ABOUT US

[Ruuji]

Time: April the 16th 11:46 PM
Location: Hi no Kuni, close to the border of Izumi no Kuni

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One peculiar thing about Tokage no Ruuji was that despite being, in the eyes of an average person, a monster on the outside and the inside, at times he could come off as pretty average and rather pleasant to be around. Or perhaps it wasn’t peculiar at all. Considering he was polite, talkative and well-read, and like a regular person he preferred the cool outdoors above the damp and musky hideout Hebi now had for a base.

These hideouts once belonged to Orochimaru, and they dotted the shinobi world like flees on a mutt. Well-hidden, it was all thanks to Sasuke that they were able to locate them at all. The white snake had great need of such secrecy, having a bounty that could ensure Ruuji a life of luxury and gluttony and still leave him with enough to ensure the same for his kids if he had them. Add to that the fact that the Akatsuki also wanted him dead, and the lizardman’s own problems with the occasional squad of hunter-nin seemed like a stroll in the park.

The Madman of the Hidden Mist sighed as he sat down on a tree stump, putting down an oil lantern and fetching a book from his pocket. The book in question was titled “Tales of a Gutsy Ninja”, often neglected in favor of the author’s more popular “Make Out” series. Once you got into it, however, it was quite the intriguing novel, if a bit surrealistic.

The sound of rustling grass distracted him from his readings. "Hunter-nin? My oil light would make me an easy target.." He listened more closely. The slow , casual pace and the heaviness of the steps implied that the entity closing in was merely taking a stroll. Not at all the behavior of someone out to take his life…

Then, suddenly his hand shot into his pouch, clenched around a kunai and threw it towards the sound in the same motion of pulling his hand up from his pouch again. The knife sunk into a tree just a few inches from a pale face, slightly orangey in the light of the oil lamp. Two green eyes and jet black hair decorated the face.

”Sukkiriyoichi Genkotsu… you’re out late for a stroll...”

[Sukkiriyochi Genkotsu]

Yesterday had proved to be a dramatic change of Genkotsu's very life. He had snuck back into Yugakure to secretly meet with Mori Miyu, a girl who had stolen his heart and was now carrying his child, been chased by a mob of drunk men, confronted by a group of renegade shinobi who each had the power to kill him without breaking a sweat, was recruited into their group and ferreted out of Yugakure and Izumi no Kuni.

Now Genkotsu's world was as different as it had been the day after he had attacked his brother. How long ago was that? That had been mid-August and it was now April. Eight months he thought. Eight long months. So much had happened. So many changes. The most recent being Uchiha Sasuke and his Hebi organization that Genkotsu was now a part of.

After escaping Izumi no Kuni and entering Fire Country, Genktosu had traveled with his new...comrades?...to a strange hideout. Genktosu had been told by Ubume that it once belonged to a Konoha Senin named Orochimaru. Now it was utilized as a temporary waypoint for Hebi in its travels. A place to rest for a night to avoid those who would prefer to capture or kill the Uchiha and his comrades.

Rikai Ubume was perhaps the most familiar of the three. Genkotsu had run into her on several seperate occasions. Enough to make him believe in that saying 'Its a small world' though he had never gotten her real name until now. If indeed it was her real name.

Tokage no Ruuji was quite the site to behold, but nothing so unique as to make Genkotsu cringe. When one grew up in Takigakure one grew used to some of the more bizzare concepts of life given the plethora of blood limits that had coalesced within the Hidden Waterfall.

Uchiha Sasuke was a diffent story all together. He had a quiet certainty about him that Genkotsu both admired and feared. While he did not know the details of the older ninja's past, he knew of the massacre many years ago that left him the only one of his clan. Genkotsu could very easily sympathize with the pain of losing parents.

The hideout they were staying in for the night seemed masive in an intangible way. Genkotsu had thought to explore it, but the combination of a subtle warning from Sasuke about the possible dangers within and Genkotsu's own disquiet about the place drove him back out to the surface. The forest around the hideout was more familiar to Genkotsu. The last eight months had been spent largley on the land, hiding in these forests to prevent being found. Disappearing into the landscape. That he had lasted this long made him feel more relaxed in the trees.

Genkotsu had not really paid much attention to where he was traveling until a kunai slammed into a tree about an inch or two in front of him. Genkotsu then noticed the lamp light and looked towards it. Tokage no Ruuji was holding the light and smirking at him, obviously the one who had thrown the kunai.

