Roku the Runaway

Am I even normal?

Sometimes, when one has abilities, skills, or even a different appearance to another. They are generally criticized by the majority that don't possess something unique. And even when a group of such beings come together, they still criticize the unique of their own. Some are prodigies in their fields, others are the scum at the bottom of the barrel. Some are considered freaks or saints. Everybody's mind was always changing to stick with the majority. However, some decide to show that even the least skilled, or the least able, or the least "normal" can easily cause a difference as a prodigy could. That was how Raijin flowed, that was his motive, he wished to prove to his late brother that power did not always bring happiness and that one could establish a paradise with hatred or betrayal. He would be the one to bring great honour to his almost fully wiped out family. He believed that the great leave many "useless" things behind, things that can easily be utilized to surpass others in a heartbeat. And that by picking up those said pieces; one can have the power to overcome any challenge, as long as they are able to connect the pieces. Sadly, however, it was all just false motivation, something to keep the lowers to do their best and the higher-ups to keep up what they're already doing.

The moon was half full as it broke the horizon, creating an eerie, yet calming light to bounce off the night time ocean which surrounded this island. However, it did not take long until clouds started to dance across the sky, creating a grim, depressing atmosphere at this time of night. A young man, Raijin Hayate, was sitting, leaning against a tree, watching the water out in front of him. He watched as the waves danced and crashed against boulders and sand meters in front of him. The wind gave a gentle, tropical breeze which covered the boy in temporary heat, before blowing away deeper in land. The shinobi looked down at his hands which held a necklace in the center of the palm. The pendant, shining brightly periodically as the patches of the moonlight hit against the smooth metal of the pendant, being the Hayate clan's insignia. The boy closed his eyes and tightened his fist around the necklace. He always wondered to himself, why would a pariah, an outcast, a beast try to surpass those whose skill clearly outmatch his? The answer was always the same; the pariah is always destined to surpass it's peers. Little to the boy's knowledge, the pariah generally dies trying throughout history. And generally, the pariahs tend to look up to some of the most hated beings in history. Which was true, in Raijin's case. For he looked up to his late ancestors. Through tales and legends, the village symbolized the remaining of his family as traitors, and pariahs, tales of them nearly wiping out many clans and tarnishing the clan's name. One would wonder, why look up to the worst of the worst while they were trying to honor their clan, whose name said people have tarnished?

The answer is very simple; If they did what they did to cause the clan to become infamous, one can easily take equal steps to either undermine or glorify the same clan. The monsters of legends, whose tales tell of powerful martial arts users who only wanted bloodlust and wanton destruction, could easily be balanced out by another who seeks to undo the scars that they have caused. To undo the acts of a monster, one must think like a beast, a demon, in order to bring honour to a clan once thought to be saint-like in past tales and legends. And if those few people were able to gain such power as the legends tell, then why can't another easily gain said power? That is what motivates Raijin to strive to raise the clan from it's past scars. He is aware however, that the outcome can lead to being treated just as his ancestors did years ago.

It took him a few moments to shift from his current train of thoughts and to the very fabric of reality itself. Raijin’s family had gone through a lot and had been accused of many things and he knew he could change that but this was all just a false motivation to keep him the naive man going. Raijin laid in the desert sand just outside of the gates of Sunagakure, awaiting his partner’s arrival. From what he had been told by the Mizukage they were assigned to take down Kirikoma Zaku. A man that Raijin knew of very well, he had run for the prestigious spot of Jonin Hancho in the last election but was denied of glory and fuelled through high levels of both anger and fury he had left the village. In the past he was linked to various missing nin groups and it seemed like everyone’s suspicions had been confirmed now but the Taijutsu user felt some type of empathy for the man. He and his family had also been accused of many bad things in the past. He decided to take a more lax position and lay down flat on his back with the back of his head resting on his two hands and he looked up at the stars.

This was going to be a loooooong day.