The Final Tempest

Whether it was a roaring tempest that followed him or if he followed the trail of the tempest was unknown, the Ace simply traveled through the storm that ravaged the Kirigakure islands, previously buying a ferry across the shores of the Fire Country by authorized Kirigakure shinobi, the ferry having all of the resources needed to bypass the Storm Circle, Fuuinjutsu seals, and everything, of course, they would not give this information to the young ginger as he was just some run-of-the-mill Chuunin to them. It was evident that the masqueraded Ace lied about his intentions to visit the liege village, stating that he wanted to participate in the Blood Games like his brethren did in Konoha which the shinobi bought. The travel ran smoothly, as the Ace viewed the raging tempest intently from the inside of Kirigakure Storm's Circle, yet not knowing how the intricacies of the circle at first glance, it was still a marvel to look at. After hours of the arduous journey, a valley of mist lied hundreds of meters before the masked Tadashi, as the water the ferryboat ran on became thinner...and thinner... Once reaching roughly 500 meters from the entrance of Kirigakure, being the shore, Tadashi would proceed to take off his mask, cupping the opaque object in his left hand covered with the gloves of his Chronos Suit revealing his medium-length scarlet hair and piercing sapphire eyes that were fixated on what was leering closer to him like an insidious destiny fated to be dealt with. 

As the metallic ferry grew closer and closer towards the misty area, a creaking sound resembling metal clashing against sturdy land would tremor throughout the ship like a frightening earthquake, bringing the helmsman and the four other passengers being two Blood Games watchers, a shinobi of Kirigakure and Tadashi back to reality. Giving a slight grunt, the helmsman would steer with great ease towards the port, cutting through the foggy mist akin to light overshadowing the prevailing darkness. It would only be a short amount of time before the ferryboat would creak and be parked with the other ships of Kirigakure along the smooth coasts of the village. The semi-masqueraded teen would get off the ship, leaving no items behind as he didn't intend on going back in a short amount of time anyway... Beyond the valley of seasonal mist that blanketed the village, the blazing inferno above Tadashi would be extremely apparent once getting off the ship, beating upon the young teen's body. The heat wasn't necessarily unbearable, as Konoha carried much more of a punch when it came to temperature, but it sure was...humid. So humid enough Tadashi felt like a sweltering pig due to the dark colors of his Chronos Suit, save the mask that was unequipped and remained to be held on his left hand. Despite the uncanny heat of the sun, today was the day of reckoning, where truths and revelations will be revealed between the two villages, so he needed to get to work. Tadashi would wait until all people left the area within 100 meters of him, which was not that much considering that there were only five people on his ferryboat. 

The umber-sapphire optics of the ginger would scan the distance between the edge of the shore - where the ships were parked - and the gates, roughly estimating to be a 300-meter distance between the edge of the coastal shore where he was located, stagnant against the crashing waves that would threaten to overtake the coast. There also seemed to be little to no people to notice the Ace, as everyone was mostly located at the gates and it would not make much sense to leave to go on a mission now as opposed to the morning where there was more time to complete it. There would be little to no trees between the shore and the gates, only having a mixture of sand and stable dirt between them. A short amount of time would elapse between Tadashi's estimation, deciding that it was time to enact his time. Blinking for a moment, the ginger would pull out a Kunai from his Ninja Pouch, gripping it with his right hand. From the naked eye, it appeared to be no better nor worse than the regular shinobi Kunais, however, little did most people now spare for the Ace and the cowboy shinobi Kinzoku, that the Kunai was marked with the Flying Thunder God Technique. The mark camouflaging with the metallic grey of the weapon, it would be nigh impossible for a foreign shinobi to suspect that the Kunai wasn't anything other than basic. Walking 5 meters forward (let's say 60 speed), Tadashi would stab the Kunai into the sand of the coastal shore horizontally, digging a hole about five inches deep, deep enough to encase, secure from falling, and cover the metallic weapon in the sand so that barely anyone would a detect a weapon being a few inches below them. The ginger wouldn't relent, as he would dig over another hole, adjacent to the Kunai on the right an inch away to the Kunai, placing the Chronos Mask in the displacement which was 5 inches deep as well, covering the mask in the sand once putting it in. This was to ensure that "Chronos'" mark would never be lost on the village as well as Kinzoku knowing it was indeed, the Ace of Konoha that placed the Kunai there. As that was completed, Tadashi would check his inventory once more, as all of his Specialized Kunais, Explosive Tags, Shurikens, and Military Rations Pills were divided between his right and left ninja pouches evenly. Jubaku remained to be strapped on Tadashi's left hip, just in case negotiations became thrown out of the window.

