1 Blood and Fire: Will of Nakir [Solo | Plot] Thu Nov 15, 2018 4:02 am
Tomohiro
B-rank
Tomohiro stood in the middle of one of Kumo’s markets. He wore his now usual black boots and now long overcoat. Also, he adorned a pair of charcoal jeans and a v-neck shirt. His kasa has placed smugly over his head. Tomohiro’s blades were place promptly by his side. He waited as his mother talked to the blacksmith. The woman was very stern and radiant. It was weird watching her communicate with other people. She had a sense of strictness in her voice, but also a hint of sweetness. Tomohiro could see how his father had fallen in love with her. Even without her right arm, she was a known force to be reckoned with. She had made it to the rank of special jounin, but didn’t make it higher than that. The woman before him, Kari, was said to have killed many that opposed the village and even prevented the clan from breaking out in a civil war. That was his mother.
The blacksmith handed her a straight bladed sword that she sheathed on her right hip. The sword was quite magnificent. It rivaled that of his own Kenmei. The blade had ruins that had been inscribed within the blades dark metal. Though, he wasn’t sure if the ruins were cosmetic or actually had any latent abilities. The weapon was special and he knew that she would never part with it. Kari nodded toward her son as Tomohiro walked with her. There was mostly silence between the two. Their personalities were similar, but his mother was more outgoing. The silence ended when his mother started to speak to him as they exited a mass of people from the market.
“Tomohiro, what are you thinking?” Kari questioned.
“I’m thinking about the clan meeting,” he quickly looked around making sure no one was in ear shot, “The clan needs to talk about...that problem. It seems like we’re not taking anything seriously.”
The two continued outside of the village gates. The guards let them through as they headed toward the Nakir mines. Tomohiro’s mind was quite engrossed in a problem that seem to split the village. Lord Hastur. The raikage’s actions at the kage summit were a deep concern for many citizens. The clan had always been neutral when it came to things like this, but Tomohiro felt this was something that they shouldn’t tread lightly. In the past, they would just let things happen. They didn’t even participate in the fourth shinobi war. If they wanted to, they could make a huge different and not just in the village, but the country as a whole. Their tradition had started to stagnate them and he just didn’t want to sit back and let things happen.
The clan’s stagnation was one of many reasons why clansmen defected from the village. Not just the clan itself. He had even been told by one of his uncles that some of them even started to flock to Iwagakure. There were quite a few times where the clan almost had become a shadow of what they formally were. This would be his chance to change that. They would become more than just a shadow of their former selves. The Nakir clan had been through many years of trials and tribulations. They survived even during the time of feudal conquest during the Warring States era. They have evolved and had become stronger, but not many even knew they existed. Most of them were just considered a miner clan that harvested raw ore to support the village. The underground community that used to house them had basically been abandoned as more members moved into the inner village or within a compound within the village. Some lived outside the walls, but a lot of the younger members lived inside the walls of Kumo.
As the two made their way in front of one of their clan’s mines, Tomohiro looked up above the entrance. A worn black flag with the red Nakir emblem hanging in it’s absolute glory. Their were no guards ever at the entrance. Posting guards would also draw unwanted attention. Not many were brave enough venture into the labyrinth of the Nakir mines. They were taught at a young age to find their way through it. Using a weapon was the first major thing they were taught, the second was usually ninjutsu, the third was navigating their mines. The task was almost second nature to them. Some genin or academy students would occasionally come into the mines, but the Nakir members would find them and get them out of harm’s way. The two Nakir stood in front of the mine as the area had been surrounded in complete silence.
“Mother, the clan needs to formulate a plan on the way we go about the raikage.” Tomohiro stated with a firm, but respectful tone.
“What makes you certain that the elders will agree to do anything? They have been holding the will of our ancestors above their own,” Kari responded with a calm tone.
“We just have to make our case. I’ll probably spend some time training before I try and convince them to think reasonably. It may be the time for the clan to change our ways,” Tomohiro responded.
“I’m not saying that I disagree with you. There are many clan laws that need to be revised. Do you have anything that would be willing to change their mind?” Kari answered trying not to be overly assertive.
“Yes, I have evidence that some of our younger members have been have been colluding with Jashinist and other cultist that think Hastur has done nothing worth concerning. What we as shinobi did in Suna after its destruction. The fact that Hastur literally alluded to war on the world will get many of us killed.” Tomohiro stated as he crossed his arms.
