Interview retake
I walked a lonely road. The night had few who could comfort me in the darkness that became my thoughts, and the shadows of warmth lost to the memories which fell into the moon's cold light. Though the air was still I felt a wind blow through me, like fossils knocking against each other in the barren desert that was my heart.
Argies look around himself, in this village that was not his own, and he vowed to himself. That he will not let it destroy him, he was stronger, he was greater! Even though his Aunt and Uncle may even be dead and he alone, he knew he could not let that corrupt his desire. Power he could call his own. This ambition lifted him, but then, his love for his Guardians slipped into the hollows of his heart.
In the midst of this vast hurt was a boy who lay crying and could not hold his tears back, yet he held up himself and lifted a great weight. Only the stars above knew of his ambition, and the curse he himself placed over his head.
I am stronger than this, I will conquer you, for I am Argies Agers. "I will continue in my villager's ways, and my guardians will know, that I am strong" He wiped way the tears and set his face in stone once again, A ninja feels no emotions.
From the dark places where he had gone, a light shone out.
"Nasantot, I didn't know you would be open at this time!" Nasantot had just turns on the lights to his soup shop and held the 'Open' sign in his hands.
"Arjie's, what a time to be up. How are you?" I helped the cook put his sign up, hanging it over the entrance it would give some privacy to the diners.
"I'm fine. I just couldn't sleep. I'm sure you've heard about my Guardians disappearance." Whenever there was a new recipe or spice. My aunt, uncle and the cook would discuss how they would match it up together with the breads my guardians made. They enjoyed their hush talks about it, like they were guarding prized information from the ears of a thief in the shadows.
"Agh yes, I am greatly sorry for your… for their departure. I did not know, but I had thought you were taken with them. I am glad you are well, here in the leaf" He gestured with his hands as he walked down the small stool ladder. His choice of words well played and I could not fight with a man so well placed. Even though I feared that perhaps he was right, my aunt and uncle were dead.
I bit my jaw and continued off the topic of my thoughts, breathing out my worry "It is a cold night." I rubbed a hand to my shoulder, the binding on my right kept it warm but my left was bare; exposed. "I remember there was a tea my uncle used to enjoy…" I stopped myself and closed my eyes to pinch the bridge of my nose in pain.
"Camellia sinensis," The soup chef said silently. "I remember." Gripped in nostalgia he continued. "Your uncle requesting that tea the first day I met him. I didn't know what he was talking about until I consulted a herbalist master, and found it to be nothing more than the Green tea" Nasantot had a foreign way of speaking, he would begin each sentence slow, pause, and then speed through the remainder. The rhythm of his words, it was like he was trying to crack me and my voice already felt heavy
"'Camellia sinensis ground and unmixed' was what he would say. My aunt would order loads of the stuff, they used it to make green tea bread, they used to…" I felt a hand rested on my shoulder to the sound of my voice waning to the will of my heart.
"Looks like you need a cup, of that very drink. Unstrained" Nasantot turned to the task and briefly I tried to regain myself before falling again and again into that pain. Care a little less Argie's
Then I heard the voices coming, from the other night walkers and goings on of the dark, and I had to right myself immediately.
Sasuke Uchiha. I remember hearing that he was injured in that mission, my first mission as leader, to aid Naruto in taking down Gaara. The information wasn't clear, but I could see that he was well now.
He entered the shop like it was familiar to him "Hey, you open." before grabbing a seat, 2 seats away from me, behind the counter.
"Yes! What is your order Uchiha" Nasantot knew Saske? I didn't know of this, I have never seen him here before, although… I've never been here at night.
He turned his head to look at me. "Do you usually stare at people you don't know, or is there something you don't like about my face" He said it in such a careless way that for a moment I was thrown off, because I did know him.
"We went to the same class, Arjies Ages." I extended a hand. "Nice to meet you"
"Sasuke Uchiha, I remember you now. From the Chunine Exams, you fought Neji and lost" He shook my hand, I didn't expect the offer to be accepted but pleasantries and formalities are a good start to a conversation; and I needed to forget.
"Naruto informed me that I had won, so did the Hokage. I do feel that it was a loss but I've been assured that the ultimate objective of the tournament was a test of our restraint in battle and the use of tactic not power to achieve victory." This formality thing would have to quite soon because it's giving me a head ache, sired by the hand raised to my temple.
"I bet that's what the tell all the losers. Hauuu but what am I saying, I lost too" His mute expression curled up into a grin from the corner of his mouth.
