Best Seats in the House

At long last the day had come. The first and hopefully not the last, Chuunin Exams during Kinzoku's tenure as the Hokage was upon them. Even better, it was a beautiful day with nay a cloud in the sky, blue shinning all about and the sun beaming down on the citizens of Konoha. Chuunin exams were always a good thing for the village. The weeks both leading up to it and during the exams were nothing but enjoyable. People out and about in the streets, festivities going on everyday. Simply put, the village was lively and there was nothing more beautiful. Finally, the waiting was over as the first match was going to be held within the hour. A chance for the Genin to show both the citizens and shinobi what they were capable of. Crowds of people began flooding into the stadium vying for the opportunity to get the best seats in the house. As good as the rink side seats were, the best seats were reserved for the Hokage and his esteemed guests. If they decided to show of course.

Once the stadium had pretty much been filled, as it would not due to take his seat without giving them the chance to see their Hokage, Kinzoku entered his exclusive area as he stepped to the edge and greeted the crowd. For the first time Kinzoku donned the official garb of the Hokage. The white cloak lined in red with the red letters on the back, and the white hat also lined in red with the white cloth coming down all around save the front. After all, an even such as this required to Hokage to be dressed appropriately. After sufficiently greeting the crowd, Kinzoku give a nod to one of the many Jounin around the stadium. Said Jounin made his way to a massive altar located on the roof of where Kinzoku was seated, lighting an enormous fire inside a large vessel signifying the exams had now commenced.

Once done, Kinzoku made his way over to the set of chairs arranged for he and his guests. If his guests did not feel the need to sit for whatever reason, then their chair would be removed accordingly. His chair had been made slightly larger than the rest for the simple fact to identify it was his own. Taking his seat, he gently removed the hat before placing it on his lap and fixing his hair. Although he was well accustomed to wearing hats, this one was much larger and definitely more uncomfortable compared to his usual choice of hats. As he began to adjust to the new seat, the same Jounin who lit the fire made his way down into the stadium and announced to first match of the exams and the crowd erupted into a roar. Their energy and excitement palpable. Kinzoku couldn't help but feel the same. He only hoped his guests would arrive soon to observe this wonderful event alongside him.

Yen wasn't one to normally obaerve these events. Granted his usual focus was in the various notes he skimmed through in his free time. But that was'nt as if he had not been eager to observe the up and comming individuals. Donning an recently obtained golden set of robes with a fresh straw hat. Yen arrived as he floated gently a few inches from the ground.

His single eye flickered around the room as he set a small bow to kinzoku.

"Thank you for the offer"

Yen placed his straw hat on a bug which flew to hang up the hat on the back of his chair. and floated to the chair as he glanced at the arena. It was fairly shaped yet he could see that it would do nicely with a fair set of improvements. That he scribled through. A grand improvement of the shinobi training system was on the horizon for konoha. And yen was eager to finish the last touches.

Especially in light of how disastrous the last genin team went with their mission. This alone was enough to set an overhaul which yen was hard at work in completing. Still he slipped the various notes into the folds of his cloak and glanced at kinzoku.

"Looks like we have an ideal group of genin to participate. Especially the three wounded shinobi. I would've said it may have been wise if they let their wounds recover. At least a bit more. As for the match ups a few i am curious to see what these genin can offer to the future. In light of the previous weeks. We will be scheduled for a change in training regimens. That i have been working on for awhile."

Yen spoke as he gazed back over the arena and seemed a bit sad. He did not expect the recent set back.

"Jason is going to be joining us i assume?"

"Indeed he is," responded a familiar voice. Jason had finally arrived to the site of the Chuunin Exams where he had been invited to watch with Kinzoku, the current Hokage whom he still had some misgivings about, and Yensung Aburame, his former student turned Deputy Hokage. They had recently met for what Lord Kinzoku had deemed a 'mandatory' meeting. The former Rokudaime Hokage still believed the man to have been intentionally slighting him, though his opinions were beginning to change slightly thanks to this invitation. At least the meeting with Yen had went well enough.

Jason had debated on picking up some new formal wear for this occasion, but ultimately decided against it in favor of utility and comfort. You know, just in case. He tended to be a bit more aware of surroundings at all times ever since being murdered by those sworn to protect him. He was instead wearing standard attire for a Jounin, even though his official rank in the village was only a Genin thanks to Kinzoku. His Leaf head protector shined brightly in the sun from its perch on his forehead, and Nami rested comfortably along his shoulders. Apparently the flak jacket he wore made no difference to the small fox, which was great because her presence was always comforting for the young former Hokage. Smiling brightly and nodding to the Hokage and Deputy Hokage, Jason took the chair to Kinzoku's left. "I'm excited to see these fights. Personally I'm looking forward to seeing Tadashi in action, since it's unusual to find a Genin so ready to stand up to a Kage level shinobi. I'd like to know if he was all bluster, taking action above his station, or if he's genuinely up to the task. Should be interesting to see, I think." He really was most interested in seeing Tadashi's match. Unfortunately it was scheduled to be the last one of this round of the Exams, though, so he would have to wait.


