[Gure Yuuta]

We Are Many
We Are Legion

Don'tcha know that no one alive can always be an angel? When everything goes wrong, you see some bad. But oh, I'm just a soul whose intentions are good. Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood.

How many years had it been since Yuuta lived in Konoha? Two? Yeah it didn't seem like time had gone by so quickly, yet it had and Yuuta wasn't close to understanding or knowing what his legacy would become. The future was blurry for the man to say the least, every day he felt the urge to do more but the urge or well the feeling wasn't something he was familiar with. He knew the feeling he usually got when he needed to experience or learn something new, the hunger for information, knowledge and change had been with him his entire life. However, the urge he had been feeling lately or to be precise what he had been missing in his life was completely and utterly alien.

It gnawed at every cell in his body, it was something ancient, improbable, a terrifying twisting and turning within his being that caused Yuuta to seek fulfillment; thrills or the feeling one got when he or she were in battle or creating jutsu. Sometimes it came to him in force, making him feel as though he should be on a battlefield, other times it washed over him like a wave of creativity. Every time the urge, the need and the want of this new getting came it was entirely different, however there was a constant feeling shared between the thrill seeking and the creative authority urges he'd get and that was his unbounded imagination running wild within him.

Despite now knowing what could sate his current disposition, Yuuta knew exactly when he had started feeling the urges. The fight known as Eden, between him and the former Mizukage. It had since then increased in potency and frequency, ever since Roku had gone missing; the village was still looking for the young chunin; however rumors were beginning to spread that he had simply went rogue, with one of Konohagakure's most notorious criminals, Hyuga Kayaku. Yuuta didn't know where to start looking for the Uchiha. It was believed that Hyuga Kayaku had died from his wounds after a failed attempt to take over Kusagakure.

After these rumors started all traces and Intel had stopped and the trail went cold. Then Yuuta's hope blaze into life yet again thanks to an unforeseen incident involving Hyuga Shodaime, Konoha's head medic. What came to light was that Shodaime and Kayaku we're officially together, immediately refuting the once believed fact that Kayaku had died from his wounds. The S rank missing nin still walked the Shinobi world and Yuuta would be lying if denied being relieved by this new information.

It meant that Rokurou could very well be alive… the man hoped this was true. Not a day went by that he wasn't thinking about his son, he had moved to Sagyo simply because it was the last place the two of them were together as father and son. However, Yuuta currently lacked the power he needed to engage someone such as Kayaku. A knock on the thick metal door of Yuuta's home; an old abandoned weapons warehouse in Sagyo, had pulled him from his thoughts.

"A visitor? No one ever comes to see me. It's probably Wahei or Asahi, wanting to do more research. I guess I'll indulge them for a while" Yuuta said to himself as another series of knocks echoed throughout the large facility. Standing up from the simple bed, that looked like it would be in a jail cell. Yuuta yawned and stretched before making his way to the door. Opening the iron door, Yuuta looked at the man before him… for a moment he didn't recognize who the shinobi was, at least until he had greeted him.

"You've got to be kidding me…? Issei!? Man… Yuuta… you've finally lost it. Issei isn't here, he's out becoming a great shinobi like you knew he would" the man said.

He'd pinch himself to make sure he was awake and that his mind, the aforementioned unbounded, nearly untamable imagination, wasn't playing tricks on him. "Oh shit… it is you!" He said straightening up his ramshackled looking outfit, rubbing his hands through his hair and wiping what could very well be dried tears from his eyes. "Well, come on in. Mi casa es su casa!" Yuuta said in a foreign language he had recently seen in a book about cultures within the eastern continent.

"Welcome to my um… home in Sagyo. Ignore those weird looking experiments over there. Just something Wahei and Asahi have been messing with" the man said before immediately adding "long time no see, I've missed you Issei"

TEMPLATE BY ELIZA @ TB THQ

SAs used:

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[UCHIHA ISSEI]

How long had it been since he last saw his Sensei. There wasn't many things the Uchiha could smile about these days, in fact he didn't, but for a moment. Just a moment he did as he thought back to the person he was before he met Yuuta for the first time. In manga like fashion too as he was introduced on his first major mission outside of the village in terms of how long they were going to be gone. Back then it was still only himself and Nori and boy, did they have little faith in him.

