Ideology

Kozai sat there on a grassy knoll about eight miles out from Hoshigakure. It was the dead of night, around eleven or so, going on midnight. There was a gentle breeze ruffling through the area, bring with it smells of the clearly diverse types of food from Hoshi itself. Depite his efforts so far, Kozai's stomach grumbled.
He was hungry.
For once in his life, he had nothing to eat. His supplies had run out a long while ago, even before he had gotten to Haven, and he had merely been surviving on his own nutrients and sheer fortitude. However, at long last, he felt the pain of real hunger. If he didn't find some small amount of food soon, he'd have to start eating his own flesh and using his chakra to regenerate the tissue. Even that would only last for so long. Would he, like so many other savages, be reduced to eating indigestible, raw plant matter? However, his thoughts were not just on where his next meal would come from. On Kozai's face, there was a slight smile. He was looking at the sky above, which, though dark, was alit with stars.
Out here, in the countryside, one could even see the faint trail of the milky way as it bent away through space. The smile, however, wasn't in appreciation of its beauty at all. No, in fact, it was merely because Kozai was reviewing through what he knew. The only things left in his mind were facts, goals, and that... that haunting truth that his friends had left with him before they had departed from his life.
"There's more than facts in life, Kozai..." Agito had said. Was it true? He'd not seen much evidence to it, but there was that queasy feeling in his gut...
"Think more with your gut, not just with your mind." Echo... in a way, he resented him for trying to peek at his research, but at the same time, he missed Echo. He had been interesting, and powerful to boot... Kozai still didn't know what had happened to him, but maybe he'd never know.
Kozai tucked his knees close to his chest, arms around his shins.
That star, there... it's a sixth magnitude star. And that one, over there... it's a first magnitude. That means it's about 100 times as bright...
These thoughts comforted him, and distracted him from his hunger. He couldn't help, also, but think of that man who had evicted him from Hoshi. Just as he thought that his infiltration had been successful... he should have expected as much, that a man like that should be able to detect him. That titanic power... what was its source? How was that guy so much stronger than Kozai? It almost frustrated him, but naturally, being a problem of analysis, it was more enjoyable than annoying to him. Hmmm... he never really got a close look at him. However, he had seen that he had been able to fly, or something similar.
Had he chakra wings, like Agito had (to some extent)? Or was it something else? Without sufficient data, Kozai was unable to tell. Sighing, he stood up, his focus turning to the land around him. All at once, at the edge of his range of hearing, he heard something... voices?
"Alright, boys, tonight, we're gonna sneak into that there ninja village and git some o' their gear."
"Are you sure this's a good idea, boss? They're damn ninjas..."
"Is it you're job to think, nitwit? Just do what I tell ya, and they won't be able to find us. I've got those swag suppressor thingies; we'll be fine. Now, shaddup and move!"
Hmph... this was no concern of his... except... there was a stirring in his inner self. Not like the rumbling of his stomach; no, this was different. An urging to... stop them? Was this another personality forming, like Avarice had long ago?
No... it was more like... a "gut feeling"... a conscience? Was this what Echo had spoken of? Kozai gritted his teeth. Normally, he'd start writing about this, putting what he felt on paper for analysis, but he simply couldn't. Firstly, he didn't have as much paper as he would have liked. Secondly, he knew that this was his chance to find out what his friends had talked about. The "one thing lacking" in his life, perhaps?
Even if Haven had rejected him, he wasn't doing it for him. He stood up, and began to walk. As he did so, if there were any sensories around, they would not detect anything, as his chakra signature had long been suppressed.
He came up to a makeshift camp of bandits who were just beginning to put out their fire for the night. He focused in on the area, both of his sensories confirming that this was an isolated group. Hmph... was it really this easy?
"Oi... who's this fuccboi? Get outta our camp, assho-" In a matter of a few seconds, Kozai had calmly stepped up to the one who looked like the leader (he was the one whose voice he had heard earlier order people around), and plunged his hand into the man's chest, gripping his heart and pulling it out of his body. The man collapsed face-first on the fire, and Kozai grunted slightly, throwing the heart as hard as he could into the face of the rather schocked man to his right. The sheer impact force obliterated the man's face and part of his skull, knocking him backwards into a tent.
The last man had fallen onto his back. Kozai loomed over him, an unimpressed look on his face. This guy, though... he had chakra.
The guy desperatley made a handseal, and attempted to shoot something at Kozai. He recognized it as the same mind-affecting jutsu that Li Dian had used. With a simple motion of his head, Kozai broke the jutsu with ease.
Just like Li... this guy was...
"Still on the human level, I see."
Kozai, without a change in his serious expression, bent down and lifted the man by the neck with a single hand. He was certainly strong enough to do this, and had enough control to not seriously injure the man... yet.
"Tell me who hired you, and I may just spare your life."
The man whimpered slightly, then began to speak rapidly when Kozai increased the pressure on his neck.
"W-we were hired by someone in the Black Market to st-steal weapons from the new village... I'm s-sorry!"
Kozai sighed.
"Well, that's too bad. Your employer will never see you again."
"W-wait! You w-won't honor your promise??!"
Kozai couldn't help but smirk inwardly. This guy hadn't been listening.
"I never promised anything."
With that, he crushed the man's neck, which included his throat cartilage and spine.
[WC 1138]

