Inuzuka, Kenta

Name: Kenta Inuzuka
Age: 41
Birthdate: May 5
Rank: Jounin

Village: Saiumorigakure no Sato
Clan: Inuzuka, Ookamizuka
Element(s): Water, Wind, Ice, Lightning
Specialties: Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, Senjutsu
Special Characteristics:

Spoiler:

Height: 5'11
Weight: 160 lbs
Hair Color: Golden
Eye Color: Gold
General Description: Kenta Inuzuka is somewhat odd for his clan; rarely do you see him sporting anything like "normal" clannish clothing. He favors light and airy garments, not shy about wearing little more then a pair of loose fitting shorts and a mesh undershirt nearly anywhere when off duty. On duty he is far more traditional with a completely average Jounin uniform preferred. Kenta is rarely seen wearing form of shoes, as he finds even the open ninja sandals to be uncomfortably restrictive; tolerating them only while on missions. His only consistent quirk is that he wears his hitai-ate around his right arm; a testament to his father's wish that he one day become the strongest ninja he could be; which in his young mind translated into a wish for him to become ANBU one day. Until the day he does, he wears his village symbol in it's place as a sign of respect for both his father, and his people. The irony of this is not lost on himself, or the few people in his life that know of his origins.

Even with his somewhat above average height, he does not stand out 'above the crowd' as it where. His golden hair is his only truly distinguishing feature, as within the confines of the village his Inuzuka clan marking is quite common and virtually invisible. As he tends to not focus on crowds visually, his gaze is usually aimed downwards, upward, or hidden completely behind closed lids; his other senses are more then keen enough to allow him to navigate blindly within even the densest crowds. Normally however, he avoids densest populated areas when possible, preferring the quiet and open areas of the local forests and parks. The smells of humanity can... Irritate him, as well as his nose; and his Ninken partner Yuki is not a fan of most people. As she is rarely more then a few feet from him at any given time, being trapped in hordes of humanity is an unappealing prospect at best for either of them. Kenta does however tend to project a rather strong aura of "Stay away or I will hurt you"; even if he is at heart a peaceful person. He's just not a fan of people in general; preferring the company of his few, close, cousins and the small group of friends he's managed to find. Or rather, that Yuki tolerates for more then a few hours at a time.




Personality: While no one can deny that Kenta is a powerful ninja that deserves the respect he is given; it is also impossible to deny that, to the public and ninja in general, he is a royal dick. Described often as a "walking superiority complex"; it is not uncommon for initial meetings with the male to go south quickly. Even during his time as Kage; he was a hard man to work with; constantly rubbing diplomats and other Kage the wrong way with each meeting. However, this brash and rough nature was as much a defense mechanism as it was a personality flaw; during Kenta's tenure as Kage, the lands themselves where falling apart; nations dissolving and the leaderships of the other lands in near permanent flux. Only Niwaurushi was stable, and that was entirely due to Kenta's strong hand. The nations that managed to stay remotely stable were given a far more... gracious aspect of his personality; bright and well informed of the world outside of the mountains and more then willing to set up trade deals and alliances that would benefit both parties.

In these times of relative stability; he has begun to unwind and relax, in a way; his attitude in general brightening and turning far less sour. More of the personality known to his family and close friends has begun to emerge to the world in general; that of the sweet nature and relatively happy man he really is. No longer is he the extremely quiet person in crowds; it is not that uncommon to see him walking the streets with his husband or family and laughing heartily; a booming  sound that would be impossible coming from his thin form, if not heard with your own ears.

Likes: Kenta seems like the type that doesn't like much of anything; have few favorite anything really. Food wise he prefers his meals to be heavy on meats, or meaty vegetables; not surprising given he's an Inuzuka. Like most canines, he has a sweet tooth of insane proportions; hand him something sweet and cold like ice cream and you can see his tail wagging furiously; figuratively speaking. Hunting, camping, fishing; if it's outdoors, he enjoys it, to some degree. If his family is with him, anything becomes a like, for the time they're together. Alone? Well, training with Yuki, those little everyday chores like bathing and grooming that one must do for their 'pet' are about all he will do, unless sent on missions. Before his family, that was all he did do; train, spoil Yuki with intensive daily care, eat, sleep, study. Never a fan of something as banal and mind-numbing as TV, he has always preferred books and reading to staring aimlessly at a flickering screen; although if given a documentary on canines, animals in general, or art forms he is a fan of; he would be willing to put aside his disdain for the 'boob-tube' and watch. With his children grown and out of the house, he's lost most of his taste for TV once again; while there is usually a TV or two on in the house for the dogs to watch when they were resting; he might catch the nightly news or a random animal documentary every so often. More likely, he can be found meditating, training with his children, or spending time with Michizuka.

