Hazel eyes with flecks of red stared up at the stone faces of seven Konohagakure no sato ancestors. These men depicted in the stone were meant to have been past leaders of the village, some ages past. Each face was a new generation for the village, a new leader that had changed the village completely in some way. Apparently around the time of the seventh face, there were advances in technology, but over the three hundred years since his reign those advances had been tossed out in favor of the old ways, leading the ninja of today to live their lives as if those advances hadn't happened. Some of the technology of that age still remained, to be sure, but there was more to be said of keeping the tradition of ninja alive rather than their technology.

The eyes that stared up at the faces belonged to a ninja clad in retro shinobi attire. From black tabi inside soft step sandals and black shinobi tights. To black shinobi gi vest, netted shinobi shirt and cloth arm guards. Upon his right leg, over bandages wrapped around his thigh to keep from causing abrasions was a tool pouch containing five scrolls. While upon the back of his belt were two swords, one slightly longer than the other, sheathed with the sheathes tucked into loops in the back of his belt. The man wore a violet mask, matching his dyed hair color, the mask leading into his netted shirt. The male stared up at the faces, a lock of hair going past his eyebrows to be on the left of his right eye, while the rest of his bangs were brushed over to the right of his face, the back of his hair barely touching the nape of his neck.

The man sighed while staring at the sixth face, shaking his head. He'd been told by someone that was meant to be his sensei that he looked an awful lot like the man on this stone, as though he was trying to take the identity of the man. While he actually had no idea what the guy was talking about, it was pretty apparent now, staring at the face of the sixth what he meant. The two were eerily similar in most aspects of their looks, save for the right eye scare one had, that Anon didn't have. He stood there, quietly staring at the rocks as people passed him by and shot him quizzical looks. Some even went as far as to whisper how he was trying to emulate the sixth face up there, as though it was his plan to look similar. Shaking his head, the male pinched the bridge of his nose.

Just my luck.

458

Hokage Rock. It was the grandest of sights to be sure. Grander still was the vision Supaku had created in her mind's eye her own face being carved into the fantastic stone ridge, with all of Konohagakure no sato cheering her name. She did not usually indulge in such fantasies as they were frivolous and a rather large waste of her precious time. Though since she was eating her lunch simultaneously she felt she could afford the small distraction. She had come up to Hokage rock for this morning’s training, as she found the place both peaceful and inspirational. It was often quiet up here in the mornings, so no one usually bothered her. “Thank god.” She would mutter quietly under her breath between mouthfuls of rice. Unfortunately, now that it was lunch time, other people had the glorious idea of coming up here and invading her sacred training space. With a small sigh the small pale girl would gather up the remnants of her lunch and organize them neatly away into her bag.  

The sun was quite high now and she had to squint to see around her from where she was sitting on the ground. Annoyed by the angle of the sun and shadows, and the glare it was causing in her amethyst coloured eyes, she glared back at it and rose gracefully from her sitting position. Shaking the dust from her red dress she would quickly examine herself to be certain that there were no wrinkles in her white short sleeved blouse, and that the buttons in the front of her dress were undone exactly to her knee. No more and no less. Adjusting her leather belt she looked around at the people who had the nerve to invade her space. She made a quick and critical assessment. The usual riff raff. Supaku would roll her eyes at a young couple who were up here probably against their respective parent’s wills, holding hands and mooning about. “What on earth do you think that’s supposed to accomplish?” She would mutter in a disgusted tone as she picked up her bag from the ground and slung it over one shoulder. With another heavy sigh she would begin walking back towards the Village proper, disheartened at the utter lack of respect for such a significant monument.

Most people were passing by on their way somewhere they thought was so terribly important. But not one. Supaku almost passed by the man, she glanced at him with an irritated stare and then just before she would have been too far away for it to have been reasonable for her to stop, something clicked in her mind. Her mind had stopped walking before her feet had and it took a moment for them both to sync together again. In that time she would manage to turn herself back towards the tall stranger, placing herself firmly between him and Hokage Rock. She knew full well that it was rude to stare, however she simply could not help herself. The resemblance was uncanny, between this tall purple haired Shinobi and the Sixth Hokage on the rock behind her. She would place her bag back on the ground at her feet, and sweep her own lavender hair from her eyes while studying him intensely. There’s no way he could be? Is there? The gears in her mind were turning. She knew that the quickest way to power was not through hard work, although that was the surest way to keep it. The quickest way was through those that held it. He looked annoyed, or perhaps he merely had a headache. Either way she knew she had to tread carefully if she was to make a good impression. Putting on her most charming smile and with her usual ambitious glimmer in her violet eyes, she would extend one hand delicately as she spoke. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I hope you don’t mind me just coming up and introducing myself like this. I’m Supaku Hyuga, and you are?”

680

Anon stared intently up at the rock face for a while longer. Slightly annoyed at how similar the face was to his own. The features were too well defined, it was uncanny that he'd look like some dead guy with his face in the side of a mountain. The wanderer was so busy staring at the face that he barely noticed the girl who walked by him, and then turned as if she missed something and came back to stand in front of him and the rock faces. Slightly bewildered, Anon looked down to the young girl, tilting his head. She was a good half foot shorter than he, so it was easy to see over her head to what he was looking at, but he was unsure why this strange girl had come back to stare at him. He was about to speak to her about it, but she made a few movements that almost prompted him to draw his swords. What she was doing, however, was moving her hair out of her face and eyes, too look at him that much more clearly. Anon relaxed, slightly, but was still rather uncomfortable with her staring at him so. What would prompt someone to come up to a stranger and stare them down in such a manner as this? Surely this wasn't normal for the people here?

After a short time there came a charming smile to those rosy lips and a fire in those violet eyes, her hand extending in an introduction. To her, it was a pleasure to meet him. He was still rather confused and took the hand quite cautiously in his own, shaking it up and then down twice before releasing it. The hand was smaller than his, but in terms of softness, his might just have hers beat. She excused herself for coming up to him and introducing herself in such a manner by saying she hoped he didn't mind. Her name was Supaku Hyuga, and she wished to know his name. As a ninja, Anon was almost overtly cautious giving his name to someone he had only just met in the middle of the street, doubly so for the way she'd just been staring at him. The male's hazel eyes stared into her own, the blue and green offset with the small flecks of red within them. He contemplated his options for a moment before he spoke, choosing his words as carefully as he could. He didn't want to seem impolite, but also didn't want to give away all the information.

"I am Anon Brier, of clan Mitarashi. The pleasure is all mine, my dear."

Anon watched the girl quietly for a moment, looking around at the people hustling and bustling. She wasn't dressed like a shinobi, with that dress and all, but he was certain she was. Otherwise she wouldn't have approached a stranger dressed like him so carelessly. Who was he to judge other peoples' character though? He mentally shrugged it off and looked back up at the rocks for a moment before looking back to her and speaking. "So..Uh. Are you a ninja of this village? Or just a passerby? Because I don't personally see a hitai-ate on you and unless you're a rogue or wanderer, most ninja display theirs proudly. What do I know though?" The man shrugged softly, turning from the girl to walk towards a bench. He yawned a bit and sat down upon the bench, crossing one leg over the other and relaxing. He watched the girl with his Hazel hues silently, deliberating what could possibly go on between the two of them. He was not used to strangers coming up to him, much less introducing themselves so openly and acting so friendly or... charming? He sighed and stretched his arms above his head, feeling the hilts of his swords poking into his back. With a silent sigh, he pulled the swords and sheathes from the loops in his belt, leaning them against the bench on the ground next to him.