"Tya, I bet even Kankuro of the sand got the same pep talk for waiting a month to surrender the tournament. His comrades must have been so please with his level of restraint and his tactic in not entering battle at all, truly showed us his power; cowardice." I smirked too, the split between my lips felt like the breaking of formality.
Nasantot folded his arms and looked down on Sasuke "Are you, ordering! Or warming seats and yakking intimidating atmosphere into my customers faces" Nasantot turned around, my tea was ready, he held out a hand over Susake's head ready to grab a fist full of hair. My thought was to gain leverage in the efforts to throw him out, but instead Nasantot smiled and ruffled the head under his hand.
"Ta, just give me the usual" Susake quickly pulled his head free and put his hair back into order.
The paper signs I had put up with Nasantot ruffled and a body burst from the cover with a bark radiating it's self from the floor.
"Akamaru! Kiba! You dine here too?!" The look of surprise on my face must have been a shocker, because both Akamaru and Kiba looked as if I was accusing them of a serious crime.
"What? No, no I don't dine here." He took a thinking pose on a second thought after Akamaru gave a disapproving moan. "Well, me and Akamaru sometimes buy our take outs here, but… Whoa, what am I saying? I am on a mission, and you're the target objective" He pointed a finger in my face, dramatically. "2 Of you!" The other arm shot out, when he realised Susake was there, pointing at him too.
"Alright idiot, what now…?" Susake said it like he was used to this sort of thing, maybe he was…?
"What, do people track you down all the time?" I snapped, hmm, maybe it's the tea talking. "Don't you find this strange? Sure does feel strange to me" Especially since Tsunade called me an enemy of the Nation, as a result of my missing Ninja status for a while.
"Don't worry, we're trained professionals" Kiba grinned, he knew he was playing us and he was enjoying keeping us guessing while he lorded over the information. "They'll be here soon to explain it all, and then the questions." Ominous, but that was the point, he wanted us to worry. "Hey, you don't mind if I grab something to eat do you?" Kiba ordered 20 pop wings and then another 20 for Akamaru, sooo much food, but he is half man beat or however his jutsu works.
Then the Covers of the sign parted again. Katsumi Arisu's wolf dog barked, followed by the master her self
"You! You're that Nnninja from the forest of Death" I'm betting she wanted to say more than ninja, instead she just gritted her teeth extending the meaning of her rage on the word ninja alone.
"Ok, this is getting weird now. What's she doing here" For a moment I pointed my finger at her accusing Kiba of 'it', like whatever problems were going to arise will be his fault. "Have you and your cousin conspired against me, because you're going to need more than 2 dogs and 2 man beast transformations to beat me and Susake, don't forget his here too." I pointed my finger at her again, but pulled it back to myself afraid that Kasumi might bite my hand; she was growling viciously, so was her master.
"Oh you are so…!" Arisu's words were cut short by her cousin's intervention.
"That's not what this mission is about." Kiba smiled in my direction and said to her "We will sort him out on our next missing nin assignment" Thanks, thanks a lot Kiba.
"So, why are you here?" Susake seemed all too easy with this, his question wasn't even that, he didn't appear to care enough about any of it.
"Ino Yamanaka" Ino burst from the covers and postured herself, holding a painters pose.
"Sakura Haruno" Sakura disrupted the sign again, looking ready to catch hold of the imaginary flowers thrown at her.
"All Right! Come on Akamaru, time to leave. Arisu, let's go our mission is complete. "Kiba and the rest of the small tracking unit left, leaving us completely unprepared for what happened next.
"Hello, Special report Live at 11! With Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno, about to speak to the 3 ninja that were in the hospital or 'missing' during the Chunin exam interviews" Ino and Sakura split the task of reporting between each other, they must have been paid very well to be so cooperative.
I remembered the task of reporting was Konohamaru's job during the second part of the Chunin exams; The forest of death. He and his team interviewed almost all the ninja but seemingly ghosted past me, I wonder why they are so interested in me now. I grinned.
A bright light shone in his face, the focus of the girls affection, Ino prompted "Susake, tell the ninja world why it's so great to be a ninja!" Ino pressed the mike so close to his face that his lips collided with it.
He pushed it aside with a finger and his voice shifted a tad darker "Ninja, I'm not a ninja. I am an avenger. Seeking the death of …"
"Hey…"Sakura interrupted him. "What about you. Tell the world why you like being a ninja." She smiled at me hopeful even as I narrowed my eyes to the light.
