In the meantime (Sakana)

Sitting in the Raikage chambers finishing up paper work as usual. Drinking from his bottled water periodically as he was dying from boredom from doing the same thing over and over again. Hearing a knock at the door, he would speak, "Come in." He said with a low and boring tone. It was none other than his assistant 'Shrimp.' Kyson would pause what he was doing for a few seconds as he rested his head on is left palm as he stared at Shrimp. "You know, as my assistant. You don't always have to knock.." Kyson would say. He would then continue to finish up his paperwork.

"W-well, I'm kind of use to it. And I feel like in the position your in.. i-its kind of called for." Shrimp said to Kyson. As Kyson let off a slight sigh, some somewhat good news was coming his way. News that was good enough to let him know what was going on.

"Oh, also. I've heard from others that Lord Maku is away on a mission and wants you to just handle things in the meanwhile." Shrimp said. Well it was good to hear the man wasn't dead or anything. But he doesn't know why he didn't just tell Kyson them in person. "Well, I was already finishing his work anyway so not much really changed." He stated.

"By the way, you have a meeting in a few with a shinobi. he wanted to speak with you. His name is Sakana Meijin." As Shrimp stated Kyson thought to himself. Has he heard that name before? He thought for a few seconds. "That name sounds familiar... nope never mind. Thought it did." Shrimp began to shake his head as he heard Kyson's response. Having a smirk on his face, "You really need to start getting to know your shinobi sir if you ever want this position." 

"I'm only here temporarily, plus I never said I wanted this job. I'm just helping out since someone has to do this work." Kyson said as he looked up at Shrimp. He would then look back down as he was reading the pile papers in front of him. "You say that, but I know you don't mean it. I'll see you around." Shrimp said as he walked out.

Sakana was feeling distraught, he wanted to aid in the Senshi investigation. Max was still a mess, the twins were out on chasing some tiny lead that might help them find answers but the Meijin couldn’t do anything. The village leaders didn’t either know anything on the subject or they just didn’t want to tell anyone. Senshi was the leader of the army after all, it seemed pretty likely that whoever was able to take him down shouldn’t be widely spread to the public. Sakana needed answers, he tried to call a meeting with the raikage but was informed that he wasn’t available for meetings. Figures, he thought to himself. Instead a meeting was set with the deputy Raikage, the chuunin didn’t even know the village had a deputy kage but in light of recent events it didn’t surprise him.
 
He couldn’t wear his normal attire of a t-shirt and shorts to this meeting due to it’s importance. Sakana wanted something so he needed to dress to impress, his armor could’ve worked if he wanted to display combat prowess, even though he never actually worse the armor in combat before, and then he thought a suit would be too formal, instead he decided on a chuunin flak jacket combined with standard issue combat pants. The Meijin was used to the village headquarters at this point, he had been coming in recently to give updates on the bijuu, mostly lies saying that he had everything under control. In truth the three tails liked to just sleep a lot, just like a turtle.
 
Upon walking inside he was directed to the office of the raikage, he wondered if the deputy didn’t have his own office or if the circumstances were more drastic then he had previously thought. Opening the door inside he saw a familiar face. The pieces started to come together before his eyes, in front of him was the cook from Hoshigakure. He would’ve been more surprised if that was the only time he had seen the man but there was also the occurrence at the celebration party where he saw the man near the kage table. At the time he chalked it up to him being the caterer but now he realized he should have been more observant. He took a deep breath and tried to lock his eyes with the man, he assumed this whole thing would go down easier since the two were acquainted.
 
The Meijin walked in and griped the chair lightly, pulling it back just a few inches before taking a seat. The seat in front of the desk was hard and cold, but the chair behind the desk looked soft. Chairs could be a sign of social status when place in such an arrangement.  A small grin overcame him as he looked into the eyes of the man who he thought he had figured out. “Hello Mr. Chef. Or should I say Deputy Raikage? Or maybe even Kyson, if that is your true name.”
 
WC: 502

As he waited for his guest to arrive, Kyson had just finished the last bit of paperwork for the day. He laid back in the Raikage seat as thoughts of the village were running through his mind. What could he do to improve it, what does the village need, and how could he reach these people as one who left the village years ago? All these questions but with no clear answer. He sensed Sakana coming, due to his sage senses and detailed sensory that came along with it. As he saw him come in, it seemed to be a quite awkward coincidence. It had been the boy he met at the restaurant. Back when Kyson was acting as a chef a the moment. That was the first and only time the two actually spoke to each other.

