Leafy Greens

It was a mild afternoon, and Tatsuo's class was on a field trip. But when the boy found himself stood in an empty park with his peers, he had to admit he was a bit confused. Many of his classmates looked the same, and he saw incredulous faces all around him.

"Confused?" his teacher said amusedly. "Let me explain. This village is our home, and it is up to all of us to take good care of it. When you graduate and start your lives as Genin, your duty will be to the village and all of its inhabitants - and that means getting your hands dirty! Today we are going to practice being good stewards of our town, and cleaning up this park. I want each of you to take a bag, and go around collecting as many fallen leaves as you can. This will keep the park looking nice and tidy, and the leaves can also be broken down into fertilizer to fuel new growth. You see, this is an important job!"

Tatsuo heard a few groans and grumbles from his classmates, but he wasn't bothered. He understood what his teacher was trying to say - and since they were still students, cleaning up a park was a good way for them to do their part. Lining up with the others, Tatsuo grabbed a big sack and started walking toward the treeline, getting down on his knees and starting to shove handful after handful of leaves into the bag.

It wasn't long before he realized that all of this would have been much easier if they were given a rake or something, and he sighed wearily as he scooped up what felt like his hundredth handful of leaves and dropped them into the sack. Was this training, too? It didn't really feel like it. It just felt unnecessarily tedious. But a job was a job... right?

Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted that Akimichi kid sitting by a tree, tearing open a pack of crisps and shoving them into his mouth. Tatsuo's eyebrow twitched, and he gave the kid a flat expression. "This isn't a snack break you know - we're meant to be working. What if sensei saw you?" The boy whined miserably, eating more of the bag. "But I'm tiiired... I've already done a lot, I just need a break!"

A small 'tsk' slips through Tatsuo's teeth, as he stands up and picks up the boy's bag, carrying it with him to the next tree and starting to fill them both up, grabbing at the leaves on the ground with frustration. Why did kids like that even join the shinobi program?

It wasn't long until both bags were full, and Tatsuo carried them back over to his teacher, where he was collecting all the sacks in a large pile. "Oh, Tatsuo! Managed to fill two whole bags by yourself? Aren't you the hard worker!" Dropping the bags, Tatsuo chewed his lip slowly, glancing toward the Akimichi kid who was just coming up the way. "... No sensei, I was just carrying one of the bags for Akimichi." The teacher hummed slightly, glancing at the other boy in understanding. "Ah, I see.. well, thank you for your honesty, Tatsuo. And well done, everyone!" He called out to the group, smiling. "I haven't got anything else planned for today, so you are all dismissed! And I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning."

Sighing, Tatsuo picked up his school bag and decided to walk along the river for a bit on his way home, contemplating what training he would try and get done tonight.

WC: 610
Claiming: 1,000 Ryo, 5 AP; 5 Speed, 400 wc toward Rope Escape (500/500), 200wc toward Body Flicker (200/500)

Tatsuo Uchiha wrote:

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WC: 610
Claiming: 1,000 Ryo, 5 AP; 5 Speed, 400 wc toward Rope Escape (500/500), 200wc toward Body Flicker (200/500)

Approved