Enoushi looked across the table, his eyes half open and the edges of his mouth turned down in a frown. He turned his head to the left and looked at the wall of the room. No pictures hung, it was plain and empty. Turning his head to look at the other wall, he could see a window with the curtains closed and a door with three locks in place. The lights were on and from the floor he could hear two sets of breathing. One was quick paced, sign of a smaller animal. The other was steady, slow, and loud. The breathing of Erusaizu.

Looking down he could see the massive dog, he wondered if he had always slept like that. The dog had belonged to his father before, and was something like his best friend. Enoushi spent a minute or two staring at the dog’s left side. His front left leg had been removed a little below the shoulder. A furry stub was all that was left… some bandages around it. After a moment or two the dog’s eye opened and it let out a low grunt that Enoushi understood as “finish your food.”

Letting out an annoyed sigh at being ordered around, Enoushi dug his spoon into his cereal and finished his breakfast in around ten minutes before getting dressed and getting ready to leave. He looked in the mirror before he left, a single picture stuck in the frame. It was a picture of his father, and looking in the mirror he could see a resemblance between father and son. Enoushi had even made a note to cut his hair in a similar fashion to how his father had, just in case it helped him fit in better with the leaf people.

Enoushi walked outside, a new little partner joining him. A small dog called Amaimaru, it trotted behind him wagging its little tail. Enoushi gave the dog a somewhat cold and yet indifferent look that caused the dog to tilt its head in confusion. This dog had also been with his father but for a much shorter time than Erusaizu. When his father died and Erusaizu lost his leg, this dog suffered a head injury and lost some of its memory. Enoushi’s new family had set up things so that his new “Inu-nin” partner would be this Amaimaru.

Enoushi walked around the village. It was very different from what he was used to. People laughed, moved in groups playing games and carrying on innocent conversations. In the wave country, people only grouped together to try and survive together. Enoushi felt a bit out of place, he looked around. So many people, colors, wealth, happiness. It was almost suffocating. Enoushi turned around again. His breathing became a little heavier, and he looked down at the little dog wagging its tail. He turned again, his face turning into a slight scowl and a bead of sweat dripping off his face.

He quickly maneuvered through the crowd and finally found something he was more used to. A dark alley. A trash can, a cat chasing down a mouse. It wasn’t pretty, but he knew it, he understood what could happen in this kind of place. As he turned he noticed two people, he assumed a mugging at first, but then found it to be a young couple kissing. He blushed a little, embarrassed to not only be mistaken but again out of place. In a moment he jumped against the wall of the alley and then against the opposite wall. He used the two surfaces to rise up to the roof tops and away from the crowds. How did these people live like that?

In a moment Amaimaru had joined him. ”So happy… why are you all so happy?” Enoushi asked to no one in particular in a monotone voice.

Without Enoushi realizing it there was already someone occupying this rooftop; an older and taller ninja going by a name the boy did not know as of yet, Atsumi Shioyaki. While Shio did recognize a strong resemblance this youngster had to his father Oushi, he didnt even make an attempt to forcibly attract his attention. By now though, Aimaimaru immediately felt that there was something familiar about the appearance of this Jounin; though he didnt readily recognize him. Shioyaki smiled a bit down at the small dog, unlit cigarette hanging from in between the grasp of his lips. Before even acknowledging that Enoushi's presence were there Shio squatted down, heels against his hind end and rubbed Aimaimaru behind his furry ears.

"How ya doin' boy? Do ya remember me? hmm?"

A soft chuckle escaped his lips as the dog curiously licked his hand. Something about that fish taste managed to give the dog a bit of an indication despite his small memory loss. The cute little bugger felt that this man knew his former owner but couldn't specifically determine how. Shioyaki rubbed the top of Aimaimaru's head, tufting it up a bit before he stood. Still without giving Enoushi any attention he turned to look down at all of the happy people.

