Masaru found himself sitting atop the Hokage monument after his morning training, watching the sunrise as the village woke up. The air brushed through his new haircut.
He had had most of it chopped off, making it much shorter. Now it's length barely reached down to his ears, but it felt much better than the mess he had before. And now he didn't have to worry about brushing it every morning.
Masaru sat there for a long time, letting himself enjoy the silence. It was one of the many things that a man from a more modern world often lacked- the tranquility of nature. Of course that tranquility came with many other dangers, but he was already working towards eliminating those.
"...But I can't do it all on my own." He knew this. His goals were far too lofty for him to accomplish by himself, thus he needed to gather other people around him, those he could trust...those he could lead.
It was an idea for the near future, as he'd need to at least graduate to truly start, but it was good to think of it now. 'A secret group like the Akatsuki.'
Maybe not what they were now, but what they were when they were founded. Something to protect his village from all sides. All clans and all civilians. Everyone who deserved protecting. It would be a group that waited in the shadows before making themselves known very...Loudly.
'But what to call it?' He thought to himself. The image of a young man he had yet to meet in this world as of yet flashed through his head, and the name had come to him. "Amatsukami."
Masaru sighed. He hoped he really could save those people he admired when he watched the show. He'd already met one of them, and he couldn't wait to meet another...
"Well, actually, maybe meeting him can wait." He shivered when his mind brought up the image of those eyes. He'd have to wait until he was stronger to really face them.
But a smile still found it's way to his lips once again as he stood up and stretched for the day. "Good things will come as they will...Okay!" He slapped his cheeks. "Back to training!"
---
Kano Genzo had a faint smile on his face as he watched the boy spar with one of his cousins. 'He's grown so much in such a short time.'
The image of the frail boy they'd brought him overlapped with the boy swinging his katana. He was already filling out his frame nicely, and it wouldn't be long until he looked truly healthy again. It filled Genzo's heart to see his old friend's child get better again, and the fire in his eyes had only grown every time he saw him.
He watched as Masaru switched from two handed to one, his now free right hand forming hand signs. 'One handed signs at 11?' He thought with surprise.
Masaru's katana split, forming what was commonly known as the whip-blade. Of course, they were using dulled swords, but being hit with one would still hurt.
His blade split just as his cousin was attacking, allowing him to wrap the fragments around it in a firm grasp. He yanked hard as his cousin panicked, clearly not used to having this tactic used against him. Plus, Masaru had timed it very well. Any trained fighter wouldn't give up the opportunity that is a dropped guard, especially mid attack.
Masaru finished the fight with a quick combo, elbowing his cousin to the side of the jaw to disorient him, then letting go of his katana and slamming both palms into his ears, and finally slipping behind him and bringing him down in a rear choke.
Haruto struggled for a moment, but eventually tapped out, gasping for breath when Masaru let go. A smile worked at Masaru's lips at yet another win, but he quickly quenched it. He couldn't get cocky when he'd only beaten someone so...weak.
No, he couldn't ever get cocky. That would only get him slaughtered.
He sighed as he got up, looking down on Haruto. He was his cousin, his mom being sisters with Masaru's mom. Masaru listed for a moment before holding out a hand. "Sorry I was so rough, I hope your ears are alright."
Haruto shook the ringing from his ears and pulled himself to his feet with Masaru's help, shrugging as he did so. "Nah, it's cool. I knew I'd lose to someone eventually, just didn't expect it to be...well, you. No offence."
Masaru took his words as a compliment rather than an insult. "None taken. It just means I'm growing stronger." He grinned.
Haruto laughed, grabbing his arm and dragging him over to the others. They were all younger than the two of them, but all of them were in the academy. And, they were wearing white kimono, just like everyone else present.
Today was the Day of Ashes, the founding anniversary of the Kano clan. They themselves had never given it a name, rather it was the other inhabitants of Konoha who had given it a name. One year someone had called it a 'Sea of ash', because of their ash gray hair, and the name had stuck, despite the simpleness of it.
"Can you explain it to me again?" Masaru asked Haruto as they approached the group of younger shinobi.
Haruto nodded. "Despite the fact that we value precision, as its the main aspect of our main technique, we in the Kano clan enjoy our parties. We like to have big celebrations every chance we get, because we know that one day some of us won't be here anymore, so why not enjoy it while we can?"
Masaru looked at Haruto differently, admiring how mature his thinking was. "So today is one of those big celebrations?"
Haruto grinned. "The biggest! Don't worry, you'll enjoy it. Now come on, you've got to meet the others!"
Masaru shook his head and decided to just live in the moment for the night. He felt a smile appear as something bubbled up from his chest. 'My troubles are months away at the very least...I can relax for one night.'