Takashi had arrived early in the morning. In fact, it was the crack of dawn when he had woken up, thrown on his clothes, tied his Iwagakure no Sato “forehead protector” onto his arm, and headed out of the small apartment that he now called home. He had called it home for only a couple of moths now, slowly but surely working his way through the academy examination tests until he was declared fit to be a ninja. When he had finally received his rank of genin and given permission to take on shinobi missions, it was a bittersweet moment. He had been the oldest person in his “class” because of his extremely late start becoming a ninja. He had never even wanted to be a ninja. The young Uzumaki had been perfectly content with simply helping out at his parents’ shop.

But that had all changed…

With the destruction of the place he had called his home and the death of his father, Takashi had felt his call to action all too late. He knew he never could have stopped what had happened to his home, but some part of him felt like he should have done something instead of sitting on his hands. He knew he was capable enough, and he totally could have joined up with the academy at a much younger age. But now his father was dead, his mother was crippled, and his home was a smouldering crater. It was horrible, but it had apparently taken that tragedy to launch Takashi into action. He was not going to let his home be destroyed again. He would protect it with his life, if necessary.

And so, in order for him to reach that goal of being the protector of Iwagakure no Sao, Takashi knew that ne needed to better himself, which is why he had decided to spend his entire day on the large cliff overlooking the Village Hidden in the Stones training for all he was worth. He worked on everything; from his muscle endurance to speed to target practice with his kunai, to chakra control and jutsu. He spent his entire day going over the basic training regimens that his father had taught him and by the time the sun had travelled its entire distance across the sky, Takashi had ditched his jacket and was left only in his t-shirt and pants, covered in sweat and breathing heavily. He was exhausted, but he felt like he still had so much to do. He just could not stop so early when he had so far to go. And yet, at the thought of running any more, or punching out at the air again, he almost collapsed. Shaking his head, Takashi resigned himself to the fact that he would probably just have to call it for the day.

In hopes of cooling off a little bit, the young Uzumaki stepped toward where people would go to actually sight see from the cliff. But as he approached, he saw something he didn’t expect. Sitting on the cliff with what appeared to be paper and a brush in hand was a woman. She was appeared to be approximately Takashi’s age, maybe a little older. She wore an ivory coloured dress and had long back hair that fell down and cascaded over her shoulders. He was looking at her from behind, and thus could not make out any more details. He could, however, hear her talking to herself about some undetermined topic. With a charming, but slightly annoyed voice she said, “If I didn’t know any better. I’d say the world certainly wishes no luck to play into my favor..”.  Takashi could not help but chuckle at that, probably alerting the woman to his presence. Whether or not she acknowledged him, the young Uzumaki would bend down and pick up his jacket, throwing it over his shoulder as he stepped over to the stranger.

As he approached, he called out to her, “Sorry if I surprised you, stranger. But I couldn’t help but hear your lament against the world.” Chuckling again, Takashi slowly walked until he was beside her, looking down at her briefly to take in the rest of her appearance. She had piercing hazel eyes that were reminiscent of his own yellow ones, if not a little darker. She was pretty as well, and her slightly annoyed expression could be explained by the papers she had allowed to fly loose on the wind. Turning away, Takashi looked back over to the horizon. It was a beautiful view, that much was certain. He had spent the whole day here and yet he had not taken any time to look at the beautiful vista that was his new home. It was strange of him to miss something so obvious, but then again, he had been a little distracted lately. Shaking his head, he continued. “I gotta say, we’re one and the same there. The world has been handing out back luck to me for a while now…”

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She was nervous. Very nervous from the looks of it. The young Uzumaki had not noticed it at first, but as he had begun talking to her, he could see her hand shaking as it held an inkwell, the dark liquid sloshing around ever so slightly inside of the container. Her face had flushed slightly with his arrival, and when she finally opened her mouth so speak, her stammer was surprising. He really had not meant to scare her, and yet here she was, shaking on the grown before him.  It was…awkward to say the least. On top of that, the way she spoke was like something out of a book. It was…poetic almost? He could not fathom why she talked like that. But he decided it would be better just to let it go and continue with their conversation. He had not wanted to go very deep with it, simply agreeing with her that the world was a cruel place. But now the genin was curious as to why she was so nervous all of the sudden. She shuffled in place n the ground for a moment, and as she did Takashi saw something that caused him to gasp quietly before it was too late.