A stern gaze would overshadow the distance between the shore and the gates, the Ace locking into his objective 300 meters away from him. With a small blink, his umber-sapphire eyes grew cold once more, devoid of happiness and glee that was normal for a kid like him, but one of a diplomat sent by a Kage to fulfill his village's duty. It was no longer some sort of distant goal...the truth was right in front of the boy's eyes. All he needed to do, was walk. His mind stirred away at his many thoughts, Tadashi bracing himself for the upcoming negotiation. If the Hokage himself couldn't do it, he would need to show to Kirigakure who was the true savior of Konoha.


"I mustn't run away."

Blink.

"I mustn't run away..."

Blink. Blink.

"I mustn't run away!"

Some may say that he was possessed by a demon, others might say he was guided by the grace of an angel, yet at that moment, Tadashi felt truer to himself than ever. With one step of hesitation, his breathing and mind became equilibrium incarnate, striding forward and towards the gates of the Kirigakure as well to the pit of gates of truth. Striding at a rather brisk speed (roughly 80), Tadashi would scan the area and never halt his progression should anything not impede his stride nor endanger him. The Ace made sure to not accidentally trip of the cape of the Chronos Suit that draped to his knee-length which was pretty...difficult to do, but was nevertheless, an extremely rare possibility and he didn't want to mess up his EPIC entrance. Should he reach the area uninterrupted, he would wait there, 15 meters in front of the grandiose gates of Kirigakure. If a gate guard, or better, yet, the Mizukage came to greet him, he'd flash a calm expression yet not directly meeting their eyes exuding diplomacy and still retaining the aforementioned distance,

"Hi there. I have come to speak with your leader, whoever they may be, on behalf of the Hokage ruling Konohagakure no Sato." Tadashi spoke calmly yet confidently. Despite disliking the village, specifically Xyxer, he didn't want to come in guns blazing. Violence was a possibility, but never a necessity, keeping a close eye on the person's reaction and would react accordingly to everything they performed.

WC: 1447

Snoozing in a chair near where the ships of Kirigakure docked, the gatekeeper, Xijion, better known as "Romp" was peacefully taking a nap in a chair, face covered with a magazine he had been reading prior in front of a large monitor that was used to monitor and detect the flow of traffic regarding who is entering and exiting the village. The man was a tall, athletic thirty-two year old male at six foot, two inches with pale skin and scars lined up all across his body. With golden colored eyes, thick eyebrows, a square chin and traces of brown colored hair that was trimmed to a buzz cut. He has a well defined muscle and bone structure, chiseled abs and overall a large upper body. His legs are muscular as well focusing more on power than speed with the utmost flexibility. The tall male can be typically seen wearing a large black mantle with red stripe patterns lined horizontally. He wears black track pants that have a similar pattern as his mantle. Underneath the mantle, he was wearing his Jounin Flak Jacket and also wearing just a plain black tank top and lastly, the footwear of choice for most shinobi being tabi for mobility. He was snoring rather obnoxiously and quite possibly, could be heard by villagers on the other side of the gate. 

A rather sharp and loud alarm went off however when a certain cluster of ships had entered the Storm Circle. This was used to alert the gatekeeper to be on guard of visitors with a decent intensity of chakra entering the village. Xijion had abruptly woken up, falling out of his chair that he was napping in, onto the floor, giving a slight groan as to be awakened from his beauty nap. Picking himself up from off of the floor, Romp took a gander at the monitor to see an intense source of chakra attempting to make its way into the village by boat. Occasionally, these situations happen to him but most of the time, it was either his own village shinobi returning from dangerous missions or some other powerful visitor that the Mizukage was expecting. However, the thing that struck him as odd was if the reasons he thought above had been true, then the alarm wouldn't have gone off since only Jounin and the like could come through and leave the storm barrier as they pleased without the alarm signalling as they would have the full clearance. If it was a visitor the Mizukage had been expecting, he would have been informed to meet the V.I.P in question at the borders in order to give him permission to enter freely. 

