Remembering Your Place in the World

[Golnax]

Aimi Kaguya sat on the ground silently planning. It had been many days since his return from the spirit world and the machine that would be his nation was slowly building itself up. A bit too slowly for his liking. As it turned out, building a nation from the ground up as a terrible and daunting task when your land has next to no resources to pull on - namely trees, as it turned out. Ever since assuming the mantle of Daimyo Aimi had found himself thinking of things he had never thought of before in ways that were entirely foreign to him! This task that he had picked up for himself, it seemed, did not come naturally to the sage.

He was in the middle of thinking about what countries he knew that could be accessed easily enough by Gold merchants to procure wood when he happened to look over to the west side of his hut in which he sat. There he kept his personal effects - weapons, scrolls, things that he personally wanted to keep safe that weren't of need of any sort of extra security. This was honestly the first time since his escape that he had looked at his belongings and recognized them as his. Living seventy years without possessions, it seemed, had a way of teaching you to look over the material! Never the less they caught his eye now and, to take a break from the complicated and brain-throbbing task of planning the rapid industrialization of a feudal nation, he took inventory of what he knew he had off the top of his head.

There was his swords, all twenty one of them, the specialized sheath that twenty of them were housed in. His butt bag, filled with various ninja tools such as shuriken, senbon and explosive tags. The scroll he often carried with him as a way of summoning the multiple-sword holster when he needed it. That was it, really, except for...

A ring.

Yes, a ring. He remembered now having a ring that was given to him by a child... a child whose name he could not remember off the top of his head. Getting up from where he sat he moved over towards his loosely organized things and began to rifle through them, looking for the ring. It took him only a couple of moments to find it hiding away in his butt bag. Picking up the strangely glistening ring, he'd even go as far as to call it an unnatural glow, Aimi held it between his fingers and looked at it back and forth. This was the ring that had been given to him years ago... nearly eighty if his time in the spirit world was included, but outside of it it had still been more than half a decade since he received the ring. Before the Great War. Before Gold...

Shio! It suddenly came back to him! Shio Mistaki! Memories were flooding his mind, details only half remembered but the general gist was clear; Shio Mistaki had come to him as a recruiter for an organization, Kishakisei, that was made up of 'inhumanly powerful' individuals such as himself! Yes, he remembered the ring was able to make a portal to their hideout in the Land of Tides! He didn't even know if the hideout still existed, if the Land of Tides still existed as a matter of fact! It had all been so long ago for the Kaguya...

Never the less he stood up and placed the ring on his right hand finger, remembering, as he did, that he had taken it off so that he wouldn't lose it at any point during the war but had since simply forgotten about it, the organization he was a part of, the whole thing! Life had moved so suddenly and so fast since that meeting all those years ago... Perhaps it was time to see if he was still considered a part of this organization.

Holding his hand out before him and focusing, Aimi would channel his chakra into the ring, the golden glow encompassing his hand, ring and all, and he waited. He remembered watching Shio do the same thing to open the portal but had neglected asking any specific details - or at least he didn't remember asking - on how it worked. Fortunately, it seemed, funneling chakra into the ring was all that was required as within moments a portal had opened up within the hut! Seeing no reason then to hesitate, Aimi would step forward through the portal in Gold and step out of it in Tides, entering the windowless foyer and stepping on the red carpet. He looked around briefly to see if there was anyone there before announcing his presence to anyone at large.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

[Ace Trainer]

As the small box in his room began to glow, Kesu's eyes widened. The boy would float over to it, lifting the lid as the light faded and then tucking it under his arm. He'd dart out the room, practically flying through the halls as he weaved through the building until he was in front of Shio's room. "I have something for you.", he would announce through the door. With no response, he'd push it open. Floating across the wide room, he'd approach Shio who was sitting on the floor cross legged. "It was used.", he said, holding the box out for Shio.

Shio's eyes opened and he lifted an eyebrow, taking the box and removing the object in it. A small ring. Through the war, it had gone unused, and as he fell out of contact and became busy with other things, it became an increasingly lower priority to worry about the small organization he had agreed upon those years ago with the man on Lava Island. A place that had since - ironically perhaps - been razed to the ground. Standing, he held out a hand for Kesu, "Well, lets go then.", he'd say. Clenching his hand around the ring it would activate, and the pair would be pulled into a portal and find themselves standing just 3 feet in front of the behemoth of a man - the Sage of Ego.