The guy had a lot of nerve and confidence, but he seemed eager to prove that he wasn't going to be like the other Sensei's they had in the past that would always bail in favor of newer assignments. "Crazy bastard.." Issei let out as he thought of how annoying he was on that mission, but till this day he was the only one to ever follow through on his promise. Well kinda. There was still those few months he disappeared out of nowhere, but he definitely returned to the village when he needed them both.

Issei owed a lot of who he became, if not almost all of it to Yuuta. When he returned he immediately pushed him to take lead of the group of Genin that had been assembled between himself Roku, and Yurako. It was a lot of pressure initially, but eventually he begin to feel more confident in himself. He begin to feel more like the person who spent so many years holding back because they were too focused on trying to understand people instead of his craft.

Soon enough he was amongst the best Genin in the entire village along side Kazui who was an Uchiha like himself. The Chuunin exams came pretty easy to the Uchiha and soon enough he'd officially be promoted to Chuunin. It was a huge accomplishment seeing as he never believed he would even get to that point, and not much longer afterward he became swarmed with all the new responsibilities that came with the promotion.

Yurako unfortunately wasn't apart of the promotion ceremony due to personal circumstances, but Roku got promoted as well. Nevertheless, he went a good amount of time without seeing them either as they all carried on with their lives. For Issei it meant more escort mission and of course building his relationship with Ayukawa. Now that he thought about it Issei couldn't remember whether or not he even told Yuuta about her.

Such a shame, but it was a fault of his own for not keeping in touch with him. Especially with the rumors circulating about what went down with them in the Chuunin exams as well with the Mizukage. Till this day he never got the full details, but that was on him. Of course not much time passed before Issei realized he moved out the village and that his former teammate Roku was gone as well. Still he tried pushing forward as he became near obsessed with running through the ranks after his previous success.

Even arguably the villages most renown Shinobi Kazuto begin taking notice of his growth despite receiving negative feelings from the clan. Soon after he'd be promoted against to the junior ranks of Jounin, and with that came more responsibility which he gladly looked forward to taking on. Add in meeting some new friends and his girlfriend meeting the family it seemed like his life couldn't be more perfect. Until it wasn't.

He begin to get careless, ignoring threats and forgetting the dark side that comes with being a Shinobi. Issei grew arrogant like many of the people he despised in his clan, and as a result it would change his life forever. The girl he spared at the exams had threatened to hurt the people he loved, and instead of being responsible and reaching out to his chain of command he took matters into his own hand.

The results fortunately did not end in death as Kuni wish, but one could argue his punishment was worst than that. His lover had nearly died before his eyes, he almost let a member of his rival clan die, and put the village politically at risk. The end result lead to them being miraculously saved before they were brought back to Sunagakure to be scolded by their villages Jounin Hanchou who happened to be his lovers cousin.

However, in the midst of all this darkness there was a silver lining. Hatake, Toshizo. The father of Tokaku Uchiha and one of the Shinobi council of the village. It was a huge surprise to him that in the midst of all that he had done that he still saw much potential in him, but more surprisingly that he wasn't too high on the leadership of the village either. Oddly enough his thoughts seemed to align with his own and many of his clansman, and as such he invited him to be captain of a new group.

It was then that he awakened the power that would forever shape him, but still. He couldn't live with his own failure, and where did it bring him? "Back to you, Teacher." The Uchiha let out before knocking on the Gure's door. It was odd that he chose to live out here, but nevertheless he was able to get wind of where he lived. He didn't know whether he'd be home or not, but it was worth the try with everything he'd been through.