Dislikes: As for dislikes, well, Kenta dislikes very nearly anything not pertaining to his family, his Ninken, or his interests. Or food, for that matter. Humanity in general he dislikes; finding them too loud, far too whiny for his tastes. The sheepish nature of most of humanity irks him as well; people that cannot think for themselves are a waste in his eyes. Reliance on others, on a system for survival is the height of sin to him; he knew full well he could survive utterly alone and with nothing of the human world if he had too; and while he makes sure his children function perfectly well within that world; they are also able to survive outside of it. Honor less beings; traitors without a cause, thieves without purpose, murderers without justice; these above all he hates, even while acknowledging the hypocrisy of it all; what is justice but the perception of the people after all? Who is he, who is anyone, to decide that one is a traitor to any cause? A thief that steals to survive or a thief that steals for profit, is there really any difference? Questions without answers; but his own, personal, code of honor and conduct is what he uses to give himself an answer to these questions; and therefore dictate what he does and does not approve of; where the line between tolerance and outright hatred is.

Motivations: Family, friends, the protection of his people and his village; those are his motivations. Long gone are the almost childish needs to please the memories of his mother and father; long since has he mastered the skills they would have passed to him; long ago did he reach the point where he felt like he could move on from his early binds. Now he is able to live for himself and for his children; his eyes are turned to the present and the future, no longer locked to the past as they where once. While no longer able to fulfill the role of Hakage on a permanent bases, he still lends his considerable knowledge, experience, and strength to the village and country whenever needed; always ready to defend his home and his people to the death, if needed.

Fears: Fears are a primal thing; ranging from the biological, genetic fears passed through the generations, to irrational fears our own minds create for no reason beyond they can; a bad experience, etc. Kenta's fears tend to be of the more primal variety. There is little he truly fears; even the finality of death is nothing to him, as he sees death as little more then the starting point for the next stage of existence. A fear of failure, now that he does have, to an extent. He's tried and failed, just like any other human being before him; the failure itself isn't the problem, it's the sense of letting those down that depend on him. That is his biggest fear. As he has no fear of death in the personal sense; you would believe he does not fear the death of others. Well, any parent will tell you how wrong that is; once you incorporate children into one's life, the fear of loosing them to the cold embrace of death can be paralyzing at times. Those split seconds before the parents instinct to protect kicks into overdrive can be soul shattering; as can the moments when failure becomes real. This is true, even of him. He fights so fiercely to protect them so he never has to face his fears of this; ever.

History:

Pre-Academy:

Kenta Inuzuka's birth is a bit of a mystery to most; everything from the true day to the event's actual location. If one was to look at his birth certificate, the paperwork filled after his birth; it would say he was born May 5th in the Land of Fire. This is only partially true. In reality, he was born in Kusa, the Hidden Grass Village, before his mother was able to return to Konoha. The date is correct, mostly. His birthday could be either the 4th of May, or the 5th; as he was born right at midnight; and as no one was paying close attention to the time; the focus was on his mother and himself, given he was birthed in the woods outside Kusa and not inside the village itself; and when the commotion died down it was several minutes after midnight. To save on a tedious argument that would mean little in the future, they stated his official birth as being at 0005 hrs (12:05AM) on May 5th. His first hours and days of life where spent in route to Konoha; using the birth itself as a way to explain how he was born within the border of the Land of Fire and not within in the Land of Grass as it had truly been. The three days the convoy took to arrive would have made no sense otherwise, as the national border was only a day and a half run at a civilian's speed. Paperwork was quietly filled, and his birth was announced to the village at large via the local newspapers; same as many normal births would be.

Kenta was far from normal. The son of a Grass-nin, it was decided early on to give him his mother's surname; as it was virtually unknown at the time the true identity of his father. His mother had been engaged to another man; the marriage itself arranged for political reasons; not a soul knowing she had been seeing his father for years by that point. His mother Ayame Inuzuka had been serving as a liaison between Kusa and Konoha for years even before the marriage was arranged; and wasn't about to just dump the man she loved for some smuck that only wanted the lands she would inherit when her grandmother, the current leader of the Inuzuka, passed away. When she found herself with child; Ayame found any possible reason she could to stay in Kusa with Kenta's father, refusing to return for the fear her "fiance" would find out about her son and "take care" of him; the man had threatened her with physical violence on more then one occasion if she was to ever turn up pregnant by anyone but him, given the inheritance of the clan would go to the child, and not to him. When he did find out; several days after she returned to the village mind you, as he had been out in the Land of Iron negotiating his way onto the board of a major mining cooperation; he went into a rage the likes of which had not been seen in the village for decades. It wasn't until Kenta's father appeared; having illegally slipped out of Kusa and into Konoha to see his boy; was the tirade ended. With the head of the fiance on the floor and a sword stained with blood. Keinsuke Ookamizuka was not the type to take threats against his wife and son lightly; and when the raging male lunged at him, he did what any other self-respecting ninja would; fixed the problem.