He'd take a step back, practically ignoring Aimi as he looked around. The room looked hardly any different than it had been when he'd left it. Still well managed. Shio hadn't been in the Land of Tides for some time, his priorities once again laying elsewhere. He'd need to return soon, Kesu had continually reminded him of the clan here that Shio would need to bring to Iron. He looked around in a circle, then finally his eyes landed back on Aimi, "Its good to see you.", he said rather flatly, suggesting he was saying that more as a formality than a truth.

Kesu's eyes, however, remained locked on Aimi. As Shio walked past the man, inspecting the room some more, Kesu was practically frozen watching him. Shio approached a small table, lifting a box sitting on it and reaching into it pulling out a few pieces of paper that had something scribbled on it. "Kesu.", his voice practically scolding the boy. Kesu shook his head and nodded, floating past Aimi as well and joining Shio's side. He seemed to have broken from the trance and looked at Aimi once more before looking at Shio.

"That is Kaguya, Aimi. He is the man responsible for everything happening in Gold.", Kesu said in a hushed tone.

Shio didn't seem to respond to that in any way, wholly unphased by the revelation Kesu was providing, suggesting he was already in the know. "That he is. Why have we been called here?", he asked, the question directed at Aimi. "Is there something you need?", he asked, turning to look at the man once again.

[Golnax]

It seemed, initially, that there was no one home in the hide out. His call went unanswered and he was left to stand in the relative dark. Not one to sit in gloom, Aimi would channel his katon chakra and create a ball of dull, floating blue flame in the palm of his hand which, while dull of light, illuminated the room enough that he could spy some candles sitting on a table not far away. With a snap of his fingers the wicks were ignited and the foyer was a little less dark. He began to think of just how he would pass the time, whether he would wait to see if anyone would arrive or not, when a much brighter light filled the room as a second portal opened up.

Aimi turned to look at the portal as two individuals stepped out of it. As the portal closed one had their back to Aimi while the other instantly locked on to him and just... kind of stared. The Daimyo of Gold stood still and said nothing, wondering to himself who these two individuals were. He didn't recognize the young man who was staring at him nor did he recognize the even younger, judging by their height, man who was just... kind of... looking around the room. Taking things in as he had he supposed but he did eventually lay eyes on him. A thing young man with salt and pepper hair spruced in with the black. Pretty average looking, all things considered. The Kaguya really couldn't recall ever having laid eyes on such a young man but then he spoke.

Aimi remained silent at the words. He knew they were a greeting, but... he didn't recognize this young man before him, so how exactly was he supposed to respond? His tone had been totally flat! Like he was answering an obligation rather than greeting a comrade. Subsequently Aimi assumed that this duo must have been representatives of Shio. He felt that was a little rude, frankly, to send a pair of lackies rather than come and meet him himself. Was he so busy that he couldn't come and face him for an update on things? The blond Kaguya followed Shio with his eyes as he walked past him, the ghost-light he had created vanishing as Shio approached and reappearing two meters directly in the air to help illuminate the room in dull blue light.

Silently he turned back to the one called Kesu as the young man called out his name which alerted Aimi to his name. It was then, as Kesu was floating past him, that he actually noticed he was off the ground to begin with! A nifty little trick, it reminded him of his meditations in the spirit world... Despite the hushed tone of Kesu's words, there was really only the three of them there and the flames so Aimi heard what was said and let out a quiet, "Huh..." He hadn't been expecting to be recognized on sight by a complete stranger, frankly - especially with his hair now being such a bright, metallic gold blond! He hardly even looked the part of a Kaguya anymore save for the red dots on his forehead.

The other individual, Shio, that he still didn't recognize answered much less impressed and then asked questions of Aimi who took only a second to realize they were directed at him. Clearing his throat, Aimi replied in a soft and even tone. "I'm here to meet with Shio Mistaki. As you've noticed I'm Aimi Kaguya, one of the members of this organization and... well it's been a long time since I joined, there's not been any meetings or anything, no call to action, and a lot has happened since the Great War ended. I figured I would come and express my expanded resources to the young man who recruited me. So. Would you be so kind as to tell him to come and see me himself? Not to be rude but I don't feel like relaying this to a pair of his thralls," he said, recalling the duo that had been present with Shio on the dock when he had first met him that Aimi had assumed at the time must have been under some sort of Genjutsu based on how they acted. He thus believed that Shio was the type of person to put people under his spell, so to speak, and this was what helped make him so powerful. Naturally, of course, he assumed Kesu and this other young man were in the same boat.

One could but only imagine his surprise...!

[Ace Trainer]

Aimi seemed perplexed, almost as if he was lost. Sure, it had been a few years since the pair had met but his confusion seemed a bit excessive. Perhaps he needed his memory jogged a little? It was times like this Shio missed his pen. Being able to talk was a luxury, yes, but the ability to convey thoughts in their pure form, without the need for language was even better. But, Shio had abandoned the pen years ago, and it was only occasions like this that he missed it. Finally Aimi spoke though, and Shio couldn't help but crack a sardonic grin.