"I just realised the probability of survival is higher as a ninja then a civilian who just gets slaughtered within the first second of combat" Ok I lied, about my reasons, but I wasn't in the mood for all this show. They just surprised me with fake smiles and cheery moods, when I don't feel all that capable of caring to impress.
"Oooh. This isn't going all that well" Sakura dropped her shoulders and hung her arms down, drooping in defeat.
"Alright, cut the cameras." Ino shouted to someone in the shadows that I never noticed there before. "That's going to make a bad reflection on the news, even for the sort running time, I can hear it now; 'ninja avengers think the village is doomed'"
The light from the camera cut out and the person manning the camera stepped into the soup shop. Lee. Still injured and battling to hold up the bulky lights and equipment, he barely made it inside with his crutches.
"You girls are evil you know that" Susake helped Lee put down the equipment, while he gave the girls sideway looks of disappointment. I'm sure he only helped for to opportunity to give disapproving glances… pay back for the mike in his face. The same mike the girls were fawning over now.
"This mike touched his lips!" One of them said in glee as they squealed.
The look of worry struck across both girls' faces, once they noticed the disapproving looks we all shot them, they were quick to restore themselves, for shame of being looked down by Susake.
"How else was I supposed to do the interview? Without a camera man?! HA!" Ino mocked, pressing her knuckles to her hips. "Not for Ino Yamanaka!"
"You didn't have to do the interview you know. You could have held the camera and I could…"Sakura scolded but her words were stepped over by Ino's.
"With a face like this!" she pointed a thumb at herself. "How could I deny my fans!"
"What fans, you only just started." A smug expression set in on Sakura's face, "Too bad we can't do the interview, although your face was better suited for radio anyway"
"What did you say Bill-Board-Brow!"
"Ino Pig!"
"…and here we go…" I looked over Lee and Susake who both seemingly enjoyed watching the girls fight.
"Lee" I broke his attention away from the girls. "I haven't seen you around for a while now"
"I am not the one who left the leaf" he said and I caught the hit of blame in his words with a stab of pain in my heart.
"Aha, that's right." I smiled. "I was captured by the enemy." I cheered up my tone. "Of course I haven't seen you around. Stupid me" my expression went mute, making sure my point was made too.
"Captured by the enemy!?" Sakura pulled at Ino's hair even as she repeated my words.
"Sakura, Truce?" Ino asked Sakura, threatening to break her arm at the same time.
"Truce" Sakura submitted, letting go of Ino's hair. "We can conduct the interview with a Q&A instead."
Ino pulled out her pad. "It might make a good newspaper article" she said biting the end of her pen.
"Question 1…" Ino began, but I had to interrupt.
"Sorry but the Hokage has declared my capture as part of the ninja hidden records." Ino and Sakura gave a disappointed sigh. "Although there is a very interesting concave carving of me near the southern 4th quadrant of the forests." Hopeful they took a breath in with excitement. "Then again now that the abridged defence rules have been forfeited, I don't believe any of us can go there to see it"
"Awe… that's no fun" Ino declared. "Well, it looks like we should go back home." Ino turned her back, heading for the exit.
"Hey, wait a minute Ino. Why don't we do an article about the three of them. I mean since we can't do one about the missing nin" Sakura smiled at her own pronouncement. Susake looked at me with resentment, a kind of 'you did this' look.
"What is your most valued ability" Ino began with asking Lee then Susake and then me
"My leaf hurricane. To proudly beat the enemy with the power of youth and the Title of the Village hidden in the leaves is a challenge to all ninja. My leaf hurricane is my promise, my thumbs up, that I will always make the enemy kiss the boot print of hurricane and leaf, The Youth and power of the Ninja Village that is hidden in the leaves."
"The Sharingan is the most powerful ability of my clan, but my Fire style jutsu is the ability that I depend on the most. When I need to I can rely on my fire style to burn through my enemies and conceal a threat. It's the most adaptive ability I have, for defence attack and evasive executions"
"My chakra breeze. It's how I control many of my techniques." While I spoke I demonstrated it by pulling the remaining steam from my empty cup, whirling it in the air in front of them. "It's an ability that no one ever sees on the battle field against me. My Blood jutsu and the gentle dance technique are quickly acknowledged yet it is not the ones I shout out you should be afraid of. It is the proverb which eludes my foes, 'It's hard to forget the wind but the breeze goes by, unnoticed'"
"How did you learn or discover your technique?"
"In the forests I learned how to kick trees with fierce determination. Then, using one of the many moves Gai sensei has taught me, I perfected and performed The Leaf Hurricane for the first time; knocking down trees from the trunk." Lee smiled a big broad boast of a grin, but I knew he was being absolutely serious about his former kick strength.
