With the Winds of Wonder

[King of Cats]

Tea time with Teishi had certainly been interesting, as any chance encounter in the deserts of Wind Country was fated to be. The two young travelers sipped freshly brewed tea under the scorching desert sun and talked about the state of their home country, and more so, the great village of Sunagakure's current occupation. Teishi had talked about other people in his fold that had a certain disposition toward the Iwagakure Shinobi living in the Sand Village. It was bold of him to speak with Seiji, a Sunagakure Shinobi under Iwagakures rule, but clearly Seiji had proved something noble to the wanderer. He couldn't help but wonder what it was as he scuttled through the sand and back towards his camp.

Seiji was on leave from his duties in the village. He was a well respected ninja, with a rare kekkei genkai that no other Kouseki in the village had. Of course, there was more to Seiji than that, but since being minted a Chuunin, Seiji had seen a lot of attention for what his gemstones could do. The young teenager never thought too much about it, he had simple tastes in life, and warfare was not among them. Not the good tastes anyways. In truth, Seiji preferred to abstain from violence when it was appropriate. He didn't relish in putting others through suffering, and so the potential of his unique inner gemstones never struck him as something to fear. The ninja of Iwagakure, amazed by Sunagakure's clans and culture, found the boys propensity for combat intrinsic to his nature, and they saw his power as something for the weak to tremble upon.

Eager to see what he could do as a ninja, Seiji was put to work among Iwagakure Shinobi, proving himself in the desert and even leading expeditions into Kouseki gemstone caves. The Village Hidden in the Stones wanted to learn everything they could about Seiji, including his heritage. They were mostly interested in the Kouseki half of his blood, but Seiji was comprehensible with his Hizashi backgrounds techniques too. He drew lots of attention, and Iwa wanted to see him working non stop. Seiji was lucky to be on leave, but that wasn't to say he was alone. Seiji was being tracked as he talked with Teishi, but fortunately he had avoided detection.

An expert in subterfuge, Seiji knew when he was being tracked. He had managed to keep his camp unknown, but that wouldn't last forever. He only had a day left to travel the desert, and Seiji knew that Iwagakure was close behind him, looking for where the boy had camped so that they could call him into duty early. The chuunin was a step ahead of them, though. He left his camp open and sent a Heat Clone off in the opposite direction of where he would be going. The clone would travel a few kilometers and then disperse, giving Seiji enough time to do what he must.

On this day, on his final day of vacation, Seiji felt a particular calling. Ever since he had met with Teishi, Seiji had felt a strong desire to seek him out. Perhaps it was what he said, but it felt deeper than that to Seiji. There was a strong calling to the path that Teishi walked, and Seiji was eager to explore the deserts and find were his compatriot was dwelling.

Once the clone had began setting a smoke trail for Iwagakure to follow, Seiji headed off. He didn't know where he was going, but he knew that something was waiting for him at the end of his travels. He walked on, through the desert and against the harsh morning sun.

[Throniv]

Sakaze sat upon the steps of the temple that overlooked the main courtyard where she'd first entered the Temple of Sulsaga, what was once a derelict ruin now bustling with life. Torches hung from every sconce, and crates and sacks full of supplies were stacked on the tiled floor. The braying of goats and sheep could be heard within the cavern in another part of the temple that those who had followed her here converted into a barn, and the low hum of voices carried throughout the cavern's high walls. When she'd first arrived at the buried holy site, the only other occupant had been Indra, and the majority of the temple was dark and dusty after centuries of disuse. Now, although they still weren't close to filling the temple, it at least had signs of life that showed that this was no longer a dead place.

Her Lady had provided for her when she was in need, and Sakaze would always take advantage of the gifts She provided.

The Mad Prophet held a scroll unfurled over her knee, rolling off of a tarnished brass scroll holder that she'd borrowed from the temple's massive library, and used one finger to carefully follow the ancient lettering on the papyrus. She'd been working with Indra on deciphering some of the older texts as one of the few points of commonality they had was an interest in the knowledge contained within the temple; however, the ancient nature of the writing meant that some letters, sentences, sometimes entire sections of text had been simply evaporated by time.

