Seeking Advice (IO, NK)

It was a beautiful day in the village of Hoshigakure. People were going about their daily business with no outward signs of discontent to drag them down. If you listened, you could even hear the birds chirping through the noise of the crowds. The peaceful atmosphere didn’t do much to calm the nerves of the Genin as he stood in front of a particular door debating whether or not he should knock.
 
He hadn’t had many interactions with Tsubaki, the captain of Team Summer, but she intimidated him. Perhaps it was just that she was in a completely different league than him when it came to their abilities, but he felt somewhat uncomfortable at the thought of going to talk to her. He felt like he might be bothering her by just coming over unannounced like this, but there were some things that he needed advice on and she was his direct superior. He needed direction, both on how to get stronger and how to get his name known in the important circles of the village shinobi. He was also curious about her jutsu, the one that had caused a giant tree to grow out of Tekiatsu Lake. It was fascinating to him, and he wanted to know all that he could about chakra in general. Medical ninjutsu, which was her specialty, wasn’t something that he felt particularly interested in learning more about, but surely she would have advice for him on training his ninjutsu and possibly even genjutsu.
 
With a deep breath, he stepped forward and knocked on the door. ”Hello? It’s Kiryu.”

[WC: 264]

Tsubaki was busy in her greenhouse garden, giving the plants their daily water and nutrients. The air was calm as she poured a steady stream of water from her pitcher into the soil. She smiled as she looked at her exotic plants that she had been growing and tending for her whole life. Their scent and shine radiated their health, making Tsubaki proud of her work. She was always satisfied after seeing the outcome of her hard work. 

After giving her plants their fair share of attention, she would return home to relax on one of her days off. Suddenly, she saw a figure at her door. She didn't recognize the white-haired shinobi from behind right away. But as she got closer and heard him knock on the door, she realized it was her student Kiryu. "Hey! How's it going, Kiryu?" Tsubaki would ask as she places the pitcher that had been in her hand down beside the entrance to her house. "Would you like to come in?" She walked passed him and opened the door to usher the boy in. 

Figuring that the boy would listen and enter her house, Tsubaki would shut the door behind him and rush to the kitchen to get herself some tea, and the boy some if he wanted. Filling a kettle with water and then putting it on the stove, she would wait for the steam to start whistling. "So, what do I owe the pleasure of?" She said, teasing him with her sophisticated tone. 

WC: 253

After a few moments of waiting without hearing any sort of response from inside, Kiryu determined that Tsubaki probably wasn’t home. Oh well, he thought to himself, I guess I had better come back later. Before he could even turn around, however, he heard Tsubaki’s voice from behind him.
 
”Oh, Miss Tsubaki. Good morning.” He stepped aside to allow her to open the door. ”Yes, if you don’t mind,” he replied when she asked if he wanted to come inside. He stood in the living room while she went off to the kitchen. It sounded like she was making some tea, which is what she had done last time he had come over. She seemed to have an appreciation for it that Kiryu had never really been able to acquire.
 
At her next query, he took a deep breath. ”I was actually hoping to get some advice.” So long as she didn’t give him any indication that he shouldn’t continue, he would take a second to gather his thoughts. ”I’ve been a Genin for a little while now, but the missions that I’ve gotten have all been pretty menial stuff. I finally got my first D-Ranked mission a few days ago, and it was taking care of the plants around the gates to the village. I know,” he said before she could interrupt, ”that taking care of the plants is important. It gave me time to reflect on a lot too. That being said, that seems like something that any civilian could do, not really a mission that should be assigned to a shinobi.” He knew he sounded like he was just complaining, but he figured that if he couldn’t complain to his team leader, he couldn’t complain to anyone. ”I guess what I’m getting at is that I was hoping you might be able to help me get my name out there a bit more so that I’ll get assigned some more important missions. I want to do something to really help the village, not just routine maintenance.”
 
He glanced over at Tsubaki again before giving a slightly awkward grin. ”Also, I’m curious about that justu you used back when we were training. The one with the huge tree? It was like nothing I’ve ever seen or felt before.”

