Spoiler:

Since burning to death my life has become a little odd. Well, odder than it was as a semi-spider human hybrid who lives in a world of magic. Whatever that fireball did to me, well it's messed with my head enough that we now have a room mate up in this noggin. Do I fully understand it? No. Is it a mystical demon locked away? Shucks maybe. Do I hope it goes away? A little. This is my life now. Two minds in one body.
Xiao folded his arms as he looked over the rolling forests of the spider island, his new mask and hood tightly fitted to his face to avoid any hint of his face shown. This was his face, the carefully designed spider mask was who he was, it was who Kyutai could be. The comedic prankster of the webs that made friends wherever he could. Would he enter a solemn state of depression that caused him to lash out? Well, no. That was not the way of the little spider. Instead he had opted for a different path, as he had been taken by the robed Jashin worshippers and rescued by Haka and Verdandi as well as their Leaf companion Nayako, Xiao had decided to take the chance to take a break from the shinobi lifestyle and continue some personal training both inside and outside whether it was coping with his new room mate or dealing with his lack of variety of jutsu Xiao needed to focus on what it meant to be a ninja and with that goal he would need some time apart from everyone. Though Kaito, Yoshito, Verdandi, Chigetsu and Haka were aware of his survival the young spider had opted to keep this information unsaid to others who may have seen his match opting to simply 'forget' to mention his survival rather than outright deny it. For all they knew he fell from the arena and ended in a dark hole without any idea of where he ventured after reaching that darkness. He had some worry over Ryo and whether he would be okay with the whole ordeal but all at once kept such thoughts in the back of his mind as it was time instead to try and become an actually useful shinobi. To become someone who could strive to be more than the simple web weaver he once was. His tranquil gazing was interupted by the venomous thoughts that populated his mind, a grough voice that he assumed may have derived from some ethereal realm that perhaps Sero had more of a mind for. Perhaps the voice was his interpretation of Sero himself in a way but the fact that he had never met Sero certainly could hint at it's dark aura.

We are hungry.
You're always hungry. We literally ate two hours ago. I don't think you even remember when you last ate sometimes.
We remember. We need more food. More energy.
What did we eat?
What?
What did we eat, just two hours ago?
Food.
What food? Just tell me. I know. You should know. We share a brain.
Wet food.
It was a cracker
A wet cracker.
That's not a thing. Crackers are not wet.
This was a wet one.
No! You just can't remember and you're taking it....fine fine, look let's go look for some food.
Meat.
We are a vegetarian!
Unfair.

Xiao examined the area looking about for something to eat. The spiders on the island knew him as fangless, it was true, he had no desire to harm others nor devour them, he rarely thought of the act as anything more than a selfish or lazy option when coming to an opponent that did not meet your ideals. In the clash of ideals, Xiao figured, that the truth would always come out on top and either you or your opponent would need to adjust to it. There was no need to kill over such things and though undergoing his training with Haka he certainly did not ever wish to do such a thing like take a life. Leaping and bounding from tree to tree with the added use of web slinging occasionally aiding the gaining speed of the little spider who slinged time and time again to try and find food for his gnawing hunger or rather his room mate's gnawing hunger.
You gonna tell me how you got in my body?
Our body. Always here. Same person.
Okay okay fine, whatever, let's get you food grumpy.

As he swung along the webs he eyed some half decent mushrooms that would make for a nice meaty stew, with a few reeds and yam it would be enough to saciate his hunger though he noted that the bag of rice he held within his hollowed tree home may have been running quite low. As he made his way back to his homestead the little shinobi readied his pot to boil, something the spiders of the land often snidely sneered at due to Xiao's insistance on focusing on his human side.
Always cooking. Why?
Cooking is an art my dear...disembodied voice.
Food is energy. Energy. Art is picture. Food is not picture
That may be true but art is important to me, y'know? Why not try and make things
a little more beautiful, eh?
Stupid. Food is energy. Can't eat a picture.
We're not eating paintings, we're enjoying the art of creation!
Sex is not a picture.
Not that creation! Gosh! You're so gross. What are you doing talking about things like that? Sick mind you. All blood and what not.
Natural. You are hiding from nature.
Uncivilized is more like it!
Civility is an illusion. Your normality and civility are socially constructed and highly subjective
Ooo, what other sweet goth band phrases have you got? How about normal is just a setting on a washing machine? Oh oh, how about I'm not like other spiders?
Joking does not make us less correct.
No but it sure does help. Now shut up and eat.