Lighting up his cigarette he placed two fingers around it and slowly inhaled the smoke before softly sending it aloft. Both of his hands had bandaging wrapped around only the palms, his arms looked strong and stout while retaining a streamlined appeal. He wore a long flowing white kimono top hanging open in the breeze that went to his knees. It seemed like it would be something a traditional doctor may wear except the black sawtooth design at its bottom. Black pants adorned his legs with white bandaging around the calves, typical of ninja garb and on his feet he wore black kung fu style shoes.

What appeared to be a normal wooden sword rested upon his back diagonally; it was something he never left home without. Lastly his face seemed to be very kind, a smile that seemingly always adorned his expession, with dark yet nice eyes. Upon his chin was some facial hair but not a lot. His hair was black and shoulder length, held back out of his eyes by a folded up white bandana with blue designs on it..something a fisherman may wear.

Despite a rather well kept appearance and an ordinarily handsome face, this guy sure was an oddity, not even saying hello yet? But Shioyaki had his reasons for being this way...because he knew about this boy...because there were some higher ups that felt he should become Enoushi's mentor. Having been friends with Oushi, he had felt that to be a grand idea, despite the boy's mentality. Without even looking at Enoushi he exhaled some smoke then spoke up.

"...Yo...you're Oushi's boy ne?"

Enoushi didn't notice him at first, he was much too caught up in his thoughts. About wars, about rain, and about why people smiled. Amaimaru didn't notice either, until he moved a bit and Amaimaru turned around and noticed the man in the white kimono. He moved over and wagged his tail, something about him seemed familiar. That smokey smell mixed with fish was something that Amaimaru had smelled before. He blew some smoke and bent down to pet Amai on the head. Amai tilted his head to the side, and then remembered something. One of those happy memories of his old master. Amaimaru sitting next to a four legged Erusaizu. Amaimaru had a bowl of milk and Eru a bit of sake.

Oushi was drunk, laughing and talking with someone. Who was it? Whoever he was smelled of smoke and fish. Smoke and fish... Shio.... YEAH! Amaimaru gave a very happy bark and wagged his tail so hard that it might have fallen off, or flown off and hit Enoushi in the back of the head.

By this time Enoushi had caught the man's scent and heard him talk to Amaimaru. He turned his head but didn't say anything either. This guy was strange. He seemed like everyone else in the village, but different. Happy, but more of a quiet kind of happy. Toned down if you will. It didn't make Enoushi feel so uncomfortable, it was almost like this guy was at peace and it made everything around him at peace. Still though, Enoushi wasn't totally at peace, this guy was still a Fire country person and a stranger to boot.

He was looking at Enoushi now, he could feel it. He didn't like it. "...Yo...you're Oushi's boy ne?" he said all of a sudden. Enoushi's eyes widened a bit and he slowly turned his head just enough to see the man out of the corner of his vision. "You knew my father?" he said in his usual mono-tone voice.

"Hm?...Oh, yeah of course."

Shioyaki smirked a bit and lifted a free hand up to scratch the back of his head while still puffing at his cigarette. A cool morning breeze flowed across the rooftop and caressed, encompassed his body in a wonderful dance of air. From time to time he enjoyed coming up to the rooftops of the city to watch over everyone while enjoying a smoke at daybreak. Things like this really soothed him in the downtime between battles and his jobs as a sushi chef and medical nin. But today he was up here just for this boy; it really was amazing...the uncanny resemblance was simply amazing. Just seeing Enoushi's face made the special jounin nostalgic for the times he and Oushi hanged out together.

"Ya could say me and Oushi were buddies...Your father was quite the guy, I'd think."

Shio bellowed out a slight chuckle and turned to look at Aimaimaru before walking over to pick the little one up, rubbing him on the head. It seems that the poor thing finally remembered who he was and it made him happy to hear the little yap. The two dogs and this boy must have been through a lot. He didn't know everything about Enoushi but he could tell he was a little desensitized just from the tone in his voice. Before standing upright again he gently put Aimaimaru down and then kindly placed a hand on Enoushi's shoulder.

"Say...Do ya wanna go fishing? Ya can ask me about your father."

