The sentient gourd, it..."preserved" him, for lack of a better word. It covered him from head to toe, leaving his mouth and nose free of course so that he could breathe, and left him in a comatose state. It was unknown how long he'd been there, beneath the sand, being spoon-fed moisture by the living being that never left his side since finding it so long ago in his grandparent's house. It was the last thing they'd left him, and possibly the only way of showing that they cared for the troubled child. Perhaps they had hoped it would be there for him when no one else was. Perhaps they were resting easy to know that it had been.

Kinzoku got up out of the makeshift grave, the Iron Sand pushing away the normal sand around him as he rose to his feet. His body felt tired and unused. As he rose, he suddenly fell again, lying there to gather his strength and to catch his breath. Piercing yellow eyes look around to process the area about him. He found himself in the middle of the hot desert... He had no memories of how he got where he was, or what he was doing before he ended up here. Kinzoku could still remember that he hailed from the village of Yokuchigakure, which he looked to see was not very far away; he could still remember the terrible story of his mother, and the torment he suffered throughout his childhood that turned him into the cold withdrawn individual that he was, but the last few years were a total blank.

When he rose to his feet again, the Iron Sand forming into the normal Legendary glowing Gourd upon his back, bits and pieces began to break through... Kinzoku was once part of a large organization in a place of eternal night, ran by S-ranked Shinobi in possession of forbidden and long lost techniques... As for specific details, like who these people were, where this village was, and the like, Kinzoku couldn't remember. He found that thinking about it too much gave him a headache. The important thing was that he was still alive, thanks mostly to his gourd. He remembered that he once said he'd never return to Yokuchi, but he decided to go back on that word, being so close to home.

So, after dusting himself off, Kinzoku began the trudge across the vast desert, headed slowly for his village of birth...

Blake never slept. She spent hours reading, hours wandering, but very few if any hours at all sleeping. This was why she knew the village of Yokuchigakure like the back of her hand: she spent so long wandering the streets that she could spot the smallest thing out of place almost in an instant. Which, was sort of what happened at that very moment when she turned her amber colored gaze from her book and out to the desert proper.

A slender black eyebrow rose up as a look of mild curiosity crossed her face: there was something moving out there. Now, while that wasn’t entirely unheard of given how populated the village was, it was rather strange because she had been in her particular spot for quite a few long hours and had yet to see anyone venture out that way: it was as if this person, whoever it was, had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

Blake cast a look around and then sighed softly; there were no other high ranked shinobi around and that meant it was her task to see what was going on. Uncrossing her legs she dog-eared the page she had been on in her book and closed the thing. She slipped the book into the pouch at her hip and then turned and jumped from the wall she had been seated upon. She could hear the bijuu sealed within her beginning to stir as its curiosity peaked, too.

“Who is that, Blake?”

“I'm not entirely sure… He seems familiar... I plan on getting closer.”

“Hmmp.”

Blake took careful and sure footsteps as she approached the male; eyes half closed against the assault of sand that got brought along with a random gust of wind. The shadows around her seemed to come to life, licking at her heals, dying to protect her from this sand. However, she held them back, not wanting to come across as threatening to the individual unless she had to.

“Hello there…”, the called out.

The young man walked into the village through the front gates. He was dressed as he'd always been, even when he'd lived here: A red long sleeved top with yellow trim. It had a large collar, hiding all of his face but his eyes from view. He wore dark brown ankle length slacks, with the same colored fingerless gloves on both hands, and black sandals. Kinzoku was a caramel tanned individual with short, frizzy black hair. What stood out about him the most had to be the large black gourd upon his back, glowing and looking to possess a life all its own.

As soon as he set foot back inside of the village where he was born, he attracted the stares. These were the same stares that drove him to leave. The same stares that drove him to kill in his last visit, when he tangled with the Kage. Kinzoku could see that the damage he'd caused in that last encounter had been fixed, but the damage he'd caused with some of these people were still ever present, as some of them looked upon Kinzoku with fury and rage. Perhaps they had friends or family that had unfortunately been given the task of trying to stop him, as they'd failed at that of course.

He wasn't expecting anyone to have anything nice to say to or about him. A female spoke up first though. Something was strange about her. Kinzoku thought he was seeing things when he could see the shadows moving around about her. Maybe it was just the sand in his eyes, and he didn't think much about it. The blank expression on his face didn't change much. He was about to respond to her, but--

"YOU!"

A group of ninja were headed in his direction, and he turned to face them. When they were close, Kinzoku recognized them to be various riff raff and bullies from the academy days.