Xiao's constant debates with his own mind as he stirred the stew of yams, rice, mushroom and reeds as he held the spoon to his lips sampling the earthy broth that was more to his liking than the candy and sweet flavors of the village though he did honestly wish for a more vinegar like taste but he would make do with what he had. He hadn't embraced Sero's offer just yet of living within the mansion and had much rathered his own hollowed tree embraced during his training as his own homestead not only did it allow Xiao to have his own private moments but so too did the little spider see it as a way for him to keep the family safe. He was far from the original mansion, atleast four hours walk or so and close enough to the makeshift docks of local brave fishermen that he could spy trouble if it was soon to make it to the island. A glorified watchmen without Haka or Sero knowing it, Xiao had elected himself as such and would work mostly without the need for congratulations outside of the odd training session or so. His ambition was never anything akin to other shinobi, if anything he was more of a vigilante than a real shinobi - he didn't kill, maim and tried his best to heal his opponents if they had suffered too greatly. He wasn't one to run through ranks slashing and hacking his way through red crops of human lives, he alone could scarcely tangle with even the most basic of genin but when it came to attempting to adapt he was one of the more determined beings. As the little spider ate his fill he began to think over how he would grow, how he would progress outside of that of which he already had.
"Need more."
"Well excuse me Peter Molyneux but those expectations are going to need a little tweaking...but here's the reality, those burns fat fast and colgate white teeth in the ads? Not exactly reality. What do you want to do, Go to the land of noodles and-"
Land of Noodles?
Yeah. Land of Noodles. Do I get why they named themselves that? Hell no. Do I respect it? Heck yeah.
Language.
Hey I'm 15, I get to swear now. I could say way worse than heck. Regardless, Yes. Land of Noodles..
Age is unimportant. Swearing creates lapses in vocabulary. Haka Osada will not be pleased.
Ohhhhh Haka won't be pleased! She's never pleased- wait uh, don't tell her I said that.
Fangless! You live up to your name, pathetic boy!
Ohhhhh wow, Fangless, the cutting edge! Anyway Big Dark and Spider-Man 3-ee, We got a super original name-caller here! Fine you know what? Land of Noodles we're going!
I want to go to that land
And I want to be Mizukage, but that ain't happening and We're not going to land of Noodles!"
I WANT to go to the land of noodles
You're like a child...Well, wait, how your birthday work, do we share one or is it since you popped in my head last year? Okay...Alright...I'll tell you what, this is your birthday present! Okay? Land of Noodles but you do know their Kage is literally Elvis right? I mean that's a thing they have. That's a thing they're proud of.
Xiao twisted his hair as he ate contemplating the efforts. To go forward into the land of noodles or to remain in such a place that would cause him to be stranded in a limbo like state of eternal contemplation. As much as the little Spider did indeed enjoy the odd brooding session when it came to contemplating the complexities of life he had ccertainly done quite enough since his time during the chuunin exams. He often thought of Ryo, often thinking on how the boy must have taken his 'death' but at the present time atleast to most he encountered, 'Xiao' had died in a firey blaze and being thrown into a dark pit only to be captured by those that wished to convert him and perhaps in a sense they did. Perhaps the venomous chakra within him that had taken their own form in the strange creature was not only a manifistation of Xiao's inability to cope with the constant pain he was enduing throughout his life, perhaps this manifestation was in fact some form of Jashinism? The entire concept of Jashin had certainly been a 'proven' aspect of the world namely in that it's followers did have a tendency to truly become immortal or so the rumors went, was there a possibility that the blessing could take in other forms? Nor an immortality of body but rather one of spirituality allowing Xiao to manifest an aspect of the proven god of Jashin? Was it so farfetched? Demons did at one point and possibly still roamed the earth in forms of the tailed beasts not to mention the great life giving tree, could it be that this was a manifestation of more than just Xiao's jungian shadow or perhaps an aspect of Sero's influence? It was hard to fully contemplate without all the facts, and systems, in place but the one constant was that Xiao seemed to always find himself pushing beyond the norm whether it's personality, actions or far more, it was hard to say that Xiao was 'average' in any regard.
