You're Not Alone

While You Read:

It had been a busy Friday. 

Throughout the entire day, the aged man found himself undertaking a variety of tasks which he had admittedly not been well versed in. Since becoming Sound Five Commander, he had learned to be less in the spotlight. No longer was he expected to lead from the front, though now he was reserved to the shadows. And so as the day persisted, he wouldn't be sitting in an office doing paperwork. Instead, he'd be monitoring the village and observing its citizens, all from the vantage point of a towering building which overlooked most others. Momentarily, the tasks had brought a smile to his face as he felt this sort of assignment was one he had been assigned several times as a Jounin of Sunagakure. Though most of the time, that role took him outside of the village. And upon returning, he had been made the Deputy Kage. Now, his title of Sound Commander seemed to be more of a permanent thing; meaning that he could be doing this sort of work much more often. 

Truthfully, he enjoy this sort of impromptu mission surveying the village. It brought about an air of silence, and an opportunity to self reflect. This reflection process began in a positive light, feeling a sense of pride and commitment to those he watched over. However this was a bit of a double edged sword, as he could help but think of his villagers in Sunagakure. In a way, he felt as if he had failed the citizens, failed his family. But the man knew that couldn't be the case. He entrusted its shinobi force to be hardened and motivated, meaning they should be able to lead in his absence. Though still, the Chinoike couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. Either with the village, his children, or their mother. Digging in the pocket of his yukata, the Third would retrieve a snowflake shaped token, which glowed brightly, indicative that Suika was indeed okay. And if she was, that would mean his children were too. Although this token was the closest he had been to his family in months, he still felt a sliver of comfort. A near fleeting memory that he was not alone.

However even in this new place with his closest friend, protégé, and new comrades he couldn't help but feel disconnected at times. His eyes would shift from a food cart vendor over to a family, two parents and their son. Such a sight reminded him of the fragility of the people's world. His eyes then panned towards a group of genin, discussing their upcoming mission. This observation was a testament to the necessity of the shinobi world. Both of these perspectives created a sense of duality in the man's line of thinking. Perhaps he was missing having a connection to each of those lifestyles. 

"Hm" he thought to himself, while simultaneously carrying out his job.

And that is when the idea struck him. Recently sit coming to Otogakure, the man had spent a few days in the libraries of the minor district. And though most literature was focused on history, folk lore, and culture; he had stumbled upon a gold mine of a resource: an additional page to a lost technique which the Third had been trying to recover. Although this page was only a piece to the puzzle, it gave him a foundation on what the Fission Technique was all about. In a nutshell, it was splitting one's own essence and making a second copy of themselves. One that could live an entirely different life, yet remain deeply connected with its user. Upon remembering this, Guren theorized that if he could successfully perform a modified version of the technique, perhaps he may satisfy the internal dilemma he was faced with. As he'd be able to have a deeper connection with someone else in the village, even if it was an extension of himself. All while simultaneously assisting his growth on a professional level. And then a second thought occurred to him. Should this extension of himself prove to be competent, it might make sense to recruit its talent within the Sound Five. It was crazy conceptually, to him at least. But most of his ideas were.

And so, when sundown arrived and the dead of night forced most villagers into their homes, the opportunity would present itself. Seeing as no one was outside and his keen vision did not capture any mischievous activity, Guren looked to put his idea into motion. One by one, he recalled the handseals of the modified version of the Fission Technique he created. And as he did, he'd form them with his left hand. When he'd conclude this series, he'd take a deep breath. Following this, a rapid expenditure of chakra would rush out of his body and physically manifest into a byproduct of he himself. Though with chakra concentration, Guren looked to perfect the specimen. He'd make this clone of himself much younger, nearly half his own age. With the DNA and the leadership of Guren, this clone would be set up for success. Though as it finished forming, Guren couldn't help but notice that this was also an opportunity to experiment. But he couldn't do this without assigning a name to this clone. 

Looking upon it, he'd observe its features for inspiration. The clone was truly a replica of Guren's 16 year old self, but with no scarring, a sturdier physique, and a refined personality. It presented an opportunity for growth and opportunity. The Third folded his arms across his chest with this realization. "...Zidane," he said aloud to the clone. The clone, Zidane, would look upon Guren with great curiosity before nodding and keeping quiet. It was adjusting to the reality it had just been born into, and so at this point it hadn't evolved beyond being an obedient servant. Though with time, Guren knew it would learn.

With a wave of his fingers, the Third would beckon Zidane to approach him. When it was but a foot away from Guren, the Third would form a series of hand seals with each hand. The left would ultimately summon a jar from his storage dimension, while the right perform the chakra scalpel. "It might be easier to do this now, than later. But I will be giving you some of my old organs. Adapt to them well." Guren said. And an experienced veteran like himself would make quick work with a surgery. Within an instant, he'd remove a kidney from Zidane and install a Kaguya one. Guren would pause to see how the clone seemed to react to the surgery. And unsurprisingly, it was in no pain and simply enduring. With a peculiar expression, the Third would commence phase two. He'd perform a series of handseals, this time summoning a corpse storage scroll containing Shinrah. He'd release the seal, revealing the preserved body of the fallen Jugo. From it, he'd extract a single lung. And when this was done, he'd dispel the body to return to his storage dimension. And in the same method as before, he'd swap out a lung from Zidane and transplant the Jugo lung into his clone. With the process complete, Guren would perform a final series of seals belonging to the mystical palm aura. He'd passively heal the body of the clone, which was alarmingly stoic considering the actions that just went down. 

By this time, it was the dead of night and there was no point in scanning the village any longer. He'd look upon Zidane and offer him a nod. "Well...I suppose you should come with me now. It's not an ideal way to meet your creator, but understand I am a man of science....That being said, I'd like for us to adapt to a sibling role. I will explain more of what that entails, but for now we should depart to our home. You just went through a lot, and your body will need to rest."

Following this one sided exchange, Guren would place his hand on the shoulder of Zidane and offer him a relieving smile. The Third would then perform the handseals to the instant transmission technique, and subsequently teleport the pair to his abode. Perhaps now he really wouldn't be alone.

-Exit-

WC = 1387

Claims:
- Using Fission Technique to create Zidane, Guren's Living Clone
- Transplanting 1x Kaguya Kidney into Zidane
- Transplanting 1x Jugo Lung into Zidane (2 Organs remaining)

WC Claims:
- 1387 words to training Desert Blight Curse Mark from here (1387/1500)