“I see what you’re going with this. You don’t want to seem like you’re on a witch hunt. The clan doesn’t need that. Clear your mind and think things through, Tomo. You’ll need to address multiple problems not just dealing with Hastur. You also need to find a way to not cause bloodshed. The last thing Kumo needs is to be fractured and littered with corpses because the Nakir decided to declare war. If one of us is blamed, all of us may take the wrath of the village elders.” Kari replied to Tomohiro’s aggression.
Tomohiro thought about what his mother had said. She was definitely right. The village and the Nakir didn’t need their blood spilled. This would need to be done with less violence as possible. Tomohiro was all for an all out battle, but there was definitely a place and time for that. There were definitely too many possibilities that weren’t in the clan’s favor. The confrontation of the clan. He would need to wait until they opened the meeting for remarks. This whole thing was complicated. He wondered what could happen and he hoped that this whole thing just didn’t get blown out of proportion. He wondered what the other members of his clan would say when he would stand up in front of everyone.
“I’ll figure something out,” he stated though not really convincing.
The two of them traveled through the maze of hallways underground as they went deeper and deeper. There were torches that were burning on the walls that lit their path as they made their way to the a giant hall. The hall was dimly lit as a large chandelier lit with candles provided the only light. The hall was designed to look like a giant senate hall. Rows of stone benches were spread in a semicircle descending down to a group of finely crafted stone chairs that were filled with warm bodies. The amount of stone seats that were filled changed over time, but an empty space was in the middle of the two chairs. The others would be filled by elders. The clan hadn’t had a clan heir or leader in years. What happened to the last one seemed to remain shrouded in mystery. The elders and the older generation wouldn’t ever talk about it. He wondered what could have been so bad that it was a secret.
As him and his mother sat down. The clan elders had already been fighting with each other. One of them was his father. Though, his father seemed really calm and collected. He also hadn’t been wearing his traditional sour face that he usually carried. The sounds of the hall were loud and full of multiple individuals talking at one time. Tomohiro just looked to his mother who had a simple, but elegant smile on her face. They waited a few minutes before everyone started to settle down. The hall was only partially filled with clansmember. A lot of the younger Nakir didn’t care for clan politics. Some members were out doing other things and a quite a few were doing missions.
The hall then fell into complete silence. A last member of the elders showed up and Tomohiro’s eyes shot open as he noticed his brother. “Ishino?!” The words just escaped him as a couple of Nakir clansmen chuckled. Tomohiro had missed the past few meetings due to training or other things, but his brother hadn’t even bothered to tell him that he been made an elder. Tomohiro wasn’t sure what to think. Ishino did fit the qualifications outside of his age. The jonin had a few years on him. Other than that, his brother was strong capable and someone that could probably wipe out the clan out if he wanted. He thought that his brother would joke around too much. Tonight, he seemed very serious. His face didn’t have the joyous Ishino smile on it. It looked like he had been through a lot. The missions he had been doing must have been running him ragged.
The meeting continued as they went over various issues that had been quite normal. The first was about getting new genin training of their Netsugans and setting dates for that. The others consisted of trainings business opportunities and trade. Most of that stuff he didn’t care too much about outside of the Netsugan training. He knew that he may end up helping out his fellow clansmen progres their doujutsu. It was tradition that kept a lot of the clansmen going, but was it worth letting their village fall apart? He wondered how many issues that were presented would actually affect them as a community. Tomohiro just sat there and mulled through his own personal thoughts until his father brought up the topic of Hastur. The young Nakir raised his head slightly as he waited for his father to speak. He wasn’t used to hearing his father engage a crowd. It wasn’t like his father was to openly talk to people from what he knew. Though, he would listen intently.
“We need to talk about the issue of our village leader. The clan needs to come to a motion to decide what we should do concerning the village issues. We can either back Lord Hastur or mind our business,” Ryuu started with a firm voice.
“We should just mind our business. The clan has done so for centuries. Why start now?” Anoi, the elder, complained.
“That’s preposterous. We should back Hastur!” Takoi went on.