When Yuuta surprisingly answered the door he seemed to be in disbelief of his presence. Naturally he had every right to be with how long it'd been since the two saw one another. Issei merely waved as Yuuta continued to gather his thoughts. "I can assure you its me Teacher." The Uchiha added before the Gure finally snapped back into reality and welcomed him inside his home. Upon walking in he told him to ignore some of the experiments he had seen while also noting some Shinobi he got wind of.

More specifically his new students. Yep, it had been that long and oddly enough he learned that the Hyuuga he met was also one of his students as well. Unfortunately with all the drama that took place he had no time to really bring that up to them, and from what he heard they were to be taking part in the exams in Mizu no Kuni. "Mhm, I see you replaced us.. Not like I can blame you though, I haven't been the most active former pupil of yours." Issei added while looking around before he addressed his Sensei's words of affection.

"But I've missed you too Teacher.. How you been holding up?"

[Gure Yuuta]

Gure Yuuta

People can’t, unhappily, invent, their lovers and their friends, any more than they can invent their parents. Life gives these and also takes them away and the great difficulty is to say ‘Yes’ to life.

"What do you mean? You'll always be my student even when you surpass me in everything that is" Yuuta said genuinely. To think that he'd replace one of his closest friends. Well it was quite preposterous… Imagine Yuuta saying the same to Issei's mother. He'd have been set on fire back in his day had he even thought of such a notion. Though, the blame could be placed on both of them. Yuuta understood that Issei was busy and didn't want to interrupt his flow, which wasn't an excuse… at least not a good one anyway.

The Jounin himself wasn't as busy but had restrictions placed on him after Issei's chunin exams. Restrictions that were well suited for Yuuta, as he was someone who enjoyed his freedom more than the next individual. It had nearly crushed the man's psyche, yet he proved resilient enough to sit out his sentence. "There's so much that's happened since we were last together. Despite it all, I've been making my way through it. After your exams things had gotten a bit dicey for me. Although I'm not one to talk, it seems that the ideology of following one's heart has passed on to you as well. I heard about that incident you were involved in" Yuuta said, starting with both their more questionable actions in the time that they were apart.

Of all the things Yuuta wished Issei would have taken from their time together as a team, the spontaneous, illogicality of the man's concept of free will wasn't one of them. At the same time, he couldn't be more proud of Issei as it was the same concept of free will, of his sense of self that enabled him to get so far in his career. "Don't get me wrong Issei, I'm proud of you. I'd expect nothing less from you or any of my students. You guys often say that if it wasn't for me that you wouldn't be where you are. However, I believe it's you and the others who made me into someone better." Yuuta paused momentarily and walked over to refrigerator that was filled to the brim with all sorts of food, snacks and beverages; a stark contrast to the rest of the man's home. 

"Of course I'm still In-Between fucking up and doing the right thing. And I haven't figured out the next step in my life. To be completely honest, being censured for defending against Kirigakure's former Mizukage has affected my faith in being a Shinobi overall. The way certain long time allies and even a close friend, or at least I thought he was a friend. Vilified me was surprising and disheartening" Yuuta added, making a point to not say the name of the shinobi who, Yuuta thought to be someone he could count on; a man of great renown in Konoha who Yuuta had even helped trained once before.

Yet, Yuuta wasn't the type to try and understand everyone's motives, especially not the former friend he was referring to at the moment. Instead, he had taken the subsequent sentencing and lack of comradeship with his head held high, standing staunchly by his actions that night during the exams. One thing for certain about Yuuta was that he never regretted anything he had done, said or will do in the future and he wouldn't start doing so simply because he felt betrayed. "Well, at least I wasn't executed or taken prisoner by Kirigakure. So I guess it all worked out" he added, his voice pensive showing that the fallout of that night had affected him deeply, although it was his peers' actions that had done more damage than being arrested.

Taking out two strawberry flavored drinks, he'd walk back over to Issei and hand him one of the beverages. "Do you remember when you first had a glimpse of the sharingan's sight? During that training session where you were so disrespectful enough to nearly set your sensei on fire?!" Yuuta recalled a particularly eventful training session with Issei, one the had not only changed the Uchiha's views of himself and his clan but also promoted Yuuta to create an entirely new Gure Jutsu in aftermath.

