Blood and Bone

Nero stared at the large building that stood before him. He had seen it in passing before but never had a reason to enter it. Today, however, was different, he had received a letter from one of the villages higher ranked ninja requesting his presence before the new Mizukage. He couldn't lie, there was a bit of anxiety welling up inside as he took his first step forward. Slowly he ascended the steps that lead into the building and spoke with a receptionist who checked the letter he'd previously received. She gave him a bit of a weird look for a moment, which further increased the pit he was feeling in his gut and directed him towards the Mizukage's office. The large door that was before him seemed somewhat eerie considering who he knew would be behind it but he steeled his resolve to show no weakness in front of the head of the village. He'd been a bit of a recluse for quite a while so he wasn't sure what to expect but he was still curious as to why he was called. He knocked lightly on the door to announce his presence before slowly pushing them open and stepping inside.

"My name is Nero..I was asked to come see you today?" he said as he stepped in and took notice of everything in the room.

Sitting in his office, Kizmaru was wearing his Kage attire of a white and blue cloak with a matching Kage hat on his head and mask covering nine-five percent of his face. Only his eyes were revealed to anybody who would suddenly arrive at his office for one reason or another. Its happened far too many times and he had to make an excuse every moment it did. He decided this was the only way to conceal his identity for the time being. Sitting in an expensive, navy blue couch chair, Kizmaru was holding up a file of a certain shinobi he was expecting at any moment now. He doubled checked to make sure nothing of his was visible, at least to the naked eye. He figured he would get something to hide his identity later as he wasn't very comfortable about this fact at the moment. He wasn't sure how the village would take it, knowing somebody that was born in Konoha was now their Kage but at least he could say for certain his heart was of Kirigakure. Looking over the document in his hand, It was marked with a 'Nero Uchiha' on the front of the folder. He was sure this would pose a problem in the future if this were to get out. 

Some people were open about their bloodlines being from different villages but, it was only alright since most people were born and raised in Kirigakure that would openly stated it. For people like Kizmaru however, he had to hide whether people would accept him or not. His bloodline was still pretty rare and most people would kill to get, not that he found anything special about it himself. Dropping the file on his desk, he heard a knock on his desk, prompting him to lift his head up to look at the door slowly push open. "Come in," Kizmaru said in a disguised tone. He figured he'd speak in a certain voice when he was expected to talk to people. If he recalls, only two people knew he his true identity but he wasn't sure if they were aware of his current positon. He figured he'd deal with that when the time comes. Looking at the boy that entered, he realized his age couldn't be any different from his own. 

Regardless, he had to hold a certain air around him when assuming his 'Kage' position. Pointing his chin upwards at a slight angle, which was quite the default for him. It was a habit that many of the upper crust learned, a way to simulate looking down on others. Yet beyond that, it placed a mental barrier into those being addressed. Without even noticing, people who dealt with him would put him in a class above them. They would see him as someone greater than a normal man, and through his actions he had ensured that even other daimyo viewed him in such a way. 'Ah, Nero, I presume. How good of you to come,' he said in his disguised, robust tone. "Come grab a chair, I'd like to ask you a few questions,"  outstretching his right hand at a chair in front of his desk before relaxing and getting comfortable in his own.

W.C: 541

Nero was somewhat confused as he looked at the Mizukage. He wasn't entirely sure why someone who'd personally called him in would wear a mask. He assumed it was to conceal his identity obviously, but considering the circumstances it was still something that drew his attention. Regardless he wouldn't question it, as information about the Mizukage was well above his station as a simple genin. His only duties where simple missions and following orders. The orders he'd received at this moment were from the very top, the one who stood at the highest position as far as he was concerned, and so he followed them faithfully.

Like a trained soldier he sat properly in the chair in front of the desk, his body at attention and his gaze steady as he looked into the eyes of the Mizukage with an almost eerie sense of compliance. He sat in complete silence, waiting for the questions the Mizukage had for him, only giving a slight nod to show that he understood and was ready to answer whatever he wished. As far as Nero could think of the only things the Mizukage might be concerned about would be his most recent patrol of the borders the previous day. He was sure that there was nothing amiss, but in the back of his mind, he was still slightly worried that he might've overlooked something. Instead, he chose to keep his calm and just hope a simple report was required of him.

Leaning back slightly in his chair, Kizmaru overlooked the genin once more. It wasn't long since he was considered Genin ranked himself but he couldn't afford to let nostalgia overtake him at this very moment. Like a fine shinobi of Kirigakure, he didn't ask questions, did what he was told and awaited further instructions. Even if it wasn't visible to the shinobi he was currently sitting in front of, Kizmaru smirked at his stiffness. He assumed this is how shinobi of the village needed to be and he wasn't gonna change that anytime soon. For now, he would begin his questionnaire. "Tell me Nero, how are things going in the village for you? Any hardships, was living and growing up here in Kirigakure any difficult than most other kids," he had asked inquisitively. He had gotten most of what he needed from reading the files themselves but it was better if he had heard directly from the source's mouth in his own words.  He wondered if there was any patterns in his life that would cause him to doubt any reason as to why he shouldn't belong in Kirigakure as a whole. Well, he figured he'd get to the bottom of this now and mold him into a shinobi that would be a great asset to the village.

W.C: 218

Nero listened intently to the Mizukage in front of him, but for a moment felt inclined to tilt his head to the side. The question proposed to him was one of concern, apparently for his wellbeing within the village. For a moment Nero processed the question, contemplating an appropriate answer for the kage on how he felt about the village. From what he had known about his family they were the type to be dedicated to the village, and despite dying in the line of duty he had no ill will towards either them or the village. It was an occupational hazard in a way and he respected them for their service and dedication. He did wish he could find out more about what happened in all honesty but he wouldn't find fault with the Mizukage or any of the previous heads for not telling him information that was considered classified. Nero's thoughts were methodical and realistic as he looked up to the side for the moment as if recalling something before he brought his gaze back down and began to speak.

