Motivating the next generation! (Mission, Hiroshi/Sen)

Mission Details:

It was quite a while ago that Hiroshi graduated from the academy, pleasing his parents with his results but the working pace that he had hoped to be filled up for his duties as Genin wasn't there, as Hiroshi just found himself spending a lot of free time at home, waiting for the one letter that told him that he's either been assigned to a squad, or to a mission. Roughly about a week had past, as Hiroshi didn't want to be impatient about it and once a week had flown by, he decided to go for a more social setting with his friends as he believed a letter wouldn't arrive anytime soon. ironically on the same day of planning this, he finally got a mail telling him that he got assigned a mission!

It came as a surprise to him but it also was slightly frustrating as he wished it arrived sooner, but reading the contents of what the mission proposed infuriated him slightly even further... motivating students at the academy? he wasn't expect a prestigious job as a Genin, but he was hoping for something a little more than "inspire the children" but in his case, beggars couldn't be choosers.

He was given two days to prep for the mission, which didn't sit right with him as he waited for a week to be given a mission, and now he had to wait a few more days? that little fact just infuriated his already pent up anger but it didn't concern him that much as he took it for what it is and over the course of the days until the mission was due, mentally prepared himself for how he could motivate the students. The mission description mentioned about experienced Genin, yet Hiroshi was fresh out of the academy. He'd just have to improvise from the looks of it.

Hiroshi didn't wear anything too fanciful in terms of ninja gear, just wearing a red t-shirt, black shorts and blue sandals. Though for the sake of the mission he at least brought along his forehead protector which is wrapped around his right upper arm. Despite his preparation in motivating the students, he didn't seem to take himself seriously enough to impress them properly.

The walk from his home to the academy was rather short, not much stopped his walk and knowing the quick route to the academy, he got there rather quick. He waited at the entrance of the academy as he read that he also got assigned a partner, waiting for whoever that is to walk along.

As it pertained to the request for experienced Genin, Sen could be considered the ultimate Monkey's Paw; for while he was certainly experienced to the life of a Genin, he wasn't particularly stronger than your average Genin, and certainly not smarter. His experience as one stemmed from others' rejection, and from a consistent track record of mission failures due mostly to his own contributions.

Without a squad formed for him at the moment, he was a free agent of sorts within the village, mostly doing what his higher-ups asked of him whenever. Seeing as his only trait of any worth was his optimism and energy, it would go without saying that the requirement of being experienced would be waived in favor of what his personality could bring to the table.

Regardless of the mission, the young Senju would always bring along his standard gear - just about everything he still has. It wasn't that he was paranoid or had a mistrust of the village - on the contrary, he trusted everyone in this village as much as himself. No, it was much simpler - he liked the soft rattling and clanging of the ninja tools in his holsters. It calmed him down on long trips, more than making up for the additional inconvenient weight it might bring.

And so he marched with optimism to the front of the academy. He vaguely recalled that he was to be partnered with somebody, and noticed only one other person outside standing around, also seemingly looking.

He began to trot over to the other person, calling out.

"Hey! Are you the other guy?"

Sen had a smile plastered on his face, completely oblivious and shameless to the fact he was about 5 minutes late; so caught up in making sure he brought every single ninja tool he had along for the mission. Whether anyone would bring this tardiness up or care about it? That was up to everyone else whether he'd ever even figure it out.

Hiroshi had been waiting for a while, his impatience in doing this mission landed him a few minutes earlier then anticipated but he had hoped that whoever his partner was, they'd be roughly on time... he wasn't a stick in the mud for the rules as long as it didn't matter that much, especially when it came to someone being late. Five minutes was just fine for him, it would just be a bit more irritating if it was like thirty minutes, or an hour of sorts to which point, he might've ditched the mission at that point but thankfully, his worries of doing that were put to rest when his partner finally showed up, his eyes already drawn to the ninja gear that he's packing. "... Shit, did I have to pack for this mission?" he thought this mission would've been like a talk of what they've been through so far as a Genin instead of demonstrating their abilities... well, that's going to be a problem.

He drifted out of that negative thought as it's too late now, he was roped into the mission as it is and he can't just go on back home. "Yeah I am, Hiroshi's the name, you?" being rather straightforward, regardless of whether he'd be given his partners name or not, he'd start to walk into the academy. "C'mon, we better find the instructor that wanted us today before he starts wondering where we are." given the late situation, but considering they were only a few minutes late, it couldn't be that bad.

