Interviews with the rank and file (Tsumi)

Ryuko's current outfit:

A lone woman sat waiting at a table in the back of the restaurant as she waited for the guest she had invited to arrive. This was the Yondaime Raikage, Ryuko Shizu Von Rose in the flesh making her first public appearance since returning from a place that was an endless time and impossible distance away. Currently she was wearing a leather

Oddly enough despite having been missing until just very recently nobody seemed to be making much of a fuss about her presence, perhaps either owing to the fact she happened to own a considerable amount of stock in the company in question or maybe sheer reverence. Regardless, the fact it was quite within the establishment served her current purposes since it would be easy to hold a conversation here.

Being a smart woman she hadn’t chosen this location on a random whim. She couldn’t expect proper responses to the types of questions she wanted to ask if her guest was too nervous to answer honestly. Though she could just have easily summoned him to a place like the audience chamber in the Royal Palace or the Raikage building in the administrative district, neither were very conductive towards inducing relaxation.

Tapping the table gently with one gloved finger, Ryuko waited patiently for her guest to arrive. Since she had been the one to call for him she’d gotten here a bit early to ensure she wouldn’t keep him waiting


[1]

Tsumi had gotten an invite from someone who was higher up in the village. He hadn't expected to be recognized so he had spent the night before slowly reading over it with his neighbor a couple of times. He was slow when it came to reading but they seemed rather excited for him. They said he was receiving a great honor and even made him dinner to celebrate. He would frown however while they made it as he looked blankly over the letter. Why did anyone so powerful care about him? Was this really an honor or were they reconsidering him as a shinobi? He wasn't as smart as his peers and he didn't actually use any jutsu yet. He had managed to unlock his katon chakra here and there but it was still spotty. Maybe they were taking it into consideration now. He had barely managed to graduate the academy and his sheer physical power had carried him this far. Chances were the village wanted more. Still he thanked the neighbor lady for supper and cleaned up after before falling into a troubled sleep. If he wasn't a shinobi tomorrow would he still be able to accomplish his dream of being a hero?

The next day he had gotten up early to shower before getting dressed. He didn't own any real dress clothes. Or shinobi clothes for that matter. He considered a camouflaged set but decided against it. Instead he would dress in a white T shirt that was a little tight on his chest and arms with a necklace with his clan symbol on it. His red hair he tied back away from his long black horns and shining golden eyes. Blue jeans were brand new so he figured he would go with those over a pair of black work boots. He had those for when he helped out with chores around the apartments. It didn't reduce the cost of his apartment but all his neighbors liked him and asked him for help frequently so work boots had been an investment. Still he figured out directions to the restaurant and quickly would make his way there. He was faster than the average person in the streets but careful to avoid them. Moving about the same speed as a cart going particularly fast behind a horse before passing it and soon enough landing at a skidding stop at the restaurant.

Tsumi would walk in and show the invitation to the hostess. He was taller than her and very well built muscle wise. His redish hued skin and black horns marked him as a Yokai but that was common in this village. A place where non-humans could thrive. They told him where the table was and Tsumi would bow his head and thank them before walking to the table. He saw the woman sitting there in her own leather .....battle gear? Well now he felt like he was dressed wrong. Though he had no issue going and getting into a fist fight however he was dressed. Still he would smile as he stood before her and the table with hands on his hips.

"Someone call for a hero?"

He’s right on time, thought Ryuko. She was impressed by her guests' punctuality.  She’d met a lot of different people in her time and wasn’t very fond of the type who were prone to showing up late.  It suggested a lack of reliability since you could never be sure they would be around when it really counted.

She kept a mostly neutral face as she evaluated Tsumi during his approach.   The invitation she’d sent him hadn’t specified a dress code which was in itself an unspoken test of his nature on her part.  After all you could learn a lot about a man by the way he dressed, the kinds of things you might not find from just skimming his profile.  

Given the war that was going on the paperwork the administration kept at the moment tended to be more focused on what a ninja can do rather than what type of person they were.    It was easier to overlock a character flaw that might not otherwise be tolerated when there already weren’t enough warm bodies to go around after all.

His clothing was on the simpler side but appropriate for the setting considering this was just a family restaurant and not some 5 star diner.  Not the typical place you would expect to find someone of the Queen’s stature hanging out.   Some might think she’d mock him for how cheap looking his ensemble was  but as she’d told her lazy rival Sora in the past it wasn’t the cost of your clothes that mattered so much as how you wore them.

And Tsumi, Tsumi wore his well.  It was plain to see even to the untrained eye the effort he had put into looking his best.   He was so clean it wouldn’t be much of a surprise if more than just his golden eyes started to sparkle.  If she didn’t know better she’d almost think he was on his way to shooting a fashion commercial of some kind.

“Heh perhaps a hero is just what we need  now.” Ryuko commented, flashing Tsumi a warm smile.   In these dark times perhaps he really was just the sort of person she’d been looking for.   There were plenty of people in the village that could kill when the call came but how many of them could protect the smiles of the citizens?

“First allow me to thank you for accepting my humble invitation Tsumi-kun. Please take a seat and feel free to order whichever you’d like. Consider your meal to be my treat for graciously agreeing to this interview.” she offered invitingly.  

Of course she could have simply ordered him to come if she’d really wanted to but doing so would have defeated the purpose of this interview in the first place.  It wasn’t the kind of discussion that had any meaning if it was forcefully compelled. Even if it was she still wouldn’t have done that because frankly that wasn’t the kind of ruler she wanted to be.  

