[Uehara Shin]

Shin walked out the Kusagakure main gate in a rather lax manner, not at all looking like he'd be going on a mission right now, especially with his casual attire and the lack of a headband on a visible place made him look like just any other commoner. Shin was standing close to the gate, looking tired and desinterested as he observed those around with dull eyes. All he was told, was that he'd have a special partner for the mission today, without being told anything substantial. This incompetence and lazynes had baffled him. This kind of thing was why this little village was such a shithole and why he couldn't wait to blow some fresh air into the whole thing, but he needed more time and hopefully a useful partner to work with or preferably - for - him.

As unprepared and casual as he looked, Shin was always ready to go when he went out, the fact that he was not reliant on big weapons or long preperations was only a positive to him, it meant he could remain low-key and didn't easily scare others off with his looks alone. Of course he style of battle was also less explosive or even damaging, but he made it work. While stading there a guard shot him a sideways look as if to tell him not to loiter around too much and cause trouble. Shin only grinned and was about to walk over to have a littel 'friendly' chat with the guy when he noticed someone approaching him that did not look to be from the village. A bit younger then himself perhaps and also more handsome. From this person's appearance, Shin decided to take the opportunity to initiate things as this was clearly the special person he was supposed to team up with. Probably. He turned to his gate guard 'friend' and said, "I am sorry, but my partner for the day is here, so we'll have to reminice about the past another time." He suddenly seemed much livelier as he turned to his supposed partner with a slight sparkling to his eyes.

365 words

[Yamamoto Shosuke]

Kusagakure... how many times had he been here since he had been promoted? More than that, how many times had he worked with a member of this village? Between his relationships with Atagi and Yusei and even Lord Ichi himself, Kusa had almost began to feel like a second home. Almost.

The fact of the matter was that although Kusa and Kumo had been close for years, they were still a separate village within the intervillage system. Though they were allies, their very nature as separate entities caused them to need to compete, to constantly push to be better than the other, whether that be through obtaining contracts or through punishing people who abdicated from one village to join the other. If Sho's loyalties were thought to be corrupted or misplaced? Well, there were those who would act to make sure that he didn't embarrass the village.

For that reason if no other, Sho had to ensure that he kept at least a little distance from the village, to ensure that there was no miscommunication or misgivings about the nature of their relationship. Even as he did this job, he had to make sure that he did so as an ally rather than as a "friend", for whatever that meant.

---

Approaching the gate from the north, Sho was dressed in his usual combat gear. Since the guy he had been paired with was just a regular member of the village, it was important that he keep up the illusion of normalcy from his end as well. As such, he was wearing the regular Kumo flak jacket, his forehead protector wrapped securely around his right arm as if it was some sort of torniquet, his katana resting on his back in its sheath, bouncing every so often as he walked.

From an outside perspective, Sho looked every part the regular Shinobi. Sure, those thick-rimmed black glasses of his might seem a little strange, but they could pass for merely being regular sunglasses rather than anything of any particular note or importance. Without having access to his files, it would certainly be strange to understand his level of injuries or his disability, leaving him without a worry in the world.

From a distance, Sho was able to use his blindsense to feel out the identity of the one who was waiting for him, though he allowed himself to slow down and take his time. The man was currently speaking to one of the gate guards, it seemed as if he was interrupting or intruding in something. Having no wish to interrupt, Sho waited patiently until the man stopped of his own accord, apparently finally realising that he was here.

"Good morning!" Sho said, trying to force a chipper attitude despite feeling anything but. He had never been exactly what one would call an optimist, especially when compared to someone like Atagi, but he knew how Kusa liked its friendliness. Having met quite a few Kusa-nin by now, Sho wondered exactly what was wrong with this one - they each seemed to have some sort of abnormality, whether it be Yusei's general numbness or Atagi's excitability. Just what was unique about this one he wondered.

