Endurance: my ninja way

Chapter 3

Okay, so its 5:45, must get to the hokage mansion. It takes about 10 minutes to reach there from my current location that is the market place.

As I turned to the exit point of the market, I noticed something unusual, the same lady wo was gawking at me earlier is standing by the exit, its like she's been waiting for me over there, like she knew I was going to pass this place at the exact same time. Only when I passed her, I noticed her face, though it was masked, the visible skin showed a light wheaty complexion, big round eyes of the most peculiar shade of golden red, she was again staring without flinching, but this time I noticed her features as well, the nasal ridge was delicately built, and my guess is her cheeks had been fuller, but someone whats visible were her cheekbones, like she's been through some exhausting service which was also dipicted from the slight dark margine around her eyes, her eyes weren't hollow or mummyfied if you had that thought, but if what happened to her keeps happening, she might look like a zombie in no time. The exhaustion must be of recent happening. She must have been attractive and wouldn't go unnoticed by the crowd only if her observer was not someone as dead as me. She must be in her mid thirties by the looks of her..

So anyway, after my angry stare, her sad eyes budged from me, i felt kind of sorry afterwards, but its not my fault, if you keep staring at someone the person is bound to get offended. I'd 've waited and interrogated her if only I weren't getting late for my summon. So I hoped that I find her again to know her story I continued along my path.

I just arrived cutting edges at the mansion. Well, so much for ogling strangers. I made my way towards the huge graffitied wooden doors into the meeting area where the hokage receaves his subjects. He was sitting on the floor at his usual spot, doing his paperwork. His long white cloak hung over his slightly slouched shoulders, his hat that signifies his position as the supreme leader of the hidden leaf village, rested at his study. Room tidy, apart from a small cluster of papers on which he was working.

I did my customary bow and asked for his permission to enter; "Enter" came more of a command than a statement.

No matter what life gives me, I simply can't deny the fact that some people really tried helping me in all my troubled times. That incule Hiruzen Sarutobi san, or the third hokage.

I respectfully entered and sat on the floor before him. Legs under my body, straight.

"I summoned you here kakashi for an extremely important, complex and exhausting mission. Right now I don't have anyone here to accompany you with it or even share a little of its burden with you, though I personally would still prefer your expertise only. You know the update regarding the man called the Infiltrator, the man experimenting on infants. Well its about him". About him, but i thought he just updated everyone about every vital information about him. Why call me seperately...

"Kakashi I believe you're familiar with the legend of the Soyu clan!" The soyu clan! But why is he revising the memories of such a feared clan all of a sudden!?! Legend has it, they were once the most powerful clan to roam this land. Their special chakra, incomparably strong amd their perticular sensory abilities, set them in a league of their own. No one dared to came antagonist if there's a soyu worrier as the competition. However, the higher they fly, the worse the fall. It says, their unmatched strength met such an enemy that they themselves along with the rest of the shinobi world had never imagined. They were all wiped out of existance due to a virus. Yes they were diseased to death, a fate no one ever connected them to. Only their perticular chakra types were affected by the epidemic and they got wiped out of existance as the disease wasted their chakra out. It all happened a few decades before i was born though. No one speake of them till this day. Then why is lord third asking me of it?!!

"The expressions on your face clearly show that I thankfully dont have to tire my self in redescribing the exhausting tale." He said with pleasant expressions. And then his eyes took the look that's there whenever anyone's even thinking about the soyu clan. "We seldom are able to see the shortcomings of our doings beforehand, our ignorance, if nothing else, has given rise to much more evil than there should necessarily be. When the soyu clan was wiped out of existance, no one came forth in order to aid them in anyway way, no one did any research or even sympathized with the deceased. The general gesture was of silent agreement on the relief or their own sense of importance that the absence of a great power from over their heads will bring them. No one even looked their way. " his eyes in a way look sad. I've never in my life seen anyone aggrieved over the deaths of soyu clan. That, when I think of, is actually an extremely inhuman behaviour but I've even never given it much importance like the rest of us. However, litening to lord third like this, my guilt is tearing my conscious apart.

"Nature, though however cruel it may seem, has its way of justice" he continued with this strange graveness in his voice. "While all of us rested on the idea of freedom, everyone overlooked a tiny detail, the yamashi clan. They were extremely untalented people for the purpose of battle however, they show exceptioal skills in hiding. Yes kakashi, they were the answer to soyu clan's sufferings. The yamashi clan are predecessor of the Soyu and once in every 100 or so generations their dormant soyu genes awaken. Only this time, the person with functional genes is not as pro-sheilding his powers from the world as the ones before him. He has made his mind upon bringing justice to his deceased descendants. We know him as the Infiltrator. His experiments in detail are aimed at incorporating the DNA of the likes of his into childern and minimising their emitions, thereby making them perfect weapons to take down the entire expand of the 5 great nations. Still nature gives us an opportunity, this time its not just one with revived soyu genes. There's one other, he and his mother with the similar abilities have come forth to aid the salvation of hundreds of millions of lives. Only he can match the powers of the Infiltrator, however he needs training. He is not yet ready, physically or emotionally to fight such a fierce battle. For this reason you were summoned here. " to train him! But I'm not really sure I can take someone under my tuitallage. I don't think I'm yet ready for this task!

"Don't look so worried kakshi, you won't be teaching him for the time being. You precisely, are here to protect him and make him feel comfortable where he lives, which will be this village for a year. You are to simply keep him at ease for he would need emotional stability for his extremely harsh training. Be his friend, his guide, his protector for the while for the salvation of this world." I'm pretty sure the last bit was to counteract the expressions on my face at the moment. I've started to envy the teaching job. Lord third is placing a child with physical and probably emotional exhaustion under my protection to keep him atleast emotionally stable! I mean hasn't he observed what an emotional mess I am!

"Your lordship, what about his mother? Surely she can do this job much better than I ever can"

"Kakshi, life is not kind enough to leave him his mother's company. He lost his mother to a group of rogue ninja on his way to this village. This precisely is the reason why I need you. Keep him safe of his emotions. That will be all. " the last bit came out as a command more likely, I had no chance. Its a mission and I will have to give my best. Oh well I will be recieving him tomorrow at the entrance gate of the village. I have a feeling it's gonna be a long tiring year...