It would seem that this guy had known Oushi, he seemed fairly off. Very different from the people that Enoushi was used to. Care free in a way, and he smelled strongly of fish. Was this the kind of people his father hung out with? It was certainly interesting, but Enoushi wasn't really sure how to go about talking in this kind of situation. Amaimaru seemed very content though, the small dog bouncing around Shio, sniff at his feet and yipping.

""Ya could say me and Oushi were buddies...Your father was quite the guy, I'd think."

Enoushi didn't really react. He didn't say anything, he just let the thought pass through his head. I wouldn't know anything about that... The kind of person his father was didn't matter, because not only had he never known him but he could never meet him either. You could say that Enoushi was looking depressed, but considering he always looked like that there wasn't any kind of noticeable change in his demeanor.

Shioyaki bent down and picked up Amai to pet him, and Amai damn near jumped into the guy's arms. It wasn't that Amaimaru was exceptionally fond of him, no more than any other person he liked, just that he reminded him of Oushi. It wasn't easy to remember Oushi, but being around certain people reminded him. He liked Enoushi for that same reason, they had similar scents after all. Amaimaru wondered if Erusaizu had seen Shioyaki at all since they came back to the village. Shio couldn't talk to dogs but he was technically one of Shio's drinking buddies along with Oushi. (Because Oushi always poored some out into a bowl for him).

"Say...Do ya wanna go fishing? Ya can ask me about your father."

The man put his hand on Enoushi's shoulder and the boy's body instantly tensed up. It was a reflex more than anything. He didn't jump away or flinch, but he suddenly for a moment became very on edge. He could remember many times when he had been late getting something or had done something wrong... someone would place a hand on his shoulder to make sure he was facing them when he was beaten. He narrowed his eyes a small bit, and said with more of a cold tone than an uninterested one. "And why would I want to talk about him?"

Amaimaru tilted his head when he heard the changed tone. He had heard it a time or two before, when Enoushi was around a lot of people or when he was looking at old pictures and documents about Oushi (the ones the village let him read.). Amaimaru never understood why he would speak like that sometimes, but no matter the case he managed to wiggle free of Shioyaki and move over to Enoushi's side to look up at his face.

Shioyaki felt the boy's muscles in his shoulder tense up beneath the touch of hand; it surprised him only a little bit. So much on edge, not able to understand even gentle human contact...what has he been through? Yet, the older shinobi continued to have a benevolent, warm face. Despite the tension that had arose it didn't really effect him to the point of being discouraged. Enoushi's words were only words of defensive nature and not meant to be particularly harmful, at least that's what Shio believed. He gave Enoushi's shoulder a pat and then walked past him to where he back was facing Enoushi's back.

"Come on, lets go fishin'... it'll relieve some tension...unless ya have somethin' else better to do?"

As he spoke the cigarette between his lips moved up and down slightly, rather comically. Then with a grunt he lifted his arms over his head and arched his back into a deep stretch, popping his spine rather audibly. Why did he want to go fishing exactly? Was it because he just wanted to hang out and talk about old times? Nah not really, mainly it was so he could get a few fresh fish to turn into sushi of course. Even though he preferred fish from the ocean; there were a few good ones in one of the lakes in the woods close by. So he began to walk slowly away from Enoushi, smoke trailing from his cigarette before stopping still and turning to look back at the boy and his dog.

"Oi, are ya coming or what?"

Enoushi didn't liked being touched most the time. It wasn't something he couldn't get over, it just made him a little uncomfortable. Just like everything else in this village. The man gave Enoushi a small pat and removed his hand before he started to walk away. Amaimaru was tilting his head and Enoushi gave him a little glare that made him stop. The dog got on his nerves sometimes too, though it was just the natural reactions of a puppy he was much too happy as well. Everyone was just too damn care free.

"Come on, lets go fishin'... it'll relieve some tension...unless ya have somethin' else better to do?" the man said.

Enoushi didn't say anything. Instead he thought about some of the reports and pictures of his father that he had been allowed to look over. Was his dad like these people too? Totally care free and without a care in the world? That wouldn't be so bad, if Enoushi could feel and act like that too. From their perspective everything seemed very nice, very natural. Enoushi wanted to get just a bit closer to that kind of feeling, though he didn't want to have to admit it.

