Passing on the Passion

It had only been a few months since he had been a student himself and only a few weeks since he had acted as a substitute teacher. Some of the other parents had heard of his care and tutelage and how so many had taken the opportunity to grow their skills. His methods were considered a bit unorthodox, but many of the students had shown an increased passion towards learning ever since his 'active jutsu lessons' as parents were calling them. He had received a few letters of thank you and even his old mentor had complimented him on giving them something to look forward to. Though he still wished he could have done it without the need for jutsu surgery, it was a good lesson on caution as well.

Most of the students he had met were already around the age of 10 to 12 and had some experience from time spent with their parents on how jutsu worked. He was an odd case who started a bit older than most in his training. he had spent so much of his childhood and teen years pestering people and learning how things worked that he was an adult before he realized what he wanted to do. Sometimes the years can slip away if you don't watch them. he shook his head and thought back to the note he had received that morning. One of the parents of the child who was injured in the class he subbed for had been spreading word of how he had 'saved' their child. His teacher had downplayed it, at Dracoso's request, but it seemed some of the parents of a new incoming class had heard the story. They had put in a request to the mission center specifically for him to come and act as something of a 'tutor/escort' to a group of young future academy students.

Dracoso knew that a lot of the students at the academy were at a ripe age for learning and knew how to focus, since he had good relations with them. He wondered just how young of a group of kids it could be. When he had sat down with the principal of the academy, the principal had told him that he didn't need to take classes due to his age. Most students started around the age of 8 and spent a few years learning and growing up. The reason it had been so quick for him was that many of the lessons outside of jutsu training was how to deal with missions and communication. It was generally combined courses with reading, writing, and jutsu practice. As he already had the first two down, he devoted all his time to the last and sped through to his genin exam.

He focused his mind back on the mission at hand. His teacher had confirmed that having a fresh shinobi usually worked far better with students as they could act as a bridge between the teacher and the incoming students. It gave them an understanding that shinobi still had to keep learning while the teacher would always be a resource to them. Dracoso had agreed and had stopped off at the mission center to confirm that he would take on the request. The assistant complimented him on his dedication to the next generation and all Dracoso said was, "is that not the point of strength and knowledge? passing it on to the next generation so that they can forge it further than we ever could."

He made his way down to the school, enjoying the peace of the day before he would be dealing with a class full of children. He took in a deep breath and closed his eyes to feel the day around him. Sutsui stirred slightly, feeling the tension within him and sent calming sensations in response. He reached back to pet her and nodded instinctively as he arrived at the school. He walked into the front office and chatted with the attendant. Months ago, he had been standing outside nervously waiting for a proctor. Now, he was taking on responsibility once again for the youth of the village. The attendant directed him out to the exercise area in the back where the families were gathered. When asked why they had not used a classroom, the attendant chuckled and replied, "well, we started there, but too many showed up." Dracoso's nervousness started to grow again.

He peeked around the corner into the exercise area and felt like immediately sneaking away. He had never stopped to wonder how many children existed in the village, but it almost appeared as if every family had come to the event. His old teacher had referred to it as an event where children could see where shinobi were taught and raised and to decide if it was for them. Even at a young age, he had been brought to one such an event and ended up 'harassing' the person running the event with questions. He wasn't sure how he would juggle this many kids all at the same time, but at least the parents were still wrangling them.

A soft poke to his back made him stand up and turn around quickly. His old teacher smiled and said, "Yo!" Dracoso shook his head and sighed in relief, "Don't scare me like that." The teacher gave a grin and peeked past him into the exercise area. He gave a soft whistle and said, "biggest turnout so far. Looks like the word of your 'methods' got out to other parents. And to a few of the other kids. Half of them look like they are practically piercing the walls with their eyes trying to find you." Dracoso glanced as his teacher and just asked, "Any advice?" His teacher patted his shoulder and said, "while the parents are here, establish your abilities. Once the parents are gone, keep them on their toes. Answer questions honestly, within reason, and don't let them get too much control of the situation." His old teacher started to walk away and raised a hand up, "not like when you came to one of my events." Dracoso was confused for a moment before he realized that his old teacher had been the person who had run the event when he was a child. He had asked nearly fifty questions before his father had gotten hold of him and almost taped him down in silence.

Establish my abilities to start huh? Well, I guess I should start creatively then he thought to himself. He quickly spat out a water clone and let it walk around the corner towards the group. Many surprised and excited noises came up from the group as they welcomed his clone. In the meantime, using ventriloquism to speak from the clone, Dracoso silenced his footsteps and had Sutsui cover both of them with camouflage so that he could sneak up softly next to them. By the time he reached them, many of the parents were already asking questions. Some such as "What do you plan to show our kids?", "No one is going to get injured this time right?", "can you teach us how to heal wounds too?", and "How long have you been doing this exactly?"

