Another day in the Village. (Open)

As the sun began to rise, there was not a cloud in sight and with the skies a bright blue, the wind could be felt breezing through out the Village. Shizuko awoke, releasing a slight sigh as he stood up from his bed, slowly moving from there towards the bathroom, beginning his morning routine. After a relaxing shower and a fresh change of clothes, Shizuko was ready to start another day. Walking directly out of his home, and headed for the Ninja Academy, his mind set was to discover the latest batch of students, to study how prominent they were. No matter how much he hated it, he had to ensure that Konohagakure was fully protected by their Shinobi Forces, whether it be a majority of children or adults. And wasn't disappointed by the results of the students, along with the news of several new Chuunin-Rank Shinobi. After exiting the Academy, he was 'greeted' by the wind blowing directly past him, and the sudden appearance of what seemed to be an ANBU Shinobi, and a huge grin appeared on Shizuko's face.

The sudden arrival of the ninja was none other then an ANBU Ninja assigned to guard the Hokage, this ninja had arrived and landed in quite a style, she almost seemed overly cocky with her intro. The appearance of this Shinobi was simple, a long black cloak covered her body, all except for her face, which was instead covered by a porcelain mask regularly issued to an ANBU Shinobi. After a moment of purely staring at each other, the ninja quickly stated, I have been assigned to you, Hokage-Sama. the tone in her voice seemed calm, however quite bold and serious. My duties are clear, to protect you at all cost. As she offered a bow towards him, quickly snapping back up and awaiting a response.

After hearing the reasoning of the sudden arrival of the Shinobi, Shizuko let out a slight shrug, replying shortly towards her, Let's get going then, eh? as his face crept back to a usual bored look, resuming his walk around the Village. On his way through the Village, he had noticed something out of the ordinary, and slightly looked up, and to his surprise something was unusual; Sakura tree's had started to grow around the Village, replacing the barren and dead fields of Konoha with these beauties of nature, and wherever he turned the Village was once again filled with beauty once again, not a dead piece of nature could be seen. It may have sounded simple, and unimportant under these circumstances, but it was always peaceful to be surrounded by nature and fresh air.

After a few moments of taking in the new additions to the City, Shizuko continued his walk through the Village, eventually arriving towards the Mission Outpost, as he looked through the lists of missions available, nothing concerning rose up, all except one: Several smaller Village's were under attack by a new group of bandits, it seemed they plagued both the Land of Fire and the Land of Water, and Shizuko feared they would slowly close in on Konohagakure. He would have to assemble a team of Shinobi to stop said bandits, however it seemed he would be capable alone with just the assistance of the ANBU Ninja, but even a Kage requires help sometimes. He slowly stuffed the mission details into his satchel, and walked away from the Outpost off to another location.

Thunderclouds slowly began to roll over Konohagakure, and most of the country, with a slight roar that could echo for miles on end, rain began to pour from the skies. It was odd how constantly it was raining in Konohagakure, there had to be some explanation towards it, but perhaps some things just happen for a reason, either way it was healthy for the Village to receive some rain.

While on his walk, Shizuko began to think about his recently deceased brother, Tatsuma. He thought about how little he truly knew him, and couldn't help but think of the now missing Konohagakure ninja, perhaps if Tatsuma hadn't attacked, that ninja would still be apart of Konohagakure, and the newly appointed Tsuchikage, he had seemed calm at during that encounter, but had suddenly become unstable. And last, but not least, the Missing-Ninja, Satoshi Uchiha. He had the same ideals as Shizuko did, however he seemed a bit unstable, and even maniacal. Shizuko had hoped there was another Uchiha who saw what he did, and what was slowly happening to both Konoha and the Uchiha Clan, but halted the thought after finally arriving to a shop located in a Uchiha-populated district, and entered a local ramen shop to enjoy a meal, slowly slipping down into a booth-seat and laid back with a sigh.

It was just another morning, like any other. The sun was in the sky, just slowly rising above the horizon leaving an orange tinge in the area. Matsu had been awake all night, reading a good book with a smile on his face. It was a habit of his that he never seemed to be able to fully break. Stretching his arms, he would let out a silent yawn, hearing his stomach grumble loudly. Cringing and putting both of his hands on his stomach, he would roll over out of his bed, placing both of his feet on the floor and taking a quick shower before changing into his normal attire.