[WC: 380]
[TWC: 644]

Kiryu seemed to be distressed to Tsubaki. He took in deep breaths like something deep was on the mind. He explained to the Senju that he was seeking some advice. Tsubaki listened carefully; proud that the boy sought her out for advice. She felt like she was teaching some interesting topics. 

The Hikari would explain that he had been a genin for a long time and that he had been assigned to do some, in his opinion, meaningless tasks. His latest mission was watering some plants, something that Tsubaki would do for fun. She wouldn't mind getting paid something that she would do on a day to day basis, unlike her student. Watering plants isn't for everyone, she supposed. He asked for advice on how to get his name out there where he could get more 'shinobi missions'. Tsubaki smirked as the hot water steamed and whistled. She would pour out the tea into two cups and head out to the living room where Kiryu was. "You might think that the missions are useless and meaningless but they hold a lot of value." It was a common saying in all shinobi cultures that all missions are important, no matter how small. Kiryu might not realize it, but it does impact his image in the village every mission that he does. People see him more and more in the community, so they know that they can trust them. "As a genin, you will see that most missions will be small. But someday, the more you work, you'll be assigned to higher up jobs. Just keep going as assigned and you'll see some change. " She placed the cup in front of the genin. 

After she gave her advice, Kiryu also asked what the jutsu Tsu used on their training day. "Oh, that? That was my clan's special technique, Wood Release: The Nativity of the World of Trees." She said with pride. "Did I ever tell you about my clan? I'm from the Senju clan with a special element called Wood Release. My family is from Konoha but we moved here after the clan died out over time. My parents didn't use the clan's techniques but they loved the clan's care for nature and have upheld that teaching for a long time." 

She realized after talking about her clan that she didn't know about Kiryu's clan. "You know, I've never heard much about the Hikari family. What's your family like?" 

WC: 408
TWC:

To be honest, Kiryu wasn’t exactly sure what he had expected Tsubaki to say. She was a Chuunin after all, so of course she would say that every mission was important. The Genin grimaced slightly at her words. He hadn’t meant to insinuate that the missions didn’t need doing, although that very well may have been what it sounded like. As far as the advice on getting his name out there, once again it seemed like fairly straightforward advice: just keep doing what he was doing. Missions would keep coming and the more often he demonstrated that he was capable of handling them, the more difficult and important the missions would be that he was assigned.
 
Basically: be patient.
 
”Thank you,” he said with a slight bow of his head as Tsubaki placed the cup of tea in front of him. He listened intently as she explained that her justu was part of her clan’s special abilities. At first, a feeling of shock and mild horror washed over him as he realized that his mentor was actually part of a shinobi clan. He quickly got over that, however, as he remembered that his negative feelings toward shinobi clans were, for the most part, limited to just a handful of them. Kuniko and Sakuragi were both Hyuuga, after all, and he respected the Hyuuga. Perhaps the Senju clan was another clan that was worthy of respect rather than hate.
 
Wood Release? Kiryu had no idea that there were other elements besides the five that he had heard about. He also hadn’t known that Tsubaki’s family had originally come from the Land of Fire. It seemed as though he was learning quite a lot about his mentor today. ”If your jutsu is a clan specialty,” he asked after a few seconds of processing, ”does that mean I wouldn’t be able to learn a technique like that?” That was disappointing, if true. There was something almost… sacred about the ability to use chakra in wood style. The purest form of worship of the gods that he had ever witnessed. Still, perhaps it was simply not his purpose and he would have to discover his own way of worship.
 
At the mention of his own family, he glanced down at the floor. He hadn’t seen his parents in a while now; not since he had come to Hoshigakure for training. ”Oh, my family isn’t really anything special,” he answered. ”My parents are farmers about a day’s travel from the village. I was really young when Hoshigakure was actually formed into a shinobi village, so we witnessed a lot of the death and destruction that bandits and rogue ninja could carry out.” He took a sip of the tea. ”They’re very religious,” he added, talking about his parents again. ”Which, I suppose, is why I am as well. They weren’t very supportive at first when I told them I wanted to enter the academy here, but they opened up to the idea when I explained how I wanted to serve the royal family. Of course… I never really got the chance.”
 