"Boy, I'd tell you. I still haven't experienced a flame hotter than the Uchiha's. I even created a defense against fire jutsu as a result of that training session" he said, smiling at the now, special Jounin ranked shinobi. The Jounin wondered briefly if Issei could tell that he was skirting around some of the more emotionally traumatic situations that had occurred in their time apart from each other. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk about these things, after all Issei was no longer a child and in Yuuta's eyes he was someone he could confide in, the same had always been the case for Issei as well. However, now the two of them could equally benefit from each other's listening ear and advice.

TEMPLATE BY ELIZA @ TB THQ

SAs used:

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[UCHIHA ISSEI]

With everything that had been happening it was nice to be assured this his place in the Yuuta's life was still no different than it was. Because he was his only successful teacher it was kind of hard to take in the fact that he had other students. Jealousy would be the correct word, but he would never allow him to know that. Even now with everything they'd been through together there was still some petty things he had to keep to himself right? Nonetheless, he appreciated knowing that their relationship wasn't just a temporary one.

Soon after Yuuta begin talking a little about what transpired shortly after the exams, but in Yuuta like fashion he seemed to kind of veer away from the point of it all. Even now he still had little details as to what happened, but he wasn't going to say anything about that just yet. It wasn't like he was the police or anything so he'd try to let him get to that by himself if he could. The transition into what happened to him was sudden, but he expected nothing short of Yuuta to sort of tie in his own issues so that he could better relate.

"Yeah, it seems like a number of high ranking officials like yourself have been informed."

Issei added while scratching his head and briefly looking away as he didn't know whether he'd get a scolding from him, some condolence, or a balance of both as neither was above his teachers doing. However, this time around it seemed like things would be different. Instead he explained how proud of him he was and made it a point to let him know how much of an impact himself and his others students made an impact on his life. Roku and Nori were definitely the people that came to mind for him.

For the moment Issei remained speechless and he watched his teacher walk over to the refrigerator. He never expected that the two of them would ever be talking to one another like adults, and that wasn't to say that Yuuta ever treated him like a child, but he always remained professional in how he built up himself and the rest of the team, but now? It was if they were just talking as regular people who were fond of each other.

Nonetheless, Yuuta was still as honest and accountable as ever as he admitted to still being stuck between fucking up and doing the right thing. How ironic was it that a lot of their training reflected the same thinking as his methods were definitely more unconventional than most. Like their trip to Kawa. Having said that, Yuuta transitioned smoothly into a little of what happened during his Chuunin exams in Byakuya.

Based on how he said things it seemed as though he was defending himself from her, which would go against some of the people in the village that seemed to be under the impression that it was actually the other way around. Regardless, it was good to know that the part he took side on in the story reflected Yuuta's. The Gure could probably get in and over his head from time to time, but never to the extent of trying to start a war.

Even so, he understood based on how things turned out why he begin losing faith in the Shinobi system. For a moment Issei begin to feel the same way after he arrived in Sunagakure after their mess with Kuni. Between Konoha's lack of involvement in other worldly affairs, clan issues, Kazui leaving, the love of his life almost dying, and of course the worrying of whether or not his career would suffer over one mistake definitely had him questioning a number of things.

Of course Toshizo help put a lot of that into perspective upon his soon to initiation into Root. Still, as Yuuta noted he was better off still here than being sent off for some public execution. The latter of which he would have never allowed to happen without trying to put forth some kind of fight. "I guess it kind of did, because you getting sent away to be a prisoner of theirs would not have sat well with me."

Issei hoped he might get the chance to explore of what happened during all of that, but instead he reminisced back to an earlier moment between the two of them that had not reflected to in sometime. He wondered if their might be a point to it all because unlike his other transitions into another conversation, this one didn't feel too natural. Issei facial expression remained neutral as he looked at his teacher reflect on how hot their fire was.