It was early morning, so he could slip out quickly and quietly before his parents even noticed. Grabbing his bag, he would sling it over his back quietly, putting his gloves on and putting his katana on his back before opening a window and leaping out. He could feel the wind shooting upward as he flew downwards toward the ground. Landing on both feet, he would place a single hand on his pouch and the other on the ground to stabilize himself as he landed. Feeling the grass between his fingers, the dew would soak into his gloves. With a groan, he would pat his hand on his pants, lightly trying to dry his hands.

He would turn his head to look at his home once more before smiling and leaving the yard and heading towards the inner portions of the village. He needed to get a bowl of ramen and he knew the best place to get one. Placing both of his hands in his pockets, he would walk through the streets, occasionally waving to people he knew from the Exams and the Academy. They gave a nostalgic feeling with each encounter. Thunder would sound overhead, making him sigh to himself. It was early morning, yet it was already about time for rain. It meant today's training session would be terrible, but effective.

Upon reaching the Ramen shop he would walk to a stool, sitting on it and hitting a bell gently to notify the waiters that he was there. In the corner of his eye, he would notice an older Uchiha sitting at a booth with an ANBU ninja. Matsu would shrug, laying his head on the table, thinking, Huh... Must be someone important... Oh well... From a distance, Matsu would look more like a Senju than an Uchiha due to the lack of spikes in his hair, but he wore their clan symbol. Matsu definitely knew an Uchiha when he saw one though. Living with a Senju and an Uchiha, it was easy for him to distinguish the differences.

Amari would wake up like she always did. Way earlier than she should have. That came with her lifestyle though. She wouldn't sleep quite as much as she had once been capable of. Regardless, laying in bed wasn't going to do anything, so she would rise and head for a shower. It was already wet, so it was obvious who else was already up and about. Their parents never got up this early anymore after all. Rushing through the shower and getting ready in a hurry, Amari would knock on her brother's door before entering anyway after a moment.

He was already gone then? No matter she knew where to find the boy this early. He could only have gone to one of two places after all. The first stop would be his favorite ramen shop. Grabbing a bit of money and heading out the door, Amari was careful not to make too much noise. Though she didn't really mind if their parents woke up at this point. They were both already gone after all. They had to train today anyway. Just because they had achieved Chuunin recently didn't make them exempt from training. If anything it was more important now that they would be getting more dangerous missions.

Outside the rain would fall on the girl. After making it a block from her house she would slow to a snail's pace. She loved the rain after all. It was the most lovely thing in the world to the girl. Simply wishing to savor the time in the rain she was in no rush to catch up to her brother. Matsu wouldn't be missing her anyway. He was simply going to be eating noodles regardless. If he wasn't there her had gone to beat her to the training grounds, but with this weather she highly doubted it. This was Amari's weather not his flavor.

Arriving at the ramen shop, Amari would walk through the entrance flaps and simply take a seat beside her brother. What's the big idea taking off without me anyway? You coldn't wait five minutes? Amari wasn't really looking around the shop. Nothing exciting ever happened around here anyways. Besides she wasn't interested with anyone here besides Matsu and the cook. Raising her hand, he'd give her a nod knowing what she'd want. She'd cross her arms on the bar as she waited for Matsu to answer her at this point.

The rain continued to pour down overhead, black clouds covered the skies as the force of the wind began to pick up, so powerful even the tree's were squirming at the force of it, even smaller objects were being tossed around, towards homes, shops and even people. It didn't seem like it was safe to even go outside at the time, not a very common storm. Shizuko was safe inside the shop, scribbling one of his various drawings, his clothes and hair were already soaked, he had been caught in the storm before he arrived at the shop. Cold and wet clothes didn't really bother him, he could have been in worse condition. Once the chef had finally delivered his meal, he slammed his notebook shut, sliding it into his satchel to enjoy his hot & fresh meal, a nice bowl of ramen. While he was eating, he turned to his side to notice the ANBU standing beside him, she seemed almost lifeless and stiff, like a statue, and he thought of something and asked the Shinobi, Quite rude of me not asking earlier, but what is your name? the shop was empty at the moment, and he was quite bored, he might as well learn the name of a ninja protecting his every moment.