"At your service.", bowing sarcastically along side it. "Its been a few years. I suppose we've both been a little...preoccupied.".

Kesu's job under Shio's guide was to be a....information broker, perhaps that was the best use of the term. He did a good job of staying well informed of the happenings around the world, not just within Iron, and was sure to keep Shio up to date. So it was no secret to the young boys that Aimi had been engaging in quite similar behaviors as Shio. Taking over a country, transforming it's political landscape, building new bridges for their people so-to-speak. Aimi did not appear to have the same luxury for information, though Shio had been fortunate to come into control of a country with a more than capable infrastructure already in place.

"With all due respect, I'm well aware of your expanded resources. Though it appears more has changed than that...", he said referring to Aimi's somewhat different appearance from the last time they had met.

Kesu watched, his eyes unwaivering between the two of them. In front of him were the two highest listed individuals in the common bingo book. He'd received word that with Takamori, Saigo joining Konoha publicly (though it'd be long suspected, that Iwa had increased its internal bounty for the missing ninja by a large degree, but Aimi and Shio's actions during the war, and since, had given them quite a reputation. He was just a 12 year old boy, albeit Shio was only 14, but the two of them in front of him felt...surreal.

He didn't dare speak, part of him just wanted to vanish. But he was Shio's disciple and archivist, if there was going to be information moved between the two, Kesu would need to be aware.

"What have you been up to? Or should I go first?", Shio hopped up on the table he'd just been in front of, sitting on it and leaning forward, looking at Aimi with a flat demeanor.

[Golnax]

The moment of realization did come, but it took a couple of moments to hit the Kaguya sage. Shio bowed and said his piece and Aimi looked on at him with the same sort of blank expression that Shio had given him. This wasn't Shio. It couldn't be! Shio didn't look like that, Shio looked...

This is when the first realization stuck him. He couldn't actually remember what Shio looked like! After meeting him exactly one time and with five years of war plus a year of travel in between along with a full seventy years of being trapped in a foreign dimension, the features had all gone missing form his mind! He recalled Shio as "boy" and "small" and that was about it! So, naturally, there was a bit of an awkward silence between the two of them that was almost palpable. Somewhere in the distance a dog barked.

Then it hit him. "Oh... OH! You're Shio!? My, my goodness! You've uhm, you've grown! Sorry, I didn't recognize you!" Aimi let out some nervous laughter and ran his hand through his short (comparatively) gold hair, the only two major differences in how he looked from when the two of them had last met. Well, that and his lack of foot wrappings. Even without the absence of memory Shio had changed much more in the six years since they had last seen each other than Aimi had - at least physically. The very fact that Aimi was laughing should have come off as a stark contrast to Shio from who he had been. This wasn't the intense presence that he had put off on their first meeting. If anything Aimi seemed subdued, one might even go as far as to say not himself! The biggest change of all, it seemed, was not a visible one...

This only applied to Shio, though, of course. To Kesu it would look as if the man with the highest bounty in the BINGO book was just casually making a fool of himself! The mental whiplash was probably intense!

Shio's words cut through his laughter and Aimi brought it to a close. "Hm? What, this?" he asked casually, reaching a hand up and lifting up the left side of his now shoulder length blond hair. "Yeah, well, it's a bit of a long story... as a matter of fact this is my natural hair color! The Kaguya aren't all naturally white of hair you know, that's artificial," he proclaimed casually. His tone, still, was very warm and calm. Not a trace of the so called 'behemoth' that he had once been to all.

"But you're aware of my resources, huh? Well, that's something. I suppose I shouldn't expect anything less from some child genius who went around convincing the world's strongest ninja to join an organization! Still, I think it would be good to flat out say everything that I know of at my disposal in due time..." he said. As Shio moved to sit up on the table, he sat down on the floor with his legs crossed, one over the other, in the lotus stance - making sure to cover himself up for modesty of course.

"Why don't you go first, though. You apparently know at least a portion of what I have to offer now, but I'm afraid that I was far too busy on the front lines in my war to keep up with what was going on with the world at large around me! I mostly tried to keep my head down and keep what was happening isolated from the rest of the world. For the most part it worked! But, I digress. Tell me, what has happened with you since last we met?"