The clan started to get really rowdy as Ishino took a deep breath and released a mighty kiai toward the crowd. The crowd stopped as most of them were rubbing their ears. This meeting was a lot more interesting than what he bargained for. If that was a reason why he became an elder, he understood why the choose him. It was a good thing there was some crowd control. Everyone seemed a bit on edge for whatever reason. Getting your ears blasted out also didn’t help that either.
“Thanks, Ishino,” Takoi said.
“You’re welcome. I may be new in this seat, but do we really want to back Hastur? We have done well so far to keep to ourselves. Though, I say we should dethrone him.”
The crowd started to get rowdy again, then stopped as they noticed the look on Ishino’s face. They muffled their voices as another elder finally spoke up.
“I see what you’re saying, Ishino. We don’t want to deal with a total war. A civil war would be just as bad. We’ll send spies out into the village to see what some of the other clans are thinking. More than likely, we’re not the only ones who are having the same thoughts. It wasn’t the Nakir who put him in power,” the elder named Chung.
“Thank you, Chung. That would be the first step. The next step we could take is to form a resistance. The cultist are a problem that is sort of getting out of hand. It will be hard to tell the ones who are cultist by name and the ones that are to some really gruely stuff. Most of this is based on rumor, but we can infiltrate and find out if it’s true. If we can work something out and convince others to join, that’s when we can demolish Hastur’s supporters,” Ishino said to the crowd.
“We’re getting ahead of ourselves, Ishino. We still need to make a motion to see what we will do. I say let’s get the motion started,” said Takoi with a loud boisterous voice.
“No, we need to open the floor first. I’m hereby opening the floor to suggestions,” Ryuu stated.
Tomohiro noticed that no one else bothered to stand up at first and he decided to take the stand himself. He was a bit nervous as he walked to down to the table of elders. The walk to the stage seemed like a long road to hell. The eyes of the clan stared at him as he walked down. Tomohiro knew that he was one of the many shinobi that believed in the strength and opportunity within the village. Others new that as well. This wasn’t the first time he had spoken in front of the clan. There was only one other, but that had been years ago. He just had to clear his mind and calm himself. He stopped as he looked upward to the council and then to his clansmen.
“We have spent many years sitting on the sideline. Our tradition has kept us in the shadows for too long. What happens if Hastur decides to remove anyone that doesn’t support him? That is the reason why we must choose a side. We are better off forming a resistance and help clean up our village. If we are able to get support of higher ranking shinobi, we can fight him. We have shinobi in the clan that rival the best. We also have strong members that have exiled themselves because of tradition. We will become like the other clans that have dissipated into nothing. There’s a way we can resist. The Nakir will start from the bottom and then we cut the head off the snake. What kind of warrior monks are we if we’re running from any conflict? How many of us have already joined with the cultist. There could be people in this very room. We need to survive together as a clan. Together we can win.”
Tomohiro ended his speech with a strong resolve. The elders looked at each other and Ishino and Ryuu seemed to have smirks on their face. It was a face of pride they had for their immediate family. The elders were stunned at the words that came from Tomohiro’s mouth. They had never heard so many words come from him. The fact that Tomohiro stood up when others didn’t seemed to concern them. What concerned them, he knew not.
“Elders, we recess.” Ryuu stated as the elders walked away to convene with themselves.
The hall started erupting into small voices as the elders walked away into a back room. A few minutes went by as they returned. Tomoihro would remain waiting in front of his clan for the elders to return. The recess for a total of fifteen minutes before returning to their chairs. Some of their looks were disconcerting to him and others were actually seemed in decent moods.
Ishino looked to the crowd of Nakir and began speaking, “We came to a conclusion. I motion that we reach out to other clans and request support to build some sort of resistance. I already have higher ranking shinobi allies that think that Hastur needs to be stopped. They are willing to die to protect the village from collapsing within. We’ll start with limiting our shares of iron ore and use it to forge weapons. It would be easy to lie about how much we have been harvesting. We’ll call it a dry season. We also came to the conclusion that we need to send ambassadors to the Hidden Leaves for the Chunin Exams as well as find our exiled brothers and sisters. All in favor, say I.”
The group of Nakir were speechless. The fact that they would send clansmen to Hi no Kuni, of all places, was a bit of a shock. The Nakir had spent years avoiding them if they were held in Konoha. The group hesitantly said I sporadically. There were no nays. The elders then looked to Tomohiro as the young Nakir hid his head underneath his leather kasa. Ishino sort of chuckled. A deep slow voice then followed his chuckled.
