teenage wasteland (p)

[smallville]

SPOILER: Click to show

☆ Name: Tag Part II
Rank: C
Repeatable: Once Per PC
Description: Some kids weren't cut out to be shinobi, as it happens from time to time. However those whom failed from the academy still has their training with them, and they refuse to do nothing with it. Using their abilities they have been putting grafiti all over Konoha. Capture those pesky kids. Be careful. Though careless, their ignorance can make them dangerous.
Obective: Capture the kids.
Reward: 200 EXP and 1,000 Ryo

While this technically wasn't my first mission, it would be counted as such due to the outcome of my last mission, which was the true first. The aftermath of that day has eaten my insides raw and converted the bulk of my dreams into nightmares. However, I believe that Grandfather's Sharingan therapy has done a great deal to nullify the post-traumatic stress and, coupled with the fruit of my excessive training endeavors since that day, I was more than ready to restart my career as a member of Konoha's Shinobi Corps.

My objective seemed simple enough: apprehend a number troubled youths who failed to meet the standards to graduate from the shinobi academy, yet, after dropping out, retained a number of the basic ninja arts that they had learned and were now using them to vandalize the village. I had wondered what became of those who didn't graduate with the rest of their respective classes. I imagined some would re-enroll and attempt to obtain genin-ship again.

I'd read, however, that in far-away nations that didn't harbor military forces children were taught other crafts such as sciences, mathematics, and history. These students continued education long after we'd started our careers as shinobi; by the time they were graduating from their schools we were already becoming Chuunin and Jounin. The ones that dropped out of their schools generally worked jobs that paid less than the ones offered to those who completed ther education. Was it the same for us? Or could I too be painting the town red with angst and shattered dreams?

[smallville]

The streets seemed nothing short of an art-enthusiast's wet dream. Or a nightmare, depending on the tastes of said enthusiast. Elegant strokes of vibrant colors littered the streets and often the sides of buildings. There were designs and words and figures that I'm sure harbored meanings well beyond the comprehension of the commoners, but I understood what lied beneath the ink. I moved catlike across the rooftops of Konoha's business district and observed those who strolled below as they took in the art. Disgust is what they wore upon their faces. They saw the graffiti for what it was at face value: vandalism, mockery, destruction of property. I, however, saw it for what it really was.

It wasn't because I, too, was something of an artist or even an art enthusiast - I wasn't. On the contrary, I hated art. I had never been very good at it and I failed to see any plausible benefits that could be applied to my life as a shinobi. However, I was able to see this art for what it really was because of something else. Something that, if my calculations were sound, I had in common with the hooligans who were doing this.

I continued my nimble leaps across the rooftops, spotting more and more graffiti as I traveled. Eventually, I came to an old abandoned market with the words Hokages Suck colorfully plastered on the wall outside. Whoever was doing this was lucky that the Hokage wasn't handling this herself. I approached the wall and wiped my fingers across the letter 'A'. Rubbing the glossy, red smudges on my fingertips together, I realized that the paint was still fresh. Very fresh, in fact. Perhaps only minutes remained before its freshness would fade. I looked back and forth, scanning the surrounding area with my eyes and ears. The square in which this market was situated was pretty tame, which was good for me, though none of the people that I saw seemed like the artistic type.

"I have to move fast." I said under my breath. Not a moment sooner did I scale the market's wall all the way to the top. "A change in altitude will undoubtedly improve my field of vision and increase my chances of finding--" I reached the top of the building and no sooner after I set foot on the roof did I spot him. He was a small, blonde boy sitting on the roof with a bucket of paint in one hand and a brush that he was so delicately drawing with in the other hand. "My name is Uchiha Namisara and I -- Dammit."

He was fast. The very moment that I began to speak, he dropped his brush and darted over the edge of the roof and fell into the alley below. The boys escape plan seemed simple enough: use the cover provided by the alley's shade to make an escape, the alley only had two ends so there was a fifty-fifty chance that I would go to the wrong one. Or, that would have been the case if I hadn't been aided by my Sharingan. I activated it only for an instant - just long enough to gauge where he was headed. My agile form carried me across the rooftop and down the other side of the building before dropping me at the mouth of the alley with moments to spare before the boy ran into me. He skidded to a stop when he saw my silhouette standing at the end of the alley, eyes widened like dinner plates.

"And I have come to apprehend you and your accomplices."

[smallville]

He gritted his teeth angrily, though his legs shook as though the weight of fear was becoming too much for them. Although the moment to neutralize him couldn't have been more prime than that, I didn't make my move. In fact, I didn't even move closer to him. My eyes studied him, particularly his face. The look in his eyes... I understood that look. And it was then that I understood everything that was going to happen.

Well, almost everything.

