"So, you're going to tell me what happened back there?" Mito asked, walking down the road from the tower.
"There has been a lot of debate going on in the council back home." Yoshitatsu informed. "Every since we helped the Leaf out of our allegiance to the Senju clan during the First Shinobi War, there has been a lot of controversy about our place in the shinobi world."
"Whether people agreed or disagreed with that decision, the fact remained that our presence on the battlefield announced to the world that we side with Leaf. And you know what happened to smaller countries during the First War."
Mito nodded solemnly.
"Some are worrying that Whirlpool Country could be next." She deduced.
Yoshitatsu nodded.
"There are new voices, civilian and shinobi alike." He said. "We can no longer be bystanders or blindly loyal to a clan. This our world and we have to carve a path while we can lest it destroys us."
"Do you believe that?" Mito asked him.
"I do." Yoshitatsu nodded. "As I'm sure you know, I lived in Tetsu no Kuni for six years."
Mito nodded.
"I learned a lot during my time there. Things I would have never learned if I stayed at home." Yoshitatsu said. "Our clan teaches us that conflict should be avoided and that we shouldn't intervene in affairs that don't concern us."
"Tetsu no Kuni also takes a neutral stance on the world and the samurai there live separate of the shinobi. However, they don't teach that we should avoid conflict and fear it. They believe in standing against it. If there is a fight, you confront it before it confronts you."
"The Whirlpool are our saving grace. But what if the enemy finds a way around them? Our shinobi are strong and chakra powerhouses, but what if we are outnumbered? What will we do?"
Yoshitatsu glanced at Mito who was quietly listening.
"These are some of the questions that has been on the table these past few years and even more recently." He said. "The nations are recovering and it's only a matter of time before another war sparks. And from what our intelligence gathers, it could be quite soon."
Mito was in deep thought.
Since she moved to Konoha, she's had less and less contact with her clan over the years.
Every now and then, the clan would write to her and check up on her.
It was starting to hit her how much she had missed from her old home. It was starting to sound a lot different from the village she grew up in.
"Time really does fly." She sighed and looked at Yoshitatsu. "So why didn't they send word of their plans to me ahead of time? I could've started making preparations early."
The boy didn't answer at first and there was a small frown on his face.
He stopped and looked at her.
"Because you're a Senju." He said apologetically. "While you're still an Uzumaki and our family without a doubt, your entrance into the Senju clan is considered you choice of loyalty."
"I didn't choose to marry the clan." She glared at him. "My father married me off."
"These aren't my words." Yoshitatsu said. "I'm only relaying what was said in discussion. On top of you carrying the Senju name, they also didn't want to risk the information getting out. It's not unusual for messenger birds to get shot out of the sky so they didn't dare do it."
"They could have had a shinobi deliver it." Mito refuted.
Yoshitatsu only shook his head.
"You're looking at him." He said and started to walk.