"My father showed me the technique as a test. To see if I was worthy of being part of the family, to see if I was like my brother, to see if I was strong enough to fan the fires of the Uchiha clan. After I proved my strength, and after…" His hands tightened and what he was going to say remained unsaid. "I perfected the technique further through training alone"
"It was something I read in an old tome entitled 'Life flow chakra' that sparked an idea for developing the technique. When we die or a part of our body has been away from us for too long, the chakra that once gave it life leaves. It's the tingling feeling felt when your body goes numb after your blood supply is cut. That is your chakra leaving you, slowly like the mist off the morning river stream; and that's what a chakra breeze is."
The girls asked a further series of questions, oohing and aahing as we each gave our answer yet in truth we were revealing nothing of our selves. After all, ninja could not afford to make themselves known. It did no good for us to have a well-documented list of our strengths, weakness and ideals.
The nature of the questions began to become more personal as the interview extended, split between Susake and Lee's injuries and the sudden spot light on me.
Sakura turned to me, her back to the others, trying to provide as much privacy for our conversation as possible… even though she was recording all of it with here pen. "Arjies, how do you feel knowing that Jounin mentors did not think it necessary to pre-empt test you and your squad like the tests prepared for other teams" She was speaking about the 'preparative test' tests held by some other Villages and the Leaf before a Chunin exam.
The Honour of the nation and many other considerations were at play when a genin was tested to be chunin. Which is why every genin who registered for the Chunin exams, would be tested without their knowledge. Unless of course that genin was me and there was little doubt that I would fail to pass the Chunin exams before the point of the final tournament before Nations.
"Yes I heard about that. Team seven, eight and ten were tested with ergh, both fear and merit tactic tests. Naruto explained that he was to rescue a young girl and he also told me about your experience with fake Susake" Sakura silently grumbled to the news that Naruto was talking about her behind her back. "These tests are mainly used to insure that weak ninja do not qualify through to the final rounds, making their Village seem frail and easy for attack on the result of their defeat." I cracked my left wrist, uneasy, taking a breath "Using intimidation, testing their ability of skill and developing other challenges to test the mind body and maturity of ninja"
Sakura murmured with consideration in her throat"… Arjies, I'm sure that most ninja already know of this, we could probably explain it in the article anyway even if you do know the details quite well" She wanted my answer and she was right, I probably would have trailed off forever in avoiding the question.
I gave a heavy sigh, "I am glad they never tested me, I do not think I would have been ready then, but I am also glad I proved them wrong. Surviving 4 days in the forest of death without the use of a single jutsu… I only later developed the techniques I know now. Surviving by only venturing out on a few chakra tricks, mainly speed strength and impact enhancers which I used in the preliminary matches." I looked down at my hands shaking; it was hard to admit that my current future as a ninja is something that was determined by being so small and weak before that no one thought of me as a threat. When I looked up, I saw Sakura's hands, shaking, the looking on her face was an undeniable resentment and distaste for me.
The fixed smile she had was broken, she spoke with trembling lips. "I had to survive the forest of death without any jutsu too, you know. You don't find me bragging about it." She paused but continued, her mood less so infuriated. "Yet I didn't discover a jutsu when the exams were over for me" She fisted her palm and held it to her chest. "I, I didn't learn anything. Everyone else has created these great techniques to better themselves after the forest of death and I've, done nothing" I reached for her shoulder, to offer some comfort, but she pulled away. "No, you don't understand. Even Lee has so much more talent because he tries so hard, he develops even though he can never do what I can; he has no chakra. I-I, I'm a waste. I'm wasting it all…" suddenly her turned back was no longer for just my privacy.
I grabbed her by both shoulders deciding that one shoulder failed before. "You always play the victim, but don't you understand that there is nothing stopping you from developing better than all of us. No one but you is holding yourself back. Stop being the victim and be the heart of your own desires, conquer your challengers and see yourself grow every day." She looked at me blank, like she had realised something in my words. Then she looked away from me, ashamed for her outburst, I let go.
"When I was in the ninja academy, when you and Naruto were still there learning with me, I was so frustrated with you." She looked up, a tear left her face and fell from the air. "…Your level of talent and at how fast you could learn new things, made my struggle to achieve even the slightest improvement depressing. When you and your squad were formed, under the tutorship of Kakashi, I was shattered, because I had to attend classes reserved for ninja without a sensei to help guild them, to guild me" The tears on her face, sat on the lids of her eyes, waiting; suspended.