With the real problem taken care of, he marched himself right up to the nearest police station, handed over his sword, weaponry, ID, and hitai-ate, allowed himself to be peacefully arrested, and asked for asylum. Explaining his unusual request; he revealed that because of the 'illicit' nature of his relationship with Ayame, as well as the birth of his 'illegitimate' son Kenta; he would be branded a traitor to his clan and therefore to his home village. If he was to return, he would be killed. As he had no intention of leaving his family; he was willing to risk the repercussions of defecting in order to protect them. Between the surveillance footage, eyewitness accounts, and the character witnesses against the murdered man; it was determined that Keinsuke had acted purely in self defense, and therefore was cleared of the murder charges that had been brought against him. He was still guilty of trespass, as he hadn't declared himself at the main gates, nor had declared any of his gear to the local security forces. After several weeks of imprisonment, his sentence was finished and he was free to go. Upon his release, the request for amnesty was again brought up, and after a lengthy debate over everything from the consequences of his return to his home village to the morality of depriving an innocent boy of his father; Keinsuke was allowed to stay, and after a time joined the ranks of the Konoha ninja; ad-bet stripped of his Jounin rank for the time. He was to work within the Tokubetsu Jounin ranks; staying in or near the village until such time as he was trusted enough; and the international outcry had settled enough; to have his full rank restored to him. As he had little reason to leave his new home, he agreed to these terms and settled into what he hoped would be along, quiet, life with his wife and infant son.

Years passed like days it would seem; little Kenta growing up quickly. It seemed he was destined to physically resemble his father more so then his mother, hair like spun gold for much of his childhood; only darkening to it's current color as a teenager. He showed an early proficiency for ninja arts, always watching his parents and older cousins practice. He even managed to teach himself a few of the simplest jutsu before his parents took over. First task, find him a Ninken. He was to be trained as an Inuzuka, so the finding of his partner was key. This proved to be... Difficult, at best. The clan's dogs liked him well enough; he had many friends among them; but not once was he able to find a dog that would be his true partner. An Inuzuka's first Ninken was a special bond, not something that was to be arbitrarily decided by anyone. He was nearly 5 years old when it was decided that they needed to look elsewhere. Kenta was half Ookamizuka after all; maybe his match was in the wolf packs they raised. If true, it proved to be bit f a challenge; as Keinsuke was a traitor to the clan and village, and therefore his progeny was as well. Ayame had once been trusted, long ago; the Ookamizuka and Inuzuka where distantly related, branches from the same origin clan that had gone their separate ways centuries ago. Negotiations took months; long debates and demands by the Ookamizuka that Keinsuke return home for punishment met with outright refusal. Keinsuke was one of them now, and Kenta had been from birth as far as they where concerned; the only reason they even wished to go to the village was to find Kenta's Ninken, if it was among the wolf packs there. It took Ayame calling in ever favor she possibly could to get the Hokage to intervene; essentially threatening the ending of the peace treaty between them if they did not allow at the very least Ayame and Kenta into the village. With plenty of guards, of course. No point risking young Kenta or his mother any more then they had too, anyway. In the end, the effort was worth it; as they found a very young Yuki after only a day with the packs. Kenta had been sitting under a shade tree; the midday sun would do nothing but burn his still fair skin to ash if he hadn't taken shelter. His mother was near the covered kennels, arguing with his paternal grandfather while his guards where engaged in a heated staring contest with his other relatives. Little Yuki simply trotted right past them all, crawling up into his lap and promptly falling asleep. When his mother returned and saw them napping together, she told the elder Ookamizuka that they would be taking the pup; to which he actually outright agreed. "Yuki," he explained, "Is a half breed and useless to our packs. She carried no aptitude for the skills we need in our wolves, and would do nothing but contaminate the lines with the dirtied blood of a common mutt." Ayame was shocked by this, she'd known the Ookamizuka selectively bred their dogs much like the Inuzuka; but to outright toss aside an otherwise healthy puppy because she was not a 'pure-breed'? That was horrifying to her; and explained just why the clan had so much animosity towards young Kenta, even though he was turning out to be a fine young man; strong, smart, handsome, talented. They took young Yuki and left as quickly as they could; delaying only long enough to gather the genealogy records for her mother's side before departing.

Returning home; Kenta's training could finally begin. Keinsuke would take him in the mornings and train him in the ways of the Ookamizuka; Ayame in the afternoon for training as an Inuzuka. Evenings where for book work; Ninja arts and history, civilian subjects, anything they deemed as something he would need to know. A thirst for knowledge was ingrained early, a understanding of the benefits of hard work and effort just as quickly. Train the mind, train the body; always together, always equally. Strength was good, intelligence even better. Cunning, quick thinking, adaptability most of all. Training was always filled with puzzles and half truths; he would have to decipher them to find the real lessons. Much of Kenta's early training was nothing more then modified survival training; he would learn his clan skills while learning to survive in the wild; much as his cousins and clansmen had for generations. Life was good, and he progressed quickly. Even at the tender age of 5, he was showing signs of his chakra manifesting an elemental affinity; water, it would seem, just like his father. Simple exercises, easy jutsu; these where worked into his already vigorous training regiment; water walking doubled as water survival, learning to read the tides and currents of a river or lake would tie into learning to feel the water itself in order to maintain control of his jutsu while conserving chakra. Kenta had always loved water; his Inuzuka relatives affectionately called him the "clan's little fish." He even began to resemble one, in a way; he could hold his breath for longer then anyone he knew, longer then many Kiri nin 10 years his senior. Unfortunately, this affinity for water was nearly the death of him. One day he was at one of the many local lakes for a day of training with his father; when an accident almost caused him to drown. His father had caved and was showing him more advanced water jutsu; a demonstration of the Tsunami jutsu combined with the blistering gust of wind that day to created a wave that was out of control; and little Kenta's instinct to dive below the wave nearly cost him his life. The force of the wave carried him below the water until he struck a submerged rock formation; the force of which caused him to exhale the entirety of the air within his lungs. His swimming shirts he caught on a bit of the rock and in his panic he was unable to free himself before the urge to inhale caused him to begin drowning. His father found him half a minute later; unconscious and lungs filled with murky liquid. He was able to eventually revive the boy; but not until the debris in the water itself, combined with a bacterial infection he'd caught a few days before but hadn't yet shown symptoms of; had caused the boy to contract a nasty strain of pneumonia; one that would halt his training for years, and nearly cost him his life several times over.

