[Deleted]

In his hand he held the new prized weapon, scrambled together by petty promises and a pathetic offering of Gold. But, with all that was going on - he expected it would pay off soon. The Tongue and the Brain had been working their ... tongue and brain respectively. But, they were doing his will (which seemed surprising as the least favoured) but it was for an honest to god greater good. Good for Akui.

But this couldn't really be placed off any longer: Hono Chisai. Akira, had always heard of the Jonin Hancho - the Lady who'd never been. She had worldwide renown, and it was just his luck to eventually run into all of the top brass of each village. But, as Sozin knew more, he couldn't put off a ...

Akira did not know how Sozin's relationship had been with Chisai, other than the obvious fact that Sozin had been in the council for a long time. That seemed to ensure some level of cohesion; but their personal history, Sozin had no idea. He would have to cling to the idea of memory erasure to rebuild whatever it had been, and try to figure it out as he went along. But - being one of the top brass meant he had to adequately prepare for his own return. A new weapon; more techniques, and he was more capable than before. It had taken some time to find out how he wanted his rebirth to be portrayed; whether as a master of the Katana, but he eventually settled on the small dexterous items.

And he finally looked like a lot more of a Shinobi: out in the border of Nohara no Kuni and Tsuchi no Kuni, Akira did not feel at ease. He said he'd meet her out there, but in reality it gave him time to memorise some of the areas and cities and towns on his way around, trying to familiarise himself. Truly as a baby.

Nonetheless, he had arrived at one of the northern-most points in the border so that they could present some military might at the border, should there be any Iwa Shinobi. He would've happily shown some demonstration of force, but he didn't know what to expect at this junction. Still - he remained at the outpost, chatting with the front liners, before he headed out into the true 'no man's land' that was the border.

SPOILER: Click to show

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[Honō Chisai]

FROM THE FLAMES OF BATTLE I WAS FORGED, FROM THE ASH LANDS I BECAME ANEW, MY SOUL STANDS UNYIELDING TO THE CHALLENGE AHEAD

The sound of crackling bones had filled that bandit camp. The screams of agony and terror, the heroic but doomed suicidal charges towards her in an attempt to what, she often wondered? Petty criminals were not a canker but a rash, an infection that had to be excised every so often. Once or twice there would be one trained, one that could pose an actual challenge but even so the excitement always proved to be short-lived. Nevertheless she scoured them, her gait leaving only ashes in her wake as they scattered into the winds.

It was clean, it was efficient and if she anything it was a good warm up for the actual mission. Slowly she emerged from the forests of Nohara no Kuni, stretching as the soil crunched beneath her boots, feeling the popping of joints and the all familiar exertion her muscles. Faint but there. Almost as a herald the arrival of an actual fight, an actual challenge. Well there was a challenge, she supposed. Not every day you were paired with a man that lost his memories and seemingly everything that had made him a capable shinobi. The Lioness wanted to say that there was an admirable quality to try to pick up the sword, to remember what he had been.

A more rational part however told her that he should've sought the solace of retirement in reward for a life that he had no memory off. Ignominy in retirement was better than infamy in service for his case. She stopped, looking at the man she was paired off with for this mission. A pang of pity passed through her mind, her features softened slightly, a brief smile appeared on her lips as her golden mane swayed with the wind. "Sozin, it is good to see you." The blonde said in a soft tone. "I hope you didn't have trouble finding your way here." She added as a quiet joke.

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352 ● @akira ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Deleted]

And as they had imagined, he would eventually come upon Chisai: he didn't expect that she would be taller than him. He had not paid her mind until others had, and finally noticed her as he had spoken to her before.

He lightly bowed to the honourable Hono Chisai. As he had expected to. She didn't look entirely fresh as it were, but he didn't think of her to be any less threatening. Though she would have never known the contents of his mind, nor how he wondered if Akui's boons were substantial enough to defeat the woman even with her chakra - the abberation of spirit. "Chisai-sama. Thank you. You seem warmed up." He responded equally well, perhaps in a tone that she may have never known from who Sozin was - it was not for Akira to know. It hadn't been difficult for him to find his way, when unlike Tsuchi no Kuni, it was extraordinarily average as lands went. Iwagakure was place difficult one to traverse, but Kusagakure? Not so much.

