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[thinhammer]

[ The feed opens with the uncomfortably close view of a tan nose and one dark nostril, and then the owner leans back to reveal more of his face; bright blue eyes, messy blonde hair, three whisker shaped marks down both of his cheeks... He gives the camera a stumped look. ] Uhh- [ Just as he opens his mouth to speak, the feed suddenly swishes upwards to grace the network with the view of his ceiling, and after crying out a loud "Come on!" hands appear to rearrange his set up. For a brief moment there's a flash of some upside down instant noodle cup that he was obviously using as a stand, and then the feed is focused on his face again. ]

Alright, are ya done now, little box? If I gotta prop you up one more time I'm gonna throw you out the window, so you better behave, y'know! [ Enough talking to the device, Naruto, talk to the network instead. ] Hey. I'm.... Naruto. [ He squints and scratches his face; he's not used to talking to boxes, so it's an understatement to say he's a little awkward about this exchange. ] ...In Konoha we use birds to send messages -- like, carrier hawks and stuff -- but even then I usually just find whoever I wanna talk to if I have to tell 'em somethin'.... and I've never even seen one of these things- [ He gestures at the camera; waving his hand blindly at the screen. ] -before, so uh.. this is kinda weird.

[ He sighs like his words are apology he's reluctant to give, and then settles his arms folded behind his head to assume a thinking pose. He's been told to introduce himself to the network using this little magic box, but... where to begin? His story is a long one, and despite usually being so intent on sharing it with others, now he finds himself little lost for words. After all, these people won't know what a Hokage is, or what an honor it is to be a Leaf ninja... They might not even know what a ninja is! ]

I come from the Land of Fire. I know you guys don't know where that is 'cause it doesn't exist anywhere near Am-ri-ka... [ An excellent attempt, Naruto, but it might have been better if your attempt had sounded anything like the word it was intended to. ]... but I've been told it's kinda like your Japan? Anyways, I'm a ninja of the Leaf village there, and one day I'm gonna be the leader of that village. Just as soon as I get back home and straighten everythin' out. I got some promises to keep.

[ He pauses for a second, then his face splits in a grin. He can't help it. How can he be sad when he's thinking of home and all the faces that will be so happy to see him when he gets back? ] It's still kinda hard to believe this isn't genjutsu, y'know. Except genjutsu is usually pretty awful, and this place isn't so bad. I got a job and stuff to do, and one of my team mates even lives close by! [ A look flashes across his face, a twitch playing at the corner of his mouth... then his voice grows firm and his eyes sparkle with defiance. ] It'd be better if all my friends were here, but that's okay. I'll be back with 'em soon.

In the mean time, I guess we're all in this together, so if anyone ever needs me, I'll be around y'know!

Comments

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[rathercommon]

[ Oh. She thinks that's a term she knows. She's heard it from a certain someone. So - ]

Genjutsu is...illusions, right? This place is definitely not that, believe me.

[ And then, with a little wave: ]

I'm Kitty.

[thinhammer]

[ Oh woah, that's a surprise. He's been under the impression that the people around him don't know anything about shinobi techniques given how they aren't even capable of wielding chakra, but maybe he's been underestimating them if they're knowledgeable enough to know about genjutsu.

Unless.... ]

Yeah.. You're not a ninja, are ya? [ A suspicious squint. She doesn't look like a ninja, but then he isn't exactly blessed with a particularly analytical level of understanding. ]

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[hot4engines]

Wait... you're a ninja? A real live ninja?

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[thinhammer]

Yeah! [ His grin is a proud one, and he taps the metal plate tied around his forehead. ] Been one for years, y'know!

[glitchinthesystem]

[Oh no.

That's the sound of...

OPTIMISM!

Pure, unbridled, OPTIMISM. The horror. The horror....

still...as dumb as this kid sounds Glitch can play nice. After all, the more meat shields the better.]

Yeaaaaah, I'm not really familiar with Japan yet, but, I'll take your word on it. Anyways, the comm thing will get easier. Never had these things myself until last month.
[He pauses for a moment before he thinks...yeah maybe there needs to be some kind of conversation starter.]