“As an informal meeting normally decorum would dictate that we spend a few minutes speaking about trivial matters such as how the weather has been lately. I hope you’ll forgive me but I would like to skip the usual pleasantries and get straight to business.   Tis seems I find myself in need of some… perspective.”  The queen said cryptically after a moment's pause.    

When she’d returned she hadn’t been able to get a hold of anyone high up in the chain of command.  Seid was busy, Seigi was indisposed and Shimiko of all people was away at a peace conference of all things.   While Ryuko couldn’t be more proud of her sister, it was frustrating not having anyone to speak to that would give her an fully honest answer about what conditions on the ground level of the village were like at the moment.    

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust the reports that had been piling up on the Raikage desk. As the saying went, trust but verify.   She knew perfectly well that what was written on a piece of paper wasn’t always the full story.  

“To start I’d like to hear about your experience with the war so far.  Has the fighting been trying? Are you getting enough supplies?” she asked, her voice filled with more than a touch of concern. Tsumi being a rank and file gennin was the perfect person to ask questions about this sort of thing.  He had no reason to bullshit her like a higher ranking officer might to look good.

[2]

Tsumi would scratch the back of his head as he glanced around nervously. This didn't seem like it was anything against him but she was really formal. Hell he didn't even know how to be formal. He had some guiding hands from the clan growing up but he had never really had a successful formal education. His slow reading skills and dull mind had made it difficult just to graduate the academy. Still he had managed and now he was sitting here at a dinner table with one of the higher ups. Of course he barely was moderately aware of how high up. He was bordering on braindead after all. He could function well enough to work and look after himself but beyond that...he read with his lips moving and usually out loud and words with more than two syllables took a minute. However she told him to order whatever he wanted and the menu came with pictures and numbers so that was relatively easy. He was already plotting to order seven or eight things and take whatever was left home. He was taking advantage of her offer but she looked rich so a large bill wouldn't likely bother her.

She would mention skipping formalities and use a big word he didn't understand. Hell formalities was a reach for him but perspective was a new one for him. Was that like perception? They had always scolded him to work on noticing what was around him but he hardly caught on. His golden gaze would lift over the menu and blink as he was slightly confused but there was a pause which the waiter took advantage of to inquire what they wanted. Distracted easily Tsumi would shift his attention to the man and smile happily before speaking. "I would like a large cream soda and a number eight and a number two and a number six....can I get a number four but with like...sourdough toast? Thank you." He would say happily. Still the waiter would blink at him before glancing to Shimiko for her confirmation allowing this and her order as well. Only once the man left would she continue. She would speak about the war and Tsumi would blink again. His shoulders would slump as sadness overcame his expression. His eyes shifted to the window as rain began to tap against the glass. He watched it trail down the glass as he spoke quietly.

"It's raining again." He said in an almost reverent tone. He placed his hands on his knees and sat back a moment before letting out a sigh. His head would lean back a moment as the hair shifted away from his long horns and he thought. Staring at the ceiling a moment before finally coming up with a decent enough response in his mind. His tone still quiet but on a scale that was easy enough to hear. "I don't like killing. Or watching others die." He would lean his head forward again a moment before a sad smile played upon his features. "I don't understand why humans have to do war. Some people have a difference in opinion or need resources...but more often I see humans succumb to greed. Did you know one of the tasks of the Yokai is helping spirits pass on that linger here? Not one of them wanted to die....Their friends or loved ones taken from them senselessly leave them as restless spirits. I still go out to the training grounds some times to help them move on....But with this war its everywhere...I hate it...I hate it that people feel they have the right to kill each other." His fists clutched his pants legs as he tried hard to keep the tears in his eyes. He obviously felt deeply over it.

As she spoke Ryuko was subtly studying Tsumi, analyzing his unspoken reactions to her words.  She was well aware of the fact that as both an intellectual and as a member of the aristocracy that she had a bad tendency to speak in ways that were harder for the average layman to follow.  

The flowery language served her well in court when maintaining her image as a wise sage but all the big worlds in the world meant nothing if the person she was speaking to couldn’t understand them and so she made a habit of adjusting the complexity of her langage up or down based on who she was speaking to.  

Since she didn’t know Tsumi very well she was already speaking fairly casually compared to normal to start with and would work from there as she got to know him better.  At the moment at least he was doing a pretty good job of hiding the fact that he was a little on the slow side.  He was acting a bit awkward, but Ryuko was attributing that to him being overawed by her presence as one of the most famous people in the country.

“Ah hungry I see. Good, you’ll need to eat lots if you want to grow up big and strong” She commented after seeing the size of the order he had placed.  It reminded her of the good old days when she was still a gennin.  She used to need to pile on the calories in order to keep up with her high impact training regime.   Now that she had Rafaela within her she hardly needed to eat or drink at all anymore, though she occasionally still indulged in a good beer from time to time.

When she’d asked about the war she’d been expecting him to reply in more practical terms.  Things like bragging about the battles he’d fought or the splendor of places he’d been so when he instead came back with a more philosophical reply she was pleasantly surprised.  

“You’re a good soul Tsumi. I wish we had more like you in our ranks.”   A simple statement, but one Ryuko meant from the bottom of her heart.  There were far too many ninja that took joy in the art of killing, that took pleasure in hurting others for profit.   As the Raikage there were times where she had found herself needing to make hard decisions.  She could still sleep at night because of the necessary of the matter but she had never been happy to commit murder except for one possible exception.