His more so even hotter than them all, but he wasn't going to brag about that right now. The point of all this seemed to be directed as something he created which he believes would be resistance to Katon which he thought was interesting given his mushrooms weak affinity to fire. Afterward Issei knew he had to decide whether or not he was going to be a kid and go along with the transition, or keep the integrity of why he came here in the first place.

"Hmmm, maybe one of these days we'll get the chance to test that out... But I think today wont be that day, and I think its time we stop biting around the bush because it seems like you and I both have gone through a lot. As much as I would like for this meeting to be all happy while we reflect on the good times, I think its even more important that we reflect on now Y'know? This village hurt you, and another village hurt me."

"My mother said its okay to feel sometimes, and for me specifically that it would help calm the madness inside my head as I take on the responsibility of handling this new power. Holding it all in would make it worst, and that's kind of why I came here. I think you should also be willing to do the same." Issei let out before walking over to his former teacher and placing his left hand shakenly on his shoulder.

[Gure Yuuta]

Gure Yuuta

There's a marked difference between acquaintances and friends. Most people really don't become friends. They become deep and serious acquaintances. But in a friendship you get to know the spirit of another person; and your values coincide.

Yuuta wasn't surprised at how much Issei had matured mentally. He effectively grew from a boy who was convinced that his own power would lead him down a cursed path to a Shinobi with such a level of analytical that he could see behind Yuuta's own facade. It probably helped that Issei knew Yuuta's mannerism by heart. His keen sense of the moment was nevertheless a feat in itself. Yuuta was already moving to reflect the boy's prodding into the Eden incident; "Eden" was codename used to refer to Yuuta's Yukigakure exam incident. However, before Yuuta could deflect and reflect Issei was already standing next to him.

The Uchiha's words cut through the mental chains Yuuta had erected, and the young man's simple gesture of true friend's a hand on his shoulder, knocked down Yuuta's guards. Tears instantly flowed from Yuuta's eyes and dropped to the cold floor below, even though Issei had made a breakthrough, Yuuta right breakdown as most would in such a situation.

Sadness was a foreign emotion to Gure Yuuta, at least this degree of sadness was. His body naturally didn't know how to react to such overwhelming emotion so he just stood there with his face hanging down, pupils dilated to their max and void of anything but sadness and begrudging anger. After a brief moment, the Jounin would speak. "During your match against that Kunoichi called Kuni with the tendrils. Idle threats and rumors of doujutsu hunting started swirling between the Jounin and Village leaders. I made sure that every Shinobi present understood that I would kill one of the participants should the threats become reality. I believe it was then that the Former Mizukage, Kaguya Minako recognized me from the time before she became kage. We had a brief encounter during the time I had disappeared" he added the last bit quickly before finally raising his head to look Issei in the eyes.

Looking up at Issei, he didn't realize just how much taller the Uchiha had grown up until this very moment. "The Mizukage, Kaguya Minako…" his voice got deeper, darker as if he were about to inform Issei of an impending doom. He pulled close two of the lab chairs that Asahi piled into his new home and sat down close to Issei and decided to be completely forthcoming. "She followed me to where Yuki's unique snow berry trees grew, before I knew it we were alone. The grove of snow berry trees was quite expansive to say the least" the man continued. He didn't realize how long the retelling of Eden actually was, however Yuuta couldn't stop himself. Everything he wished he could've said to Kazuto, Shikajin, Sada or anyone from his generation simply flowed from his mind to his lips without much effort or thought towards the action.


"Kirigakure, as you know, is our long standing enemy. I didn't think anything of her appearance because she had her child cradled in her arms. We spoke briefly about our children and students. Then… She tested me as a shinobi, pinning me against one of the snow berry trees without warning. Of course I knew this wasn't the woman's actual provocation. At that point though, she had the upper hand, whether we had engaged in battle or not she could have said anything and her words would take precedence over mine. A Jounin's words versus a Kage and Daimyo's. I was damned either way, so I decided to take matters into my own hands and be the judge of my own fate" he pulled up his burgundy shirt to show the various scars from the nasty wounds the woman's Kekkei Genkai had inflicted on him. Every scar showing that they were once deep gnashes or nearly surgical laceration by their appearance alone.

Taking a quick sip of the beverage he had gotten earlier, the carbonated drink refreshed him and slightly burned the back of his throat in a slightly pleasant way. "Ahhh" the man exclaimed due to the lingering burn of the drink's carbonation. "I had made up my mind that if I were to die that night, that I would take her down with me." Taking another sip of the beverage he'd began to laugh afterwards, having thought of something between telling the story. "Hehehe, I guess I could've escaped and gotten to our allies before she would but I didn't want to chance it. That and Hell would certainly freeze over before I'd allow her to gain whatever she hoped to gain by exploiting me and using her voice as Kage. Ha! I kissed her too just in case it would be my last moments on earth he said chuckling and slightly feeling like a player for a moment.

Yuuta had said several mouths full at this point, as he wanted to paint the picture as vividly and truthfully as he possibly could. However, this wasn't what bothered Yuuta so deeply, as he retold the story, Yuuta had cheered up slightly however once he got to the ending flashbacks of the night and the first allied words he heard since the battle had started, reverberated in his mind. New Tears retraced the salty path of the ones before it "Are you mad?", "Are you drugged? Tell me Yuuta, what is the reason that pushed you into this idiocy? Give me a reason for not tearing you limb by limb for this breach of truce in this land?" "Fool of a Gure... If so much you wish to die, kill yourself and save us all from your stupidity." Yuuta quoted the words said to him by none other than the man he thought to be his longest and closest friend…

"These were the words said to me by my reinforcements, by my once close friend… Senju Kazuto. And though I am a Shinobi and an adult. These words cut me deeper than anything the Mizukage had done…"

TEMPLATE BY ELIZA @ TB THQ

SAs used:

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[UCHIHA ISSEI]

Finally, Issei was going to get the hidden details on what transpired between his encounter the former Mizukage. The Uchiha thought the story would start from where everything happened, instead the beginning seem to further reiterrate some of the rumors that were traveling around prior to the start of the third round. None of which he believed as he couldn't imagine someone taking the risk of actually stealing a Doujutsu, but if their were Jounin discussing it then it had to be true.

Fortunately no one got the better of him so it wouldn't end up becoming a problem, nonetheless, that part of the exams seemed to be the bases for what lead to their fight later on. He was surprised to hear that despite the nature of their conversation that even with a child involved she took it upon herself to make such a bold and aggressive mood. Of course there is no telling what Yuuta might have said to trigger her, but as a Kage he most definitely expected more from the woman.

Regardless, once things got underway it was pretty much a wrap for Yuuta. The Uchiha could only shake his head as he acknowledge the reality his teacher spoke on. No one would ever take his word over that of a Kage. Even if he managed to say all the right things from a political standpoint they would likely side with her anyways. Well, at least that is what he might have thought at the time if he knew everything, but from what he gather Niko didn't do much of anything in terms of what might have been requested from Kiri.

Either way it would probably be in everyone's best interest from Konoha to steer clear from Kiri Shinobi. Be as it may Yuuta did what they felt they needed to, and while the kissing part was definitely not necessary he could understand why someone like his teacher might have done such a silly thing. Now what he didn't see coming was the scolding that he got from his support once others got involved in the matter at hand.

The words were rather cruel, especially without even doing any investigating into why things went down the way it did in the first place, but that wasn't the worst part. It came from someone he considered a dear friend, and after the name was mentioned so did Issei. Kazuto was definitely a by the rules kind of guy, but he was also someone that many considered to be honest, honorable, and of sound judgement, but this? Showed very little sound in judgement.

He wondered if this might have been one of the added causes of Kazui leaving the village. After hearing this it was hard to doubt whether or not he might have spoken the same things to her. A heavy sigh escaped from him as he pondered on how he might look at him going forward. He still had not spoken to him since everything that went down in Suna. Could Issei expect to hear much of the same?

"I can't even imagine Teacher.. He didn't even try to give you a chance, instead it seemed like he held things about you unrelated to the situation against you.. I can expect he'll try the same rhetoric with me, but for the sake of the both of us I won't stand to hear it. Especially if he refuses to acknowledge other factors related to the matter...Sigh, I guess in the end we're really all we got Teacher. Everything is good, until it isn't. Then you're stupid, or in my case just an evil emotional Uchiha waiting to abandoned them."

[Gure Yuuta]

Gure Yuuta

homo sum humani a me nihil alienum puto

                                   -

I am a human being; nothing human is strange to me.

Yuuta felt a sense of kinship from Issei that he had not received from his own generation in years. However, the then Hokage, Kawaii Niko, wasn't as harsh with Yuuta as others were and did not allow Kirigakure to turn the incident into Yuuta being the only aggressor; deep down the Jounin applauded Niko for sticking her own head out for him. It was her staunch loyalty and diplomatic response to Kirigakure that kept Yuuta from leaving the village altogether. If the Hokage had vilified him as well he would have escaped Kazuto's captivity as soon as they had started home for Hi no Kuni; the Jounin had only a brief moment after the situation to decide to… yet again take his own fate from those around him. Just as he had done with the former Mizukage, Kaguya Minako.

"Hehe, I guess it was fate that we became teacher and student, Issei. The abominable Uchiha and the Chaotic Gure, a friendship forged in hell" the Gure joked, trying to relieve his own sadness with a bit of brevity. However, Yuuta wouldn't go as far with it as he usually would. This time he'd stick to the subject at hand and be as transparent as someone like himself could. "I'll be honest with you Issei, the only reason we're able to have this conversation right now, is because of Lady Niko" Yuuta said using an honorific when referring to the former Hokage; something Yuuta rarely did for anyone but did so for Niko as he now held her in high regard.

"Had Niko joined the others, I would have left Konohagakure… I don't mean what you see right now. No, I would have renounced my status as a Jounin of the Hidden leaf and defect from Hi no Kuni. I would rather be a hostage of Kirigakure than to protect a nation that wouldn't protect their native born" the Jounin admitted, as memories of him outwardly agreeing to Minako's demand to take him back to Kirigakure as a political prisoner. The rest of Yuuta's tale wasn't as damaging as what had just been told and he'd eventually get to finishing up the entire incident but not before his curiosity was piqued by Issei's own words.

"As you know there are various accounts of what had happened in Sunagakure. Many of the Jounin are circulating remiidangerous and illegal actions done by you and others. Such as Kunikunosaki and another kunoichi Saeko, Ayukawa  his words trailed off for a second as he turned his head to look Issei in the eyes, " However I could not believe themnnot until I heard it from the Uchiha's mouth" Although, Yuuta believed genuinely that his students could and would do something that went against moral ethics, laws of the land and their higher-ups orders, because Yuuta had instilled in them an intense sense of self.

He encouraged both their best and worst traits as Yuuta saw it as them being true to who they were. Issei and Yuuta's other students probably didn't realize it at the time but everything that Yuuta had forced them to endure was simply to build their own perception of who they are and who they would become. The isms which defined them not just as shinobi but as living beings. He lauded their various personality traits, both good and bad, their abilities, likes and dislikes, they're different belief systems and of course their budding moral codes. Yuuta carefully crafted the way he trained Issei and his teammates as well as his current genin students so that he was reverential with the things that motivate them, placing importance on everything that contributed to their self image and their unique identity as a person. Still, he couldn't bring himself to believe that Issei, the good boy of all those he had taught, had acted on his own volition.

"So, what really happened to you during our time away?" Yuuta asked.

TEMPLATE BY ELIZA @ TB THQ

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[UCHIHA ISSEI]

Issei couldn't blame his former teacher for consistently trying to lighten up the mood despite everything that had happened between the two of them. Issei still couldn't find it in his heart to reach out to Ayukawa after everything that transpired between them on the boarders of Bonchi. Even after all of that he continued to be a coward, and somehow he hoped being here might actually changed that. Giving in to his killer instinct wasn't the only thing he needed to upgrade, but he also needed stay by his words.

After everything that was said between them so far Issei was surprised to hear that Niko of all people was the only person that had his back. He wasn't a fan of a lot of the things that went down in their reign since he'd become politically aware, but he was happy to know that she had done one thing right in his personal life for Yuuta when it seemed as though all else was falling apart. At long last, it seemed that it was his turn to be on the other end of explaining himself.

Issei didn't want to dig into that wound so soon, but he needed to confront it like the man he was now. Not to mention that was kind of the reason he was here anyways. "I was an idiot... That's what happened." Issei started before turning his back toward his Teacher and taking in a deep breath. Afterward he'd walk over to a nearby chair and take a seat. "Who would have thought sparing someones life would come with such heavy consequences, but it seems like in our line of work it does."

"Kuni... I guess she held a grudge toward me for not taking her out. I thought nothing of it in the the hopes they might use that moment to help them grow, and honestly? It did.. Just not in the way I imagined or hoped, nor did I think her growth would affect me so closely." Issei calmly leaned his back against the chair before continuing the rest of his story. "After the third round ended, that night I went out to go for a stroll since the likelihood of me ever going back there was slim to none."

"Long story short I encountered the girl I fought in the second part of the third round. Saeko Ayukawa, the love of my life.. Well, that is if she'll ever forgive me for being a FREAKING COWARD!" There was something about that moment he just couldn't let go. How could have been so weak in such a pivotal moment? "Anyways, we connected and that small moment eventually grew into something bigger, but what I didn't know what was that the entire time Kuni was keeping tabs on me."

"Sometime after the exam I got a letter from someone threatening to take my life and those I cared about. I thought nothing of it because I couldn't think of what kind of enemy I had made prior to becoming a Chuunin. I hadn't made the kind of impact to feel the affect of a letter like that, but boy was I a freaking idiot." Another sigh escaped from him before he continued the rest of his story. "Life went on as usual and everything suddenly was beginning to come full circle. At least until clan matters started messing things up."

"I was completing missions, getting stronger, and I begin to notice more and more people take notice of me.. Oddly enough, when Kazui left the village people suddenly begin taking more notice of me. Namely Kazuto.." Issei added at the end as he pondered on whether or not their relationship was built out of fear based on what took place with Kazui, or if he truly believed in him. "Soon after I was promoted and was offer the role to be on the war council under Hiruko."

"Everything was going near perfect. My work life was improving, I was getting stronger, making new friends, and my family even approved of my relationship with Ayukawa.. I had my eyes set on taking over the clan and finally putting an end to a lot of what my people have gone through. Then one day some Senju named Tetsumi came to my doorstep all beat up.. Telling me he got a message left to him by someone who knew me.. It was Kuni."

"The message she left was almost word for word similar to what was sent to me in the mail and suddenly it all begin to make since.. I could have told the higher ups, but I believed myself to still be superior to them in combat, especially with all the training I did, but I wasn't prepared for the consequences that was made available upon my arrival to the place of battle. Ayukawa was there too... Her presence there pretty much killed my focus because she was on the side of Kuni."

"Not directly, but as the reason she was there as a result of manipulation... Of course Kuni tried to make me out to be the bad guy, buy with Ayukawa caught on it was too late and her.... Her arm was nearly ripped clean off and she begin bleeding out.. My emotions got the better of me and we all nearly got killed. Thankfully Sunagakures Jounin Hanchou was aware of this and showed up to save her, and fortunately the rest of us too."

"From what I've learnt, she no longer has an arm and was pending other consequences as a result of her presence there.. All because she was worried about my dumbass. If I just got my shit together I could have prevented all that, but potential pain of loss was too triggering for me as an Uchiha."