Nothing was quite working out in the way Daraku had planned. Not that everything needed to go exactly as planned in order to turn out fine; hell, half of his life was a series of mistakes and impulse decisions, and he managed to skate by just fine, but this time around it was disappointment after disappointment and the discouragement was starting to get to him. He was starting to resent the Dusk Moth Sage and his own trade as a sage, as something that he just kind of fell into because it was what his father wanted from him. Once again, falling into the perfect, ceramic mold that his father had for him since he was an impressionable kid grieving the loss of his mother. Though he loved his clan, he largely felt like an outcast, because all of his close relatives were dead and gone and all that were left were overly-formal, clean-cut, "strictly business"-types that he could hardly stand to be around for more than half an hour at a time. This wasn't to say that they were bad leaders, and in fact, it was quite the opposite. The Ishido were doing better than they ever had been, financially stable and in a long-lasting peaceful period, having reestablished their status in Sunagakure no Sato. Daraku, formerly the lodestar and paragon of the clan, was now off to the side, stuck in the past and unable to adjust to the mundane life. Beyond that, there was the fact that he knew he was one of the strongest in the village, and yet he had never gotten the shot at being the Kazekage like he'd wanted so badly, instead being unappreciated and forgotten just as he was within his clan.

Despite all of this, Daraku knew his place, and he knew that he deserved much better. He missed daily thrills, adventures, seeing the world, living by his own rules, communicating with his weapons rather than his words. Granted, he didn't miss the hallucinations and the other various psychoses, but he had gotten that under control completely in the last two years, and so if he were to hypothetically, say...run away and never be seen again in the village, there would be significantly less negative aspects. He supposed that he would be branded a traitor and a criminal again, and he would be wasting all the work he put into earning his place back in the village and the trust Suzume had put into him by erasing his crimes, but what was life but a series of unexpected events and proving one's place? He was tempted to build a new reputation for himself, regardless of whether that was someone who was revered or feared widely. Anything that would excite him, really.

Syekren was what he considered his last remaining friend in Sunagakure worth his time, and thus he made sure to meet with Sye at every chance he got. He was proud of the shinobi Syekren had become, but he also appreciated having a genuine friend in the midst of such turbulent and stressful times. He wondered how Syekren would feel about him leaving the village; he was the only person whose opinion mattered to Daraku, realistically. That afternoon, he came to the Oasis, and waited at the edge of the water, wearing baggy cotton pants, black sandals, and an orange shirt. His swords were tied to his back as they always were, and the hot sun overhead scorched his skin and left him with a radiant tan. If things continued at the rate they had been, this was to be one of Daraku's last times at the Oasis for an indefinite period, so he enjoyed it while it lasted.

It was time, Syekren nodded to the retreating form of Janumba. The ANBU had brought him his items and weapons and made sure that the Uchiha would have everything he needed when it came time to leave the village. It was all up to Syekren now, and as he sat in his small hideout, he couldn't help but feel as though this was really the turning point of everything. He'd put in a lot of time and effort in his village only to be 'rewarded' in this way. He was likely branded a traitor already and would be considered so for some time to come. The Uchiha sighed and removed his ANBU armour as well as his mask, carefully and meticulously organizing them in the small alcove within his place of hiding, covering them with a blanket. He was currently in a cave just near the border of the land of wind. The sand swept dunes beautifully hid where he was, but quite a bit of sand was still entering where he currently lay his head. Syekren only knew one thing, and that was the imperative notion that he find Daraku and talk to him, warn him of what was to come. Instead of his normal clothing, he was wearing a black long sleeve shirt that was tight to his skin, shinobi tights, and black slippers that were designed to make less noise that normal sandals.

The Uchiha reached over his small pile of weapons and items to grip his tanto, Hikari-hai and attach it to the back of his belt on the right side. It was there in case he needed to quickly grab for a weapon and defend himself. Otherwise, it was just out of habit now.  He'd been caught by enemies without a weapon before when they were armed to the teeth and it didn't turn out so well for him. Underneath his clothing on his legs, arms, and chest, Syekren was cut up pretty badly. He'd healed a bit since his encounter with the five ninja under the control of the counsel but the worst injuries were still bandaged up. It was during that fight that he had unlocked his three tomoe sharingan and nearly lost his life. Were it not for the ANBU, Janumba, he surely would not be standing here, looking over his earthly possession with regret. Pushing this out of his head, the uchiha grabbed a long black cloak with red trim and raised it up, looking at it by the light of a lone lamp. On the inside of the cloak where his back would press was the Uchiha fan symbol and the flames that it fanned. The only difference in these flames from the normal Uchiha symbol was that these flames were instead black like those of amaterasu. The inside of the cloak was crimson while the outside was black with the crimson trim. It would do for what he needed at this point.

The uchiha quietly pulled the cloak about his body, clasping it at the neck to keep it in place. He then drew his hood up over his face, enveloping all but his mouth in shadow. Syekren then went about grabbing up his contact lens case and pulling out one lens at a time, pushing them to his eye and moving them upon his iris. The normally dark blue and ocean blue eyes were now green coloured like emeralds. The next thing grabbed was ashiaro from the pile and the wood was maneuvered to resemble a coyote's paw prints. These were slipped onto the sole of the slippers before the man was finally satisfied that he was ready to go.  Looking once more over what he now called home, the uchiha swiftly made an exit from the cave and walked on towards the village hidden in the sand. Something told him though, it wasn't the village he needed to go to. His direction and course changed from a beeline to the village, to instead a path on to the oasis, a place he once frequented. When he finally arrived after what felt like hours of perilous travel through the sands. He was met with the familiar sight of Daraku, sitting at the edge of the water with his feet in the liquid. The Uchiha silently moved forward, setting himself down beside his friend, lowering his hood. He dropped the bomb quickly and in a hushed, hurried voice.