The man started to walk away, and as he did he said to Enoushi "Oi, are ya coming or what?" Enoushi didn't move for a moment, then he slowly got up and turned around to follow Shioyaki. Amaimaru let out a happy bark and ran over toward Shio to run circles around his legs while he walked. Enoushi kept up pace and moved a few steps behind the man who smelled of fish and smoke. "Don't get the wrong idea. I just don't have anything better to do." Enoushi said in an uninterested tone that matched the bored, and yet slightly annoyed, look in his eyes.

Shioyaki raised his hands in verification that he heard what the boy said, even though he didn't exactly believe his words. Coming to the end of roof tops he just simply walked down the side of the building, body horizontal with the ground. In a matter of moments his feet became once again acquainted with the earth and resumed on forward as the sun shone brightly upon the surface. The birds were chirping their morning tunes and the streets began to bustle ever increasingly with the sounds of preparation and people setting off on their days. Shop owners walking out to set up their sign curtains in their doorways, takoyaki cooks warming up their frying irons. Ramen shops made the stocks for their soups, bars and inns warmed up their sake. Children walked down the streets going off to the ninja academy and ninjas went off to the Kage's building to receive mission assignments.

The man that smelled of fish and smoke knew of these sounds very well; and though very mundane, these things warmed his heart. Many of these people did have smiles, many of them did have upbeat attitudes. Enoushi, from what has been observed in his demeanor, did not feel very comfortable with such things..perhaps he didn't understand their importance. Eventually he would realize that these were the people that ninja fought to protect; Shioyaki would see to it that this boy, the son of his friend, understood. It was important to him that he help Enoushi know what it means to love...not to only survive, but to exist for a better purpose. But for now the first order of business was...fishing.

"We should probably buy some fishin poles so I dont need to make us any, huh? It'll be on me."

As he said that he turned and stepped into a supply shop that had all kinds of things besides fishing stuff. Naturally Shioyaki wasn't really paying attention to if Enoushi followed him in or not because he was going to pick out the fishing implements on his own. They could have fished with their hands but Shio wanted to fish with a pole this time around just to remember what it was like to do so. After all sitting back and casting was more relaxing than wading in the water chasing some fish around. Eventually he picked a couple good ones out with his selective eye, bought them and walked out and off toward the forest after handing Enoushi one of them.

"Here ya go."

Enoushi seemed somewhat unhappy with how the day had turned out. He followed behind the man of smoke and fish scents, hands in his pockets, head tilted down slightly, and grumbling to himself. He seemed very closed off, even in an open area following someone with a dog at his side, he just seemed out of place. His walking was typical of poor people in the land of waves, you learned to walk like that. If you walked around like the people in the land of fire dead, you got beaten, robbed, and more often than not killed. He tilted his head down so his eyes didn’t meet any other eyes, and also so that the shadows covering his eyes up would give him a more dangerous look.

He didn’t exactly care if he looked dangerous; it just kept people from bothering him, another common trick from the land of waves. This man who apparently knew his father, and knew him recently enough to be familiar with Amaimaru, had it in his head to go do a bit of fishing. Enoushi didn’t like fishing all that much, though he didn’t really have anything against it either. But if he had time to sit by a river or lake all day waiting for a fish to bit something on the end of some string, then he had time to go do something productive. Again this was just a land of waves point of view.

Here in the leaf it seemed like even such a leisurely task counted as being productive. The man walked into a small store that sold fishing gear. Amaimaru followed him in but Enoushi stopped at the door and waited, giving ugly looks to people that walked by. He didn’t mean to, but their attitudes left him with a sick feeling of disgust. Everything in this village was so different, he wasn’t sure he could ever get used to it. ”Here ya go.” he said as he handed a fishing rod to Enoushi. Oh joy…. I get to sit by the water for who knows how long and try and catch an animal I could grab with my hands or spear with a kunai in five minutes. Enoushi’s face didn’t seem to express the overwhelming joy he felt in being given a stick tied to some string. Amaimaru seemed delighted though, and showed this through his barking and happy prancing as he followed Shioyaki and his young master.