Something wasn't right here and regardless of his feelings, whether it would be a glitch in the system, an intruder or simply misinformation, he would have to go and check it out regardless. Fastening his weapon pouch across his waist with all of his tools at hand, he prepared to greet the entity that would be travelling into his territory with a word of warning from anybody influential. Leaving the booth he was stationed in, Romp felt it was better for him to just head out to the docking area to see who was coming in and if they were somebody that he recognized. Suppressing his chakra, he began traveling to the docking area at sixty meters a second, making it to where the unknown ship had been docking in by the time he had arrived there. He decided to stay nearby and watch the passengers exit in a timely fashion. He was roughly six meters away from the passengers exiting the boat, watching all who came off. Nobody of note had come out yet as he watched the few people get off the boat and go their own ways. Something was amiss though, all but one person had immediately set off to their destination. 

He also made note the intense chakra he had been sensing had still been in the general area of where the boat had docked. Well, it didn't take a genius to know that was his man he was looking for. Romp didn't approach him, instead he continued to observe him from the distance he was currently at. It seems as if he was waiting for something to happen, something to meet his requirements. Regardless, of whether the foreign shinobi noticed his presence or not, he continued to observe him, waiting to see if he would continue his actions or if he would attempt to do something differently. He began to fold his arms, a wide grin surfacing across his face as he waited in anticipation to see if this person was friend or foe. Regardless of what he was doing, it wouldn't take him long to clear this amount of distance in a second.

W.C: 806

Xijion Kaguya's Statistics

Do you know that one random stranger who keeps staring at you when trying to do something very suspicious? That instance would be the predicament Tadashi was faced with at the beginning of his plan. As if anything could have gotten worse than an arduous journey with Kirigakure personnel who reeked of foul body odor, the masqueraded Ace attempted to patiently wait for every person in the area to leave the scenes within a 100-meter distance so he could place the Flying Thunder God-marked Kunai innocuously, but alas, things could never be that simple in the Ninja World. As Tadashi exited the boat, he would drop the Chronos mask in the ocean shore just left of the boat, sinking to the ground to create little no suspicion to the people in his area as well as freeing his left hand should he need to perform handseals on the fly due to the gate guard's sudden appearance. It would appear that another Kirigakure shinobi with very toned muscles and little to no chakra detected from the ginger's passive Chakra Sensory would enter the fray. It was a no brainer that the man watching the people exiting the boat was an expert in close-quarters combat due to no chakra being sensed from him by Tadashi, a note that the Ace would remember for the time being. However, the man could just as well be using a suppression technique to not draw any attention towards him, nevertheless, the Ace of Konoha would keep a close eye on him.

A short amount of time would transpire before all of the people within the area would leave the scenes...besides Tadashi and the gate guard. An aura of agitation would befall on the ginger's mental state, seeing that the man didn't intend on leaving any time soon, courtesy of his folded arms and wide grin splattered all over his face. "Why the hell isn't he leaving? ....Does he know something I don't?" Tadashi ruminated in his thoughts, still keeping his poker face active. A few seconds of silence from the ginger elapsed once more, staring at the gate guard not directly in his eyes, but to show the man how awkward he's being by ruining the teen's EPIC entrance. One more second later and Tadashi would clear his throat before speaking, 

"Don't you have somewhere to be, sir? Unless you want to observe the ocean shore like I intend to do for the whole day," Konoha's Ace inquired, wanting the man to leave so he could place the Flying Thunder God Kunai somewhere across the shore before beginning the negotiation with the Mizukage. He would also keep a 6-meter distance between the gate guard and him.

WC: 450
TWC: 1897

Continuing to hold his position, Romp figured the visitor would be uncomfortable by his presence by now if he was up to no good. If he wasn't, then he'd obviously have nothing to hide, or so Romp's thought process led him to believe. Still, his smile remained nonetheless as he was confident in his ability to play the gatekeeper of Kirigakure. Normally, he wouldn't be too far away from his post but he figured he'd nip whatever this situation is, in the bud. The moment he laid eyes on the visitor, as well as the visitor in question laying eyes on his visage, felt like there was an eternity between them. He thought to himself all sorts of questions, as in 'Why hasn't this person moved yet, why hasn't he made a sound to Romp's presence, what does he plan on doing here.' It was evident at this point, Romp had no idea who this character was and his shifty behavior started to leave a bad taste in his mouth. Still, his smile held true as he continued to silently look towards the individual in question and wondering what his business was here. Finally after what seems like decades, the visitor began to address him.