"Protect--no, that's not the right translation... Perhaps the correct verbiage is shepherd here," she muttered, her brow furrowed as she tried to piece together the translation through context clues that were only half-reliable. "We shepherd Her faithful so that they may drink from cool waters--or is that dark waters?" she asked the empty air, just before her attention was drawn by a chakra signature descending the steps of the spire--one that stood out due to its unfamiliarity.

She knew that Indra was going out and inviting people back to the temple, and she mostly trusted the young man's judgement on that stuff as his connection to the soul genma usually gave him a keen insight into the motivations and passions of others. That didn't mean that she wouldn't be prepared in case one of them held some darker ambition--it wouldn't be the first time she'd been burned for trusting too easily. With a thought and a pulse of chakra, sand slowly flowed from the cracks in the tilework and over her form, quickly solidifying and seemingly becoming indistinguishable from her actual skin as she activated her [Armor of Sand]. She didn't look up from her scroll for even a moment as she put on an air of intense concentration, seemingly ignoring the man that walked out of the spire beyond an inquisitive glance up.

At least, that's what she had intended to do, before her attention was drawn by just how young the ninja--for there could be no mistake, this was a ninja--was. A Kouseki by the look of him, the gemstone embedded in his head was a dead giveaway, but still, she couldn't help the pang of guilt that coursed through her. Children this young shouldn't have to fight this war.

"Hello, young man. Congratulations on finding this place--not many can. How can I help you?" she asked without getting up, one brow raised in curiosity as she hid her guilt. She was a kunoichi, after all, and it would be a poor showing to express any kind of reaction to an unknown, even a child.

OOCShow

Chakra Pool: 50
Endurance: 20
Control: 50
Strength: 20
Speed:39
Willpower:41

*[Armor of Sand]
A-Ranked Ninjutsu
After forming the necessary handseal, the user will cover themselves in a thin but heavily compacted layer of sand. This sand looks like the user and is indistinguishable from their skin in most ways normally, but when they are hit it will crack and chip off, with sand jumping out and enveloping whatever it touches, grinding at anything it touches. The armor can absorb impacts of up to [Control] strength. The sand armor will remain for up to 5 posts, and does not interfere with things such as creating hand seals due to how thin the shell is.

[King of Cats]

Stepping through the sand, Seiji lifted his toes up and planted his heel down. The jade gemstones growing in his heels sunk into the desert terrain and Seiji made his way toward the temple that Teishi had silently led him to. The Jade Dragoon had an impressed look on his face, his eyes wide open and his jaw open just a tad. It was truly an impressive site. There were desert live stock running about, chickens and goats. There was a strong scent of burning coal, and most of all, there was the hum of people. Seiji was suprised to see what Teishi had spoke of, but knowing that there were this many people that were against Iwagakure, well, that was reassuring to Seiji. He could feel his hometown pride surging to the top of his crown.

As Seiji slowly walked forward and toward the many steps of the temple, he had an unmistakably youthful expression of naivity on his face. He was there to work with Teishi toward freeing the Sand from IWagakure. He didn't exactly realize what that would entail. Seiji was still unsure of what path he would take in this fight against the opressor. As many downtrodden souls were aware, it didn't happen overnight. But, it did seem that Teishi was working hard every night. Seiji was incredibly impressed. He quickly trounced upon the temple, running fast up the steps and toward where he thought there would be someone who could point him toward Teishi.

The genin was surprised to find a woman, middle aged perhaps, old to Seiji, atop the steps. Before he could introduce himself, she stepped in with conversation. She congratulated him for finding the temple, and that set a series of thoughts off i nSeiji's mind. The eager young teenager instantly wondered why it would be hard to find this place. He had simply wandered through the desert, looking for teishi. It wasn't hard for him to stumble upon this place. Thinking about it, he wondered if perhaps his clone had given off a long enough trail. It seemed unlikely that Iwa would trail him, Seiji had walked far miles and he was covering his tracks the whole time with sand ninjutsu.