The letter he had received from his parents had demanded that he return home after the princess no longer resided in Hoshigakure. He had felt like he couldn’t abandon his oaths to the village and had refused. They hadn’t sent him a letter since, and that had been quite some time ago. ”Anyways,” he said, returning from his trip down memory lane, ”they’re good people, and they’re my family, but I don’t think they want much to do with me anymore after I chose my oaths to the village over my ties to them.”
 
”If I may, could I ask you one more thing? Do you know the Hogokage well? What’s he like?” The talk of clans had reminded him that the very leader of their village was a member of possibly the most evil clan of them all. While it seemed the Senju clan had a unique blessing by the gods, the Uchiha clan had made a deal with demons. The ruler of the blessed village being a member of that clan was disturbing to the Genin, but he wanted to know Tsubaki’s opinion on the man.

[WC: 704]
[TWC: 1,348]

The mention of Tsu's Wood release seemed to spawn a lot of questions from Kiryu. However, the genin figured out quickly that since it was a part of her clan that he would probably not be able to learn it. She chuckled lightly and shook her head, affirming that he wouldn't be able to learn it. Tsubaki was surprised with the boy's lack of knowledge of Kekki Genki but she assumed it less common knowledge when you weren't born with one. 

Suddenly, as the topic went towards family, Kiryu got a bit distant. He claimed that his family wasn't anything special. He explained further that they were farmers that didn't approve of shinobi and were even hesitant to take him here to become a shinobi. He never explained what his parents worshipped however and why leading her to assume the worse.  He told his parents that he would serve the royal family, but they've been inactive for quite some time. Tsubaki nodded along as he explained, sipping her tea slowly. Tsubaki never noticed the boy's religious activity that much, probably because it was personal. She sympathized with the boy because she too was also the child of religious parents. Although, she never took up their teachings. "Well, I guess you and I are in the same boat. My parents were religious too, taking nature as their sort of god. Personally, was never a fan." She chuckled to herself, thinking of all the times her parents tried to instil the religious activities, even cutting her out of her social life. Trying to cheer up the boy, she smiled, "Hey! Maybe you and I could go visit your parents one of these days." Tsubaki knew that she would get a lot of information about the boy if she got to see his parents and the place he was raised. 

Getting the topic away from parents and family, Kiryu abruptly asked about the Kage and if she's meet him. Tsubaki nodded, putting down her cup. "Yeah, I've met him." She thought back to when she did a mission with the Kage and then had a follow up a personal meeting with him. "He's very kind and thinks a lot about the village. He loves talking with his people, getting to know them.  He's also an old prune." She chuckled, thinking about their age difference. He was near his 50s while she was in her early 20s, making him almost 30 years older than her. Her gaze got curious as she looked at Kiryu, "Why do you ask?" 


WC: 424
TWC: 1085

As Tsubaki confirmed that wood style wood indeed be beyond his ability due to not being born into her clan, Kiryu couldn’t help but feel disappointed. Perhaps he would figure out some other way to honor the gods with the same magnitude in the future. As she continued by talking about her parents, he couldn’t help but be surprised, which he was sure showed on his face. Tsubaki’s parents were religious? He instantly felt bad for the thought, but he had never seen anything that would have led him to believe she practiced any sort of worship. Her comment about not being a fan of it confirmed that thought, however. Still, now wasn’t exactly the best time for evangelization or anything.
 
”You want to visit my parents?” he asked hesitantly. It… it wouldn’t be the WORST idea. In fact, his parents might actually really approve of Tsubaki. She certainly had an air of grace to her that was unlike most of the gruffness that they had experienced when dealing with shinobi in the past. ”Yeah, maybe,” he responded somewhat noncommittally. He would have to think about it some more, but surely it couldn’t end up that badly.
 
After she began to talk about the Hogokage, he couldn’t help but grin slightly at her chuckle and description of him as an old prune. She seemed to have a high opinion of the man, which Kiryu wasn’t sure if he was worried or relieved about. He had to think for a few seconds about what answer he wanted to give when she asked why he was asking about him, however. ”I just…” he sighed. ”He’s an Uchiha.” The word itself escaped from his mouth like it was toxic. ”Growing up, my parents always told me about the shinobi clans who had made deals with demons for power, and the Uchiha were on the top of the list every time. Those eyes, red with the blood of innocents, were unnatural. How can an Uchiha, one who I’ve seen use those cursed eyes, be the leader of Hoshigakure? The most holy city in the world!” Kiryu wasn’t sure if it was really a good idea to be spilling his thoughts out like this, but if he couldn’t trust Tsubaki then he didn’t think he could trust anyone. ”I became a shinobi originally to serve the royal family, the gods’ representatives and rightful rulers. Now the royal family is gone, and the man who is actually in charge is an Uchiha. How can anyone let that situation stand?”