He needed to get away, be selfish for just a few hours..He's some talent in the art of being a Shinobi, but the simple fact is he isn't one. He's never been one, nor will he ever be a Shinobi, he's simply not cut out for what a Shinobi has to do and while one day he may have to make a decision he'd rather leave for a Shinobi...And leave, he follows a code that some may call foolish, but what they don't understand...Is that this code is what kept the Pendragon clan alive through all of these generations. We do not follow the Goddess Etro, we follow our Brother's, our swords and our hearts, not for the grace of any God...But..because it is our Purpose. Riding upon his trusty steed Aggro, is the Prince of Silver, Arthur Pendragon, currently a black hooded cloak with the hood down is hanging over a pair of simple cloth trousers and a dress shirt. He's angry, sad, filled with anguish and yet he can do nothing to quell this...And so he rides and rides hard, so he may feel the wind through his hair..Feel the crisp night air upon his skin as he raises his body slightly as his horse sprints across the landscape at speeds that would make any other steed in the world green with envy..Aggro knows his feelings well, as he's been Arthur's companion since his youth...Aggro knows of Arthur's feelings and that freedom he seeks for himself at other times...He's not collared by anything, he can flee and never be seen of again and though sometimes in his weakest of moments he considers it...In his heart, he feels he can do good here, there..Anywhere.
He's ridden for eight miles now, and a campfire catches his eye...He's grimly reminded of why he's chosen to ride on this night in the first place and after dismounting Aggro, he walks up to the camp...Only to hear a snap, and find the deed done. Sapphire hues blink, taking in the scene...And while it looks gruesome..The banner and markings upon their uniforms, are all that keep him from judging harshly, though he does frown with some distaste, his eyes trail towards the man before him and he nods once in greeting. "Well Met, Shinobi, may I ask what these Pawns of Grima were doing here before you dispatched them?" He asks simply, as he walks into the camp, he listens if he speaks again and he nods whatever is said. "I see...Well I owe you thanks for putting a stop to their plans." He holds out an arm, his fingers slanted downwards and open slightly, a tradition of the Pendragon family is to clasp arms with others..But he's had his hand shaken in stead nine times out of ten whenever he's held his arm out like this, much to his amusement. He introduces himself "My name is Arthur Pendragon." He introduces himself with a small smile.

