Mission Details:

I am no teacher.

Well, that much is obvious. It’s a boring duty to teach. Though Kisei really didn’t feel in the mood for any other jobs at the moment. He rubbed his shoulder, a dull ache still ebbing from his last mission with the scorpion. The damage was minor, aside from the poison but after clearing that out of his system he promptly left the staff to their other patients.

Today his mission was quite simple, if you consider substitute teaching a mission, he sighed heavily. Right now he stood outside of the Sunagakure’s academy. It was bigger than he expected. Briefly he wondered at the state of the other academies in the four other villages. Probably well-constructed with more than just sand and stone to build he thought bitterly. Why couldn’t he have landed in the wilds of another village? Not the Kirigakure though, more likely he would’ve drowned.

Well. Might as well get it over with. He pulled out a picture from the front pocket of his jacket. A bit taller than me, no surprise, brown hair, blue eyes, alright I think I got it. Slipping back the picture carefully back into his pocket he made his way inside the building, and found a restroom stall he could transform in. A quick comparison with his work in the mirror to the photo proved that his transformation was flawless. All except that he couldn’t transform his voice. Kisei wasn’t sure if that was from design or his own lack of training but either way he had that covered. He slipped on a cough mask before heading down to the designated classroom.

He stopped right before the door it was completely silent. The Ushinatta frowned disapprovingly. Even Kisei knew it was a trap, because since when have classes ever been quiet when a teacher wasn’t in there. He sighed. Though instead of creating some clone to take it for him he decided to take whatever the students had planned for him, after all that’s why he transformed into their usual teacher. Luckily he brought his umbrella. Without a thread of hesitation he walked into the awaiting class. Not even two steps in their trap sprung. A trip wire, tied to a small nail on the wall, attached to a bucket filled with who knows what. Before that bucket could fall he flashed his umbrella open, just enough to cover his body. With a dull clank of metal against metal the bucket fell against the ground along with a cluster of erasers. Erasers? He mentally shrugged. Instantly his mood soured when he looked upon the crowd of shocked academy students. Some had an excellent attempt at hiding it but the startled gazes were enough of a hint.

With a muffled cough he bent down and fixed the mess at his feet, placing the finished product against the door. “Is this your idea of a ‘welcome back’?” He asked sourly. As expected no one thought to speak up. They were a smart group. Knowing that if they had said that was for the substitute they would get in trouble, and even worse if they denied it wasn’t for the substitute, oh the ways he could play this. Too bad his job wasn’t to terrify children, he might have been decent. “You would think my students would know how to set up a decent trap, honestly…” He sighed. “Alright, special lesson outside today, follow me class.”

It took a while, a few detention scares for some especially rowdy students, getting lost once or twice, but they made it to the field in decent time. “So now that I’ve brought you out here I have a question for you.” He waited for a moment before moving on. “To you, what is the defining aspect, necessary for a ninja to be a ninja?” A chorus of ‘Ninjutsu’ and “Didn’t you ask us this yesterday?”

“Well that was a different day, today is a different day. Anyway, no, incorrect answer.”

“Then what is the answer?” One innocent voice asked.

Silence.

“….” He looked at these young children, at a loss of words. Not out of frustration or anything like that, such a simple question didn’t have an answer which he could explain easily to such very young children. In a heartbeat he remembered that these children were going to become ninja. They were going to fight, and take missions, and bleed, and… and, die.

He was no longer in that courtyard in the Sunagakure but in another time, another space. There was but one word to describe his memory of that place, chaos. He shook his head, clearing the bloody background out of his sight.

“If you must know, it is the will to survive. That is first and foremost for a ninja.” He frowned. “But back to the lesson, today we’re doing sparring practice.” A series of groans protested and Kisei bent a smile.

For the next couple of hours they reviewed basic taijutsu technique and form. Although most probably didn’t enjoy the group vs. group knockout event he set up. He chuckled slyly. It was a shame to send them off, the true shame being that he taught them absolutely nothing, but that was over now. Silently passing through the door to his room, Kisei stripped down to his boxers before crawling into the cold bed. The house was quiet like it always was. He didn’t like it very much. It was easier to hear the screams of his lost home from before. The Ushinatta wondered whether the tears flowing down his cheeks were real or imagined right before falling asleep.


[Kisei Exit]

951/600 Words

Jutsu Used: