Clad in purple, blue, and grey, Alwen Sangotatsu watched from the shadows as someone sat down on a bench, watching people go about their business. The horned ninja noted that they seemed to be in generic genin uniform, and, looking from a piece of paper in her hand to the person in question, nodded in self confirmation. She carefully jumped down, landing in front of the curly, brown haired stranger. This of course, was not the most subtle of things to do, and resulted in an exasperated cry from the young boy. To Alwen, he looked to be about 12, but she only figured that out upon closer inspection. With a sigh, she smiled, bowing to the startled genin. “My name is Alwen of the Sangotatsu clan. It’s nice to meet you. Can I ask your name?” she asked, deciding to approach this as if she didn’t know. The piece of paper had his name on, of course, but she didn’t want him to think she was doing this as a mission. She was, but she also wanted to legitimately help him.

“My name is Yoi.” He responds rather dully, and Alwen notices he doesn’t mention his clan. Perhaps it is a subject he was uncomfortable with. Not that she’s going to pry any further. Her intentions were to help, not make this poor kid more miserable. With a smile, she gestures to the bench. “Can I sit?” she asks, Yoi responding with a nod before shuffling to the side. Carefully, Alwen took her place next to him, looking out ahead of her before speaking up. “So then. What’s wrong? It’s strange for someone to just sit alone on a bench.” Yoi hesitated, eyes now looking to the ground, as if searching for some kind of miracle, some comfort. Quietly, he answers. “I’m feeling… Unsure… Especially with the war going on, I don’t think I’m able to do anything… I don’t want to die… Or let those I care about die…” Alwen listens intently as the young genin speaks his mind, and, with a sigh, nods. “Those are understandable fears. But this is the world of shinobi. We must be strong. And I am sure you can be as well.”

With a cry Yoi stood up, shaking his head and gesturing an arm wildly in front of himself. “You don’t understand at all! You don’t know what it’s like to not be good enough! To be scared!” and with that, he took off sprinting down the streets. Alwen sighed, getting up, and running after him as fast as she could. She wasn’t the fastest in the world, but neither was Yoi. She began catching up with him, and he noticed it too. He took out a kunai from his satchel, throwing it at Alwen, causing her to jump out of the way to avoid being hit, the kunai thudding into a nearby wooden stall, a surprised and upset shout coming from the unlucky store owner; or lucky if they sold kunai. Noticing Alwen had not stopped pursuit, Yoi took out another kunai, this time stopping to fight her. Alwen stopped as well, taking her kunai out to try match his technique. He ran towards her, thrusting the kunai forward, and were it not for her fluid motions, it would have hit her. Her intentions were to parry, however before given the chance, he struck again, causing her to leap backwards. She couldn’t fight this guy on equal fields, and so, putting the kunai away again, she focused on a nearby puddle. Raising a hand, the puddle became a floating orb of water that she had float in front of her, almost like a shield. As she focused her mind and chakra into the water, it began to turn a crystalline red, a look of startled surprise spreading on Yoi’s face.

Deciding he had to act now, Yoi rushed at Alwen, running to the left before throwing his kunai. Alwen moved the water to block this, but Yoi didn’t stop there, continuing to run around her and throwing kunai. She blocked the one behind her, the one to the right, the one in front. But then he suddenly stopped, breaking the pattern and throwing a second one from the front. Instinctively used to the pattern of a circle, Alwen had moved the water to her side to block an attack that wasn’t coming. Her concentration dropped as she leapt out of the way of the incoming kunai, an opportunity that Yoi took up on. Following through, he delivered a right hook to the retreating sea witch, knocking her back a significant amount and causing her to stumble. With a cry, she rushed out of the way, deciding that now was the time to finish the fight. She ran to the ruby puddle that was formed from her dropped orb, letting a hand touch it and carefully pull a shape from it. In her hand, a handle of red water was made, and as she retreated from the puddle, the end of the handle was formed. A whip of water, the end of which seemed to have a dragon head. And she was ready to wield it.  With a test crack of the whip, Alwen proceeded to launch it forward at Yoi, who leapt out of the way. Alwen kept the attack coming, propelling attack after attack at Yoi, hoping to only hit him once. It took a good minute of Yoi non-stop dodging before it landed, the dragon head at the end of the whip sinking teeth into his leg as it connects. With a cry, Yoi stopped dodging, a lethargic feeling spreading through his body. He felt oddly drained, concluding it was something to do with the colour of the water, but deciding to just give up. On the spot, he curled up, and began crying, overwhelmed by the feeling of losing, and feeling useless. Picking up on this, Alwen disperses the whip, the ruby water fading back to the normal colouration, and dropping down with a splash. From there, she crouched down, next to the crying genin. “See?!” he shouted, voice wavering from distress. “I can’t even fight for myself well!” All Alwen could do was watch as he cried, before shaking her head and speaking up, gesturing a hand to the deep bruise on her face. “You landed a blow on the face of an enemy who was pursuing you. That alone should tell you that you have talent.” She gently placed a hand on his shoulder, letting him cry his emotions out. There she waited, letting him recover emotionally in his own time, before holding out a hand to help him get up.

“Let’s get you home.” Alwen announced, a small nod from Yoi being his only response. She wrapped his arm around her shoulder and assisted him in walking, guiding him through the streets of Kirigakure. She realised it must have been really stressful for the kid, especially with Kirigakure being in a time of war, but because of that she wanted to help him through it. It was important that people stand together. And doing stuff like that, she felt, would make her brother proud. Upon dropping him off at home, Alwen states that she will ensure she recollects his kunai and returns them to him before the next day. Yoi meanwhile went back to rest. At this, Alwen went back to where the fight occurred. First, she apologized to the shop owner who had a kunai fly at them. They gave light explanation of the situation, avoiding details that would be too personal, before retrieving the kunai. From there, she began going one by one to gather the genin’s equipment. It took some time, but it was best to not miss anything; even though they weren’t the most powerful, they were still weapons, and as such were dangerous to leave about. Weapons gathered, Alwen delivered them, before walking off into the distance. Her direction was heading to the coast, to watch the people work, to enjoy the sea, and perhaps sing a song. A song that surely, nobody would hear.

WC 1356/ 600 MISSION COMPLETE

[EXIT THREAD]

Training:

Trading reward for a D rank jutsu