On the mission description, they were assigned a classroom number to help them find their way, going through the hallway, they eventually found their way to the sounds of a loud classroom full of kids which prompted Hiroshi to check the door number which is exactly alike to the missions description, with the kid's current loudness in the room it meant that the teacher is letting them do whatever they want, or they haven't arrived yet. Soon enough, he opened the sliding door and the classroom quietened down, but resumed to being as loud as they were when they saw the two Genin at the door, they didn't seem to care unless it was the teacher, who didn't seem to be present in the classroom. "Great, the teacher's late... so I guess it didn't matter."

"I'm Sen! It's good to meet you!" he responded with enthusiasm.

Still oblivious to his lateness, he didn't see the hurry or understand why the boy who introduced himself as Hiroshi was so insistent that they move quickly. Sen quickly disregarded the thought, shrugged, and followed behind.

Looking around as they entered and walked the academy's halls, Sen sighed with a happy nostalgia. The place brought back memories of a simpler time. Not happier necessarily, but he didn't need to worry about mission objectives back then; nor did he need to worry about his performance aside from a passing grade.

As they turned into the noisy classroom, Sen observed the situation: a classroom of loud students, known for being disruptive and lacking motivation, and a teacher that wasn't around. Sen's first thought upon taking these things in, turning to Hiroshi, was spoken to him.

"Maybe the teacher's the reason they aren't as passionate? Or did the teacher give up first? It's kinda hard to tell."

He scratched his head and made his way over to the teacher's seat behind the desk at the front of class, sitting down with one leg raised as if to cross them. He began staring down the students, attempting to gain their attention with the best mimicry of his stern old academy teacher he could.

Maybe if I act like my teachers did, I can assert dominance and gain their respect!

He learned that his partner's name is Sen... easy enough to remember, just the way he liked it. He might have to ask later on if he belonged to a clan, but that's a question for another time. For now, they should probably focus on the mission and that's to motivate these students. Sen seemed to adapt a weird strategy though by crossing his legs over the desk, which prompted Hiroshi to ask what the hell he was thinking, but it didn't seem to pay the students any mind, only rewarding Sen with a glare or two but that's about it, they seemed pretty consistent in their loud chats. "I... don't know, these students don't seem very cooperative. I don't think the teacher is the reason why their motivation is so low."

However, that statement went out the window when the teacher finally arrived, a really old silver fox of a man entered the room, sluggish and slow in his movement which one would believe is a result of his old age. His general vibe just yelled out uninspiring, he could already see the problem as to why they were assigned to this mission. "Or... maybe you're right, the old geezer is the problem." Hiroshi said that rather openly in-front of the teacher, resulting in him batting an eye towards Hiroshi but quickly diverted his attention going towards the desk, giving a light motion to Sen that he has to get off the desk. Oddly enough, the entire class went quiet the instant they spotted him coming in.

As soon as the desk was cleared, the old man would gently sit down on the chair and clear his throat, his students instantly paid attention. "Class... I told you we were expecting two Genin, from the looks of it you haven't given them the proper respect they deserve, except that red-haired punk. I can understand why." a giggle came out of some of the students, with Hiroshi batting an eye at the old man for that comment but he let it slide, it would've been childish to create a scene there and then. "But enough about that... were going outside for a practical lesson, to demonstrate what a Genin is capable of and what is expected of you by the time you graduate from the academy... come along now." he slowly moved back up from the chair and started to walk out the door, with the students not being that far behind.

"Oh! Sorry..." Sen spoke nervously, jumping out of the chair for the teacher.

He smiled without care as the teacher insulted Hiroshi, not entirely picking up that it was even an insult given the reaction the students had, and had a small giggle himself. His composure returned quickly though, doing his best to show discipline and knowledge.

Making their way out of the academy, Sen began stretching on the open field once they exited the building.

"So what's our lesson here? Sparring? Hide and seek? Ninja tool training, maybe?"

With each crack of Sen's joints, he was becoming more enthusiastic. A trip down memory lane, indeed. Before him were the next in line to graduate, and he had to ensure they performed well.

Looking across the faces of the students, he gestured for them to step forward, forgetting he wasn't entirely in charge of the class itself.

"Come on! Stretching is important before any kind of activity, especially when it concerns the academy! You won't always have the opportunity to prepare yourself like this, so take advantage of it!"

More than anything this was an emulation of various things he had heard around his clan's estate, and less so his actual experiences talking. If he wasn't the most battle-hardened Genin, he could at least stand to act like it for the sake of boosting the confidence of his future allies.

