Purpose of life

A beautiful oasis within a barren land stood before him, its tranquil peace almost out of place compared to its surroundings. A forested paradise surrounding a massive spire which overlooked the rest of the village. Shinrah stood about 20 meters within the 100 meter diameter perfect circle of forested land. Multiple walkways and streams dotted around him with village locals walking along it. Unlike the time he had spent in the Land of Rivers, most of the people here paid him no mind, no dirty or abstract looks thrown his way. A comforting sign that he was welcomed here.

Moving down one of the paths running parallel to a small stream of water, Shinrah removed the katana from his back and instead carried it and its sheath in his hand. The weight of the sword and thick wooden sheath had made his travels rather tiring. A few moments later he would kneel near the stream, splashing the cool water onto his face and into his bright orange hair. For a desert landscape so hot, the water offered a rather cool and relaxing break from the heat of the land.

As droplets of water ran down his face and exited on the point of his chin Shinrah found himself lost in thought. Memories flooded in of better of times, brought back to him by the cool water of the stream. Memories of fishing on the lakes back near his home village. Memories of the time he spent with his mother in the garden. Memories that he had been trying to keep out of his mind for fear of his emotions gaining control. After all the last words he had heard from either of his parents were about how he was a "monster". An inhuman creature that his father had claimed was not worth the life he had been given. Though Shinrah had not let these memories affect him for the last couple years, in recent timea hes been finding it harder and harder to keep them at bay.

[nature energy stacks 1/6]
[WC: 337]

It seems sort of odd that such a barren land could have this magnificent view of trees, water, and people. Though there certainly was not much to complain about because it truly was beautiful and super enticing to be a part of. Asura Kan had noticed a slight breeze of wind and with that – his hair would sway to one side and then fall flat – showing the inconsistency in which the wind blew. It was nice though, especially since these lands were known for how hot they were – it provided an instant in time where one could simply close their eyes and dream such a happy dream.

”Am I even allowed to have a wonderful dream? I do wonder about that sometimes – seeing as I assisted in the suicide of my father and murdered my mother. The youngish and most innocent looking teenager pushed those thoughts aside and crept a smile on his face, ”Of course I am allowed happy thoughts!

Asura Kan looked around sort of guilty – seeing as he had just blurted those words out aloud, alone it probably wouldn’t be enough to make people suspicious of him but it certainly could bring about some odd looks. A seventeen year old male with midnight blue hair and two different colored eyes – it’s the epitome of someone who garners odd looks.

About this time Asura Kan had noticed someone walking – he had taken his katana off his back, though still kept it sheathed. ”That’s certainly a little odd – wonder why he took the katana off his back?” The young boy murmured some more under his breath and then just had an interesting look about him – a look that told you he wanted to have a conversation with this fella. The fella currently looked lost in thought as he washed his face from a small stream of water near one of the walkways in this area.

”Should I start off with a joke? I think I will do that – that should help me understand what sort of person this is. With these thoughts running through his rather interesting mind – Asura Kan casually strolled over to the boy. Before he could get a word out of his mouth though, he let out a rather sinister chuckle – it wasn’t his intention of course, he just couldn’t help himself because of the joke he was thinking about.

”Quick question for you – Why do you never give someone who has no parents a LARGE bag of potato chips?

Asura Kan would wait idly by until his question was answered – though on the inside he was dying laughing and really just could not help it.


------------------
WC - 433

The sun shone strongly throughout the sky when Guren had entered the Grove. Truthfully his day was never planned to be spent admiring the small forest, but upon seeing its presence from the central market he had to investigate. And it was unlike anything he had seen in the last few months. Cacti, dead animals, and seas of sand were characteristic of Wind country; and so when Guren laid his eyes upon the Grove, the level of greenery was quite surprising. From the outside, the Grove seemed nothing more than forest, with a cobblestone path both leading to and dividing the park in half. With that, Guren took the first steps along the trail, passing underneath two lively oak trees. After taking several steps within the Grove, the pathway diverted and arched into left and right directions. Upon walking down a certain direction, one would be able to loop around the Grove in a circular fashion all while taking in the evergreen anomaly which lied within Sunagakure. And so Guren began his nature walk by proceeding to his right. 

Along the way, he would admire the flora which flourished adjacent to the path. From small flowers, to unique bushes, and even some native cacti: it seemed like the Grove had it all. On each side of the path were various assortments of trees, organized in such a way that the Grove seemed like an isolated world from the rest of Wind Country. Not even the village itself could be seen from inside the Grove. It was comparable to the atmosphere of notorious Botanical Gardens, yet condensed into a smaller footprint. Marvelous really. Despite its size, there were numerous minor walkways that one could deviate down and get a closer inspection of some of the plants and trees. It seemed very well designed for what appeared to be a relatively new rennovation to Suna. How had he not ventured off into such an area yet? 

Being in such an environment reminded Guren of his journey from Kumogakure to Sunagakure. It was long, which gave him plenty of opportunities to marvel at some of the beauties of nature along the way. Of course there was the Valley of Hell, which was more of an eyesore to the normal person, but it was beautiful to the Chinoike. But the Grove was bore a closer resemblance to the wilderness found in the Lands of Fire, Grass, and Rivers. It was refreshing. Much different than what he had been experiencing in present day time. 

As he proceeded down the passage, his eyes fell upon two unfamiliar yet unmistakable figures. They stood near a small brook, one bearing a sword and the other beginning to approach the former. Yet it didn't seem tense at all. One seemed a bit fatigue, while the other was on the opposite end of the spectrum: enthusiastic. Deciding to get a closer look, he walked away from the trail and approached the two. That was when he heard a mentioning of potato chips. Interesting. Amongst all of the natural, evergreen beauty which surrounded the three the conversation which Guren overheard was centered around food....Fair enough. Guren loved food. 

*Grrrr* his stomach ironically growled. 

"Awh man, don't mention food right now...I just remembered that I skipped dinner." Guren said with a slight laugh as he stopped walking, placing himself a meter and a half's distance away from both of the two people talking. As part of his normal routine when meeting new people, Guren's eyes flickered from right to left: panning from the blue haired, black coated man to the red coated, red haired man. They were similar in physical stature, with the latter being slightly taller and closer to Guren's height. Based on their physiques, it could be inferred that there were shinobi of some sort. And this was to be expected within a hidden village. Truthfully, because of the nature of Sunagakure Guren half expected them to both be missing ninja like himself. Yet he wouldn't discount the possibility of at least one of them hailing from Suna. After making his approach, he shifted his attention towards the man who toted the sheathed sword. "Trouble with your blade, friend?"

Guren exchanged a friendly smile towards the two, intending to show some level of cordiality. He was intrigued on how the conversation might progress beyond chips and swords. 

(WC: 727)

As the cool water ran down his face, Shinrah happened to notice someone approaching from the corner of his peripheral vision. He couldn't make out the mans face but he didn't seem like a threat so Shinrah allowed him to approach. As the man drew closer, he uttered a chuckle followed by what seemed to be a bad joke. In response to this Shinrah. Simply stood up, placing the strap of the katana back around his shoulder so that the sword would once again rest upon his back. Shinrah looked the newcomer over for only a split second, he was about Shinrahs height although slightly shorter. In response to his joke Shinrah let out no signs of amusement and instead kept his expression emotionless as he spoke.

"Because they have no one to share the enjoyment with." Shinrah said, his tone was blank and somewhat cold. After he had spoken he heard the voice of another person, roughly a meter and a half behind he and the first newcomer.

The second man made a statement about skipping dinner, his stomach growls could be distinctly heard corroborating his claim. Shinrah spoke no words in response to this and a few moments later the second persons attention fell solely on him. "Trouble with your blade, friend?" The man said with a soft smile on his face.

Shinrah turned to face him before speaking, his face and voice remaining emotionless as he did so. "No trouble, just tired from a long journey."

After speaking to him Shinrahs vision began to shift between to the two of them. Having more time to look them over than he did upon their arrival, they appeared to be shinobi in their own right. Shinrah couldn't see a shinobi headband on either of them though so he eas able to deduce that they were most likely wanderers or rogues like him. Whether or not they were friend or foe though still remained in the realm of the unknown. Shinrah wasn't used to being approached out of the blue like they had done, so his guard remained up during the whole conversation.

Attempting to discern what their intentions were Shinrah let out a soft sigh before speaking to them both.

"Not to be rude gentlemen, but is there something I can help you with?" Shinrahs question was intended to be given in the most respectful way possible. Afterall he was a visitor here and had gave his word to the woman at the gate that he wouldn't cause ant problems. Being a rogue ninja and all many people would believe that Shinrahs words meant little, the reality was though that Shinrah was strictly a man of his word. He was the sort of person who wouldn't claim something he wasn't prepared to do. Afterall, a mans word was the only thing he really had in this world.

[Nature Energy Stacks 2/6]
[WC: 478]

It was about the time that Asura Kan had started to tell what he thought was going to be a funny joke, that he noticed another man, boy, or whatever walking towards he and the boy still leaning down over the stream. It was likely that things were about to get interesting – though that wasn't necessarily the intent of Asura Kan, just the way things turn out at times. His eyes stayed glued towards the boy as he began to move slightly, katana still in hand, which is what caused the slight concern for Asura Kan. After a mere moment though the katana was sheathed and at this point, not a threat at all.

"Because they have no one to share the enjoyment with." This was the guess of the young man, which did make Asura Kan happy – though his tone could have been more enthusiastic. He sounded like a depressed eight year old who had just been rejected by his parents when asked for some new toy. ”Jeez – this kid really needs something good to happen to him I guess.” Asura Kan once again started to pay notice – the boy, man, or whatever had decided to finally show up to the conversation – though it was just as he was about to provide the correct answer to his new found… acquaintance.

The first words out of this new dude’s mouth was telling Asura Kan not to mention food because he skipped dinner. Asura Kan closed his left eye and put on an odd wide smile and words began to form from his very lips.

”No worries dude, I won’t mention anything else about food to you.” The right eye – the one that was an odd red color (and it’s only odd because his left eye was blue) stared at the boy whose hair was fairly wild but pretty cool. His next words were geared towards the red haired fella and was a question to see if he had trouble with his katana – which he did not. Turns out he was simply tired from an apparently long journey, which helps bring about some more interesting conversation.

It wasn’t too long after this that some more words had escaped the katana sheathing boy’s mouth, and they weren’t necessarily released in the most eloquent fashion. From Asura Kan’s experience – anytime someone starts off with “Not to be rude” or anything of the sort, they usually mean to be rude. This was a little aggravating as Asura Kan was simply trying to be nice to a fellow shinobi while also providing some entertainment.

”To be honest yes – I need to tell you the reason you never give a LARGE bag of potato chips to an orphan… is because it’s family sized” The midnight blue haired boy’s timing was okay – not the greatest, hopefully the delivery was good enough. He didn’t want things to get to tense betwixt the three of them – especially at the very beginning of the conversation. He decided that introducing himself was probably the thing to do right about now – hopefully it would lower the guard of the other two and something good could come of this.

”My name is Asura Kan and I can make the joke I just made and laugh about it because I have been an orphan for quite some time now.” His eyes were glancing back and forth now, waiting to see the reaction of the two “shinobi”.

------------------

WC - 566

Guren's stomach growling subsiding upon hearing the promise of food being a banned topic of discussion. But the tone turned cold and quiet upon Shinrah's initial guess at Asura Kan's joke. Melancholy even, as indicated on the expression on Asura Kan's face. Guren discerned that Shinrah's grim response to the lighthearted joke set up was a message of loneliness. Perhaps whatever past Shinrah had would not allow him to take jokes lightly. Guren's questioning of the blade was more so a way to divert the conversation away from the joke, seeing as Shinrah might not take it well. He already seemed a bit fatigued and under the weather. Understandable. Like Guren, he might have been new to Sunagakure and  his feedback indicated that he was recuperating from his journey to the village. Still, it was odd for someone to be carrying a blade in hand out in the public. Nevertheless, Guren dismissed this with a simple, "I see."

Quite abrupt could summarize Shinrah's question directed towards Guren and Asura Kan. It almost sounded like a "why are you bothering me" type of rhetoric. As rude as the comment may or not be, Guren was not too concerned. It was a fair question. Neither shinobi had any business approaching the man. He was minding his own business. Yet the two stood out to Guren. And this could primarily be explained by their potent chakra profiles, both of which appeared unique and rare. They easily stood out in a crowd. It was at least worth investigating their identities and hearing a tidbit of their stories.  

Guren would offer his response to Shinrah's question, as his smile would melt slowly to a neutral face while he would begin. "Just wanted to talk with you both. You both radiate decent amou-" Guren began until he was interrupted by Asura Kan. And here it began. The joke of jokes. It must be good right? For someone to begin a conversation with one, the standards would be high. A good joke would mean a good laugh, and positive impressions would be made. However a bad joke...a bad joke might cost more than the conversation, perhaps even Asura Kan's reputation. And with that, the joke was executed. 

Silence...for a single second after the joke was told. And that second would seem like forever for the person telling the joke, waiting for a response. Guren, who was slightly salty towards Asura Kan, just looked at the comedian as the joke settled. His lips began to break at the corners of his mouth, as the they would widen and his bright white teeth would be exposed. A multi-breath, sincere chuckle was all Guren could let out. It was a good joke. Guren shook his head, thinking to himself "man...that's a little fucked up, huh?" but this of course made the joke funnier. Yet it had some truth to it for Asura Kan, as he was parentless. Coincidentally enough, it also struck a chord with Guren. He never thought of his situation as humorous, but it was nice to take the situation lighter and reduce it down to a harmless joke. It was refreshing. 

Guren smiled over at Asura Kan and extended his hand for a fist bump, "I go by G. Nice to meet you Asura Kan. I see you have a good sense of humor." If he accepted the fist bump, Guren would turn towards Shinrah with his fist still extended.

"And what about you," he inquired with a smirk on his face. Whether Shinrah had received the joke well or not, Guren would continue, "Who are you and what journey could make you so weary?"

Following the icebreaker and introduction, Guren would continue with his thought prior to being interrupted. "Well, what brings you both to Sunagakure? What type of things are you guys looking for and aspiring to?"

(WC = 642. Total: 1369)

Guren had began to answer, Shinrahs questiom when he was cut off by Asuras answer to the joke from before. After a few moments of silence however, Guren seemed to shake his head apparently understanding the basis of the joke which Shinrah had found little humor in. Afterwards the first man had identified himself as Asura Kan, nothing about his name seemed out of the ordinary and it didn't tell much to his back story other than the fact that he was an orphan. Shinrah himself had parents still, as far as he knew, but at the same time he had been away from them for so long that by this point they may as well not exist.

Guren would later on extend his hand out with a closed fist, a greeting which was very similar to a handshake though a little more modern. Along with this the second man insisted he be addressed as only G. Apparently not wishing to give his real name since he had given a nickname instead. After a few moments his fist shifted towards Shinrah as he then asked him "and what about you." In response to this Shinrah outstretched his own fist, lightly tapping it against Gurens as a sign of respect. Along with this Shinrah offered an introduction.

"Names Shinrah, as for why im so tired, traveling the world on foot will do that to you from time to time. Plus, ive still got a long way to go."

Following the short introductions and the crude joke, Guren would continue asking the two why they had come to the sand village. Shinrah wasnt sure why Asura was here but Shinrah himself had no particular reason to be here specifically. It was just another stop for him on his journey to discover his purpose. He decided he would answer the mans question though, as yet another sign of respect. From the way he was talking this appeared to be his home though Shinrah couldn't be sure. If this was his home then it would make sense as to why he would questioning someone he does not usually see.

"I have no real goal in particular or specific reason to be here. Just a lonely wanderer searching for his place in the world, sunagakure just happened to be the next stop on the list. Before coming here I had spent some time in the land or Rivers and the land of Iron. What about you G, is this where your from or are you searching for something as well?"Shinrahs tone of voice had shifted to a more respectable tone, not wishing to come off like he was attempting to interrogate the others.

[Nature Energy Stacks 3/6]
[WC: 449][TWC: 1264]

(Switching the post order since AK is busy IRL)

Guren nodded, understanding the perspective of the newly identified Shinrah. He too had recently made a long, laborious trip. Taking a deep breath, Guren recalled those same feelings of fatigue that he faced not so long ago. The weariness beginning in the ache of his soles from traversing multiple countries while being pursued by ninja to either kill or return him. The restless nights whereas Guren would classify "good sleep" as two or three hours of uninterrupted slumber. The normalcy of an empty stomach, with the absolute bare minimum being sufficient enough to keep him going. Yes, the strain of an undying trip was all too real and familiar to Guren. 

After that momentary pause in dialogue to resonate with Shinrah's words, Guren took a step back, looked straight down, and placed his hands on his hips. He gave another slight nod before lifting his head to meet the gaze of Shinrah. His intention was to address his questions as well as explain how he himself could relate.  "So you're in need of a break huh? I'll tell you what. Tell me a little bit more about yourself and I'll treat you to a meal as well as pay for your housing tonight...You see I understand the troubles you may have faced in your ventures, and I imagine that the exhaustion that I felt is not much different than what you are experiencing. I recently had traveled from my home village, Kumogakure, to Wind Country. Some time after I finally made my way here to Sunagakure...I may not call it home, but I know it well to be able to provide you some decent hospitality." 

With that he would pause for a moment to reflect on the last question, regarding his purpose. "But as for myself...I set out from my former village with the intentions of learning more of my ancestry and discovering secrets of the shinobi world, all while growing in power. Just so happens that I ended up here. Seems like with each day I grow closer to my ambitions."

Since he figured he had just offered a mouthful of words towards Shinrah he would pause before proceeding and then divert his attention to Asura Kan. "And what about yourself? My invitation is extended to you as well, friend. "

As the conversations went on, Guren felt as if the two shinobi before him were relatively calm. Both of which still appeared uniquely intriguing in their own regards, but simultaneously very calm. Although this was the case, Guren still kept his eyes on both of them. He didn't realistically anticipate anything hostile, but he was always exercised a degree of caution when meeting new people. This was especially true when meeting new ninjas not affiliated with Sunagakure. True, he also was not. And also true that Suna was a haven for many missing ninjas. But as the law of large numbers would have, there was always a possibility that at least one of the many missing ninja present here would have mischief in mind. Nevertheless Guren remained calm, cool, and collected while scoping out both men to be mindful of their demeanor.  

(WC = 524. Total: 1893)

Realizing that there would be no response from either of the men, Guren would turn his head to observe them both. It was almost as if they ignored him entirely and were bought caught within obscure daydreams. It was understandable. The life of a shinobi was constantly a game of trials and tribulations. Guren could empathize with the fact that sometimes it was nice to just let your mind wander, and what better place to do it in Sunagakure than the Grove? It surely was beautiful, tranquil, and alluring. With that Guren nodded and both of them and simply let out, “I think it’s time I take my leave.”

And so he would. He would turn from his current position and begin walking away from the two gentlemen without the intention of spending any more time at this place. He thought that he could have made a friend of two from the looks of the shinobi, maybe even a traveling companion…but neither of the two seemed interested. One was a weary traveler, and the other seemed focused on other things. No matter the case, Guren wouldn’t dwell on the topic for longer. Instead he focused his mind on his next destination and his next goal. While he walked past the exit of the Grove, he pondered multiple ideas as to where he should divert his attention next. Maybe heading back to the town’s square would prove resourceful. For now that seemed like a fine idea, thus he would walk adjacent to the main roadway and towards that direction.

(WC = 258 x 2 Event Bonus = 526. Total = 2409)

~Exit~

2409/100 = 24.1 * 2 = 48 
Claiming 48 AP

Approved