"Right, so - Introduction's first; I'm Shosuke, Yamamoto Shosuke. I'm from Kumo, though you could probably guess that given the whole," he gestured vaguely at his arm, obviously referencing the forehead protector. "And you would be... Uehara, right? Forgive me for asking, but you're not from one of the major clans, are you? I don't think I've ever heard that surname before..."

592 words | Uehara Shin

SPOILER: Click to show

B-Rank Mission: 2/20
Jutsus Used: None

[Uehara Shin]

Behind Shin the guard would roll his eyes at him and walk off again, no intention to get caught up with that guy again. Shin on the other hand had fully turned to Shousuke who he only gave a quick look over before smiling at the newcomer. He certainly was very obviously a cloud ninja, but the split haired young man could not sense anything really extraordinary from his counterpart. The name also invoked some knowledge from his brain, but he really hadn't paid too much attention to the clans outside of the village, he only knew some basic things about most of them. Shin kept a complacent smile on his face, seemingly not that interested in a greeting. "I'm honored to be working with someone from the renowed Yamamoto clan." He said and sounded anything but honored, more like he was amused. "Right, my name is Uehara Shin, though I'm a little saddened to hear that my Uehara's name hasn't been aknowledged more. My clan died for this village and I am left to build it back up. Well, after this mission's done, you better remember it. I'm confident it will come up more as time passes." He had a kind of hollow smile on his face that almost seemed foreboding as if it was a fact, not like a heroic exclemation of intent.

He did not dwell on those words and instead let Shosuke make his own mind up about himself, he changed the topic rather quickly, or rather started to bring them to the reason of their meeting. "I assume you're here to show your worth to your village or something, I don't really care, but I'd like to get this over with cleanly. One of my business partners asked me to help out with this if I could, so of course I'd give it a hand. What I'm trying to say is that I want as little blood spilled as possible in this mission. Protect who needs to be protected and stop anyone who might want to interfere with us. Spilling blood on your porch is bad luck for a business and will only spread rumours, so let's not." He still had a smile on his face, but he was harder in his speach and didn't sound as casual. Straightening his jacket he asked, "Any complaints?" He really seemed to rather disregard Shosuke's opinion and only asked for cordiality. This cloud shinobi would have to prove he was useful and maybe they could talk about listening to his opinion again.

424 words

[Yamamoto Shosuke]

Ah, so Shin was like that, huh? He had been relatively blessed in the past, working with people that he could get along with, but it seemed that here and now he was dealing with something new - a complete and utter asshole.

For some reason, though Sho had never been particularly interested in respect and adulations from crowds, he had never been one to seek public affection or interest, the way the man spoke about the Yamamotos... well, it pissed him off, frankly. Sho's nose wrinkled as if he had just smelled something off, though he managed to keep any particularly barbed comments to himself. The man probably just didn't know better, it wasn't like Atagi or Yusei had recognized the name so he was probably just responding to the unknown with hostility. Shin would be far from the first person to do such a thing.

"Died for your village, huh?" Sho asked, his tone giving the impression that this was not the first time he had heard such a story. One would struggle to make a claim that he was being disrespectful or dismissive, but there was something behind his words that seemed to say 'join the club, we have t-shirts'.

Bragging about losing family members to a Kumo-nin was like bragging about having pollen allergies to someone from Konoha - you might as well be spitting into a fountain.

Well, at the very least, it seemed the other youth was willing to get the 'show on the road' and actually do their job. That was something he could respect if nothing else, being a pragmatist and someone who put work first whenever able.

"For a shinobi yourself, you sure seem to hold a bad opinion of us as a group. Death isn't exactly the default approach. But I take your meaning - don't worry, anyone need a punch in the mouth that's just what they'll get and we'll leave it at that. No need to let things get out of hand."

All that said, he couldn't help but wonder just what "business" Shin had in order to have business partners. He didn't exactly strike him as someone with the required charm to be an entrepreneur, and the Uehara name didn't seem to hold any glamour to it. The man struck him as one without a ryo to his name, which then begged just what sort of business could leave one in this state of affairs.

"Either way, lead on - I'll follow behind."