Kyson chuckled a bit hearing Sakana's introduction. Moving the stack of papers aside so they weren't in the way. Kyson would cross his arms. "Any of those name's are fine, but we'll just stick to Kyson for now. No need to be formal, I'm just filling in while the Raikage is away." He said so calmly.


"So what brings you hear?" Kyson would ask. Awaiting for the young shinobi's reply.

The tone in the air seemed casual as the deputy raikage matched the chuunin’s grin with a laugh. Their eyes would meet after Kyson crossed his arms, some people knew that to be a sure sign of weakness, to hide behind your own arms. Sakana didn’t think so, instead he saw it as a sign of civility. He slowly intertwined his own arms to match his while the man mentioned that there was no need to be formal. This struck the Meijin as odd, someone in such a high position of power shouldn’t be so casual in his introductions. Maybe Kyson was different than the other village officials, whether that was a good or a bad thing remained to be seen.
 
Sakana carefully planned what he was going to saw before he walked into the building, so his response rolled right off his tongue. “I’m not sure if you were acquainted an army general by the name of Kobayashi Senshi, he was one of our best before he was killed in the line of duty. Back when we were in Hoshigakure he told me that I was going to become the villages greatest weapon one day. When I got back to the village I was tasked with going into isolation for training, little did I know that there was no one here would set up the details. I won’t bore you but eventually the mission just seemed to disappear. Though I’m not too torn up about it, fighting isn’t really my thing anyway. Instead I’m here to offer you what I am good at. I’ll be blunt. I’d like a job here at the village headquarters, access to all the classified files that I’m current being blocked from. One day maybe I’ll even have your job, but that’s a conversation for another day. For now, I want to be involved in the ins and outs of the village, know who’s going where and when, help set the meetings, attend the meetings, all of that.”
 
How Kyson answered his proposition would make all the difference. If he was to laugh off the teenager then the Meijin would definitely lose some respect for him, this wasn’t a game to him. He meant every word he said, the only way to move up in the world was to seize every open opportunity. If Kyson took him up on his offer many people would look at the deputy raikage as crazy. Only time would tell, the ball was in his court now.
 
WC: 922

He sat there as he listened to the young shinobi. He mentioned Kobayashi and what he was to the village. Kyson met him once, though it wasn't the best introduction for the two. They didn't really get along well when they first met. He had a lot to say so Kyson would let him finish as he got it all out. Taking in every word he said as he was speaking. It was the first person to confront him like this. So the village had some drive and competition in it after all. Kyson continue to nod as he was still listening. He seems like a completely different person than he was when they first met at the restaurant. He was asking for a lot for a person in his current position. But he believes more shinobi should be like this, treat as a competition and not just as a friendly job. As he finished speaking, Kyson would pause for a few seconds as he was gathering up his words to deliver a response.


"Kobayashi, huh? Only met him once, didn't really go so well though." Kyson said as he pulled up a file that had information about Sakana. opening up the file and briefly reading. "Looking at your file, your one of those jinchuuriki's I've been hearing a lot lately. So I see where he came from to seeing you as a very valuable weapon. And correct me if I'm wrong, your taking exams at the moment..." Kyson said as he paused for a brief second. Nodding as he skimmed through his file. Shortly, he would close the file and place it back where he got it from. As he looked Sakana's in his eyes.

"I'll be honest, your request isn't very much a good one. And just giving you access to all information and meetings wouldn't sit well with higher ups such as myself and the others... But.. I like you, the look in your eyes tells me everything and how you feel. I can see how serious you are and how much you wanna rise in the ranks. So lets make a deal, get through your Jounin exams and i'll consider making you my student or intern, whatever you want to call it. That way you'll be under me and will have access to information only when I'm around. And the more successful you are at your job, the more we'll trust you with the information. Can't just let you have access to everything all at once, you have to work for it. That is my offer.." He would say to Sakana. The choice was up to him. This moment felt like deja vu to him. It reminded him of the same meeting him and Maku had back in Suna. Though he didn't have a choice back then, Maku took Kyson under his wing to get him where he's at now.