With his mind rushing with thoughts, Seiji let his natural charisma take over and instinctually spoke from his heart. "Well, thank you!" He smiled wide and stuck up a thumb at Sakaze. "My name is Seiji. I came looking for my friend, Teishi? We met in the desert-" Seiji suddenly had a bright idea.

Reaching into his pocket, Seiji withdrew a sealing tag. "Wouldd you like to have tea?" He felt safe at this temple. Teishi's professional tone of voice had given him a sense of confidence and that mood was frviolous, but Seiji enjoyed the finer things in life.. Tea in the ddesert, well, that was fit for a king, or perhaps a future Bannin.

[Throniv]

"Well, thank you!"

Sakaze smiled at the greeting as she slowly rolled up the scroll that had been unfurled over her knee, careful not to cause any rips or tears in the ancient material. The young Kouseki was charming, kind, and seemed a bit too trusting--he had no idea who she was or if she was a threat, and yet he was letting his guard down this much. At least she didn't have to worry about him being a spy, if Teishi was the one who had invited him, and it always did her heart good to see young people who wanted to take a stand, even if she thought this particular teenager was a bit too young.

But, then, Indra wasn't that far ahead of him, truly, and they could use every warm body they could get in this rebellion, especially with Indra spouting nonsense about peaceful revolution. Perhaps she could convince the young man to see her side of things before Indra arrived.

"Tea would be lovely, thank you, but we have our own blends inside. Come, the front door isn't a place for hosting guests of Teishi's," she responded. Sakaze stood just as she finished rolling up the scroll in her hands and tucked it under her left arm. "Come with me, Seiji, and we'll start up some tea while we wait for Teishi. It's getting late, so he should be coming home soon," she said, gesturing with her free hand to the door at the top of the stairs. She began walking up the limestone steps without looking back at the young man, trusting that he would follow her.

As she opened the door, what once had been a dark hallway was now lit with light sources from multiple angles, exposing the beauty of the underground temple in its entirety. Inlaid gold in the walls formed solar motifs, and polished gemstones and ceramic tile glinted against the flickering firelight in a way that made the decor seem almost alive, shifting with the flames that illuminated them. The floors were mosaics, the ceilings painted with cracking images of deserts and the sun in alternating patterns, and marble statues of what she could only assume to be saints or other religious figures sat in alcoves along the walls. Smooth columns with painted papyrus stalks lined the hallways, only some of them seeming to have suffered from the ravages of time and age with bits having crumbled away to reveal bare stone.

"This way, Seiji, and careful not to get lost. We've only just begun to uncover the depths of this place, and if you get lost it would be hard for you to find your way back," she explained as they walked along, not bothering to glance back as she led him along the temple halls. They passed several doorways and branching paths, one of which led to the atrium--a series of several arches that led into a cavernous room, lined floor to ceiling with shelves full of books, scrolls, and manuscripts of all shapes and sizes, a collection that put the Scribes of Sand to shame--but that was not their goal, so she did not stop. Down a set of steps two floors, passing by several of her followers that dipped their head to her, prompting her to return the gesture and motion for them to pay no mind to the young man that she was escorting, and they finally arrived at the kitchen.

The room had several ovens and newly acquired wooden tables, as well as a trough that was endlessly recycled through a series of pipes that poured a never-ending flow of fresh spring water into a stone basin with a drain that carried it away to who knew where.

"What kind do you prefer? I enjoy a Jasmine myself," she mused as she reached onto a stove to get one of the kettles, taking the time to inspect it and make sure it was clean--the members of the rebellion were generally good about keeping their spaces tidy, but mistakes happened.

[King of Cats]

As Seiji walked with Sakaze through the temple, he found himself mystified with the beautiful works of art that covered the walls. It seemed that this temple had a stark significance to some kind of religious belief system.