They soon made it outside to the practical field, a few straw dummies were in place, a few bullseye wooden targets were set up on nearby trees and they had the entire barren field to practice on. A solid training ground really, considering it's the academy. A few students did join on Sen's little exercise venture though and copied the exact stretching exercises that he was doing, though a strong majority of the students stayed back as they seemed hesitant for some reason. "Whatever Sen's laying out, it's working... I gotta start motivating them as well, I can't be outplayed in anything, even if it's motivating these damned kids..." he thought to himself, but before he could have a chance to think of something, the old teacher began to speak. "Right... if you want to exercise and stretch your muscles a bit, go over to that young man over there, otherwise I'll use the red-haired punk for this exercise, and that's throwing a kunai." the old man reached into his hip pouch and brought out a rather rusty kunai, passing it along to Hiroshi. "Here, this should do."

Hiroshi had a slight visible disgust on the condition of the kunai, to which the old man noted. "Not all tools will be clean and spotless in the battlefield, some of them will be rusty and the edges will be rough and that's just how some tools will be, you have to use them to the best of your ability." without even looking at one of the wooden targets, the old man suddenly gripped the kunai back out of Hiroshi's hand and threw the kunai behind him, it hit the wooden target right in it's red center, a perfect hit which awed most of the class that were watching, even Hiroshi himself was impressed with the display.

The old man brought out another rusty kunai, though not as terrible in condition compared to the one the old teacher just threw. "Show us your coordination, how well you can land a kunai." to which the old man stepped back, and Hiroshi soon enough prepared his aim, throwing it with the best of his ability and it just barely managed to land in the fourth row of the circle pattern from the center. "Not bad... but not good either kid." he then looked over to Sen, wondering if he'd join in on the kunai throwing exercise as well.

Sen noticed the spotlight being forced onto him, and began to move over towards the targeting area. He turned to the kids he motivated to stretch, not wanting to lose their motivation.

"Keep at it until you've repeated the process five more times! Then your body should be in great shape for everything else!"

He cleared his throat, and moved over to the targeting range. He held out his hand for one of the rusted kunai and looked it over. Awful, compared to the store-bought ones. What was the budget the academy was working with nowadays? Was the village economy going into the dirt? Unfortunately, Sen wasn't smart enough to even think of asking these questions. All he knew was that he was glad this teacher wasn't the one he had, training his students with weapons like these.

Throwing the rusted excuse of a weapon, it hit its mark about as well as Hiroshi's, on the opposite side of the circle. While Sen wasn't dreadful with his accuracy, it wasn't something he necessarily relied on. He liked to believe his forte was physical power, but one couldn't punch a target marker and expect it to fall over from your strength. No, this was something that required that degree of coordination he just didn't have yet to make it seem impressive. While his knife might have struck the area of an enemy to cause pain, it wouldn't deliver the desired, more fatal result that kunai are known for.

Through all of this, Sen could hear the disappointed, small sighs from the students at his back watching, and without even looking at them could feel their judgmental gazes.

Sen looked to the teacher to gauge his reaction.

"Ah, something like that...?" he questioned, pointing at the target.

The old man watched as Sen made his throw, landing around the same mark as Hiroshi. Hiroshi also was expecting something a bit more but at the same time, was glad that he didn't get beaten in accuracy. The old man then turned to the duo, as well as the rest of the class. "Seems about right, so both of your aims are about average for a Genin. That's not bad, as you grow into more skilled ninja I'm sure your aim will grow better over time... as for those of you who sighed, the other day the majority of you landed your throws at the ground instead of the actual target itself, so I would keep my mouth shut if I were you." any sighs or disappointment visibly seen went after that statement.

The old man then went into thought about what they could do next, to which he asked the Genin something. "Do you two happen to know any jutsu at all? if not, then it's okay. We can move onto something else." Hiroshi would give his answer to the question, "Not really... I know my chakra natures are Earth and Wind but that's it. I don't know any actual jutsu for them yet." and with that, the old man looked towards Sen for his answer.

Sen furrowed his brow in thought, looked away for a moment, then to Hiroshi, and finally to the teacher.

"Mostly taijutsu. I've been practicing the Arhat Fist, as well as various traditional taijutsu of the village."

Lowering into a stance that was very rigid and rock-like, it almost looked as if this stance made him heavier just by taking it up, despite not looking any different. He demonstrated a few strikes in the air, throwing open palm strikes, knee kicks, elbows and wound-up jabs. It was clear in technique that he was more accustomed to this kind of training than anything involving projectiles. While still not a master, and showing many openings that prioritized power over personal safety, he seemed in his element demonstrating taijutsu skills.