If that wasn't bad enough; it was during one of the flare-ups of the pneumonia that his family was taken from him. His uncle, Jyuushiro Ookamizuka, had been one of the loudest voices in the call to have Keinsuke and Kenta killed years before; and as it happened, he wasn't content to sit back and watch that 'blood traitor bother of mine and his bastard son' get away without paying the price for Keinsuke's sins. He orchestrated a raid on the Inuzuka compound, targeting anything and everything that could be tied to Kenta or his father; destroying pictures, school projects, weapon's caches; anything that was Kenta's or Keinsuke's. The damage was terrible; augmented by the fact that most of the clan was out of the village on missions that night. Ayame barely had time to call for help before she was overrun by half a dozen enemies; her Ninken's head tossed at her feet enough to cause her to pause, hesitate; all they needed to overwhelm and kill her. Keinsuke was unable to do anything; battling ten at once while holding his sick son in his arms, little Yuki running at their feet like a wild beast; nipping and barking as a distraction. That moment of distraction when Kenta yelled to Yuki after she had been kicked away; slamming painfully into a wall an collapsing into a little heap; that is what doomed him. Not many could survive a blast of Raiton point blank; even fewer could redirect the blast back at the attacker. Or enough to spare his son's life anyway. Keinsuke was forced to toss Kenta out one of the broken windows, into the midst of one of the clan packs that had been left behind. The pack had managed to escape the kennels when they realized the compound was under attack. Combined with the influx of ninja come to repel the attackers; they where able to kill or capture the majority of the raiding party. Jyuushiro was one of the one's killed; torn limb from limb by the packs as retribution for the death of Ayame's partner, one of their own. Keinsuke was found barely alive, body beaten and broken, burned from the Raiton blast that would prove fatal. With his dying breath he asked to see his son one more time, smiling when he saw the boy sleeping peacefully from the effects of a genjutsu one of the rescuers had used to calm him. "Stay safe... grow up to be strong... protect your family..." He uttered those words before the light left his eyes; and Kenta was orphaned.

When young Kenta awoke the next morning, it was to the face of his grieving aunt and the news that his parents where gone. His Ookamizuka blood went wild from the sheer emotion strain the news caused; sending him into a frenzy that forced the doctors to sedate him for weeks. During that time his health deteriorated further; the pneumonia returning with a vengeance and ravaging his body for years on end. The news of the trial and execution of his parent's murderers brought little comfort to him; his will was broken and his world darkened by the loss. "He has no reason to live," the psychologists would say, "Until the depression is broken, he'll never fight off pneumonia. If not for letting Yuki stay with him when we do, he would have faded away long ago." Eventually, even that small comfort would not be enough. Only day he went to sleep and refused to wake up. A voluntary coma, one specialist called it. The last throws of a boy that wanted nothing more then to die, said another. Yuki was no longer allowed to see him; even his own family was barred from his room, as they would smuggle her in whenever they could. He was wasting away before their eyes, and nothing anyone could do would stop it. Until, one day; one of this uncles came to visit. Keinsuke had been the eldest of 3 brothers, and always on excellent terms with the youngest; Gen. It was Gen, whom looked and sounded so much like Keinsuke they could have been twins, came to visit that something happened. Kenta, hearing a voice so much lie his beloved father's; woke up. First, it was only his eyes fluttering for a moment. A fluke, they said. When Gen returned the next day, his eyes truly opened, and he seemed to reach for his uncle for a moment before lapsing back into unconsciousness. Over the course of a week, the visits from Gen would cause him to remain conscious longer, and longer, until finally, he was able to remain awake and conscious long enough to attempt to speak. "You... Father...?" Gen could only shake his head sadly and response, "No Kenta. I am your uncle, Keinsuke's brother, Gen. I had heard about your illness, and defied my father's orders to come and see you. I felt... I owed your father to see you... See if I could help you. I did not do enough to prevent Jyuushiro from killing him... The least I could do is save my nephew." The visits with Gen became a regular part of his recovery; a few minutes everyday, working up to hours as Kenta slowly recovered. The black depression broke with his uncle around; Gen sharing tales of his and Keinsuke's youth to the ever attentive boy. Kenta drank the stories up, hanging on every word from Gen's mouth. When Ayame's sisters began to visit at the same times as Gen, they realized that by sharing the stories of his parents; they where enabling him to recover. So for months on end, every day was filled with the tale of his families; and slowly with a return to the ninja arts. When he was finally well enough to return home; the house now fully repaired and with much of the damaged property repaired; he was reunited with Yuki, whom from that day on never left his side. They'd been apart too long, and she intended to never allow that sort of separation again.