"As are you," Genkotsu said when Ruuji commented that Genkotsu was out late, his expression unflinching despite the recent kunai near his face. "I take more comfort in the forest than I do in the hideout. I appologize if I have intruded upon you, Tokage no Ruuji." Genkotsu kept his tone respectful, as he did with all members of Hebi. He did not look very forward to meeting the other three that Ubume had informed him about.

[Ruuji]

Ruuji’s eyes narrowed as he observed Genkotsu. This boy who had been exiled from Taki was the newest addition to the ever growing Hebi. And old acquaintance of Ubume, the Uchiha’s group had encountered Genkotsu in Yugakure, where they had followed and questioned him in the hopes of learning something new about the Akatsuki. And that he did.

Apparently the organization was looking for the nine tailed beasts. Huge, sentient beings of pure chakra that were often used as weapons by whatever village that could get its hands on them. Whatever the Akatsuki was going to use them for was a mystery, but it would probably mean hell for the shinobi world. Ruuji found it quite an interesting scenario.

As for Genkotsu, the boy had proved valuable beyond giving them information as the conversation yesterday had ended with him joining Hebi. Apparently Sasuke had seen potential in the child. Whether or not he could live up to his expectations would mean the difference in becoming a valuable member or a pawn easily sacrificed. While it was true that he possessed an interesting Kekkei Genkei, its power couldn’t be properly judged by pitting it against drunk townsmen.

In either case, Ruuji was curious about the boy, both in what he was going to become and how he had became. What was a person so young doing so far from home, living all by himself? The lizard estimated Genkotsu to be about 15, if not younger. He had probably been a mere genin when he left Takigakure no Sato. He was still of the kind of age where people didn’t even have a clear view of themselves, let alone the world as a whole.

”Not at all, Genkotsu-kun. I was just reading. But please sit down.”, he said nudging towards another tree stump not far from here. Closing the book and putting it back in his pocket, he didn’t remove his eyes from Genkotsu at all. Ruuji had always been an unnerving fellow to look at. Even without his little secrets there was just something in his cold, yellow eyes that made most ordinary people feel uneasy. The ghastly, dim orange light that made them seem brighter only made that worse. ”Let’s talk. Let’s get to know each other. We will be spending a lot of time together from now on, and that time will be a lot more pleasant if we could get along.”

Ruuji wondered if Genkotsu had noticed the hidden threat in that last sentence.

[Sukkiriyochi Genkotsu]

Genkotsu was very curious about Tokage no Ruuji. He was very strange. In a terrifying way, of course. Genkotsu knew the axiom about curiosity and felines and he had no plans to satisfy the odd handful of questions he had about the yellow eyed man should there be any potential for an unfavorable outcome. Given the obvious difference in their abilities, there was a high probability of an unfavorable outcome.

Ruuji closed his book and slid it into a pocket. Genkotsu found it odd that the man was reading a novel. Genkotsu had never been much of a reader but he did enjoy intellectual conversation, verbal spars, and games of strategy and thought and he knew that well read people often challenged him in those venues.

He nodded politely at Ruuji's offer and approached the stump that had been offered as his seat. Unslinging the bow from across his back, Genkotsu sat down on the stump and rested the item across his lap. Had he sat down with it on his back he would have likely snapped the string. He'd done it twice before, and finding bows was more trouble than he cared tot hink about, so he was more cautious now.

"I agree," was Genkotsu's only comment in response to Ruuji's veiled threat. He resisted the urge to swallow nervous bile and his unchanging face couldn't betray the anxiety of the situation. "Anything in particular you wish to discuss? Or shall I open with a question first? If the latter, I am curious to know what book it was that you have been reading." He said with a nod to Ruuji's pocket.

[Ruuji]

Ruuji chuckled in his throat when Genkotsu sat down, not even the faintest hint of fear on his face. His reply made me wonder whether or not the young rogue had noticed his threat at all. If he did he was good at hiding it. Or perhaps it was just his way of bowing his head to a superior shinobi. In truth Ruuji could kill the boy right here and now if he felt like it. And depending on how much Sasuke valued Genkotsu in regards to Ruuji’s own power, he might easily get away with it.