He asked Romp if he didn't have any place to be at the moment. Well, unfortunately for him, he definitely had someplace to be and he definitely was in the right spot. Romp began to chuckle, erupting into full on hearty laughter as he listened to the boy's question. His wide smirk now turned into a toothy grin as he began to walk towards the boy at ten meters a second. Romp always had this overly playful persona about him since his days training in the Hunter-Nin Foundation with his partner Scyxion. Raising both his hands, he brought them together to crack his knuckles as he progressed towards the boy until he was within ten meters of him. As he walked, he began to respond to the boy's question with a question of his own, "What do you mean, I live here. Don't YOU have somewhere to be, buddy? You're looking awfully conspicuous right now and that makes guys like me nervous, know what I mean? Why don't you tell big brother Romp what's going, where do you hail from,"  Romp said half playfully but half concerned. A child travelling by himself was odd, even if he was presumed to be a shinobi, would often have a team with him. 

Well, it was none of his business, all he was concerned with was manning the gates and deciding who was to be allowed in and out of the village and judging from the way this kid was acting, he seems like a lost child looking for something or somebody. either way, whether it be a baby, child or an adult, rules were rules. If the boy tried anything funny before he got to his intended destination, he'd have no choice but to restrain him in order to ensure the safety of himself and his village.

W.C: 510

Attentively, the Ace watched with his calm gaze the older man who was now marching towards the ginger with a grin on his face...a giant...toothy grin. Tadashi would remain with his poker face, not wanting to provoke the man by something as simple as the teen's facial expressions, no matter how much he wanted to cringe at the man's actions. As the man cracked his knuckles, the Ace's hip would shift for a brief moment in response to the sudden stimuli, wondering for a brief moment whether "Romp" wanted to harm him. Thankfully, it didn't resort to that, as the gate guard would stop marching when the two were within 10 meters of each other, giving the two enough space to freely converse as well as having enough space to evade attacks should one of the two by provoked. The man was indeed smart, another note Tadashi would remember. However, after jotting down that note, the man would open his mouth for the first time...only to reply with another question, a touche move that the ginger wouldn't mind. Involuntarily, Tadashi's eyebrow immediately twitched in annoyance before immediately relieving it of motion as the man referred himself to "big brother Romp", the line eerily recalling the young Namikaze of his older brother who was probably resting back in Konoha. The man would additionally pressure the Ace about the land he hailed from to which the teen would reply with a small sigh. Oh well, Tadashi didn't want to reveal his intentions until he arrived at the gates as he didn't want to repeat his words and intentions multiple times to different people, but alas, that's what happens when the Hokage brings a diplomat unannounced to another village. Adjusting his posture to stand upright and confident, the ginger would place his left hand on his chest, exuding conviction and poise as his umber optics stared into Romp's eyes. It was about time to get serious,

"My name is Tadashi Namikaze, and I hail from Konohagakure no Sato. Under the direct command of the Hokage himself, I have traveled to this village on his behalf of the Hokage as a diplomat of Konoha to make negotiations regarding the state of both villages. I implore the Mizukage to listen for what I, no, the WHOLE village has to say." Tadashi stated with conviction before pausing for a few moments, letting Romp sink in the information before continuing with the same intensity as before, his determined countenance stagnant against any facial expressions the older man may have. 


"I am sure you can already collect this with the information I have given you, Mr. Romp. It is time for Konoha's independence." Tadashi said with finality, ending his monologue, watching for any reactions Romp might have to the Ace's rather...controversial words. 

WC: 465
TWC: 2362

Reaching his set destination unhindered, Romp waited for the boy to take his turn in responding to his questions. After all, it was only fair. The kid got to ask some questions, Romp got to ask some questions, questions all around. Listening to his response carefully, Romp had been told his name was Tadashi Namikaze and he was a shinobi from the Leaf Village. According to the small child, he was sent here as a diplomat in order to negotiate terms for the release of the village hidden in the leaves. That sounded like the opening act to a bad joke. The Hokage did what now, he sent a small child as a diplomat for the negotiation of the release of Konoha? Romp began to feel himself overcome with amusement as he held back fits of laughter. He closed his mouth, puffing up his cheek at the more thought of entertaining the idea. The best part had yet to come though, according to the small child the time for 'Konoha's independence has come' and he was here to see it personally, Romp assumed. That's it, Romp couldn't contain it any longer. He was confused by fits of laughter as the boy just finished with his bold statement of 'It is time for Konoha's independence.' 