687|1,145

Taking the taller man’s hand in her’s Supaku was pleased with the gentleness of his touch. IIGood, no obscene callouses. A rough impostor would more than likely be covered in them. This is good Supaku, if he is who you think is he is, well. Keep him talking, make him see that he should help you, and in no time you’ll be on the fast track to sitting in the seat of the Hokage. She listened as he told her his name, Anon Brier. Not at all the name she had been expecting to hear, but she merely smiled nodded her acknowledgement of his generous information. The clan though, she didn’t recognize it and she allowed her face to show as much as she let the word Mitarashi roll through the recesses of her memory, searching for any hint of familiarity. Finding none however, she filed the clan name away to research at a later time when she didn’t have a veritable font of information at her disposal for an indeterminate amount of time.

Her confidence wavered momentarily as he released her hand and stood silently, first looking at her and then their surroundings. She worried that perhaps the opportunity acquire valuable insight, or training, or power from this man; Anon, was past. For not only did he clearly resemble the carving of the sixth Hokage behind her, he definitely appeared to her to be a skilled Shinobi. She could see plainly the armory he carried on his person, and if she could see that, there was no telling what other weapons he had at the ready that were simply beyond her ability to perceive. Perhaps I shouldn’t have been so direct? I always knew this day would come, when I could have had something if only I would have been less aggressive. Her worries quickly subsided as he continued speaking with her and she immediately started blushing terribly. Her headband was in her bag. Of all the times to stick to her meticulous regimen, today had to be the day.

She would reach down and retrieve her bag from the ground by her feet and follow Anon to the bench, watching as he sat and casually leaned back, legs crossed and arms folded. Supaku was in awe, she’d been in the presence of many Shinobi before, but the effortless way he moved and cavalier manner with which he spoke was inspiring. As he took his swords off of his back and leaned them up against the bench she would set her bag on the bench and make a show of rummaging through it, to disguise the fact that she knew precisely where her headband lay within it. Once she felt a sufficient amount of searching time had passed she pulled her beloved head band out of the well cared for bag and carefully tied it around her forehead, being careful to pull her bangs out from the head band.

“I’m sorry Anon-sama, I have a fairly strict schedule that I keep while I’m training. And during lunch, which it is now, I don’t wear my head band. It’s uh.. a way to keep me motivated. You see one day, I’m going to be up there.” She would gesture up to Hokage rock as she zipped up her bag again and placed it back on the ground. Placing her hands on her hips she would turn her body slightly to face the mountain, drawing herself up tall as she envisioned the future for the second time that day. “It’s in my blood you know. I can feel it, and it’s my dream, my only dream. More than anything in the world I want to be Hokage.” With a soft sigh she would sit down on the bench beside Anon, lost in her dreams. She would watch the passersby silently, thinking about all the work it was going to take to get there and all the plans she would have to enact, until finally her impulsivity got the better of her. She absolutely had to know. With an intense gleam in her eyes she would turn to Anon, choosing her words with care, and gesturing with even care still at the carving of the sixth Hokage. “You know Anon-sama. I couldn’t help but notice that you somewhat looked like that one there. You wouldn’t by any chance be related or some such, would you?”

751/1431

Anon watched the female silently as she sat on the bench as well, placing her bag between them upon the bench. She had been blushing mildly and seemed embarrassed. Apparently she didn't actually have her headband on anywhere upon her body and needed to get it. Anon quietly watched her rummage through her bag and tilted his head. After a moment he looked away, remembering that it was rude to look into a woman's handbag, even should she be rummaging through it right next to you. Not too much longer and she procured the headband of her village, putting it onto her forehead. Anon looked over the headband, noting the metals, which were similar to the one he wore in sunagakure, but somewhat different. The metal of the protector was a darker shade, which probably either meant impurities in the steel or differences in forging process. The metals they got for their headbands back in sunagakure no sato were collected from Door to Hell, which still had very high quality, despite being such a poor country. The image of the spiral leaf upon it confirmed that she was in fact a ninja of the village he was visiting.

She apologized, saying that she had a fairly strict schedule that she kept to while training. But it was lunch time and she didn't usually wear the headband during eating. It was her way of staying motivated, or something. She then got a look in her eye, saying one day, she'd be up 'there' gesturing to the stone faces. Anon tilted his head quietly at the faces, noting that they'd stopped after the seventh one for some reason. Was she planning to continue that tradition? She zipped up her bag and placed it on the ground, placing her hands on her hips and turning to face the mountain side. She drew herself up tall, rather dramatically actually, and said that more than anything she wished to be the Hokage. Anon only smiled politely behind his mask. He honestly didn't understand wanting to be in that position, but he understood how it would make someone feel. His goal was to become powerful, but also to be precious to someone. Not just someone, actually, everyone he met he wanted to become precious to them as they would be to him. It was his only goal in life and it was one that he had no intents of pulling out of. He would find his way to what he desired no matter what the cost was. That cost, currently, was wandering around aimlessly. It wasn't a bad life, really, if not a bit dull.

She sighed softly, sitting back down and drawing Anon out of his thoughts. She seemed lost in her own though, watching the people as they went by silently, thinking hard about whatever was going through her head. It was a good thing, as the quiet was something Anon rather enjoyed. He leaned back and relaxed, watching people go by as well. A nod and a smile here and there to the people who waved, or smiled at him. They seemed to be rather friendly out here, which was all well and good. There was movement beside him and Anon turned to see the girl with a fire in her eyes, staring at him and gesturing towards the sixth carving upon the mountain's side. She told him that she couldn't help noticing he looked like the one she gestured too. Then asking him if he was related or something.  Anon sighed inwardly and made a note to get a haircut or something later on. He knew that he looked kind of like the image of the man on the rock, but didn't know that he looked that much like him. Enough to make someone think he was related to the guy, apparently. With a shrug, he shook his head before answering.

"I personally don't know. As far as I know I was born in the outreaches of Iwagakure no Sato. From there I traveled alone to make my mark as a ninja of Sunagakure no Sato. That didn't work out so I asked to be made a wanderer and came here. Growing up, there were records of the clan and some of the people who once had the name 'Mitarashi.' One of them was from Konoha, apparently. Her name was Anko or something like that. She lived hundreds of years ago. I suppose it's possible that I have some deep relation to the guy in that mountain side. I don't think it's likely though. Us looking alike might be a coincidence?" The ninja sighed and shrugged, shaking his head. He truly had no idea why he looked so eerily similar to this man that was so revered in the village he'd come to. The clan did have records of old names of people who used to be alive and the woman he spoke of did live here. Whether or not the two bumped uglies and made a kid was anyone's guess. Anon quietly looked on at the mountain a bit longer before he spoke again. "Didn't they stop that tradition? The carving of the faces, I mean. Do you plan to bring it back as Hokage? Or do you plan to start it over?"

900|2,045

Supaku’s heart sank as she listened to Anon explain that he didn’t know whether or not he was related to the sixth Hokage. But she merely would shake her head subtly as she continued listening to his explanation. There was simply no way that someone that looked like he did, with such an uncanny resemblance, could not be related. She wouldn’t believe it. And in the face of all her prior training Supaku made the very conscious decision to discover the mystery of Anon’s heritage, because obviously he had to be a great and powerful Shinobi to have traveled as far as he had and wound up here. Of all the most fortuitous locations in all the great Nations, Hokage rock, on this day, with here sitting here eating her lunch.