”Hm?”, Ruuji said when Genkotsu started about the book he was reading, tracing the missing-nin’s nod toward his pocket. ”Nothing special, really.”, he said, reaching into his pocket and partially revealing the book. ”It’s a novel from the great Sannin from Konoha, Jiraiya. It’s probably one of his least known works, but I prefer it over his other novels that offer a more …..simple form of amusement.”, he said assuming Genkotsu knew at least a bit about the kind of novels Jiraiya the Toad Sage usually wrote. ”This one at least gives you something to think about..”

He slid the novel back into his pocket, a clear indication that this was obviously not the subject he wanted to talk about. He wasn’t interested in small talk. There were some things he wanted to know about Genkotsu first before he could properly judge the boy. ”Now there is something I would like to ask you. Something has piqued my interest yesterday when you decided to join us.”

He locked eyes with Genkotsu again. The boy was good at keeping a poker face, as a matter of fact Ruuji hadn’t seen any other expression on his face yet other than the passive leer he was currently displaying, but it was said that eyes were the mirror of one’s soul. He wondered what Genkotsu’s soul would be like after his question. Full of doubt? Intrigued? Or perhaps completely passive like his face.

”These people chasing you back in Yugakure no Sato. Drunk townsmen, you said they were? Once you lured them into that maze of grapevines – clever move by the way. Quite impressive – you had them at your mercy. You could’ve easily been rid of them with a stab from a kunai or a well-aimed shuriken but instead you spared their lives. You even wasted chakra and effort to spare their lives.” When Ruuji was finished, the final s lingered in the air for a while like the hiss of a snake, though it was unclear whether it was some sort of echo, a sound produced by the fire inside the oil lantern or if Ruuji was purposely prolonging the s softly just to unnerve Genkotsu.

When the air grew silent again, Ruuji’s mouth curved into a laid-back smile while as he shrugged in an act of innocent unknowingness. ”Why?”, he added not removing his yellow eyes from Genkotsu even one single moment.

[Sukkiriyochi Genkotsu]

Genkotsu couldn't shake the unease he felt around Tokage no Ruuji. Even the creepy throat chuckle that the man gave was spooky. In manner of presence, Ruuji was more frightening than Sasuke provided one was not very aware of the rumored talents of the Uchiha Clan.

The question about the book was answered yet not answered, since the title and synopsis of the book in question was not given. Ruuji merely referred to the author and gave his opinion on the works. Genkotsu did not feel it wise to persue the subject this far away from Ubume or Sasuke. Ruuji was likely faster than Genkotsu and he doubted his ability to evade the man long enough to make it back to the relative safety of the rest of Hebi.

Ruuji apparently decided to take advantage of Genkotsu's conversational opener and assailed him with a question of his own. Genkotsu did not wish to lock eyes with the madman, but to look away would be a display of his feelings and an admission of weakness. Still, the aspect of looking a beast in the eye was against Genkotsu's experience. The wilder the predator, the less challenging you wanted to seem.

The rogue teenager could not quite tell if Ruuji was genuinely curious about Genkotsu's motives for sparing the lives of the men who were chasing him, or if he knew the truth behind it and was simply asking hto give Genkotsu the opportunity to choose between the truth and a lie. The elongated "s" gave the man a very serpentine persona which unnerved Genkotsu.

"The men were indeed drunk," Genkotsu said, "Or most of them were. Some of them were simply caught up in the passions inspired by a mob. I had spent some time in Yugakure several months ago as an employee for one of the wealthier townsmen. I had to leave what was promising to be a relaxing and safe life when the man took offense to one of my actions. I do not regret what I did, but now I am no longer welcome in the village."

Genkotsu had begun speaking as sternly and unwaveringly as he had been forcing himself to be since begining to chat with Ruuji, but now his shoulders were slumped a little and his eyes were downcast. Thinking about Miyu and the distance between them only worsened his feeling of loss. Looking back up to Ruuji he continued.

"I chose not to kill them because, despite their attempts to hurt me and possibly kill me, if I were to harm them I would sever my ties to Yugakure forever. I cannot do that. Unfortunately, my use of my glass techniques to subdue them will very quickly spread and my village will track me to Yugakure. I doubt that I can ever return now." He let out a sigh at the thought, once more looking downward and resting his elbows on his knees.

[Ruuji]

Ruuji was quite aware of Genkotsu’s reluctance to lock eyes, or be anywhere near him for that matter. The younger criminal was in a tight position, his rational fear of the madman and (especially) what he could do to him in a fight keeping him here. Stuck between his desire to leave and the fear that doing so might anger Ruuji into attacking him. It was something even the Madman of the Hidden Mist, someone whose skill in killing vastly surpassed his skill in people, could see. And he loved it.

