest. Iwa, Suna, Kumo, Kiri, Konoha, the world is a large large place and eventually my search would resulted in something, even if it leads to a bitter end." Yukihara looks at the ceiling again. "Eventually, I would probably....but right now, it is too early to give up on the search just yet." She turns to look at Karumo again. "Would the Tsuchikage be feeling generous enough today to share the result of the decade ago report? So that it narrowed down my search? Assuming that I am getting out of here alive today." Yukihara half asked hopefully, as a joke. But after a while, she muttered. "Untie me."

Karumo sat expressionless at the idea that everything was perfect, that he had some perfect life compared to hers. He'd have interjected but it wasn't his place to try to argue about who had a worse life, a petty notion at best. The feeling of it all, he understood the want to lash out at anyone trying to make a connection or do good, not to undermine their efforts but a desire to do it all alone. Her attitude and demeanor though, it seemed different than the image Karumo had crafted of himself so long ago. Even through it all he desired information at such a level, he did everything, every bit of research to fill in the puzzle and solve the mystery. But for Yukihara, it seemed... different. Different beyond the circumstantial bits of it all, he did live in the village but he was alone for it all. He connected more than she would probably care to hear and yet, he was different in so many more ways. He wanted to lash out though, part of him that resented her choice, at her bit about how he could ever relate, his hand tightened in place while his body remained still.

He remained calm as he watched Yukihara clench her teeth, "I am not like you." she continued on, her rant of her difference to the world and the world's difference to her. Swallowing the truth and running through it all as she spoke, he remained still, not sure how to respond and leaving it to her to rant on. Whether it mattered or not to her, or him. Let nothing stand in her way, cut them all down! The words filled with rage and hate, even if the tone hadn't directly matched them.

Their conversation neared a new shift, Karumo making a sort of plea for her to change or to at least consider it. Laughing at first to the idea at first, like he had made some terrible joke or something like that. Like she was some horrible lost cause beyond redemption, he smirked a bit in return at her obvious sarcasm. She continued on, about how she couldn't do anything for now and leaving off with a request to untie her. Karumo held his smirk again at the thought, like it would be so easy and she would just be off the hook. He wasn't done yet, she'd yet to even scratch the surface of his argument and he had so much more to offer, in his mind at least. "I wouldn't be fit to be in charge, to make tough decisions and to lead others into the thick of battle if I didn't know what I believed in." he offered in response to her bit about being ideological.

His rant would come all at once, no doubt skipping over earlier parts and instead focusing on the butt end of her remarks, in hopes that he might convince her or make a difference in her mind. "Our integrity sells for so little. But it's all we really have, it is the very last inch of us but within that inch, we are free."

"Don't treat your life like it's broken and worthless. Struggles exist in all forms, like you could never develop those bonds and create a life for yourself. No... all I've heard is why YOU don't WANT to, not any reason that you can't or shouldn't." he smiled as he spoke, accenuating his words so to emphasize his point. "I get that you meant it as a joke, but I would be more than willing to take you on as a student. You're not driven by money or power inherently, which makes me think that one day, when you acclimate to the village and build those bonds, that you would be a great asset to have." he smiled genuinely so that she would know he was serious, not sarcastically taunting her.

"Besides, I won't restrict your travel or anything, you can go where you please as long as you stay out of trouble and all..." he continued on with a chuckle. "Beyond that though, your search won't have to stop. I know how important it is to m-- to you, I wouldn't try to stop that in any way. And you'll have the greatest detective in the village as your sensei, and there's a lot you can learn and that I can teach if you're willing..." he would continue on, eyeing her and watching her for any reaction at all. If she gave one then so be it, regardless of result, but Karumo would continue on after a brief pause.

"As for where you are today, you did break and enter into a sealed records room, it's no small price to pay..." he paused and stood up stretching his back as he did so, "But no, nothing like the death penalty or anything like that. What do you take us for, murderers?" he laughed a bit and stood their looking for his reaction. He was debating untying her on the spot, breaking the seal of the restraints and all, but he would wait for her response before he did anything. She wasn't getting out of any punishment just yet, he would bide his time a bit and hear out her reaction before he made a decision.

[917 words, 4504 words total]

OOC:

Wait...What...what is he talking about..?! I don't want to what...? Excuse me? Yukihara narrowed her eyes at that and clenches her teeth.

"Of course I want to have to belong to a village too! That's the whole point of finding my parents, so that I can have a place to return to, but joining a Ninja village is very hard work, they are not so accepting." Yukihara reasons darkly. (which is completely true, back before there's a whole bunch of requirements for a Ronin to Join, lately it gets easier.) But, Karumo is not buying any of this at all, as he continues on but now with a slight shift of tone towards the more solemn side.

Getting no reaction from him, Yukihara has no choice but sighs softly and listen as Karumo continues on with his speech.

