Eagle Eyed Viewers [Open, Observation]

Windswept and expressionless the Kazekage sat restless in one of the highest boxes overlooking the divided arena, the view from her seat wasn’t bad by any means - and with all the screens tracking the individual matches there was little she would miss. Yet being up here, so removed from the crowd and the energy a fight brings - with only the other officials to keep her company - she was bored out of her mind. The matches had yet to begin though the betting for the first round had already been closed awaiting the results and the inevitable high wins and desperate losses of ryo soon to come. 

With one leg crossed over her knee she sat with her nails drumming pointed holes into the arm of her chair, while her chin rested on her other hand's palm. She wore white shorts and a rather revealing black bodysuit with a black long sleeved cloak and short boots that silenced her footfalls - the only thing that differentiated her from anyone else was the Kazekage hat that she wore with the veil pulled aside. Finally after some time the wedges of the arena saw movement as the paired members of each stepped into their areas. Gonk, a Kiri shinobi, was against Yuuma ,the Hoshi shinobi she met a few days prior; Two unfamiliar Hoshi shinobi were facing off against each other- Zeo and Enishi according to the program; Gin, a Kumo shinobi, was facinga Hoshi shinobi named Tsunayoshi; Though all the others were interesting to watch - her attention was focused with hawk-like precision on her son Souji who faced a Hoshi shinobi by the name of Kouma. 

As the battles began at the same instance at the command of a ringing bell she felt herself rising to her feet with anxious excitement, her feet seeming to have a mind of their own as they guided her to the edge of her box where her hands gripped the railing with white knuckled intensity. This was far better than watching singular matches one by one - the raw activity playing out below the crowd was intense to say the least … but even with her heightened hearing she couldn’t experience it with them. Closer, she wanted to be closer. As soon as she thought it she was already merging with the ground, sinking out of sight in an instance only to rise from the ground at the edge of the arena that housed the wedge Souji was battling Kouma. Still far above the participants, the walls were roughly 50 meters from the floor of the arena, she felt far more at home among the pounding and racing hearts of spectators - the noise pollution far better than the stoicism of the Officials Box. With a wicked smile she would reach into her pocket and pull out her lighter and cigarettes - having one lit and in her lips in only a moment as she leaned against the wall looking down into the sparring pair.

The match didn’t last long and ended in Souji’s victory as the Hoshi shinobi opted to surrender - a puppeteer was a rare sight to be sure and he fought with precision… a poor match up to show talent she was sure. More to the point was the fact that the ‘Souji’ that had been battling wasn’t him at all, but a clone. Giving a knowing shake of her head and a smirk she would raise her cig to her lips and take a long drag from it - as she released the smoke into the sky she gave one approving nod seemingly to no one, but she knew her son would see it and was watching for it. 

A few wedges to the right the pair she had actually put money on were still clashing - the soft hearted medical shop shinobi was giving it his best effort against a rather rare seen Hoshigaki boy. Brawn wasn’t on his side but let's hope wit was - 80 thousand ryo was resting on it. Instead of merging with the ground she would walk over to the that side of the arena - relishing in the sounds of heartache at lost bets and rejoiced cheers at high staked wins; all with the accompanying pounding cheers of heartbeats. As she got to the new wedge and leaned at the edge she had a stray thought - no blood had yet to be spilled.. And what a shame that was.

It was the day of the third round of the Chuunin exams. Masashi was excited to see the action, he was hoping that this round was better than his own Chuunin Exam tournament. Sure it wasn’t all bad, he did end up in third place after all, but it would have been much better winning it all. Anyways, it wasn’t about him today, it was about the Genin that were trying to prove themselves and he should be go to show his support for his village’s shinobi.

He started off his day as usual, getting cleaned up, dressed in his usual attire, and grabbed breakfast before making his way out of his home, heading over to where the third round is being held. On the way, the Uzumaki Jounin would lean down, pick up some dirt, and convert it into explosive clay before placing it in the large weapon pouch on his hip. The path to the Tournament grounds was uneventful. All of the shinobi that didn’t have anything important to do was already there or on their way. The round would be starting soon, and Masashi wanted to get there in time to place some bets on the outcome. He wasn’t one for gambling normally, but this was a special occasion. Oh, that reminded him. Before he entered the tourney grounds, Masashi would make a quick series of hand seals and then place his hand on the ground. A puff of smoke appeared, followed by a pair of serpents. Masashi had summoned a pair of his serpent summons, Tsutomu and Usagi. A discussion he’d had with them earlier had resulted in him inviting them to watch the festivities. Tsutomu was curious to watch combat because of the strategy involved that he could witness, Usagi just liked a good fight. The pair of serpents crawled up the Uzumaki Jounin and wrapped themselves loosely around his torso, their heads poking out of the top of his duster, one on each side so that they could see everything better.

The first thing Masashi did upon entering the arena was head over to the betting tables and place some bets. He had some money and wanted to spend it. He’d placed a bet on at least one of each of the fights, opting for a shinobi from Hoshigakure when possible, with one exception. The fight he was most interested in was the fight between Yuuma and a Shinobi named Gonk. Masashi had placed money on Gonk. He had gone against his gut in this case, and he’d hoped he would be right. At the end of the day it wasn’t personal, Masashi wanted Yuuma to do well having been his proctor for the previous round, he just wasn’t sure that the boy had the skills necessary to move forward. He’d keep an eye on the rest of the fights as they progressed, but for now, he would make his way over to the section where Yuuma would be fighting, making his way to the railing as close to the match as possible.

The fight had already started when he got there, it was hard to say how long they’d been fighting, Masashi didn’t check the time. Nor did it really matter, he and his summoned companions were here to enjoy themselves and that’s what they would do. He jostled his way to the railing and leaned against it, watching the fight with interest. “This should be an interesting fight,” the Uzumaki Jounin would state aloud, his two companions would nod in agreement, but for different reasons. Masashi would smirk and see if he could track how things were going.

WC: 606

EXIT WC 736

Darkness....

It was a void that seemingly swallowed the consciousness of the young Genin, Tsunayoshi. Quiet and cold, no, numbing with no sense of sensation that he could pinpoint. Was he up, or down? Was he floating, or standing? Was he falling, or a drowning? ...was he... was he still alive? He drew blanks, upon blanks that guided him no closer to an answer. Was it even a question? Was he even processing anything at this point? 

Engulfed in nothingness, overwhelmed by its crushing void there was nothing that he could do. Or rather, nothing he could consciously. His senses were flooded by what was around him, a suffocating hold that confused him, a concept that eluded him. A powerful Genjutsu if it was one. Yet he couldn’t even tell if he could move a part of his body. Externally, he was trapped. However, internally, he was free. No fear reached him, no regrets, nothing. 

What was this...? There was a pull, a jerk if you will. At the pit of his core that warmed him from head to toe. The jerks became more frequent, as they made their presence know, so too was his senses. Voices, muffled at first, he became aware of. Background noise and even scents. The scent of blood and antibiotics filled his nostrils as his eyes began to glow from outside light. It’s brilliance ebbing the darkness. Intense irritation from sudden opening lead him to grunt. Yet his persistence driven him to forced them open, revealing his ocean blue eyes. 

Scanning his surrounds he noticed nothing but a ceiling before he noticed a group of white cloaked strangers. He immediately recognized them as the medics that were on standby at the exams. He went to speak, but no words emerged. His eyes fell to his chest as the memories of what happen flooded his mind like rushing water. His chest, the wound was completely healed, but the reminder was still there in the form of a nasty scar from the right o his chest to his left. He could feel no pain, but he knew that he should have been dead. He remember smiling as he was accepting it, welcoming it. His eyes spoke of his disappointment, tears falling from the corner of his eyes. 

“This is a first...” 

A voice, familiar to him, caught his attention. Water blurred eyes shifted to the left, the far left to find a woman. Slender in build, youthful in appearance. Raven-black hair, tied into a highly ponytail, bangs cover her forehead as blue eyes beamed back at him. Tsuna knew of this woman, he knew her face her black attire and black nails. The air around her felt still to him. “Lady Shina?” Words, roughly, hoarsely escaped his throat. Her brow raised, slightly from hearing her name. “Why are you crying, baby boy? Are you sad because you failed, or sad because you didn’t receive the cop out that you were looking for?” She raised her left hand, signaling for the medics to dismiss. They vanish from the room instantly. Casually walking over to the bed that he laid in, she stood over him, looking down over him. 

Tsuna, couldn’t find anything to say to the accusations of Lady Shina. It was not true, but he was still in shock of her presence. “If you are so eager to throw away your life, then I do not truly see what it is that our Kage see in you. Do you not recall what I said to you in the chambers? I gave you an example of representing our village. Win the tournament, and if you don’t, go down knowing you fought your best and then some. We do not quit, you must earn your place in the ranks of Chuunin.” She turned to motion to the window that peaked to the outside. Her hands clasped behind her. 

Tsuna remembered, he remember the feeling that he got from hearing her words addressed to him and Zeo on that day. The day that she bestowed to them both treasures of their Kage. “Yes, I do remember.” He struggled to say, though it was a bit less hoarse this time around. “Excellent, then you also recall the bit I said that followed that.” She added, slightly turning her head to the left to prevent the need to project her voice for him. Tsuna was a bit taken back by this, but he believed he understood. “Fight...” Tsuna said. “So why are you still laying in that bed as if you’ve lost the will to?” Her inquiry shook him to his core. But... she made a point. Why was he still laying there? There was still something that he had to do, something that he must. Yuuma... Yuuma was still fighting in the exams, Tsuna wanted to support him. He made his way to his feet, he was barefooted. In white scrub pants. No shirt, only scars - his chest and back from the attack by Gin. His scar extended from the impact zone from his right collarbone to his midsection and from that impact point to his left pec. 

No pain whatsoever, he couldn’t feel anything from his injuries. “The medics of our village are something else, right?” Tsuna nods intently from her rhetorical question. He looked around for his belongings, finding them and placing them in a void after completing the seals for them. He would then turn to face her. “Thank you, Lady Shina... for visiting me and helping me realize my complacency.” He bows, showing his great measure of gratitude. The slender woman turned, perplexed by what the boy was saying. Tsuna would noticed her confused expression as he rises from his bow. This of course left him baffled. “Visiting? I’m afraid you have it all wrong, baby boy. I’m going to chaperone you for the remainder of the tournament. I could say you’ve shown me something that I was not expecting from you, but it’s mostly because you almost kicked the bucket.” She proceeded to walk pass him, towards the exit of the room. “You’re going to observe that traitor, aren’t you? Let’s see if he’s actually worth a damn in a fight.” She exited the room. Tsuna, hastening his steps to follow behind her. 

The two walked the halls of the foundation. Tsuna doing a pretty decent job of keeping up with her. He couldn’t help but sense her chakra - it was great. Noticing that there was a fine depth to her chakra, much like that of Yuuma’s. Possibly resembling their proficiency in ninjutsu. “Cut that out. I can feel your presence crawling in and out of my body.” Tsuna blinked. Shina turned down a hall, stopping and tuning to face him. Causing him to stop in his tracks. “You need to keep that in check. To another sensory ninja, you are practically screaming ‘look at me’ like some asshole. Is this what you’ve been doing this entire time?” Her expression grew sterner as she waited for an answer. “I, uh... well, I suppose I have. But I can only do it up to 5 me-” Tsuna then noticed that he could sense further than that. His range was vastly increased somehow, passively putting it at 20 meters - four times beyond his usual range. “Tsk, you have a lot to learn. Come on.” Shina command as she resumed her stride towards the observation room, Tsuna closely behind her. As they were within 15 meters of the door that lead into the room, Tsuna could sense another’s presence within the room. Shina stopped. Tsuna ceased his movements. He couldn’t help what he was doing, he didn’t understand it. Not fully. 