In truth, Ruuji wasn’t as apathetic toward people as many believed. Well, apathetic in a different way. It was no question that the lizardman genuinely believed that investing time and feelings in people in a war-ridden world like this, people that could very well be dead the next day, was a fools endeavor. One could only end up hurting oneself. That being said, he did realize the boredom that came with solitude. He needed other people, one way or another, to keep himself amused. This was often expressed in his bloodthirsty desire to face people in combat, though sometimes he enjoyed a more subtle kind of battle. He enjoyed scouting people’s psyche’s, trying to find the buttons that could make them feel and watch their reaction with amusement. And unfortunately for most people, negative emotions were both easier to evoke, more amusing to behold AND held less risk of getting involved feeling-wise for a monster like Ruuji.

”Ties to the village, hm?”, he said when Genkotsu was done, his face twisted into a smile wondering what it was exactly that caused the rogue to harbor such feelings toward Yugakure or even return to it in the first place. ”I hope you do realize bonds can prove deadly and crippling, especially for a criminal like yourself. What is the point of caring for a place you will and can never return to? Such bonds are best severed.”, the lizardman said with a smile.

What Ruuji was currently doing was feeling Genkotsu out. Similar to a child observing a toy and touching it on various points of its shape to determine where the buttons where and what it could do, so was the madman poking around in Genkotsu’s psyche, trying to figure out where his weak points were and how he could best attack those weak points.

”I could do it for you, you know?”, he offered after a short silence, his mouth still curled into a casual smile as if he were discussing the weather instead of the lives of innocents. His eyes, however, were glinting with a child-like mischief offering just a glance into his twisted psyche. ”I do not possess the power to take down an entire shinobi village by myself, but a non-shinobi village like Yugakure no Sato wouldn’t be much of a problem. It’ll take a while for the Taki-nin to arrive, considering the message of your presence there has reached them already in the first place. And sure, some of the civilians might escape, but they won’t prevent me from turning the village into a bloody, scorched mess.”

His smile had slowly gotten wider as he explained the scenario to Genkotsu, the childish mischief in his eyes turning to sadistic malice as the orange light of the oil lamp made his face seem nothing short of demonic. From the darkness he extended a hand towards the former Taki-nin. ”What do you say? Shall I help you get rid of these nasty ties? Trust me, I mean it as a sign of friendship…”

[Sukkiriyochi Genkotsu]

For every aspect of Ruuji that Genkotsu found likable, even pleasent, there was at least one, if not two, objects of the man's personality that repelled him. Genkotsu had once thought that Ruuji was simple minded muscle Sasuke utilized for the sake of power, but he quickly reassesed that opinion of the man. Even right now he could see the man analyze everything Genkotsu said and he could only imagine in what ways the Madman of the Mist was twisting his thoughts.

Ruuji unveiled a little bit of himself when he began to speak, however. Genkotsu was rather shocked by how obvious he was. The man spoke of bonds being deadly and crippling and Genkotsu interpereted this as Tokage no Ruuji, Madman of the Mist, having a fear of broken connections. More than that, perhaps Ruuji had lost someone dear to him and that had caused him to become the monster that he was. Trying to bring that up would be highly unwise though, and Genkotsu knew it.

That train of thought ended when Ruuji made an offer. An offer to destroy Yugakure. For the first instant, Genkotsu's blood ran cold with fear that the man would do it and that hundreds of people would die. Then his body went hot with anger at the idea of Miyu falling to Ruuji's rampage. Thus far, Genkotsu had only killed when neccesary to protect himself or others. But Ruuji had instantly become the first person on his list of cold blooded murder from the mere suggestion of killing everyone in Yugakure.

The odds were stacked against him, however, and so Genkotsu held his tongue.

"I would prefer if you did not, but I thank you for the gesture," he answered Ruuji, "And I would even be so bold as to suggest that Uchiha-sama would prefer you maintain a lower profile at the present moment." Genkotsu had no idea if Ruuji would consider Sasuke a reason for backing down from such an idea, but he figured at the very least it would be a possible bridge for a change in the conversation.