The clink of the inkwell tipping over and spilling onto the ground around her rang out above all else. Takashi had to force himself not to visibly cringe, instead regulating himself to a simple frown of what was a mixture of disappointment and pity for the girl whose ivory dress he could see was probably ruined. As she gasped herself, standing up quickly to avoid any more ink from staining the gown, Takashi was able to see just how much shorter she was than him. As she adjusted her dress and looked over the stain on the gown, she began to apologize, causing the Uzumaki to raise an eyebrow in confusion. She had no need to be sorry, and yet here she ways, apologizing for spilling ink on herself. Takashi’s frown remained. ”I—It seems I’ve been blessed with t—the ungainly ways of luck..” she said in a quiet, sad voice that betrayed how upset she was over the mishap. Letting go of the dress, she knitted her fingers together over her midsection and continued. ”A—A cruel place, we walk. I-I’ve only recently found my way to these lands from my old home, myself.  I—It’s brought on a rather sudden change..” She then paused again, tilting her head to the side as if to examine Takashi. ”P—Pray tell, what woes has this world bestowed upon you? You speak of ill luck i—in you path. B—But, from what I—I see… y—you have a rather immense aura about you… I—I mean, you carry yourself rather well in r—regards to holding this bad luck in your sights..”

If his eyebrow had not already been raised, then it would have certainly gone up that that final sentence. Either her poetic way of describing things and speaking was too much for him, or the stranger had simply fallen over her words as she had tried to describe his “aura.” Either way, Takashi stood in silence for a moment while he tried to think of a response. It was odd that she had mentioned being new to the land just like him. Perhaps he actually did have something in common with this girl. If she was new here as well perhaps she was just had homesick as he found himself at times. But he would have to answer one question at a time. Having finally formed what seemed like a reasonable response to the stranger’s question, Takashi began to speak. “Uh…thanks I guess. Ya, I mean, I’ve gotten pretty good at hiding the fact that I’ve had my fair share of bad luck. I mean, what’s the point in advertising it to the world right? Everybody has their own tough thing they are going through.” He paused for a moment to let that thought roll over in his own head. Honestly, it was only half true. He just hated talking about what he had gone through, and in order to avoid that, he just would not tell anyone he was in the rough place that he was in. He had just lost his father, and his mother was as good as dead. It sucked; and simply thinking about it now was causing emotions to well up in his that he did not want this stranger to see.

And so he changed the subject. He needed to right away lest he start overflowing with emotion in front of this stranger. “I’m actually new here myself,” he said abruptly. “I moved here after my home became…unlivable. I’ve only been in Iwagakure no Sato for a few months. Luckily they let me take Academy exams and become a genin so quickly.” He paused for a moment and looked back toward the girl, a soft smile on his face. “What about you?”

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It seemed that the stranger’s nervousness was only temporary, as was her embarrassment over the spilt ink on her dress. Takashi was happy that she had at least hung around after that, considering he was beginning to feel curious about who exactly this girl was. For someone who seemed so innocent, she certainly spoke like a person who had seen a great deal in her life. That coupled with the fact that she did not seem much older than him at all made the young Uzumaki want to know more about his fellow ninja of the Village Hidden in the Stones. Her smiled widened with Takashi’s own, and the stammer faded from her voice as she continued to speak. “It’s nice to see unfamiliar faces, especially when they hail from other parts of the world. I.. found myself turning a new leave. I was not one for the ways of a combat artist. But, when my home was placed into a.. situation.. I was blessed with a second chance. I—I was brought here and I took my own exams. Now, I’m proving my worth.”

As the girl turned to look at the village, Takashi could not help but shake his head with amusement. Fate had certainly brought them together considering their stories sounded so similar. He had also been given a second chance, though he had been perfectly content with the first one. As she continued to speak, describing her old home land and the lack of greenery in her life, it was as if a small switch turned over in the genin’s mind. Everything she was saying was too close to his own story. It was all too familiar to be coincidence. How could she be saying things that sounded like they were coming from his own memory and not a girl that he had just met? The sensation was dizzying, but Takashi kept listening, hoping to catch another slip of information that would lead him to the conclusion that he was suspecting was true.