The ANBU replied shortly, only stating, You may call me Karasu.. This peaked Shizuko's interest, his favorite animal, he didn't mention much of it but he simply nodded. Karasu.. I like it. he shrugged, resuming his meal as he listened to the storm, timing the difference from the flash of light and the delay of thunder, it always comforted him as a child during a storm, making him able to tell if the storm was traveling farther and farther away, sadly this wasn't theot case now. The eye of the storm hovered directly over Konohagakure, feeling the full force of it's power. After a moment or two, Shizuko heard the bell from the counter, usually signalling they were ready to order, Shizuko couldn't help but turn to see who it was, it seemed it was just a regular boy. At first glance, he seemed to be of the Senju Clan, but his eyes told a different story, the black onyx eyes belonged to that of an Uchiha, and directly on his chest and arm spotted that of the Uchiha clan symbol.

No more than a few minutes later was an entry of another individual, but the clan she belonged to was much more easily spotted. Her description fit that of an Uchiha, with the onyx eyes of an Uchiha, that with her long jet-black hair. Perhaps the two were a pair? Quickly turning his attention back to himself, and pulled out a hand full of Ryo and placed it on his table, for payment for the meal and pulled out one of his various books from his satchel, stretching out and laid back to enjoy his time reading, it wasn't a good idea to go outside at the time.

While it wasn't truely any of her business, Karasu turned to Shizuko in order to ask a good question Hokage-Sama, what of the mission? Surely we cannot wait until more bandits begin to attack more of the outer Villages. Shizuko quickly looked up from his book, turning towards the ANBU Ninja, About time you said something. And we will be assisting the outer Villages with the problem of the bandits, but we can't just run into a Village and expect the Bandits to show themselves for a fight to the death. They're most likely hidden, and large in number.. So we'll need to gather Shinobi for the mission, and then lay out a trap.. as he shrugged it off, turning back to the attention of the book. He didn't know who he was going to recruit for such an important mission, but there were a large amount of Chuunin recently becoming part of Konoha's ranks, perhaps he could gather a few of them?

Apparently he wasn't silent enough as soon after entering the shop and taking his seat, he would hear the sound of Amari, scolding him for leaving on his own. Grumbling then pressing his face into his arms, he would apologize. He was too tired to go back and forth with the girl right now, though on a better day, he may have argued just for the fun of it. No... Today was a little bit tiring and he was a little on edge from lack of sleep. He would listen in on the conversation happening at the other side of the room and groan again, speaking arbitrarily, If you're an ANBU ninja running around in plain sight and throwing your name where everyone can hear. You're an idiot. While he hadn't yet heard the woman refer to him as "Hokage-Sama" yet, it would not have swayed his opinion on the two. Besides, there were always guaranteed idiots in power.

A waitress would return with bowls of food for both himself and Amari, placing them down before them. Though Matsu would notice, he would keep his head down on his arms, too tired to actually begin eating. The sound of his stomach growling would ring out, rather loud, like a bear trying to escape the confines of his stomach. Amariii... Do we have to train today? It's a horrible day out. He was hoping she's say "No" so he could just go back to his room and gain all the sleep he missed out on while he was reading his books. However, he knew how much she loved this weather and knew she was likely to ensure that he get his just desserts, especially for his earlier statement about the Hokage being an idiot.

Lifting his head up, he would grab the chopsticks, picking up his bowl and eating from it at a fairly slow pace. It was surprising how sloe he was eating, considering the sound his stomach had just made. It was almost as if he was trying his best to savor the food, to reject his worldly wants and need to eat. It was a personal achievement of his as he had taken after his father who was into all of that "Budda Mumbo-Jumbo" that people often coined it as. Continuing to eat, he would speak to the Hokage, listening in on the mission he had planned. You know. You could just let me take the mission. I can get them all with no problem. A couple of bandits aren't really enough to stop me. He had a smile on his face, as even he couldn't deny the cocky demeanor of what he had just said. If the bandits were enough to alert the Hokage, then they must have been something serious.