[Ruuji]

Genkotsu was good at keeping his cool, Ruuji had to give him that. Even though a mixture of horror, fear and anger must’ve ran through his blood, he managed to keep his composure and answered in a calm and polite way , at least for now. His answer itself left more than enough space for a rebuke, though. As a reaction to it, Ruuji slowly got up, his head dangling forward so that his face was slightly lowered and his forehead was arced towards Genkotsu.

”Are you threatening me, child? Do you think telling on me will protect you and your treasured little village? May I remind you Sasuke-san’s purpose is to draw the Akatsuki’s attention. Wiping a village of the face of the earth, even a tiny one with little military strength, will be in his best interest..”

After that, he licked his lips, extending his tongue to an unnecessary length during the motion. As the slimy muscle was at the center of its swing its length was enough to almost touch Ruuji’s knees. A thick drop of saliva ran down from it and formed a foamy blob on the ground as the coiling purple snake retracted back into the reptile’s mouth again. What Ruuji was doing might have seemed childish to some; it was merely a show to intimidate and to disgust. Scaring people with the many freak limbs and extensions the experiments of Kiri village elder Akumo had provided him was one of the Madman’s more harmless pastimes, in a sense it was little more than a practical joke or a prank. Yet it still added to that menacing, unnerving air he had about him.

”Think, Genkotsu-kun. When it comes down to it, who do you think Sasuke-san would prefer? Both of us are merely tools to him, but there’s always a difference between a useful tool and a less useful one. I am that useful tool, Genkotsu-kun. He needs seasoned, powerful shinobi like me and Ubume-san on his side if he wants to stand a chance against Akatsuki. You, on the other hand… I can’t gaze into his mind, but I think Sasuke recruited you with the intention of learning all you know of the Akatsuki and then using you as cannon fodder…”

After that reprimanding speech, the lizardman took a step towards Genkotsu, one of his hands reaching towards his belt, where both his weapons of choice, a pair of cleavers with blades somewhere between one and a half and two feet long made of chakra-conducting metal, were usually kept. ”As a matter of fact, I think I could even get away with killing you…”

Was he truly planning on killing Genkotsu? Even Ruuji didn’t know right now. It wasn’t part of his plan when he decided to test the former Taki-nin out, and to be fair he didn’t want to risk his favorable standing with Sasuke either. While they got along well enough most of the time, tensions between the two were common enough especially when Ruuji’s dislike of restraint clashed with Sasuke’s orders. And while the prospect of merely being interested in seeing the end of Sasuke’s revenge story seemed like a pretty stupid reason to stick to Hebi for so long, the lizardman had invested too much time in this to leave empty-handed.

No, he wasn’t planning on killing Genkotsu. But Ruuji knew himself well enough to realize that when his blood started boiling and adrenaline started rushing through his body, things didn’t always go according to plan…

[Sukkiriyochi Genkotsu]

Genkotsu's mind was focused almost entirely on controlling his breathing. This discussion was going in a decisively negative direction. Talk of weaknesses was a touchy subject at the best of times, and destroying Yugakure and those within it was already terrible idea that went so far outside of the morals Genkotsu held dear to his heart that the mere suggestion of it staggered him, but now Ruuji was almost openly hostile towards him. Ethical discussion of intellectual subjects was one thing, but to speak about how easy it would be to kill a member of the conversation and the likelyhood of punishment, or lack there-of, was too close to home to be abstract about. Genkotsu needed to be more careful now than he had ever needed to be before this moment. This was possibly the most dangerous moment of his young life so far, and that included fighting the demon in the Temple of Ferocity.

After a calming inhale through his nose, Genkotsu exhaled his breath slowly through barely parted lips before addressing each of Ruuji's statements. "I would not dare to threaten you, Tokage no Ruuji," Genkotsu spoke calmly and honestly, masking his fear completely. When the threat was on himself and not on someone he cared about he was able to use his fear to his advantage. It became a tool that did not overload his body with adrenaline, but empowered him with focus. The cool determination to live- to survive- was what had kept him going for the past nine months since leaving home. It was the only thing that was likely to get him through the next few minutes.

"What you say is true. If you were to devastate Yugakure you will most likely attract Akatsuki. But," he lifted a finger in a thoughtful manner, much like a teacher addressing a class of students, "You will attract more attention than they. Given its location, the desolation of Yugakure will likely attract attention from the Leaf, Water, Glacier, and Cloud villages. More than attract attention, it will give an approximation as to our location for any parties currently hunting any member of Hebi, if they are not hunting our group itself."