"You killed both of my brothers and some of my friends! I've been training and waiting for this day! I always knew you were some sort of freak of nature you rape baby! The time has come for us to put you down!"

Various others had similar complaints, telling of how Kinzoku had killed someone close to them. Many other villagers and pedestrians were watching, expecting the worst. Kinzoku, still with his blank expression, remained silent and simply started walking toward the Administration Complex.

"DON'T YOU IGNORE ME!!" yelled the young shinobi angrily, and he charged in toward the Iron Sand user at a high rate of speed. After jumping and performing a roundhouse kick, he found it blocked and his momentum suddenly brought to a halt by a black substance that seemed to just appear from nowhere. Yellow eyes look toward the young shinobi. Kinzoku had no intentions of killing anyone, but if they persisted he planned to stain the streets with blood. But for now, Kinzoku would thrust a right hand toward the young male. Without even making contact with him, the male suddenly went rocketing backwards, slamming into a nearby wall. People watching were totally confused on how he did that. The male was hurt, but still alive as he flopped to the sandy ground.

Kinzoku continued walking. Others began to throw shuriken and kunai at him, just to see the trajectory of the metal projectiles suddenly change, and come right back toward those that threw them. Many ducked and dodged, but others were hit with their own ninja tools. Kinzoku didn't even turn to look back as the screams of pain filled the air. Many began to think that Kinzoku was some sort of sorcerer, super ninja, or even a God, yet what he was doing were simple Metal techniques he'd had practice with since he was a small child.

Many in front of him, their nasty expressions now replaced with fearful ones, began to hurriedly get out of his way....

Her right eyebrow rose as her curiosity peaked even more: before the one she now recognized as Kinzoku could even respond to her the villagers began to hurl insults, threats, and… well, and then the violence started. Shaking her head Blake simply took several steps to the right and out of the way: she had no intentions of getting involved in this fight. If anything she figured the villagers brought it upon themselves given the way they were acting and the things they were saying and doing.

“You know… you all seem to blame him for one thing or another and yet you always seem to be the ones to start the trouble in the first place. Bunch of bullies, the lot of you…”, Blake stated loudly, ignoring some of the looks that were being shot her way at her statement. They apparently didn’t like hearing the truth, but it was the truth all of the same, and they would just have to come to terms with it because Blake wasn’t the type of person to sugar coat things just to make them easier on someone.

A soft snort of a sound escaped Blake as she turned and began to follow after Kinzoku. In response to some of the stares she simply rolled her eyes, “You all know it’s the truth. That’s why you’re looking at me like that…” In response to her comment, and still apparently rather pissed off by whatever it was that Kinzoku had done to one particular ninja or his family, a kunai was thrown in her direction: almost like an off handed ‘fuck you’ type gesture. The shadows which had been licking at Blake’s heels for quite some time now suddenly rose up like a black, swirling, dark mass from which a hand formed and caught the kunai. The kunai was twirled around a slender shadowy finger before it was then sent flying back towards the one who had thrown it: all without Blake moving a single muscle, or making even the slightest of movements. The kunai snagged their shirt, caught it, and sent them flying backwards where it imbedded itself into a hunk of wood, trapping the person there.

Blake paused in her walking and simply stared at the individual who seemed shocked beyond the ability to speak: in her mind she heard a sadistic little chuckle of a sound and knew her bijuu had been responsible for that. After a moment she simply shook her head and turned towards Kinzoku, noticing him heading towards the administrative building. Blinking, she picked up her pace so she could catch up but ensured she kept her distance so she didn’t come across as threatening. “If you’re heading there to see the Kage there isn’t one…”, she stated simply.

No one else decided to try attacking Kinzoku... for the moment. The female made a statement that seemed to be working, for the moment, especially seeing as someone tried to attack her and was unsuccessful. The very shadows themselves seemed to come to life to grab the weapon that had been thrown at her to throw it back, all without any effort from her at all. This produced fearful and rageful looks for the female as well as Kinzoku. There was something else definitely to this female. Mastery of sensory told Kinzoku that there were 2 life forces in one person. A Jinchuuriki, or a carrier of a Chakra Beast at the very least. Given how much Chakra that was within her, Kinzoku leaned more toward the fact that she was a Jinchuuriki, and seeing as how she looked to be able to control the shadows, this likely meant that she was also from Clan Nara. If she decided to attack him, she would prove to be a problem if not dealt with immediately...

The Legendary Gourd seemed to have picked up on the fact that there was more to this female than she was letting on too, as it began to move, wiggle and glow brighter as she approached again. Kinzoku only wanted to see who was running the place, and if anything had really changed. The answer to that question was so far no. Yokuchigakure had never really had any competent leadership, and the last Kage had been quite easily dispatched by Kinzoku himself, even being weaker than he was. The female's next statement made him suddenly stop walking and blink his eyes several times.