“What do you see?” Her question was odd, but the boy knew what she meant. By see, she meant sense - the Hatake would look in the direction of the signal of chakra and processed it as he closed his eyes. “Open you eyes.” He opened them, their conversation were in low audio, Tsuna being a meter behind her, he could hear clearly while those further out could not. “You cannot closed one eye to see through another. That’s the quickest way to lose your head. Keep that in mind. Try again.” He nods as he picked up the chakra. He could sense that it shared the same depth of quality as Shina’s. “All I can tell is that it’s refined. Kind of deep?” Silence filled their gap, Shina then entered the room and Tsuna not far behind her. 

Upon entering there was a male within the room observing the remaining fight. Shina recognized him immediately “Masashi, should have known we would run into you here. Monitoring your investments?” Approaching the deck for a clearer view of the event. She knew of Masashi as a fellow Jounin of the village, as well as a clansman. It wouldn’t be unnatural for them to have crossed paths, once or twice. 

Tsuna, stepping in, he would notice the man as he gave him a bow, showing him respect. “Done already?” words triggered his immediate rush to the deck to look. “The traitor seem to have won his round.” This news brought a smile to the face of Tsuna. “I didn’t have a doubt, not one. Wow, Yuuma, great job.” His voice spilled with joy, excitement. “Savor this, his next opponent is that fat man.” Shina crudely pointed out. Her arms folded behind her as she observed. Tsuna noticing that Gin was still in the running. The moments of that fight flashing back into his head. Wondering how it could be, seeing that his arm and body were in tact. “Did...did I pass out before him?” He hesitantly asked. She merely responded with a side eye that told it all to him..... He did. Now he was left with a pit in his gut that made him feel like he didn’t really accomplish what he truly set out to do. Shame was now washing over him. 

[WC: 1,667]
Entered with Shina the Outcast

The fight did not go as he’d expected, or at least how he’d bet his money. Yuuma had won his fight and would be moving to the next round. ‘Good for him.’ Masashi would smile, then wince, reminding himself that it meant he’d lost some money as a result of that. With a shrug he would leave the stands and make his way to the upper ring where the bet-takers were so he could find out how the rest of his bets were doing. Four of the fights had completed at that point, one of them had ended in a disqualification. “It does not seem like today is your day Masashi," Tsutomu said to him as the Uzumaki Jounin looked in dismay at his lost bets. “Oh well, it’s just ryo, it can be replaced after all.” With a defeated chuckle, Masashi would make his way up to one of the booths, the better to see the last fight going on.

His family had one set aside because of their high station, and with most of the rest of his family doing other things today, the booth was empty so he had it all to himself. He grabbed a seat up at the front and looked down to watch the last fight that was going on, it was between Zeo Kamigawa and Enishi Kurosawa, two members of Hoshi. The fight had been going on for a while now, and neither looked like they were getting close to ending it. He had put money on Enishi to win this round, and he hoped that his bet was right, it would be the only one he’d make money off of if that was the case, and he’d rather not lose everything. “This fight’s looking intense,” Usagi said to him, looking on with interest. Masashi laughed, the fiery serpent loved watching a good fight, and a good fight it was. “it sure is,” Masashi said to his companions. Both of the combatants were definitely giving it their all.

Their conversation was interrupted by someone, or rather two someone’s, entering the booth. Masashi looked over as one of them spoke to him and chuckled. Shina Uzumaki, one of his cousins on his father’s side, a lovely woman, when it suited her. “You know me,” Masashi said wryly to his fellow Jounin, “though I daresay that I’ve done quite poorly today. I’ve lost 3 of my bets so far, and one of them was disqualified so I only got my money back. A shame really. How are you today, cousin?” It was then that he would properly notice the person behind her, one of the Genin that was in the Chuunin Exams he believed. The boy bowed to him, which Masashi nodded in response. Shina then commented on one of the fights being completed, the one apparently involving Yuuma. “Traitor?” he asked Shina, hoping for some form of clarification.

