Rekindle the Will of Fire [Hitora]

[Kinzoku]

2 o'clock in the morning
Hi no Kuni
Forest

Rekindle the Will of Fire!
The full moon illuminated the night sky as two figures could be seen taking a casual stroll. Instead of leaves crunching, the damp grass softened each step both figures took. So only a light suction could be heard, if one with keen hearing was to listen closely. As the two figures walked, a cool breeze would creep past them and infiltrate their clothing, to softly caress their skin.

Assuming the second was still following the first, they would have been walking some time without a word. It had been almost half an hour and about seven kilometers walked. At this point, they were beyond view of the embassy and it seemed like they had become lost. That was when the front figure would stop and turn around..

While facing the second figure, the first would take off his crimson good, revealing a young man sporting asingle golden braid. As his trench coat fluttered in the breeze, his apparel could be seen under the red outerwear. It was just his everyday clothing. No weapons. No armor. Starting into the second figure' s soul, through his eyes, the young Hokage would speak.

"So Hitora... now's your chance. It's just us. If you have any spite or hatred towards Konoha and are planning on attacking it, now is your chance. You can kill their Kage and send them into a frenzy. Or even capture me and take me to rain. But now is your key opportunity as we will be in Konoha soon. And I'm sure you already know but if you do it then, I can guarantee you won't make it out alive."

Kinzoku would then close his eyes and wait for Hitora to make a move before proceeding.

[Hitora Ryunobu (Uchiha)]

Sparks become Flames.

Hitora followed the man, not a word spoken betwixt the two of them as they walked away from the embassy. Hitora only now realizing just how late it likely was, as he could smell the dew on the grass, and felt the more difficult terrain to walk, as a Ninja, it was something that could be the difference between life and death but since they were just walking, it meant nothing to him. The two walked, the animals all around them were either sleeping or in the midst of their nocturnal habits, feeding and hunting.

At some point, the figure had put his hood up; Hitora was not quite paying that close of an attention, as he was more fascinated with how close his memory of this area lined up with its current looks still. It was only when the man had gone to lower his hood that Hitora even noticed that it was up in the first place. The man was facing him, staring dead into his eyes as he pulled the hood down. Hitora saw no weapons or armor but in this world of Shinobi that alone meant very little to him, since there could be hidden compartments in his clothing or even seals.

Hitora listened as the man broke the silence between them, uttering his words. Stating that it was just them, that if Hitora had any ill-will towards the village that this would be the perfect chance to do something about it. That the man was wide open and fully open to be executed, that however seemed a bit odd, why would such an important man come out with someone like Hitora that he knew little about and offer his head up on a silver platter like that. It was one of the strangest things he had seen in a very long time.

Thinking for a moment Hitora came up with three scenarios in his mind: The first was that the man was expecting Hitora to do nothing, to leave him and say he was not there to end his life – which was the route Hitora would actually take. Then there was the second option which was he had ANBU waiting to ambush Hitora if he had attacked him, likely to execute the Uchiha before he could end the life of the Hokage. Finally, there was the third option that the man was actually a Shadow Clone and was some sort of combination of the other two options.

Hitora figured that it was likely option three, a Shadow Clone, why else risk his life in such a situation. Sighing a bit Hitora slowly and purposefully placed his hand on the man’s shoulder and shook his raven-haired head. “I have no ill-will towards the village nor do I seek to claim your life Hokage-sama, I spoke nothing but the truth when I was interviewed…though one day I might come for your job by way of simply earning it.” Hitora smiled brightly at the man and let a hearty chuckle out, wondering what would come next.

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[Kinzoku]

As Hitora's hand touched Kinzoku's shoulder... nothing would happen. No ANBU would be lurking, and Kinzoku did not open his eyes. At least, not until Hitora spoke. Then Kinzoku would open his eyes at see the man before him smiling.

"While I would love combat, I'm glad this was your option. You'll notice I'm not like many other Kage. I'm not for the formal approach. That's why I did this brash and dangerous test of faith."

Kinzoku would put the hood back on and continue walking.

"Well I'm sure you have plenty of questions, and I'll be sure to answer them on the way to the village so feel free to ask whatever you like... oh! I almost forgot!"

Kinzoku paused and then turned around, reaching out his hand.

"Now it is your turn to put your faith in me. In order for me to give you a leaf headband when we get to the village, I will require your rain headband now. As you are no longer loyal to Ame, we must rid you of the headband now."

[Hitora Ryunobu (Uchiha)]

Appearance is Everything.