"Actually, Yen, I was thinking something similar. I'd like to see how much the training for our village's Genin differs from my time. If it needs some updating as you say, perhaps I could offer some ideas after the Exams are concluded?"

Could you really ignore a chance to sit in the Hokage seat during the Chuunin Exams? Well yes, but actually no. Seeing as she was the Hokage for a moment, Risako felt it within her right to not show up. That would be fairly disrespectful, and despite being stubborn she wasn't about to avoid keeping up appearances just because the thought of watching genin beat one another didn't strike her fancy at the time. Imaginary whispers already began to pierce her mind at the mere thought that she would have the gall to not appear. She was dense, but her time in the seat gave her more than enough experience to know what the more politically charged minds in the village would assume.

Her arrival wasn't paid much attention by the spectators, seeing as it was just as the first match had begun as she made her way to the Hokage's booth. Uncommonly she wore something that couldn't quite be considered battle attire. A form fitting black body covered everything from the neck down, save for her hands. Over this she wore a red kimono that stopped above her knee.

She entered the platform from the left, just as a discussion about training regimens was taking place. Her interest in the subject was non existent. After all, the best way to train was with summons and there'd be no changing her mind on that matter. Risako took note of her company in this event, unsure if she was quite ready to get along since an attempt on her life was hard to forgive. The sight of Yensung gave her pause, just enough time to remember what Samehada's bite felt like.

It would be a hard pill to swallow.

The break in her stride was short lived as she continued past them to the sit in the empty chair to the right of Kinzoku. As her gaze fixated on the arena, her mind immediately wandered to the list of combatants, none of which she knew particularly well. Unfortunately she didn't believe that Persona was quite ready for the exams, afterall he barely had a week out of the academy. "Maybe next time," she muttered.

Resting as comfortably as the new chair allowed, albeit not as comfortable as the seat in his office, Kinzoku enjoyed the nice breeze pass through the booth. It wasn't too long before the first of Kinzoku's guests arrived. Due to having each signature memorized, he knew who would be arriving when they did. One thing that did catch him off guard however was seeing the smaller Deputy floating in. It wasn't the first time he saw the Aburame perform such a feat. He had seen Yen flying back when they crossed paths during the retreat from Suna. It would still take a few more times before the Nazar got accustomed to seeing the man floating about everywhere he went. "Thank you for joining partner" Kinzoku replied, returning the pleasantries as Yen took his seat. "Nice set of robes you got. You'll have to introduce me to your tailor." 

Yen kept up the conversation as he brought up the contestants participating in the exam. Kinzoku agreed with him. These Genin were a promising group and it would be good to see their skill up front. The matter of the three injured genin caused a knot or two to find a place in the Nazar's gut. They should never have gone out on their own without a higher ranking shinobi. But they had, and now they needed to put focus on finding the man who thought it ok to take advantage of them. He considered punishing the three by removing them from the exams, but what good would that have done? Little to none. Their injuries alone was enough to teach them a lesson. Further punishment would do little more to drive the point home. "We've got a good medic unit here. I'm sure their wounds were well taken care of" Kinzoku responded, hopefully putting to rest any concerns the Aburame had for the three younglings.

He was pleased to hear about his Deputy making advances in a training program for their shinobi. Before he could inquire on such matter, Kinzoku's honored guest had arrived. The former Hokage Jason Senju. "Glad you could join us" Kinzoku spoke sincerely as the Senju greeted the two shinobi seated. He was dressed as a shinobi of Konoha. Well prepared. He brought mention of Tadashi's name because he had essentially challenged Jason. Kinzoku smiled at his words as he thought back to Tadashi entering the assault on Kiri to aid Hayate with the straggler caught between Konoha and Suna. He would have been promoted to Chuunin had the Namikaze not wanted to participate in the exams. He would let Yen and Jason speak about the training plans uninterrupted. No doubt the Senju would be able to provide some insight. Also, Risako had arrived.