It was after he started focusing a little more that the mystery unraveled. After stopping herself short mid-explanation it seemed that the girl was tired of having to hold back her thoughts because of a lack of context. And so she turned to Takashi with a timid expression that the Uzumaki could not quite place. “I suppose it’d be wise to offer my name. Just so you don’t have to reference me as a stranger, like once before” She spoke, her arm extending out to offer him the palm. “My name is Kuroka Tamae, I.. am a refugee of Sunagakure” she’d state in ill confidence, her voice still feathered to the sound. “Might I have your name in return? I’m sure a noble man, like yourself, hails from a rather bold and brave clan line..” Takashi could feel his mouth open in a silent gasp. It was true. He had thought that it could be possible, but she had just confirmed his suspicions. It was true; she was from his home as well.

His mouth was still slightly agape as he extended his own hand and shook Tamae’s. His mind was operating at a thousand thoughts per minute, trying to process the avalanche of information that had now entered his mind. First of all, she was a refugee from Sunagakure no Sato, just like he was. She had seen firsthand the destruction hat was wrought to their home, and she felt that pain as well. She knew what it was like to watch her whole world burn down before her and to be forced to flee into a foreign land, praying that they would help. She had seen friends and family burn before them for unknowable reasons. She had watched people throw their lives away hoping to save their friends and family, only to have all of them die. She knew that feeling. And she had escaped just like him. Then on top of that, she was part of a clan that he knew little about, but enough to take note. They were a clan that were once from Kirigakure no Sato in the Land of Water before being scattered throughout all of the ninja world. They were known for their rash decisions and their immense power with blades made of their own chakra. But this girl seemed so different from that stereotype. Takashi noted that he was not the average Uzumaki either, considering he had never even set foot in the Land of Fire from whence the clan hailed. Yet again, there was another aspect that tied him to this new acquaintance. It was such a strange feeling; to have the sensation that the person whose hand he was holding knew the exact same pain that he did.

It was as that thought passed through his mind that he realized he had been standing in place, mouth slightly open and holding Tamae’s hand for an uncomfortably awkward amount of time. He abruptly realised the handshake, stepping back as his face went flush and he did his best to speak him mind without sounding insane or creepy. “I’m so sorry,” he said as he stepped back, shaking his head and chuckling to himself. “I was just so surprised by the revelation you made. I…I did not expect fate to bring me someone that knows my struggle as well.” He paused for a moment and stepped back to where he had been before looking down to the girl and making eye contact with her. “I know that pain you feel. I’m a refugee from Sunagakure as well. I lost my father in the fight, my mother was crippled. I know that pain…” He let his voice trail off for a moment, realizing how crazy he must sound. “I’m sorry…” he muttered again, trying to keep himself composed before finally looking down to his feet. “I’m Uzumaki Takashi. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

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She closed the gap between the two of them, stepping gracefully as she moved closer than anyone who had just met would. Once she was right next to him, close enough that Takashi was beginning to feel uncomfortable in her presence, she reached up with her right hand. Instinctively, Takashi flinched, but he managed to keep himself in place as she placed her index finger on his chin, slowly curling her finger and forcing him to look back up at her. The slight hint of moisture building in his eyes would be visible to the young woman, but no tears would break over the edge to fall down his face. He had cried far too much already to let himself fall to that level again. He was done with tears. He was done with crying. And her warm smile seemed to indicate that she was as well. The compassion he saw in her eyes was genuine, to the point that it reminded the young Uzumaki of his own mother before she was crippled in the Fall of Sunagakure. There was a kindness in them that was echoed in her words, offering comfort where once there was none. As she continued to remind him of the importance of pushing onward, she would finally retract her hand, and Takashi would find a moment to blink away the gathering moisture in his eyes while she continued.