Either Matsu was particularly sure of himself, or was unaware of the actual situation. In either case, he was sure he'd be able to handle the situation whether on his own or with the help of others. Matsu was very capable with his sword and he always had tricks up his sleeves. He was always one to think 2 steps ahead of his enemies. Continuing to eat his bowl of food slowly, he would sigh, placing the bowl back on the table and taking a small amount of food from Amari's bowl. Smiling, he would get up, walking to the Hokage while absolutely ignoring the ANBU and sit down at the booth, leaning on the table saying, So what's the mission? He was being a dick and he knew it. Didn't mean he couldn't have a little fun though. More than anything, he was almost hoping that the ANBU might try and stop him from sitting here. It would be a good laugh if he got into a fight with one of the Hokage's Guards.

Learning by Word Count:

Spoiler:

Amari would glare at her brother after his comment about what was apparently an anbu to one side of the shop. Though she wouldn't say anything this time, she was thinking of plenty of ways to kill him quietly later. Why would he go picking a fight here of all places? True it wasn't smart to use a real name, but who was to say that was her real name? It could simply be a name for the man she was with to call her by. At this point it was likely to be their Kage, who Amari hadn't actually met face to face with ever, but she wouldn't go so far as to claim such knowledge yet. It would make the most sense in this situation yes, but that didn't mean anything was guaranteed. Amari wasn't one to act on intuitions. She had to know for sure to make a move. Which happened to be the opposite of her brother here who would now begin to complain about going out to train in this beautiful weather.

Oh no! You're not getting out of another training session! This is our first one since that "break" you demanded after getting Chuunin. We can't start slacking now... Why she was scolding him, he would steal her food though she was likely to not eat it all anyway. Pulling her bowl away from his greedy hands she would begin to eat her ramen. She wasn't incredibly hungry, but she'd need to eat to go train later. Matsu took this opportunity to sneak away. Well it would have been better if he had snuck away actually. At this point he was further harassing the man in the booth and his guard. Quickly finishing her bowl Amari would toss a few coins on the table for the food before rushing to drag away the moron.

Mitsuaki! He would know she wasn't happy when she used his full name. She didn't care though. She wanted him to know he was out of bounds on this one. Why! why! why! Do you always have to start trouble? Why can't we just have one day where I don't have to keep you in check brother? She was already almost to the booth at this point. As she arrived in front of the trio she would give a small bow in apology for the boy that had taken a seat across from the man. Amari would grab Matsu's arm and attempt to pull him out at this point, though if he actually wished to resist her she knew very well he out powered her by quite a bit at this point.

This reminded her of times past though. Whether that be in the academy or simply on a mission as a genin. Matsu was always looking to start trouble. She was always there to try and bail him out though. That was the way things worked after all. Though no matter how stupid of a mistake he made, Amari couldn't stay mad at the boy. Couldn't stay mad at her brother. After all he had saved her and helped her just as much, whether he would admit that or not it was true. Besides he was her best friend too. It wasn't simply blood that bound them to each other. It was something more than that. A trust and a need for one another. At least that was how the Uchiha viewed her life at this point. If it would stay this way remained to be seen, though she hoped it would.

Shizuko popped his head up from his book, turning towards the direction of the reply from the young man, mumbling on about one of them was an idiot, probably a derogative reply at that, Shizuko showed off a bit of a grin, it seemed this young Shinobi was a bit cocky. Listening onto the conversation of the two, the boy seemed lack luster about continuing his training, and apparently had been slacking off of it, apparently since he had become a Chunin, which gave him the clarity of their rank. Shizuko let out a reply, What are you talking about? Today couldn't be better for training, a rainy day is a perfect day. as he silently snickered, and listened on the young girls reply towards whom appeared to be her brother.

Karasu wasn't really phased by the reply at all, it was simply a name, and a codename at that. ANBU Ninja weren't known for giving their real names to anyone, it was simply something for the Hokage to call her by, and she shrugged it off. After the boy had stood up and began to walk closer to the Hokage, she stood up and reached under her cloak, opening up her satchel and nearly pulling out a kunai, but looked back to Shizuko, and noticed a hand motion to let him pass, slamming the satchel shut, and stood out of the way. Karasu's assessment on the boy was that he might have been too cocky, or she really just didn't like him.

Shizuko smirked at the young boy, he seemed to be confident to the point he believed he could take on the mission himself, even though he couldn't, he instead grinned towards the young boy, No offence, but I don't give out important missions like these to lone wolves, something like this will take a little teamwork. as he stretched out, looking down towards the Chunin, he had rested his head on the table, something Shizuko usually did when exhausted from long nights as he smirked, pulling out a piece of paper from his satchel, and laid it on the table.