[WC: 423]
[TWC: 1,771]

The tone of the conversation had taken a political turn with Kiryu asking about the leadership of the nation. Tsubaki stroked her chin as the boy explained that his parents installed him from a young age that the Uchiha clan had cursed eyes 'bathed in the blood of the innocent.' Tsu found that tone like that for any clan could create an instant distrust for the young impressionable generation. 

Tsubaki pondered for a moment, thinking of the right words to say to counsel Kiryu. "Hm, interesting. It seems that you have thought about this a lot. The Uchiha does indeed have quite the history under their belt." She looked at the boy; staring into the heart of his soul. "Have you ever met a sinister Uchiha?" She wanted him to think for himself instead of reaching back into the cosy side of his mind that his parents installed into him. 

It was strange for Tsu to be defending the Uchiha clan with her own clan's history. The rivalry had set a course of the shinobi world hundreds of years ago by people who were long dead. It was ironic.  Of course, Tsubaki didn't care for decades-old bickering that she had nothing a part of.
WC: 204

Tsubaki’s question caused Kiryu to pause for a moment and reflect. His instinct was to simply say that he didn’t need to meet a sinister Uchiha to know that they were evil. In fact, he would prefer NOT to have to meet one. That was a response ruled by emotion, though, and he knew he needed to give a real answer and not just reply on instinct. So, had he ever met a sinister Uchiha?
 
It was hard to say. Really, the only Uchiha that Kiryu had ever met in person was Yasaki, the Hogokage, himself. While he had felt lied to when he discovered the man’s bloodline, he hadn’t felt any overwhelming evil radiating from the man. Still, there was an air of… something about him, which led to Kiryu feeling extremely uncomfortable during the interaction. ”I’ve only ever met Yasaki,” he said out loud after a few moments. ”It wasn’t exactly the most pleasant experience. He put me in a genjutsu and showed me the deaths of his family and friends, and then turned it toward seeing my own family murdered.” As he spoke, Kiryu’s words started to gain an angry undertone.
 
”Maybe he’s not planning on slaughtering innocent people, but he certainly had enough of an imagination for some terrible things. If I hadn’t managed to break the genjutsu…” his voice trailed off. He wasn’t sure what the kage had planned to show him next, but it couldn’t have been anything good. The things he had already seen were enough to make him sick. He looked back up at Tsubaki, a fierce determination in his eyes. ”I need to get stronger. I need to be able to protect the village and the people I care about, from outside threats, but also from the Hogokage, if need be.”

[WC: 300]
[TWC: 2,071]

Kiryu explained that he had met Yasaki before, being the only Uchiha he had ever met. Tsubaki wondered then why he would ask what she thought of him. She saw the boy's express change to anguish. He recalled the moment when Yasaki put him into a genjutsu where he saw Yasaki's family and friends being murdered and then flipping it on Kiryu. 

The Senju was shocked to hear that the Hogokage would do something like that. What were you trying to achieve, Yasaki?  Tsubaki thought to herself. Was the Kage trying to threaten the child?

Tsubaki would look at the boy with a sympathetic expression. Seeing his family die, even in a genjutsu, must've imprinted some harmful thoughts. He explained to Tsu that he would defend his family and friends at any cost, even if it was against the Hogokage. "I'm so sorry that Yasaki would act so..." she tried to think of the correct word without calling the Kage evil, "...childish" She disappointedly sighed. "We might have to discuss that with him at some point." 

She wanted to flip the conversation, to save it for another time. "Well, if you want to defend the village, then we are going to have to make you stronger. I say we work on a time where we can expand your knowledge of ninjutsu and work on some of your combat skills."


WC: 229
TWC: 1520
TWC: