Through Fire and Flame [IO]

To Nero's surprise, a wall of earth suddenly appeared behind him. It shoved him with a force he didn't expect and sent him careening off the side of the cliff. He repressed his urge to scream in surprise, and instead resorted to cursing to release his frustration as he was forced to stare down at the rocks below. What originally looked like small pebbles from above were quickly turning into large jagged spikes in his eyes. Quickly his mind went into overdrive as the anxiety from his current situation began to well up inside him. Time began to slow down to a crawl as the fine details of the water below seemed to gain new clarity in real time. His eyes felt like they were burning and he struggled to keep them open as he began to tear up just a bit. He couldn't tell whether it was due to the wind slapping at his face, or the new found power that was now awakening within him. As an Uchiha, he was pretty much a late bloomer, but it also could be said that those who took longer to awaken their eyes could hold hidden power beyond imagination. Time would tell, but what mattered most in the moment was whether or not he survived his current experience. 

His now red eyes seemed to spin as a single tomoe rotated around his pupil, his vision darting back and forth for something that could be used as a lifeline to save him from this situation. There wasn't exactly much available, but thankfully he wasn't too far away from the cliff face that he'd been ejected from. Due to his constantly accelerating speed, it was almost impossible for him to grab onto a foothold on the passing rocks, even if he could make them out as they passed. He'd most likely yank his arm out of the socket attempting to latch on. But what made things worse was that he was too far to reach out to begin with. However, Nero was still quick on his feet and began to string handseals together, at the fastest speed he possibly could. Tiger, Horse, and finally the Clone seal to finish the job. He felt the chakra surge through his body in response to his seals as two Shadow Clones appeared in front of him. 

They quickly exchanged glances at one another and went into action. Both clones had appeared about a meter away from him, their legs outstretched just enough to contact the cliff face, giving them a chance to release chakra from their feet. Using the surface technique they quickly began to grind to a halt, but not before they stretched out their hands and pulled their caster towards to wall. The original Nero almost lost himself in contemplation for a moment when he saw the eyes of the two clones. He knew things were moving slower than usual and that something was going on inside him, but he didn't realize his eyes had undergone such a drastic change in mere moments. It made a little bit of sense to him now why he was here, and why the Kage had done what he did. 

Or at the very least that's what he wanted to believe. It was also possible that this was just an easy way to get rid of him, but Nero preferred not to think that way. Realistically he couldn't even properly think in this situation considering the circumstances, but something about this new change had made him calm. His composure seemed harder to break despite the dire situation he found himself in. It was almost as if he was fully in control and was just going through the motions at this point. He reached out almost by instinct while he was lost in thought and was dragged forward toward the wall where he as well activated his chakra to slow his descent. His legs reverberated from the friction as he and the two clones braced themselves for the loss of speed and its equivalent reaction. 

At some point they stopped moving, having come to a halt along the wall while holding onto each other's shoulders in the form of a triangular like a huddle. The two clones sighed at the same time, almost like twin brothers who'd been dropped into this situation, not by their own choosing. They looked at each other, then back and Nero, and when they did all three began to chuckle at the absurdity of it all. Being clones created from his chakra they couldn't exactly experience death, but they shared his mindset and his memories so it still felt real and the anxiety from a near death experience was something more human than most thought. Even a clone didn't want to be hit if they could avoid it. For a few minutes, they chuckled and steadied their nerves, the two clones nodding at Nero once they noticed he'd fully composed himself. With a light nod they both smiled, disappearing into a poof of air after nodding in return. 

Nero was about halfway down the cliff face by the time he stopped, a distance that was not too far but not too long either considering how high the cliff was. He looked up with determination, his now red eyes gleaming as he leaned forward along the wall and began running up at breakneck speed. His arms trailed behind him as he picked up speed, ascending at a pace that was almost as fast as his previous descent. He wasted no time getting back to the top of the cliff, leaping forward just as he reached the base of the precipice and soaring up a few feet to what was finally flat ground. He seemed to hover in the air for just a moment as he arced over the edge of the cliff before descending right in front of the Kage. He landed in a kneeling position, like a vassal responding to their King, his head lowered as his hair dropped over his eyes. It hid his current change from the Kage for just a moment before he raised his head to meet his eyes. 