"It's time I leave Sunagakure no Sato. The elders made an attempt on my life, I found evidence of treason. I'm likely branded a traitor by now, hunted for a false crime."


781

As if by fate, someone sat next to Daraku, wearing an inconspicuous cloak with the hood pulled low. He spoke quietly, and Daraku could already tell what was going on. Syekren explained that the village elders had attempted to kill him after he found evidence of treason, so he was ready to hightail it out of there. Daraku raised an eyebrow, now suddenly part of the "good" side if he were to leave with Sye, or relatively good at least. He wasn't sure how he felt about anything anymore, it was all very numb and things were happening around him and he had to roll with the punches. He took this punch in stride, too. "So you're running away? That's it? Such a coward!" he jabbed Sye in the ribcage with his elbow. "It's obvious you expect me to come with you, since you've come here. But listen, Sye, I've built a name for myself. I used to be a thug, a criminal, a lower class piece of trash that nobody gave a second thought to, and I took that personally, and it only made things twenty times worse the further I got into life until I started killing people and next thing I knew I was running away from the village, just like you're trying to. Things are different now. I don't need to run, I don't need to be a criminal again, I have a place in this village, as mundane and unimportant as it seems to me, lately. I might not be the Kazekage...but...." He dropped the act, chuckling a bit. Now that he'd had his obligatory fun with the matter, he rested a hand on his blade. His fingers wrapped around the grip and he felt like he had control of his life again, which was a nice feeling.

"Just kidding. It was a matter of time before I lost it again and wreaked some havoc, normal life just isn't meant for me and if I'm not the big boss around here then what's the point, really?" It was bittersweet, still, because once he was gone, he wouldn't be back for a year or two, though he made a guarantee to himself that when he did come back he would be...making some changes in Sunagakure, so to speak.  He couldn't help but wonder what Sye's plan was when they got out of the village, though, so he leaned in close and asked, "What I need to know is what's gonna happen after we're gone. What's your endgame, Syekren?" His tone was much more solemn, and he looked directly into Syekren's eyes, taking note of the color change. All part of a complex disguise, very clever. Daraku figured he didn't need a disguise of his own and could rely on stealth techniques and his kekkei genkai to sneak around, just like he always had.

Running away? Is that what he thought? He had to leave, he couldn't fight the elders and their army of ANBU trained soldiers! Not by himself, not only with Daraku. He had to get away. He felt a jab in his ribs as Daraku went off on a tangent about how he'd built up his name for himself here. He'd done wrong and turned it all around, becoming so respected and loved in his home again. Of course Syekren wanted him to come with, but could he really expect such a thing of his friend after everything? Perhaps the two of them really should head their own ways? Syekren was the one having such problems this time around and couldn't bear to think of dragging someone down with him this time around. Perhaps it would definitely be for the best to leave Daraku out of this and allow him to continue living a normal and beloved life within the village. He didn't need to be a criminal of the village again, yes this much was true, and he had his own place in the village as Syekren once had his. It was when the Uchiha heard a chuckle from his friend that he turned his head up towards him, quite confused, it showing on his face.

Only kidding? "Oh you jackass! Here I was thinking it was time for us to say goodbye to each other! Had me worried for a moment there! I'm glad I could have you come with me before you decided to wreak havoc upon our home once more though. Well if you're not the boss around here, I should be! But since neither of us are, it's not like we're truly abandoning any sort of responsibilities here. The rest of the ANBU here can pick up what little slack I leave. I was only left to patrols anyway, so I'm not missing much." With that, Syekren sighed. He'd been basically demoted to errand boy and to patrol the village at night. It was really annoying to put a highly trained shadow of the village on something like patrols when there were real threats he could have been combating. Daraku seemed deep in thought as well and as such it gave him a chance to speak up. "If they do brand me a criminal, you coming with will only do the same for your reputation. You'll be aiding and abetting an enemy of Sunagakure no Sato. One of the highest offenses there can be. I imagine they'll declare me a leaker or something. I can't fathom what crime they'll claim. If you're ready for this than I won't try to tell you it'll be easy. We both know it won't be."

Syekren sighed and looked back at his friend, the other looking into his eyes as he spoke. He questioned of the endgame and what they would do once they'd left the village. To be sure, Syekren really had no idea on what they would be doing at all. He had just figured they would leave and wing it, but they would definitely need a plan. A place for his equipment at the very least, since he had something set up for someone to place his items in a caravan and send it wherever he said to send it. Rubbing his chin quietly, Syekren weighed his options. He shook his head, having nothing come to mind, rubbing his face with his hands. It wasn't until he felt the scar upon the left side of his face that he realized exactly what they should be doing instead of what they could do. "That's it.. We once had the fraternity of a specific group of people that helped us out with that crazy plant chick right? Why don't we just go figure where they're at and join back up with them? It would sure give us a purpose! I also have something I need to do once we leave here anyway, hopefully they know someone who can grant us some assistance for my plan." Syekren nodded and clenched his fist, staring down at it. His resolve was there and he knew what he'd do now.

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OOC: Decided to move plot things along so we can make this a flashback if need be for continuity.