412 words | Uehara Shin

SPOILER: Click to show

B-Rank Mission: 4/20
Jutsus Used: None

[Uehara Shin]

Truthfully, Shin had not expected that Sho would react so little outwardly, but even if he remained mature and cool headed on the outside, there had to be some emotion brewing within, no matter which it was. Putting his hands into his pocket, Shin started walking away from the village gate, as it was expected the Yamamoto lad would follow him after giving him the ok to go. Shin snorted and responded to the man, "Yeah, died for the village, like, fighting. Though I'm a little sad that there's not much left for me to work with, atleast they gave the family a good name with their sacrifice. Atleast they didn't go under to something silly like bankruptcy or some sickness." He again wouldn't spell it out, but it was very clear that he was probably hinting at something, but this time he wasn't mocking in his tone of speech, he presented it flatly and seemed to just be looking at the surroundings as he walked casually. Right now there wasn't much reason to reach their goal quickly, they had a bit of time that could be used to test each other out. Even though he looked to be casually strolling about, he had his ears primed to listen on any movement or other changes behind him.

Sho was correct in that Shin did not have a particularly high opinion on Shinobi, compared to just regular civilians even. "Well, I don't think we see eye-to-eye on this one, but I think it couldn't hurt telling you about my view of things. I have a base line of respect for Shinobi and the work they do to protect their country and loved ones. I just think that many of them end up with severe issues by the time they are proper adults. Loss, greed, hatred but also duty, love and companionship. Many more emotions too, but these are all just amplified in some individuals brains, bad emotions protect them and good emotions become their burden, such is the life of a Shinobi. They are just like civilians, they are humans, but their burdens and responsibility are many times amplified to that what regular man have to care for in exchange for power. What I was trying to say with this, is that sometimes it doesn't take much for someone who's barely an adult, or not even that, and under pressure to make a bad decision." Shin mused, holding himself back from talking too much about it, he could talk about this all day if he wanted, but there was not much point. Though if it was up to him, he probably would not train 10 year olds into killing machines in a public school to be the public face of virtue and safety.

"I, for my part, like working with guys who will just punch others in the face, although you're definitely more capable than who I'm used to. I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty, but let me tell you that I am more focused on supporting through genjutsu than anything else." He had to get it out eventually, so just do it now. If he had to punch someone, he'd do it. That said, he called it supporting, but he just had no real technique to hurt someone and was forced to be supportive, though he was thinking about a more dangerous way of fighting.

567 Words

[Yamamoto Shosuke]

If Shin had expected Sho to respond, he would quickly find himself disappointed - Sho was someone who had dealt with the worst sides of being a Shinobi, buried neck deep in corpses as he had been at the hospital. Compared to that, a little shit like Shin was nothing to be all that consumed by, though Shin clearly disagreed.

Following behind Shin, Sho nodded along to what he was saying, only half focused on what he was actually saying. In a way, he almost envied Shin for having something to vamp off of from his parents - Sho still had his mother luckily enough, but his dad had been a deadbeat for as long as Sho had been alive. No money, no reputation, not even the vague awareness of who he was. Better to have loved and lost than never loved at all, as some ancient playwright would have said.

"Ain't nothing silly about sickness." Sho said, though whether he was annoyed by the man's disregard for the Kumo plague or not was unclear, at least in his words. It was already pretty clear that this guy's opinions were worth less than dirt, so getting all tussled by him was quickly losing any luster it had already had.

"Before this shinobi stuff, I worked for years at Kumo's general hospital, and let me tell you some people who die on the battlefield get pretty lucky - You ever seen a man's skin rot off his bones whilst he writhes in agony? What about someone drown in their own phlegm? At least a kunai or a sword is quick."

Hell, that had been partially why Shosuke had been so eager to reenlist in the Shinobi corps - there were many deaths in the field that were preventable. Some diseases just didn't have cures so the most you could do was make their final moments comfortable. Between a problem he could solve and one he couldn't, he'd take the former any day of the week.

Either way, he quietly listened to the other man speak as they continued to walk, each second drawing them closer to their destination. For as much difference as there was between the two of them, it seemed they shared one rather notable trait - a willingness to drop philosophical arguments at the drop of a hat. Ignoring the rest of the man's callousness and cruelty, his argument was pretty interesting, though it wasn't exactly nuanced. The man's pessimism was clearly affecting everything else about him, as if it was casting some sort of shadow over his perspective on life.

"Eh, that's the same with everyone though - Ain't necessarily anything to do with Shinobi. I've known many people who cave at the slightest bit of pressure, whilst I've known many shinobi who keep going when everything else is lost.

Your fellow Kusa-nin, Atagi - he's a pretty good example of the latter. Dude lost both his arms to that asshole Hotarubi from Taki, and it hasn't made him any the crueler or colder for it. Hell, it's almost dangerous just how little he's let it affect him, still as nice as ever. Still pretty damn stupid though..."

Soon enough, the pair found themselves standing in front of the trading post that they were supposed to be dealing with, time clearly having sped by just from the conversation they were having. Hell, it was hard to tell just how long they'd actually been talking - Though he may not like this guy as much as he liked Yusei, their shared passion was clearly allowing things to flow along smoother than one might have expected given their shared headstrong nature.

"Well, unless my hands are forced, I'll try to keep violence to a minimum. But if there's someone you want me to punch in the face, just give me a signal. I'm no thug, but sometimes these things are unavoidable."

644 words | Uehara Shin

SPOILER: Click to show

B-Rank Mission: 6/20
Jutsus Used: None

[Uehara Shin]

As he walked, listened to and talked with Shousuke, something seemed to shift in his attitude. This guy wasn't bad, a bit boring for what he initially thought would be some entertainment, but definitely a welcome surprise in between all the happy little Kusa Shinobi who wanted to live peacefully. Where was the fun in that? But he could get them to react to some casual remarks and explore their characters through it. Glasses guy over here seemed to be a tougher crowd and not out to make a fool of himself. "I can't say I have concerned myself with medicine to a high amount, but I can guess a few things at what you're describing. I'm more interested in humans and how they are wired. I can only say that I've seen people become deranged, ruin their lives, ruin others lives, fall to the lowest lows and recover from it. Don't think too low of me just yet. The pain we are speaking of is just too subjective to properly judge it." His way of carrying himself really had changed, there was no mocking in his tone anymore, and although they were talking eye to eye, his expression had hardened too, eyes sharp.

He kind of took a liking to this rather cold Shinobi, he seemed capable both physically and mentally, maybe he could become someone important in Kumo if he survived long enough. Shin remained in the lead, moving a bit ahead of Shousuke, but just barely, so they could keep their conversation up. If he could turn things around, maybe there was a chance to work together again in the future in a different capacity. Shin had already learned to reign himself in more after he met Raimaa, he just didn't expect Sho would be someone to be interested in. "Haah." He said, exhaling a mouth full of hot air. "I guess you're really something, huh? But my issue was more the environment Shinobi are put in artificially. One mistake weighs heavily. As for that Atagi guy, well, I can't say I admire him, in my eyes he's just as fucked as I probably appear in yours. The general rules apply of, don't judge a book by its cover, humans are always capable of the most heinous acts. But especially watch yourself around Shinobi."

Since Shin had called the shots at the start and even guided them here, it was only natural for him to arrive first and take stock of the surroundings, even if Shousuke would appear next to him with barely a delay. There was nothing around them that seemed wrong, and they had arrived just a bit before schedule, everything was going smoothly so far, but his famous gut feeling was telling him that things wouldn't stay like this. Though he had been serious before, his attitude had shifted to more of a friendly banter right now, "I'm sure if you shaved your head and bulked up some more, you would make a great bandit leader." He joked and walked forward towards the trading post. "Well, whatever, let's take a look and check out the situation." He was again the first to take the lead, but he was clearly more prepared to actually act, his casual demeanor had completely vanished and... the hands had left their pockets.

553 words