“We humans tend to be such foolish creatures, no?” she asked rhetorically.  She herself had tried to avoid war with Kohana and Kiri.  Her goal had been to build greater economic prosperity that would spillover from Kumo into those countries.  The theory was that a rising tide would lift all boats.   She hoped that by making them money they would have little reason to attack her country and yet Moonspire had been destroyed anyhow despite her best intentions. Was it jealousy that had brought on the war or simply paranoia? Ryuko had no way to tell. The only thing she knew for certain was that instead of  rising to the stars together like she had hoped for they had collectively fallen into a pit of despair instead.

“Perhaps not even the gods themselves know why.” she muttered disappointed in the sheer amount of possibility that had been lost in the last few years.  Still there was no point dwelling on it. There was nothing to be done about what had come and gone already, instead she would focus on the future and preserving the possibilities still yet to come.

“Worry not. I’m sure peace will come soon.” She said soothingly. Shimiko had gone to negotiate an end to the conflict and as far as Ryuko knew it wasn’t like her sister to fail a mission. “When it does, what will you do?” she asked.   Did he still wish to become a hero or would he pick a different path?  She hoped for the former since as she'd said before she was in need of one.

[3]

Analyzing Tsumi 1/2

She would call him a good man and he would glance to the side. Embarrassed to be praised like that from someone who had summoned him. She was pretty and highly influential as far as he could tell. So for someone so high above him to recognize the type of man he was, well it was Exciting and terrifying all at the same time. If they knew he was a good man would they be disappointed more when he faltered? He knew all men did at some point. All the comics he had read as a kid...the hero always fell at some point but usually had a redeeming moment. So even the best among them would eventually falter. Which in his mind included him. Still a finger rose up to scratch at his chin as he looked rather bashful. Still he was saved as the appetizer he ordered first and his drink arrived. His golden eyes lit up and he would grin from ear to ear as he dug in. His manners were...lacking for certain as he hadn't waited for her to be served and had merely thanked the waitress with a mouth full of food. In many ways Tsumi was a foolish child at heart.

She would continue speaking a little and he was listening but the food was oh sooo good. He was used to taking out the trash from his apartment stuffed full of cup of noodles. It was affordable for him after all. He ate meat when he could just for the protein but the truth was he had a pretty tight budget. He needed to do more missions they said but he always got distracted doing little things around the village. Not to mention he was supposed to go with a mission partner and those were scarce these days. He tried to make friends with some but they had all just faded into a memory. He really wanted friends but he couldn't help what other people did or if they didn't like him. Truthfully Tsumi was a lonely young man that partially wanted to be a Hero because he craved having someone who cared about him. So he worked hard to build up his strength so he could be that hero. One day he would manage it. That was the pledge he had made himself. It wasn't enough to be a good man. He needed to be a hero.

She assured him the war would end soon and he felt relief. But than she asked him a question which caused him to pause shoveling food into his face. He would blink before chewing a bit and swallowing. He used the napkin to wipe his face because his aunts had taught him some manners. Still he would smile as he set it down. As if thinking of a fond memory.

"I don't know if it will matter...but I want to keep getting stronger. There are people out there even when there is no war...people who are praying to be saved. Being a Hero isn't just something I want to do when there is a war. I want to save everyone. I want to bring hope back into the hearts of the humans around here. I might just be another Yokai and I have been told I am an idiot....but I just want to save people that no one else is trying to save. Sorry if I rambled a bit....and thank you by the way...for the grub."

If Ryuko could tell what Tsumi was thinking she would have told him not to be too concerned about faltering and that expecting perfection out of anyone was a doomed prospect from the start. Alas while she could read minds when using the right technique she was no psychic so the best she could do was guess. If it were someone she knew well she could be quite accurate with her guessing but with some she had just met she might as well be consulting a magic eight ball instead.

As she spent time with the younger lad and analyzing things about him such as his somewhat under par manners, the more she realized just who exactly she was dealing with. Some might uncharitably say he wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed but she didn’t quite agree with that assessment.

There was more than one way to measure intelligence after all. While Tsumi might not be the most book-smart person she’d ever met, the few short segments they’d exchanged indicated that he had emotional intelligence in spades. If she was being fully honest she’d say that being super smart was a bit overrated. Ignorance as they say could be bliss.

Still that said she’d have to be careful with how she dealt with him since without further education he was the type that could be talked into almost anything without much trouble. If she sent Tsumi to the next Chunnin exam as he was now the boy would be figuratively eaten alive by the competition.

Realizing that it would be futile to continue the line of questioning she had first envisioned she decided to change tracks. Some might be discouraged by that kind of setback but not the Queen. Trying to gain more perspective on events had only been one part of her objective to begin with, a side benefit to her true goal of finding worthy students to teach. Tsumi might not be the strongest or the smartest but he definitely had the most heart out of everyone she’d spoken to so far which made him the most suitable for the role.

“You’re most welcome,” She said in reply to the speech Tsumi had just given her. He might have called it rambling but she’d found it quite profound. “Aiming to get stronger always matters. Tis those that lack the drive for self improvement that most often fail to get ahead in life.” she continued. The desire to save people that no one else would try to rescue reminded her so much of herself that it almost hurt.

“I became the Raikage not out of some desire for fame or fortune but because I wanted much the same as you, to protect the people of this country.” Ryuko acknowledged. Part of her wanted to say protect the people of this world instead of this country but she knew such a task was far beyond the reach of what her hands could ever grasp.

“Tsumi I admire your desire to save people, a desire that perhaps exceeds my own. You would make for an excellent Priest of Hakkin, if you wish I could make you my apprentice. Not to brag but I doubt you could ask for a better teacher in all of the Kingdom of Thunder.” said the Queen. Her track record for students wasn’t exactly perfect but it was hard to argue that most of them hadn’t become strong.