A large group of bandits have been raiding several of the outer Villages, and they're slowly closing in onto Konohagakure, we don't know who they are, what they look like, or how many of them exist. Which is why I am wanting to play it safe and gather up a team, and lay out a trap for them. as he turned, noticing that the young girl had shown a bow as sign of apology, as he nodded towards her, looking at the fact she was trying to drag the boy away.

Yeah yeah yeah... I wont be a problem anymore. You can't exactly expect me to be particularly polite either though Amari. You know that's not how I am. He would laugh at his statement to his sister. It was true, he had been quite a bit of a burden in her eyes, or at least, that's how he allowed himself to appear. Of course, who would expect the fool to be protecting everyone. He would let out a silent yawn, scratching his head and leaning back in the seat to a relaxed, reclined position. The rain had finally begun to pour down and the thunder was rolling throughout the village. That was it, he had decided already, he wasn't training today and there was nothing Amari could do to make him. With a smirk on his face, he would look to Amari, ignoring the comment Shizuko had made about the weather. You know you're not making me train in that weather. I think I'm gonna go take a good long nap. With his hands on the table across from the Hokage, he would feel the tug of Amari trying to pull him from the seat. Standing and removing the hand of the girl from his arm, he would speak to the Hokage with a smirk on his face. Oh... Did I say alone? I meant with Amari here. I wouldn't leave her behind while I take all the fun. Matsu had gotten to the point where he really didn't care anymore. He yawned and stretched, looking at the Hokage, saying, Here's my offer. Me and Amari can take that mission and get it off your hands. Or we can't. Simple as that. Either way I'm going to go sleep for the next 16 hours. A smile crept across his face. As if what he had said was somehow evil or dark.

Either way. It doesn't really matter to me. If you deny, I'll just get more sleep. If you accept, you'll have a set of bandits off of your hands. Walking to the door, he would wait for his sister with a single hand on the door. Let's get out of here. I wanna get you home before this weather gets you sick. Dad'll kick my ass for letting you go out in the rain. He would wait for her reply, probably something along the lines of "But you know I love the rain, let's stay out a little longer." But Matsu wasn't buying it. Mostly because he wanted sleep, but he really did want to get the girl back home. He knew how much their mother and father worried about her, especially due to her smaller frame. He himself was small, but he was far more muscular than her and as a result, he was seen as a tad bit more resilient to the elements than she.

Learning:

Spoiler:

Amari would like at the boy with eyes that would give off a "the hell I can't kind of look." It was true that was not normally how he acted, but Amari could dream. She always had to keep him out of trouble. That was okay though, that's how her brother was and she could handle keeping him in check as long as she was actually with him. She wouldn't say anything further on his comment though, it was the next comment that would get her to arguing. What do you mean we aren't training!? You can't be scared of a little rain! Besides... You don't actually have to train in the rain... You could actually train from that booth right now at this point... I was waiting to show you after I had made sure it was ready, but I suppose I can do it today. Matsu wasn't really listening to her at this point though it seemed, he was starting to talk to the Hokage again. Something about them going to fight some bandits. How troublesome. Though it would allow a bit of training, even if bandits were child's play when it came to fighting. Amari could test genjutsu on them like anyone else though so that would be fine. I wouldn't exactly call it fun... That was all she'd say on that point and it was mainly to her brother. She really didn't care either way for the Hokage's answer. She was going to train genjutsu one way or the other. At this point Amari would just stand there with her arm's crossed still fuming about his earlier remark about not training in this beautiful weather.

As he waited at the door now talking about taking her home Amari would give him a go to hell look for not letting her play in the rain, but she knew he was right in the knowledge that their parents would worry if they didn't go home. Fine, but you know I'm going to get you for this... It was kind of an empty threat, but she would annoy him over it. She couldn't do a whole lot to him and he would know it, but that didn't mean she couldn't use nasty genjutsu. She'd be upset about not getting to sit out in the rain, but she'd make sure to walk her slowest back to the house. That would annoy Matsu most likely but she didn't care. Amari was going to enjoy the rain at least a little bit. Perhaps she'd even get him to go the long way home, though that one would be pushing it.