The parents and the kids were working themselves up with each question as the clone raised its hands for silence. It took a minute before people had quieted down and he spoke, "Many of you came here today to have your children decide whether being a ninja is the right option for them. Some choose to be historians and record the past. Others become guards to protect the present. Yet others become craftsmen and build the future. For this event, I will be showing your children the possibilities that have been made through all of their efforts. Ninja can still be whatever they want to be. Some make poisons to deal with their foes. Others use fire and lightning to destroy their obstacles. It all comes down to how creative you can be-" The clone cut off and melted into water in front of them.

The crowd all pulled back in surprise at this as Dracoso had Sutsui drop the camouflage. Dracoso appeared ten feet to the side of where the clone had melted as he picked up its words, "-and how you put that creativity to use." The parents were still looking back and forth between the puddle of water and Dracoso. The children looked on in awe as he had just appeared out of thin air. Dracoso looked closer at the crowd and realized that the majority of the children were somewhere between the ages of 6 and 8. Most had probably heard about chakra use, but this was probably a big way to be introduced to it for the first time. He figured he had already started, so he may as well follow through with strength.

"To the parents, I can promise you that I and the staff at this campus will watch over your students are closely as possible to keep them safe. Whether or not they want to throw themselves into the dangers we advise against. To the students, there is much you can learn. Whether it is something to protect you-" He put one hand behind him and held up his other hand to make the seals. A water beast formed out of the puddle his clone had formed and turned to face Dracoso. The kids seemed to lean forward, trying to look as close as possible at the large water wolf that had formed. It jumped at Dracoso and they all gasped as he picked up, "-something to stop opponents-" he made handseals as he spoke and just as the beast was about to impact him, a water prison wrapped around the beast, catching it in midair. The beast seemed to struggle in the water for theatrical effect. The parents seemed interested in the show, some with a touch of unease as he caught it.

"-or something to surprise them with," he finished as he held up his other hand, forming the seals for all to see. He lowered the prison in unison and as he finished the seals, he released the water prison, and a 5-meter-long glowing beam came out from the hand that was still pointing at the beast. It impacted with the beast's neck and the water wolf dropped to the ground. It lay there for a few moments as the children cheered as if they had just watched a play. Some of the parents gave soft claps while most simply smiled at how engaged their children were. The water beast melted down, similar to the earlier clone, and became a larger puddle of water which began to evaporate under the sun. The children all started asking questions while the parents tried to calm them down. Dracoso raised a hand again and silence slowly returned.

"I will take the students on a tour of the grounds and let them ask the questions they have, as long as they raise their hands and ask them softly enough to not disturb the other classes," he said as he let his eyes move from one area of the crowd to the next. "I will also teach them a bit on familiars today with the help of my assistant Sutsui-" as he said this, the snake reluctantly poked her head up from his collar. The white snake stood out clearly in the sun for all to see. Many of the kids let out soft ohs at the appearance of the white snake, to which Sutsui gave an irritated look and disappeared with camouflage. This only made the children more curious as Dracoso continued, "-and their ability to support you. For now, As this will be their first day here, I will escort them around the grounds under their teacher is ready to meet them this afternoon. Are there any further questions?"

As he looked across the group, one of the parents raised their hands to set an example as Dracoso held out a hand in their direction. The father stood and asked, "is it really safe nowadays to become a ninja? I have heard some do not come back." This question gave Dracoso some context to the unease the parents had shown earlier. Dracoso took a bit of a serious face for a moment, thinking on the question before giving a soft smile with a nod. He responded, "While any job can have its dangers, being a ninja means you will face hardships. Many of the missions we provide at the center allow a ninja to decide how far they want to push their own skills. I will not lie to you, some of the missions can be very dangerous. The students at this academy are trained to deal with those dangers. Many join teams for safety, while others find familiars or summons to fight alongside them."

Dracoso took on a more solemn tone, "we only have one life to live. Each day we choose how we want to live it. Whether that is safe at home or out changing the world the way we see fit. Your children came here to learn what is possible and what choices they have. I cannot promise you that they will all live beyond us, but I can promise you that will give them the tools to make it as far as possible." Some parents released a sigh of relief while others seemed a bit more confident in having come. One or two couples tried to convince their kids to go, but the children fought and decided to stay.

He dismissed the parents, having the new students line up in four lines behind him. In total, there were 52 new students. His own class had been only 22, so he was hoping there would be multiple teachers for this group. Many of the students already had their hands up and he decided to start simply. "For those with questions that could be answered with a yes or no, I will start with you so I can give more details to those with longer questions," he told them. Several dropped their hands for the time being and he began to select students to ask questions. It pretty much went along these lines:

Q: "Can you save people's lives with chakra?" A: "Yes, if you have the right techniques."

Q: "Will we get to do the cool stuff you did earlier?" A: "Yes, if you work hard and focus in the same areas I did."

Q: "Have you ever blown someone's head up?!" A: "No." Students Response: "Awww!"

