Interrogation wasn't as bad as he thought it would be (that was definitely a lie to make himself feel better about it) but when it was over, he had time to think.
He had not completely been shaken of his immortality yet, though he was "cured" and was not aware of time passing; it could have been a year without him knowing, but he was entirely sure that when he was released to the "sister" territory he was not going to like it. Resigned to whatever penance he would have to pay, he allowed himself to be swept away by different tides and into Yumegakure.
"W-wow...he's...really him? Amori Buriel? Shouldn't he be dead though? Or at least old."
With a sigh, he decided to hold his tongue. There would be no point in telling his life story, especially because...
Because...
Because what?
What was holding him back?
What was wrong with letting everyone know? His past wouldn't be able to hurt him now; he had moved past it. His soul was intact; he would die normally and age normally. There was nothing...
"A shinobi must not.."
"I don't care about being a shinobi."
All eyes in the area turned to him, most widening in shock. With a bit of surprise, he noticed, really noticed that he felt embarrassed about having so much attention on him for a statement that he hadn't meant to say. "What? Do you want something of me?" He asked evenly, a calm settling over his features.
"Did...did you just say what I thought you said?" The youth who had been fawning over how infamous he was and how old he should have been spoke up, his wide, chocolate brown eyes becoming a bit wider as he warily approached Buriel.
With a knowing smile, Buriel looked up at him. "You're probably a chunnin. Do you know anything about living a life of someone other than...a shinobi?"
It was a strange question to ask, and it showed on the boy's face, but he answered. "I-I don't."
"Then search. If you decide that you find more honor and love and worth in being a shinobi than anything else," Buriel told him, "be a shinobi for the rest of your life. But not everyone born into a certain....class...is meant for that life, no matter what greatness or infamy it bestows upon them, understand?" There was a certain familiar look in his eyes, one that Buriel softened at the sight of; a child-like innocence that he admired was present in the boy's face, and for a moment he could see a halo of blonde hair, the tilt of her head...
He rubbed his face. "We're here to work, yes? So we should work. A ruined village is worth nothing."