"You're... ready to move, I take?" He himself didn't require much stretching or readiness. The lines beneath his skin were ready to bellow steam and deliver judgement. Though, it gave him ample opportunity to not only speak with Chisai to understand her, but to frame himself; a new man. He had gone through the requisite checks, and found nothing to suggest he were anybody other than he himself: though he didn't know of them, the Kameki had checked: as had medical shinobi designated by the scar at the base and nape of his neck where he had been checked internally.

What wasn't in scope for him was to try and sway her of anything. As far as she would ever come to know, this was simply him to do a mission with her, to get re-acquainted and even learn more about who Sozin was, as far as ... Akira was concerned. But if they were ready, he would be the one to offer a palm-facing up point using all fingers to their starting point. Roughly speaking.

Should he have been more talkative? This was difficult. Internally, he wanted to frown, externally cool as a cucumber. If only she knew what had been bubbling beneath the surface. "Might I add, you are beautiful? I hope my first meeting with you was as pleasant as I'm trying to be." Sozin coughed, clearing his throat mid sentence - it made it come across as unflattering or unrehearsed. In reality, he was already stressed out by her being there and his own imposter syndrome.

Well. He was an imposter. Impostering? Imposter.

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[Honō Chisai]

FROM THE FLAMES OF BATTLE I WAS FORGED, FROM THE ASH LANDS I BECAME ANEW, MY SOUL STANDS UNYIELDING TO THE CHALLENGE AHEAD

"Yes. You could say that." The Lioness replied, her hand moving to dust away particles of ash that had remained stuck to her. She didn't mind the scent, there was always a sense of pleasure that came from the scent of burning wood. Something calming among that unchecked fury that consumed it all. The fact that she had used bandits for that purpose was little more but just the normal. They needed a culling and she was more than happy to oblige. As she stretched and felt the soft popping of joints she would turn to meet the gaze of the man. Someone she had known passingly, but know by reputation, now a stranger to all intend and purposes.

His eyes however gave Chisai a moment of disquiet, something felt wrong the moment he met his eyes with her. The blonde would not flinch, she remained poised and calm, almost ready to pounce like a lioness waiting in the long grass. Shrugging she would break the exchange, keeping that preoccupation for herself and passing it only as a strange, paranoid thought that had surfaced. Toshizo must've rubbed that unto me. He thought. The attempt of compliment however fell flat.

A single golden eyebrow rose and her expression would show that she wasn't exactly amused by the compliment. Unsure of whether the man had lost his nerve around her, understandable but unbecoming of a shinobi of his caliber... Well his former caliber. Or he was insulting her. She wondered if the man that Sozin was now had heard about the story of the last man that had insulted her, last she had heard he had regained his ability to walk, albeit it had taken much physical therapy to recover. It was impressive that he had survived being punched through a wall.

"Does that ever work?" She asked casually to him, fixing her lilac gaze on the man that forgot to remember who he was. "Saying those pretty words to women, I mean? Did it work before you lost your memory or is this your attempt to get pity from me?" The Lioness said, staring at him with an unamused look settling on her features. "Now, if you have time to compliment me or make fun me, surely you have time to take point and lead our march?" She suggested, tilting her head to a side. "Unless you forgot what marching is?"

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430 ● @akira ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Deleted]

She certainly wasn't easy to shake himself, and that light attempt at intrigue had failed and it would bite him back in the ass. Just as she would have seen in her life of ordering people around and seeing the nuance of their expressions. The light raise of his upper lip, the opening of his nostrils - a very light flair. All indicative of a response, but not necessarily what she might have thought. It was all for her to interpet: even if his eyes carried a sharpness that betrayed Sozin's look.

She chided him. In the game of life that Sozin was playing he certainly had chosen the wrong option, relating to one of the worst outcomes: the equivalent of a poor roll on the dice, or card hand as it were. "In another life, I'm sure." He played it off. Internally, he wasn't shaking it off. Did she know? He thought to himself. No. That was impossible. He wasn't looking for pity but trying to argue with that logic would be more of a detriment and harmful to him than if he were just to let it lie and let his actions prove otherwise. But, she quickly took to moving on from the situation by way of an informal order. "Certainly." he had done his research and spoke to people enough to know their direction - and would know to lead them there.