[Ace Trainer]

Kesu looked at the man curiously as it all seemed to come together for him. This wasn't exactly what he was expecting Aimi to be like based on what he'd heard about the man. But, word traveled fast and rarely with accuracy. He remained silent, however, careful not to intrude too much on what was happening. He'd float over to the table was sitting on, positioning himself dutifully to Shio's left side. He woudn't speak unless spoken to, as would be expected of him.

Shio, however, seemed to think this was a time for Kesu to talk. As Aimi spoke, Shio looked at Kesu for a brief moment before turning his attention back to Aimi. "I've heard such things. the Kaguya aren't a biological family from what I understood.", he mused out loud. "But yes, very aware. I suppose you're right though. Confirming our information will be helpful on several fronts.", Shio said with finality, Kesu nodding in agreement. "But from what I understand, becoming Daimyo of a country and waging a bit of war isn't exactly what I would call keeping your head down.", a truth. "But yes, we can go first. Kesu?", he gestured to the young blond boy.

Kesu looked a Shio for only a moment before nodding, "Right.", he floated forward a little. Seems he was up. "During the first years of the war there was quite a bit of activity in the north regions of the continent. Iron Country was maintaining its presence as a neutral party but it's land was encroached on by armies moving through the region and they felt compelled to engage. The Taishou during that time would move the bulk of his forces into Earth Country to support the country in forcing back the armies of the Holy City of Towers to their west.", Kesu would gesture as he spoke. "In the absence of a bulk of their forces, Shio elected to move into the country with a small group, and challenged the Taishou for his seat, which he was able to take. ", Kesu explained.

He looked at Shio for a moment who nodded approvingly, suggesting Kesu should continue. "Upon returning to Iron Country, the majority of the samurai were willing to accept their new Taishou. The Taishou - Shio - would then direct the resources and skill of Iron Country towards Pebble, a war ravaged country between Earth and Wind, and began inflating their forces. In a relatively short time frame, Pebble Country was transformed from a battle ground state into one the premiere samurai armies in the world, by-and-large thanks to the efforts of the Iron Taishou and his troops.", a simplified account but sufficient none-the-less. "Since, the Taishou has worked to reorient Iron Country's mission towards one that aligns with his own vision. A new samurai academy is being built, and the countries resources are being redirected towards.....prepatory efforts.", Kesu was short on information here, which stood out even more given how detailed he'd just been.

"We'll leave that in the air for now.", he said to Kesu, who nodded understandingly, recognizing he'd made the right choice in being slightly reserved here. "Thank you.". Kesu would move back to his previous position, allowing Shio to talk again. "There you have it, Daimyo-sama. You're speaking with the Taishou.", another grin. It seemed Shio enjoyed knowing how much authority sat in the room. Of course by his understanding, Aimi was in control of a bunch of random villagers, Shio had a standing army.

[Golnax]

Aimi smiled at Shio's sarcastic words. "Perhaps it seemed that way from the outside looking in, but the truth of the matter is that I was operating as an independent entity for the entirety of the war - while masquerading as a shinobi for Kirigakure. Believe me, telling the right people the right thing at the right time saved me from a lot of grief from Water during the whole affair. As for being Daimyo," here he paused, looking down at the floor as he tried to find the right words to say. He didn't want to get too much ahead of himself. "Well, that's just a temporary solution. I'll elaborate more in a bit."

Aimi listened dutifully and quietly as Kesu explained what had happened on Shio's end during the war. He was thoroughly impressed that Iron Country had been subdued by the boy sitting above him. Iron, which had always held fast to it's neutrality and pride as being a samurai run nation rather than a shinobi power house, was now under the thumb of a former Kirigakure ninja. How ironic! More impressive than the irony, though, was the talk of taking over Pebble and how Shio had managed to organize the armies into a single military outfit.

"I see. Then we sit at equal footing, if not on equal ground!" Aimi said, actually unsure if a 'daimyo' and a 'taishou' were equivalent in rank or not. He had a feeling they might as well be in this instance, though. Regardless he would continue.

"Well, to cut a long story as short as possible... I found a people to fight for, gave them the tools necessary, and started conquering. I went north, took over Dungeon singlehandedly but uh, had to relinquish it... it just paved the way for me to take over Gold and the land just south of that, followed by the Land of Plains and Sea, the Land of Steppes and the Land of Beasts. It's all Gold now. I have a standing army at my command as well - the former Gold and Dungeons both had samurai at their disposal, and the Land of Plains and Sea... well, let's just say that without any knowledge of jutsu they could contend with me physically, so that should give you an idea of their might! Along with the abnormally hardy people of Beasts and the nomadic warrior tribes of Steppes, I've managed to bring them all together into quite a sizeable military force with samurai on top, followed by the native warriors of southern Gold and everyone else underneath them. They're mostly hardened veterans at this point but improvement is always possible; ah yes, and they know of chakra somewhat."