When Sen concluded with a final, forceful open palm strike at the air, he performed a dignified bowed before the teacher and students.

"It's a style that focuses entirely on power! There's nothing super deep or hard to understand, you just hit as hard as you can every single time!"

He raised the sleeve of his left arm to show developed muscles underneath.

"It's also really great for beginners! Since it's so simple, you can let loose with it whenever you want as long as you train your body!"

Looking around, Sen tried to gauge a reaction to determine if any of the students were buying his unintentional sales pitch for taijutsu, as well as to see how the teacher was taking this.

---

Jutsu Used:

Hiroshi realised that the old man meant any jutsu in general, not just fancy jutsu like chakra natures. Sen seemed to take the lead again in motivating the students though and through his display of Taijutsu, it seemed rather basic but the slight ripple of the air from the moves he were showing could definitely be felt, and it seemed to awe some of the students well enough to that effect, to which the old man smiled. As soon as the display was done, the old man gave a clap of applause to which was followed by the entirety of the class, which died down in a few seconds shortly after. He then looked back at Hiroshi. "So the kid knows Taijutsu, do you know anything? anything at all?"

Hiroshi slightly scratched his head, to which he brought up the other skill he didn't mention. "Bukijutsu... but I don't really have a weapo-" the old man paused him there with a hand signal. "Wait wait... you're meant to be skilled in Bukijutsu but you landed that terrible aim with the kunai? I can understand the young man with Taijutsu since it isn't his speciality, but you? that's slightly disappointing. You better work on your aim if you plan to make use of Bukijutsu." which rewarded a slight giggle from the students, great... insulted again by this old guy. That's probably what he deserved for calling him a old geezer so openly. He was also being outdone on the job on motivating these students... that didn't sit right with him.

"Then again, Genin are ninja who are still learning. They're not expected to know everything or do everything perfectly. That's what I wanted to show you class... that while some Genin are skilled, there are those who aren't and are still learning to become capable ninja. You should never get judged or blamed for not knowing anything as a Genin, unless you don't know the clone jutsu... then forget what I just said." the kids giggled once more, he then gave another gaze at Hiroshi. "You at least know the clone jutsu, right?" he was obviously kidding but Hiroshi just kept a cold, emotionless face to all the humour that slowly made it's way to a crossed looking face. "I think that's enough of a demonstration for now, do you have any questions for the Genin?"

A few students put up their hands, with the old man picking randomly and the first question seemed to be directed towards Sen. "Are you apart of a clan?"

Relieved that his demonstration seemed to have gone well with the students, Sen loosened up, undoing his stance and in doing so, lightening the burden of expending chakra to maintain the form. He exhaled to let out the pressure of using it and in doing so, calming his heart rate.

Just as he finished up with that, he noticed it was question time.

Things have been going smoothly... better not mess up here!

Looking across the faces of the children who seemed to be coming around, the teacher picked a random kid in the crowd to ask a question.

"Ah, well, that's..."

He was a question directly, which wouldn't be as big of a deal if it didn't concern his own clan. All the years of fame and nobility built around it, and all the things which he'd probably need to explain - it'd take forever! Regardless though, he couldn't just lie. The only thing he'd do was all he'd ever done: be honest. A smile returned to his face after a split second of hesitation.

"I am! I'm part of the Senju clan here in the village. We exist, I guess."

As proud as he was of his own accomplishments, Sen could never really say that he was proud of admitting to being a Senju. To this day he hasn't even worn their clan's symbol. That wasn't something he wanted to get into at the moment, however, so he left the question at that and awaited further questions, a reaction, or really anything to get off the question. A more perceptive person could likely see a semblance of discomfort forming around Sen's interior self.

With that quickly answered, it seemed though some of the students expected such an answer. "A Senju? no wonder he's good!" and the question then extended towards Hiroshi, who weren't as excited to hear which clan he might be from compared to it being towards Sen. "Kazehana." only a few select students were surprised at that name drop, he was even rewarded a glance from the old man as soon as that name was dropped, as if it were cursed in some way. "There's a bit of history behind that, but just know that my side of the family isn't involved with Sunagakure anymore."