Had Supaku not been currently preoccupied with dreams of becoming Hokage and discovering the mystery of the very handsome near stranger seated next to her, her more logical and rational self would have taken one half second to review the facts of the situation. The facts were that she didn’t know this man from a hole in the head. She’d literally only met him mere minutes before, and while he had introduced himself she had no idea if the name, or any information that he had provided her was accurate. She hadn’t even seen his face, it was still mostly covered with a violet mask, which under any other circumstance Supaku would have pointed out and been incredibly suspicious of. But of course, when power was at stake her usual rules regarding caution and self preservation went straight out the window.

And as such her smile would return warmer than ever as she turned herself to face him directly, this was the most exciting thing to happen to her since, well since ever and she would be damned if it was going to look like she wasn’t paying attention.

With a truly sincere bit of cheer in her voice she began to ask him about his travels. “You came all the way from Sunagakure no sato! And before that Iwagakure! That’s absolutely incredible. I know that probably sounds melodramatic, but I’ve never even been outside of Konoha, so to meet someone who has traveled that far, it’s just. Well it’s amazing is what. And to think that you know your ancestors so far back!” Her eyes would sparkle as she peered up at the mask clad man from beside him on the bench, her hands busy fidgeting with her long lavender hair that she had pulled over her left shoulder while she spoke. It was a nervous habit she had never fully gotten rid of, playing with her hair. For the most part she managed to ignore the nervous feelings that brought on the urge to fidget but in times like these when faced with genuine emotion she unthinkingly reverted back to old compulsions.

As the both went quiet again she would follow his gaze back to Hokage rock, allowing the peace of the moment to settle on them as she stared at the stern stone faces. Yes, one day she would have her face up there, she had already picked out the spot. It was a bit far to the right not in a disrespectful spot so as to mar the original carvings but it was where she always retreated to when she needed a bit of shade as the sun rose to high. She was so wrapped up in her imaginary stonemasonry planning that Anon’s next questions startled her and she would jump a bit and produce the tiniest of squeaks followed by a relieved sigh as she realized that she was not being attacked she had just been lost in thought.

“Oh, uh yes, they did stop it. Something about it eventually reducing the mountain to nothing or. . . something? To be honest I don’t actually know. But wait. . . when I’m Hokage? You think I’ll be Hokage someday? I don’t know what to say to that actually. I guess I do have a plan of course, you don’t achieve your dreams by not having a plan. But I would never start it over. I would just start from me and continue, right there.” She would stand again and point to the spot that she had chosen and then, rather impulsively, lower her hand to his to grasp it and should he allow it attempt to gently tug him from his sitting position before grabbing hold of her bag. Otherwise she would just awkwardly move to grab her bag and sling it over her shoulder. “Anon, would you like to go to the Market? It’s still lunch time you know, and I didn’t see you eat. And anyway, the sweet shop has new ice cream that I would like to try.”

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She gave him yet another warm smile, which caused the wanderer to become confused. He wasn't used to such kindness from someone who didn't know who he was. Or anyone for that matter, but here this woman was all smiles towards him and it felt.. nice. It felt as though it was something he'd been missing for quite a long time now. She continued on to ask him about his travels and to divulge with great enthusiasm how amazing it was and 'to think he knew his ancestors so far back.'  Anon looked down sheepishly, a blush appearing to his cheeks underneath his mask, his face turning slightly read around the rest of the bits while he scratched the back of his head. He wasn't used to compliments in the slightest, and for someone who didn't know him or his story at all to be so impressed and so enthusiastic to talk to him was unprecedented. Anon quietly thought for a moment before he'd respond to what she said, as humbly as possible, as he didn't think it was all that great. "It's really nothing. Traveling is in my nature, I suppose. I left Iwagakure no Sato due to complications with my clan and family. I left Sunagakure no Sato because I saw no future there. I suppose my goals are higher than I could reach within the confines of being a village ninja. As for knowing my ancestors, it's nothing that exciting. It's easy when your clan teaches history to every child at an early age. I know some things about Iwagakure and my clan, but my knowledge outside of where I've live and my clan isn't that varied."

He sighed at his lack of knowledge over things outside of his clan, and past villages lived in. With this girl, however, he was learning more and more of Konohagakure no Sato. Anon noticed the girl had a sparkle in her eyes again. It was beginning to look rather.. cute. She also had a compulsion to fidget and mess with her long hair while speaking or sitting there, something that the ninja hadn't quite experienced in others, but was all the more intriguing. She stared back up at the stone faces, each one looking grim to Anon but possibly as if a dream could be realized to her. Something about her having a dream like that sparked something in Anon. Their methods were different, but the end goals seemed somewhat similar. Anon smiled behind his mask while thinking on this, truly happy that he could have met someone who seemed to have greater aspirations than to just sit around and be 'another ninja from that village.' This girl was truly something special and Anon made a mental note to keep an eye on her progress, which meant he'd probably stick around Konoha for a while.

She spoke once more, prompting the wanderer's full attention, mentioning that they did stop the tradition of carving stone faces in the mountain side after the seventh face. She said that they had declared it would reduce the mountain to nothing, or something of that effect. She didn't know, but she knew more than he did. She seemed to latch onto what he said, as he'd told her when she became Hokage, not if. Anon smiled softly behind his mask, smiling mostly with his eyes. The blush was still there, but it had settled somewhat as he found more confidence than sheepishness. "Of course I think so. You seem very confident in yourself and your aspirations are reachable and admirable. I have no reason to think you wouldn't reach that height someday, Supaku. Of course, it'll be a long and arduous journey, but I have no reason to doubt that someone like you could make it through. You have a plan and you can follow it through to the end. That's more than most people even attempt to do."

The male chuckled softly and looked back up at the sixth face, analyzing it. Perhaps it wasn't so bad, looking like him. He obviously was a ninja of great renown and power. Not only that, but he seemed to be someone that people looked up to, figuratively and otherwise. It was more a compliment to be compared to such a great man then. Anon was pulled from his thoughts by a soft hand grabbing his and pulling him upwards from his seated position. Which, given his weight, he'd allow himself to be pulled to stand and he'd grab his swords with his free hand. He'd chuck one up into the air, the longer of the two, and move the first into his left side through the loop on the back of his belt. Within seconds the other would come down, which he'd catch and push through the loop on the back right of his belt, replacing his swords to their original position. Once again, his own gentle hand was in hers and he was a bit surprised to have been pulled along. She asked his company to the market, as it was lunch time and he hadn't eaten. She had a sweet shop in mind and he could only nod in agreement.

He grabbed her bag for her and held it out for her to carry, before they started their walk. Anon had completely forgotten their hands were hold each other while they walked, as he thought of the sweet shop. "I love visiting places with sweets. I'm a sucker for dango and I only hope that this place has some great variants of it! In Sunagakure no Sato, sand gets in everything you know? So it's hard to enjoy the dango when it's got grains of what you walk on in it. I don't think that'll be a problem here, which is quite the relief!" The male chuckled excitedly as they walked, his hazel hues taking in everything about the scenery. He hadn't really noticed before, but this place was just so beautiful. So unlike the places he'd called home before and he was so very excited to experience all of it.

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Supaku was somewhat. . . shocked. She had been under the very mistaken assumption that she was entirely in control of this situation, however as her hand touched his and he didn’t pull away she felt something. She couldn’t place the feeling at first, it was familiar to be sure, but it was a feeling long out of use and as she helped him to his feet she found herself smiling up at him happily. She was impressed with his display of dexterity as he casually rearmed himself, though she felt just the tiniest twinge of disappointment as he let go of her hand to do so. What is this? What am I doing? I’m supposed to be much more in control than this. I’m supposed to be above all this! She would internally admonish herself for what she falsely believed to be useless behaviour, though only half heartedly as the other half of her heart was enjoying itself far too much to pay her fun-hating brain much heed.