“Tomohiro, my son, you will be one our clan's ambassadors. You will not go alone, but you will first head to Konohagakure. We will send three other shinobi with you. You are free to leave Kumogakure and come back at your leisure. If you’re called to duty in Kumogakure, we will cover for you at the kage’s office. The kage's office does have some understanding of our traditions. They should be understanding. Though, we're not sure if Hastur will be. Since your sensei and squad mate were both Raiu, you may try to bid their clan for assistance. We will send others to other clans. This meeting is adjourned,” Ryuu ended.
The meeting ended with all of the clansmen standing up. A lot of them were concerned and they had a right to be. This whole meeting had not gone as they expected. He was expecting to have to fight them tooth and nail. Maybe with the possibility of defecting from Kumo temporarily. This was quite inspirational and nauseating at the same time. Outside of having to take someone’s life, this had to be one of the boldest things he has done. His heart felt like it was about burst out of his chest. His brother hopped down from the platform and grabbed him by the shoulder. Tomohiro wasn’t sure if he would punch him in the gut or congratulate him. It was something that Ishino would do. Though, he did neither he looked at him and told him to follow. Tomohiro wouldn’t refuse, he wondered what his brother wanted to get off his chest as they moved to a training cavern closeby. The two stared at each other before they decided to break their silence.
“Really Ishino. The Hidden Leaf? Konoha?!” Tomohiro yelled.
“It wasn’t my choice, brother. If it was up to me, I would have sent someone else in your stead. The clan elders think you are going to bring honor to the clan. The way you talked in there was amazing. I thought that the elders’ eyes were going to pop out of their socket. They agreed that you would be the best person to be an ambassador. It may take some work, but we think that you will be able to convince the exiles to come back. Most of them left Kumo in good standing at least. They shouldn’t give you too many problems. The clan will be counting on you. I will be counting on you. You should be honored. Usually only retired shinobi of the clan become ambassadors, this is a great opportunity.”
Tomoiro grunted heavily as he rubbed his temples in slight disgust. The way he react was if he was going to go alone. He wondered who would go with him to Konoha. The Chunin Exams were quite a while. It would give him plenty of time to at least hunt down a couple of his Nakir clansmen. He knew that Konoha would be one of the last places to look for them. It may be their that he find some of his distant family. Tomohiro tried to look on the bright side of this, but it became hard to think of anything that would calm him. He would definitely need to meditate. Out of all his frustration he was glad that his clan had been able to see reason to an extent. It would just take some time to get more of them on board with their plan of resistance.
3576
The blacksmith handed her a straight bladed sword that she sheathed on her right hip. The sword was quite magnificent. It rivaled that of his own Kenmei. The blade had ruins that had been inscribed within the blades dark metal. Though, he wasn’t sure if the ruins were cosmetic or actually had any latent abilities. The weapon was special and he knew that she would never part with it. Kari nodded toward her son as Tomohiro walked with her. There was mostly silence between the two. Their personalities were similar, but his mother was more outgoing. The silence ended when his mother started to speak to him as they exited a mass of people from the market.
“Tomohiro, what are you thinking?” Kari questioned.
“I’m thinking about the clan meeting,” he quickly looked around making sure no one was in ear shot, “The clan needs to talk about...that problem. It seems like we’re not taking anything seriously.”
The two continued outside of the village gates. The guards let them through as they headed toward the Nakir mines. Tomohiro’s mind was quite engrossed in a problem that seem to split the village. Lord Hastur. The raikage’s actions at the kage summit were a deep concern for many citizens. The clan had always been neutral when it came to things like this, but Tomohiro felt this was something that they shouldn’t tread lightly. In the past, they would just let things happen. They didn’t even participate in the fourth shinobi war. If they wanted to, they could make a huge different and not just in the village, but the country as a whole. Their tradition had started to stagnate them and he just didn’t want to sit back and let things happen.
The clan’s stagnation was one of many reasons why clansmen defected from the village. Not just the clan itself. He had even been told by one of his uncles that some of them even started to flock to Iwagakure. There were quite a few times where the clan almost had become a shadow of what they formally were. This would be his chance to change that. They would become more than just a shadow of their former selves. The Nakir clan had been through many years of trials and tribulations. They survived even during the time of feudal conquest during the Warring States era. They have evolved and had become stronger, but not many even knew they existed. Most of them were just considered a miner clan that harvested raw ore to support the village. The underground community that used to house them had basically been abandoned as more members moved into the inner village or within a compound within the village. Some lived outside the walls, but a lot of the younger members lived inside the walls of Kumo.