He nearly lost it as he clutched his sides in amusement and even a bit of pain from laughing too hard. After a minute or so, Romp had settled down a bit before he had to come to his senses and fulfill his duty as the gatekeeper. "I-is the Mizukage expecting your a-arrival, Mr. Diplomat," the Kaguya said, still weak and stifling laughter in between his words. A few chortles escaped here and there but overall, he was mostly over it. Deep down inside he already knew the answer to thi question and even he thought it was sort of cruel to ask him anyway but in order to salvage some of his professionalism and try to reign in control of his emotions. He straightens up his posture before continuing on with his questions and statements. "And if they were really suing for independence, what would even have of value that would pique the Mizukage's interest in the first place? If they were gonna send somebody for a big job like this, at least send somebody famous like the previous Hokage at least then it wouldn't come off as insulting. Gonna have to give a failing grade on that one on behalf of your Hokage, friend."

Well, what an eventful day this has been for Romp. He thought it would be another boring day of gate guard duty but he never expected to laugh and carry on this hard. He hoped this would continue for some time even though he knew what would come eventually.

W.C: 469

In all honesty, Tadashi could fully understand Romp's criticisms as all of those critiques about Yensung's decision of sending a 14-year-old boy instead of a famous spokesperson of Konoha such as Kinzoku Nazar, the previous Hokage was very much true. The Aburame had not even entertained the idea of sending a letter to the current Mizukage which Tadashi would have his eyebrow twitch in annoyance once the gate guard had pulled that up. The thought process of the chaotic Aburame ruling over the people of Konoha was an enigma that truly could not be ascertained without empathizing with the man. However, who could and who WOULD even attempt to empathize with a man who sent mere Genin on suicidal missions knowing full well that the odds of death severely outweighed the odds of survival. Such was not the behavior of a Hokage fit to rule Konoha and not one who would bring independence to the village. If there was no savior, someone needed to be just that. Whether they died or lived, one thing was for sure, they would spur an uprising fit to fight against the yoke of tyranny. The body of a savior was not eternal, but their legacy surely would which was something Tadashi would lay his life for. The Hokage of Konoha was a joke, but the ginger would never let Romp laugh about his village and not go unnoticed.

The umber-sapphire eyes of Tadashi would continue to pierce towards the laughing gate guard once he asked the teen about the Mizukage expecting his arrival as well as criticizing the poor entrance he had. "I would hope that Hokage-sama had already notified the current Mizukage about my arrival, but someone as much as of joke as he would probably neglect something as crucial as mutual communication." Tadashi paused for a brief moment before recollecting his thoughts, taking a deep breath so he couldn't get even more irritated by Yensung's...interesting behavior before speaking up once more, "Someone has to be the spokesperson of Konohagakure no Sato, Mr. Romp. If the Hokage himself cannot do it, I shall. All the people in Konoha are scared and wary of the state of their village because of our recent subjugation. How does that not sound like something that should not even need previous scheduling to negotiate about? All of the famous people you've seen over the past years have vanished into obscurity and all that Hokage is worth is being your Kage's slave, brainwashing the people of Konoha to believe that any semblance of leadership or a voice they have is still heard, yet it is the contrary. But I'll tell you this Mr. Romp...Konohagakure no Sato is NOT your Kage's play-thing." The Ace spoke with passion and ferocity before recollecting himself. "I wish not for today to be littered with corpses, however, it appears that violence is all the Ninja World knows and all it understands. But, maybe there can be hope for both villages to gain a sort of mutual understanding." Tadashi stated with a small smirk, a glimmer of hope resting in his sapphire eyes.

Should Romp not interrupt the Ace's movements, he would proceed to sidestep 5 meters to the right, not wanting to bump into the gate guard before advancing, striding past him towards the gates that were in front of him. All of the actions were performed at a rate of 60 meters per second, Tadashi not wanting to waste any more time with idle chit-chat with Romp. It should be noted that Tadashi would react to anything Romp did accordingly, as he would not be foolish enough to let his guard down against a foreign shinobi. If not interrupted, the ginger would end the conversation with finality once walking past the man,

"Good day, Mr. Romp. It was...interesting talking to you."