As she tugged Anon along towards the city proper he thankfully had the presence of mind to grab her bag and hand it to her, something she hadn’t even thought of. She would pause, and with a slight blush rising to her cheek at the embarrassment of having actually forgotten something for possibly the first time in as far back as she could remember, she accepted the bag with a quiet and shy, “Thank you, Anon-san" Slinging the bag back over her shoulder with her free hand she would walk alongside him comfortably, slowing to an easy pace as they moved past trees and buildings and people. Supaku found herself laughing effortlessly at Anon’s story about sand filled dango. Although she couldn’t quite imagine sand getting everywhere, that seemed implausible. There was sand around Konoha in spots, but not really. Still she laughed along with him as he told her of it all the same, happy to share in his excitement.

“Here in Konoha you’re not likely to get sand in anything.” She would say after they had walked for a while. “I’ve never been outside of Konoha you know, to another Village I mean. But I’ve been all over around here. There’s no place quite like this, there’s plenty of things to see, it’s quite beautiful.” She looked around at the path as they descended into the city and felt a swell of pride at her Village, she really did love it. The way it was so cleverly designed, so comfortable and secure. The thought caused her to think back suddenly and regretfully on the training she was shirking on this impulsive escapade of hers. She would pause in her steps near a wooden rail to allow herself a moment's respite to honestly weigh her decision, where she most certainly hadn’t previously.

On the one hand she had her dream of being Hokage, something she had dreamt of since she couldn’t remember when, not just dreamt but obsessed over, to the point of having to write in “Don’t Forget!” next to her meal tasks on her schedule. It was in her every waking thought, drilled deep into her psyche by her well meaning parents and then carried forward by her ill trained sense of self worth. It was not a bad dream, but it was an all consuming one. And on the other, quite literally at the moment, was a handsome stranger she had only just met. Someone who on a whim she had approached to help facilitate her usual obsession and had found that it was a puzzling exception to her usual view of socializing. It was a conundrum and she did not feel like she had the answer. So in a rather childish and yet very responsible way she chose not to make one. She didn’t have to choose, not right now anyway, surely a single day of enjoyment could be made up for by extra training later. It was her Village that was for certain, she could feel it deep inside as she gazed over it now and she would turn to look up at Anon with a mischievous grin, “So then, dango and then where? Because I’ve decided to take the day off from training and you’ve got yourself a guide for the whole day. And you’ll not find one better.” She would lower herself in an elaborate half bow, half curtsy as her purple eyes danced with laughter. “Guide Supaku, at your service.”

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When she tugged him along, she noticed that he grabbed her bag for her and slung it over her shoulder, blushing and thanking the wanderer. He blushed slightly too and muttered to her "No problem." They continued on and she laughed at his tales of sand everywhere, even in the dango. Which was funny, in a sense, but it was so true. Sand got everywhere and it was so hard to get out. There was no sort of technology that would completely get sand out of everything. Not unless you knew someone who could control sand with their chakra like that Rokumaru guy Anon had met in a twist of fate. The Mitarashi thought back to his time in Suna, cursing himself for not spending more time growing a friendship with the crimson haired kid, and learning more about his culture and his clan so he could bring it up to Supaku. All he knew was that Rokumaru poured sand on a table and made it into the shape of a smiley face, before wiping it back into his boot. Would that be something to tell?

In Konoha, they weren't likely to get sand in anything, which made sense to Anon as he didn't see any hint of sand anywhere in the village so far. It was pretty much dirt roads and trees, sometimes cobblestone paths. It was peaceful, and beautiful, pretty great weather as well. She went on to say that she'd never been outside of the village, outside of Konoha, but there was no place like it. When she mentioned that there were plenty of things to see and that it was quite beautiful, he looked to her, his hazel hues upon her face that seemed to light up at this outing. "Yes, it really is." He then realized what he was doing and blushed, looking away, feeling her steps slow until she stopped on a wooden railing and seemed to be thinking. She was taking a moment's respite and the wanderer wasn't sure if she was considering letting go and leaving him to his wandering of the village or if she was thinking about letting go of his hand to continue this tour more professionally. Inwardly he cursed at himself for letting himself get in this deep.

His worries faded when she turned to him with a mischievous smile, taking him aback. Dango and then where? Where would they go after that? He had no idea what there was in this village and his confusion was mounting with each building and landmark they passed. She'd taken off training for the whole day to do this and he could feel his guiltiness mounting quickly. He had taken her away from something that would make her stronger, just so he could learn about the village that was to be his temporary home.  He agreed, though, that he would not find a guide much better than her, even if he was biased due to the hand holding.  She lowed herself into a half bow, half curtsy with those beautiful eyes dancing in the light of laughter, staring back at him. 'Guide Supaku, at your service.' He was rather flustered as he hadn't actually thought of what the two could do or where they could go. Her kindness was overpowering him and he felt as though his brain was turning to mush from it. Was it kindness, or something else though? He was so confused.

"I.. er. I appreciate this a lot. But I have no idea at all where we should go next! I have no idea what is in this village or what it has to offer. There's so much we've seen already and I haven't even decided what kind of dango I want! If it's all the same to you, Supaku, I'd rather you show me around more and decide what you want to do together. You really seem to know your way around and you know.. you're great and all." The wanderer was once again blushing, using his free hand to scratch the back of his head as he looked away bashfully. In truth, he really wasn't used to prolonged skin to skin contact with someone. He'd never held anyone's hand this long, as it wasn't that important to some. Sure, he'd had girlfriends in the past, but they cared little about the 'cutesie' things and hadn't made much effort for it. He stopped himself when he thought of 'girlfriend' at this point and mentally cursed himself, his blush growing a deeper hue. His whole face had almost become a burning scarlet.

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Anon was a wonderfully intense shade of scarlet by the time he was finished speaking. At least what little of his face Supaku could see. And she had nearly managed to avoid blushing deeply herself, that is up until he called her great. There was no denying that she thoroughly enjoyed a compliment, she lived for them in fact. Breathed them in like oxygen and worried that she might die without their nourishment. This one though, she hadn’t done a thing that she could think of to deserve, not truly. Sure she’d tried to win him over with a smile, and by all rights maybe that had worked. But sometime between the bench and standing here in her out of character bow, she’d abandoned that plan. Or rather, got swept away by it. And now, as he stood there in front of her quite adorably scratching the back of his head she couldn’t remember at all why she thought that tricking him had been a good idea. She would slowly rise up from her whimsical pose, still holding his hand in hers and smile thoughtfully at him, trying to ignore the blush on her cheeks that was surely giving away her intended mask of composure.  

She was not usually one to hide what she was thinking about a person, and she supposed that now was probably not the best time to start so she would take a tiny step closer, searching his hazel hued eyes with her own violet ones and speak in a soft voice. “You think I’m great? I’m very pleased to hear you say that, but I’m sorry, I can’t think of the reason why. And I know, you said a good many other things in there as well. But I got stuck on that one thing. No one’s ever said that to me when it wasn’t because of something I accomplished, some race I won, or feat I performed, test I passed. That’s probably the kindest thing anyone’s ever said to me. Anon Brier of the Mitarashi, I think you’re great too.” She would duck her head shyly for a moment, needed to break eye contact before she continued. While she did pride herself on being honest to a fault, and not usually maintaining friendships as a result, she had only been invested in one other person before and it had not gone well. She had been told flat out that she was too aggressive by the boy and instead of accepting that information she had sworn off romantic encounters since. Thinking back on that event now dulled her confidence and made her hesitate, What am I thinking about romance for, I only just met the man! But time doesn’t wait for anyone Supaku! You want something, you need to speak up, no one is just going to hand things to you. She would clear her throat and look up again more confidently, but with no less of a blush, squeezing his hand slightly in excitement.