Aimi would pause to let this sink in for a moment before continuing. "Nothing complex just yet, they're not ninja like we are, but they know enough for some basic jutsu. Setting fires and such, you know the sort of thing. I plan on changing that quite shortly, though..." Here again he paused, deciding, like Kesu, to play things a bit close to the chest for the time being. Shio might have been something of an ally, but that didn't mean he needed to know exactly how far along he was in his plans just yet...

"Man power aside, I've an abundance of land at my disposal with various resources all throughout, but the most standout would be the gold. My land is aptly named because of the treasures it holds you see! In the north and in the south, I've gold mines that are beginning to be quite lucrative. Add on top of that a certain lost city of gold in the north and, well, I'm actually quite wealthy all of a sudden! The vast majority of that wealth is going towards industrialization, though. I won't lie, as impressive as my rag-tag military and mining operations are, the land I conquered is... behind, let's say, in terms of technology. I'm currently setting up net works for trade and development to bring in technology, workers and, oddly enough, wood. There's not much trees in my land as it turns out!"

He paused once more, tilting his head back rather than moving his arms or his legs. Staring up at the ceiling, he pondered if there was anything else of note that he felt the need to tell Shio. He could mention the Kinoko, but... he decided he felt more comfortable relinquishing that information once his plans had come to fruition. "I'm pretty sure that's everything of note as far as the war goes... ah, yes, but returning to your question," he said, lowering his head and looking at Shio once more. "I suppose there is something I need that you can help with. Resources for industrialization. I need the major settlements in my nation at the very least to be caught up with the Great Five last week. What can you do to help with that?"

[Ace Trainer]

Aimi seemed far more....exuberant than when Shio had last seen him several years ago. He wondered what Aimi had gone through to experience such a drastic shift in personality. Perhaps it was of no concern either though. As Aimi explained everything he did during the war, Shio nodded along. Most of this were things he already knew. Information moved fast in a warring world. The news that they were using chakra was new, however, and Shio gave a sharp look at Kesu for just an instant, which Kesu would nod in response to. In contrast to Shio, who seemed to just be having a conversation, Kesu was clearly listening with intent. Focusing on every word Aimi side. The young archivist clearly invested in this information. While he had no pen or paper, one could practically see him writing notes in his head as Aimi explained.

The resources Aimi mentioned weren't new either, Shio had been well aware of the region, especially Gold, and what it had to offer. It seemed Aimi was directly quite a bit of attention towards developing much of this region. It made sense, Shio had practically inherited a functioning country. It had infrastructure, government, alliances, treaties and agreements already in place. And while Shio was aware of them, Kesu had been placed in charge of managing most of it. The notion that they were on equal footing was true, Daimyo or Taishou, a title was simply a title. But as far as ground, Shio wasn't so sure. Aimi was certainly behind in that capacity, if only by a little. But he had the advantage of being able to shape it to his desire. Something that would take a bit more work for Shio.

Then, Aimi made a request, or at least the notion of a request, which left Kesu with a perplexed look and Shio actually scoffing with a small grin.

"That won't happen.", he said curtly.

He looked at Kesu for a moment, the two of them locking eyes as if having a silent conversation then he turned back to Aimi. "As a point of reference, Iron Country has existed in excess of 500 years. It has long stood as the center of the samurai way in this world. Virtually every samurai that exists today, likely yours included, are built off of regiments, skillsets, values, and philosophies that were forged by Iron Country in its infancy. As we shinobi have warred with each other across the generations, Iron Country has stood firm and strong, protecting civilians and standing against shinobi.", he gestured towards Kesu.

"The Land of Runes is one of the oldest civilizations on the continent. They have records as far back as the genma themselves. They have persisted, regardless of the external world, hold a powerful type of magic, virtually unlimited resources due to their connections here in the south and their own bountiful land. And rumors float about concerning their use of the spirit realm. The Land of Stars, another ancient civilization, though not as old as Runes, sits in the center of the grand 5 and has managed to hold them out of their land in spite of multiple wars that they would have be a strategic strong hold. Just as two more examples.", he explained.

"The rest of the world has been playing catch up with the Grand 5 for generations. It doesn't happen. You could teach chakra to every single man, woman, and child in your country and they would not be anywhere close to the capacity of the Grand 5.", Shio paused for a moment, "Think about your men. Do you think any of them could stand up to you?", he asked. "We're strong. But Kirigakure made us. They have made others. And each of the Grand 5 have too.", he shook his head.