WC: 729
TWC: 3091

The boat drifted in the harbor slowly approaching the dock to the village gates. Arc and Rook and their one ward were the only ones on the boat as they were returning from a mission out in the borders, Arc had heard something about another boat had come out not too long ago which is probably why there weren’t any other passengers.  Arc had been a bit insistent that the ferry brings them back at once as they had a young girl in their care from the mission they had just completed.  Arc’s Bow was strung across his back and His katana was on his left hip.  The quiver of arrows still stocked after his mission also slung across his back.  His normal civilian clothes didn’t hide much of the fact that he was some kind of warrior.  Though to most he just looked like some military brat who carried around too much weaponry.  The boat was sliding through the fog that normally sat in a ring around the main island.  As the boat approached the docks Arc made out some figures on or near the dock.  At this angle, it was hard to tell, but one of them was definitely dressed like it was Halloween.  


“Stay here” Arc would instruct Rook as he stepped off the boat.  The boat they had hired had pulled up to a second boat already docked.   The young man was speaking with Romp, the gate guard.  Arc had met him sort of when he had left on his mission.  He was a pretty light hearted guy as much as he had heard of him around the village, which to be fair was not very much.  People in Kiri didn’t seem to talk about each other much.  It was almost as if everyone had a collective stick up their butt.  But not Arcanis, he tried his hardest to meet everyone in the village, as long as it didn’t interfere with their own daily activities.  Arcanis didn’t really know what to do in this situation.  He had to check in with Romp as he was returning from the mission as he said.


Arc hadn’t made out what they were talking about but he figured he had better wait his turn to speak with the guard.  As he was standing about 15 meters from the costumed fellow, where he had stepped off the boat he had known for a minute that the boy, of girl, arc realized that to be fair he truly couldn’t tell from this position whether it was indeed a boy or girl who stood talking to Romp.  but what he could tell was the intense chakra rolling off the person.  It was interesting.  Though he knew since he had no way to hide his own chakra romp would be aware at least of a new ninja approaching.  


As Arc stood waiting for the situation to wrap up, he saw the boy/girl/person try to circumvent Romp.  Arcanis was not a guards man and he was certain, should he have asked, that he would have tersely been told to stay out of it.  Arc hated arguing with young people.  He knew better than them but to argue that fact would be to stoop to a lower level of intellect he supposed.  Eh.  For now, he would wait his turn.  The young man seemed eager to get to the village.  It wasn’t like the young man would have a pleasant time getting to the village or whatever his goal from there was.  


Arc gently rested his hand on the weapon pouch on his right leg.  The 2 kunai he had were inside, and should he be asked to assist he would.  But likely the young man would be taken care of and properly processed by Romp.  


“Stay there,”  Arc said once more in his mind.  It was an instruction for Rook.  Even though it was not likely Arc would be called for, Arc knew Rook might not have the easiest time with an opponent of this caliber.


Looking around to check if anyone else was important to note in the area and Arc spotted a dark black or purple mask/helmet/honestly could just be a shiny rock in the shallows by the first boat.  Arc might have passed it up except for the oddly similar hue of purple to the clothing of the young girl?, Boy?  Arc honestly could not make it out.  As frilly as he/she/it was dressed it could go any direction.  That’s it.  The person talking to Romp was trying to ask if someone would retrieve the mask from the water.  And by the attire, the person was of arrogant nobility and wouldn’t get it themselves...That didn’t explain why the boy would try to get around Romp in such a strange fashion.  Ah of course Romp had told the cocky bastard to piss off.  And so the entitled young person had disdainfully skirted with Romp for another person's assistance.  It all made sense.


If it wasn’t for the Chakra and clearly shinobi like speed they demonstrated to move around the gate guard.  


Arc would follow the young man's retreat towards the village should that be the action that is carried out, and with a simple hand sign, a water clone would toss the discarded object up to Arc from the water before leaping up out of the water onto the docks next to Arc.  Water clones were quite useful for doing inane actions like retrieving things already in the water they were created in.  Arc would take a moment to examine the helmet, mask, thing carefully but not so carefully as to be foolish and take the mind off a potential threat to the village.

