Iron in the Rain

[Ace Trainer]

Despite being fourteen years old, Shio had seen quite a bit of the world. His family had taken him all over Water Country as a child, he'd traveled to the countries in the center of the continent, down to the south, even spent some time in the small nations south of the continent. Iron was quite an architectural feat itself, honestly Kiri was nothing to scoff at either. But walking through Amegakure he couldn't help but feel some awe. The buildings seemed so tall, the sweeping side with cold metal faces. The steel scaffolding left around the buildings, temporary bridges between the skyscrapers left permanently.

If it was just the buildings, he'd call the village intimidating. But the dark clouds that hung over it seemed almost permanent, the rain fell down with rhythmic timing, not too heavy to stop people's business, but not too light to simply be ignored. He was told this region was one of the rainiest on the continent, ironic this was where they had chosen a hub of peace. But the dark clouds, the rain, the hulking faceless buildings, made it all seem....depressing. He tucked his hands into his pockets, staring up at the giant buildings around him.

The Taishou had no reason to be here beyond curiosity. Taking the title of Taishou and becoming a political leader meant that despite his status as a missing ninja, Shio was granted a few luxuries some missing ninja were not. That made traveling quite a bit easier when you could inform any checkpoints that you ruled a nation. But since the formation of Yuge no Kuni and Amegakure, he'd been quite curious about it. There was a lot of mixed signals he was hearing about it's state. A surge of resources and money, but also an impossible flow of refugees into the area. It was being 'advertised' so to speak as a international marvel and a symbol of peace, but word was spreading that it was actually quite miserable. The cultural clash of all the people there had practically segregated the village, and the high number of refugees meant it was hard to really vet who was there, or convince them to treat the others like neighbors.

So of course, Shio had to see for himself. Kesu had come with him, the small blond boy remaining under the cover while Shio stood out in the rain. His clothes slowly becoming more and more damp. He walked slowly, his feet striking the wet ground, taking in the village.

What a place this was.

[Izanagi]

Ichiro was both skeptical and optimistic about this new nation that had been born in the culmination of the war. An unprecedented marvel of infrastructure built over lands razed largely by the conflict between Konoha and Kiri though the other shinobi nations had their hand in supporting their respective allies. There were a few other regions in the area that had similarly seen explosive growth in infrastructure and refugees, also claiming to be neutral grounds; Whirlpool and Soul country though everyone knew they held their loyalties close to Konoha and Kumo respectively. This steam country and their capital city of Amegakure was supposedly truly neutral. It was interesting to observe, especially to see where all of his funding had been diverted. Having been the shadow leader of Knowledge country during the war, a majority of the funding for the joint research outpost had been instead funneled into these building efforts. Now, he had been forced to cut ties to Knowledge in order to avoid international prosecution.

Ever adapting and pursuing new paths to power, Ichiro continued to move forward. As far as anyone else was concerned he was a traveling medic, alongside his faithful companion Sumire. The darker-skinned woman of the reclusive Kinoko clan hid the distinct blue mushrooms growing from her wrists and back beneath a blue cloak, hood pulled up. Similarly, Ichiro was dressed in blue, wearing a hooded jacket along with a backpack full of various supplies and his daisho at his left hip. On his shoulder, he wore the symbol of Waterfall country, ever proud of his homeland. The young man was well accustomed to rain and travelling, having crossed through many countries by foot and even sailed the seas as a part of a pirate group for a number of years. Every experience he used to further his list of contacts and influence despite his physical weakness.

For despite his slow rate of growth in the arts of chakra and swordsmanship alike he had made a great many powerful friends, and his sharp mind and resourcefulness had been enough to prove his worth to them. One such ally was Hiraku Kenji, with whom he had recently made contact as he once again returned to the world. As always he wore the ring of Chishiki, a subtle indication of his loyalty to the obscure organization dedicated to gaining information. He wondered what sort of interesting people he might discover in a place such as this and how he might prove himself valuable to them and in turn spread his network further.

[Zao]

It would seem that they were not the only one interested in just what this place had become, not far behind the others was a slender built man standing just over six feet in height with long, sweeping white hair that stretched down to his waist and was currently tied back in a loose ponytail by a crimson piece of fabric just below the base of the neck. A pair of bright blue eyes that appeared to almost grow in the cloud environment, the right hand at his side as the long sleeve covered all but the tattooed fingertips of the Suna bannin as the bandaged left hand held the shaft of a bamboo umbrella that spread out over a meter in diameter. The distinct sounds of the rain droplets impacting the wooden umbrella were a soothing one that could allow one to relax and drift off to sleep if he hadn't been headed to a specific destination.

For Zao, this was the first time outside the village since taking care of one of his homelands most dangerous threat. Having spent the majority of his time preparing for an expedition of his own design, but sadly he still needed to collect a few more items to ensure he was strong enough to reach 'that place'. But today his thoughts were upon the odd result of a bitter war that allowed for the strange results which formed Steam country and this Heiji day, as it was called...a day of peace. What a truly unique thought...but thinking about it the white-haired figure only shook his head slightly and lowered the umbrella edges to the point that one wouldn't be able to look directly into his bright blue eyes. A half frown on his lips as his own personal thoughts of the war mixed with the rather rainy environmental factors, after all the man was born in the desert and was fond of its dry weather.

'So this is Amegakure?' The infastructure was unexpected to say the least for the Bannin as he saw the large buildings climbing into the dark skies above, was this actually real? Or was this just the effect of having the money of the five great nations backing you. Ahead of him he saw a number of people from all walks of life, the young and old, shinobi and samurai, everyone seeming to be just enjoying their time despite their difference...it was kind of nice to see and the slight frown turned into a half smile. His soft gaze looking from one side of the wet street to the other as he moved, some of these people even seemed a bit familiar to him but he couldn't quite place who they were or where he had seen or knew them from. 'How interesting...' Beneath his robe, his small companions curled sightly around his upper arms attempting to say out of the cold rain while their master explored the new place.

[Ace Trainer]

It didn't seem appropriate, the upcoming festival for Heiji day. At least, thats what Shio had concluded as the boy allowed the rain to drizzle down on him. The attempt at festivities would be contrasted against the dark and gloomy skies made it all feel empty. Or at least, quite drab. Shio took a deep breath and a few more steps, watching the various people around him traveling through the streets. He wasn't the earliest tourist to arrive, but few people were stopping to take in the sights and the magnitude of what was before them, maybe simply deterred by the rain. In a way, the rain reminded him of home. At least, his first home. It rained like this sometimes in Kirigakure, but even the constantly hanging mist meant being comfortable just being wet.

In his youth, his parents had said rain like this washed away sins. Appropriate given the just what Amegakure was, and the amount of blood that had been shed there. Perhaps thats why it rained so much, only an endless pour would be good enough to cleanse the earth. How inappropriate, then, that soon the very people that spilled such blood would be on this ground celebrating the momentous achievement of peace. Among the people displaced and struggling as a consequence of what lead to that alleged peace.

There were people all over the world that would have first hand understanding of the irony, and would likely find Heiji Day to be just as questionable as Shio did. He wondered who he would meet, aside for the people he had called for, and who would be drawn to this metal city that had been constructed. Would Amegakure be a vector for change for this world, or just another abandoned project when the men in charge got thirsty for power? He paused again in his stride, looking up at the sky above him, letting the rain hit directly on his face as he thought. Maybe it would wash his own sins away, whatever they may be.

"Some city.", is all he would say before resuming his slow walk through the street.