One quality you had to admire about Kyson was his excellent poker face. There was no emotion attached to him as the Meijin made his proposal. The slow nod was actually pretty daunting, it actually looked very kage like. But once he finished speaking the man didn’t hesitate with an answer, speaking about Senshi. Sakana would give as small laugh as he answered, “I probably wouldn’t have belived you if you had said anything. His first impressions were rough but you would’ve liked him if you got to know him better. I’m sure of it…” His voice trailed off with those final few words, talking about Senshi was still a sore spot for many among his group, especially since his death was still an enigma.
 
The deputy Raikage would comb through his file, making a small comment about him being a jinchuriki, as if this was the first time he heard the news. This struck the chuunin as odd, he was in charge of the whole village and he hadn’t yet familiarized himself with all its secrets?  It didn’t make too much sense. He quickly regained his focus when their eyes locked on one another. The words that followed were basically a denial to his proposal, he wanted him to wait until jounin. This was too long to wait, he needed to figure out all he could now. So, his next words would make a large claim that he hoped he would be able to back up, “I’ll counter. If I tell you something about one of our ninja that you don’t already know, my supervised access starts now. This information is pretty important if I do say so myself. And then later on once I make jounin, I get the unsupervised access. Do we have a deal? I mean, as kage you do know the crucial aspects of the village affairs, don’t you?” The last part was an attempt to bait the man into taking the deal. The piece of information Sakana had was unconfirmed, but he hoped it would be enough to work. If it wasn’t he would have to try something else, it didn’t seem like Kyson had anything more important to do.
 
WC: 1292

Hearing the way he spoke about Kobayashi, he could tell they were good friends. Kyson couldn't blame the two for having a little tension. Two shinobi from different places at the time, having the same amount of power and authority. Of course each would have their own goals and views. "He seemed like a man who cared a lot about the village and would do anything for it. I could've probably learned a few things from." He said.

After Kyson gave him a offer. It seemed Sakana had other plans. As he was listening and looking the boy into his eyes. Crossing his arms as he showed no emotion in his face nor body language. When he was finished, he would let of a sigh. As he paused for a few seconds.


"Offer declined." Kyson would say to him. "And to start it off, I'm not your Kage. Your actual Raikage is away on a mission, I'm just here to make sure work doesn't pile up or get out of hand. Him being on a mission doesn't relieve him of his position.. He would say as he paused for a couple seconds to get ready for his next reply.

"Now, You were just a genin not too long ago. So you want me to trust classified information to a fresh Chunnin. On top of that, you want me to exchange one small piece of information for very high valuable information. That's like an employee bribing his boss just to get a promotion or raise. That doesn't seem selfish to you? And what if you fail the exams while being supervised by me? Yeah to you its just 'oh well maybe next time.' But to me I look at it as, I just gave some kid a look at some very high class info and he wasn't even worthy of being a Jounin. What was I thinking. Now we have a Chunnin who wasn't worthy of being a Jounin knowing classified info. And I can't allow that. I'll let you come up with something else, but bribing me with information will get you no where. Since information like that should already have been informed to someone of authority." He would say to Sakana. Not speaking in a disrespectful tone nor a very serious one. The words would come out calmly as he stated them. He would listen for his reply after the response he gave.

Kyson would give off a short standard supply about Senshi. He described him as “a man who cared a lot for the village,” the deputy didn’t know the half of it. I’m sure you could have.”
 
The dreaded poker face returned as Sakana started on his offer, before the Hozuki answered the Meijin had already assumed the answer. Not that he was expecting him but the look of shock would still fill his face as his ears bled to the sound of “Offer declined.” Sakana mentally prepped himself for the scolding that was was about to endure. He knew going into the conversation that it was a slim gamble at best, and the odds weren’t in his favor.
 