“I would like to go to the sweet shop. And then maybe we could walk by the Hot Springs, its quite lovely there this time of year and then after that. . . well we can decide from there. That’s something to get started, no need to plan everything out now.”

She smiled again warmly, and reaching her free hand up towards his other arm would attempt to pull his arm down from it’s position behind his head. She was glad that he seemed to be shy as well, and she hoped dearly that this wouldn’t be interpreted as her ‘being too aggressive’ again. So she quickly followed up with some words spoken with a soft laugh.

“I hope I’m not being too bold Anon, I’m often told I am. I really do think you’re great you know.”


656/3679

The scarlet that he imagined plagued his own features was mirrored upon the girl's face as well. When Supaku stood up from her whimsical bow, she smiled thoughtfully to Anon, her hand still holding onto his tightly. She stepped closer to him, her beautiful violet eyes searching in his own hazel ones for something he couldn't quite place, and wasn't sure if she herself could. She seemed confused as to why he thought she was great or at least didn't know exactly why he had said so at that moment. For a few seconds, he didn't know either. It seemed that it had really just slipped out when he was looking at her, and then for him it clicked: he was absolutely smitten by this beauty. It only deepened when she told him that she thought he was great too.  His blush was about as deep as it could go, his smile as wide as it could possibly be. Her head would duck after she spoke, breaking their eye contact, much to his dismay and sadness. She cleared her throat quietly, before giving his hand a gentle squeeze, showing she'd speak again.

Anon listened intently as she spoke of going to the sweet shop, then to the hot springs for a walk.  She said it was supposed to be nice this time of year and they wouldn't need to plan out everything, they could decide as they went. This worked out well for the wandering ninja. He honestly was no good at planning things out for specifics and then following through outside of battle. "That sounds perfect to me. I suppose when we go to get sweets, I'll need to lower my mask yea? It's weird, I rarely ever do that in the company of others, mostly because of the significance of the mask itself. I can't think of one person I'd rather share sweets and a walk with though, so showing the rest of my face is a small price to pay." Anon chuckled, blushing a bit more as he gave her hand a slight squeeze. The two were having a grand time if he was any judge. The day could only get better from here on out and he was excited to see how everything played out between the two. Romance was so strange for someone like him, but with her everything felt right in the world.

When she pulled his arm down from behind his head and held that one as well, Anon listened to her telling him that she really thought he was great.  He could never think she was being too bold, though. She seemed to be rather lax to him. Without thinking, his body began to lean forward, as though to kiss her. He was caught in the moment and when he realized this he pulled his other arm and pointed in a random direction, feeling embarrassed. "Bold? Think nothing of it my dear. Now let's go get some of those sweets, yea? I am dying for some good dango!" He was cursing at himself mentally. Had he gone through with the kiss and misread the moment, she would have definitely been offended by it. Not only that but he was still wearing his mask and it would make the kiss quite an awkward one. Something he didn't want to happen should the two share a first kiss. This all seemed to be moving so quickly but he liked it, even if he was forgetting himself. This girl made him feel.

600|4,479

Supaku felt like she was standing on a cloud as she held Anon’s hands and stared up into his beautiful hazel eyes. She couldn’t think of a more perfect moment, of course she had also thought that a few moments ago, and a few moments before that. And if things continued in this manner she was likely to keep thinking that each moment was more perfect than the last until everything around her was perfect unending harmonious bliss. The thought was somewhat amusing to her, as she didn’t think that was entirely possible. She’d read about that sort of thing during her studies, having felt that leaving out romantic texts to be a logical failing, as ignoring an entire literary subject would likely only hinder her intellect rather than strengthen it. In those long winded tales of romance, tales of princesses and knights; dragons and kingdoms, holy wars and evil wizards, Supaku had noticed one common thread. In each of these fairly unbelievable epics there were rather ordinary people who became heroes, and more often than not it was not through hard work or discipline, but through their uncanny fortitude of spirit, spurred on by their love for someone. Sometimes it was a family member, a child or a parent, sometimes it was the love of their country or an ideal that fueled their passion. But most often it was a single person, their one true love that they fought armies for, walked through deserts for; died for. Until now she had thought that concept truly ludicrous, one person was not worth all that effort in her mind, not one person outside of the obvious need for self preservation. But looking up at Anon now, she was beginning to understand a tiny bit of what those stories were trying to convey. She wasn’t sure that she would fight a dragon for him, maybe she would, but she had already severely deviated from her normal behaviour, and she didn’t mind. If she was entirely honest with herself she even liked it. This man, who she knew very little about, had somehow captured her heart and made her feel happy.

She felt, rather than saw, Anon lean in towards her. It was a subtle shift in his stance, the way his muscles moved underneath her hands, and in that moment she didn’t know what to do with herself. She felt a strange fluttering in her stomach that was accompanied by a warm burning in her chest, none of it hurt or was really very physical at all, simply strange. She knew that she wanted to kiss him, but she also didn’t know if that was appropriate and she recognized in herself that feeling of fear that came when she thought she might fail. What if he was merely leaning in to carefully extract his hands from hers, and she was horribly misreading what was going on? And there was also his mask to consider, it would most certainly be in the way, and what then? Should she wait until he did something about that, or would removing it be considered too far beyond the ‘just bold enough to be considered endearing’ line? She doubted herself for a moment, thinking back to the boy who had turned her away years ago, but that boy hadn’t made her smile. Supaku decided then that her it was worth the risk of being rejected and she would rise onto her tiptoes to easier reach the mask that Anon was wearing.

As Supaku would release Anon’s arm to raise her own, intending to lower his mask, she was surprised to feel that he had already pulled his own arm away. And as he pointed beyond her she would pause her arms ascent, her hand being just in line with the top of her own head, she would laugh shyly and brush back her hair. She was currently horribly embarrassed, she had been too bold, yet again. At least time she had not been told out right to piss off, but it felt awful all the same. He was assuring her that she was not being too bold, but she couldn’t help feeling she was anyway. Just this very morning she had gone through her daily ritual of emboldening herself, so it was extremely likely that he was merely being polite, or that was her fear at least. Her hope was that Anon was telling her the truth and that she was reading far too much into everything, as she did on a regular basis. Supaku, worrying does not become you. You are not a worrier, you are many things; a Shinobi, champion, scholar, the next Hokage. But you are not a worrier, so stop and just enjoy yourself. With a subtle nod of her head and her one hand still securely in his, she would turn about and began gently pulling him in the correct direction (which was not the one he had been pointing in, which she also didn’t bother to point out, although his blushing would have been adorable). “Right, of course, the dango. I may have gotten a bit distracted, which does not normally happen, I assure you. I will endeavour to pay closer attention to my duties! Since I can’t have you dying on my watch, what kind of a guide would I be after all?” Assuming Anon didn’t stop her, Supaku would walk quietly beside the taller shinobi towards the market, occasionally stealing a glance at him before finally smiling and voicing her agreement. “I can't think of one person I'd rather share sweets and a walk with either.”