“Fate holds many in hand.. there is reason we gather in such places and cross paths. All is for not..” she stated, her eyes falling shut and a small trickle of tears streaming down along her freckle kissed cheeks. Her hands moved to wipe them away, all while her smile held true, unwavering in the face of the intense emotion she clearly felt. It was admirable, that much was certain. Then, as quickly as the wisdom had begun to pour out of her, it ceased. She suddenly changed the topic, probably in an attempt to prevent more tears from springing free. Takashi was happy to fall back on the far less intrusive side of the conversation, even though the story of his arrival brought back painful memories as well. “To be honest, I did not really have much of a choice,” he began, letting out a strained chuckle as he thought back to the journey through the desert. “I fled the village with my mother on my back and just ran into the desert. I had no idea where I was going; all I knew was that I had to get away from there and save my mom.” He paused for a moment and looked around to see if there was anyone else listening in on their conversation. It seemed like they were alone, and suddenly feeling exhausted by the rush of emotions he was feeling, Takashi sat down on the cliff, continuing his story.

“I wandered through that desert for what felt like forever. I’m sure it was only a few days judging by the fact that neither my mother or I died of thirst, but we almost did. I collapsed in the sand, unable to go any farther. When I woke up, I was here, in the village hospital. My mother is still there, but then I joined the academy right away and became a genin as quickly as possible. And so here I am. But what about you? How did you arrive here?” He stopped then, smiling up at the girl and thanking her as she offered him the peach that she had not accidentally destroyed. She was so concerned for him…it was almost too much concern from a woman he barely knew. But he did not want to deny her and be rude. Instead he took a bite of the peach as she once again apologized for something she had not yet done. It was becoming a running theme that Takashi felt was incredibly unnecessary, but again, he did not want to be rude. Instead, he decided to brush over the comment about how clumsy she may or may not be and instead focus on something that was more interesting to him.

“I did recognize the name of your clan actually. I don’t know much about them, but you’re not wrong about them not being the most admired. In fact, I would venture to say they are infamous to be honest. They are known, at least to me, by their aggression, rash decisions, and fighting prowess. And yet aggression is not something I read from you. You’re far too kind to live up to those stereotypes.” He smiled at her once again, hoping that she would stop criticizing herself so much. The fact that she was here and had survived the Fall of their home made her infinitely more interesting and important to Takashi, so a sullied view of her made by her own words was not something he wanted to deal with. She had to be confidant to have survived something so awful; she should start showing that side of herself. These thoughts all ran through his head while the young Uzumaki waited to hear if Tamae would tell her own story, or if it was too painful for her to relate.

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The surprised look on her face in response to his story confused him for a moment, but the reason for it became apparent quickly after that. He listened intently to the young woman and he took a bite of his peach, the juices falling over his fingers and making them sticky. He frowned slightly in disgust while looking down at his hand. He hated the feeling of having sticky fingers and quickly looked for the water bottle he had brought with him for his training session. He stopped when he saw that Tamae was simply licking the peach juice form her fingers and decided to do the same, figuring that she obviously didn’t find it unclean or rude if she was doing it herself. As he licked his fingers and continued to enjoy the peach, he found himself listening to her story with a cold, detached feeling in his chest. It was not as if he did not care about what had happened, and he certainly could sympathize with her. But for some reason, the thought of all of the death and destruction wrought on his home that day had come to numb him finally. He nodded along slowly with her words, taking in all of the details and realizing how similar their stories truly were, but for some reason the sadness that he had felt with his own story did not resurface. Perhaps it was because he knew that everyone had suffered a similar fate that day. Perhaps he was finally beginning to feel like he was not so special when it came to being a sand refugee.

Regardless of the cold feeling in his chest, Takashi continued to listen to her, and he even perked up with her when she vowed to make her home proud. “That makes two of us,” he said simply as she looked over to him. “I also refuse to let them down.” He was grateful that after that point the topic of conversation changed. He did not enjoy the cold feeling in his chest, and the faster they moved on from the horrible atrocities that the two of them had faced that day, the better. When she asked about his own clan, Takashi could only smile and nod for a moment at her comment. The Uzumaki name did come with very big shoes to fill. His clan’s name had been famous ever since the Uzumaki clan came to be known by the rest of the ninja world. Their proficiency in fuuinjutsu was known in every country, and at one point in time, multiple entire countries sought to wipe them out because of the potential strength their sealing abilities present. It was something that Takashi was proud of, but simultaneously it was something he felt obligated to. He needed to prove that he was worthy of the name.