She paused for a second to gauge how willing to become one of her students he was before adding one last line if he looked like he was eager. “Under one condition that is…” she said dramatically. “You’re welcome to become a hero but I forbid you from becoming a martyr.”


[4]

Analyzing Tsumi 2/2

Tsumi would blink as he began to chew a little slower. The conversation had turned to her becoming the Raikage. It literally just struck him who he was talking to. Of course he had heard her name. Everyone had but somehow it had not dawned on him just who he was talking to. He barely managed to keep his mouth full of food closed as he swallowed a little hard. Holy shit holy shit holy shit. He was meeting the Raikage and he dressed in every day clothes? Did he even have anything formal? His head spun a little as he tried to piece it all together just how deep he was here. The mother fucking Raikage?! He was stuffing his face here on her dime like an idiot and all the sudden his face would turn beat red. His casual conversation and all he was just sitting here. Like an idiot as usual. He wasn't sure what to do as his head swam. So he would suddenly stand straight up rapidly as if to make up for his ignorance as quickly as possible. His body would go rigid as he put his arms to his side and nearly shouted with his voice cracking a little.

"Lady Raikage I am sorry for my simple attitude. I didn't realize who you were until now!"

Of course they had never met and Tsumi didn't have a TV. Or a computer or a phone. He had a radio but mostly just used it for music. Still alarmingly he would bow as deep as he could a little too close to the table. He was so nervous he accidentally smashed his head against the table and spread cracks along its whole surface. He would stand back up as he felt stars dancing in his mind as he fell back into his seat a moment. His head swimming from headbutting the table so hard. Clear indents of his horns where he had hit. He plopped there as he let his head sway back and forth a moment. It was so hard to focus. He was going to be her student? Who was Hakkin? What did a priest of Hakkin mean? He was getting the best sensei he could ask for and his head hurt and he could barely picture it all. He was trying to get his mind all back together. He was just so excited for this. But he would blink at the last part before tilting his head a little.

"Sorry Raikage Sama but...what is a martyr? I don't know that word."

As she spoke her potential student shifted from practically shoveling food down his throat to not moving his spoon, his face quickly turning a deep shade of red. As a trained medic this gave Ryuko cause for concern as she was worried he was showing signs of choking. She wouldn’t have been surprised if something had gone down his throat the wrong way given the way he’d been eating.

It made her feel a bit sad to see how desperately he’d gone at the food. When was the last time he’d been able to enjoy a good meal? She’d worked hard to eliminate poverty in this country but as she knew from experience that it wasn’t a simple cut and dried matter that could be solved with a charitable donation or two. Part of the reason she’d wanted to take Tsumi under her wing was because helping him would be the first step of potentially turning the situation around. A small step to be sure but she had to start somewhere.

Just as she was about to get ready to get up and start performing the heimlich maneuver the Yokai across from her said something so astonishing she wasn’t quite sure she could believe her ears for a second. Ryuko knew well and good just how famous she was. If it was someone from another country perhaps she could understand the ignorance but the idea one of her own citizens didn’t recognize her face was astonishing.

On one hand it was handy to have such a high reputation. There were times she could avoid a fight simply because some people were wary of tangling with someone of her stature but other times it was hard living up to their overblown expectations of her abilities. She was strong yes but not strong enough to do things like literally move mountains.

The idea of dealing with someone who had no such built in conceptions of her was a refreshing one. If he was so worked up about realizing she was the Raikage she wondered how he’d react if she told him she was also the Queen. That little tidbit of information would likely blow the poor boy’s mind to smithereens.

Just imagining he’s reaction was enough for her to let out a hearty chuckle, or at least she would have had her compatrate not hit his head against the table so hard that he’d left an indentation behind. Laughing now felt like it would have been very bad timing on her part. The last thing she needed was to make the poor boy think she was making fun of him when she was simply assumed by his antics.

“Are you alright?” she asked, her voice touched with concern. The fact he was strong enough to damage such a sturdy table with such a casual blow was impressive but she was worried that he might have damaged a brain cell in the process which would be bad considering he didn’t have enough to spare as it was. She could care less about the damage to the table however, after all it was replaceable while Tsumi was not.

“There is no need to apologize for not recognizing me sooner. I have been indisposed until recently so tis my fault for not showing my face more often. Besides I did not call you here as the Raikage but as a fellow citizen.” She said, trying to reassure him. She hadn’t signed the invitation as the fourth Raikage the way she would for state matters after all. Most people in the know would know it was her just from the name but obviously that didn’t apply to everyone.

“A word of advice, I would take good care of that invitation if I were you. That type of document will be worth big money to the right type of people in the future.” she said with a grin. Ryuko would undoubtedly go down as a historical figure after her time, if her project to make Tsumi a hero went well so would he making the value of the invitation skyrocket. Of course He could make a quick buck selling it now but holding onto it could send his grandkids to college in the future so she wanted him to use it wisely.

Hearing him refer to her with such respect now that he’d half realized who she was made her want to cringe. There were times when she needed everyone to be that formal but it was just as important to have people she could be herself around even if it was only in more casual settings.

“Please there is no need to be so formal with me here. A state dinner that would be one thing but tis just a meal between…” she paused searching for the right word for their relationship. They were barely even acquaintances let alone friends and while she’d offered to take him as her student he hadn’t accepted so she could’t call him her pupil or disciple either quite yet.