After Kyson finished speaking Sakana only had one play left, and it wasn’t a play. No more games, he had to play the rest of the conversation straight, and they maybe, just maybe he had a hope of still getting the answers he needed. “Well it looks like you’re the only one here, so as far as I’m concerned you’re in charge. I’ve never even seen the current raikage.”    If someone was to look into Sakana’s eyes instead of the usual waves of the ocean they would see a sad trickle down of rain. “I was just a genin, but Senshi promoted me. Said I was ready, no said it was my duty to protect the village. I can’t do that if I’m being kept in the dark all the time. “ His voice would skip a beat, “I wasn’t using the information as a bribe, I’m not even sure it’s correct. I have a hunch but I would need it verified by the entry and exit logs from the gates, something I don’t have access to. If I were to bring it to someone, and it was false then I look a lot worse. I can tell you if you’ll try and verify it.” Another breath, this time he had to respond on the state of the jounin exams. “From what I’ve been able to understand, if I fail the jounin exams we won’t ever have a conversation like this again as most of them come with the risk of death. I don’t have time to play games. I just need to see what’s inside Senshi’s file….” Lowering his voice he would say “Please. If I have to win the exams to gain your respect than so be it, but I’m asking you on a personal level to let me have the file. Wouldn’t you want to know how your friend died when the details are being hidden from you?”
 
WC: 1746

He was being very persistent, but Kyson said nothing. He let the young shinobi speak as he watched and listened. He finally was explaining the real reason why he wanted access to all the information instead of trying with information he couldn't prove himself. It seems Kobayashi had a huge influence on a lot of the shinobi here. It was a shame his demise happened so sudden. He still didn't explain why he needed to see the log of the village's entries. But then he asked an interesting question. About a friend dying and you had no idea why and was kept in the dark about the whole thing. Which automatically made him think about Royalty. If the positions were reversed Kyson would probably want the same thing he's asking for. This damn kid. He thought to himself.

After he finished speaking, Kyson would let off a sigh. He got up from his seat and walked around towards the entrance to the office. Just at that moment his assistant walked in. And that moment he would nod to him, signalling he has something to say. Kyson would whisper in his ear as he relayed a message. "But.. a-are you sure?" Shrimp said.


"That's an order.." Kyson said immediately right after, without any hesitation. After that, he would walk over to the coat rack and put on his black leather designer jacket. Cause he was smooth like that. "Well what are you waiting for? You wanted to look at the village logs. I'll take you there, so you can look at them yourself." He said to Sakana. Kyson would walk wait for the kid to get up and leave along with him. 

As he left the Raikage's office and was heading towards the village gates. On the way, Kyson would ask. "So why do you want to see the logs of the village anyway? What are you curious about?" He wanted to know what all this suspicion lingering his mind. He stated it was valuable information. Since he was letting him see the logs himself, the least he could do was tell him the reason. Waiting for his answer as he was heading towards the village gates. Of course if he continued to follow.

Kyson’s emotionless persona really started to annoy the blue haired chuunin, but if there could be any progress here he needed to match his emotionless demeanor. His last outburst regarding Senshi had to be his last. The stand in kage rose from his seat, slowly moving towards the door with no indication as to his intentions. The Meijin shifted in around in his seat, turning his head to watch what the man was doing.  Before Kyson could reach the opening, his assistant from earlier interrupted. It surprised Sakana when Kyson leaned over whispering into the ear of the man named Shrimp.
 
Immediately following that moment Kyson turned towards the coat rack holding a single jacket on it. Like a scene in a movie the man took his time putting the leather on, making sure Sakana took notice. His next words came as a shock, he decided to allow the Meijin to look at the village logs. Not following the dude who tried to be cool, Sakana shot up out of his seat with a smile. “Let’s go then.”
 
The two started out the building and towards the village gates. While they walked Kyson turned his head towards the chuunin and asked him why he wanted to see the logs. Sakana brought his hand up, pushing his hair out of his eyes as he looked towards the kage. “Last summer when we all went to Hoshigakure, I went in an initial group of around six or so people. I didn’t go home with the same people.” The Meijin caught his breath as he gave the Hozuki time to consider the information. “Now at first I assumed everyone who didn’t go home with me went home with another group. But it’s been about a year and I still haven’t seen some of the faces around. It’s not enough people to be noticeable to any of the higher ups. So that means if I’m right, they’re either captives or traitors. Both of which I’m sure you’re not okay with.” Approaching the gates Sakana began to walk a little bit faster in anticipation, he couldn’t tell how Kyson would react to the news. Maybe the chef would take the news heavily, or maybe he wouldn’t care at all. Reading the emotions of an emotionless man proved difficult after all.
WC: 2137