"My goal as a ninja was always to be as great as you. 'If only I could be like Sakura', I thought to myself. If only I could do more and try harder, so that I could get to where she is." She wiped the tears from her eyes with the sides of her sleeves, and waited. "It hurt me. It hurt me to think of how you were experiencing the world and a ninja life, while I was confined to missions undertaken within the ninja village. It hurt to realise it, that I may never be a real ninja that my dreams may never be anything more than longing thoughts for fulfilment; that I was not a ninja. Even then I continued to hurt myself, I continued to think about these things because they became more then my dreams. They became a desire, a burning ambition, the driving force I would need if I ever wanted to become anything like you" I grabbed a hold of her hands, lifting them off her chest.
"Now Sakura, now I want you to do the same things I did. Face your hurt pride, and become your dreams" I let go.
"I will Arjies Agers. I promise you..." she grabbed hold of her note page and pressed it against herself looking at me hopefully.
Finally she peered at the page at her breast, "The last question is, 'From formerly being an unknown ninja, How does it feel to be one of the only two ninja who passed the Chunin exams?' what would you like to write down?"
I lowered my eyes and gazed down on my words as I spoke, I felt a draft of darkness enter my heart. "Write there, when we as ninja train. We train to the best of our ability, we learn and study our progresses, but it is not always that easy. Most of our days are spent in succeeding in failure. We burn with frustration and the whole of our being begs us to fall apart and give up. 'It is only on the last day that you succeed' That is the paradox that we as ninja face, give up only on the day after you succeed, because that day never comes. We never truly achieve, the desire to become more is consuming and ever growing, but when you look back be sure to be bigger now then you ever were. Let the ninja you are tomorrow admonish the endless and monotonously filed mission reports, training regimens and accolades you fulfil today." The veil of darkness faded and I looked up from my thoughts.
Sakura stared blankly at my suddenly blackened mood so I broke the look of concern on her face and smiled. "Or you could write there that when training by yourself, when writing mission reports endlessly, uneventfully, developing yourself as a ninja and finding it so hard to succeed. You think to yourself, 'One day I will be strong, one day this will be worth it', and when you finally succeed all of those hard days become meaningful. All that wasted time training and filling out reports, those days that made you feel hopeless, they become worth it. It feels good, it feels so good to be able to say 'I have Done it! I have achieved!' Aaugh!" I yawned, I never thought I could get bored of my own speeches but these interview questions have really taken a strain on my level of tolerance.
"Hm hm" she laughed and the tension in her moment of weakness was lost. "Oh, Arjies, one more request. For the Final question of the written exam, why did you stay?" Her note pad and pen were already tucked away in her pockets, so I knew it was just an inquiry and I didn't need to encourage any floating readers or listeners.
"It wasn't really a Choice Sakura." She looked up, surprised by my answer. "For me it wasn't a question, giving up was never an option. During that part of the test, I just sat and waited, regardless the outcome I was not going to be the one to give up. As long as my aunt and uncle, my squad, remained seated, I was seated too. In the end wasn't that the lesson Ibiki wanted to teach us, never to give up hope on your team mates, never to abandon them for your own self" I looked at her and she nodded, but her expression was distant like she was thinking back and from what I knew of her experience in the forest of death. I could tell she was thinking back on guarding Susake and Naruto, alone.
…
Slowly, the night was becoming morning and the girls could sense they were holding on to us for too long and that the bed was a more prized question and more welcomed answer….
Throughout the night, Nasantot prepared foods in preparation for the rush hour of early morning
Susake grabbed his order, a take away 'something'.
Ino scratched a few things off her note pad before leaving too.
Sakura asked me a further few questions about injuries to which I had to answer, "I have none" repetitively because of the nature of my capture.
Lee enjoyed a meal with me and our friendship seemed to be mended again, even if I had nothing to explain my departed from the village. He told me the news of his condition and Tsunade possibly being able to have it resolved, it sounded hopeful to him but I couldn't see it as the miracle he seemed to believe it was.
Finally, Nasantot bayed me good night even though it was morning by my leave.
And so I returned home, with tears that would not leave the lids of my eyes.
...
Disclaimer:
All The characters created by the Author of Naruto belong solely to Masashi Kishimoto every other character belongs to I and those Authors that have lent me their characters.
Do not replicate or reproduce any of my works or the works of the artists that have lent me their ideas, original characters, writings.
All content is subject to copyright and may not be reproduced in any form without express written consent from the author. Naruto Belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.