“...between fellow aspiring heroes. For now you may simply call me Ryuko” she said after settling on something that seemed appropriate. Ryuko was someone who tried to project a heroic image. Her battle armor certainly lent itself more towards looking like the classical image of a knight then a ninja at least. But she felt like she’d start getting a big head if she started outright calling herself a full on hero. Despite her successes like when she’d prevented a floating island from crashing and killing thousands if not more, she wasn’t sure she deserved to be called one given all the times she’d failed. The crater at Moonspire served as a testament to her inability to protect the smiles of her people.

“Remember this Tsumi. There is no shame in admitting to not knowing something. One cannot learn what they think they already know.” she said in response to him apologizing for not knowing the word Martyr. As far as she was concerned, someone seeking the light of knowledge need not apologize for their ignorance.

“Typically a Martyr is a person who is killed because of their beliefs or cause. A religious person who refuses to deny their religion and is killed for it would be a good example.” She explained in a way that she hoped would be easy to understand. “Basically I am asking you this. Don't - under any circumstances - Die” she said, her face stern to show she was being quite serious.

It was an unrealistic promise. One she knew he might not be able to keep but she was asking it of him anyhow. As someone with an extended life span and a healing factor she was going to live a long time assuming that she wasn’t killed in battle at least. It was going to be hard enough getting used to losing people to age but she was already sick of those close to her being taken away before their time. She’d already lost two students to unnatural causes in a relatively short time frame and couldn’t bear to lose a third.

[5]

Tsumi would blink as his thick skull allowed him to recover from the interaction with the table quickly. She would say something about the value of a letter but honestly it went over his head. He would keep it because she told him to. But he didn't see how the value of paper went up. On the rare occasion he had noticed paper at the store it was usually just an affordable amount of ryo for a bundle of it. So did the price of paper usually shift so drastically? What was paper even made from? Still she would tell him she prefered he wasn't so formal and he would blink before smiling happily. He wasn't good at being polite clearly and being on a first name basis meant they were friends now right? He certainly liked having friends. He was lonely so much that he often went out to the small tree fort in the woods where he met his other friend. He hadn't seen her since...Truthfully sometimes he just went out there to cry so no one would see or hear him. Mostly when the storms rolled through because it reminded him of her. He missed his friend a lot.

Still she would encourage him to ask questions without any signs of impatience with him. He was really starting to like his new friend since she was so nice to him. He would take a drink of his water a moment before placing his hands on his knees and leaning forward to listen to her explanation. He would blink a couple of times as he considered what it meant. Finally he would nibble his bottom lip as he sat back and glanced out the window. His eyes watching people walking by on the street. Settling on a little boy holding his mothers hand as he pointed excitedly around them. She would smile down at him and laugh with him. Truly they looked so happy he wondered what it was like to have a mother. To know your parents. It was a big mystery for him and why he craved friends so much. He never really had family growing up. The clan did take care of him and he had aunts and cousins that guided him some. But he had been a kid alone in an apartment for most of his life. So since he didn't have loved ones like that he was determined to make some.

Finally he would sigh and look down as if ashamed. Speaking quietly as he was sad to admit this. He had really wanted to train under her but her condition just wasn't something he could promise. And he certainly did not want to lie. So his words sounded like they were filled with shame. "I...I'm Sorry Ryuko but I ain't sure I can promise that. I don't want to die and I certainly won't seek it out.....but...Well my belief is people deserve to be protected. To be saved. I just ain't the kinda guy that can just run away and let other people die ya know? If there is even a chance I can save someone imma try. I really wanna train with you but I can't promise to not try and save people. I mean...if you can't risk dying for your beliefs....did you really believe in them to begin with?"

Hakkin help her. While the boy wasn’t the brightest, his insight was painfully sharp when he wanted it to be. She’d known her request for him to not die under any circumstances was an impossible one for him to keep to begin with. She’d thought he’d agree anyhow simply for the sake of it or at least promise he’d try his best but instead he cut straight though the idea entirely.

It was especially frustrating for her because she believed he was both right and wrong at the same time. Sometimes you had to risk your life to protect the things you cared about but that didn’t mean that it was smart to stick to a doomed cause. As much as you wanted to, it was impossible to save everyone, sometimes she had no choice but to choose her battles in order to achieve the best outcome that was available to her.

Being a hero was all well and good but one needed to be smart about it if they were going to have any long term effects, otherwise they were simply being suicidal. And yet there was still no way she could refute his argument without being a hypocrite given the many, many times she’d risked her own life over the last few years since she became an active ninja.

There was the time someone had attacked the village gates when she had still just been a gennin, The Valley of Jehoshaphat where she first met Honiko and Nozomi and the battle of Kariforunia where Raijin had actually defeated her just to name a few of the more memorable ones. The truth was if it came down to trading her life to save someone who was important to her like Shimiko she wouldn’t even hesitate.

“Arrrrg” she groaned as she raised her hands to her hair in pure frustration. “Fine you win but don’t think I’m going to let you off the hook so easily. If you are so determined to run into the fires of hell then I shall simply have to make you strong enough to withstand the flames. I hope you are prepared for the toughest training in your life since I shan't go easy on you.” She declared as she glared at him with pure determination in her eyes.

To be frank he was going to need to be strong if he wanted to be able to live up to his pacifist ideals. If you wanted to avoid killing someone once caught in a struggle for life and death then you needed to have enough leeway that you could afford to spare them. Tsumi was decently strong for a gennin at any rate but he was still a weakling in the grand scheme of things.

Someone had once said that with great power came great responsibility but the inverse was just as true. Those without power could protect nothing. If Tsumi tried to seriously save anyone as he was now he would no doubt end up dead in a gutter somewhere. Ryuko could not, would not allow that to happen.