Jutsu used: Water clone
Ap used 20

WC: 958

At this point in time, he couldn't tell anymore if this child was serious or if this was all one big, elaborate hoax for somebody to laugh at. Maybe a test to see if Romp was actually doing his gatekeeper duties or something. Nobody in their right mind, would send somebody with little to no real world experience as their diplomat. Now, Romp himself didn't have much room on this topic to speak. All of his biggest issues came from deciding who to allow through the gate and who not to and fighting for dear life. Even then, he considered fighting for life easier than dealing with things diplomatically. Still, it was a shame that this boy had been duped so bad. He didn't know on whose orders he came here for exactly or even if the story was true or not but, what he did know, was his story didn't check out. Something as big as a diplomat from Konohagakure coming to Kirigakure for political talks and negotiations would have definitely been urgent enough for him to have been informed and for him to have kept a lookout of anybody that looks important. The only reason he even came out to greet him was because the monitor picked up an intense source of chakra coming through the barrier.

If it was a native shinobi that resided in this village, it would have been fine since they would have been able to open the barrier partially and come in with the use of a tunnel or their hidden village technique. Instead, he came on a boat that happened to have the approved fuinjutsu seal on it. Well, he assumed the kid didn’t feel so good about himself either with the way he carried on previously as he was still a bit in shock about what the boy had said but that moment had passed. It was now time to deliver to the boy the cold, hard reality of the matter. He was no diplomat, there was no time for ‘independence’. There was a war that happened which Romp had been a part of personally and Konoha had lost. For better or for worse, whatever the current mizukage decided to do with them was his business and Hokage's business. He waited for the boy to give his response to the conversation at hand. After listening to the long winded speech of the boy, he thought to himself for a moment in how to respond. In this boy’s mind, he thought to be the savior of Konoha all on his own for whatever reason that may be.Unfortunately for him, in Romp’s mind, the kid was clearly delusional and he was beginning to doubt this was never an official diplomatic meeting, not that he believed any of it without having valid proof.

 After the boy was done talking, apparently he attempted to step five meters to the side of him in order to get around him and continue on as if the only person with the authority to open the gates wasn’t standing in front of him right now. Romp had just mirrored the boy’s movement in the attempt to block his path.  Now here’s where he’d have to respond in kind. “Listen kid, I know you think what was done to your village is an injustice and you’re probably right but, that’s just how war works. One side wins and one side loses, the winner demands and dictates who is correct and the loser will always be viewed as the evil of the world.Although in this case, it's not as clear cut as one would like it to be. The fact of the matter is, nobody but you views this as some sort of public outrage. If there was, maybe the hokage himself, even somebody remotely famous from Konoha, would be here for a serious negation. Instead, you claim they sent you with nothing to show for it, no proof, no documents, no tribute, not even a letter showing the sincerity of your village. How would you react if some young, fresh Genin in a fancy attire pulled up and demanded you to release your assets?” Romp paused for dramatic effect. 

“Yeah, I didn’t think so. Now, if you think Kirgakure treats Konoha as a plaything, you’re wrong. All we demand is tribute from you, however much the Mizukage decides he wants to take, we don't demand your secret techniques, we don’t demand you to fight and die for us nor do we demand you to produce your exclusive goods to us although, I wouldn’t mind some Senju Wood personally,” Romp said, getting off topic. “Anyway, the fact of the matter is, all we ask of you is you pay your weekly tribute. That’s it. You may think you have it hard but news flash, every nation has it hard. But people go about it in different ways and the way you’re going about it is the wrong way. If you feel your kage so incompetent, you should aim  your demands him first instead of Kiri then you can come back alongside your Hokage and ‘negotiate. Got it? Until then, my word is final. You’re not getting through here.” Romp finally finished his own speech as he barred entry to the village from this self proclaimed diplomat. With that, he began to fold his arms as he stood firm in front of the small boy, maintain his distance.