Due to his illness, Kenta was a year late in starting his Academy training; and because of his lengthy bout with his illnesses left him venerable to rather nasty colds an flu for parts of the year. Because of this, he missed out several semesters of school; only actually graduating due to the extensive training he received as a young boy and his almost prodigal skills with his clan and blossoming elemental jutsu. He petitioned and was granted the chance to take the graduation exams early; surprising everyone when we outright aced the final paper exams and blew away the competition with his display of jutsu prowess during the practical exams.

Genin:
Upon graduation from the Academy and promotion to Genin, the young Inuzuka was placed on a squad as was normal for ninja of his age would. His pairing however, wasn't very well thought out, as his team contained a self-described "lazy ninja" and a Genjutsu specialist in the making, leaving him to do that majority of the heavy work and actual fighting. Even still, the team managed to work together for the most part; although the poor Jounin sensei had his hands full keeping Kenta from tearing his teammates limb form limb at times. Mr. Lazy-boy was a rather blatant smart-ass by the name of Houshiki Chikawa, and his only real claim to fame was that he was good with communications; the boy would have made a fine linguist if he'd put any effort into his studies. The Genjutsu user was a young Kamizuki of little importance to Kenta, to the point that he never bother remembering his name until years later when it became important that he did; for the sake of clan relations. The team did the usual Genin grinding, spending months in town doing the grunt work and little else, which of course had the hardworking Kenta mighty annoyed by the time the next Chuunin exams came around.

All that time, and he'd only managed to score one D-ranked mission; no thanks to the Chikawa layabout. Kenta knew the boy would hold him back, and told his sensei so on multiple occasions. If not for the fact that Kenta was progressing so well, the Jounin wouldn't have even considered it; but there was a spot open in another team. One of Kenta's peers was out of the running with a shattered leg, and his squad was to be disqualified from completing because of it. His sensei, after consulting with several of Kenta's old teachers and the people in charge, allowed Kenta to do a team transfer so he could compete with the other squad. To say it was a disaster... well, that would be fair. His teammates had never had any sort of real survival training was an understatement. The 1st exam was simple enough; Kenta had Yuki and his brains, the others had their own assortment of tricks, cheats, and skills.

It was the second exam that nearly failed them. Kenta found the exam to be a breeze; he'd trained for situations as such his entire life. The other two.. well... a few well times flash bombs and some over sized bugs was all it took to knock them out. Kenta; after dispatching the opposing team and turning the bugs into mincemeat; just carried them to the finish, taking a few minutes to revive them before entering the tower and completing the exam. While they all technically passed, it wasn't hard for the Chuunin and Jounin examiners to realize that the only reason they even survived was because of Kenta's efforts, so when the other two washed out during the prelims of the 3rd round; it had been a bad year for the forest, with a good 20 candidates passing the test; no one was really surprised.

His final test was long; his opponent was well matched to him, an older Kumo nin with twice his experience and far more firepower, as it where; the female was skilled in Raiton and Doton, which didn't sit too well with Kenta's Suiton and his early attempts with Fuuton. In the end it was sheer perseverance, Yuki's ability to sneak behind undetected, and a head for tactics that won the fight for him. Even then, it was a narrow victory. He was passed, as well as the Kumo nin and a few Suna nins.

Chuunin:

His years as a Chuunin were uneventful, for the most part. Better missions, different teams; nothing of major importance until he turned 15. That was a... crazy year for him. He met a young Kamizuki boy a few months his junior; and after a rocky start, Kenta found he'd finally gained his first true friend outside his own family. Yuki loved him, his family was supportive; even if his insane cousin wanted to kill him sometimes. Takoma wanted to kill everyone half the time, so that didn't mean much. Missions passed, they teamed up once in a while, trained together whenever they could; Kenta took a bit of a risk in teaching the young Kamizuki some of the Inuzuka jutsu and vice versa; although Kenta had no real talent for Genjutsu of any type. After several months of friendship, the boys realized they had a bit of a thing for each other; Kenta had never fancied anyone, male or female, while Michizuka had always found females to be a bit... icky, as he put it; so being as the two gave little to nothing about what others thought of them, began dating.

