#post too

Well, this is it. I’m laying in the ground. There’s someone in front of me, but I don’t have the energy to look him in the eye. My body is weak and beaten. My chakra points have been obliterated by some explosion. That’s as much as I can recall while the man spouts on some nonsense about being taken over or replaced by the younger generation. What idiocy. Does that mean no life is worth living because it’s inevitable, you’ll just become redundant over time?

I close my eyes and I welcome death. I’ve escaped it for so long, it seems just like welcoming an old friend. Though I wouldn’t know how that feels, either. I’ve lived such a long and lonely life. I was alone in my childhood years and even as a teen. But I never felt more alone than when I was put in prison.

I’d worked hard to be an elite ninja for Takigakure. I was recognized as a genius and was given the task to kill the first Hokage. Even as a professional in my class, I was still alone. I was tasked with the assassination alone. But back then it’s what I chose. It was just easier. I’d successfully entered the village unheard and broke into his house. But I hadn’t any idea he lived with a sensory type ninja for a brother. How annoying. I’d been caught but the first Hokage demand I be let go free. Suppose he took pity on my age, the bastard.

I begged for him to take my life. I couldn’t stand the idea of going back to Takigakure. But my pleads went on deaf ears. the Kage simply waved me off and sent me on my way. So much for taking pity on me. When I returned, with no scars and not wounded in any way, the village thought I was a traitor. They punished and branded me with tattoos. Gave me scars I knew I’d never forget and threw me in prison.

There I remained for years. I forgot how long exactly. But I stay, festered in my anger and resentment.

Finally I broke out. I waited for the guards to feed me, and there was a new one I decided to take advantage of. They underestimated my abilities, such a grave error to make. I took them hostage and used their body as a shield when the others started to attack. It didn’t go exactly as I’d planned it, because I’d been captured again and taken to the village elders, but with some quick thinking, and even faster movements, I could grab the guard’s wrists that held mine and snap them.

I spun on my heels and gave them a swift kick in their jaw to send them to the ground. After that, I was able to get to the elders and gave them what they deserve. At this point, I was a fugitive already who’d broken out of his confinements so what harm is it? It was perfectly justified anyways.  I stole their precious Jutsu that they kept secret, from who I don’t know, and fled. I wasn’t going to stick around to be thrown in prison again.

Living in the world was tough for an outsider. You had to kill or be killed. Hunt or be hunted. Luckily for me, when I was banished, there weren’t many villages and hence, not that many ninjas roaming. I managed fine just killing animals and sleeping where I could, but still I wanted more. I needed some control in my life and control is so hard to come by when you have nothing to control. I barely could control when I ate, I left that up to chance.

I’m trying to lead in to how I got so attached to money, as that’s the only thing in my life now that I could control. And in a world where you’re seen as a traitorous monster, it’s hard to settle down and find a stable job. Until I found out about the black market.

I’d seen a few guys lurking around when I was out trying to find some berries or suitable fruit for an afternoon snack. They were talking, but too far for me to decipher each word. Someone said kill. That’s pretty common these days. Someone else said organs, then money. Bounty.

People have bounties? That should have been obvious to me, People of importance or who are a threat would need to be taken out. Fuck, I was ordered to kill Hashirama. I should have seen this coming. Maybe he had a bounty. What if I kill him and get the money on his head and return to my village a hero? I could.. Yes, I’m not a teenager any more, I could take him on.

I waited for the people to pass and followed them from a safe distance so I could find the collection office. Though, I didn’t want to go in while they were cashing in their catch. I waited outside for at least three hours before they left and a suitable time had passed for me to enter. “Humph, you’re a new face.. I can’t even see your face, what’s the idea? You some sort of undercover?”

I shook my head as he started talking. “No, I’m not a Shinobi from any village” I’d forgotten I took off my forehead protector so now nobody could see where I’m from, but it’s probably safe that way. “I wanted to ask about the bounty system. How do I join?”

“It’s not a club, you don’t join. You simply kill someone with a high bounty and bring them to a collection office.” He sounded sarcastic. Perhaps he thinks I’m a moron.

“Sir.. I’m an outcast. I’ve been on my own and living without a home for decades.. Please explain a little better. How do I know who has a bounty and who doesn’t? How do I find these offices?”

He understood my predicament and apologized for his roughness. He said it was hard nowadays, but I’ve had it harder. He explained everything to me. There are bingo books that every village has, but he had an old one spare for me. They’re updated each week with new or old criminals. I had a flick through, but I couldn’t see the first Hokage in it. What? I man of his prowess and celebrated as the god of Shinobi, he should have the highest bounty? Why wasn’t he in here? I asked the man who handed the book to me and he told me the news of Hashirama’s death.

“Damn..” There goes that idea, but at least now I could strive for something in this unforgivable world.

And so I left and started my new goal. As before my goal was just to survive but now I could actually fight for something. I fought for decades and collected a reasonable stack of money. My hidden face was helpful as I was known as a killer, but nobody could identify me, nobody even knew my name. That was handy. It was amusing to see me in the bingo book with no name and no information. But I had a bounty of roughly 65 million ryu. Impressive. I’d probably have to kill myself in secret so nobody could touch my bounty.

I kept going until a man in a strange cloak had approached me. His hair was orange and he had piercings all over his face, disgusting. He asked me to join an organization. Pitiful. I’ve been living on my own my whole life, and now I’m being sought after to work in a team. Then he threatens my bounty and says he could kill me. How dare he. I should kill him now, to hell with the bounty, if he even has one.

Unfortunately he defeats me in a fight, but spares my life. God damn it, how did I let myself get spared a second time. Very well, a deal is a deal. He defeated me and now I join him in his mission for world peace. I try explaining to him that world peace is unachievable. In a world where people are cast aside and forgotten about. A world where people are raised for one specific job and when they can’t do that job, they’re considered useless or a traitor. A world like that can’t possibly be peaceful, and he agreed. This world first needs to be destroyed to start over.