953/4632

It seemed that she had in fact reached up as though she was going to do something with her arm but his oblivious and shy nature had ended whatever moment they'd had. When she tugged on his hand, she led him in the opposite direction he pointed, mentioning the dango they'd discussed earlier, and spoke on how she didn't normally get distracted like this. Which, neither did he really. Anon wasn't really worried about 'dying' on her watch, she was an excellent guide after all and was doing incredibly well to lead him about and teach him what he needed to know about the village. Everything in the village seemed to be so much better and more joyous when they were walking together, and he couldn't really place the feeling as to why that was. He just thoroughly enjoyed everything so much more in this woman's company. The woman who aspired to be the next hokage, who wanted to rise above everyone else and lead the village into a new age, hopefully of prosperity. She had greater aspirations than even Anon could attest to personally. It was  almost inspiring just how truly focused and driven the girl holding his hand was. Supaku was truly amazing.

They walked quietly hand in hand, through the market, Supaku occasionally stealing glances over at Anon. The only reason he knew this was when she looked at him and smirked, he'd catch her just as she turned away. It was rather cute how she was doing something like this when she figured he wasn't looking. It wasn't something he was used to dealing with when it came to spending time in the company of the fairer sex. She couldn't think of someone she'd rather share sweets and a walk with, which made him blush more than he must have blushed when he found out that the way he had pointed to go initially was the wrong way. Everything they passed by seemed so interesting, if only he knew more about it, then he could relate with Supaku on the village and what was around. Possibly tell her what he liked most about the specific shops and buildings they passed. Truthfully, he mostly spent time in weapon shops, looking over new pieces that he planned on getting in the future, to expand his arsenal and armory. His main concern was usually training and getting stronger or better, so other shops weren't exactly something that he was strong with.

"I don't mean to ruin another moment, but truthfully: other than dango shopping, most of my money and time is spent on weapon shops and finding new blades. I wish I had something more interesting to talk about, but all I know is weapons you see. I was actually planning on requesting to do a few missions soon so that I'd be able to have enough money to purchase new blades. Now that you're around, perhaps I should look into getting you some nice training gloves, since I don't know what your specializations really are." He chuckled and nudged the girl playfully as they walked, looking around. He'd tried to relate to her as best as he could, being playful and trying to open up the conversation so it was not so silent as they walked. He figured the best way that he could open things up between the two was to express his interests and wait for her to continue along with her own. He figured she was a taijutsu specialist, but that couldn't possibly be the only thing she was good at. He wanted to know more about her, even if it didn't have to do with being a ninja.

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Supaku laughed as Anon nudged at her and then would dart in front of him attempting to halt his forward pace, dropping into a mock fighting stance with a playful grin on her face. It had not occurred to her until he pointed it out that she had spoken very little about herself, something that before now was unheard of. She was also still a bit thrown at the mention of him purchasing training gloves for her. No one, save for her parents, had ever suggested buying anything for her. All in all it was making her quite giddy and brazen. “So you don’t know what my specializations are do you? I suppose that’s fair, seeing as I basically stole you away from your quiet afternoon, and have told you virtually nothing about myself.” She would relax from her stance and walk up closer to Anon a studious look on her face as she looked him over. She couldn’t imagine that he needed new blades as he had mentioned, but since she didn’t use any what did she know about it?

“I practice Taijutsu primarily so you were bang on with the training gloves. But I haven’t been out training for a while, just here by myself for a few weeks.” She gestured up to Hokage rock, the smile momentarily leaving her face as she remembered why she had opted to be alone. “The last mission I was on didn’t go particularly well, and I’m more than a little nervous to go back out again.” She would look down at her feet, feeling suddenly vulnerable at admitting her fear to what amounted to a near stranger. Though in truth she felt closer to Anon than to perhaps anyone she’d met in the relatively short span of her life. “Being a Hyuga isn’t all it’s cracked up to be as it turns out. Last mission I went on I had my eyes stolen, and I haven’t really. . . readjusted I guess you could say. So I’ve just been focusing on my forms and trying to get my confidence back. Please don’t tell anyone that I’m nervous to go out again, and I hope you don’t think less of me for it.”

Supaku would stand there nervously playing with her hair, unsure if she had just ruined the moment now. She looked up at Anon with her violet eyes, knowing full well that there was no indication that anything had ever happened to them. Patriarch Kotamine had done a remarkable job of putting them back in and healing her up again. Probably to a well trained medical ninja there was some sort of evidence, but she doubted that Anon was such, seeing as he had so many weapons. As she caught his gaze and stared into his beautiful hazel eyes with the pretty red flecks in them, her doubt left her entirely. Whatever fear she’d had of his judgement a moment before was washed away as she peered up at his masked face from beneath her lavender bangs. A small smile formed on her lips as she realized that, if he hadn’t judged anything she’d done up until now, why would he start at this moment? You truly are dim witted sometimes Supaku.

With a sparkling laugh, she would sweep the hair from her eyes and casually shrug her shoulders. “But I got better, obviously. Would you like to see one of my favourite shops? I used to be an artist you know, before I started training as a Kunoichi. It was one of my most treasured hobbies, mostly sculptures, but occasionally paintings as well. Come, come, there’s a woman here that does the most beautiful paintings.” She would regrasp Anon’s hand with renewed passion and excitement, and pull him along to a shop with easels set up, canvasses displaying exquisite landscapes and epic battles, charming courtesans and dashing shinobi. She would point to one of Hokage rock, parts of Konoha visible in the foreground, with bits of glowing chakra swirling about, giving the illusion of tendrils coming from the rock and laying gently over the village below. “This here is how I see the village and that rock. All the Hokage are there to cradle and protect the village, they give everything to do it, because they love it so much.” She would reach a tentative hand out to trace the tendrils in the air, hovering just above the actual painting, not daring to touch the precious work of art. “What about you, what sorts of things do you enjoy, or well. . . do? Tell me about yourself, I want to know everything about the most wonderful person I met today, Anon Brier.”

800/5432

Anon watched as the girl went into a mock fighting stance. His hand instinctively went back to the hilt of his sword as he watched her, tensing up for just a moment before he saw the playful smile upon her face. It wasn't until then that he realized it wasn't a threatening stance she took and he let his hand drop back down to his side, tilting his head as she spoke. She realized that she hadn't actually said anything about herself since she'd 'stolen' him away from his quiet day. Though he had to say he preferred not being alone as her company really improved his mood for the day.  As she relaxed from her fighting stance, her smile stayed to her face, studying Anon almost as one would study an object of great interest. Or perhaps a person one was infatuated with. The second option was more likely and caused another blush to reach the young Mitarashi's cheeks as he considered this.

It seemed she was actually a taijutsu specialist so his idea about the training gloves was right on the money. She hadn't been training lately, as she said,  which Anon was sad to say he related to. Training was an integral part of his day normally but now it was becoming less so. He'd have to buckle down and focus once more. She'd continued to speak, gesturing before to the Hokage rock to make the last point of her being there by herself for a few weeks. She continued on to say that the last mission hadn't gone well and so she was nervous to get back out once more. Anon rubbed his chin in thought before he spoke up. "Well there were a couple of priority missions I saw posted at the gate during my way in that seemed like something that I could get on with doing. I mean.. If you wanted.. You could join me? Two people are better than one you know!" He'd never really asked someone to do a mission with him so such a thing made him feel awkward.