It would seem that the Genin was also cheering for Yuuma, which suited Masashi just fine. He didn’t have any particular interest in who won, but since Yuuma was the one he had examined so he would prefer if he’d end up on top. The boy seemed to be disappointed in his performance. Perhaps he could cheer the lad up with some encouragement. “Don’t be too hard on yourself,” he would say to the young Genin, “There are going to be times where a fight will not end your way. All you can do is train and improve in the hopes that those times are limited to events like this, where death isn’t entirely on the line. Unfortunately I didn’t get the chance to see how your fight played out, or I would offer some pointers.”

WC: 620
TWC: 1226

Shina listened to Masashi as he spoke on his losings in regards to the matches. She gave him a dismissive sigh, her eyes on the remaining match. “If you had bothered to do your research you might have earned more than you have fumbled.” She glanced over her shoulder to meet his eyes. “I wouldn’t have bid against that Hyuuga boy, you do know who he is, don’t you? If not, then you were bound to lose your ryo.” She was well aware of the relationship that the child had, more than the child knew himself. Her eyes returned to the fight. “The two that got themselves disqualified was a mercy in disguise. No one wanted to see that fight, chalk it up as comical relief. I didn’t expect for the traitor to make it through, that is a surprise I will admit.” She paused as she observed the final match. “However, Zeo and Enishii will soon come to a end.”

Tsuna acknowledging all that she said, but he also wanted to know who that Hyuuga boy was. From what he was reading from the monitor, his match ended rather quickly. “Less than 3 minutes? Seriously?” He questioned in complete disbelief. He noticed that the Jounin began to speak to him, his attention turned over as he nod from what he said. When he made mention about giving pointers he was not able to respond before Shina. “He lost, he fought well enough for an idiot, showed some levels of intellectual prowess in his decisions, but ultimately he fell short. He abandoned his clone to fight in the enemies comfort zone. He did not calculate that his enemy could possibly be a sensory type too, or have some skill in it and thus abandoned his element of surprise to close the distance. He would have been better off bombarding him with projectiles to corner him and force him to either remain on the defensive - which would have worn him down eventually, or lash out with wild assault which you have also worn him from wasted efforts.” Her tone was clearly displeased, but somehow Tsuna felt deserving of it. “I suppose in the end you landed a severe blow which would have killed him, but at the cost of your own life too so that doesn’t really count.” Her words stung, Tsuna couldn’t help but feel defeated. 

“Everything that you’ve said is true. I should have stayed with my original plan of action. Gin was smart, very crafty in his evading.” He stated. Suddenly a hand was cussing his face, pressure was applied to make his lips purse and his cheeks sore. “You’re making excuses. You had the match won the moment you caught him by surprise with your Genjutsu and flash tag combination. From there you screwed up. Learn from it without giving yourself excused, or else you will be destined to repeat the same mistake again.” She released his face before turning to speak with Masashi. “On the matter of the traitor, I’ll speak with you on the matter another time.” She would glance over to Tsuna before scuffing. “Stay put, there are other things I must attend to. But I will be watching you. So don’t do anything that will provoke me...then again, if you did I won’t complain.” In a poof of smoke she vanished. Revealing to them that she was a clone this entire time. 

Tsuna blinked, he couldn’t even tell that she was one. Shina was very terrifying to him, so much so that he was still a bit intimidated to move a single inches, despite not being able to sense her around him. “I don’t know what to do, hahaha. Lady Shina is quite scary when she gets like that.” He smiled, but he was still pretty scared. He looked to Masashi for some sort of guidance. 

[WC: 644]
[Total WC: 2,311]

Masashi chuckled at his cousin’s comments. “Research can only go so far. There will always be an aspect that can’t be determined.” He shrugged, “That one fight was an easy decision, but of course he had to go and get himself disqualified. Ah well, can’t win ‘em all, and at least I got my money back on that one.” The Genin that had accompanied Shina was about to respond to his comment of pointers when his cousin answered instead. Her summary was short and blunt; Masashi couldn’t help but wince a little at her choice of words. The boy agreed with her, and she chastised him some more. The Uzumaki Jounin couldn’t help but shake his head at the display. Shina was definitely something else. It was then that she mentioned that she had to go deal with some other matters and that she would bring him up to speed later. She told the young Genin to stay put and she would collect him later. Shina then disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing her to be a copy of herself. Typical Shina, not being where you expected her to be. Naturally that would be how his cousin operated and he expected nothing less of a fellow Jounin.

