And Now His Watch Begins

Ichigo Sato wrote:Each story has a beginning and an end, similar to one's life. His started as a blacksmith's son, his father's health forcing him to put down the shinobi headband and pick up the hammer instead. Something Ichigo never expected nor saw coming, a sudden change of fate but one necessary for the Sato family. He set aside his duty towards Kumogakure and focused on the one towards his loved ones. A man of honor, some would say. And honorable men he knew. All whose example and footsteps he would follow, all who had played a major part in his life.

Maximilian Yamaguchi, the Little Lord, would be the first to recognize Ichigo, teaching him about honor and revenge, talking about his own experiences that guided him into making his decisions. Then came Gidyne, a mysterious man who resurfaced out of nowhere, claiming the title when no one else wanted to. He taught him to never lose sight of his goals, to find light even in the darkness. But the person who had the biggest impact on Ichigo and someone who he would call his closest friend was none other than the current Raikage, Noboru Kaito. All three of them holding or having held the position of Raikage, fate at its finest.

Sharing a similar background, the two of them bonded over a couple of drinks, something that eventually ended in a bar brawl and the event that would start the friendship between both men. Together they promised to become the new pillars of Kumogakure, to remove the village from its shackles from the past and break the curse placed upon them by one of the former Raikage. It became a journey of blood, sweat and tears, one they started together and one that now came to an end, together again.

And now his watch begins.

(WC: 305)

[Claiming Raikage in 48 hours]