Weasel kneeled before Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage of the Hidden Leaf and the God of Shinobi, but the atmosphere was rather calm. Lord third sat behind his desk, working tirelessly on endless paperwork, but he soon turned to the Ambu awaiting him.
"Ah, Weasel, what do you have for me today?" He smiled.
Weasel held out a scroll, which detailed the events of last night. "Kumo attempted an attacked last night through rogue shinobi. They wished to take advantage of the chaos from the Day of Ashes and pick off as many of our young as they could. We intercepted their plans before any real damage could be done and eliminated them."
"Hmm..." Hiruzen read the report for himself, raising his brows when he reached the end. "What's this about a possible recruit? You've yet to suggest anyone thus far."
Weasel nodded. "Kano Masaru, 11 years old and in his final year in the academy. He started his career as a shinobi nearly three months ago and has quickly risen to the level of an experienced or elite genin. I believe that by his scheduled graduation in six months that he will reach the level of chunin in strength."
Hiruzen became increasingly surprised by Weasel's words. Let alone him personally bringing in a potential recruit to Ambu, but he was even praising him, suggesting that his talent may even be close to his own. He thought about it for a long moment, and couldn't find anything wrong with the idea of bringing him into the Ambu.
His eyes drifted towards the book shelf on the side of the room, which he knew stored the Hokage's personal file room. On a particular shelf in that room, there was a mission report detailing the events in which Masaru was found and the horrors that were found with him. To this day they had no idea what had been done to the boy, but if he was in the Ambu he could be monitored even closer than before.
So, Hiruzen nodded. "I approve, but he'll have to pass all the tests as usual."
Weasel nodded. "I understand Lord Hokage."
Hiruzen thought for a moment, then spoke again. "How is your clan doing?"
"They are growing more resentful of their situation every day, but they've yet to bring up resorting to violence. Current talks are about requesting your help but the hardliners keep refusing."
"Hmm...and if I did try to appease them? How would they react?"
Weasel thought for a moment. "The hardliners would see it as an affront to their pride as a clan, but most others would be open to talks."
Hiruzen leaned back in his chair, rubbing his eyes. "It's unfortunate that these hardliners are mostly elders and jonin within the Uchiha..."
"Keep watching for now and inform me if anything important comes up in these talks."
Weasel nodded, and disappeared from the office, leaving Hiruzen to sit in silence.
"..." He sighed heavily, and returned to his work, determined to finish early and spend time with his son.
---
"Ugh..." Masaru groaned, using his hand to block the sunlight peeking through the blinds. His arm found a home over his eyes and for a long time, he just laid there.
He was...tired. The fight had drained him more than he'd like to admit, but maybe that was to be expected as his first real fight with enemy shinobi. However he was more than physically tired.
Truthfully, he felt numb. As a man from a peaceful era one of the many things he never though he'd have to do was kill. He didn't regret it of course but...he barely hesitated. '...I killed them all. I did it so quickly too. It was...ea..sy?'
The...the thought that it was so easy to end a life made him queasy. After coming home the night before, he'd sat and stared at his hands for what felt like hours. He knew he'd have to get used to it eventually, but still, it was his first time killing.
Eventually, he forced himself to sit up, and his eyes drifted to his katana, which he'd already cleaned and oiled before bed. He frowned, and decided to get up.
Soon, he found himself walking through the streets, not really having a destination in mind but desperately needing to do something other than sit and think.
It felt as if he were drifting through a crowd of ghosts. His eyes were glued to his feet, and he barely registered anyone else's presence. He simply walked for a long time, trying to come to terms with himself.
It wasn't that he was messed up about the fact that he had killed, but rather that it had been far too easy. It felt almost like he was something less than human, and he didn't like that feeling. If there was anything that he wanted to keep, it was his life and his humanity.
He sighed heavily as his feet stopped. Looking up, he found himself near the Hokage building, in fact he was right at the entrance to the graveyard. Lingering for a moment, he walked in.
"...So many names." Each headstone had dozens of names on them, each representing a shinobi or villager who had died. There were so many here who didn't even have a proper burial, their bodies laying somewhere else, or left on a battlefield.
He sighed again, but a name caught his eye. "Kano."
He'd found the Kano clan's section. Walking through the isle, he felt strange. These were the names of his ancestors. His great-grand parents, his uncles and aunts, his cousins, his kin. Except they weren't.
He was an impostor. A wandering soul who had stolen the body of a scarred child and taken over his life. His old name had been David. His parents were devout in their faith, so they believed if they named him David, he'd be able to overcome any challenges that come his way. He'd never been religious, and perhaps that was why he and his family had become estranged.
So now, standing before the monuments of Masaru's kinsmen, he felt more alone now than he ever had.
|AN| This is a stick up! If you've read this far gimmie your stones! No exceptions people!