"You think you can boss me around just 'cuz you're a shinobi?" he shouted, bringing his hands together to form a seal. "I'm stronger than you think!" A plume of smoke erupted from the vacant space to the boy's left. Emerging from the haze was an exact duplicate of the boy, accurate down to the last detail. However, just as quickly as it had appeared on the scene, the clone dispersed in another white cloud. "Wha!?" the boy exclaimed, backing into the wall next to him, eyes trained on the smoke.

A single kunai knife was embedded in the ground where the clone stood briefly. The boy slowly looked away from the knife and toward me, where he'd find my arm extended and my hand empty. The fear on his face spoke volumes: I suppose he hadn't realized how much danger his actions had put him in. There was no real danger, however. I had no intentions to inflict pain upon him, for he was not the enemy. He was just troubled.

"Your idea had potential, but your execution was flawed." I took a step forward. "That could have given you a window to escape, if you hadn't made the clone in front of me." He was frozen and his ears seemed attuned to my every word as I approached. I'd moved forward enough to snatch my knife from the ground by then, which I slipped back into it's pouch. I was within arms reach of him, but he didn't make a move. I expected that he wouldn't. "That wasn't a normal Bushin though, was it?" I asked him.

He hesitated at first, just staring up at me with his large, blue eyes. "K-Kage Bunshin. I know I shouldn't know it, but my brother taught me." he said in a rushed voice. He had that much right. I myself didn't know that jutsu, though I was capable to handle it, I'm sure. It was a Kinjutsu reserved for Jouinin-level shinobi, however. "Your brother," I started, hesitating because I wasn't sure that it was my place to inquire about such things. "It's just the two of you, isn't it."

The boy lowered his gaze, deciding to stare at his feet while he spoke. "My parents died when I was very young and my brother's all that I have... But the village has been sending him on away missions a lot so I never get to see him anymore." And there it was.

[smallville]

There was an uncomfortable silence as the boy's words lingered in the air. The situation wasn't the most elaborate of jigsaw puzzles, as I put the pieces together rather early-on. Adolescence is the time when the mind is prone to the most troubles. Those blessed with normal lives seem to manage in most cases, however, those forced to settle for a less-than-normal life - such as myself - aren't as lucky. We have to find outlets, or ways to vent the twisted emotions trapped within us. Sparring with my grandfather suited me. Vandalism, unfortunately, seemed to be this child's forte.

"I know how you feel. You feel angry and sad and alone." I said as I placed my hand upon his shoulder and he looked up at me. Admittedly, empathy wasn't my strongest attribute. In fact, I wasn't really sure how to be empathetic. What I did know, however, is that this situation called for it, and I would have to deliver. Being the quick thinker that I was, I came up with a possible solution. "I'm assuming that your academy teachers don't know that you're able to perform that justu, correct?" I asked, withdrawing my hand and crossing my arms.

"No...I learned it after I dropped out. My brother taught it to me so that I could defend myself in case he was away." he promptly explained. Strength in numbers. A smart tactic. "File a request with the academy board to see if you can take the graduation exam again. That justu requires above-average chakra control, which you obviously possess, and I believe that it should earn you a hitai-ate. I explained to him. While there was a slight chance that his knowing of a somewhat forbidden jutsu could warrant him some criminal charges, I wouldn't mention it for fear that it would dissuade him from trying again. He paused for a moment, eyes wandering to the side while he sifted over my words in his mind.

[smallville]

"But what if I fail again?"

"Then you keep trying until you pass." I told him. I doubted that the academy would fail him again after he showed them his Kage Bunshin no Jutsu though. He smiled. A really dumb smile. The genuine kind of smile that I'm fail to pull of. I look at him, unable to mirror his happiness. Instead I decide to speed things up. "Now, give me your hands." I said, holding one of my hands open to him. He put his hands on mine and I slapped a pair of handcuffs on him. It was amazing how fast the happiness on his face drained away. "What the -- What's this for!?" he perplexedly asked. "All pep talks and mutual understandings aside, vandalism is still a crime and my mission was to apprehend you." I said as I examined the cuffs to ensure their security. "Th-That's not fair! I thought we were pals!"

I looked skyward, beyond the alley walls that loomed overhead, tuning out the boys words. The sun was perched at it's highest peak. I'd spent the morning tracking down the boy and his-- wait. I turned to him and asked "The report said that there was a group of kids vandalizing Konoha, why haven't you mentioned anyone else?" He frowned and looked away. "Because the others are Kage Bunshin." he muttered. A deep sigh escaped my lips. That explained why he had been so elusive. He probably had them disperse after they finished painting. I suppose that I just got lucky and found the original. "After we go to Mission HQ, make another batch and have them help you clean up your mess." I told him, placing a hand on his shoulder to tell him to start walking.

"I thought you were different." he said sadly as we emerged from the shadowy veil of the alley and into the sunlight. "You're just like the rest of them."

I didn't respond.

[Naitome]

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