I've got one question though. If you're a ninja what do you think is better? Pirates or Ninjas?

[Clearly, a question for the ages.]

[thinhammer]

Well neither am I, y'know, I've never even been there. I just got told it looks like my village... [ He scowls a defensive almost-pout in response to the negative aura this guy is giving off-- and it's gotta be an impressive one if Naruto can sense it through a screen...

The question, however, is a good distraction if a confusing one. Pirates are something altogether different from shinobi, so he can't really see how they can be compared, but-- ] Ninjas! Duh. [ --his answer is an obvious one. Aside from his own personal bias, Naruto has had one too many run-ins with so-called "pirates" in his own world, all of who turned out to be assholes of the highest degree. Pirates suck. ]

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[restingstitchface]

[Crane glances away for a second. Whilst he enjoys timeless books and cultural treasures, he prefers to study them. Having one walking around in the modern day with this level of exuberance is a little too much. But the energy of youth can be useful.]

A ninja. From a village.

[Like Naruto, his voice grows firm but when his eyes fix on the camera, they're sparkling with a challenging sense of humor.]

How antiquated.

video | makin friends makin friiiiends

[thinhammer]

Hey, what'dya call me?! [ His ire is like a tripwire, triggered by even the slightest vibrations of insult at his expense, and so sensitive in fact that Naruto flares up even when the comments aren't technically insults. He should be offended at the implied insult rather than the fact that the big fancy word merely sounded like an insult, but fortunately he's blissfully unaware of his stumble and is instead shaking his fist vigorously at the screen. ] Say that again! I dare ya!

[darkspider]

Are there any other ninjas here? You guys usually give everyone else a headache.

[In his world, anyway. Kaine doesn't know about anywhere else.]

[thinhammer]

[ He scrunches up his nose. Is that an insult??? ]

Uh, there's just me and my team mate, as far as I know. But he's real quiet, I don't think he'll be givin' anyone a headache any time soon.

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[hunterrabbit]

[Ah...another one who's not used to good ol' modern technology, huh?]

Well, the Japan I'm from doesn't have ninjas. Not...any "real" ones, I guess? There're books and movies about them. [And she hasn't actually met any around here until now.]

Anyway. If you need help figuring out any of this sort of stuff [she gestures towards the camera] I can lend you a hand. One of my housemates is a mage, so- [She shrugs.] I'm getting kinda used to showing people the ropes.

[thinhammer]

Can't be any good sorta place, then... How d'you guys protect yourselves? [ He scratches his face, just below his whiskers. He's so innocent; he doesn't even know how rude he's being, please forgive him. ]

But uh. What's a mage? Is that some sorta job here?

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[daimeinashi]

[SUP Naruto, here's your team/housemate...hanging upside down by the soles of his feet from the roof above the second floor balcony. Because he can, okay. He's gotta practice his various skills to keep from getting rusty, after all!!]

Weird, but still convenient. Imagine how much more efficient communication between the villages would be with these devices available to us.

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[thinhammer]

I guess.... [ Naruto doesn't actually do all that much conversing with other villages himself -- not lately, anyway -- so running to say hi in person is still a thing he'd prefer at the moment.... But then he's not entirely sure how far away all the other places in this world are (and he's not even sure if he'd want to go there given the chance). Eugh, new worlds are confusing. But hey look, there's a relieved little smile at seeing a familiar face. It'll never get old. ]

It'd be better if this thing worked in a kinda.. physical way. Y'know like the summoning contracts? If this thing could like, summon people out of the screen.. That'd be better.

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[aggressiveapathy]

Yeah. I was gonna be the tyrant queen of Pawnee before...this.

Buckle in, boyo. If you wanna rule here, you need an HR department.

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[thinhammer]

A whaa-? What's one of those? Is it like the council or somethin'?

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[kreiastophe]

[‘Gen’ and ‘jutsu’, huh? Well, there’s a combination Krei’s never heard before. Context clues suggest Naruto’s a ~magic~ ninja, which… Krei isn’t as bewildered by after being here for close to a month.]

I think you’re going to adapt well, Naruto, given that you’re a ‘ninja’, and sound to be a particularly talented one.