"No Kage... Interesting," he said, his voice parched and deeper than it was since he'd been here last. An old woman nearby who sold produce and desert fruits brought Kinzoku a jug of liquid. The gourd would have warned him if the beverage was poisoned, but it showed no reaction, meaning there was no danger of drinking it. He eagerly took it and drank the entire jug down. Kinzoku thanked the woman and gave her a handful of Ryo, not even bothering to count it, far more than what the beverage was worth. The woman happily took the Ryo with a smile and thanked him return, to which Kinzoku simply nodded his head.

No Kage?... A wild idea crossed his mind. "...Maybe i'll go and convince the council to hand over the hat to me, then... unless you plan on trying to stop me next?... You're a Jinchuuriki if i'm not mistaken, and probably one of the only people who'd have a chance..."

Kinzoku didn't even turn towards her as he waited for the first attack to come. He'd never battled against someone who could manipulate shadows, and had only heard about the exploits of the Nara clan through stories and rumors. Kinzoku hadn't killed anyone yet, or destroyed half the city like he'd done in his last visit. The damage he'd done this time around was very menial compared to the last episode. He had no plans to kill anyone, unless pushed that far. If attacked, he had already shown that he would defend himself.

For some reason she wasn’t entirely surprised he knew she was a Jinchuuriki: it was a bit unsettling that he had figured it out so quickly, but given what she had just seen him do he seemed a cut above the rest of the shinobi from Yokuchi. Of course Blake had no reason to lie about it and so she chose to answer him, "You'd be correct in your assumption."

He wanted the hat? She couldn’t fathom why he wanted such a title seeing as the way the majority of the people treated him – outside of the woman who offered him something to drink. But still, if that was what he wanted to do who was she to stand in his way? She surely didn’t want such a title or responsibility… no, she was better off killing stuff.

A chuckle escaped her as she simply folded her arms across her chest and shook her head. “Nah, I don’t plan on stopping you. While I can’t understand your methods of wanting to be put into that position, I have no intentions of stealing it from you. Last thing I want is to have to rule over people… I’m better at killing things, it’s my purpose in life so to speak….” She focused her attention towards the administrative buildings, wondering how things were going to unfold once Kinzoku got up there. Would everyone just willingly hand the hat over? Or would there be a fight? She was never one to turn down the opportunity to see a fight like that….

“I’m interested to see though if they honestly just give you the hat….” Yup, that was Blake for you, she didn’t sugar coat or beat around the bush. And so she continued following him while maintaining a decent distance: she didn’t like crowding people.

She wasn't going to stop him. She said she was just interested in killing things. It was much like he was, much like he still was this day. Ordinarily he wouldn't have given a rat's ass about this village or who lead it, but as this was his home and where he was born, he figured he should be the one to run it if no one else could do a proper job of it, even if the majority of the population hated and dispised him for past actions.

So Kinzoku continued walking through the village with the slow stroll he was known for, the same slow stroll he used to enter the village of darkness, the name of which still eluded him; the same slow stroll he used when facing the former Kage of Yokuchi in battle. The stares of the envious, the jealous, the few fans followed him, as did the girl who said she wanted to see if the council would just hand over the hat. Through it all, what could be seen of Kinzoku's face remained calm.

Inside of the Administration Complex, after walking the halls and attracting more stares of those within, Kinzoku barged into the chambers of the council members. A bunch of old heads dressed in robes, smoking pipes, pulling the strings from the shadows. Most of them looked surprised to see him, for Kinzoku was a deserter and still technically a Missing-Nin.

"The child of the Jiseki Kunoichi," one of them said just above a whisper.

Another one said "He is a traitor and a deserter, he deserves to die. Guards, kill him." These guards who rushed toward Kinzoku were themselves grabbed by a black powdery, musty substance. It restrained their legs, and moments afterwards the screams filled the room as the living substance constricted upon their legs, crushing the bones and leaving them unable to stand or walk. A large hand formed of the black substance to grab the council member who'd given the death order within it's large palm that smelled heavily of blood. He tried to run, but to no avail. He could be heard screaming and pleading for his life from within the blackness, and then came the sounds of crunching bones and internal organs being compressed into pulp.

"Strafe, the former Kage, whom you nearly killed, has stepped down and retired from his role as lead. If you've returned to finish the job, i'm afraid you're too late, " said another council member, who, even facing death, looked calm. Others had this same look as well, continuing to smoke from their pipes, others looked entertained, and others looked scared for their lives. "Do you plan to kill us all, child of Jiseki?"