"I get that you meant it as a joke, but I would be more than willing to take you on as a student. You're not driven by money or power inherently, which makes me think that one day, when you acclimate to the village and build those bonds, that you would be a great asset to have. Besides, I won't restrict your travel or anything, you can go where you please as long as you stay out of trouble and all..Beyond that though, your search won't have to stop. I know how important it is to m-- to you, I wouldn't try to stop that in any way. And you'll have the greatest detective in the village as your sensei, and there's a lot you can learn and that I can teach if you're willing..."

Yukihara blinks at that, it was surprising, she did not think that the conversation would take such a turn, never in her dream would she have guessed so.

Is he telling the truth? That I can have a sensei as well...? But even more importantly so, that I could belong to a village while keeping my ability to travel as well?

The ability to travel and to be free of the restrictions that are commonly placed on rookies is what so inhereitantly apealing about being a Ronin, it was also the very reason that she has never tried to remain in one particular village for an expensive period of time before, for the fear of somehow losing the freedom of mobility. It sounds...good, too, almost too good to be real.

Yukihara frowns deeply, head looking down at her boots.

If this was a few days ago, that someone were to tell her that not only was she going try to break into an official building, almost fight an Anbu, defeated, get caught and maybe getting a sensei all on the same day, she would have called for emergency medical help for fearing for that person's mental stability. Still deep in thoughts though, Karumo continues on.

"As for where you are today, you did break and enter into a sealed records room, it's no small price to pay..But no, nothing like the death penalty or anything like that. What do you take us for, murderers?"

Yukihara interally let out a sigh of relief, well, it looks like she was keeping her head on her neck after all. Sure, it wasn't an offense that would usually warrant the death penalty, but she was a Ronin, and her status as such would naturally draw in more suspections than say...just about everybody else who is not a missing nin.

But now, as time ticking by, she was due for a response. Closing her eyes for a moment before she looks up to Karumo again.

"I hope...that you do mean what you said." Yukihara looks at him seriously. Willing him to not go back on his words (but Ninja, you know). "And if you do...I would be honoured to have you as my sensei, even though you might came to find, like many others, that I require a bit more patiences...For you see, I am stubborn and I tend to show up at places that I was not supposed to be."

Yukihara looks away at the self admission.

[color=#ff6699"Beyond that though...we have been here for quite sometimes now, and may be it is time to announce my sentence...?" [/color]Yukihara asks quietly. From Karumo's earlier words, it sounded like she has somehow managed to avoid the worst, although she didn't really do anything beyond the first briefest efforts, but jail time though. Heart beating fast as she wills herself to keep her poker face on and her expression blank, she awaits to hear what the future has temporary in store for her.

Looking for somewhere to belong, she was certainly honest about everything, a trait he could admire underneath everything. Though, his admittance that her punishment wouldn't be too severe gave her some moment of relief. He let her process the information for a moment before she retorted back, questioning whether he meant what he said. He absolutely did mean so. "And if you do...I would be honoured to have you as my sensei, even though you might came to find, like many others, that I require a bit more patiences...For you see, I am stubborn and I tend to show up at places that I was not supposed to be." he chuckled at the bit. She was certainly right nonetheless but also uncompromisingly honest about herself and her motives as well. Even for such a poor attempt to lie in the beginning, it didn't seem she had it in herself to continue it on, even if it wasn't the whole truth, it was more than he could ever expect of anyone else that he would talk to.

Karumo stood up laughing as she spoke up again, wondering about her sentence, his laugh fell and he scratched his chin as he thought for a second. "I suppose that is still a problem and all..." he began to head towards the door. "I think I'll just the let the normal police take care of it, hopefully they'll go easy on you..." he laughed a bit as he continued towards the door, waving with one hand and the other in his pocket. His pocketed hand reached out for the door, without turning back he called out, "Oh, and Yukihara." his tone more commanding and louder than before, almost echoing in his own voice, hoping to silence the room a bit. "They say that difficult students are all the more rewarding to teach..." he remained facing the door, his head slightly down as he looked at the handle. "You know where to find me when you get done... if you're still interested in being apart of the village and everything else." he finished and walked quickly through the door, leaving any potential response to herself.

As he exited the room, he approached the guard in charge of her, "The girl being held, go easy on her with the punishment, I don't think she'll be breaking in again. You can probably just hold her for a few hours and then let her go..." he would say looking through the one-way mirror at her again. Wondering for a moment on what she would decide to do, if she would continue on her path or if she would make the most subtle change and become his student, even if it only had a minor affect on all things. With the guards acknowledgment Karumo headed out and left the station, on to whatever else his duties as the Tsuchikage would lead him on to do.

[497 words, 5001 words total]
[Exit Thread]

[OOC: I'll just exit here, you can post your exit when you return and all then we can continue on or not whenever you're back xD]

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