"We might be able to help with resources. But, if that is your goal it is not realistic, and I won't waste time trying to support it.", he crossed his arms. Sure, they could build armies, hell they could build villages, teach chakra. But it wasn't feasible within this century to have a force on par with any of the villages. They were called the Grand 5 for a reason.

[Golnax]

Shio's initial response was disappointing. Aimi hadn't been smiling necessarily, but his expression did fall slightly as Shio all but turned him down. The pair of young men both took turns trying to explain to a century-old sage that what he was trying to achieve was beyond his grasp, and the more they talked, the more his expression lifted itself back up. Yes of course they would see things from the angle of countries and histories. How could they not? They couldn't possibly realize that, as far as Aimi was concerned, this was Year Zero of a new age in history. Their view of things was limited to their age and their understanding of what the "big picture" really truly was. Aimi could not fault them for their ignorance.

Ultimately, though, it seemed that they reached an agreement none the less. Now he smiled. "You just get me the resources I need and I'll handle the rest. Money is no object of course, so if you know of somewhere relatively safe that I can get wood and perhaps a couple dozen masons and carpenters that know how to use it from more developed parts of the world, I can direct them to move quickly."

"This aside, though, I find it interesting that you bring up Iron in particular as a nation that has been holding it's own on the world stage," the sage admitted. "Given you know this, and how could you not? Are you not curious? What they could do? If Shinobi and Samurai were to pit their forces together? What could be achieved?" He chuckled, closing his eyes and lifting his left hand off of his knee for a moment before waving it around in the air dismissively.

"Don't answer that, it's basically a rhetorical question. Just think on it, young Shio. Now! You've said that you can get me the resources I need which is mostly wood and men who know how to build; what can I do in exchange for this favor? I don't expect to get something for nothing after all. What is it that you want that you're struggling to get on your own?" he offered, opening his eyes and looking up at Shio with a shrewd sharpness in his gaze. He was certainly no fool and understood the concept of tit for tat. There had to be something that Shio wanted. The boy was too young and too ambitious not to have his eye on some distant prize...

[Ace Trainer]

Shio's eyes thinned at Aimi's dismissal of his concern with such a simple comment. 'Handle the rest'. It seemed impractical. Shio wasn't doubting anyones capacity, it wasn't a question of that. To him, it was a matter of logistics. One that he had little time, nor interest, in going through the minutia of. If Aimi wanted to hope, far be it from Shio to try and quell that. But the question he asked, resources, wood, laborers, was an easier one to answer. Iron Country was rich in wood, especially following the acquisition of Fur. As far laborers, Shio had found that in the short time they had began procuring...workers, that many of them had talents and skills that were of use. He had no doubt among those obtained there would be a number of wood workers and stone workers.

"Iron has taken to the use of human capital in exchange for livelihood.", what a polite way to say indentured workers. "There will be a number of skills workers among them, if you want to offer them citizenry in place of Iron.", they would become citizens in Iron after a number of years working as slaves. If Aimi wanted to forgo that process, Shio had no issue allowing a number of them to go to him. Iron certainly could afford it. And it would probably be more positively received by the citizens of Iron that were less than pleased with the new situation.

Aimi went off on another fantasy, shinobi and samurai working together wasn't a fantasy, but this notion of their grand potential implying some greater truth was a bit silly to him. But, it was rhetorical, which was fine enough for Shio, saved him the breath. Kesu took a sharp inhale when Aimi offered up his services. An open ended request that he seemed to know almost immediately what Shio would want to do with it.

Turning, Kesu floated out of the room, Shio watching for a moment then nodding. "There is something. Not too far gone from what you're suggesting, though perhaps more tame.", he scratched his chin.

Kesu would float back into the room, a large scroll under his arm. Without any warning, he would immediately pick up for Shio. "Given the current political climate, now may be as good a time as any. Shio has been using Iron to set up for this. There are a few tasks we're looking to accomplish beforehand. A clan, some logistical matters, things you likely won't care for hearing about. But it culminates in an attack.", Kesu would unfurl the scroll, revealing a map of the world that he would lay out on the table. "We only want the land. What comes with waging such an attack would be yours for the taking. Secrets, knowledge, resources. The plan is to treat it much like Shio did with Iron. Come into an existing government and simply fold it into what he'd working on." Shio would take a step aside, allowing Kesu to gesture Aimi in to view the map.

"Here.", he'd point to a location on the map, then look to Shio who would nod. Both their eyes would move to Aimi.