The Genin Tsunayoshi, at least that’s what he believed to be the name of the shinobi that Gin had fought, would laugh and jokingly bemoan his fate to be watched over by Shina. Masashi commiserated with him by laughing as well. “That’s how she is, great fun at parties mind,” he would say with a chuckle. “I’m afraid I don’t have as much information as I’d like about my cousin, she and I didn’t really spend much time together growing up.” He paused for a moment, looking at the boy appraisingly. “She likes you though,” he would observe, “she wouldn’t waste her time helping you get better if she didn’t think you had potential. Tell me, where do your current skills lie, and what do you want to master as you get stronger?” If he knew more about him as a shinobi, perhaps he may a have time providing him with useful feedback for future encounters. His companions Usagi and Tsutomu turned their heads in Tsuna’s direction, curious about the newcomer and hoping to learn more as well.

WC: 386
TWC: 1612

A soft, heart warming laugh escaped from Tsuna as he received the joke of the Jounin. It was hard to grasp seeing someone like Shina at a party that didn’t benefit her in any way, especially not one that she didn’t burst in to interrupt the fun herself. “I can’t imagine Lady Shina having any sort of fun if it didn’t involve twisting the mind and making you jump through hoops. But, you mentioned that she’s your cousin. But I take it that’s from clan branches only.” He would add, placing his left hand on to his right scar that he received from his match. He would take some getting use to, something like this was surely meant to kill him. That guy, Gin was out for blood from the very beginning. Yes, Tsuna was able to read him to the letter, clearly impressing the Genin in such a way that he was rewarded with deadly intent. His eyes fell to the ground as he thought about it. The failure of his match hovered about his ashen head. There was a sulking pull that left him wondering what would have been if those medical shinobi were not there... what if it was someone else instead.  The Hatake was grateful that it was him instead to suffer the injury. What if it was Ban? 

“She likes you though...” The Jounin said to snap him out of his daze. Tsuna looked at him, his expression was hazy, as if he was being jest with. But, Masashi made a valid point. She was the only familiar face that he saw upon waking up, she did reassure him, in her own odd way. “I think she thinks I’m an idiot, honestly. Hahaha.” He would scratch the back of his head as he considered the next question asked of him. A question if his skills and what he wanted to master. This been the first time that Tsuna was asked something like that. He couldn’t really just answer it so hastily. He would bring his hand to his chin as she cussed it with his index and thumb. He pondered before giving his response. 

“My current skills? I’m skilled at Space-Time jutsu, Bukijutsu as well. Oh, and Lady Shina pointed out to me that I have a stronger affinity in Senory. Though it only just now awaken, at first I couldn’t sense further than 5 meters - 10 when I pushed it. But now, I can easily sense up to roughly 20 meters without even trying. I suppose what I want to master as I get stronger...” He passed, thinking about his next few words rather carefully. He smiled as she lowered his hands. “I want to master... myself. I know that may sound strange, but I truly believe that self mastery will benefit more than just myself, but the village and its people. Power only begets more power. That comes with temptations that poison the mind, clouds the thinking and often leads to poor outcomes. But mastery over ones self, that leads to a foundation that cannot be shaken, a discipline that has more focus than years of teachings. Nothing will every be able to persuade someone like that from their beliefs. From their goals. Their duty.” He walked over to the deck to look out of the window to watch the matches that were still in progress. 

“My dream is to become a member of the Nova Corp. They are the best of the very best and they hold the village to a standard that even our neighbors envy. On top of that, they maintain order and all that lay eyes on them know this to be true. Even Lord Seventh was a member of Nova before his ascension to Kagehood. I want to follow in his footsteps.... well maybe not the Kage part, but you know what I mean. Haha. Oh?” He would end, while learning that the last match came to an end. “Looks like Enishi won his match.” Tsuna stated as he turned to look at Masashi for his expression on the news. 