"Thank you.." he said with a soft tone, almost like a whisper as he smiled, his red eyes shining from behind his black hair.

Some moments had passed after performing the deed. He wasn't sure if the uchiha was coming back or not but he decided it would be best for him to wait a little longer to see what had happened to him. If he didn't come back in a certain, arbitrary amount of time. He'd probably send another shinobi to see if they could find his remains, if he did make it back, he'd probably congratulate him on surviving the 'haphazard' fall he had just experienced. Turning to leave the cliff side, the Mizukage had begun to walk away when he suddenly heard the Uchiha making his way back up. It seems his uchiha friend has prevailed and even managed to awaken what they had come for. He was pleased with this result and waited for some sort of anger or rage to come his way. He would forgive him for being cross with him but hopefully it'll only be some harsh language. To his surprise, the Uchiha thanked him for his kneeling positioning. This made the Mizukage burst out with laughter before wiping away a tear that was coming down his eye. "Oh man, you'd thank a man for almost trying to murder you, you're a strange person. Well, I'm glad everything worked out for you and you aren't food for whatever scavengers might be out there. It seems you have potential to become something great, why don't you come work for me? I'll make sure to get you everything you might need," the Mizukage had offered the Uchiha. 

W.C: 258

Nero listened to the Mizukage's proposal and smiled back at him before responding to it. "Well you did it with the intention of helping me, I can't be mad at that." he chuckled as well before standing up, his face more serious as his laughter came to a halt. He observed the man before him for a moment, thinking over his offer. The position of Mizukage was one of importance to the village, a leader who was tasked with bringing them all prosperity and safety hand in hand. But like a coin, there were two sides to such a position. A man with a power like him could instead choose to rule with an iron fist, oppressing others with his position and taking the benefits of his post purely for himself, leaving the village a decrepit shell, much like how it was before he'd taken up the office. He was obviously the former, and his actions spoke louder than his words. Nero didn't need to think long at all before he made his decision.

"In regards to your proposal.. I'll be honored. I owe the village a lot and I'd be happy to return the favor," he smirked a bit as he stood at attention once again the way he had when he first met the Kage. "What is it you need of me?"

Tilting his head at the Uchiha's words, he wondered if this person was naïve or sanguine. Either way, it didn't matter. It seems all's well that ended well and he didn't have to dwell on this much longer. As for his offer, it seems the Uchiha was thrilled to have the offer given to him and accepted it wholeheartedly. Well, this would be interesting to say the least. "Alright then, from this day forth, you will be assigned to an Anbu group I've managed to put together. Technically, you're the first to officially receive the title but there's another in mind I have for the position as well. Come, let's go. We'll eventually run into him sooner or later," the Mizukage had told the Uchiha. He had high hopes for him and Keita in which he would have to go and fetch soon. For now, he'd just make his way back to the office to summon him before deciding his next course of action for the three of them. Now that the Uchiha has his Sharingan, he'd be able to assist far better in the future when it came to more severe endeavors. For now, he'd personally have Keita and himself train this one although, he'd be doing it under the guise of his Jounin persona. With that, he began to head to the training facility in order to begin his training. 

[Exit.]

W.C: 232
T.W.C: 1,632

Ability Claims (Applying 25% Discount)
Using 1,500 words into The The Seven Heavenly Breaths  [0/1,500 Breath of Charity]

Approved

Nero was stunned for a moment when he heard the Kage's words. He had half expected it to be a joke, but when he told him to simply tag along behind him he realized he was serious. For a brief second, he stumbled forward before regaining his composure and quickly catching up to the Kage, his stride shortening so he could follow behind him after doing so. He remained silent as he followed behind the Mizukage, unsure of what would happen next. The Kage clearly had some intentions when he chose to invite him into the ANBU group he was making and Nero had no reason to turn down training from a man of his level. Needless to say, he was looking forward to what would happen next as he imagined what it was he wanted to teach him. There weren't a lot of jutsu that he knew currently so he hoped it would be something useful to him in the future. But he put his skepticism aside and didn't show his thoughts on his face. A Kage level ninja wouldn't teach him anything useless, so he just had to look forward to the days to come.

Approved!

Approved.