[Golnax]

Manipulation really was Shio's strong suit. Such pretty little words for 'slaves' he used. Aimi could only smile, his expression unchanging, as he saw right through what was being said to him. It wasn't all bad anyways since the Taishou flat out offered to grant him the privilege of giving these 'workers' citizenry within his own country. "Ah, how generous!" he said sincerely. "I can use all the capable workers I can get my hands on, so I'll gladly take as many as you're willing to give off of your hands."

The air in the room shifted as the pair of boys looked at each other. To Aimi it looked like they were plotting some sort of mischief; he had to remind himself that these boys were in charge of their own nation just as he was. An important thing to remember. The golden haired sage watched as Kesu floated out of the room, leaving only he and Shio together for a moment. "More tame than building infrastructure? Must be quite the boring task you have for me," he joked. Kesu returned shortly with a rather large scroll in hand.

"Oh by all means, tell me about your logistics if you wish. It's far from boring," Aimi replied kindly but left it at that. As the scroll was unrolled onto the table he stood up from his sitting position and walked over to examine the map of the world. It seemed to small to him now. With the size of his own nation as a reference point and a ruler he could more or less measure out how large the world was right then and there and know for a fact that he could circumvent it several times over in a matter of weeks. Compared to that endless red sky and strange eons that he had been trapped in for so long, the world of men seemed so small...

He drew his focus back to the task at hand at the mention of an attack. "Ah yes, of course..." he said softly. It didn't surprise him so much that Shio would be requesting his physical might in such a matter. He hadn't lost any of his capabilities since his imprisonment, in fact if nothing else they were improved, but never the less his new mindset made him... hesitant to launch an attack. For a number of reasons! Aimi was no longer the man that had waged a one man invasion of the most blood thirsty ninja village in the world. His would rather eschew violence these days if it could be avoided after all. As Kesu went on to explain what it was they wanted and what he could gain from it, Aimi would reach out and place a soft hand on the map, running his hand over the lines that demoted borders.

That's when he heard it: the laughter. Distant and hollow like the memory of a bad dream he heard it echoing as clear as day for a moment and then it was gone, the sound causing him to jerk his head up and stand up straight. He stiffened and made to turn his head as if to look for that laughing jackal before he realized that the sound was gone before he could react more to it than this. Relaxing again he looked back down at the map, at where his fingers were placed. He was quiet, pondering, thinking on what had been said. He still hadn't discovered what it was that had been changed about him fully yet. Perhaps this was his chance...

"Secrets, knowledge and resources, huh?" he said quietly. Again he was silent for a moment before continuing.

"Alright, I'll help with this attack. I see no reason not to, really. The land you can have for the most part, but I'll need at least this part," he said, extending his finger and running it over a section of the map. "As far as resources are concerned this should help cover it for my purposes just fine. Knowledge and secrets though? That I'm unsure about... but if along the way I find something, I'll let you know what I need." Looking up from the map he turned his gaze back to Shio. His eyes were harder now, closer to what they had been when they had first met on the dock though not quite to that intensity still. A memory of who he had been peaking through.

"How do you want to go about this?"

[Ace Trainer]

What they were proposing was not a simple endeavor, so there might have been even a hint of disappointment in Shio's eyes when Aimi didn't seem to immediately respond to the proposition. But then again, they were in the discussion of toppling governments and standing alongside military giants, perhaps they had moved beyond the line of surprising moves. "Whatever they have to offer.", he clarified in response to what Shio was offering again. He gestured towards wanting specific land and Shio would look to Kesu who would nod, Shio shrugging in response, "That's fine.", he said flatly. Perhaps this really was just another normal conversation for people in their positions.

Aimi asked about how they wanted to go about it, however, and Shio shook his head. "For now, we'll be laying groundwork for it. We have a strong relationship with Pebble that will at least buy us time and opportunity, and it means we don't need to scout out land. There are several key pieces I need, one of which I had intended to begin on before I was called here.", he looked to Kesu, "We should be going soon.". The young blonde boy would nod, rolling up the scroll and floating out of the room with it, giving the two S-rank shinobi some time on their own.

"There may be some other tasks that need to be accomplished. At the time, I can't say what. Perhaps in the interim, it's best we leave it open ended. I can have workers transported to you. And I'll have an emissary accompany them. And well, if anything else is needed its not like we can't contact each other through official means or otherwise.", he tapped the ring in in his palm. "Perhaps we should be mindful of adding more to our company.", he said thoughtfully, "Us and that Nehan, and I'm not sure what Yoru is up to given his departure back to his home. It might be prudent to revisit who we want to welcome among us.". They were, afterall, a semi-formal organization, not just two business partners. It would make sense to be thoughtful of the organization, even if it was only a name.