As the two made their way in front of one of their clan’s mines, Tomohiro looked up above the entrance. A worn black flag with the red Nakir emblem hanging in it’s absolute glory. Their were no guards ever at the entrance. Posting guards would also draw unwanted attention. Not many were brave enough venture into the labyrinth of the Nakir mines. They were taught at a young age to find their way through it. Using a weapon was the first major thing they were taught, the second was usually ninjutsu, the third was navigating their mines. The task was almost second nature to them. Some genin or academy students would occasionally come into the mines, but the Nakir members would find them and get them out of harm’s way. The two Nakir stood in front of the mine as the area had been surrounded in complete silence.
“Mother, the clan needs to formulate a plan on the way we go about the raikage.” Tomohiro stated with a firm, but respectful tone.
“What makes you certain that the elders will agree to do anything? They have been holding the will of our ancestors above their own,” Kari responded with a calm tone.
“We just have to make our case. I’ll probably spend some time training before I try and convince them to think reasonably. It may be the time for the clan to change our ways,” Tomohiro responded.
“I’m not saying that I disagree with you. There are many clan laws that need to be revised. Do you have anything that would be willing to change their mind?” Kari answered trying not to be overly assertive.
“Yes, I have evidence that some of our younger members have been have been colluding with Jashinist and other cultist that think Hastur has done nothing worth concerning. What we as shinobi did in Suna after its destruction. The fact that Hastur literally alluded to war on the world will get many of us killed.” Tomohiro stated as he crossed his arms.
“I see what you’re going with this. You don’t want to seem like you’re on a witch hunt. The clan doesn’t need that. Clear your mind and think things through, Tomo. You’ll need to address multiple problems not just dealing with Hastur. You also need to find a way to not cause bloodshed. The last thing Kumo needs is to be fractured and littered with corpses because the Nakir decided to declare war. If one of us is blamed, all of us may take the wrath of the village elders.” Kari replied to Tomohiro’s aggression.
Tomohiro thought about what his mother had said. She was definitely right. The village and the Nakir didn’t need their blood spilled. This would need to be done with less violence as possible. Tomohiro was all for an all out battle, but there was definitely a place and time for that. There were definitely too many possibilities that weren’t in the clan’s favor. The confrontation of the clan. He would need to wait until they opened the meeting for remarks. This whole thing was complicated. He wondered what could happen and he hoped that this whole thing just didn’t get blown out of proportion. He wondered what the other members of his clan would say when he would stand up in front of everyone.
“I’ll figure something out,” he stated though not really convincing.
The two of them traveled through the maze of hallways underground as they went deeper and deeper. There were torches that were burning on the walls that lit their path as they made their way to the a giant hall. The hall was dimly lit as a large chandelier lit with candles provided the only light. The hall was designed to look like a giant senate hall. Rows of stone benches were spread in a semicircle descending down to a group of finely crafted stone chairs that were filled with warm bodies. The amount of stone seats that were filled changed over time, but an empty space was in the middle of the two chairs. The others would be filled by elders. The clan hadn’t had a clan heir or leader in years. What happened to the last one seemed to remain shrouded in mystery. The elders and the older generation wouldn’t ever talk about it. He wondered what could have been so bad that it was a secret.
As him and his mother sat down. The clan elders had already been fighting with each other. One of them was his father. Though, his father seemed really calm and collected. He also hadn’t been wearing his traditional sour face that he usually carried. The sounds of the hall were loud and full of multiple individuals talking at one time. Tomohiro just looked to his mother who had a simple, but elegant smile on her face. They waited a few minutes before everyone started to settle down. The hall was only partially filled with clansmember. A lot of the younger Nakir didn’t care for clan politics. Some members were out doing other things and a quite a few were doing missions.