W.C: 905

So, the fate of the Ace lied in the outcome of today. The words he spoke were earnest and resolute, not willing to turn back now. If he left now, there would be no "Konoha" to turn back to, a village he once saw as a place of hope and happiness would be nothing more than a repose for his fallen ideals full of regret for not fighting for what he truly believed was correct. Something like that...couldn't be wrong, right?  Yet, Romp's counters were equally as strong and arguably more valid, meticulously picking out the errors of the ginger's ways. Tadashi would bite his lip in vexation towards Romp's words, a drop of blood flowing outwards, turning to a vermillion red once being exposed to the ominous atmosphere, slowly drying and being nothing more than a speck of red. No more words needed to be said, as the Ace would continue to move 5 meters to the right, as his patience was not one to be questioned on this midday, despite his words of "diplomatic cordiality" just a few moments ago. Yet still, the hulking behemoth of a shinobi stood in front of him, resolutely declaring that the boy was not going to most past him today. The ginger wouldn't flinch once he heard the foreign Kaguya state those words, already mentally preparing himself for that possibility mere minutes ago. Indeed, it was self-evident that Romp was somewhat right, and the ginger would agree with him for the most part, seeing himself as nothing more than an egotistical Chuunin with delusions of grandeur...but it was too late to stop now. The moment he stepped off the boat - no the moment that he left the comfort of his home village -  was the moment he resigned himself to live or die by his ideals; to become a hero or die as a martyr. For better or for worse, that was the fate of Tadashi Namikaze, no reason to be sad or conflicted about something inevitable. Someone would die here today, it was just how the Ninja World worked. "If a path is blocked off, then you must make one with your own hands," The ginger solemnly thought as he peered towards the man.

A soft zephyr of wind blew past the group, as Tadashi would involuntarily pick up another chakra signature just after he stepped 5 meters to the right and Romp stepped 5 meters to his left. The chakra signature was somewhat potent, showing hints of maturity and vigor, yet the ginger did not exactly know where the chakra signature was as he did not activate Mind's eye of the Kagura yet. All the semi-masqueraded Ace knew, was that the energy was within 45 meters of him...and it would most likely intend to watch Romp and him for the meanwhile. Speaking of the meanwhile, a shattering roar of thunder would echo around the area, reaching all the way to the gates. Tadashi, thinking that it was just a seasonal roar of the prelude of a thunderstorm or a prelude to an omen would not mind...but little did he know that roar of thunder was the sound of the elusive Storm Circle being broken by another ninja unknown to the ginger. The sky would clear up more to Tadashi's slight confusion now that the Kirigakure Village Defense was now broken and thus, stopped to continuously storm around the islands surrounding the village and its gates. Little did the Ace know that this could be a blessing in disguise, yet he wouldn't let the unusual roar of thunder break his concentration. Staring the man dead in the eyes, Tadashi's once hope-filled eyes would turn into optics of no longer a naive child, but an assassin, devoid of kindness yet oozing malice. Once Romp spoke his final sentence, Tadashi would darkly chuckle for a moment before vocalizing his ominous words, "You were mistaken about who truly won between Konoha and Kirigakure...the war has yet to end, and it will end on this day."

The Ace of Konoha would waste no time after ending his sentence before flowing a generous amount of chakra in his eyes, once umber-sapphire would morph into a scarlet hue instantly with 3 tomoes spiraling and etching in a circular formation around the centered pupil, viewing the blue blob of chakra 10 meters in front of him who was Romp. Simultaneously after activating the sacred Dojutsu of the Uchiha Clan, the ginger would release Jubaku rested on his left hip from its blue sheath, releasing and gripping the Odachi's hilt outwards with his right-hand at maximum speed, the blade pointing towards Romp's left chest. "Pierce his heart, Jubaku," Once unsheathed, Tadashi's potent chakra would flow into the blade like a river flooding into the vast sea, remaining stationary as Jubaku's blade length and dimensions would be copied with said chakra. Like the speed of lightning, the mimicked chakra would elongate towards Romp's left chest at astronomical speeds, not halting until reaching 30 meters in distance. Should the gate guard not dodge the attack, the elongated blade would pierce through the man's chest, just a few inches shy of his heart, before reaching 30 meters and receding back to its original length. Despite the efforts of the Jounin Flak Jacket and the man's impressive durability, Tadashi commanded for his blade to pierce, and pierce it shall. Romp would not succumb to his wounds instantly but would be rendered incapacitated due to the blade rupturing vital blood vessels needed to stay conscious. Due to the power of the 3-Tomoe Sharingan, Tadashi would watch intently for the man to dodge his attack and or perform a counterattack to react accordingly since he did not expect the man to lose so easily. Such would be a disappointment for the young boy to be robbed of an entertaining battle. 

WC: 1079
TWC: 4170

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