Kenta eventually began taking more and more difficult missions; out of sheer boredom if nothing else. He needed the room to roam, the chances to stretch his legs, try out new jutsu and combos without the hassle of being in the village. Michi didn't like it, but Kenta was making good money that way, and he was never gone for longer then he had to be. Vacations where taken often, Kenta the type to compress his downtime into long stretches so he could coordinate around Michi's own missions and such. He moved out of his old family home during this time, finding an apartment that he could share with Michi; far away from sharp ears, noses, and eyes. All was well; they were living comfortably for a Ninja family; so much so that they eventually began to discuss having children together. Little Hiroyuki, Yuki, and Temaki were born when Kenta was 16, and he couldn't have been a happier father. The exact nature of their birth was... odd. Well, odd to most. It turned out that Michizuka had a slight... condition, no one had known about; genetic hermaphroditism. In a nutshell, he had both sets of working organs; or at least enough of them to end up with three very perfect children. As far as the outside world knew, the children where born via surrogate; Michi's secret was kept tightly within the family. Not that any of them cared the how behind the birth of the children, they had their family, and even the looming chance for Kenta's promotion; along with all the dangers that would entail; couldn't dampen their spirits.

The only dark side was that the stress of having infants in the house was taking a slight toll of Kenta's otherwise great health; causing him to relapse into a a bit of a familiar pattern, sick in the winters and wet months, fine when the weather was better. He made the best of this, however; just as he always had. Protect his family, protect his village; the drive his father had instilled, the pride of his mother; that's what kept him going full steam ahead, nothing would stop him now.

Special Jounin:

The years were mostly kid to Kenta and his family. Missions came and went, and the village itself was peaceful enough. Even with the rest of the world falling apart around them; the fall of Suna was still fresh in the minds of the people; Iwa's destruction at the hands of nature was, while not entirely unexpected; still a devastating loss for the world. Iwa's government might have been insane; but the loss of so many civilians and ancient Ninja clans was a great loss for the world in general. 17 when he was promoted; he quickly realized that the world was falling apart in more ways than most knew. Travel was becoming harder and harder each day; villages would suddenly disappear off the face of the earth and no one could stop it. Only a controlled media blackout kept the civilians calm; but the ninja knew better. The world was quickly going to hell and no one was sure it would come back. The wars were over, this was true; but the losses hadn't stopped. The Plague was spreading through the wetlands and getting ever closer; no one was sure where it would end.

And then Kusa imploded. This hit Kenta rather hard; he might have been a Leaf-ninja his entire life; but he had been born there; half of his family still lived there; and part of his soul forever roamed the forests and grasslands his father's clan protected. It was during the evacuation of Kusa that his skills as a leader really shone; suddenly the half-breed Inuzuka with this shitty attitude and reputation for being a jackass had taken over and was directing an entire village of evacuees without so much as a hiccup. This was only possible because the Jounin in charge had taken the risk to save as many civilians as possible and ended up infected and dead before the first safe transport could land; the distant land of Hanagakure was willing and able to lend them their newest technological marvels; the Airships that proved to be the salvation of the last of the ninja villages.

Day and night for nearly a week Kenta risked his life directing the evacuation; his skills with water and ninjutsu invaluable in this fight against nature itself. More than once he risked life and limb to redirect entire rivers; drain the local ponds and standing water sources. He even managed to win a battle against the storms themselves; the yearly monsoon rains that swept the plains had come early that year; and only Kenta and a handful of ninja from Konoha and Kusa could stop them. For three solid days they worked jutsu after jutsu and drew on every single ounce of chakra they had to hold the rain at day until they could evacuate the last of the village.

For their heroism; the survivors, and many of the fallen, were given awards, medals, promoted in life and posthumously. Kenta was granted a rank; promoted to A-rank Jounin for his efforts and the potential he showed that day.

Jounin (A-Rank):

He was only a Jounin for a short time. His time was spent mostly with his family, trying to be there for his children while they where still young; he refused to let his kids grow up like many of the children of the ninja clans that barely knew who their parents where; and with how high the mortality rate was at the time, there was always the chance that he wasn't going to be coming home. It was the final fall of Kumo that ended his time as Jounin; while not outright allied with the Cloud Village, they weren't about to watch the people die without lifting a finger. Kenta led an entire battalion of Leaf Ninja to help evacuate the village; their prowess with Suiton and Doton meant that they could keep the tunnels open and water free far better then the swordsmen of the Cloud. His intervention led to the survival of nearly half of the people that managed to evacuate; and this feat on top of the rest of his service record sealed the decision. The current Hokage was elderly and unable to function on the battlefields of the world as they existed at this time. The elder Kage made the decision to step down, and the Jounin Council and Elder Councils both unanimously voted for Kenta to step up and wear the hat. He was 18, the youngest Kage in generations.

Hokage:

The reign of Konoha was waning; it was a matter of time before the very forests that had protected and fed the growth of the village would turn on them. Few wanted to believe this, even fewer where ready for the final evacuation. Much of Kenta's time as Hokage was spent preparing the village in secret; reinforcing the tunnels, buying and building more airships from Hanagakure, researching any ways he could think of to get his people to safety when the time came.