The weapons at his belt yearned for usage and he would not delay that unnecessarily. "If you'd give me face, I'll move on and we can dispatch of the ants." His soft voice betraying the hard words coming from his mouth. He'd quickly get a move on and try another approach, like the councilman he was.

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[Honō Chisai]

FROM THE FLAMES OF BATTLE I WAS FORGED, FROM THE ASH LANDS I BECAME ANEW, MY SOUL STANDS UNYIELDING TO THE CHALLENGE AHEAD

"The enemies." She corrected, eyeing the man as he passed next to her. In truth a part of her was eager to believe with his assessment that those they were sent to slain were close to vermin. Something beneath her imperious gaze and strength. Something a Chunin would be able to deal with without much problem. But there was the other part of her, more dominant, more pure that had been forged through the years. Respect your opponent. She could heard the voice of her instructors within the clan. She could see herself as a five year old beginning their training as the instructor's voice resonated with that mantra. Once you fail to respect your enemies, you have taken your first step into doom.

Sure, there would not be songs to be written for this, no words to be added to the particular story she would etch unto the mural when she had the time. She thought, that for the most part here, she would observe. See how well Sozin, this Sozin at least acted in combat. Even when her original mission was not to review the man, she could always put a second report on his actions, and recommend that he may be removed from active service altogether. If she impressed him then he could remain. As they approached, the Lioness quickened slightly, her keens bending as she went into a moving crouch, a fist raised to tell him to stop just before bushes.

Chisai leaned forward, hand carefully pushing down the leaves as they revealed an encampment, a rather illegal one set up in a clearing on the fringes of the nation close to the border. "I pick up... Two... Perhaps three dozen of them." She advised in a low whisper. "They seem to have stolen something... See the crates?" She added, pointed at the wooden boxes, stacked loosely in groups around the camp. "Well then, go on, lets see if you're such an adept exterminator. I'll back you up." She told him.

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365 ● @akira ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Deleted]

He wanted to disagree but the inside turmoil had not allowed him any cognitive function. Their philosophies were different and if a woman could so understand someone - perhaps respected someone who dissented? Should he have said something in return even if he did not believe so. Right now, he was in the interest to get into the fight and focus less on his thoughts. At a later time he would have a closer realisation as to what that actually meant but clarity was usually retrospective.

Sozin knew the respect the arm movement as second in command and he dropped to her side: following her instruction. While she beckoned him to go - he did not move to begin with, also using his own hand to lightly press a small branch aside, enough for him to get a view. Self interest could justify that he was interested in not ousting himself in front of her, and to not take rash action that could see him die all too quickly. A few seconds would go by. "I can't see what the crates are. With the way they're stacked, see, grouped: they could be explosives? But, spread out among their camp, I don't think... they would put themselves in danger. Either that or they're arrogant, or stupid..." he was thinking about the right course of action; being given more reason to think altogether by the Jonin Hancho.

Her assessment was true though because people were going in and out of tents for various reasons and purposes. Someone held a bundle of what appeared to be clothing, another moving toward the centre of the camp with Logs. But - he would start his movement and flank as he'd desired an open entry into the camp. Sozin could not abide by the base desire of taking them out, Shinobi style: empty. No, if honour was honour and the Jonin Hancho found herself as such he would rather had been blindly stupid in his attack - and furthest away from whatever the crates were.

He broke free of the foiliage: and into long bushed grass. A little bit closer to the camp. Someone seemed to be pissing nearby, based off the liquid noise and whistling. "Kazuto, is that you? Eheheh, you little prick..." the man gruffly laughed, but he'd stopped laughing and tried to make a shout for it when Sozin jumped from the bushes, pulling him into it: covering his mouth. He hadn't been kind either, but he would not be merciful here. "Quiet, or I'll cut your throat and you will die painfully." Sozin whispered, to him, the only other apparent person being the Jonin Hancho if she had joined him. A knife was already drawn and held to his lower throat by the chest area, ready to pull toward himself.

His hand was clasped firmly: one thing they'd been taught was to make sure and not allow the opportunity for bitten fingers, so one of his fingers was wrapped around the tip of the jaw, to stop any opening movement. "How many in camp, what are in the crates, and what are your plans?"

And oh, would they spill.

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