The hall then fell into complete silence. A last member of the elders showed up and Tomohiro’s eyes shot open as he noticed his brother. “Ishino?!” The words just escaped him as a couple of Nakir clansmen chuckled. Tomohiro had missed the past few meetings due to training or other things, but his brother hadn’t even bothered to tell him that he been made an elder. Tomohiro wasn’t sure what to think. Ishino did fit the qualifications outside of his age. The jonin had a few years on him. Other than that, his brother was strong capable and someone that could probably wipe out the clan out if he wanted. He thought that his brother would joke around too much. Tonight, he seemed very serious. His face didn’t have the joyous Ishino smile on it. It looked like he had been through a lot. The missions he had been doing must have been running him ragged.
The meeting continued as they went over various issues that had been quite normal. The first was about getting new genin training of their Netsugans and setting dates for that. The others consisted of trainings business opportunities and trade. Most of that stuff he didn’t care too much about outside of the Netsugan training. He knew that he may end up helping out his fellow clansmen progres their doujutsu. It was tradition that kept a lot of the clansmen going, but was it worth letting their village fall apart? He wondered how many issues that were presented would actually affect them as a community. Tomohiro just sat there and mulled through his own personal thoughts until his father brought up the topic of Hastur. The young Nakir raised his head slightly as he waited for his father to speak. He wasn’t used to hearing his father engage a crowd. It wasn’t like his father was to openly talk to people from what he knew. Though, he would listen intently.
“We need to talk about the issue of our village leader. The clan needs to come to a motion to decide what we should do concerning the village issues. We can either back Lord Hastur or mind our business,” Ryuu started with a firm voice.
“We should just mind our business. The clan has done so for centuries. Why start now?” Anoi, the elder, complained.
“That’s preposterous. We should back Hastur!” Takoi went on.
The clan started to get really rowdy as Ishino took a deep breath and released a mighty kiai toward the crowd. The crowd stopped as most of them were rubbing their ears. This meeting was a lot more interesting than what he bargained for. If that was a reason why he became an elder, he understood why the choose him. It was a good thing there was some crowd control. Everyone seemed a bit on edge for whatever reason. Getting your ears blasted out also didn’t help that either.
“Thanks, Ishino,” Takoi said.
“You’re welcome. I may be new in this seat, but do we really want to back Hastur? We have done well so far to keep to ourselves. Though, I say we should dethrone him.”
The crowd started to get rowdy again, then stopped as they noticed the look on Ishino’s face. They muffled their voices as another elder finally spoke up.
“I see what you’re saying, Ishino. We don’t want to deal with a total war. A civil war would be just as bad. We’ll send spies out into the village to see what some of the other clans are thinking. More than likely, we’re not the only ones who are having the same thoughts. It wasn’t the Nakir who put him in power,” the elder named Chung.
“Thank you, Chung. That would be the first step. The next step we could take is to form a resistance. The cultist are a problem that is sort of getting out of hand. It will be hard to tell the ones who are cultist by name and the ones that are to some really gruely stuff. Most of this is based on rumor, but we can infiltrate and find out if it’s true. If we can work something out and convince others to join, that’s when we can demolish Hastur’s supporters,” Ishino said to the crowd.
“We’re getting ahead of ourselves, Ishino. We still need to make a motion to see what we will do. I say let’s get the motion started,” said Takoi with a loud boisterous voice.
“No, we need to open the floor first. I’m hereby opening the floor to suggestions,” Ryuu stated.
Tomohiro noticed that no one else bothered to stand up at first and he decided to take the stand himself. He was a bit nervous as he walked to down to the table of elders. The walk to the stage seemed like a long road to hell. The eyes of the clan stared at him as he walked down. Tomohiro knew that he was one of the many shinobi that believed in the strength and opportunity within the village. Others new that as well. This wasn’t the first time he had spoken in front of the clan. There was only one other, but that had been years ago. He just had to clear his mind and calm himself. He stopped as he looked upward to the council and then to his clansmen.
“We have spent many years sitting on the sideline. Our tradition has kept us in the shadows for too long. What happens if Hastur decides to remove anyone that doesn’t support him? That is the reason why we must choose a side. We are better off forming a resistance and help clean up our village. If we are able to get support of higher ranking shinobi, we can fight him. We have shinobi in the clan that rival the best. We also have strong members that have exiled themselves because of tradition. We will become like the other clans that have dissipated into nothing. There’s a way we can resist. The Nakir will start from the bottom and then we cut the head off the snake. What kind of warrior monks are we if we’re running from any conflict? How many of us have already joined with the cultist. There could be people in this very room. We need to survive together as a clan. Together we can win.”
