Our hero is once again in the Borderlands between the Hidden Moon and the Hidden Jungle. He longed to see Kyoko, a new friend of his. He had told her he would come back soon, and now, a mission has him back again. Even though the Borderlands could be described as the worst place in the world, Yuumaru felt like it was his second home. He felt so welcome here, and for some reason, he almost liked it better than the “civilized” villages. Here, ever since he came here, at least, people were willing to help each other. People everywhere comforting each other, talking and communicating with each other to deal with the big problems this little society was facing. For some weird, ironic reason, this poor “country” was probably the happiest country in the world. Yuumaru smiled at the irony.
Kyoko, I can’t wait to see you again. Our hero thought as he walked towards her house. When he knocked, however, no one answered. It took him about twenty minutes of knocking and waiting and knocking again for a man next door finally felt sorry for him and told him of Kyoko’s whereabouts. “A lover boy, eh? Haha, just kidding, Yuumaru-kun. If you’re looking for Kyoko, she’s in that blue building over there.” The man pointed at a small building in the middle of the “village.” The buolding, although it was also made of ramshackles as the rest of the abodes in the “village,” it was also the “fanciest” looking building in the Borderlands, if “fancy” could be used for such a building.
As Yuumaru approached, he saw there were numerous little children crowded around Kyoko, sitting obediently. Then, Kyoko turned to Yuumaru. “Yuumaru-kun! It’s so nice to see you again!” Kyoko went down from her pedestal and rushed to hug Yuumaru. “I’ve missed you… my hero…” “I’ve missed you, too, Kyoko.” Kyoko’s smooth, black hair. How it smelled so good. How it felt so soft. Yuumaru shook his head and avoided thinking about Kyoko’s hair. “You should met my students!” Yuumaru was puzzled. “Students?”
It turned out that Kyoko had founded a school in the Borderlands. It was to educate children about the ways of peace, and the ways of being successful in their future so that the Borderlands may become better someday. The school was named “Blue Beast Academy,” in honor of Yuumaru Senju, the Hero of the Borderlands. So this was the academy mentioned in my mission, huh. I never thought it would be Kyoko’s own creation! And named after me, no less! Arigatou, Kyoko... “Yuumaru-kun, how about you come here! I’ll introduce you!” Kyoko mentioned from the pedestal. As Yuumaru stood on the stage, Kyoko introduced the hero to everyone. “Everyone! This is Senju Yuumaru. You will refer to him as Senju-sama. He is the famous superhero that saved us all! Cheer, everyone!” The children cheered! Soon, the children couldn’t hold it anymore and asked for autographs.
Finally, when the last of the children got his autograph, Yuumaru spoke to Kyoko in private, pulling her away for a moment. Immediately, the children teased them being “lovers,” but the two paid them no heed. Yuumaru talked to Kyoko in a serious voice. “I was sent here by my village to recruit a child and give him a Scholarship Visa to study at the Hidden Jungle Academy. Do you know a kid here that can become a ninja?” “Well, Yuumaru-kun, the kids here aren’t really children of shinobi. They’re all civilian children… so...” Kyoko turned away. “Kyoko, I know what you’re thinking. You don’t want any of your precious students to become another casualty in the Villages’ Game of Power. But you don’t have to worry. I will watch over whoever is worthy enough to be called a fellow villager of mine.” Kyoko looked at our hero’s eyes. “I can’t refuse a person such as you… my hero.” Kyoko then hugged him quickly, and then told him, “See that boy with the red hair? His fellow students tell me… he has weird powers…” “What’s his name?” Our hero asked. “Takeo.”
After class was over, and everyone went home, Yuumaru tailed the young red-haired boy. He then found that the boy had no parents to speak of. He just lived in a small ramshackle house by himself. Before the boy could enter the house, though, Yuumaru called out to him. “Wait! Takeo-kun!” The boy looked surprised. “I’m the guy from your class earlier. I noticed you were the only one who didn’t ask for my autograph!”
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Takeo-kun was very quiet and shy. He seemed very distant. Even when Yuumaru treated him to a small ice cream shop that just formed in the Borderlands, the boy still seemed to be mute. Finally, Yuumaru spoke. “What are your dreams, Takeo-kun?” Suddenly, Yuumaru noticed tears flowing from the boy’s eyes. He waited for the boy to respond. “I-- I don’t have a purpose in this world. The gods didn’t even deem me important enough to have parents of my own…” Yuumaru put his hand over the boy’s shoulders. “You know, your parents are watching you from heaven right now. They are cheering you on. Don’t you think they’ll be disappointed at your current state? Work hard. Be successful. And you’ll be someone they’ll be proud of.” The boy looked at our hero while wiping away his tears. Our hero continued. “Everybody has a purpose. Remember that, Takeo-kun.” Our hero smiled at Takeo. “Now, your teacher tells me you have a special power? Mind if you show me this power?” The boy sniffed for the final time, and finally noded. He stood up, and then, putting his palms together, as if praying, chakra started appearing all over his body, and little pebbles were lifted around him. Amazing! Without chakra training, and he could already harvest his chakra! Yuumaru clapped. “Bravo, my friend. Now that I’ve told you one of life’s most important lessons, do you want to try to answer my question again?” The boy sat back down next to our hero, and nodded. “Okay, what is your dream?” The boy answered with a smile: “To protect the Borderlands! To protect my teacher! To protect my friends!” Yuumaru smiled. “Okay, you’re ready. I will leave you a parting gift. This will help you protect your friends.”
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It was morning. After three days of training, the boy was ready. “Ready, Takeo?” The boy nodded. “Okay, here goes!” Yuumaru threw a shuriken at the boy. Suddenly,a log appeared in place of the boy, and the shuriken buried itself in the trunk. Everyone clapped. “Go, Takeo!” “Takeo is so awesome!” Kyoko smiled at Takeo, then at Yuumaru. She mouthed: Arigatou.
It was another complete mission for our young genin. The Age of Yuumaru has indeed begun.
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Subject: Mission 6: A Sensei