When he noticed her looking down at her feet, his hand instinctively reached up and placed itself upon her shoulder, he smiled behind his mask as he did so, trying to comfort her.  She'd lost her eyes? But she seemed to have them again, though she said she was readjusting. He made a note of this and nodded quietly. "There's no reason to fear, Supaku dear. I won't tell anyone your secrets. I could never think less of you either. In fact I feel special that you're taking this time to open up to me and I feel like we're becoming closer even though we've only just met. It's an incredibly feeling and I have to say I really appreciate you giving me the chance to experience it." With that he chuckled and patted her on the shoulder, dropping his hand.

She spoke on how she'd gotten better, obviously and then after speaking on how she was healed she grabbed his hand with renewed vigor and led him away towards her favorite shops. An artist before becoming a Kunoichi? She really was the most interesting girl he'd met in his lifetime. When she showed him the paintings, speaking on one of the hokage rock and what it meant to her, Anon's chest fluttered. She was so passionate about such things and it warmed his heart more than he expected. When it came time that she turned to him and asked what he liked or was interested in and just what he liked to do, without thinking he reached up to pull his mask down. His lips were in a smile, the slight thin nature of them less apparent due to such a smile and he spoke softly one one word. "This." His hand came to cradle the side of her face as he leaned forward, pressing his lips gingerly to her own. He didn't know what he was doing anymore. As their lips would meet he felt as though he was finally truly becoming himself due to this girl showing him the way.

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Supaku’s violet eyes were sparkling with intensity as she looked up at Anon, her heart full of passion and excitement. Talking about the painting, her favourite painting, was not something she had been able to do with anyone until now. Not that she had ever tried mind you, though she’d never felt so inspired to attempt it until now. She felt truly alive, in the most cliche sense of that statement, she’d never shared these dreams with anyone who had actually cared enough to listen before. It was so rewarding to have him just listen to her with warmth in his red flecked hazel eyes, but what she really wanted was to hear about him. He was so intriguing and she wanted to know everything about him, even though part of her felt as though she had known him forever and just been waiting for him to arrive here. As she explained how she felt about the painting in front of her, what it meant for her to protect her home of Konohagakure, she turned to Anon her one hand still in his and was surprised as he pulled down the purple coloured mask covering the lower portion of his face.


He was just as handsome as she had imagined, with smooth pale skin and a well defined jaw line. A beautiful smile played on his lips and as his free hand came up to gently cradle the side of her face she felt her heart flutter. She had never kissed anyone before, but she knew instinctively that this was the right moment. She leaned up towards him and as his lips delicately pressed against hers she held his gaze as long as she could, as she felt a fire she hadn’t known before burn deep within her. Her free hand would come up and coil around the back of his neck, attempting to pull him closer to her and as she did so she felt her eyes slowly close seemingly of their own volition. She melted into his embrace, strange and bright colours dancing on the edges of her mind's eye and she returned his kiss passionately. This man had spent only a short time with her and had broken down walls in her that she had spent years building up, she felt free to be her true self with him and as she would finally break from the kiss she spoke to him breathlessly.


She was practically hanging off the ground, suspending most of her weight from the back of his neck with one arm and his shoulder with the other. Their height difference made it difficult to look directly at him, but she would beam up at him with adoration in her eyes. She blinked once as for a moment everything was covered in a strange light again, much like when her eyes had been closed previously. In a flash it was gone and she attributed it to the warmth in her heart and the tingling in her skin. This man was truly special and she felt blissfully enchanted as she would reach forward to kiss him again.

533/5965

OOC: getting to this soon, my b

She seemed rather enchanted by the kiss, much to the wandering ninja's surprise. She was happy it seemed, for the moment they had shared together had an effect on her. She said that she was waiting for him and looked ready to lean in for another kiss. Anon was happy to oblige, of course, but as he too leaned in for a kiss, there was a slight cough from someone at his right. Anon stopped and turned quietly to see a young boy, stout and scraggly.  He was holding a letter out to Anon and the wanderer reached out to take it, thanking the young man. The boy stared at the two in their embrace for a moment before he had decided he wasn't getting a tip, not that Anon couldn't tip him he was just oblivious to someone waiting around without speaking, and ran off in the direction he had initially come from. Anon looked over the letter and sighed quietly. He'd almost forgotten he'd sent word ahead to ask for a few missions while he was in Konoha.

Anon only pulled away to read through the letter, noting that he'd been accepted to take on a few missions and two were given to him initially for him to complete as he could. When he was done reading the letter he folded it up and pushed the paper into his pocket. For a moment he'd forgotten what he was in the middle of. When it came back to him, he turned to Supaku and smiled softly, reaching up to his mask. "It seems I've been allowed to take a few missions during my time here in your village. Since I'm not too sure of the surrounding areas or the land, do you think you could accompany me on these missions? It would be nice to have someone along with me while I do them and I've no doubt you could be of the utmost assistance. You may even be what separates failure and completion." He smiled once more after finishing and raised his mask back up to cover the lower half of his face, starting from the middle of his nose to the bottom of his neck, the mask leading back into his shirt. He waited on her response, trying to figure out what missions he had asked for that they'd given him specifically.

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OOC: Sorry it took so long and it was a mood killer, but I figured we could get our plot moving along :P

Supaku was thoroughly swept away by the moment, and was momentarily confused by Anon turning away from her. It was only as she reviewed the last few seconds of her memory that she realized that she had heard the young boy cough, and merely ignored it as irrelevant to her. To say she was annoyed was probably an understatement, she tried her best to hide that fact as the circumstances couldn’t be helped necessarily, however internally she fumed at the interruption. She watched as the boy handed Anon a letter, standing there awkwardly and then scurrying off. He had probably been expecting a tip, not that Supaku cared much at the moment. He could have waited a few minutes she thought, then again perhaps the letter was of dire importance. With that thought Supaku became more concerned than annoyed, hoping that whatever was in the correspondence was not bad news.

As the young messenger ran off and Anon turned back to her, Supaku waited while holding her breath.

"It seems I've been allowed to take a few missions during my time here in your village. Since I'm not too sure of the surrounding areas or the land, do you think you could accompany me on these missions? It would be nice to have someone along with me while I do them and I've no doubt you could be of the utmost assistance. You may even be what separates failure and completion."

This was a surprising turn of events. While she was quite glad that Anon had not received any awful news, she was now unsure of what answer to give to his request. On the one hand she was more than happy to help him, and the flattery was definitely working on her. On the other hand though, she was still nervous about going out to do anymore missions, as the last one had been so painful for her. She would sweep at the hair that had fallen into her eyes again, and lean trustingly against Anon, clearing her throat so he knew she was not ignoring his request. “I want to help you, I really do. And I guess I should start by saying that I will. However, I am not keen to go on another mission. That won’t stop me though, I’ll still go. I’m just afraid, and I thought you should know that.”

403/6368

OOC: I sorry pls no h8

The young man quietly grabbed her hands in his when she had finished speaking, doubting herself and seeming unsure. He smiled softly to her, his mask creasing around his mouth slightly to show his wide smile. "There is nothing I would love more than to have your assistance, I appreciate you taking this leap with me. I promise, that I won't let your fear take control of you, nor will I allow any harm to come to you. I couldn't allow that to happen after the wonderful time we've spent together thus far. I apologize if it seemed so forward, but I'm glad you have accepted. The first mission or two won't be too stressful I hope, but I do plan to take a B-Rank mission soon so that I may grow in experience and prove myself to what could become my new home. I will be honest though, I am a wanderer fresh out of a village searching for strength wherever I can find it. It may not be here, but I won't leave you alone should I not find what I search for. Even should I leave the village, I won't stay away, I'll come back to you."