Glancing out over the village much like his new friend, Takashi began to talk about what little he knew of the Uzumaki’s strength. “You’re right there,” he said with a smile. “The Uzumaki name carries a certain…weight about it. Depending on where you are in the word, it can mean different things. In the Land of Fire, everyone thinks back to the Seventh Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto. But in our old homeland, and most of the rest of the world, Uzumaki is synonymous with fuuinjutsu.” Swinging his legs over the cliff, Takashi leaned back and laid down on the stone, looking up at the sky in its lovely hues of red and purple while continuing to eat his peach between sentences. “My father was able to teach me some things before his passing, and I’ve even inherited the sealing abilities of the Uzumaki clan. But I don’t know everything. Not by a long shot. Out clan in so scattered these days, and the one place where they are centralized, Konohagakure no Sato, is so far away that I have never even set foot in it. I would like to go there someday, but not until I’ve become a ninja worthy of seeing what else my clan has to offer.”

The young Uzumaki let out a yawn and stretched then, the exhaustion of the day of training finally catching up to him. From his laying position, Takashi took the pit of the peach he had finished and threw it off the cliff. Them, knitting his fingers together, Takashi reached behind his head and continued to look up at the sky, dreaming of what a land covered in green must be like. “So much of our history has been lost. I would love to learn more, but it’s so difficult to come by these days. So for now I’m just going to focus on my training.” He sat up after that, realizing that he had now been the one rambling on about things Tamae may not find interesting. Turning toward her, he tried once again to change the subject. “Speaking of which, how is your training going? You are a genin as well right?”

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The young woman’s response would have been encouraging on its own; but the fact that her voice was so melodious as she spoke made it all the more pleasant to hear her words of praise and encouragement. She swung her hair from side to side as she continued on, speaking with a certainty that felt misplaced about how positive she was that Takashi would be a great shinobi someday. She said it was from the “vibe” that he was giving off. He had no idea what she meant by that, and even when she tried to explain it, he was having a hard time understanding why she felt the way that she did about his potential. But once again, Takashi was not one to be rude for the sake of being rude. So instead of questioning the girl, the young Uzumaki simply nodded along, uttering a quiet “Thank you,” when she concluded her thought. He glanced down to see her fingers lace together once again, her thumbs chasing one another over and over as she moved on from the topic of his family with him.

As he had suspected, she too was a genin of Iwagakure no Sato. If she had been a higher rank he would have felt like an idiot, going on and on about his home and all he lost. She would have been part of the fighting directly if she had been anything more than a genin back when they were members of the Land of Wind. But he had been correct, and as such found himself interested in what she was most proficient with. She went on to describe her proficiency with Bukijutsu and taijutsu, causing him to furrow his brow in thought. Despite any level of skill she might have in those areas, it certainly meant that she was more of a close quarters fighter, which she then went on to confirm. As she neared the end of that explanation he spoke up saying, “That’s basically the opposite of what I specialize in, interestingly enough. Perhaps one of these days we can teach one another a thing or two about what the other does. I’ve always wanted to learn how to use a sward, particularly katanas and other kenjutsu style weapons.”

The genin could not help but chuckle at her statement about being safe while with him. It was a foolish thing to think, especially considering they were probably on the same level if she was not already stronger than him. He still had such a long way to go, and she was right about the first part of her statement. He had been training day after day trying to get stronger, hopefully closing the gap between himself and those that razed his former home into the ground. But for now he was just a lowly genin, and he had no delusions about his power or lack thereof. “Yes I was training,” he said as he leaned back on the palms of his hands, propping himself up while he chatted with his new friend. “I have been training non-stop for a few days now. I think it is finally starting to get to me, but you gotta do what you gotta do.” He paused once again to hear her questions about the potential of being place on a squad, which was a thought that he had not even allowed to cross his mind, He was not sure how well the other genin would take to having him as a squad mate, especially since he was so much older than then and was a foreigner by all rites. The idea of working on a squad with other shinobi of the Village Hidden in the Stone did not upset him in the slightest, but he knew he would make some enemies just by graduating their academy, let alone working with them. “It is possible,” he said with slight trepidation. “But as nice as it would be to having a jounin to lead us on a consistent basis, I don’t know if I’m quite ready to be held under their scrutiny all of the time yet. On top of that, I don’t know if there are any jounin in the village who specialize in fuuinjutsu, which is what I would really need in order to get stronger.”