It wasn't lost on him that the relationship between Risako and Yensung had a of a dent in it, to put it plainly. But one was his Deputy Hokage, the other his adviser and ANBU Captain. For the villages sake, it would not do being on bad terms. So he hoped they today would be the start to bettering said relation. "Welcome" he greeted the former Lady-Hokage as she took a seat to his right. "How's the.. hunt coming along" he questioned, not hearing about it since they last spoke during the whole Hokage debacle. "Have you spoken to Jason about it? He may be able to provide valuable information on those he managed to hunt down. Possible connections" he finished. With two simultaneous conversaiton going on, it would be difficult for the other two to make out what Kinzoku had said. They would only be brought into the light of the investigation if Risako deemed necessary.

"Pleasantries of course hokage." Yen replied to the hokage as he shot a small grin at the mention of the robes. They were indeed brilliantly made and well he preferred a bit of a stylistic approach in life anyways. As the rest arrived yen tossed a quick side note to the kage.

"Eh few years,ago before suna fell i have gotten some supplies,amid that joint jouninn exams. Same tailor that does all the higher up robes. Just have to supply some of the harder to get supplies."

Yen replied as risako entered. Shooting her a good nodd that showed his noticing of her. There was still an air of grey between them. But the future was unknown. He was more then happy to see her up and about from her coma. That was the least to start with.

Jason having conveniently been there from the start emerged. The conversation on his remark on training regiments made yen slightly this was a great start on the reinstatement of jason as he considered the words for a few seconds.

"Indeed. But as we observe these matchups the individual skill of them is great to note. But i believe in light of all of our recent and past incursions. The question remains. What happens in a different eviornment with each of them?"

Yen stated as he spoke up enough for each of them to hear. His single eye gazing at the field and the ongoing matches. The genin and the match ups they had would yes show what happens in a 1 on 1 situation. But 1 on 1 was not always the case. An ambush in the case of the three genin and the lack of leadership and oversight stick out like a sore thumb. After over seeing their recovery from afar it became apparent to the aburame lord they were merely spared out of bemusement. Still he addressing kinzoku's inquiry on the wounds.

" They were burned by intent. And yet they lived. I am uncertain if such an thing was made by a whim of will power and luck. After that recent force movement in the dessert. It may well have been orchistrated by that induvidual kenshin out of spite. The three genin and some induvidual comming to just burn them yet spare them. Very unusual by. It is why i considered the possibility that while all groups created need an mandatory higher up with them. The training and sorts may need more elite hands."

Yen adressed as his gaze shifted from the arena to risako in the kimono.

"Risako. What do you say on the anbu upon cleansing do a few challenges to the teams active. As that will allow individuals to learn to handle not only the possibility of ambushes, but also dealing with the possibility of having a taste of what happens when dealing with much more skilled and highly trained operatives.

It was easy for the former Rokudaime Hokage to listen to the conversation between Kinzoku and Risako once his name was mentioned. After all, he was a very experienced fighter and could pick up the tiniest differences in sound, including speech from very very close by. Asking him for insight on who he tracked down? Was Risako tasked with finding any remaining members of the group that had killed him? And why the hell did this idiot think it was a good idea to bring that up here, in public, with any number of potential eavesdroppers present? Jason had to admit his faith in the man’s intelligence was still falling rapidly, even more so with each encounter it would seem.

To make matters worse, Yensung took this very moment to mention the ANBU being cleansed on his own! And he wanted them to act as teachers! It was outrageous. The ANBU were not meant to be glorified babysitters. ”PERHAPS,” he started to say a bit too loudly so as to be sure he had his audience’s attention, ”Lord Hokage, Lady Risako, we should have this discussion in a more....controlled environment. Maybe somewhere less open, once the Exams have finished, hm?” Jason let his words hang in the air for a moment before turning on Yensung, though he would not wait long enough for any of the three to actually respond.

”And Yen. The ANBU of Konohagakure no Sato are not meant to be used as babysitters and instructors for Genin and other inadequate shinobi. They are the village’s elite, used for missions of the utmost importance and they’re orders are given directly by the Hokage. To use them in such a manner as you’re suggesting would be a waste, and quite honestly I’m very disappointed in you for even thinking it was a good idea.” The Senju would then turn his attention back on the match taking place below, instead of letting his admonishment of the Aburame remain the focus of the group. Young Suzume had managed to take the upper hand, it seemed, by a tactful use of water style to cover the arena in a dense mist while using earth style to vanish beneath the ground and appear in her opponent’s blind spot. It was not unheard of for Genin to be able to use two elemental affinities, but using them in conjunction with each other so seamlessly as Jason was seeing was definitely a clear sign of talent. He made a note to keep an eye on that one from here on out.