The night air was tainted with the smell of blood... suddenly, Kozai lost his appetite, but only slightly. Sinking into a sitting position, he sat there by the fire, feeling its warmth on his skin. Now, he had this guy to face. While killing the men he had sensed this new presence, and by the time he had sat down, the stranger had entered the range of his Coriolis Revelation. A man... interesting. On horseback, no less. He had determined that already, though, as the clip clop of hooves was audible to his experienced ears from quite a distance away.
The man in the lab coat gazed on the cloaked man who had just arrived. The light of the fire seemed to light only the left side of his face, as his right side seemed to almost be completely bathed in the shadow of the wilderness around them. From this guy's motions and demeanor, Kozai was able to determine that he was fairly well built. Was he as strong as he was, though? And what was he here for?
Kozai listened to the man speak. His diction... it seemed almost archaic in nature. Interesting. So, there were people who still followed the old ways... the horse, as well, was evidence to this. Just how fast could IT go? If it hadn't been travelling at full pace when it had approached this location, then it was certainly a steed to be marveled at. Kozai wondered how much selective breeding had gone into the creation of such a thing...
At any rate, the man was speaking to him. He seemed professional enough, in a different way, which made Kozai even more intrigued as to his background. His facial features indicated someone who lived south of this area of the world, unlike Kozai, who was born in Yukigakure.
Kozai's voice would speak. Like it was to the "spawns of Grima", his voice was deep and commanding (as always), but hoarse with disuse. He hadn't spoken to a single human being since...
Since that man had removed him from Hoshi. He hadn't even met anyone until these bandits had arrived.
"Greetings. These that you see lying here were apparently attempted to infiltrate the village..." Here Kozai paused to wiped his bloody hand on the ground. "... and steal weapons for their employer." He raised his eyebrows at the man, and tilted his head slightly, bringing the fullness of his face into the light.
The left side of his head "came out of the shadow" as it were, revealing him. It was unlikely that the man before him should recognize his face as the "former Tsuchikage", since he wasn't all that well-known, and since he had grown just a little since that time. Stress and contemplation had strained him somewhat, and his face (which was prematurely lined before), had gained a few more creases since then. His hair, which was formerly a solid black, now had a few strands of white hair here and there. His eyes bore a tired, hopeless expression.
Kozai was only nineteen years old.
He stood to meet the man's gesture of greeting. His research into history and study of human body posture told him that this was no handshake... the proportion of arm angle to arm length indicated that this was an archaic "arm grasp". As little as such things meant to Kozai, he was more than willing to humor this man with his own traditions. As most medical professionals would say, "if the tradition doesn't hurt, don't get rid of it".
He grasped the man firmly by the arm, merely matching the other's strength. Still, he found it a little hard to believe that this was the full extent of the man's power. After all, it was a mere gesture of greeting.
"My name is Kozai Yuki... and I am-" At that point, Kozai would be seized with a slight fit of coughing, which he used his free hand (the bloody one) to cover.
"Pardon. I am the former Tsuchikage. Where do you come from?" The question would be simple, and, Kozai hoped, not too prying. He didn't feel the need (unsually enough) to get more information on this man's past. Simple conversation would do.
Throughout all of these, Kozai would keep his chakra suppresed, as well as his eyes peeled for any sign of an approaching attacker. If this was some kind of trap, Kozai wouldn't be happy about it... this man was a unique one, and Kozai hoped he was friendly.
[TWC 1891]

His eyes are concerned clearly when he begins coughing, raising a hand as if prepared to steady the Shinobi if he were to suddenly pitch forward, he seems ill..He nods "Well met Lord Tsuchikage, I come from Hoshi, by way of Sunagakure." He answers with a smile, he knows nothing of Iwagakure, only that it was destroyed, this man being the Tsuchikage he implies..that he must have lost, no doubt a blow to him..So, Arthur interprets this man..As being in need of his assistance. He can't imagine failing in his duties...In fact he barely thinks he could bare the thought of it, he releases Kozai Yuki's arm. "I find myself in a unique position Lord Tsuchikage, I am in need of a discreet drinking partner." He admits with an amused look, before his eyes trail to the corpses and he walks towards them. "Pray, after I finish this task, would you care to join me for a brief meal? You look a sight like death man." He teases lightly before he, in plain sight, summons into his hands...A Shovel, a brief flicker of light and an outline appearing as he moves to a proper spot...And begins digging three graves.
The process takes, perhaps twenty minutes for the Silver Dragon, who's abilities are clearly that above a normal person. Once he finishes, marks the graves with their weapons.

He stands in front of the graves, closes his eyes and speaks "Even to our Enemies, we grant Honor, Even to those who fell our Brother's, we remember. For it is because of them, that we forge our steel." He says making what appears to be a circular motion with two fingers and then a downward motion through the circle where he spreads his fingers apart.
After finishing he sighs, if he remained standing through all of that he shrugs his shoulders with a small smile and calls out "Aggro!" He yells, gesturing for his armored horse to come up to the camp, upon the Steed's flanks is the supplies he carried, his plan was to get quite..slap happy drunk, but it seems he's found a companion to do so with him...Is he being presumptuous? Entirely so! Such is the right and folly of Nobility "Come! Join me for a Drink and some Cheese, I'm sure you've got some fine tales to tell?" He asks and calls out, grabbing the bottle from the satchel and then the satchel itself...Which carries the scent of bread and cheese..Also cake, but that's for what comes in the morning. He nearby and with a corkscrew in hand, pops open the bottle of what is very clearly a sweet tasting wine, Pendragon brewers are actually quite skilled! Though some Shinobi have mocked the Knights for enjoying such 'fruity' drinks! Bah! Tis not a crime to enjoy the taste! Just means they get to drink even more! "What brings you to Haven eh? I'm here to fix..Quite a few troubles I'm afraid." He begins pouring his goblet full, before handing it to him and he himself grabs one as well, getting a bit of a head start on the random traveler.