A veteran of the fight against the Plague that was raging outside of the walls of Konoha; he realized just how utterly fucked the world was. He knew all about the plans to build a sanctuary in the mountains; the village that would come to be called Niwaurushi. The paradise that would save them all, that's what they called it. The combined might of the remaining lands was being funneled into the building and protection of it. It was his faith in his people, and the need for leadership for the displaced citizens of Kusa, the slow stream of people leaving Kumo; that was what sent him to the young village. The Shinboku tree, called the symbol of the hope of the world was barely a seedling; a mighty seedling, but compared to what it would become, a seedling no less. The outer villages where shells, the initial construction only half finished and the first of the animals to be introduced had barely begun to settle in when he decided that it was time to leave Konoha. He knew, as did many of the highest members of the government, that an attack on their village home was inevitable; the only variables being when, and how.

Convincing Michizuka and most of his family that the time to leave was upon them; they joined one of the waves of refugees from Kusa and transferred the entirely of both clans to the new country. The majority of the Inuzuka kept to the mainlands; they needed the space and the natural surroundings to thrive; while Michi's clan settled under the roots of the ever growing tree. All of this happened in less than 6 months from the day of his promotion to Hokage. In the years to come; his insistence that they move early would come to be the greatest decision he ever made. Only a week after they left; the final attack came. The trees themselves; long the great protectors of the village, where now their greatest enemy. Beyond the knowledge of the people; beyond the imaginations of the world; somehow, the plague had come to infect the very trees. The end was swift; just over two-thirds of the civilian population was evacuated before it became impossible to return to the village. Of the ninja, barely half; mostly the youths of the genin and chuunin survived. The elders stayed behind to make sure as many as possible survived; the former Hokage among them. All were lost to the plague; the once great village of Konoha, indeed the entire Land of Fire; reduced to a tomb for the dead, and a toxic forest that was lost to the world.

Hakage:

The end had come for even them; the greatest of all the nations had fallen.The last of the ranking officials from Konoha, Kusa, as well as diplomats from Kumo, Hana, and Yokuchi far to the west, gathered at the top of the Shinboku tree to decide the fate of the young land; left to fend for itself far earlier than anyone had wanted. So few ranking ninja were left; even fewer with the experience to guide the nascent country. In the end, he was the only real choice; and 6th months to the day of his 18th birthday; Kenta Inuzuka was named the First Hakage.

For ten years he ruled over the land; most of it spent deep in negotiations with Hana and Yokuchi over trade and travel. Most of the time, the village was at peace; the people working together to finish building the main and coastal villages. In the end, it was his own health that ended his reign. For years he had managed to hide the seasonal illnesses that left him weakened for parts of the year; but as he aged and his physical strength waned from spending far too much time in a chair to hide his weakness anymore. It was his own choice to step down; he was confident that his favorite student would be able to handle things. While no one would have given a second thought to him naming one of his own children to the position; Hiroyuki more so than his sisters was more than capable of handling the position. In the end however, he chose his young cousin Aisling to lead his people. She was very young; younger even than he had been; but she was strong, and very able. The child of Inuzuka and Uchiha; she was the very definition of the might of the ninja world. Fiercely loyal and a ninja of extraordinary power and talent; he knew the land would be safe under her protection. He would always be there to help her when needed.

Retirement:

In the years since he stepped down as Kage; Kenta had spent most of his time with his family; watching his children grow into capable ninja and Jounin without his help; watched as his clan and people grew strong once again. The land of Niwaurushi was peace incarnate; the mountains would keep them safe forever; the shields and barriers protected their water supplies and filtered the air to keep them safe. Trade with Hana and Yokuchi allowed them to prosper into a world power that rivaled the might of the lands that created it. They had lost much of the world; but in return they had gained peace and union for the first time in the recorded history of the ninja world.

RP Sample: It wasn't so unusual to find Kenta here, wandering the quiet paths between the graves of the cemetery He enjoyed the quiet you see, and had always been taught that reflection upon the past was a good thing. In the proper doses. "Don't forget, but never dwell," as his father had told him long ago. Although it was somewhat rare for a clan ninja like him to be in the main cemetery; most clans had smaller burial sites for their own within their compounds; the Inuzuka where no different. Only, his father hadn't wanted to be buried there, no. His beloved father had made sure to state clearly in his will that he wanted to be laid to rest among the civilians of his adopted village. Carve his name upon the Memorial Stone if they must, but leave him free to rest with the people he chose to protect. His mother as well, she refused to be separated from the man she loved; going against all arguments so she could stay with him even in the next life.