Seiji had grown up like many youths of Sunagakure, involved with Yuumegure but not tied to it in any way. His mother was a faithful believer, and she had her own special practice. She didn't partake in any church or sermons, but she did practice prayer and worship through her everyday activities. Seiji was forced to partake with her, and he didn't mind it so much. Seiji found the ide of the Sun's blessings to be reassuring to his maturing mind, and he appreciated his mother for introducing him to the respective religous ideals.. He didn't, however, find any particular no tion todrive him towards serious practice. Seiji prayed before getting out of bed, like most Yumeguure practitioners, but he didn't pray much beyond that. He did wash his hands in sun bathed oil, something his mother haad picked up from a hippie years ago. The oil was bathed in the sun and prayed over for a whole night. It was a powerful practice to believers in the Sun's grace, but not many people were aware of such mystic practices. Seiji had a special relationship with the sun,, but he wasn't exactly close with her. God ws a cooooooooncept still far from the teenagers comprehensionnn.

But that would soon change.

"This is a miracle of art. A trule wondrous plaace." Seiji said to Sakaze and continued following her to the kitchen.

When they arrived in the special room where food was prepared, Seiji closed his jaw and focused on the task at hand. He was going to make a new friend, and have a cup of tea with her. Like anytime Seiji met a traveler in the desert, he lpanned to offer his own brand of wisdom in the form of conversation over a warm drink. He brewed the best tea.

"I'll have jasmine too." Seiji smiled warmly. "May I have the honor of brewing it?" Seiji asked and atted his ey at Sakaze innocently.. As a Hizashi he could turn the heat uppppppppp on a cup of wateeeeeeeeeer so that the flavor oooooof tea was perfectly extracted, it was an honor to hve a Hizashi brew you tea in Sunagakure. Seiji was a humble boy though, he didn't want to tell Sakaze this. He hoped she would be pleased by the surprise, and show him where the tea kit was.

[Throniv]

"Yes, it is," Sakaze murmured to herself at the remark that Seiji made about it being a miracle, knowing that he was right in ways that he probably couldn't begin to comprehend. Few were religious like she was, like Indra was. Almost none heard Her voice and saw Her signs for what they were. As far as she knew, everyone else that had come to the temple had been called there by Indra or herself--the recent influx of non-combatants were people from villages and slave camps that she'd liberated, and they were doing their best to make this sprawling complex into a home that could welcome others. Only she had seen the visions, only she had heard Her voice call to her in the desert.

A gift or a curse, she wasn't sure--there was a small voice in the back of her head that had once thought her insane for following these visions, but they had yet to lead her astray.

Sakaze turned toward Seiji, her sharp eyes scanning him for the briefest moment. His enthusiasm and innocence radiated from him, almost disarmingly so. It wasn’t often one found someone so genuine in these troubled times. A small smile tugged at her lips as she handed him the kettle and gestured toward a set of wooden cabinets along the far wall. “Very well, Seiji. The tea kit is in there—jars of leaves, strainers, cups, everything you’ll need. I’m curious to see your method.”

While he got the leaves ready she took the copper kettle she carried over to the basin, opening the top and placing it under the steady stream of water that came out from what looked to be a feminine face embedded in a solar motif--every inch of this place was covered in artwork. It was as if the builders had indulged every artistic whim of the workers, and yet they were all beautiful and fairly sculpted. She took the teapot away from the stream and brought it up to set it on the countertop before turning to gather several bundles of small sticks to place in the depression atop the oven. She set a cottonball in the center, lit a match, and set the small fire ablaze in the depression--one of the drawbacks to operating out of an ancient temple, no working gas or electric, meaning everything had to be done the hard way.

She took a metal grate from beside the stove and set it over the depression, placing the kettle on the flame and stepping back--hopefully the young man had gathered the materials he needed at that point.

"So, Seiji, what did Teishi tell you about what we do here?" she asked as she leaned against the counter, keeping her dark eyes on the new arrival. "Is there a reason you've sought us out beyond idle curiosity and a standing invitation?"