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[thinhammer]

Heh-- [ Aw, he called him talented. He's still not used to getting praise, particularly at first impression, and he shifts the collar of his jacket a little as if he's tidying himself up. ]

You betcha. I'm one of the best. [ Okay, stretching the truth maybe a liiiittle bit there. ] Thanks for noticin'!

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[lyingheart]

Carrier hawks?

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[thinhammer]

yeah uh
like really big birds? they deliver scrolls for us

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[boobwindow]

Messenger birds? Talk about culture shock, huh?

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[thinhammer]

Yeah.. You can say that again.

We do most of our travellin' on foot, too. None of those weird boxes with wheels that brought me here.

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[fistofthejoestar]

This world is quite advanced compared to mine as well. It seems rather overwhelming at first, but I promise that it does get easier as time goes on!

[but in the meantime boy does he feel your pain, Naruto. he burned water his first day here.]

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[thinhammer]

[ He leans forward to peer at the feed as though doing so would give him some kind of visual clue. Time to compare notes! ]

Oh yeah? What kinda world are you from?

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[lucke]

Wait? Ninja ninja? Like knife in the night, one with the shadows ninja?

[Cu is grinning into the camera.]

Cause that'd be pretty cool.

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[thinhammer]

[ Heh. Ninja ninja. That's funny. He snickers, genuine and childish, and nods his affirmation. ]

Yeah, I guess so. That's how our trainin' goes, anyway.

[cuff]

Me and the little box don't exactly get along either . [ He has sympathy! ]

So. Why's it called the Leaf village? Outta, y'know, curiosity.

[thinhammer]

Glad to hear it's not just me.

[ A defeated puff of breath leaves him, but he's swayed from dwelling too much on ineptitude by the strangers next question. ] Cause we're surrounded by leaves, just like the Sand Village is surrounded by sand and the Mist Village is surrounded by mist. [ It takes all the imagery out of it when Naruto describes it so bluntly. ]

[nofollowing]

[ He sits and stares for a few seconds, his gaze all narrow and curious because man he has so many questions but he does not have the words. So. Lets start with one. ]

Ninja?

[thinhammer]

[ Pause. ]

...Yyyeah.. [ He's trying not to narrow his eyes back or call the guy a dumbass for parroting him because he's had a whole lot of confusion already over that particular word, but.. Man, that was one especially bland statement to make. ]

Ninja.

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[grimreaping]

[ For a moment Kid is supremely nostalgic for home; he can only imagine what Black*Star would have made of this introduction. Also, he comes with handily built in language translation. ]

It isn't genjutsu, nor any other type of illusion. Ninja clans aren't unknown in other worlds, however.

It's good that you have someone here you're already familiar with.

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[thinhammer]

Yeah. That's good. [ He lifts a hand to scratch at the back of his head, his tactile memory flaring up with thoughts of the times he'd been smacked out of a round of genjutsu by his team. ...And then he blinks at his conversation partner. ]

You have ninja in your world?

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[nakatsu]

Eh? You really think people are gonna fall for that? Everyone knows there aren't real ninja anymore. [He's had to tell one poor guy that Mickey Mouse isn't real already. Don't you go tricking people about ninja now.]

Are you some kind of extreme cosplayer or something? You should have done samurai instead. They're way cooler.

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[thinhammer]

[ SQUINT. ]

Oiy, what's that supposed to mean?! I'm standin' right here, aren't I? That should be proof enough that ninja are real-- didn't you see my headband????[ If he didn't, he's definitely going to see it now. Naruto is pushing it all up in the way of the camera and tapping it obnoxiously to reassure him that the plate is metal and therefore very real.

Also, don't even talk to him about samurai. Those guys suck. ]

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[verification]

[ Friendly little wave from the pink-haired lie detector. Actual ninja? That's cool. ]

Hi, Naruto. [ A mildly teasing smile. ] Isn't the Leaf village a little precariously placed in the Land of Fire?

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[thinhammer]

[ Oh, that probably would have made him laugh if he weren't so slow. Instead he scrunches up his face in an almost comical way, his confusion more than evident. ]

Nah, we're right in the middle.