"Land of Noodles...Okay...Let's see...." the little spider contemplated trying to figure out his way to the land itself. It wasn't as if the world had GPS just yet, though a sattelite clan wasn't out of possibilities of course with the amount of strange entities that populated the area of the usual areas of the world between clans that could summon literal gods or raise the dead the notion of a simple sattelite to provide guidance wasn't entirely the strangest thing. Xiao, unfortunately, had not come across such things before though and thus was left with his only option: Finding a map maker. Their tribe was that of hunters, the notorious clan of the wildmen who would mark their tracks, who would make their way through the forests of Konohagakure, the sands of Sunagakure, the rocky mounts of kumogakure, the power of the tribe was their extra sensory abilities and so Xiao would need to seek one out if he was to satiate the venom within him...with noodles.
His travel was long, not arduous but certainly long, making his way back to the misty isles of Kirigakure in the long boat he had formed from oak tree and webbing. Finding the hollowed halls of the grand central harbors that allowed for Xiao to make his way to the greater regions. The docks held some maps, but never anything more than a simple city or town district or routes of flowing water for fisherman to gaze upon in their efforts to create bounties of silver and gold that may bring merriment to all citizens of the misted village of shinobi. Xiao found himself making his way eyeing each merchant that promised a more...traditional approach to things, but what Xiao needed for these smaller nations. There he was, the man he needed, right hidden among the crowd, a sanded fleshed man with sweeped back black hair and a moustache that could rival the shinobi gods themselves, a handlebar naturally. Adorned with furs and body hair, teeth of great beasts he had slain. The spider had found one of these grand trackers and in him would be able to find that of a way to satiate his inner demons hunger.
"Hey...you're a tracker right?"
"Indeed."
"Awesome! Well, y'see I'm making my way to the land of noodles and when it comes to noodley noodles and distant lands I'm not exactly the most well versed. So uhh, How do we do this? Do I give you ryo and you give me a map or-"
"You talk a lot. Thirty Ryo now. Thirty Ryo later."
Xiao counted his Ryo, he certainly had more than enough, and as he began to rummage through his handy fanny pack tied about his left leg for easy access and style purposes but as the little shinobi went to rummage through for ryo the hunter had already begun to walk off. Xiao was flustered, quickly zipping his back with thirty in his hand as he traced after the hunter hopping on one foot to gain balance enough to swiftly catch up "Yo! Wait up!"
The hunter simply shot a look behind him, staring back at the little spider "Come." the hunter said with a deepened tone as the little spider eyed his grizzled bare chest and olive skin, his face scarred and warn for years of practice with the animal realm. Xiao quickly followed as the hunter began to wander through the crowd leaving the spider rushing behind him.
I like him.
"Shut up."
As the hunter waded through the kirigakure shinobi Xiao was lead to a small dingy, much better than his makeshift rafts that he often opted to use, the voyage was silent. Uncomfortable but it was doing the trick atleast, actually getting to the location would be another story and when it came to the Village 'Hidden' in the Noodles how would one actually hide within such a substance? Were there literally a large variety of noodles around the village, so much in fact that the village was hidden or was it that the flora resembled noodles? Maybe it was a pun? It was hard to know and Xiao's imagination was running wild with what it could be. Making small talk, Xiao attempted to speak with the hunter. "So uh, Hunter huh? Guess that's always needed, right?" Xiao stated as he scratched the back of his neck walking behind the Hunter who seemed deliberate in every stride he took. He didn't respond, simply continuing on the trail.
It was disheartening not to be heard with some psychologists even arguing that it was one of the key ways to drive a man insane was the denial and constant rejection of social interaction for a person. Isolation for humans was worse than death so was it the same for spiders or was this a seperate cause in itself? Was it worse for the little spider who craved attention and valedation or was it the fact that he was not a human that made him so prone to feel a more intense rejection from them? Regardless the hunter was a man of select words. "So uh...Land of Noodles. You ever been there? Is it just a big ol' bowl or what?" Xiao stated to which the hunter merely continued to tread forward around the winding path "Yes." was all Xiao got in return.
The path was long...and the road unknown but this man, this hunter, seemed to know the way and though somewhat concerned all Xiao could do was pray that he would deliver him so.