"Furthermore," Genkotsu continued, "Sasuke-sama already has plans in place for his goals. Improvisation is an important thing, to be certain, but the larger picture needs to be kept in focus. The action taken at the Chunin Exams was to turn the Shinobi world on its ear and attract the attention of vagrant shinobi, such as myself," He placed a hand on his chest as he said this, "This was an absolute success. The ninja world was rocked to its core and attention has been given. However, further such demonstrations of power will no longer have the shock-and-awe effect. Hebi is known to the world, now the world wants something to happen. If you were to destroy Yugakure, the reaction would be violent. Akatsuki may come, but so will others. They will follow the trail of destruction directly to us, and not even Sasuke-sama with all of the shinobi he has assembled in Hebi can fight the full might of the shinobi world."

He breathed for a moment, composing his thoughts. If he became repetitive in his answers and explanations he would come across as preachy and childish. That would undermine his entire point as well as increase the chance for a meat cleaver to kiss his neck in his sleep.

"I do not, have not, and will not ever believe that Sasuke-sama will ever view me as more useful than you, Tokage no Ruuji. However, he has seen my meager abilities and decided to have me be a member of Hebi. What he sees in me and what his reasons are are, as you said, above our ability to surmize. He is not, however, an idiot. Sasuke-sama knows that I have survived on my own. A genin, hunted by my villages ANBU and the ANBU of every other village with a partially up-to-date Bingo Book. I have survived in the wilderness and traveled across our known world several times. I have infiltrated villages and disguised myself in local populations. Sasuke-sama knows I am a survivor, and a survivor makes for poor canon fodder."

Settling down a little, Genkotsu rested both of his hands on his knees and tried to redirect the conversation entirely. "Rather than argue or leave each other on a sour note, I would like to expand upon our original intent for speaking beneath the trees and stars. So, for the time being at least, can we discontinue the current avenue of conversation and speak of other things? For instance, I am quite curious as to what bits of your past you would be willing to share. What events shaped you into the man you are today?"

With luck, the redirection of discussion would take hold. Genkotsu had learned from his mother that to truly get somebody to open up, speak about them in a positive manner and show genuine interest in them. Nothing made somebody so unwilling to speak as constant attempts to bring yourself into their story. Ask and listen and remember. His father had also taught him that 'All the worlds problems boil down to penis envy. Whose is bigger. When you find yourself in an argument, remember that it doesn't matter whose penis is bigger. Once you can get that into your head, you can divert the situation and move on with both of your lives.' If Genkotsu could smirk, the memory of that discussion would have brought one to his lips.

[Ruuji]

As Genkotsu spoke, the gleeful expression on Ruuji’s face slowly but steadily faded. In its place, a mask without emotion that simply stared down on the Sukkiriyochi. Less terrifying as a whole, but given the situation Genkotsu might have been even more intimidated or at least cautious of this face, though that much depended on the confidence in his speech. For while the truly psychotic smile and yellow eyes shining with childish glee that only Ruuji could provide were a fearful sight to behold, the more rare expression of emptiness that perfectly matched Genkotsu’s provided absolutely no clue of what was to come. For all Genkotsu knew he could’ve already decided to kill him.

In truth, Ruuji now held a certain kind of respect for Genkotsu. He had made a few valid points, though it was questionable whether or not the destruction of Yugakure would truly focus the wrong kind of attention on them. While the chuunin exams had definitely bumped Hebi to a higher spot on most villages’ priority lists, with all the things that had been going on in Izumi no Kuni lately, the destruction of the village could’ve easily been brushed off as yet another attack of whatever it was that the Ravens left behind. Even though a force of shinobi and monks had recently taken up actions against the curse that plagued the land, apparently being successful in purifying the negative energy, considering all the things that happened it was unlikely that Hebi would’ve been the first suspects or even the second. Especially if they hid their tracks well. Then again, the same could be said about Akatsuki. It all boiled down to perspective.

More so, the thing that admittedly irked Ruuji was the teacher-like tone Genkotsu used while explaining his point. The lizardman wasn’t easily angered, even more so in comparison to most of the other shinobi Sasuke chose as his companions not to mention the avenger himself, but being lectured by a boy half his age did rub him the wrong way. Regardless of how true his words were, the Sukkiriyochi deserved credit for managing to keep his composure under the pressure of taunts, promises of killing people he obviously had strong feelings for and even a direct and very real death threat. It was an ability all shinobi’s trained for, but also one that was usually mastered at or even years after reaching adulthood. Genkotsu pulling it off like this proved that having lived on the edge as a wanted criminal had placed him beyond most shinobi of his age group, both mentally and in terms of skill.