[King of Cats]

With the tea tools before him, Seiji set out to work. He gently stuffed two metal tea balls with leaves, jasmine tea, and turned to Sakaze. She was lighting up a fire. Seiji smiled warmly to her and commented, "We won't need that." He took two cups over to the bassin "These cups seem sturdy enough, Im sure they can handle my heat." Seiji ran each cup under the water and filled them about three quarters of the way full.

"As a Suna native, and a Shinobi, I have been trained to hone my cln arts. One of those being," Seijiflipped his wrist over to show Sakaze the gem stone embedded in the top of his hand, "Shouton. And the other being more subtle. Kaenton." Seiji grabbed the tea balls and plopped them into each respective cup, then he held his one hand over the cup he planned to give his company.

Using his free hand, Seiji began weaving together a swift series of hand seals. Quickly, the air between the cup and his hand began to heat up with cinnabar red heat. The air seemed disturbed, and the cup began heating up. "The Hizashi brew the best tea in Suna. It's said that a warm cup of tea soothes a wrriors mind. Makes them brighter and sharper. The cffeine inside of it should be extracted perfectly with my tried and true heating jutsu." Seiji lifted his hand from the cup and then went to his. He performed the same hand seals again and the cup began brewing.

Once his cup was warm, Seiji picked it up and gestured toward the fire. "For the spirits." He dumped about a third of his cup onto the burning coals.

"Well Sakaze, I spoke with Indra about, well, freedom more or less. I believe our village has the right to be free. I want to see it. I want to be part of the force that will move Sunagakure toward freedom." Seiji lifted his eyebrow at her. "Is there more to it than that?" Seiji wondered if she would follow his rhetoric, or perhaps get swept aside by his bold words and brazen ambitions.

[Throniv]

Sakaze smiled at his admonition and gestured for him to go ahead as he explained his affinity with Kaenton and Shouton. She knew that the youngsters always loved to show off their abilities--she remembered all too well the preening and showboating her own classmates would perform at the slightest provocation. Her smile turned appreciative when he handed her the tea, and she turned to dump a third of her own cup right beside his. The spirits were heavy in this place and she never failed to honor them, lest they take offense and start causing mischief.

"I've had the pleasure once or twice, but you're right. The Hizashi do brew the best tea in Suna... Or at least, they did," she muttered out the last bit as she took a sip, savoring the subtle flavors that expressed themselves through the fine manipulation of heat that only a Hizashi could pull off. There was a teahouse that employed a few Hizashi near their compound, one that she frequented whenever she managed to make it back to the village--she wasn't sure if it still existed anymore.

One day, by Her will, she would find out.

"As far as freedom goes, Indra was right. Everyone here is devoted to the freedom of Sunagakure, and the restoration of the Land of Wind. Though Indra and I do disagree on the finer details of how that may be achieved, we both want that much," she mused as she held the teacup in both hands and allowed its warmth to suffuse her. Indra's vision was beautiful, even she could acknowledge that, but she doubted very much whether it was a path that would create a Sunagakure capable of defending itself and its people from another Tsuchikage with ambitious plans, or the next overzealous warlord that decided he wanted to raze rather than conquer.

"However, Indra says he wants a peaceful revolution. I do not believe such a thing is possible. After all, Seiji, what does peace with a slaver look like? To me, and those who follow me, it seems like a cold iron collar around your neck and meek submission--for that is the only kind of peace they will tolerate," she expounded upon her own philosophy as she swirled the tea in her cup and considered the light gold liquid, enjoying the way the torchlight reflected off of its amber surface. "I believe peace must be seized by force of arms when the opponent you face intends to force you into bondage. I believe these dogs of Iwa live away from Her light by choice, and She has never abhored violence when defending kith and kin from beings of Shadow--spirit or men."

Her tone was calm, explanatory, as if she were describing a fact no more disturbing than how the sun rose in the east and set in the west--but the look in her eyes was colder than the underground pools that fed the plumbing in the temple.