Hitora continued to smile at the man while he waited to see what would happen. He then listened as the man spoke once more, stating that he was glad he had taken this option despite his love for combat. The blonde haired man would continue on saying that he was not like other Kage, not so formal but more willing to take a chance and be more brash and risky. The man then put his hood back up and would continue to walk, causing Hitora to walk behind him, lagging just a bit so as to make it seem like he was not sure where he was.

The man would say that he was sure that Hitora had plenty of questions and that he would try his best to answer them, but really Hitora had no questions. Hitora was more interested in getting set up in the village right now though, then a question hit him, a minor one but still relatively important. “Since I am leaving Rain which was my home for quite some time, I will need a place to stay for the time being, can I assume the village might provide me with an apartment or something to stay in till I can get my own home? Also, is there a good place in the village where I could practice my Lava techniques in safety and in secrecy?”

Hitora’s questions to some might have seemed a bit selfish but it was important for him to get the two answered as soon as possible as they had a great impact on many different things. Hitora then stopped abruptly when the man did; regardless of if, he had answered his questions. He held his hand out and said that he would need a leap of faith from Hitora, to hand over his headband from the hidden rain.

Hitora had no real qualms about this and was more than prepared for this since the outset. Hitora slowly reached up, making it seem more nervous and unsure than he was as he slowly untied the fabric that made up the majority of the headband, letting it slowly unravel. Hitora then slowly and gingerly placed the metal and navy blue fabric into the hand of the Hokage that was outstretched and waiting. Hitora then looked into the man’s eyes and waited to see if he had anything to say or reactions to this.

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[Kinzoku]

Kinzoku took the headband and stowed it inside his pocket. He was glad that Hitora was being very cooperative.

"Thank you for that. You will receive your new one when we get to the village."

Kinzoku then listened to Hitora's questions. They were pretty interesting questions, if he was being honest. But they were also things he didn't think about. As Hitora asked the questions, Kinzoku thought of the best resolution.

"Well I'm sure we can find somewhere for you to live. But you will have to earn your keep, as I'm sure you know. But you will be a shinobi of Konoha so I'm sure you already planned on taking on missions. And as far as training, I'm actually in the process of getting a training facility set up. I'll be sure to make something that can handle your lava."

Kinzoku then thought about how fun it would be to spar with a lava user and made sure to take note to do so later. He was sure Hitora would be up for it side he wanted to be Hokage one day. It kind of reminded him of himself, and Kinzoku loved the competition. Smiling, he moved on to his next question.

"Well how about joining a team? Together we grow stronger and I'm sure you and your possible team can benefit from it.."

[Hitora Ryunobu (Uchiha)]

Smoke begets Flame

Hitora listened to the man as he spoke, answering the questions he had asked. The housing issue was relatively easy to solve, that much was certain, but he chuckled a bit when the man spoke about setting up a place for him to train safely, the idea was funny to him. Since Lava was so incredibly dangerous, he doubted they could find a place where the lava would not damage buildings and the like, despite him having been the one to ask for it. “Don’t worry about a facility that can safely handle the lava, just a quiet place where no one will be near, will suffice…

Oh and a place where there is nothing of importance to be destroyed, Lava is quite volatile and will melt through most any material in existence.” Hitora continued to follow behind the Hokage should he have started walking. Hitora wondering just how long it would take them to get to the village, the man was surprised a bit when the Hokage suggested joining a team, he had thought of this and such. “I have given thought to this, but I must meet with Rize first, she is supposed to be my teacher, helping me grow stronger…perhaps if she were team leader it would be easier, but for now I must go where the teacher leads me in this case.”

Hitora knew he definitely sounded selfish and self-serving, but he needed to grow stronger and that woman Morgan had said that Rize would be able to help him learn and grow much stronger than he would be able to on his own.

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[Kinzoku]

Kinzoku was a bit disappointed that Hitora felt that a team would hold him back from training and getting him to where he wanted to be. Joining Blitz actually made Kinzoku grow  both as a shinobi and also as a person. Who knew this once blood thristy savage could evolve into a friendly and nurturing Hokage?

But he could not hold that against the man for everyone was different and therefore, had different opinions. All he could do at this point was give Hitora a piece of advice, since he was aspiring to be where Kinzoku was now.

"While Rize is very knowledgeable and strong, you can learn from your peers as well. I have had multiple teachers in the past, but being on Blitz Squadron with my peers is what made me grow the most."

That was all Kinzoku would say, as he would hope Hitora would have some type of personal growth and notice for himself, the importance of relationships and marketability. As the village doesn't really know him much,

He would be viewed as an outsider and that would make it harder for them to accept him as one of their own. That would also make it that much harder to be acknowledged and become Hokage, especially if they didn't get to know him first.