"No," answered Kinzoku as the Iron Sand retracted back into the legendary gourd, having added another casualty to it's collection. "...What i've come for is the hat. This village... it's never really had a good leader that actually did their job, so i'll do it. I came here to see if any of you would object."

"I object!" yelled another one of the members who looked upon Kinzoku with rage. "As long as I live i'll never be comfortable with a monster like you running our beloved Yokuchigakure---"

Tendrils of Iron Sand, still slick with the blood of their former comrade, grabbed and restrained the old man by each of his ankles and wrists. With a vicious yank accompanied by simultaneous popping sounds, he was rendered limbless. This transpired without Kinzoku making a move, or changing the calm expression that was on his face. Before the limbless council member could fall to the floor, the Iron Sand formed 2 large hands and clapped what remained of him between them, rendering him nothing more than a smear of blood.

"...Does anyone else object?" Kinzoku calmly asked, blinking his yellow eyes slowly.

The calm council member, who didn't even bat an eye at 2 of his comrades being viciously murdered right in front of him, just exhaled lungfulls of peculiar smelling smoke. "I don't object," he said. Others in the room shook their heads, meaning that they didn't either. "You are obviously the strongest shinobi in the village right now, save for the Jinchuuriki behind you, but the way I understand it, she has no desire to lead. I have been watching you since birth, Kinzoku. I, unlike the majority of this village, understand you and why you did the things you did, which were within good reason. You were the unfortunate production of years of captivity and violation, but you are also the mixture of clan Jiseki and Kotetsusei, making you a very unique individual and the perfect candidate to become Kouyakage... We will do what we can to repair your tarnished reputation, and stand behind you. All I ask is that the killing stop here."

Blake had followed Kinzoku inside and through the administrative building and straight to the council members chambers. She had been half expected to see someone attempt to stop him before he reached the door but he was able to make it there without fail. With her arms still folded across her chest she entered in after Kinzoku and leaned herself against a nearby wall so that she was out of the way but still able to see what was going on: she did after all expect some violence.

The reactions of the council members seemed a mix between utter outrage of Kinzoku’s reappearance in the village, shock, and… well, some of them looked so calm they seemed to not care at all. Kinzoku’s death was ordered almost immediately but didn’t happen quite as the council member had planned. Blake watched as the guards who attempted to kill Kinzoku as ordered found their legs crushed: but that was nothing compared to the fate of the council member. Blake watched with a great deal of interest; feeling her own blood boil as her inner sadist and the pain addiction she had been born with began to rise to the surface. Blake had admitted that she enjoyed killing but what she hadn’t mentioned was how much she got off on the pain of others before their demise.

When Kinzoku spoke of his intentions, of wanting to take the place of Kage and be the rightful ruler of the village, it seemed still that, despite the show Kinzoku had already put on without moving a muscle, some people still had objections. Blake watched as this council member too was killed in a unique and brutal method, a smile creeping up on her face and causing her amber eyes to shine from the shadows that were licking at her form.

She focused her attention on the council member who seemed the calmest, and when she was mentioned she shook her head no, confirming his suspicions that she had no intentions of being made leader of the village. When the ultimatum came up that the killing had to stop here she turned her attention back to Kinzoku, remaining silent as she waited to hear what he had to say about it all.

Again, the Iron Sand retracted into it's glowing housing upon Kinzoku's back and remained there, meaning Kinzoku was going to comply. The calm council member went on to explain how his 2 former council comrades were about the old ways of the village, and always knew that they would possibly die by those old ways, demonstrated by the thick blood puddles upon the floors of their chambers.

After officially inducting Kinzoku into the role of Kouyakage and handing over the hat and robes, neither of which he planned on wearing, a servant nervously began to show him around the Administration Complex. Kinzoku gave a glance to that strange shadow girl before leaving, who'd been grinning and seemingly entertained by the whole ordeal, wondering what role she was going to play in the future. He wasn't really expecting her to fall head over heels in love with him, or to follow his orders or anything like that, and were she to leave, he didn't plan on trying to stop her.

He familiarized himself with the Admin Complex, and his new office. He also familiarized himself with the other shinobi of the village, and remembered that he had to play nice now instead of simply tearing someone who'd done something wrong into bloody pieces. The servant nervously explained the daily duties of a Kage, and stated that they'd always be around should Kinzoku become confused on anything.

So. Kouyakage. Sitting in his new office behind his new desk, the Legendary Gourd at his side, Kinzoku began to settle into his new role as village leader.

[Exit]