When she asked him about fuuinjutsu he would visibly perk up. He loved showing people what he was able to do thanks to his clan, but he figured it would be better to start with the basics and see if she was still interested. He stood up then, dusting himself off as he smiled and said, “Well how about I show you!” Reaching into a pouch on his pant leg, Takashi pulled out a shuriken and held it in his right hand, twirling it in his fingers as he started to explain the basics of fuuinjutsu. “So essentially, fuuinjutsu is any technique that seals objects, living beings, or chakra. The seals are created by the users chakra, and things or energy can be stored within them in order to be used later or for any other purpose you can think of.” He then paused for a moment and formed a series of hand seals before placing his palm on the shuriken against the ground and sealing it into the cliff. “See? You have to know that technique at least if you graduated from the Academy. But fuuinjutsu can be so much more. My clan, the Uzumaki, are especially proficient with it and can do thigns with seals that most people can’t. I could show you, if you’re interested.” He smiled slightly, surprised with his openness about the topic. He was not one to talk much, and to go on and on about his ability was definitely out of character. Even so, he wanted to show Tamae, if she wanted to see.

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It was very encouraging to see the look of admiration that was spread across the face of his one and only audience member. She had stood up with him so as to get a better look at what he was doing, and not that he had started his explanation, it would be very hard for him to stop. Fuuinjutsu was a huge passion of his due to the importance it held within his clan historically and presently. Though he had never been to Konohagakure no Sato where his clan now resided, he felt a certain connection with them that made him want to make them proud. He felt like as much of a member as anyone who lived in the Land of Fire, even if they didn’t feel the same way. He took a moment to look out at the sunset with Tamae, admiring its beauty as it hung silently over his new home. It was a good home, and even though it had meant losing his old one, he was happy that this is where he had ended up.

Takashi listened as she spoke on the topic of hand seals for a moment and could not help but nod along at some of her point. It certainly took a lot of practice to weave them together so effortlessly. He was pretty good at it for now, and most of the jutsu he used only required a few, but it was defiantly something he would have to work on. He squatted down once again as she said that she was interested in learning more about Fuuinjutsu and more specifically the Uzuamki and their special sealing style. Before he would show her that, he would have to get his shuriken back. Takashi reached out to the spot where sealing script was now written on the ground and placed his palm onto it. By channeling chakra through himself and into the seal, he was able to release it and claim his ninja tool once again, leaving no script behind where he had placed it before. “Like I said before,” he would explain. “That is just the jutsu that we learn in the academy. But now you’ll see the more interesting stuff.”

He nodded at her suggestion that the pair of ninja move away from the edge of the cliff, figuring that it was better for them to be safe rather than sorry when Takashi started showing off a little bit. It was so out of character for him to be like this, but then again, people did not usually care about his abilities with fuuinjutsu, as most common civilians only knew about ninjutsu and the flashy techniques that come out of using it at a high level. That was fair though, considering how common that specialization for ninja was. When they were a little farther away from the cliff edge Takashi would begin speaking on the subject at hand, hoping that he would not bore his new friend too much.

“So like I said before, most fuuinjutsu techniques function by using the chakra infused symbols to seal things away or store things in so that they can be unsealed later, like bomb-seals, barriers and items. In order to make things easier going forward, I’ll call those kinds of seals ‘locks.’  In the simplest of terms, locks create bonds in which to bind things.” He paused for a moment then, letting the information sink in so that Tamae could ask any question if she had any. Once he was confident that she was ready to continue, he would. “Now something that is unique my clan is the ability to not only create ‘locks’ like almost any other ninja, but he can also create what we call ‘keys.’ Keys use the chakra infused symbols to unseal or unlock things from their bonds, be they chakra or otherwise. These keys can do all sorts of things! They can unseal potential power within people, cripple enemies with pain, unravel other jutsu, and break apart jutsu into their core components. In the simplest terms, ‘keys’ break down existing bonds within structures the seals are placed on, rather than creating new ones.”

