Shibirin woke up with a start. Wow, even in Konoha he over slept, and he usually woke up by either falling off the bed or being rudely woken up. He got up from the floor, looks like today he had woken up by falling over his bed. He stood up and made his way to his closet. He was down to his last set of clean clothes. He put on a clean, white shirt and his long, black pants. He wore a long black tie and his shirt had the top 2 buttons undone. He also wore glasses, though he didn’t really need them, unless he was reading. He then took hold of his black Shinobi sandals and made his way down stairs.

He walked over to the dinner table and laid his shoes on top. He got himself some breakfast to eat, nothing too fancy: fried fish and dumplings. He then ran back up stairs and looked under his bed. He took out his three katana from underneath it and ran back down stairs. He put on his shoes and dashed out the door. He then stopped, just as he stepped out about 4 meters away from the door. He had forgotten to lock the door, for this was his last day in Konoha. He took the key back to the guy who had let him rent the place and he made his way into the village’s streets.

On his way, he saw some familiar faces. He looked up towards the sky, but lowered his gaze a bit to see what seemed like the village monuments of the previous kages of the village, this made him smile a bit. He truly enjoyed his stay in the village, but there were other things he needed to attend to in Sunagakure. Yes, he was going home. He was happy to be going back to his home village for once, but was also sad he was leaving Konohagakure. He wasn’t going forever and this wasn’t going to be his last visit to the nearby village, he was planning on making future visits back to Konoha. He went past the Ichiruka Ramen shop, he could smell the beautiful ramen being cooked. He walked and walked, til he finally reached the village gates. There, he waited for Gin to arrive, though he couldn’t help but think that he had forgotten to do something. Yes, Giketsu, he had earlier promised a leaf nin who went by the name Giketsu, that he’d meet him in the forest just before he left to go back to Suna. He thought about this for a while, but figured he will just have to make up for that when he visited the village again.

As Shibirin saw Gin making her way towards the village gates, he gave her a small wave of his right hand and watched her as she drew nearer. ”Hey Gin, ready to go?” he said, but he didn’t give her much time to answer back before he stated walking off towards the forest. He was sure Gin was close behind, but still he maintained his pace and managed to stay well ahead of her. He was going to Suna to stay, but Gin would most likely come back, so it didn’t matter to him whether or not Gin was keeping up.
They went through the dense forest and made their way towards the open plain. Now all they had to do was walk a couple of km before they reached the edge of the desert that led to the hidden sand village. As he walked, Shibirin wondered what would be the first thing he does when he arrived. Possibly greet his mother first, change into a cleaner pair of clothes and then head out towards the arena. He missed that place, though he had only visited it once. Above all, he’ll need to ask Gin’s permission to complete three missions, he was going for the title of Chunin. Not much would come from the title actually, but the recognition of his abilities. He’d certainly get more respect from the local villagers, because genin are treated like the village children.
Finally, they reached the desert that would lead them towards Sunagakure. From this point, Shibirin couldn’t quite make out the village just as yet, but if they walked far enough, they would eventually see it. The sand felt warm under Shibirin’s feet, even though he was wearing shoes. It felt so different as to stepping on the luscious green grass in Konoha, but he was too happy that he was returning home to even care. A strong wind blew past, it told the two that a sandstorm was nearing. They had to pick up their pace. Very soon, they’d reach the village, for Shibirin could now make out a small group of sand buildings in the distance. They were home.
Shibirin walked up to the village gates, oh how he wanted to just go over and hug the guards, but he had to maintain his ‘cool’. He was known around the town as the town jerk, he couldn’t now just change emotions and show signs of affection, especially to the guards. No, he just walked on through the gate. He had Gin with him, so they wouldn’t stop him for being an imposter or anything. He made his way towards his house, but just as he was about to leave Gin he said, ”Permission to take 3 missions whilst you’re away?”

{Word count: 917/800}

Razor woke up at 7 in the mourning it was time to get up but he wanted to stay in the bed. But he got up to get dressed he put a black T-shirt on normally in suna he wears no shirt but here it feels cool enough to wear one. he put his black pants on and buttoned them he walked over to the table and put his shoes on. And prepared himself some breakfast nothing special some eggs and toast with jelly after he finished and cleaned the dishes he walked back up stairs and got slayer out of the closet. And walked back down stairs he then took the key back to the owner of the apartment. And left to the streets he still had some time before he was leaving to go back to suna so he decided to take on last walk around konoha.

He went from his house to the great stone heads when he arrived he looked over konoha with great wonder. He knew this would not be his last trip to konoha he planned to see his new fiends that he has made since coming here. His next stop was the hot springs he decided that sice he had a little time he would take a short soak in the springs. As he sat their relaxing letting the water run over him he thought about his friends and family waiting for him in suna. This filled him with a burst of joy now he could not wait to get back. He was ready to leave now as he made his way to the gates he passed by ichiraku ramen he could smell the ramen being cooked. It made his mouth water but he was in a hurry to get home so it would have to wait till next time.