Her mind was adrift for the most part. In truth she had no intention of doing anything besides killing time, but Kinzoku wished to bring up a subject of a particularly sensitive nature. Perhaps he thought the roar of the crowd, the sounds of battle, and speaking in a lowered tone would suffice to keep the prying ears of prey from the sounds of their predators. At least he didn’t mention it by name, or specify what her target was, but anyone the information pertained to wouldn’t be so slow as to wave off what he said without analysing the sentence. Yensung however, seemed to imply that the ANBU could be used to train the rest of the village. This was simply a waste of resources. Jason cut her off before she could open her mouth to insist that a quieter place might do for such a conversation.

“It’s as he says, this is a sensitive topic and should be treated with the highest confidentiality,” she said, looking to Kinzoku. There was more to be said however, especially regarding the status of her own ANBU, which currently consisted of her alone. “Make no mistake on this,” she looked to the other two males that accompanied them on this day. “They'll answer to me, and me alone. To imply that your opinions on their affairs matter is a notion I won’t humor, and I will command them as I see fit. That said, Jason is right, there’s no use in having them train the lower ranks when there are plenty in the village capable of doing so.”

On the subject, updated training regiments sounded nice. “Have you considered asking the jounin or chuunin to masquerade as rogues and attack our own on their missions? Obviously they wouldn’t use lethal force, and it would give the genin a taste of what actual combat could be if they’re unaware of the program.” After saying her piece, she went back to staring at the arena below, not really fixating on the events transpiring.

"So he was listening" Kinzoku thought to himself as he slowly turned his attention over to both he and Yensung. Was he still salty about the Nazar's decision to keep the title of Hokage and assign him as a Genin, so he felt the need to make sure he knew all that Kinzoku spoke of? Sad. Whatever it was, he should have expected as much from the Senju. Turns out Yensung too was listening and ended up giving his own input on the matter, to which Jason budded in to add that they should keep the conversation behind closed doors. Kinzoku knew what he was doing. There was no one near save for the four currently seated. All guards were posted around the stadium and outside the Hokage booth, to far to hear what was discussed. But he knew the Genin was overtly paranoid due to his past circumstances and it would unfortunately control his actions more than he knew. But why was he still letting it control him? As far as he knew, he had killed all the traitors. Or so he told. He claimed it was the only reason he returned. Yet here he was, thinking there could still be traitors. Things weren't adding up for the Genin.

He removed his blank stare from Jason and looked to Risako as she stated it should be treated with the highest confidentiality. He nodded to her, confirming to the ANBU captain that this conversation would end for the time being. He kept his gaze on her as a small grin took shape while she informed them on how the ANBU would be used, essentially informing them she was the captain of the ANBU black ops. 

Kinzoku refrained from continuing the conversation about the missing nin who attacked the three genin, the Aburame mentioning that it could have been Kenshin. It of course was a possibility. But it's also possible it had nothing to do with him. Perhaps he saw an opportunity to send a message to Konoha. Perhaps it was simply another rogue shinobi playing at games. To think that Kenshin was the only shinobi out there to be worried about was a foolish notion and all possibilities needed to be considered. He kept it to himself for the time being as they were discussing another matter of importance. One that he had assigned to the Aburame. Taking care of Konoha's forces. 

Risako had proposed a clever idea. Have Jounin and Chuunin randomly jump the Genin on their missions. "It would also avoid the Genin going out on their own" he added in remark to the three that had been attacked. They should have never left the village without a higher ranking shinobi accompanying them. "We should also look into assigning more Genin teams. It'll be easier for them to gain the experience needed with someone to show them the ropes" he added while watching the fights, observing those who would potentially get promoted to Chuunin and be assigned a squad of Genin.

Also, behind them was a table filled with finger foods and drinks for all. Of course if one wasn't worried the food was poisoned.

Yens thoughts were on par with the group. But due to the detail of the conversation yes each party spoke on their terms as the matches went on. While suzume's match was very impressive he fogured she did well on the combative aspect.

good. She is thinking ahead. Much promise is to show in this case. Keep pushing little one.

Yen thought as her match ended and jason gave his rebuttal as the following one between that healer at the gate came to quick conclusion. The swordsman was impressive.

"Yes perhaps it is better to hold this in the more convinent times. And i can agree to such an motion risako. It would do well that all in that case participate. Including us. In case of teams that would work excellently. The new chunin from this would do nicely having a team too."

Yen said as he did not deluge into the murky waters. For now. He was in fact curious about kinzokus choices of finger foods as it came to hunger. But the 3 way fight began. An odd number, but not unusual as he decided best to wait till it became obvious.

yeah ill watch this a bit.

The skill between the wounded boys was admireable but it was perhaps out of his calling as a medic that made him want to watch their progress. The proctor came into mind. Hoping the boys would be fine. But it was eventful.