He stopped after that and once again left room for Tamae to ask questions, prepared to answer to the best of his ability. Once she had asked all of her questions and he had answered the best he could, he would say one more thing. “The Uzumaki clan is an old clan. So old, in fact, that a lot of our history and special techniques have been lost to time. But I take pride in what I do know, and I plan on doing my best to keep learning about what I can do every day. That’s why I was up here today. I was not only training my body, but my jutsu as well. It’s important to me.” He would smile then and let out a short sigh, aware of how much he had just spoken and feeling embarrassed once again by it. But if earlier was any indication, he didn’t think Tamae would care.

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Tamae seemed to be engaged in Takashi’s teaching, which was all the encouragement he needed to keep going strong. Each new part of the lesson that he showed her brought more and more questions, which were exactly what the young Uzumaki loved to see. He had always been told that the best way to improve on something was to teach someone else. In this case, he was giving an entire history lesson as well as the practical application of what he was talking about. It was a lot of information for his new friend to process, but Takashi kept it coming, stopping only to let her ask her questions. “You certainly can hide a great many things!” he said in response to her first question. “But yes there are a few limitations. The larger or stronger an object is, the more chakra it requires to hold it in a seal. The technique isn’t perfect either. If anyone can see chakra, like people with dojutsu or similar sensory jutsu, then they will certainly see the seals that you create as plain as day. So, you have to be careful when using this basic technique for stealth purposes.”

Ad he continued on, he noticed that the genin opposite him was reaching into her satchel and pulling out a few objects. He did not let that stop his lesson, but as he continued to speak he took note of what she was removing form the bag. First came a vial of ink that reminded him of the inkwell that she had spilled earlier. The stain on her dress caused him to cringe for the briefest of moments, but he quickly moved on from it considering she had already. Next, she pulled out a writer’s brush much like the one she had been using earlier. He hadn’t seen her work before, but judging by the tools she had on her, Takashi would not be surprised if she was good at calligraphy. It was a skill he admired, but not one that he ad any interest in learning about. He had much more important things to focus on, such as his training and teaching. The last two objects that she pulled out were bother very relevant to the lesson he was giving, and he nodded to her as she set down the scroll of parchment on the ground and followed that up by pulling out a shuriken of her own.

What followed though was perplexing to the young Uzumaki, as she pulled out her brush and seemed to ready herself. He was not sure whether she was preparing to actually write out the sealing script that would appear as part of the jutsu, or if she was going to take notes on what he said. Unsure of what exactly what was about to happen, the genin took a few steps forward and closed the distance between them, kneeling down next to the parchment that was on the ground with the shuriken place on top of it. Tamae’s gleeful chime and the smile on her face excited Takashi even more. She was so ready to learn and her gratitude was overflowing to the point where Takashi almost felt uncomfortable with the amount of praise he was getting. But, despite the new situation, the Uzumaki managed to push the thought from his mind and focus on what had to be shown to his new friend. Glancing down at the shuriken, Takashi began his explanation of the basic sealing technique.  

“Well, like I said before. You probably know the basic technique from your time in the academy.” He began by sitting down on the cliff next to the scroll, taking a relaxed position to try an emulate the simplicity of the jutsu. He hoped it would give Tamae a sense of confidence that would let her do just as well as him. “To do this technique, if you have the object you want to seal laying flat in another object, like a scroll or parchment as you do here, then it becomes really easy to perform. All you have to do is form a single hand seal and focus your chakra into the object, compressing it and holding it within a basic seal like the ones taught in the academy.” With that, Takashi formed the tiger seal and channeled his chakra as he had described. There was a small poof as the shuriken vanished into the parchment, and all that remained was a small circular sealing script. “See? Easy enough.” He then made the same and seal and released the seal he had placed, causing the smoke to return and the shuriken to exit the parchment. “If you’re having hard time because it is one of the first times you’ve done this, you can place your hand on the shuriken and paper as well. That makes it a lot easier to transfer the chakra and create the seal.”

With a smile, he slid the parchment closer to her and looked up to her eyes. His enthusiasm for teaching was matched only by her enthusiasm for learning in that moment. “Now it’s your turn. Go on and give it a try!”