“Our first goal should be to make you strong enough to become the Champion in the next Chunnin exam.” she decided. Aiming straight for the stars from the start would be a foolish endeavor. It would take time to raise Tsumi up to the halls of greatness so first she would begin with something a bit more realistic.

“You should come live with me at the Palace Tsumi. Hakkin knows I’ve got plenty of spare rooms around. The less time you have to spend commuting the more you’ll have to spend training and learning.” She suggested. Judging by the way he’d gone at his food the improvements to his lifestyle this would bring would do him a world of good as well. She wasn’t about to let any student of hers go unfeed or undressed.

“By the way Tsumi how old are you?” she asked. He looked like he might be on the cusp of adulthood but since he was a Yokai she couldn’t be quite sure that he actually was legally an adult in every sense of the word. Depending on his answer she might have to speak to his guardian in order to make proper arrangements

[6]

Tsumi would tilt his head at her frustration while being confused as to what he had won. The statement didn't make sense to him but quickly his confusion would turn to a bright white toothed smile as his eyes lit up. More intense training? Oh now that was exciting. He was gonna need to pack on some serious calories if he was gonna train even harder. Still he would grin as he eyed his food. Grabbing a steak with his hand and biting off a large chunk of it. Eat and train was basically his life. Be a hero whenever you could but physical training was his daily. Still he would chew a little slower with his cheeks bulging slightly as she mentioned coming to live in the palace. The what now? He had never even been on the palace grounds and now he was supposed to live there? That was just crazy to him. Wouldn't he stick out like a sore thumb? And yeah he was lonely but he got to see his clan every day before. Realizing his simple life was about to be over finally he would swallow his dangerously large bit but manage to choke it down all the same before looking a little sheepish.

"Well I already do the basics every day. A ten kilometer run and one hundred push ups and sit ups and pull ups. But I am eager to train under you. I know your strong and I wanna be to. But.... to be honest I have barely begun to figure out chakra...I have the fire stuff but so far I have only managed like...sparks and flares. As for moving into the palace..I don't want to disrupt anyone but I will do as my master instructs me to. But I would like to say thank you and goodbye to my aunts and cousins....they were there to help raise me and teach me eth...ethel...ethics. Thats the word...and I want to show my respect before I go. And uh...I think..."

Tsumi would seem to have to think about it. He hadn't actually celebrated a birthday in years. Not since he was ten when his aunts and cousins threw him a birthday party. Since then he hadn't really celebrated one. Nor did he mind much. He didn't like being a burden to anyone and didn't seek out things for himself much. He was just a happy person because thats what he wanted to be. Still he knew about how many winters it had been since then. He would visibly begin to count on his fingers as he counted the winters before he would get to nine. With a smile as if he had just accomplished something he would speak up again happily.

"Uh I think about nineteen. Yeah that sounds about right. The academy has records somewhere I'm sure but I haven't really had a birthday since I was ten. But thats my best guess. But yeah...Ryuko what kinda training are we gonna do? Most of my taijutsu is self taught but I think I'm pretty good."

Ryuko was a little taken back by Tsumi grabbing a steak with his bare hands and biting a chunk out of it like he was some kind of neadruatal. She knew he was excited but that was no excuse to allow his manners to slip to that degree. Oh well just add it as one more thing in a growing list of things she was going to need to teach him. At least it seemed he could count to 100 at least so maybe she wouldn’t have to start his education completely from scratch.

“To be honest I can’t use fire chakra myself so I’m not sure how much help I can be with that in particular.” She admitted. She was sure many of the training exercises she used for lightning could apply but she might need to seek some advice from a specialist if she was going to help him turn those sparks into a raging inferno.

“You wouldn’t be disrupting anything.” Ryuko assured him. These days the palace was actually pretty empty most of the time outside of her and the Royal guards. When she’d been gone it had largely been closed to tourists and even though she had returned she hadn’t opened it back up to the public quite yet since she was busy with her own work.

“You don’t have to come if you don’t feel comfortable with the idea. Tis was just a suggestion not an order. I might be your sensei but I’m not big on forcing people to do things." As the Raikage and Queen there were times when she had no choice but to issue orders and edicts but outside of that she preferred to let people decide things for themselves.

It seemed even Tsumi himself wasn’t quite sure how old he was and the boy settled for giving her his best guess instead. Oh well she was going to have to pull his record anyhow so at least it wouldn’t be much trouble for her to verify.

“From the way you move I call tell that you aren’t that bad for an amature.” Ryuko remarked. She doubted he could do anything too impressive but he was probably better then the average street punk at least. As an experienced master of the marital arts she didn't need to actual fight him to get a rough estimation of his ability. Just some time spent analyzing him had more then sufficed.

“In order to become stronger we’ll begin with the basics. You'll need to improve your fundamental stats. Strength, Stamina, Constitution, Speed, Coordination, Perception and yes even Intelligence.” The poor boy had no idea what was in store for him. She wasn’t going to be training just his body but his mind as well. She’d be telling him to hit the books if it wasn’t for the fact she was quite sure he’d take her literally and actually start striking them.

“As for Taijutsu itself, in time I will teach you every fighting style that I know from the Arhat fist all the way to the Ballad of the Dragon. The more styles you know the better as it will allow you to respond flexibly to various situations in combat.”


“Beyond that will depend on where your aptitude and interests lie. As a sage I am well versed in a variety of subjects. I can coach you on virtually any aspect of being a Shinobi. Medicine, Tool, Illusions, Ninjutsu, Summoning and so on. The world is your oyster” She explained.