"I have everything.", Kesu would say returning to the room. Several scrolls in his hands, and a few other things. Shio would nod and turn back to Aimi, it seemed their time was up unless the Sage had anything else.

[Golnax]

"As you say then," Aimi replied to Shio before his assistant Kesu left the room. He removed his hand from the map to allow the young floating boy to take it back to wherever it had come from and turned his back on the table, resting his rump on the edge and contemplating what was to come. How exactly would he himself handle things? If things had to resort to violence then so be it, but perhaps if it had the chance to simply talk to people...

With the two most dangerous men in the world alone Shio chose to further speak and Aimi listened, turning his head towards the much younger boy. "Indeed. Open ended is best. Sometimes it is best not to have everything planned out and simply let the course of things flow. Best not to fight against anything that's inevitable, some would say," he mused. As Shio spoke about the possibility of adding others into the organization, Aimi chuckled. "I thought that was your department anyways, Charity! This is your organization after all. Besides, I don't know anyone that could stand beside us anyways..." He paused, his mind momentarily flitting to that woman so similar yet so different to himself; the former host of Vorashu. Weaknesses aside he'd say she was up to snuff, but that crippling fear of fire of hers... well, if he was able to shut her down with a bit of flame then so could anyone. If such a weakness were widely known to her enemies... So ultimately he brushed the possibility aside.

With Kesu returning to them, Aimi would push off of the table and take a few steps forward towards the still burning candles, lick his fingers, and carefully snuff them out one by one. "I see no reason to delay. We might as well get started at once," he said while doing so. Looking back to Shio, Aimi would speak once more. "I wish to accompany you for a time. As it happens, I've never been to Iron for any significant amount of time, looking around could give me ideas for my developing infrastructure, and the sooner we get this little operation underway the better - without rushing of course. If I can be of any help, I'm happy to offer my services."

With a soft smile he waited for the boy's answer.

[Ace Trainer]

Aimi suggested planning everything out wasn't always the best course of action and Shio nodded in response; this was certainly true. And while they did their best to be prepared Shio was quickly learning that some things required divine intervention to work perfectly and going off the cuff was just easier. Fortunately, Shio had a bit of divinity in him anyways. He smirked at the thought, which quickly faded away when Aimi had no additional option off the top of his hand. Perhaps it was time to begin combing the bingo book. The only issue was that the nature of the organization seemed to stand in opposition of the villages, and perhaps garnering the attention of village shinobi was not in their best interest. A thought for another day, Kesu reappeared and they were prepared to make their exit when Aimi presented another request.

Shio's eyes shifted to Kesu, who was clearly trying to keep composure but appeared intimidated at the thought of having Aimi among him. Shio let out a soft sigh, then shrugged, "Sure.", he said simply. "I can have a room prepared for you, and time permitting I'm happy to show you about. If I can't, Kesu can, or perhaps Michi....", his voice trailed off, "Or some lieutenant none-the-less, unless you'd rather meander about on your own.", he said thoughtfully.

Clasping the ring in his hand, it would glow activating and pulling a portal before them, "I'm sure the samurai will be more than welcoming of you, many will be interested in a spar. There is something of a culture of competition I've found.", a casual notion given the rather serious nature the samurai of iron country often presented. But perhaps in their homeland, shows of strength were as popular as they were in Kirigakure.

"There will be some things I'll attend to on my own, but we'll sort out next steps and go from there...", he turned to Kesu, nodding, and gesturing. Kesu would float forward, disappearing into the portal that had formed. He'd gesture once more to Aimi, "After you, Daimyo-sama.".

[Golnax]

The Gold Daimyo smiled.

"That's very kind of you. I would be horribly rude to refuse such kindness," he responded at the offer to have a room made up. The Kaguya merely chuckled at the notion of sparing with samurai, though. He'd faced off against samurai many times - the ones under his command could be quite formidable, but he doubted they measured up to the gold standard, so to speak, of samurai; Iron Samurai. Who knew? Perhaps he could get some ideas on how to strengthen his military by having a go with them, though he ultimately doubted that it would be too much of a challenge for him. He was certain, though, that he could keep things interesting!

"Oh, no no, I've done quite enough meandering for a life time. Time is short, so I'd ask you to have someone show me around while you deal with your business," he said, looking to Kesu with that same smile still on his face. He could see how intimidated the boy was of him and that was understandable. In the same way that he felt confident that he could have fun with samurai by flexing his strength, he was pretty sure that he could have an equal amount of fun with Kesu by demonstrating how gentle he could be.

Turning back to Shio for a second before facing the portal, Aimi strode forward. "To Iron we go, Taichio," he responded before stepping through into another new world.