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Takashi did not want to laugh at the idea of himself writing all of the sealing script for his techniques before using them, but he could hardly help himself. He managed to stifle a full bodied laugh into a simple chuckle as Tamae explained what she thought she had to do in order to practice fuuinjutsu. He could not understand how she managed to make it though the academy exams without knowing such basic knowledge of sealing and its requirements, but then a thought occurred to him. If she knew so little about this part of being a ninja, then she must be extremely well versed in her own specialties. He had always thought of picking up a sword someday, and so knowing that the young woman before him could use one with a great deal of proficiency, he made a mental note to ask her to teach him someday. It would be a perfect edition to his repertoire of skills.

As Tamae began to position herself to use the sealing technique, Takashi noticed that she seemed to tense up almost instantly. It was clear that this was out of her comfort zone, and yet even so she was going to do her best to perform. It was a quality that the Uzumaki knew was important for any ninja to possess, and it was one he was not sure he could admit to having. He had always been one to focus on doing what he knew very well, and the second something seemed beyond his grasp he would move on form it, instead hoping to perfect what he was skilled at, rather than gain a wide variety of skills and knowledge. As she lowered her hand to attempt the seal, Takashi could already tell that it would fail. He knew that telling her that would be discouraging though, so instead he watched and waiting, hoping that she would notice soon enough.

When she attempted it for a second time, the Uzumaki could see the sealing script beginning to form, but the flow of chakra was just not present, and he knew that she knew that too. As she explained to him why it was so difficult, he simply nodded, trying to understand what it must be like to not be able to flow chakra so simply like he could. “I’ve never had that problem,” he said quietly. He was not trying to brag; just simply telling her where his own problems were. “Though I am no good at flowing chakra through me internally. My taijutsu ability is limited to hand to hand combat and nothing enhanced by chakra. That is where you have the edge on me.” Tamae continued to try, and finally on her third attempt, Takashi saw the full measure of the sealing script spread across the parchment. The sigh that Tamae released could only be described as gleeful, and Takashi smiled along with her and she removed her palm, revealing the blood stained parchment marked with the generic sealing script taught in the academy. Accompanied by yet another apology, Tamae lifted the parchment and released the seal after Takashi got a good look at it. She had done a good job once she had finally made the seal, the only issue for her was the actual flow of chakra in the first place. Takashi made a mental note of that as well, trying to think of ways to help her with that skill.

Her gratitude for his simple demonstration was almost overwhelming. Her warm smile and proud visage caused a small sense of pride to well up within himself as well. But her gratitidue was not only for the lesson. It was for something far more important. “Thank you, Takashi. You’ve certainly opened my eyes to something I thought hardly possible...” she paused, her gaze passing over him. “A sense of comfort. I’ve been on the tips of my toes since coming to this place, the village simply estranged to me. But, knowing there is another that has traveled the distance to make better of themselves, certainly places a jump in my hearts beat. Not to mention, a kind heart. You’ve taken the time to sit here with me, listen in, and offer a sense of guidance to a lost mind.” Her vice was faint, and her movements slow as she placed the parchment back on the ground and smoothed it out. “It’s a hopeful wish come true. So, truly, from the bottom of my heart, thank you”. She fell silent, and Takashi himself remained silent as well for a moment, a felling of understanding washing over him. He knew exactly what she meant; he had been lonely. Plain and simple. He missed his home and the people there, and he missed not knowing the place where he laid his head at night. He nodded slowly as she offered to return the favour, trying to form the words that would make the most sense of what he wanted to say.

“No thanks are necessary,” he said, his smile now fading to a more serious face for a moment. “I am more than happy to help out someone from my home. I’m just sorry I did not get to meet you sooner, like back in the Land of Wind.” He paused for a moment then, thinking if there was anything else to say on the topic. Coming to the conclusion that there was not, he decided to try to change it. “But I will take up that offer to repay that favour. Two things would be very helpful. One, could you maybe show me how to use a sword someday? And two, I need a partner for some missions that the village is going to be assigning soon. Would you like to help me with them? A team of two is much better than flying solo when it comes to missions.”

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