[WC: 683]
[Total WC: 2,994]

Masashi looked at the boy with amusement. “Don’t tell her I said this,” he said in a low tone, pretending to be conspiratorial, “but she doesn’t always play the tough guy.” With a grin he returned to his normal speaking voice. “Who knows, maybe you’ll see that one day.” When asked about there actual relation, Masashi scratched his head. “To be honest, I’m not quite sure. I believe she’s related to one of father’s siblings but I can never quite remember, we have a large family.” Not that Shina would admit in public that they had an actual familial relation, her being embarrassed of him for some reason. Oh well, can’t win every battle. He looked over to seeing Tsuna in thought, rubbing the scar on his chest. “That’s quite the souvenir you get to take home,” he said jokingly. On the inside though, Masashi was somewhat disappointed that one of the Genin would end up going for a killing blow like that. Not that it would have mattered, Masashi being around could easily prevent something as simple as death from ending a young shinobi’s career. Even had the Hoshi Genin been lost to the void, it would not have been for long.

“She thinks just about everyone is an idiot,” Masashi would say with a laugh. “Don’t worry, it’s not personal, that’s just how she is.” Shina was something else, very different when compared to Masashi. It made sense, they both had very different upbringings, not that Shina was one to share much with him. She viewed him more as an annoyance, someone that wasn’t to be taken seriously very often. He didn’t really mind, she was free to form her own opinion of him. These were his own musings while Tsuna tried to figure out the answers to the questions that the Uzumaki Jounin had posed to him.

Because he hadn’t seen the fight between Tsuna and Gin, he was completely unaware of what the boy’s skills actually were. He’d asked mainly to see if there was any knowledge that he could impart that may help him improve over time. Unfortunately for Masashi, that would not likely be the case; Tsuna was proficient in techniques that affected Space-Time, sensory techniques, and was skilled with weapons. All three areas were avenues that Masashi had not particularly explored. ‘Oh well, so much for that idea.’ Masashi thought to himself. The boy then brought up an interesting concept when answering what he hopes to master. It was a wise thought; knowing yourself and being fully in control of who you are is definitely a powerful tool when it comes to achieving your goals. Outwardly, Masashi would nod. “All very useful specialties,” he would say to the young Genin. “Sadly I am not skilled in any of those areas or I would offer to show you what I knew in the hopes that it would help you in the future.” He would pause for a moment, looking speculatively at Tsuna. “A word to the wise. When you aim to master yourself, do not get attached to what that means. A person should always be growing, which means that who you are and what you believe and value will always be changing. That change doesn’t have to be large, but something you found at one point core to who you are may change. Revere who you were, but do not attempt to stagnate yourself by clinging to that image as what you should strive to be.”

It was a heavy topic, but it resonated with the Uzumaki Jounin, mainly due to a conversation he had not too long ago, with a friend with whom he shared opposite viewpoints on a touchy subject. They both had their merits, and while Masashi was resolute to stand by his beliefs, he fully understands that his views on the subject may change when given new information. Just like how he hopes the same would be for his friend.

“The Nova Corps is a very skilled group of shinobi,” Masashi said to Tsuna, who very clearly already knew that, “and I’m sure that you will get there one day.” He smiled as the Genin mentioned the Hogokage being a member of the Nova Corps, he was happy for his friend. He had climbed the ladder fairly quickly, and deserved the position where he currently sat, despite the fact that Ayato didn’t always wish he were there. “Lord Ayato is a great man to want to emulate.” The pair didn’t see eye to eye on everything, and he would refrain from airing that here. It wasn’t the place or time for that discussion. It would appear though that the last match of this round was finished, as Tsuna observed Enishi winning his match. “Finally, one of my bets paid off.” Masashi said with a laugh. “Knowing my luck, I’ll lose it all on the next round.”

WC: 817
TWC: 2429

Mid Topic Claim (2400 WC):
24 AP
2400 WC Towards Ghost Lake Breaking Seal (A-Rank, 2400/2750)