”Well played, boy..”, Tokage no Ruuji grudgingly thought as Genkotsu finished with the comment about survivors and cannon fodder. By then the Madman of the Hidden Mist was back on the tree stump that had served as his improvised seat. ”Well played, indeed.”

Having nothing in particular to say, he allowed Genkotsu to change the subject to something more pleasant, for him at least. He could consider it a reward for keeping his cool like that.

His subject of choice was an amusing one.

Ruuji slightly narrowed his eyes, and his mouth curled into a tiny smile yet again as he glared at Genkotsu considerately. Was asking the lizard about his past an attempt at beating him at his own game? Was he trying to pressure Ruuji in return despite risking an attack by the madman, something he had tried with much effort to avoid during their earlier subject? If that was the case, he was either incredibly brave, incredibly stupid or incredibly whimsical with a high probability to the latter two. Regardless, he would find no sensitive spot in Ruuji’s past. No place where he could hurt. The lizardman had made sure of that. He had always done so. In a way, it was his greatest strength. A valuable asset that preceded the use of his potent, mutated body and even the vast amount of combat experience. An amount higher than that of a lot of his superiors in age plainly because of the environment he originated from. Having been raised in the war-ridden hell that was the Village of the Bloody Mist, Ruuji had fought more in his thirty-one years of life than certain shinobi who were ten or sometimes even twenty years his senior had in their lives.

That was useful. But not as useful as the void that was his heart. The complete absence of strong feelings for any of the feeble human beings that walked this earth.

”Oh, I’m afraid you won’t find my tale very interesting. If you’ve ever met anyone else from my village, you’ve probably heard the stories about the civil wars that plagued Mizu no Kuni.” he said as positioned himself more comfortably, lifting one leg and allowing it’s ankle to rest on the knee of his other leg and letting the arm on the same side of the lifted leg rest on that leg in turn. ”My mother, I believe she was some disease-infested street tramp. It doesn’t matter, what does is that she dumped me on the doorstep of an orphanage when I was still supposed to suck her teats.” While the harsh and, in the ears of some, foul words Ruuji used to describe his mother would’ve sounded sour and grudging had they been spoken with the appropriate emotions, the fact remained that if there was any emotion at all in the lizardman’s voice as he spoke, it was a slight form of amusement.

”I do confess I used to feel lonely back in the academy. Being a faceless child from an orphanage no one particularly cared about and with no significant role other than a potential weapon my existence back then struck me as bleak and incomplete. But as soon as I got the slightest taste of how Mizu no Kuni worked, of how the world itself works, I realized its merits. I realized how lucky I truly was.”

Wetting his lips with the tip of his tongue, Ruuji continued his story with that same hint of amusement in his voice that had been present as he explained what to most people would’ve sounded as a very miserable childhood. ”When I realized that we live in a world where it is necessary for children to be trained into soulless killing machines, I realized how stupid it is to love. It doesn’t matter what you care for, be it people, places or even a village. In a world as rotten and deadly as this one, the only thing that can possibly come from attachment is pain and suffering from losing that very thing your attached to. And once you realize that, once you can look at the world and humans as a whole without personal feelings clouding your judgment, you’ll realize that they aren’t even worth the effort to begin with.”

As Ruuji rambled on about his nihilistic propaganda and the way how he viewed life, his golden eyes had wandered to the ground. Not as much a sign of any kind of sorrow as the indication of a man getting absorbed into his own story. But as he spoke the following words, his eyes found their way right back into Genkotsu’s.

”But in the end, don’t you agree that this is exactly what makes me a perfect shinobi?”

[Sukkiriyochi Genkotsu]

Genkotsu took the physical cues from Ruuji to mean that he had managed to earn a pass this time. The young Nuke-nin's words seemed to have their intended effect, and Ruuji took his seat on the stump once more. Unclenching fists that Genkotsu did not realize he had been makin, he felt at greater ease. The tenison in the air dissapated and, as it had been at the beginning of the conversation, took on an almost pleasent atmosphere.