With that answer, the old man decided it'd be best to move on. "Right... next question?" and this one finally seemed to be a bit more towards Hiroshi, though not as friendly from what the kid is about to say. "How come you aren't as good as the Senju guy?" pfft, that really hit a nerve with Hiroshi but he did his best to keep his cool, it'd be irrational to go venting out on a couple of kids, especially since his job is to motivate them, not scare them off. "Ahh... well, I'm a fresh Genin. I graduated out of the academy not that long ago. This is my first mission actually." he gave a pretty calm answer, quelling his inherent desire to just rip the head off the kid asking that question, but he kept it under control.

The next question seemed to be a bit more rational and calm down, and it seemed to be directed at the both of them. "What are your goals?" Hiroshi stepped in to answer first, as he wanted to shine somehow. "To become Hokage, or at least have the power of one. I want to be one of the best ninja to ever exist and I believe having the goal of becoming Hokage will help me have a good motivation to get stronger." a rather simplistic goal, but one that worked well enough for him.

Sen wasn't really sure what the reactions were with Hiroshi's clan name. Some people seemed surprised by the reveal, but he was completely oblivious. It seemed to be a sensitive topic, for those who understood, for the teacher, and especially for Hiroshi himself. Thus, Sen decided it best not to bring it back up. Though the mention of Sunagakure piqued his interest a little. Sen saw Hiroshi through a different lens for a moment.

Was he not born in the village? Hmm... I wonder. Sen thought to himself, but disregarded it quickly once the next question was brought up.

Being quiet to absorb what Hiroshi had to say about his goals, he heard the same thing that he had heard many times before by his peers in the academy, on his former squads, and even by fellow clan members in the estate - the desire to become Hokage. It wasn't that Sen was cynical towards the goal, nor did he look down on the idea of it; on the flip side, he respected immensely those that aimed so high. Yet still, there was still something about it that didn't seem so appealing. What it was, he couldn't quite place. His bubble was bursted once people had heard the end of Hiroshi's segment, and saw in the eyes of some of the academy students a change in opinion of Hiroshi. Slight and subtle, but it was there. The goal of Hokage was certainly something idealistic for young kids, and the mere mention of such a dream to younger kids vicariously inspired something within them as well. It was definitely something to be commended.

Sen stepped up after Hiroshi was done, and shrugged his shoulders with a smile.

"I really don't know! I think the most I'd like to do is see where life takes me. I just want to see things, do things, and learn things. And most importantly, serve the village in whatever way they need me. If I can have that, that's about all I need."

While the kids didn't seem to be that piqued for the first half of Sen's goals, the tone of his other half just gave off a rather loyal feeling. It almost tempted Hiroshi to do more for the village himself, but by motivating these students today, that's what they were doing quite well at the moment honestly. After both goals were given by the duo Genin, the old man decided to call it a day and ordered the students to head back to the classroom, while he stayed behind himself to talk with the duo. "Good work today you two, there were two aspects I wanted to show the students today. Some of them believed that by being Genin, they had to give up their personal dreams when they're pursuing the path of being a ninja but thanks to Hiroshi's dream being stated, they know that isn't the truth... and the second aspect is, some of them also believed that they have to be a perfect, flawless ninja to become Genin. You showed some skills the both of you, but you still had your troubles and in a sense that relieved some of the students for the upcoming graduation." with that note ended, the old man decided to take his leave, leaving the duo in the field currently.

Ending on that note, Hiroshi was rather satisfied with how that mission turned out, his feelings of incompetency against Sen disappeared and a slight smile was seen on the kid's face before it quickly went back down. He decided to depart himself and gave a brief goodbye wave to Sen. "Today's been interesting! I hope to meet you in another mission." he didn't think much of Sen throughout the mission, but with the overall conclusion that he got from the mission, he seemed to be a pretty good kid that he wouldn't mind pairing up with in the future.

(Exit)

Sen felt relief knowing that the mission was a success. He couldn't claim to have had many successful missions, and definitely not recently. It was an uplifting feeling, and he wanted more of it.

Reciprocating the wave with one of his own, Sen spoke out as Hiroshi walked away.

"Yeah! I'll see you again some time, for sure!", he replied with a hopeful vigor.

Sen began moving in the opposite direction, heading home towards the Senju estate.

There's so much to tell everyone! I hope they'll have time to listen. It's my first successful mission in six months! Now I'll definitely be allowed outside more again!

He pondered on the information of Hiroshi possibly being from outside of the village, and something about it bothered him for some reason - but he decided to ignore it. It was a happy day, after all! And certainly a day where he'd get a meal worth eating.

[Exit]