Razor now made his way towards the Konoha village gates He could see Shibirin from a distance, but wasn’t sure if he had seen him. He waved at him, to show that he was there, but the guy didn’t seem to respond so he just kept on walking until he reached him When he did reach him he stopped and took in a deep breath, he was tired but still he could walk He now looked towards the distance ahead of them. Didn’t seem far though he knew there was quite some distance between Suna and Kono He started walking behind Shibirin keeping a small distance between them He could see all the nature and trees around him, he could hear the birds chirping high up in the trees, oh how he loved nature. It was a shame that Razor had to leave the village hidden in the leaves so early, but there just wasn’t enough for him to do. With the chunin exams going on, everyone was so busy and most people were injured from their spars with other genin that Razor couldn’t find anyone to spar with. Nevertheless, he was sure to fight a good sparring partner in Sunagakure.

As they were walking, Razor’s body temperature went from cool and stable to now hot. It was a sign that they were nearing the desert that lead straight to Suna. The wind was also picking up, another sign of the desert nearing, for there came lots of sandstorms that eventually made their way towards the village. Razor struggled to keep up with Shibirin, for he was walking far too fast for Razor. Razor thought about turning into an animal for more speed, but he was just too tired to do any jutsu right now. He decided to stay in his human form, at least this way he could save up his energy for when he really needed to use it and at the same time, he was able to carry all his belongings. They kept on walking and walking, until they reached the edge of the desert. Now they had to walk through the vast sandy terrain. Oh how he wished he had packed more water. He was getting thirsty and a bit tired, though he kept telling himself that he was almost there.

There, in the distance, he could see the sand village’s entrance. Finally, he was home. It looked so much different from when he had left it, had the Kazekage done anything different to it? He wasn’t sure what it was, but the village had truly changed in some way, or was it Razor who had changed? He kept on walking, just a few more steps, a few more breaths and a few more seconds. Before he knew it, they had arrived. He could see the two guards waving at them, Razor waved back. He had a large smile on his face. He looked up to them and called out, ”We’re back!” and he also threw in a little wave.

word count 822/800

Rikuto woke up at about 6 o’ clock and instantly knew what he was going to do that day. He remembered that Razor told him about how the Suna ninja are going to be heading back home. The very moment he heard that, he wanted to head home. The whole time he was in Konoha, he avoided everyone. There was a couple of times where he found a member of his village, but other than that, he stayed away from everyone. He did the exact same thing he seemed to do in Suna. Continuing on, he grabbed his usual set of clothes. His dark gray long sleeve shirt, a light gray shirt over it, and his white scarf. It was his typical set of clothes. After he was dressed, he wandered around Konoha and found a cheap store to buy a quick breakfast. Before he left to enjoy his meal, he made sure to get some water for the trip home. He would be going through a desert and it seemed to be a good idea. Since it was early in the morning, there wasn’t a crowd of people in the streets. Konoha was usually busy come the afternoon. It was somewhat nice to have a bit of peace and quiet before he went back to Suna. It was quite Ironic. He enjoyed the silence, but he had been getting nothing but quiet since he arrived in Konoha. Rikuto shook off any concern he had for his thoughts. After buying a small bit of food, he started to wander even more. It was the best thing he could do at the moment. He had a good while before he’d meet with the others.

Before Rikuto went to meet the others, he stopped by the Naka River and enjoyed watching it rush by. Since he was born in the Land of Rice Patties and he hadn’t seen a running river in quite a while. Suna certainly didn’t have any. It was in the heart of a desert, so no surprise there. The water was calming. It was nice to relax a bit before travelling. After all, he’d be forced into a few conversations on the road to Suna. The sound of the water cleared his mind and allowed him to focus. He finally got his thoughts clear and got a mental plan on what he would do while travelling. It was nice having a set plan, though any plan that has ever been made can fail just as quickly. Rikuto got up and headed back to the inner part of the village. It was almost like he was sight-seeing one last time before he had to leave for Suna. Looking around, his eyes finally stopped on Hokage Mountain. He admired the workmanship and the mass amount of detail that went into the faces. It was a bit pointless just standing there and staring at it, but he did need to waste some time after all. Rikuto looked toward the direction of the main gate, then back to the mountain, then again, back to the gate. It was getting close to the time he had to leave, so he started to slowly walk to the main gate. He could see Razor and Shibirin in the distance, but he didn’t say anything to either of them. Luckily he somewhat knew both of them. It would’ve been a lot worse if they were just two Suna ninjas that Rikuto didn’t know. After a while of waiting with the group, they finally set off for Suna.