Genkotsu, who had not stood up, adjusted himself on his seat. Now that he was not as focused on Ruuji, on a possible threat to his life, he was able to realize that there was too much pressure on one buttock and could compensate his balance to a more comfortable position. The four-armed semi-madman likewise took up a more relaxed seat, even crossing his legs.

The man began to amiably answer Genkotsu's question. Genkotsu had not met anybody from Takigakure before. At least, not on a personal basis. He had managed to lie his way past a few shinobi border guards when he was going to the East Temple, at which he subsequently got his ass handed to him by a warrior-monk, but he had never had any extended interaction with a ninja of the Mist.

The comments that Ruuji made about his mother caused a few twists in Genkotsu's stomach. Initially, the idea of anyone thinking of their mother in such a vile way disgusted Genkotsu. But he halted his distaste long enough for the rest of the meaning to sink in. Ruuji had never known his mother and so his thoughts and opinions could not be complete. Without that gentle nurturing touch, how could he think anything other than what he did? Genkotsu could only imagine the feelings that would bring up in him. Abandonment would likely lead to feelings of resentment.

The way Ruuji wetted his lips was a little disconcerting, especially given the less than pleasent way he was speaking about the world. Genkotsu did not agree with Ruuji's perspective, but he could very easily understand it. The man had taken the shinobi lifestyle and extrapolated it to all fascets of his life and world. What he said was true, but it was also incomplete from Genkotsu's perspective.

"Indeed," Was Genkotsu's initial response to Ruuji's question. "By all accounts and with everything else considered, you have achieved the pinnacle of what it means to be a shinobi. There is nothing that holds you back and nothing that can slow you down besides a strong opponent. Your entire being is simply yourself. It is a commendable achievement."

Genkotsu wanted to test the waters a little further. "But, without any bonds to any people and having severed your ties to your village, why do you continue to fight?" he asked, rather curious as to Ruuji's reason for continuing a ninja lifestyle when, truly, he had no obvious reason to.

[Ruuji]

Ruuji made another throat chuckle at Genkotsu’s logical question. People tended to assume someone needed a goal to make them fight. Something they cared greatly for, something that they held deep within them, close to their heart. For Sasuke it was his revenge and love of his now dead family. For Genkotsu it could either be the thing or person he held so dear in Yugakure or perhaps revenge against Takigakure for some crime they committed against him that made him leave in the first place. Ruuji was different. He did have a reason of sorts, but it was far less complicated than that of most people.

”Because I like to fight.”, the mutant answered no more than a second after Genkotsu finished the question. ”First of all, you need to realize, Genkotsu-kun, that I do not value my life. I am convinced of the insignificance of humans, and claiming I’m the only person that’s different would make me a hypocrite. I do also realize that that belief leaves me with little to fight for.”

He adjusted his position, shifting the place of his legs so that it was now the leg that had formerly supported the other that was now bended and resting on the other. ”To be fair, I don’t care if I die. But if anything, I want to make my death special. I want to see how far I can go. How far I can cheat death. I want to die in combat against an opponent powerful enough to do so while the adrenaline still rushes through my veins, with my last thought of life being the joy of a life-or-death confrontation. I want to die laughing loudly with a sword in my stomach or with my head about to fly through the air. I want to go out with a bang. And I will keep indulging into the adrenalinefest of slaughter until I’ve found that opponent.”

[Sukkiriyochi Genkotsu]

The teenager had been hoping for some insight into the older man's psyche. Further insight, that is, since he already had some glimpses about Ruuji's fear of attatchments and possible pain from his past. But more than that, Genkotsu was hoping for a reason to explain why he still fought. Why didn't Genkotsu just...hide? Just curl up in some hole for a few months then assimilate himself into a non-shinobi village and just live on quietly. Genkotsu couldn't answer himself, so he was hoping whatever Ruuji said would help.

But it didn't. Ruuji's answer assisted Genkotsu in no way. It only reaffirmed the ex-Taki shinobi's surface assumptions about the Madman of the Mist and it gave him little hope in answering his own question. He was almost certain that he did not enjoy fighting in the same manner that Ruuji did, but he was still young and his future was bleak.

He sighed inwardly then began to rise. "Thank you for indulging my curiosity," he said, "But by your leave I would like to retire for the night. It is getting late and I would like to rest before we travel tomorrow." He gave Ruuji a polite incline of the head before he started to head back into the trees, back towards the former hideout of Orochimaru that Hebi had comandeered for their own sanctuary.