The hunter was the antithesis to the orbweaver. Poised, stoic with machismo spilling out in an aura of authority and calculated guile. Kyutai was for all it was worth trained in combat but when it came to practical application was far more  clown than warrior holding a peaceful way about him that always veered more to a peaceful resolution or dialogue as opposed to an all out battle. It had given some unique results when it came to conflicts in the past.

As the hunter lead the prey down the winding trail, the small spider contemplated what counted as small talk to the grunting stoic shinobi. Did the beings that shrouded themselves in veils of silent authority have any "downtime"? or was it all just serious discussion wrapped in infinite layers of practiced control of the self? He often wondered if half were just merely shy and put on such anomity and bravado to hide their true nature. The hunter seemed genuine and thus Xiao occupied his time attempting to avoid stirring the hunter anymore than needed. He knew, in part at least, that such actions could potentially bring forth the ever present wrath that eminated from the hunter. He kept his mouth shut, for the most part, attempting to ensure that the hunter had a moment of peace.


We could learn from him.
What's the point? I don't want to be a guy like that...
Maybe. Or perhaps the fact that I suggest it is enough to prove you do?
I said I aint and I aint, I just don't like the whole 'ooo muh dark past' attitude. It's stupid, we're living weapons. We're all screwed up. Stop pretending you're sooooo mysterious because you're a shinobi. We have ninja cats - that's a thing, I've seen that. This is a silly world.
And yet we wonder why we can't seem to get ahead of our brothers...
Kaito is a genius and Yoshito is a prodigy. I aint got nothing on them but I'll make my own way just watch
And Sachihiro? Makoto? Kashiki? Momochi? Michibo? Kisuke? Ryo? Samuru? What of them? What of Maikeru and Haka? These still all stand in your way and this is but the base level of your collected allies.
They're friends. I'm not competing. I can go the distance...don't make me sing.


The constant stream of thought was cut short as the hunter grunted, suddenly halting on the dusted straight path that lead supposedly to the land of noodles. His body tensing as the small spider-nin glanced up to the hulking brute. "Uhh, Everything okay?" Xiao stated nervously cocking his head to the side in curiosity. The stillness of the hunter and the sound of wind was all that was seen by the spider who rose an eyebrow. "Remain still." the hunter stated calmly as the spider stood in confusion. Silence followed, utter silence and deep breathing...

A nothingness that caused the hairs on the spider's neck to stand on end in anticipation. Then it happened, the sound of ripping steel on steel as wires flew down around the hunter causing the hulking man to dart backwards as the wires tensed producing an array of spiked barbs "Bandits." the hunter stated skidding backwards and trailing next to Xiao who proceeded to crack his knuckles with a laugh "Now Bandits I can certainly deal with...Other shinobi? ehhhh..."
[wip]