Q: "Could you kill someone if you needed to?" A: "Yes, I have the skills to do so. Would I want to? No, not really."

Once several of the students were sated, the longer questions came out. Many were basic questions that would be answered by their teacher, but he decided to teach them some of the things he had learned. He had them begin to follow him as he answered questions, "when learning jutsu, it is important to understand the element it comes from. If it is wind, it is more based on the freedom of movement of your chakra. It forms as you understand how wind itself works. The same goes for fire and water. Imagine holding the element in your hand as if you were forming it with your own will and then containing it with that same will." One of the kids asked why he became a ninja and he replied, "To help people, for a simple answer. I wanted to put my desire to learn to good use and apply myself. Some ninjas want to become stronger and defeat their foes. Others want to craft and build things that will answer burning questions about what is possible. I want to defeat opponents without needing to kill them and teach them, as well as myself, about our strengths and weaknesses."

The students hung on his words and asked more and more questions as he showed them to the medical office, each of the classrooms, and the Grand Library. As he walked, a couple of the teachers caught up with him and walked along, helping to answer questions to some of the students. Dracoso had Sutsui provide images of the students raising hands as they walked so that he could select their hands over his shoulder to keep them guessing. By the time they returned to the classrooms, three of the teachers were accompanying him and had each taken the lead of one of the lines. Dracoso brought them to a stop and turned to face them.

"I know you all still have plenty of questions and a lot of thoughts running through your mind. It is good to be passionate to learn, just make sure to consider each choice you make and the direction it may lead. The teachers here chose to become teachers in order to help you grow and become what you desire. Some of them have had to deal with things they never expected. One of them may have even blown up someone's head in the past..." he said, softly hinting as all the kids looked at the other teachers with interest. Two of them sighed at this idea. Dracoso put a hand up as if pretending to speak to them privately, "they may not even be allowed to tell you if they have. Just don't get any ideas about causing trouble." He gave them a wink and some of the kids even winked back.

His old teacher came around the corner behind the kids and made his way up to the front, patting Dracoso on the shoulder. Dracoso smiled to him and looked to the group of kids to say, "This is the teacher I had back when I was here. Each one has been a ninja before and each one has had to go on missions. They each have dealt with danger, and they chose to be here today instead of out there. Look to them when you have questions, when you are worried or scared, and when you want to take the next step in your path. They will be the first member of your team from here on out. Do not let the list of things to learn overwhelm you and make sure to remind yourself of what you are working towards whenever things get tough. And even though I may not be around all the time, you will still see me running around the village handling missions whenever I can. So, feel free to let me know how you are doing and make sure you keep doing amazing things."

He finished with a smile and the kids all clapped for him. The teachers each gave him a smile and took one of the lines of students each to lead into a classroom. As the doors opened and closed nearby, silence slowly returned to the hallway. He stood there, half expecting his teacher to walk back out and compliment him on a job well done. A soft sense of loneliness settled in before Sutsui gave him a firm nip on the back of his neck. He flinched and looked back before shaking his head with a smile. He felt silly for a second but realized that the change in pace and mood was so sudden that it had almost taken him with it. He headed off for the medical office and sat down with the staff member there. 

They talked for a while, which helped him to rebalance. Having so much activity and attention all at once gave him a high which caused a kind of drop when it was over. The staff member outlined the need to talk with someone and to discuss with them, in person, if possible, what they were feeling. It took a while, but Dracoso stepped out of the office feeling relieved and tired. It had been a long day and he wanted to head home after stopping by the center. The assistant at the mission desk told him of several of the parents who had stopped by to leave their thanks for him. He was glad that they felt relieved with this presentation and hoped that he would not have to deal with such a large crowd of concerned parents again anytime soon. Sutsui seconded this with a sensation of desire to go home and enjoy a cool dark room. 

With a chuckle, Dracoso headed back home. He waved to many of his friends and the parents he had seen at the school as he made his way. Some recognized him and even joked about whether he was the real one or another clone. He laughed along with them and tiredly conversed before continuing on. He made it home as the sun was going down and his mother, along with the boarlings, greeted him. She asked how the mission had gone and all he said was, "I feel like I made the right choice." She smiled to him and nodded as he enjoyed his meal. His father gave him small glances and commented on a few of the things his clients had said. Some were parents of the new students and had been impressed by the first impression he had made. His father even complimented him on "using the tools he was given in the best kind of way." Dracoso gave his father a warm, tired smile to which his father responded with a proud smile of his own. 

{Exit}
D-Rank Mission: Day One at the Academy
Reward: 2000 Ryo + 10 AP
Event Reward: 10 Beachside Tickets

WC Total: 3605 (rounded to 3600)
Stats Maxed: AP Chosen - +72 AP

Skill learned: Chakra Suppression - 2000/2000 (added last 1100 to the 900/2000 from last post: Knock on Wood)
Jutsu Learned: A rank - Boreas Winter - 2500

Approved