Not in my House!

Mission Details:

He had just done some good training, and the young Arashi was headed back to his clan's home when he first stopped by the mission board.  There were a lot of higher levels, but there were also some decently good low level missions.  One in particular caught his eye.  Apparently one of the academy students was making a mess of the village, sending buckets of graffiti up on the walls and statues.  With the mess that the village was in, it was no uncommon that some of the younger people would act in such a way.  Arashi was going to turn away from the board, when instead he decided that someone had to take care of the issue.  If not him, then who?

His plan was to go home first and change, or at least check in with his family, but when he got home, there a site was before him that infuriated him.  His home, his clan's special place in the village, and even the public healing springs.  All of it, covered with bright colored markings.  Statues and busts were cartoonishly painted, and even the murals were marked.  Arashi stood there flabbergasted for a long moment, watching members of his family coming outside to clean-up like it was just another chore.  He clenched a fist, and locked eyes with his grandfather, the current head of the clan.  His look was not of anger, but of disappointment, and when he locked eyes with Arashi, there was a slight nod.  Having gotten the approval he needed, Arashi jumped away, looking around for clues, and following the trail of markers this person left.

It took a good half an hour to find a follow the right trail, so many times others just let it go and left it for good Samaritans to paint over.  While the kindness of his village made him smile, he was still angry that it had to be done.  Eventually, however, Arashi found a clue.  The number of marks of recent painting increased in one section of the village, and like a disease, it started to come from a single focal point.  Before he knew it, Arashi found himself in a small clearing, with a single tree standing prominently above it.  There was a small tree house that was full of painted walls, and empty paint cans around the branches, mostly obscured from the view from the ground. 

Arashi didn't see anyone there, but there was evidence that someone was living there, and so the young genin decided to hide up higher in the tree and wait for its owner to show up.  It was already going to be a long while, and he had no idea when this kid would come back, or if it would be before nightfall.  As the afternoon rolled on, Arashi started to wonder exactly how long he should have planned for, when he heard movement, and blended himself into the tree.

Below him, a young child climbed the tree like a good shinobi, expertly stepping in the right places and showing good chakra control for one so young.  What gave the young child away, however, was the fact that he had paint all over him, as well as carted up more paint cans.  The kid was mumbling to himself and snickering, seemingly having something against the village as a whole.  Arashi shook his head, but the kid had to be captured, so he jumped down and confronted him.

"I saw what you did to my home.  And I didn't appre- ack!" he said, as the child in shock doused him in paint and jumped from the tree house.  Arashi shook his head to remove excess paint, and wiped it from his eyes, before jumping off after the kid, moving faster and eventually tripping the young boy.  As the boy looked up, Arashi was steaming, but did his best to hold anger in check.

"What?  What do you want?" the boy said, and Arashi responded by hitting him from the top of his head, causing the boy to cradle his skull on the ground.  Arashi stood over the defeated boy and reached down for the boy's collar.

"You've been making a lot of messes around the village, and no one likes to keep cleaning it up.  Where are your parents?" he said, almost growling.  That's when things took a different turn, as the boy looked up with tears in his eyes, which quickly flashed to anger.

"They're gone!  Thanks to you people!" he said, but he couldn't move with Arashi's hand holding onto him.  Arashi was stunned.  He lost some family members, yes, but to lost everyone at once.  It was making sense.  The child was still mumbling and about to cry, and Arashi took a breath and put a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"I can understand your anger, but they gave their lives for this village, the one you are trashing. The best thing you can do is honor their memories by doing your part to rebuild, not trash.  And for that, I think you should go back to the Academy.  You can be a fine shinobi and help others like your parents did.  Okay?  I'll take you to the hospital to get checked and explain everything, alright?  They'll take care of you." he said, picking him up and taking him out.

After talking with the higher level shinobi and having the boy taken in by the village, Arashi came home to see that his place was cleaned up, and his family waited inside.  Arashi walked in and immediately hugged his parents, thankful they were still around.

(WC: 936)
(Reward: +3 ap, 450 ryo)