The group had been walking for quite some time, rarely stopping and takes few breaks. After a long while, the temperature was starting to rise and the humidity dropped. They were nearing the desert that lead straight to Suna. The wind was also picking up, another sign of the desert nearing. Suna regularly experienced sandstorms and strong winds. Rikuto was trailing behind the others, but not so much so that he would be split up from them. He saw that Razor was struggling to keep up with Shibirin. It was kind of funny. They kept on walking and walking, until they reached the edge of the desert. Now they had to walk through the vast sandy terrain. Luckily, Rikuto had stopped by the shop when he ate breakfast and grabbed enough water for himself. It was worth the extra money, it’s not really enjoyable when it’s hot and there’s scarce water. He noticed how Razor looked a bit thirsty. As soon as he was about to offer some water, his eyes were drawn up. Looking up ahead, he could see a small speck in the distance. It was Suna’s walls. The trip would only last a little bit longer. The sand village’s entrance was a bit blurry due to the heat, but it was definitely there. Finally, he and his companions were home.

Word count: 814

Ezra couldn't help but have a little skip in his step. Today was the day he was heading back home. It would be the last time he walked the streets of Konoha. Not the last time but the last time at least for a while. Ezra couldn’t have been happier to go home. Sure the trip back to Suna would drain him a bit but he knew all his energy would return once he felt some sand or strong wind hit his face. Still in Konoha Ezra made a choice to stack up on supplies for his trip to the Hidden Sand. It was a smart move as anything could happen especially on an expedition across several countries alone. Ezra found across several stores what he wanted for his journey. At the first store he stopped at he bought a bottle of water and 5 shiny apples. If he hurried back to Sunagakure that would last him. Ezra always thought he was somewhat of a survivalist which was true in a way. When training to become a ninja one learns how to survive with little, at least that’s how Ezra was taught. At the second store Ezra handed the man his ryo, paying the set amount for some cold sandwiches. Ezra chuckled as he made room in his back bag and threw the wrapped up cold sandwiches in. He made his way out of Konoha. Once outside its confines he looked over his shoulder excitedly at Konoha’s main gate. Ezra waved goodbye. Konoha was a lovely place but not when you are so homesick it hurts. "Goodbye Konoha! I’m gonna’ miss you!" He shouted “Just a little.” He added under his breath. Once there was couple of miles between him and Konoha he started to run and then after a little while more he started to dart.

Ezra in the trees, hair ruffled from the wind resistance he caught, used his bright blues eyes and scanned his surroundings. The trees let small cracks of sunlight to the grass below! He decided to walk from here as the trees were becoming a little scarcer making it harder to jump from one to the next. Ezra dug in his bag, now brought down to his side; he pulled out an apple and began to munch away. As he munched away he couldn’t help but notice the clouds getting darker and the feel of the moisture in the air. He undoubtedly crossed the border into The Land of Rain. That was good and bad news. The good new, he was closer to Sunagakure. The bad news, the Land of Rain was the country he knew the least about despite traveling along its border once. Ezra continued on in the rain. He would most likely catch cold by the time he made it to the land of wind. Ezra was Lucky though because he didn’t. He reached the Land of Wind’s borders rather quickly considering he walked almost all the way through the Land of Rain. When Ezrae crossed the borders of the Land of Wind it was the second nightfall he had been alone for. Wind country was not safe during the night that was usually when sandstorms and the more dangerous and nocturnal creatures of the country came out. Ezra had already dealt with the hassle of this trip. He camped out on the borders of the two countries and finished up with whatever supplies he had left in his bag.

Once the sun popped its head out Ezra got a move on. The sooner he was back in the village the better. He had responsibilities to care of and duties to fulfill. He left Suna a genin but came back a Jounin. It was quite the transformation in a small amount of time. He was also backed up from his training. He would need to better himself before he bettered his students so he could better his students. Hopefully he would still have time to walk around the village like he used to. Better yet he could bring his students along for the walk. Ezra had his mind on so many things on the walk to Sunagakure, it was enough to give him a headache. It didn’t though. The crunch of sand under his feet made him feel good, better than he had since his first day in Konoha when he was full of wonder and excitement and exploration. Every step he took toward Suna made him happier and happier and his grin became wider and wider. What would he be coming back to though? His new found responsibilities, sure, and most likely a clan celebration but would the village he knew be seen with different, more mature and possibly much wiser eyes. He realized in addition to his rank and his ability his heart also had to change but he was always a bit of an old soul so maybe things wouldn’t be much different.

Ezra saw Sunagakure’s great walls in the distance. He ran as fast as he could to the entrance. Suna was more beautiful than he had ever seen it. Maybe it only was because Ezra felt that he was finally home.

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-Exit Thread-