Runaway [C-Rank Mission]:

"Please Kyudoka-kun!" she pleaded, eyes wet with fresh constantly flowing tears and anguish in her voice. "This isn't like him, honest! Our boy would never just run away! Something must have happened, o-oh god!" She clapped a hand over her mouth and shrunk away. The mother of the aforementioned boy broke down beyond the capability of speech at that point. It was then that the father took over. He pulled Kaiji to the side, considering it best to keep the mother from hearing anything further.

"Listen, boy," the man said as stern as was possible with a quivering lip, "Now I know my son's no saint, but runnin' away, now that's just-" he was at a loss for words. "If he has gone off and split, please, I'm beggin' ya, just find him and bring him back here safe and sound." His face was contorted with lines of worry and Kaiji could only smile shakily with reassurance. The dark-pink-haired archer spoke up, making certain his own lip wasn't having a shaking fit.

"Sir, ma'am," Kaiji addressed them both, "I'm sure he's out there somewhere. You know, it wasn't long ago that I was a child myself, and kids, well," he was having trouble parsing his train of thought, "Kids sometimes do things like this." He hoped he didn't sound like a total idiot. A smile, thin but confident, curled Kaiji's lips. "You can count on me!" After the child's parents filled him in on the boy, named Jun's, favourite places of play and other locations of note that may be of help, Kaiji departed from their humble abode and ventured out of the village proper into the surrounding wilderness. The first area was a small forest to the south that led to a dock out on the ocean. Here the great green trees of Konoha were sparse and dotted haphazardly across the landscape. It was not a huge expanse of trees like the other major forests and thus after less than an hour of searching, Kaiji Kyudoka had turned up nothing. Jun wasn't in the trees or down by the dock. "Okay, cross that one off the list, this place is a dud. But no worries, there are four other places to check and my eyes are sharp. I bet I'll find that kid in no time."

Next on the list of possible locations was the Rolling Hills, a verdant area with, yep, you guessed it, rolling hills. Among the many raised bits of land were a number of gently flowing streams and fields of wildflowers that spanned just about every colour in the rainbow. This location was larger than the previous one and would thus take a longer period of time for Kaiji to scour. In order to take a better assessment of it all, Kaiji trekked to the peak of the highest hill, one that could almost be a mountain honestly. Once atop the massive ridge, it was simply a matter of activating his Takamegan and scanning for any hint of something that would stand out, like say, a child. "Takamegan!" and Kaiji's eyes glowed a golden hue, radiating with chakra. He swept his enhanced sight over his surroundings over and over again, making sure to be thorough as he did it. Unfortunately, nothing in particular stood out to him and this place too was shaping up to be no good. "Alright, well," slightly dejected, "Again, no sight of the boy, but that doesn't mean he's not here, m-maybe he's just hiding..." And so, he searched on foot through the valleys between hills, down the babbling brooks, through the fields of sweet-smelling wildflowers until, as he had suspected, there were still no results. "On to the next one, I suppose."

The Village Dock and the more Dense Forest outside the village were no more fruitful than the two previous locations. It was becoming evening now and the sun had initiated its lazy descent into oblivion, painting the wide blue sky a warm blend of purple and orange. "Heh," a nervous laugh, "I'm feeling sort of unlucky today," Kaiji muttered to himself as he traveled in the direction of the Naka River that ran smack dab through the middle of Konohagakure, bisecting it. The river was located in land belonging to the Uchiha clan, users of the Dōjutsu known as the Sharingan. Kaiji couldn't resist feeling a touch of a connection with the fellow Dōjutsu wielders. They were probably all descended from a common ancestor, who knew? As he made his way, searching this way and that for any signs of the runaway boy known as Jun, he was struck with the sudden image of a boy further on up ahead, squatting by the water's edge, uplifting stones and splashing in the silt and mud. "I-is that, it's gotta be!" Kaiji approached, stifling the urge to sprint at the child and scold them for what he had put him through. "Hey are you Jun, by any chance?" Kaiji said, voice soft and low like the embrace of your bed after a long day.

"So what if I am?" the child sneered, only looking up from his task for a quarter of a second. Before Kaiji Kyudoka could respond, the boy spoke again, voice muddled with disgust. "Are you here to take me home to my parents?" In a fluid motion he turned and rose from his squatting position, brandishing a rock as if it were a weapon and planting his feet in the soggy earth.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Kaiji raised his hands in a gesture of peace, "Your mom and dad, they're just worried about you. They said you left home this morning without telling them where to." Kaiji's face softened, why had he felt scared for a moment? This was merely a ten year old with a rock. "I'm a shinobi, see? They sent me to find you and help you get home before it gets dark. My name's Kaiji," and the smiling archer pointed to the embroidered Hidden Leaf forehead protector adorning his sleeve. Kaiji continued his speech, choosing to speak carefully lest the boy take off running. "Do you think you could tell me why you ran away? Just between us, of course." Jun's interests were piqued. Kaiji could see the gears winding in his head.