"The village has treated me very well. The people are kind, the other ninja serve the village well, and despite the current state of things no one has shown me any ill will for still being a genin." Nero answered honestly, but he was still quite confused as to what was going on. He knew better than to ask questions though.

Staring intently at the boy, Kizmaru leaned back in his blue chair before clasping his fingers togther between one another. It seems the village had treated him well, despite the past xenophobia Kirigakure had towards clans from the leaf village. Well, either way, he was sort of glad that he had it better than Kizmaru did. Picking up the file, he decided to store it back into the cabinet where he found it, underneath his desk before he decided to ask him another, very important question. "So, Nero, are you aware of your heritage," he asked. He had to be careful how he approached this topic since he didn't want to cause nay unnecessary trauma or problem. Looking at the boy, he very much knew what the answer might be but just in case he wasn't, he figured he'd poke his brain to see how much he'd know about his past. The information was already considered confidential due to his birthright right but even without significant knowledge, Kizmaru could figure what he is and how to obtain it in a matter of a few days. Easing up a bit, Kizmaru shifts his posture a bit to allow himself the max amount of comfort.

W.C: 203

Heritage, a word Nero didn't expect to hear from the Mizukage. He couldn't help but speak in confusion at this point, he didn't believe that he was anything special nor did he hope to be for the most part. He only wished to be a capable ninja for the village and work his way up one step at a time. He'd never thought about being 'owed' anything in the form of a heritage. At least that was what he thought considering he assumed his heritage was something tangible. He didn't have the faintest idea that the Mizukage actually meant his bloodline when he replied back.

"What heritage..?" he said softly before continuing on with his thought process "When my parents died they left me everything..Money, a house, and their possessions. But no one ever mentioned anything else. Was there something I wasn't aware of?" He began to consider whether or not he'd missed something in the list from his parents will, or possibly if someone had stolen something of theres and the Mizukage had gotten it back. For a moment he wondered if it might even be something they'd had on their final mission. But quickly he settled his frantic mind and took a deep breath. His gaze settled as he closed his eyes for a moment and reopened them a more serious and focused man, waiting for his Kage's answer.

[233]

Well, it was safe to assume that Nero knew nothing of his hidden potential which was fine. Well, he wondered how he would be able to explain to the man about his bloodline. Sitting in his chair, an idea had suddenly came to mind. Nero had asked if something was stolen previously and he decided to go along with it. As cruel as this may seem, he had no choice but to attempt to show him what he was talking about first. For now, he'd stick with the ruse of something had been stolen from him. This was all for the greater of good of Kirigakure, Kizmaru thought to himself or he'd like to believe. If not for the village, then at least for th man himself. He was after all an adult Genin just like he was at some point. Now he's one of the youngest Mizukage's to have ever walked the town. For appearances sake, he'd continue his charade of being some old guy in a Kage robe. He then rose form his sit, still looking at Nero. "Yes, something precious had been taken from you and we're going to go and get it back." Follow me, Nero.

W.C: 200

Nero was somewhat confused by the Mizukage's claim of something precious being taken from him. To the best of his knowledge, there wasn't anything really important to him that he could remember off hand. He assumed it was instead something in a non-literal sense. Seeing his Mizukage rise from his seat and ask for him to follow him prompted him to rise as well and immediately walk alongside him. From the look of things, his Mizukage had some sort of surprise for him, but he wasn't sure if this 'precious' thing would be something he'd be happy about. He'd taken quite a while to come to terms with his parent's death in some ways and he wasn't entirely excited to reopen old wounds like this.

"Yes sir." he said in response, maintaining his somewhat official demeanor. He was sure he seemed somewhat awkward considering this was his first time dealing with superiors since the academy, but he only hoped he didn't somehow put himself on the Mizukage's bad side. Especially when it seemed like he currently had his best intentions in mind. With careful steps, he made sure to maintain a certain distance away from the Mizukage so that he didn't seem overly familiar, but at the same time not too distant. The way a subordinate would generally keep pace with their leader.

[223]

Making his way from his desk towards his the front door of his office, Kizmaru calmly opened the door and walked out into the hallway, instructing Nero to shut the door behind him and not to worry about locking it. They walked through the corridors of the Kage Mansion before taking the steps down to the lobby where the receptionist resides. Giving a slight nod to his recptionist, they nodded back as they frantically resuming their work, shuffling and organizing papers of incoming and outgoing requests. Kizmaru stared to feel a bit remorseful knowing exactly what they were going through but alas, there was nothing he could do about it himself since he was also in the same boat. Maybe when this was all over and he was finally caught up, if there was ever such a thing, he'd give them a break and possibly a pay raise for them to enjoy. Leaving the building, Kizmaru guided Nero to the outskirts of town, roughly take thirty or so minutes. Near the edge of a seaside cliff, Kizmaru had stopped to peer at the top of the cliff, looking out into the vast ocean. He knew exactly direction he was facing in which was he choose that specific spot on this oddly bright and warm day. 

Not a cloud or fog in sight, it was a truly beautiful site but unfortunately he was about to do something heinous in order to force a kind of 'transformation' within the other male. Well, he wouldn't think too much about it until after he had the results of his labor. With that, he turned to Nero and began to speak with him. "Well, here we are. The 'heirloom' we will have to get back before you completely lose it. Are you ready for the sacred ritual," Kizmaru had asked, turning to face Nero. 

W.C: 309