Despite the fact that he was no longer the leader of... well, anything except Mitsui (and even then, who knew what the guy was doing), Kozai noted that the man still addressed him as "Lord Tsuchikage". This fact twirled around and around in his head. It was a fact that Iwa had been destroyed. It was a face that his best friend had died. It was a fact that he had been pushed out into the borders, to seek another. Naturally, he had attempted to follow his own path, but that was meaningless. He wasn't "Lord Tsuchikage" anymore. Did this person seek to mock him? Or was it something that he wasn't seeing?
To become a leader, Kozai knew, was something he hadn't expected would happen to him. All he had done was give Echo sufficient information on the situation back in the village while he had been in Kumo. That, naturally, combined with all the work he had done for Iwa... had that "earned" him the position? If so, did this Arthur believe...
Well, he'd find out soon enough.
Now, Arthur had stated that he had come by way of Hoshigakure.
...
The village that Kozai had just visited.
...
The village that he had been ordered never to approach again. The man that resided therein had been stronger than Kozai, without a doubt. However, it seemed that his tactics had been simple, and protective of the village. If he had wanted to kill Kozai, then he would have to cause destruction to Hoshi. Also, Kozai had a few tricks still left...
After Arthur spoke, Kozai would answer as the man materialized a shovel out of nowhere. A different method of unsealing? Maybe... if Kozai had activated his sharingan at that moment, he would have seen the inner workings of how exactly Arthur had caused the shovel to appear, but doing so might set off the man. He knew that some people, such as Kiranomo, had an aversion to the eyes, calling them "evil". A man with archaic beliefs might react even more violently. No, that wasn't the best course of action. Besides... he seemed reasonable enough, and Kozai reluctantly attempted to not over-analyze him at first sight (as difficult as it was).
"You came from Hoshigakure? Sadly, I'm unsure they would be... open to my being there." At this he would chuckle slightly, as he gazed around him at the carnage, presumably as Arthur began to dig the graves.
"Apparently... I'm some kind of criminal."
This statement being made, he would wait for Arthur's response patiently. Assuming the actions stated before would go on normally, he'd watch calmly as Arthur did some kind of epitaph for them.
Piety, perhaps? Kozai didn't believe in many things that Arthur was saying. Concepts like "honor" meant nothing to him, especially when it came to his enemies. What purpose did they serve, other than to give him motivation to strengthen himself, and to beat them down with his power?
However, Kozai stood by and waited while Arthur finished whatever he was doing. It wasn't detrimental to himself or to Arthur, as far as he could see, and was pretty harmless. So, he didn't do anything about it.
Assuming Arthur's actions with the provisions went through, Kozai would consider the horse for a brief instant. An obedient animal as well... Arthur seemed to have selected a good steed.
Kozai poured himself a moderate amount of the drink and took a sip before speaking, his throat feeling much better now.
"I came here to seek knowledge. Wherever I go, I always try to meet new people, learn different things about them and the places around them... I suppose you could say that at his point, I am more scholar than shinobi. However, it seems that there are powerful ones in Hoshi who do not wish me to stay."
He took another sip, considering what had happened.
"Of course, the manner in which I entered the village was probably not the most... trustworthy, but certainly the most effective." Yeah, Genesis Surgery was certainly useful... but not quite the most ethical way to gain access to a sanctuary like Hoshi. Then again, had he merely gone up to the gates, he would have been placed in a situation similar to the one he had faced at Konoha, perhaps. That wasn't something he wanted to do... to be re-immersed in the wars between the villages. He was merely there to learn, to gain more facts and research materials, such as the bloodlines he carried within The Seed.
[TWC 2739]

Well, considering that things were picking up elsewhere, Kozai left the man there at the campfire. It was sad that he had to go, but shit happens and people are dicks, ya know? The powers that be really don't give a shit whether you're doing anything important or not, but that was how the world worked. Humanity was an inherently selfish species.
[TWC 2802
2802 towards Kanade
+28 AP
EXIT
Sorry, Echo.]

Approved

[Exit, topic closed.]