Shizuko remained seated for a moment or two, not giving off any response. He sighed, looking up to the boy who was about to walk off, the Chunin offered a take it or leave it deal, but it didn't grab him right. Sitting up quickly, he rolled out his right shoulder, releasing cracking sound from it. He shook his head after the word "Fun" was mentioned, nothing was fun about lives being taken and Villages being overthrown, but Shizuko was feeling a little lenient today. Before the boy and the girl were about to depart, Shizuko repliedOoooooor, you do the mission like I said, I like that idea. he smiled, It's no longer up for debate, so I'll see you then.. As took a hold of the satchel he had sat beside him, and slung it over his shoulder and headed for the other exit. We leave tomorrow afternoon, find me at the gates and be prepared. and slowly walked out of the shop and into the storm.

The eye of the storm slowly began to pass over Konohagakure, and the rain finally let down slightly, the light of the sun could be seen burrowing from the thunder storm. Shizuko was still on his way home, his clothes drenched by the rain and probably anything that wasn't water-resistant in his bag was destroyed. He didn't seem to really mind though, he was more focused on the personality of the young Chunin, boy seemed overly full of himself, and didn't seem like one to take orders well. As he finally arrived near his home, he yawned slightly, it was only noon and he already felt exhausted, exhausted by doing nothing at all. He was going to spend the rest of the day planning out the mission, and prepare himself for what was to come.

[LEFT]

Before the boy could leave the building, he would hear the Hokage respond to his rather rash statement. Just as he had expected, he was given the mission, although by the wording, it seemed as if he was scheduled to be working with other shinobi. Actually, it seemed as though he was to be working along side the Hokage himself, which wasn't exactly ideal in his own books, but would do anyway. He would have no time to respond as immediately, the man would get up and leave through the other exist, leaving only Amari and himself in the small bar.

Smiling to his sister, he would wrap his arm around her shoulder and speak in a tone he had reserved especially for her, Sorry I get into so much trouble Amari. You know I don't mean to. It was a soft tone, something that he'd never talk to anyone else in that represented his trust for her. It helped convey the fact that he was genuinely apologizing for the behavior he had displayed just prior. An apology was something that he would very rarely give to anyone aside from her. Deep down, although he didn't always agree with every idea he had, he did believe they were done for good reason. He always had a secret plan going on.

Removing his arm from around her, he would punch her shoulder playfully before exiting the building. He would attempt to lighten up the situation by adding a playful tone. Come on slow poke! I'll race ya home! Before the girl could answer, he would turn and dart off through the rain not particularly caring whether she would partake or not. Though he didn't much care for rain, he always found a bit of enjoyment when running through the rain. In the back of his mind, he would make it is goal to avoid getting wet, making a sort of game out of dodging rain drops. Though it was in vain.

{LEFT}

So that was how this was going to end up? Amari was going to get stuck with a mission all of a sudden because Mitsuaki couldn't keep his mouth shut? Looking a bit dejected, the Uchiha would simply sigh and leave it alone. It was an issue from the Hokage after all, and there really was no use in trying to fight it. She could go handle a few bandits either way. Eveen if it was something that was likely meant for some jounin that was off fighting and couldn't do it. At this point the Kage would simply walk out though, apparently not wanting any backlash from Mitsuaki and his big mouth. It was likely a smart move on his part. Mitsuaki wasn't one to just shut up and listen even if things were going his way.

At this point Mitsuaki would begin talking to her. His voice had changed since their guest had left. Changed to that little tone that he wouldn't actually let anyone one else hear. Though if he did it would likely mean less arguments. You really are such a pain, you know that? He wouldn't take it seriously and it was truly just a jab at her brother for always getting into trouble. It was fine though, they needed the mission count anyways if they wanted to ever be promoted again. Couldn't just sit around doing nothing and get to be a jounin after all.

The little punch that came next was one that she wouldn't take as kindly to. As he took off into the rain saying something about a race, Amari would rush out the door simply to create a mirror directly in front of her beloved brother hoping to cause him to fall as he would crash through the imaginary mirror. Looking back to the sky, she wasn't about to run home in such lovely weather. No, she'd take the long way and take her time. It was a beautiful day...

[left]