"Y-yeah, I guess that's okay," Jun said.

"And the rock?" Kaiji gestured toward the large stone still poised for attack in Jun's hand.

"Oh, s-sorry, I just thought you may be the enemy." Jun relented, lowering his makeshift weapon. Kaiji didn't question the kid's use of the word 'enemy', instead letting him tell his story before intervening. Jun spun a wild tale of soldiers and ninja and fantastical battles. Kaiji had to remind himself not to get too enthralled, but who was he kidding, he was a sucker for fantasy stories. At the story's conclusion, Jun mentioned how he had secretly heard his parents talking about splitting up, and that the only explanation for it was that they were part of the enemy forces, and thus they could not be trusted. He told Kaiji that his only option was to leave home and never look back. Upon hearing this, Kaiji sobered up, the illusion of fantasy shattering like broken glass. This was Jun's way of confronting reality. It was a harsh reality, yes, but Kaiji couldn't leave the kid out here no matter what was going on. Still, it resonated with the Kyudoka on a personal level. His own mother had left while he was still young, and it had been hard on him unlike any childhood tribulation before that. He knew what he had to do, though he didn't like it all too much.

"Jun... that, that was an interesting story you just told me there. I especially liked the part about the fire-breathing dragon, but," Kaiji paused. Was it really his place to do this? Perhaps not, he was merely a shinobi trying to get a mission finished so he could collect the 190 ryo reward. Kaiji closed his eyes momentarily and sighed heavily. I can make a difference though, maybe impact this kid's life for the better. Okay, here goes. "Do you want to become a ninja some day, Jun?"

"Do I!? Sure, I wanna be one of the greats!" Jun cried out with passion. "D'you think I can, Kaiji?"

"I do, Jun, but... Here's the thing about being a ninja. You need to be strong, you see, because being strong will help you to be ready for anything that the shinobi life throws at you. A-and I think now, right here, is where you can start. If what you heard about your mom and dad is true, well, then... that's one of those parts of life where you'll have to be strong." Kaiji kept going, finding it hard to watch as Jun's face flashed through a multitude of emotions before settling on a pained one, tears twinkling in the corners of his eyes. "My mom left my dad when I was still a kid like you, so I know how it feels." Jun was crying now, unashamed as kids are with emotional outbursts. "But, Jun, i-it made me stronger. It was tough, but look at me," and Kaiji reached out to lift the boy's chin so that their eyes would meet. "Don't I seem strong to you?" In a flourish, Kaiji molded his chakra into the forme of a master-crafted longbow and took aim at a leaf drifting towards the ground about twenty meters away. An arrow soared gracefully through the air and struck the leaf dead center, nailing it to a tree farther ahead. Jun, still crying but in awe, wiped his face and gazed at Kaiji Kyudoka with wonder.

Sniff. "Kaiji that was a-amazing!" Sniff. Jun and Kaiji stayed there for a little longer as the archer demonstrated a couple of other tricks for the child, cheering them both up. Tears no longer falling freely, Jun made a promise to Kaiji that he would try his hardest to be strong like the ninja he now looked up to. Kaiji nearly lost it himself a couple of times throughout their interaction. Up ahead, the moon had started to make its appearance. The time to return Jun to his parents was at hand, and surprisingly, the boy went willingly. There was still a hint of sadness glinting in his eyes, but they were also flecked with determination. Kaiji Kyudoka escorted him back home and left after being thanked meekly, Jun's mom and dad both more concerned with their boy than the savior who had returned him. After making his way out of their house, Kaiji searched for a suitable place to rest for the time being before returning to his own home. A rooftop stood out above all other things, remembering the friend he had recently made.

"All in a day's work," Kaiji chuckled dryly. He was lying flat on his back atop a shop's roof, looking up at the infinite starscape above him. "I hope Jun makes it. I hope..." he trailed off, a certain someone on his mind. "I hope I make it..." The world was dark and all was still and quiet. "There's something I didn't tell Jun..." Tears trickled down the sides of Kaiji's face, tickling his ears as he was lying supine. "You can never stop. Never, you can never stop being strong. O-or else, this world just eats at you. I didn't tell him," Kaiji gasped between sobs.

[EXIT]

TWC: 1986 - 1000[C-Rank Mission] = 986 remaining.

Training: