Starring:
Date: May 17th, 2010
Summary:
N/A
"Coming out from the Waterfall"
Konoha
Some time has passed since the demotion of the Uchiha Clan's Prodigy and Genius; Uchiha Satoru. Never being dealt an decisive beating like the one at the hands of that Kirigakure Shinobi in the Land of Waves has him down and out more than the demotion. For some time since the news and event that shaked his very core, he has been absent; taking time off from his duties and really only his younger brother has seen him. This day, creeping into night, he is found at the waterfall outside of Konohagakure no Sato in a standing position beneathe the crashing waters. His black short mane of hair is matted down against his face, covering his eyes, and obscuring his vision, however he barely moves.
The changing sky was generally a sign for those who were off on nearby missions and patrols to start heading back to the village to rest up, simply to start the cycle all over again. This wasn't the case for the Hyuuga clan's messenger girl, though she was conveniently coming home at this time. The journey a bit tiring on the feet, though important items for the Hyuuga clan would not truly be trusted being picked up by anyone outside of the clan. "Hrm…" Kukiko's brow would scrunch a bit as she'd realize something, something that had not happened to her too often these past years…
She broke a sweat.
'I've not been keeping myself active enough. Old age is most likely not the cause…' With her index and middle finger she'd wipe the bead of sweat away and detour, taking a sharp right as she hopped from branch to branch until landing at the edge of the waterfall. A quick glance given to the boy simply standing there, a moment of concern coming across before she assumes it is simply training.
In a joking tone she would comment, "Ah… a classic scene." Before crouching down next to the water, lowering a weighty looking bag beside her so that she could cup the water with both hands and splash her face a few times
The shifting skies, as beautiful as they seem, go unnoticed by the Uchiha Prodigy. The sound of someone approaching is also missed…a flaw that really never befell the teenager in the past. The moment the voice broke through the crashing waters around him, Satoru lifted his head and slightly turned it, those deeply experienced eyes noting the Hyuuga Kunoichi standing in the distance behind him… splashing her face with water. "Is it?" The voice that comes from the newly demoted chuunin is low and hard to hear over the waterfall.
"Hrm, I suppose you are not the book type? Happens often in martial arts stories, meditation under the waterfall." Kukiko has not yet realized that this was Uchiha Satoru, her biased opinion on the Uchiha not getting her to quickly cut away at the conversation. Neither did she realize he was the Uchiha Satoru that had managed to get one of her Hyuuga locked up in the Land of Waves to chide him.
"Not many ninja have the time if reading is not their first choice of a past time, perhaps if I read less, my cardio would be in much more approveable state." A soft smile shows and she wipes away the water rolling towards her eyes. "If you were indeed meditating, my apologies. Being by myself for so long has me in a rather chatty mood." Now she would linger, no real reason to be here now that she had cooled herself with the water, she simply wanted to talk to something.
So the woman would stay crouched, rubbing her hands together beneath the water to remove some grime that was on the not so clean bag she was carrying. "Hyuuga Kukiko."
"It's not a classic scene then." Satoru replies and turns, the Uchiha Symbol now fully showing for a moment on his shoulder; A tattoo of his pride. A small bow is delivered and he states, "Uchiha Satoru," though his voice is still low and groggy. "I believe scenes of a shamed warrior are not many in these books you read." A moment later, he steps out from the water fall and flickers from sight, now standing on solid dry ground; the water that soaks his clothes slowly changing the state of the dry ground mentioned. "Are they?" His head is somewhat tilted downward, his dark brown eyes watching the grass below him slowly tilt downward as each blade grows heavy with water.
The smile would slowly sink down to something close to a frown, though with a bit of effort she'd manage to push it back up to its former position. "Ah, Satoru-chan. Now I see why your words carry so lightly in the wind. A shamed warrior." Kukiko says pleasantly, "Perhaps one must become a warrior first? Prodigy or not, you need the years to become a true warrior… I do not even think I am worthy of such a title." She decided to give him time, unlike Kirin he was far enough away from adulthood for her to think that her words would have at least some sort of effect.
"A few exceptional fighters were what truly lead the Uchiha clan, I believe people look too closly at the name… and lay out trust too easily because of it." Kukiko taps her bottom lip, "It is quite obvious you are weak just from me speaking with you for such a short time, a slip in judgement in your leaders is what sent you out there to fail. So…" Standinig up straight her smile would widen, showing her perfect pearly whites. "Don't beat yourself up too much. It was only mostly your fault."
Honestly? She was trying to be nice, though the words were just not coming out right, though what she said was a great improvement from what was going through her head.
"You know nothing of me, Hyuuga." Satoru fully turns toward the woman, though his head remains lowered, his eyes nowhere on the other ninja. "I was deemed appropriate because of my achievements over the years. I made one simple mistake." That mistake is not touched on. "Do not act so high and mighty. Break from the mold at least…" His head then raises, the dark brown eyes meeting the girl's own milky white orbs. "…I'm not your typical Uchiha despite what everyone thinks…." His voice becomes a bit more noticeable, pride and confidence slowly filling it, but the shame of easily being beaten by another still present… the demotion barely affecting him but how would she know that. "I can tell you dislike the name I hold…" His hands then slide into the wet pockets of his soaked pants, a shrug following.. a sign of apatheticness… something he has not shown since being beaten in the Land of Waves. "What I take from your snide comment though… Is I should learn from this instead of letting it keep me down, right? Such a way with words…"
"If you won't break from the mold… Why should I? Not that I believe I am following the mold that everyone has given the Uchiha." Satoru smirks for the first time in awhile, this gesture filled with a bit of sarcasm and mockness, but then it falls into a small down-turn. "This Kirigakure Shinobi had an interesting sword. I think he was one of the Seven, but I still feel weak losing to him. I'm not too young to realize there will always be someone out their stronger than you, but I can't help feeling ashamed in a way…" His head lowers for a moment, his age showing itself for the first time in years, though he does seem to hold experience in his eyes and posture. "I will learn from this and become stronger. I wasn't ready to lead a team, I guess, but I am ready to become stronger and learn to lead a team. The potential is there. Madara-sama seen it in me and so did Genryuu-san…"
"I… don't believe I ever told you to do so. Let me think back." Kukiko stops for a moment, not really needing to think. "Hrm, nope. Do not recall. No need to break from the mold, I do not expect you to. Though, if you were destined to do so then, you shall and if you so happen to be one of the few that does so. Kudos to you young one!" Kukiko would then begin to gently pat the back of her hand with the other in a bit of a rather silent applause.
"Though if you are ready to get stronger and lead a team, I suggest you head back to the village dry yourself up and hit the… Chuunin training grounds." With that Kukiko would lift up the pack, giving a gesture for him to come along as she turns around to head back to Konohagakure. "Train up, perhaps if they see you active in your ninja training they'll see that you're ready for missions again and you'll slowly work your way up to being a capable leader by studying those that lead you."
Something that Kuki herself direly needed to do. Kukiko's own mission experience had shoveed her into being a leader right off the bat, so far winging it has guided her successfully. She would look off to the road ahead, thinking, 'Hopefully I do not fall like that.'
"No. You didn't. You did mock me for being like every other Uchiha… or something along those lines." Satoru states and shrugs. When the girl asks him to move with her, he slowly shakes his head and looks back toward the waterfall, adding, "I do not need to head back to the village. I will train at a secluded training grounds…" For a moment, he seems uplifted and somewhat better, but then he turns and any hint of emotion is gone. "Thank you," he mutters… though barely able to be heard. With the releasing of his hands from the pockets, a single hand-seal is formed and he flickers from sight, gone from the area.
Satoru's response would be met by a soft, almost childish giggle. Seeing he was not going to follow she'd turn about, giving a bit of a bow of her head. "Good luck, Uchiha-chan." With that it appears the two go their own ways. Kukiko beleiving that was a successful interaction with a Uchiha, "Akomura-sama will be proud." Her mood lightened as she makes her way to the west gate, turning in the pack and heading home to rest. A day off tomorrow, perhaps she shall try to mold a Uchiha into her liking.