It was to their graves that the youth meandered to; slowly, he had no reason to rush. His Aunts and cousins had all but begged for him to leave his kids with them, and given his mate was on a mission out of town, he had little choice if he'd wished to visit alone. Oh, he could have brought them; for year old infants the three of them behaved remarkably well in places like this. Heck, now that they where almost walking, the loved to visit. The flowers and small animals that flocked to the space; Little Hiroyuki was always transfixed by them, and the girls loved to play sword fights with the small sticks, working to see who would get to keep the biggest wildflower they could find. They knew not to touch the offerings and tributes, he'd made sure of that when they where old enough to understand why they couldn't touch. In his own arms he carried only a simple wreath; woven of small tangle branches and laced with the first wildflowers of the season, a simple silken band wrapped around the mass to hold it together. A project made with love by himself and finished by his mate and kids while he was gone. A proper gift, in his mind; not some fancy show of money or power, simply a gift of love by the family left behind. The family his parents never knew, but who knew them intimately through Kenta, his Uncles and Aunts and everyone that knew them so long ago.

The few people also paying respects to lost loved ones where background noise at best; he'd walked this path a thousand times before and had little reason to pay attention. Oh, he would stop at random; leaning down to a knee to offer a prayer as he would clean the older headstones; there where some truly ancient burial sites here, it was no wonder some had become overgrown and dirty. These too, deserved respect; all life was sacred, even in death these people had lived, dreamed, loved; they deserved more then grasses and weeds. It was this ritual; the cleaning and respect paid to the strangers gone long before him that ate his time, stretched a short visit into an all day affair. He didn't mind, the peace did him good, especially fresh off missions or long training sessions.

After a time; he didn't know how long really, only that the sun had been high in the sky when he arrived and was now nearly to the tree line; Kenta arrived at the modest headstone that marked his parent's grave. Golden eyes shined softly in the bright light, sun warming his back and shoulders through the light, airy white cotton shirt he wore, adorned only with a Leaf Village symbol emblazoned in red. One of his usual day off outfits, the simple shirt and khaki cargo-type short that ended below his knees, shirt untucked and hiding the long sash he used as a belt most days, headband typed habitually over his right bicep even off duty. Knee's hit the soft grass harder then was outright necessary; his kneel more of a fall in more ways then one. "Father... Mother..."

Hands used to brace him now, he hovered on hand and knee over the stone, eyes unable to leave the names carved upon it; memories flashing in an almost crazed manner between his happy childhood and his current life, always with the flashes of horror from the night his childhood ended. Even now, a decade and some odd later, he was still haunted by it, by the loss of them. For the barest of moments he felt with his entire being that helplessness; the weakness he'd worked so hard to concur; the paralysis it caused. In his mind, he heard The Bastard; his own Uncle, why did you do it!? ; those horrible words of betrayal. Tears, hot and salty; more weakness, threatening to consume him again; falling free to the grass. Only when the tirade in his mind began to repeat did he fight back; this battle was test, always a test. Listen to the pain, embrace it, find your strength and make it stronger! More voices, loving voices now; Father, Mother, Gen, Michizuka.... the ones whom he loved and loved him in return; the babbles of his children echoing loud over the hateful words, overwhelming him and bringing the light back to his mind as they always did. His new strength, his perfect light. Love once lost, found again anew, in this new form; his love for and of them.

A hand was raised soon, moving to wipe across his eyes as the Inuzuka sniffled quietly; shifting to sit back on his heels and raising his head to look upon the clear, azure blue of the open skies; a glance to heaven, as it where, imagining his parents watching him. Childish, but comforting. The wreath, carried all this time in a medium sized backpack, was carefully removed and placed upon the ground for a moment. For long minutes he adjusted and tweaked the petals of the flowers, tucked in loose branches, made sure it was perfect once more. That was to say, messy and wild looking, just like the loving son that placed the wreath and said his simple prayers; always asking for the guidance he missed, protection for his family. After that, he just sat there talking; stories of his days since he'd last visited; too long ago, he'd been so busy and that was never an excuse but merely an inconvenient truth; he preened like the proud parent he was, telling them about the grandchildren he knew without a shadow of a doubt they would have loved unconditionally, soiled rotten with every chance they got; just like normal grandparents. Kenta's voice floated on the winds, carrying his tone of absolute love around the cemetery; lifting some of the gloom and giving an almost music to the place that served to lift spirits of the living, not weigh heavy and cold.

He talked and talked, until there was nothing more to say and his heart felt light as a feather dancing in the breeze; never moving from his spot even when silenced. There he sat, bathing in the slowly dying light as the sun sank below to trees, seeming in a trance until Yuki; whom he'd left behind with the kids; appeared to fetch him; a small flower tucked into her collar and her current favorite toy clutched in her maw. The flower, a final offering from the kids, the toy Yuki's own. Once a year she would leave her favorite toy, nuzzle the stone to shine it properly, then be on her way. And she did, Kenta rising to his feet slowly, stiffly, brushing the dirt and grass from his knees and palms as she worked; a scratch to her ears when she moved to sit beside him as he stared at the cleaned, adorned memorial to his parents. "Goodbye... for now..." He left a final gift, a small, roughly carved wooden kunai; turned, and walked away; back to the world of the living and the present, the promise of the future held by his own children waiting for him to return, the shadows of the past enhancing the brightness of the path he walked; and he knew his parents approved. He knew, he knew with all he was, that they where proud.

Faceclaim: Kazama Chikage - Hakuōki