Tomohiro ended his speech with a strong resolve. The elders looked at each other and Ishino and Ryuu seemed to have smirks on their face. It was a face of pride they had for their immediate family. The elders were stunned at the words that came from Tomohiro’s mouth. They had never heard so many words come from him. The fact that Tomohiro stood up when others didn’t seemed to concern them. What concerned them, he knew not.
“Elders, we recess.” Ryuu stated as the elders walked away to convene with themselves.
The hall started erupting into small voices as the elders walked away into a back room. A few minutes went by as they returned. Tomoihro would remain waiting in front of his clan for the elders to return. The recess for a total of fifteen minutes before returning to their chairs. Some of their looks were disconcerting to him and others were actually seemed in decent moods.
Ishino looked to the crowd of Nakir and began speaking, “We came to a conclusion. I motion that we reach out to other clans and request support to build some sort of resistance. I already have higher ranking shinobi allies that think that Hastur needs to be stopped. They are willing to die to protect the village from collapsing within. We’ll start with limiting our shares of iron ore and use it to forge weapons. It would be easy to lie about how much we have been harvesting. We’ll call it a dry season. We also came to the conclusion that we need to send ambassadors to the Hidden Leaves for the Chunin Exams as well as find our exiled brothers and sisters. All in favor, say I.”
The group of Nakir were speechless. The fact that they would send clansmen to Hi no Kuni, of all places, was a bit of a shock. The Nakir had spent years avoiding them if they were held in Konoha. The group hesitantly said I sporadically. There were no nays. The elders then looked to Tomohiro as the young Nakir hid his head underneath his leather kasa. Ishino sort of chuckled. A deep slow voice then followed his chuckled.
“Tomohiro, my son, you will be one our clan's ambassadors. You will not go alone, but you will first head to Konohagakure. We will send three other shinobi with you. You are free to leave Kumogakure and come back at your leisure. If you’re called to duty in Kumogakure, we will cover for you at the kage’s office. The kage's office does have some understanding of our traditions. They should be understanding. Though, we're not sure if Hastur will be. Since your sensei and squad mate were both Raiu, you may try to bid their clan for assistance. We will send others to other clans. This meeting is adjourned,” Ryuu ended.
The meeting ended with all of the clansmen standing up. A lot of them were concerned and they had a right to be. This whole meeting had not gone as they expected. He was expecting to have to fight them tooth and nail. Maybe with the possibility of defecting from Kumo temporarily. This was quite inspirational and nauseating at the same time. Outside of having to take someone’s life, this had to be one of the boldest things he has done. His heart felt like it was about burst out of his chest. His brother hopped down from the platform and grabbed him by the shoulder. Tomohiro wasn’t sure if he would punch him in the gut or congratulate him. It was something that Ishino would do. Though, he did neither he looked at him and told him to follow. Tomohiro wouldn’t refuse, he wondered what his brother wanted to get off his chest as they moved to a training cavern closeby. The two stared at each other before they decided to break their silence.
“Really Ishino. The Hidden Leaf? Konoha?!” Tomohiro yelled.
“It wasn’t my choice, brother. If it was up to me, I would have sent someone else in your stead. The clan elders think you are going to bring honor to the clan. The way you talked in there was amazing. I thought that the elders’ eyes were going to pop out of their socket. They agreed that you would be the best person to be an ambassador. It may take some work, but we think that you will be able to convince the exiles to come back. Most of them left Kumo in good standing at least. They shouldn’t give you too many problems. The clan will be counting on you. I will be counting on you. You should be honored. Usually only retired shinobi of the clan become ambassadors, this is a great opportunity.”
Tomoiro grunted heavily as he rubbed his temples in slight disgust. The way he react was if he was going to go alone. He wondered who would go with him to Konoha. The Chunin Exams were quite a while. It would give him plenty of time to at least hunt down a couple of his Nakir clansmen. He knew that Konoha would be one of the last places to look for them. It may be their that he find some of his distant family. Tomohiro tried to look on the bright side of this, but it became hard to think of anything that would calm him. He would definitely need to meditate. Out of all his frustration he was glad that his clan had been able to see reason to an extent. It would just take some time to get more of them on board with their plan of resistance.
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