He blushed a bit from what he'd just said, realizing the commitment he was making. It wasn't that the commitment itself scared him, just that these words were coming from him for some he'd only just met. Everything just felt right with this girl from the village hidden in the leaves. They were a bit of a contrast of each other, but he felt like something between them could truly grow and work out well. No matter how he felt about making such commitments, he knew that he was making the right decision with her. He only hoped she would feel the same. Now that he was cleared to take missions though, he'd need to decide on which missions to take and what would be the best course of action to take then do them. he wanted to grow stronger and more experienced, but what would he need to do to get the power he searched for? These things baffled the man and he thought back to the figure upon the mountain of stone faces, who he shared and uncanny resemblance to. Would his strength ever reach a point that he'd emulate this man, or even do his memory proud?

414|6,645

As Anon took her hands in his she would look up at him, happy that even through his mask she could still see his smile. It was reassuring that despite the interruption, he was still apparently interested in her.

"There is nothing I would love more than to have your assistance, I appreciate you taking this leap with me. I promise, that I won't let your fear take control of you, nor will I allow any harm to come to you. I couldn't allow that to happen after the wonderful time we've spent together thus far. I apologize if it seemed so forward, but I'm glad you have accepted. The first mission or two won't be too stressful I hope, but I do plan to take a B-Rank mission soon so that I may grow in experience and prove myself to what could become my new home. I will be honest though, I am a wanderer fresh out of a village searching for strength wherever I can find it. It may not be here, but I won't leave you alone should I not find what I search for. Even should I leave the village, I won't stay away, I'll come back to you."

She listened carefully to what the beautiful man in front of her said. Though her feelings were causing her some distraction. Supaku repeated his words over and over again in her mind before speaking. About the third go round, she was convinced she had indeed heard what he had said correctly. It was thrilling to hear the phrase “I’ll come back to you”, she had not expected him to be so forward. Though why she was surprised she couldn’t really say, it wasn’t as if he won the prize for most forward of the day. She was fairly certain that honour went to herself. With an excited giggle she hugged him, all fear of missions gone for the moment.

“I trust you to watch out for me. God only knows why, I barely know you to be honest. But I do all the same. I’ll gladly come along on some missions with you. And if you do end up going away, I’ll be here for you to come back to.”

She blushed brightly at her final words, knowing that she was probably far to naive to truly understand the impact of what she had just said. She had meant it though, and despite her inexperience she fully expected that it would be no trouble to follow through on her commitment. Leaning back from Anon so she could look into his eyes, she cheerfully continued.
“So what’s our first mission then? Hopefully not bandits or serial eye stealers. Though I do have some experience with those. When do you want to start?”

479/6847

When she embraced him, his arms automatically wrapped around her as well, holding her tightly to his chest. He smiled and nuzzled into her neck before they parted, taking her words to heart. She truly was an amazing person to have on his side and he couldn't wait to begin growing with her. She was blushing and looked into his eyes, his own hues staring back into hers. He understood that this was happening rather quickly but as they say when you find the right person that tends to happen. He was lost in her eyes, entranced by the thoughts of being with her and the act of being in her presence. So much so that he had initially almost not heard what she was saying. It appeared that she was ready as well for them to get on to the missions and asked what they would be doing. It had surprised Anon how quickly she acclimated to such a thing and he hadn't needed to convince her as much as he previously thought. With a clear of his throat he looked at her, thinking silently about the missions he'd taken.

They were simple enough: training the guards in Bukijutsu and training students in martial combat. The first was his forte, but he figured a taijutsu specialist would be better suited for the second. With a nod he smirked and spoke to her. "One mission is training military personnel in the use of Bukijutsu weapons such as katana or western swords. That is my forte but I'm sure you could learn a thing or two for coming along as well. The second mission I accepted is to teach students of the academy about martial combat. Something that I believe you could excel in as a taijutsu specialist. When we finish those two we can go from there, deciding on the best course of action  for our next mission or missions. I will be seeing the Hokage soon I hope, and then I will ask if there is any use for me here in the village. Maybe I can do more than just a few missions to make my way around here. I need the money to get new swords, but I also want to grow stronger and see if I can't reach the equivalent of special jonin. I'm unsure what that would be but I'm prepared to do my best so I can continue on my path to strength. I just want to protect people you know?"

He was offering a lot of information that he probably needn't do, but couldn't help it with her. He looked towards the administration building and his hand moved to hers on its own accord, a smile playing behind his mask once more. "If you will join me darling, let's be on our way to start our missions and further our careers as shinobi. We can do it together and we'll rise together as protectors. Who knows? I may even take on the mantle of being a protector of the leave, as I'm sure the man I resemble once did." With that, he began to walk forward, heading straight for where she'd initially pointed as the direction of the administration building. He might be pulling her along, or she might be matching his pace perfectly. Either way, the two were starting their journey as shinobi together.

575|7,220

EXIT

Training:

Supaku sank deeply into Anon’s embrace. She felt completely safe wrapped in his arms, and she let out a happy sigh as he nuzzled into her neck. This moment, she felt, was perfect. This feeling, whatever it was, was unlike anything she had experienced before and she could hardly fathom a future of feeling like this. It was wonderful, and left her with a giddiness she had long since left behind when she was very young, and intent on being ‘perfect’. She was beginning to see that perfection was not a thing you could hold, or an achievement you could hang on your wall. It was fluid and passionate, filled with the experiences and memories you held and shared. Perfection was happiness. And happiness was the emotion swirling around in within her swelling heart. Her joking about ‘serial eye stealers’ was a large step for her, and perhaps in poor taste, but she felt comfortable exploring the lighter side of her traumatic experience with the man who now held her.

She listened carefully as Anon explained the missions to her, and considered her options regarding their completion. While she had no knowledge whatsoever of Bukijutsu, she was trained in Taijutsu and felt that at least with that she could be helpful. And in truth she was interested in learning what she could about weaponry, if for nothing else than to know how to better combat it should the need arise. And she did have some experience with true combat, which hopefully she could pass along some useful advice in the hopes of sparing younger people the hardships needed for her knowledge. As she heard his remark about wanting to protect people she felt a thrill of excitement course through her. It was what she wanted to do for Konoha, and to hear that he had a similar goal was heartening. While she didn’t believe that it was necessary for them to have the same goals or dreams, it made her heart glad to hear it.

She was also relieved that the missions he had chosen were ones that didn’t involve any danger. At least unless you considered young Academy students dangerous. Which she didn’t, mostly. They could mean, which she had been guilty of more than a few times, but not truly a danger. “I think those missions sound fine. I highly doubt they’ll be any trouble, and I think with each time I go out it’ll be easier. Especially if you’re there.”

She smiled in return to the one she could see in his eyes and moving his mask as he spoke to her. The feeling of his hand holding hers was in a way familiar, as though they had done it a thousand times before and she moved to keep pace with him as they walked towards the Administration building. “Darling? I approve. . . dearest.” She said it with a grin as she winked at him. “And yes, I want nothing more than to further my journey with you by my side. If you join Konoha I would be ecstatic of course, just know that no matter what you decide you’ll always have a place here with me.” Walking hand in hand with the man she had chosen to give her heart to she looked up at Hokage Rock. Their path would be difficult and long, but she looked forward to every moment of it, knowing in her heart that together they could accomplish anything.  

584/7431

{Exit Thread}

Stat Training:

SPD: D-1 > D-3 - 850wc + 125 ryo
END: D-0 > D-3 - 1175wc + 150 ryo
PER: D-1 > D-3 - 850wc + 125 ryo
REA: D-0 > D-3 - 1175wc + 150ryo

Total: 4050wc + 550 ryo

3381wc left over