“With your permission I would also like to teach you about my religion, if for context if nothing else. Once you have heard about the Dragon God Hakkin and what he is about, you can decide for yourself if you wish to worship him or not.” she said not wanting to make him feel like he was being pressured into joining.

[7]

Tsumi would listen as he chewed his food. People were watching and whispering about this ape of a man talking to the queen of all people like that. His manners were deplorable but Tsumi was just happy and hungry. Of course unlike the idiot in front of her everyone else recognized her. Even the serving staff had a bit of an eye twitch at his manners. Still he would listen as she told him she didn't really have the katon element but he figured the training would translate over. If anyone could teach him how to use his chakra it had to be a Kage right? One doesn't get higher than that so if he had a chance in satans asshole Ryuko was his best bet. Of course why she had chose him still evaded him. After all Tsumi was likely among the weakest in Kumo at the moment he figured. Maybe she wanted to prove her own abilities by improving upon the clay in front of her? It all went over his head anyway. He just wanted to get stronger. Still he would swallow and chase the food with some more of his water. Wiping his mouth with a napkin for once before speaking without his mouth full.

"Well I made the academy instructors a little mad when they tried teaching me. I couldn't really grasp it but they graduated me anyway. They said my thick skull and strong fists would do me well enough. I guess I'm just tough."

Tsumi actually thought having a thick skull was a compliment. As if it meant he could take a hit better. Truth was they just stopped caring on if Tsumi would die out in the field or not. To them he was a lost cause. Still she would bring up taijutsu and teaching him different styles. His eyes lit up and his heel started tapping excitedly. He was careful not to interrupt her. She was saying something about the teachings of some deity or another and if he wanted to worship them. It would be his choice. He was fine with moving to the palace but he would be sure to give thanks to those who cared for him first. It was only the right thing to do. Still as soon as she was done explaining her intentions for training him he would excitedly. He was ready. He didn't want to wait and that would become apparent as he spoke up excitedly.

"I dunno what this bad (Ballad was too big a word) dragon style is but I can't wait! I always wanted to go to the training facility they built too! Can we go now? I understand if ya wanna finish your meal boss but pleeease please please? Can we go train? I wanna learn everythin I can ya'know? If my fists will be the fists of justice I will need to get stronger real quick. So I am down to train right now!" He was like an excited kid that just got told they got to go to magical ninja land (Disney reference) and couldn't wait. Some people hated training but it was basically one of the two hobbies Tsumi had. Training and comic books. He read a lot about heroes in his manga. It was the basis for his unrealistic expectations for himself and others. It was why he wanted to be a hero so bad. Aside from his good soul Tsumi was a meat head. He didn't even register that she was gonna have him study actual books instead of just taijutsu. It was clear he was ready to go that very moment.

Listening to Tsumi talk about his time at the academy Ryuko took the opportunity to chew on a cookie and down it with some milk. She didn’t need much substance but it wasn’t like she could get by on none at all. The look on her face changed from a passive one to a frown that only grew deeper as she realized they had passed someone that by all rights should never have been allowed to graduate in his current condition.

It wasn’t as if they had given up on educating Tsumi and sent him out to die. It wasn’t what if anymore when they had quite literally done just that. She would have liked to think the Academy had higher standards than that but clearly she was wrong. Even if they simply just allowed things to slip by due to the stress of war and needing to throw more bodies at the fires it was still a very sorry excuse for the lapse in judgement and morals. And to think she and Damian had once dreamed of opening an institution for higher education when even the current one wasn’t up to par.

She considered informing Tsumi that they hadn’t been complimenting him when they said he had a tough skull (even if the tough part was technically true on other levels). Ultimately she decided not to rain on his parade too much.

“It’s true that you are tough but you need to know your limits. No matter how strong someone becomes, one person can only do so much. One arrow is easily broken, Three tied together is not. I want you to find some friends you can work with, if you watch each other's backs you’ll be able to overcome challenges together that none of you would be able to beat on your own.” she advised. She herself never would have survived long enough to become Raikage without Natsuru and Shimiko at her side.

She was trying to use simpler expressions and phrases to explain things but even then it seemed she didn’t quite have a full handle on what words were too complicated for the boy at the moment or not. She didn’t think of Ballad as being a hard word and yet Tsumi didn’t know what one was. She was about to explain when something he said stopped her in her tracks.
Training facility they built? What was he talking about? The training grounds she had known had been around for years.

“And what Training facility would that be?” she asked feeling more than a little puzzled. She was still catching up on things and didn’t know every last detail of what had happened while she was gone especially since her focus had primarily been on external matters like the state of the war and the location of Nozomi and the society rather then internal ones

[8]

Tsumi would blink a moment before he would glance down at his food. Friends who he could work with sounded nice...but he couldn't seem to hold onto anyone. He liked the moments he shared with friends though. That meal with the wind surfer guy was nice but he had made his clan head nervous or something so it had been cut short. The girl in the woods had been his favorite but he hadn't seen her since and spent a lot of time along at the tree fort. Kaede seemed to hate him openly and Shimiko had little to no patience for him. So far he had only met each of them once and then poof....faded from his life as just a nice memory. He couldn't figure out how to get anyone in his life to stay but he had kept his chin up all this time as best he could. So he had so far mostly just trained alone....Wasn't there another? Gyo popped into his head a moment from that one mission they did. He was a clever guy but again Tsumi had only seen him once. Maybe if he started living at the palace he could meet him again?

