Fear and Loathing

[.DEVIOUS]

It had been a long walk from Kaminari no Kuni. Honestly, Kade regretted ever leaving. He missed Akuseru and he missed Xu, but he had known as early as the first steps into his mission with them that things had changed. They were not the same cell that they had been, and the Genin had no intention or desire to return to the life of being under Akuseru's thumb. When he had been given the chance, he had vanished, disappearing from the world of ninja and running as quickly as he could.

In his travel pack, he had several items - his weapons and items, but most importantly, his forehead protector that marked him as a shinobi of Kumogakure no Sato. Located at the very bottom of the pack, Kade hadn't brought it out in days, and a sort of bitter guilt began to creep up into him. He had been taught to give his all for his village, but now he was truly becoming what his parents and grandparents had feared he would become -- the Black Sheep of the Hitogoroshi family. The outcast who would bring shame to the whole family.

It was that same guilt that gnawed at his heart that fueled his anger and made his pace quicken all the more. He had never had a choice, had never been given the option, of not becoming a shinobi. He had been forced his whole life into being a puppet for a nation that didn't care about him, only what he could do for it, and he had had enough. It was because of this rage that Kade stopped at a salon. When he left, gone were the medium length ebon locks that had guarded his cranium for all of his life.

In their place was a crop of hair that had been sheered short, practically shaved around the sides, and with about a half an inch of hair left on top. The hair itself had been dyed a different color, almost that of a platinum blonde. As he looked into a mirror, Kade felt a different feeling come over him. Peace. He was finally a different person... and a different person needed a different name.

As Kade left, he thought about who he should become and, finally, the name that he desired struck him. No longer was he Kade... he was now Ryze. A smile spread across his face. Life would be wonderful from now on.

[/justify]