Sequel to Rogue

Realm In The Shadows

The Nara family remained on the ground as the rest moved back to the sidelines, but everyone's minds were a mess. Inojin's words were like a slap in the face for them, the shock forcing their eyes open. Perhaps the adults saw the opponents before them for the first time. Lifting the veil of parental love, they saw it, the trained Shinobi in front of them. Shinobi with sharp stances and huge reservoirs of chakra to match that. No matter how old a child grows, in the eyes of the parents, he or she will always remain a child. Such a dynamic is a clear testament to the parents' love towards the child, showing that no matter what happens, they will always be there for the child. However, an excess of anything is bad; even love is no exception to this rule. When love becomes excessive, it turns into a cage, and no one likes cages, especially young birds who wish more than anything to fly high in the sky and see the world for themselves. 

However, looking in front of them, at the faces of their children, the older generation finally saw it. There were Shinobi in front of them who meant business. Shinobi who had trained themselves to perfection right in front of them, and they had been ignorant. Believing in their superiority, living in the glories of the past, and underestimating the enemy. Enemy. That thought shook them again; they were still unable to let go of their emotions. Even if they could finally see the warriors, that didn't mean they could unsee their children. They felt it all at once, the tremble of hesitation in their bones, and the voices of their teachers from their younger days drilling the rules in their heads Hesitation will get you killed, Their minds were a mess. Either the younger generation didn't notice their stares or chose to ignore them. None of the kids displayed any sort of discomfort; each of them stood or sat with calm expressions, faces betraying nothing at all, as though unaware or unaffected by the turmoil they had caused in their parents' minds.

Behind the two groups stood Tsunade and Kakashi, both observing, meeting each other's gazes for a fleeting second and came to the same conclusion. This was a fight between the old and new in more senses than one. Tsunade's mind reeled into the past without permission and made her remember a memory buried beneath several. Tale of her Genin days, specifically of the day she was first made aware of the cruelty of the society in which they lived in-----

Tsunade sat in the training ground, Orochimaru and Jiraya sat on either side of her, and Sarutobi-sensei stood in front of the three. They were all due to go on a mission outside the village in a few days, and this would be the kids' first time stepping outside the village. Sarutobi-sensei had called them all here, saying he wanted to discuss something important, but when they reached there, he made them sit down and asked them to recite the Shinobi prohibition code out loud. They didn't understand why, but complied, but he kept making them repeat it over and over again. Each time, observing their faces as they repeated the words they had memorised in the academy. Finally, Jiraya had had enough and asked why they were doing this; she still remembers the words that followed.

"You keep repeating the words absentmindedly from memory without thought. Tell me, do you know the meaning behind the words that you speak?"

They were all silent until Orochimaru tried to answer, "The code in summary asks us to prioritise our mission regardless of the circumstances." 

"It is more than just that." He didn't yell, he didn't even raise his voice, but his displeasure was clear. His gaze sharpened, which caused all three of them to sit straighter. 

" The Shinobi Code isn't just some mere set of rules you have to follow during missions, it is a way of life, a way of survival, and arguably so a religion. You say you know it, but in reality, you just know the words, not the Code. The way of the Shinobi is equivalent to a lifetime of penance. In this line of work, you'll see horrors you couldn't have even imagined, and you'll be asked to commit those very horrors. This path isn't for the faint-hearted, and it's cruel enough to crush the strong-hearted"