[Hitora Ryunobu (Uchiha)]

Mistakes Abound

“I’m sure I could learn much from others in the village besides just Rize, but I was instructed to seek her out first and foremost, so that is what I shall do, she is to continue my teaching going forward for the most part. I do have plans to be on a team eventually, mainly to make up for my own lackings as a Shinobi, since no one Shinobi can be without weakness, but as I said I have to find Rize first and go from there under her tutelage, which I’m sure you can understand Hokage-sama.”

Hitora was trying to get back to basics in a sense, he knew that a team would be very useful to him and that would be a good thing, but right now, he needed to get to Rize to continue his training. The team would help best in missions where they could make up for his blind spots and weaknesses. It was strange to have to admit such things, but it was at this point that he figured admitting such things would allow him to grow much faster as a Shinobi. Hitora’s growth had been stunted back in Amegakure, this was a mistake he needed to rectify.

“If you want to put me on a team I won’t argue, nor will I be a detriment to it, I merely ask that you put Rize in charge of the team so that I won’t have to train under her and then the team separately, it will make life much easier for all I suspect.” Hitora would say, making a vague case for why the woman he was sent to train under should also be the leader of whatever ninja team he was put onto. He hoped that the man would understand and make the request a reality.

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[Kinzoku]

Kinzoku listened as Hitora spoke. He could tell this man had not meet Rize. He tried having her run a team of competent Jōnin and that was a bother for her. He would not dare wonder what she would do to a group of genin who had yet to establish themselves.

"Well Rize is a Jōnin Commander. Plus she is very busy. I doubt she has any time to, as she would say, babysit anyone. So I wouldn't want to burden get with more work than she already has."

Thinking about his other response, Kinzoku did not not want him to feel pressured so he reponded.

"Well I would not forcefully put you in a squad. I like to wait until people feel they are ready or want it. Your drive and will power is everything."

[Hitora Ryunobu (Uchiha)]

Time to Move On.

Hitora listened to the man as he spoke, it seemed Rize was not a fan of having to lead other Shinobi according to him, but that was not a matter for him after all he was told by Morgan to seek her out, and trusting her words so far seemed to be a good idea. Hitora shook his head a bit and looked at the man, dead in his eyes as if to say he did not care about that sort of thing. Hitora listened as he said he would not necessarily put Hitora into a team until he was ready for such, which was a good thing.

“Well, for now I think we can both agree that just standing out here talking about what ifs and maybes and potentially will get us nowhere at this point, perhaps we should go into the village and find Rize and go from there Hokage-sama, what do you think?” Hitora smiled at the man, wondering what he would say to the suggestion. It was a valid point however you looked at it, just standing around and talking about issues that might happen are pointless in this context, since no lives were directly influenced by it yet.

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[Kinzoku]

Kinzoku just laughed when he heard Hitora's reply. He was glad that the new shinobi had such high hopes for his future, but he seemed to have misunderstood Kinzoku.

"I think you should as Rize for herself if she would lead a team. And as far walking around, be sure to be aware of your surroundings Hitora. Do not let a series of questions distract you as they did in the interview, and might have here as well."

Kinzoku then stopped. They were now at the entrance of the gates. Along with getting to know each other, Kinzoku wanted to show Hitora how something as small as conversation could be used as a distraction. Kind of to create a learning moment for him, as that was the least he could do. He would then hand the headband to an ANBU, who would disappear to take it to the vault. Kinzoku would then turn back to Hitora.

"C'mon. Time to go inside."

[EXIT TO KONOHA GATES]

[Hitora Ryunobu (Uchiha)]

PROGRESS

Hitora continued to follow the man, noticing that the areas they were walking through were more and more recognizable to him as the area before the Gates leading into the village. Hitora had already considered asking Rize about the whole team-leading thing, he did not know her well so it would be a topic that would need careful breaching. Hitora then felt a sense of familiarity wash over him as the two men arrived at the gates of the village, with the Hokage talking about him needing to be wary of being distracted as he had been in the interrogation by a series of questions.

Hitora had never been in such a place before; never needed to be interrogated to gain entry, so it was strange to him. However, the walking and talking while keeping his senses open was something he was use to, it was his ability to speak that was lessened during the whole time. Hitora watched as the Hokage handed the Rain village headband to an ANBU agent who disappeared suddenly while the Hokage instructed him that it was time to enter the village. Hitora nodded and followed the man to the gates of the village known as Konoha.

[EXIT to KONOHAGAKURE GATES]

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