There was a question he hadn't expected that snapped him from his thoughts. Someone as strong and as famous as Ryuko wasn't aware of the newest building in kumo? He was surprised he just kind of stared blankly a moment before his hand rose to tap his chin as he looked up and off to the side. His eyes shining golden as he contemplated how to word it. "Well its this place that some...Mrs. Darkness or something made. She's like super rich and made this building that is advertised to have everything you need to train. They say your bound to get stronger there twice as fast!" He seemed excited about it but a thought occurred to him. He would get up and run to the counter really quickly. He talked to the staff for a minute before coming back with a bag and some Styrofoam containers. Quickly he would shover all the food into the to go containers and stack them in the bag. Once that was done he would tie it to his left wrist and turn to her with a smile that met his eyes. A real genuine smile of a genuinely good person. His right hand reached out to her as he spoke up.

"Alright I've made up ma mind. You and I are friends now Ryuko. Imma gonna take you with me and show you the facility even if we have to sneak in!"

He was happy to know her and truly wanted to be her friend. She was giving so much but it was clear that he didn't mind living in an apartment or a palace. He wasn't asking to be her friend for political power even. After all he had no idea she was a queen and barely realized she was a Kage after she told him. Nor was he seeking her out for power. He just accepted that he needed power to be a hero. Those golden eyes didn't hold a lick of greed in them or hate for anything. If anything his aura and chakra were warm. Not destructive like most fire users but warm like the support of a warm fire on a cold day. He really did just want to be her friend and standing there smiling like an idiot holding out his hand to her...he really wanted to just go there for the fun of it. After all she was his new friend in his mind.

The existence of a new training facility wasn’t the only surprise that Tsumi had for Ryuko.   When he mentioned a Mrs. Darkness her sharp mind immediately put together who he was really talking about.  How could she not when Damian Darhk had been her biggest business partner for so long.   As an adult she wasn’t nearly as boisterous and excitable as she had been as a teenager, age and experience had gone a long way to calming her down but even so hearing that Damian of all people had actually been married was shocking enough that she nearly did a spit take.

Back when she had first met Damian he had certainly been a bachelor.  Hell he’d even made a pass at her which had been very flattering.  It had been a tempting offer, one that might have even worked if she wasn’t playing for the other team.    Just when exactly had he gotten hitched?  They hadn’t exactly been best friends but outside of the initial kerfuffle Damian’s secretary had caused, the two of them had what Ryuko considered to be a fairly good working relationship.  

It was enough for her to feel a twinge of regret that she hadn’t been invited to the wedding or even better to affiliate it.   As a Vestal of Hakkin one of her greatest pleasures in life was joining people in holy matrimony.   Her favourite expression was simply, Love is all.  

Still if someone had taken over running Darhk Enterprises then that was someone Ryuko needed to talk to.   Damian had done a lot of good work for her before his untimely demise so she’d take any chance she could get to salvage what she could from those projects.  That immediately jumped to high priority on her to-do list, though not higher than seeing this new facility and getting a session in with Tsumi.

“Thank you Tsumi.  Though some of my squad and students might be gone, as long as I have people like you in my life I have a reason to continue fighting.” she said, taking his hand and giving it a firm shake.    More than anything she simply wanted to protect that warm smile of his.

“No need to worry about sneaking in.  There are no doors in this country that would be locked for someone like me.  Come let us inspect this facility, if you would please kindly show me the way.”   She was asking him to guide her to the new building so they could get started on the training.    

[9]

- Exit to the Royal kumogakure training facility

She would thank him and tell him he would be a reason to continue fighting. He didn't really get it but fighting for your friends made sense enough. Still she would tell him they wouldn't have to sneak in and he would grin. With a tug he would try and pull her by the hand to jog to the training facility on the other side of town. Of course she could endure it and he wouldn't be able to move her but otherwise he would just excitedly pull her along all the same. He was happy now and his sense of loneliness and melancholy was fading. He had a friend he was gonna move in with. Like a roommate. But a palace was kinda big wasn't it? Either way it would get them into the training grounds. Which truth be told were not restricted and Tsumi had just assumed they were. Most fancy pantsy places required something called a reservation which he usually got denied at the door. He had assumed the new training facility was the same. Unbeknownst to him he could have been training there this whole time without needing any special permission or secret codes. He was a fool after all.

Tsumi hadn't even considered the food bill but the establishment would likely just expect to be paid one way or another eventually. If nothing else they would simply send the bill to the palace. Still he would pull her through the crowded streets all the way to the training facility at full speed. Only slowing when he was being careful not to bump into anyone (C++ speed). Once they arrived a little bit of sweat would drip from his chin but he was standing there proudly looking over the grand training facility. A state of the art building with several floors reinforced for Shinobi training. Tsumi would finally let go of her hand before walking through the front rotating doors. There was a desk at the front with a directory to the different floors and elevators and stairs behind them in rows. He would stop as he contemplated which floor to go too. Mouthing out the words as he tried to read each floor. There was a mountain range floor, forest floor, an aquatic floor, A dojo floor and even a volcano floor. Even a desert floor. There was a huge range of choices all designed to simulate different places.

Tsumi was finally finishing off reading them all and he really couldn't decide which one he liked. He would humm a little bit as he tried to figure out what aquatic meant. He had never heard the word before and while it was exciting he was a little worried about it. He wasn't sure if they would be walking into straight up danger like with the volcano. Still she had encouraged him to ask questions so he would nod and turn to her quietly talking so as not to be overheard. Embarrassed by his stupidity here of all places. The attendant waiting patiently for them to decide.

"Uh..Sensei...what does Aquatic mean?"

exit to continue at the training grounds

9 posts
Ryuko Sensei + UA = +10 exp - 10 + 10 = 20 exp a post
9x20=180