You want to... what? [Private; Umashi]

[Kogami Ayumu]

The jaunt to the Torre Celeste from the gates was not terribly long. Ayumu knew a great many shortcuts for shinobi such as Umashi and himself. All in all, they'd have some time for some small talk and banter, but no conversations of real consequence. Those would wait until they arrived at Ayumu's office. Upon reaching the base of the tower, Umashi would likely recall the steps leading up and the entryway. Not much had changed since his last visit. The lobby was much the same as well, perhaps a bit less hectic. The last time Umashi had come, Kumogakure had been anticipating his party's arrival and it showed. This time, it had come rather unexpected and so what he saw was moreso business as usual. He would, of course, catch a few stares from those who recognized him as the last Hokage to visit the village, not expected to show up again here and now.

Ayumu nodded without any explanation to the secretary before motioning for Umashi to follow him to the elevator. He'd have taken this elevator the last time he was around, but they would be going to a different floor. They had a number of people to host the last time and had thus used one of the large conference rooms. This time, it was just Ayumu and Umashi. Ayumu's office would suffice just fine. "Here we are," Ayumu would announce as the elevators opened on the floor he frequented the most. Across a small lobby, one final door stood already open flanked by guards who were doing their best not to glance at Umashi out of curiosity. "Come on in," Ayumu invited Umashi, stepping into the office and walking around to the other side of his desk. He made a quick signal to the guards as he passed through so that they'd close the doors after Umashi followed. He'd motion to one of the chairs available if Umashi wanted to take a seat before slumping back into his own comfortable chair.

"I believe this is the first time I've had you in here; this is my office," Ayumu pointed out, stretching out both of his arms to gesture to the room around them. "I want to say the last time you were here you mentioned you prefer tea over coffee? Perhaps that was just an impression that I got," Ayumu questioned. He hadn't forgotten Umashi's mention of a warm drink. Whatever preference Umashi indicated, Ayumu would make a quick call on his intercom to have some brought.

"Now that we have some privacy, let's continue our conversation from earlier... what brings you to this neck of the woods?" Ayumu asked, finally allowing his curiosity to overtake him. The words Umashi had said earlier suggested something, but it was far too unbelievable for Ayumu to assume he meant what it seemed like he meant.

 

[Seijin]

Dismissing Kin and Gin before he walked into the Raikage's Office, Umashi was rather surprised to see how normal it looked. There was something about being on foreign soil that almost made one want to believe that people in said part of the world managed to put their pants on a different way than one pant leg at a time. Umashi was no different than any other person in that regard and truly being able to take in the awe of it all almost left him without words before Ayumu snapped him back to reality by asking if he wished for tea or coffee. Requesting a green tea with honey instead of sugar, thanked his host as he held the mug and blew over it to attempt to cool it as he collected his thoughts for what he had to say. He'd been pondering over just how much of the truth to give Ayumu due to having a sense of pride about where he was born but also so as not to overly cast the Fire Country in a disparaging light.

Almost thinking out loud more so than talking to Ayumu, Umashi started on his pitch. "I was never supposed to be Hokage. Heck, one could argue that I never should have made Sennin, but when duty called, I took up the cause and the rest as they say, was history. To retire as the Hokage, or heck any Hokage is a strange thing, and though my predecessor didn't step down willingly, he did leave the office with his life intact and in following him, I opted to do the same, minus the drama. So, in a rather surprising fashion, I retired, but the person that the Village Council chose to be my replacement, was not one of my choosing. Sure, he had friends in high places and he wasn't a complete monster but I wanted a softer approach to things. An approach that I wasn't allowed. In the end . . . I figured it best if my family and I leave the Fire Country, partially to be like our predecessors before us, but also so as not to cause any political tension with a man that I did not choose to be the next Hokage and who's methods I considered to be a clear departure from how things should have been."

Despite looking at the mug of tea the entire time, Umashi finally believed it cooled enough that he could stand to drink it. The taste was warm and soothing, a welcoming sign by his account. Speaking on, he finally looked directly at Ayumu. "I'm not asking that you go save Konoha from the masked monster in the night, but I am asking that you allow my family and I to stay here in Kumo, to make a new life and to be of service to you and yours. My wife and I are career medics but personally I'd like to try something a bit more action oriented. And yes, before you say it, I completely understand how it could look but fortunately we have the Plasma Accords and people will simply come to see it as a diplomatic thing. The way I see it, I helped to end one war and don't want to be the catalyst for another. Better for me to retire to an ally nation than to inadvertently start a war whether with words or fist because some reporter asked me my opinion on Uchiha Takeshi's recent campaign." Nodding his affirmation of it, he stopped talking so as to hear what the Raikage had to say about it all.

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

Ayumu leaned back in his chair as Umashi started to tell the story of what led him to Kumogakure's gates. It started out so relatable that Ayumu would almost have guessed he was the actual subject of the story if not for the use of the word Hokage rather than Raikage. Ayumu was someone that under normal circumstances never would have been made Sennin, at least not at the stage in his career that he did. The sudden loss of a lot of the leadership in ANBU had resulted in his selection without any fight, and that unlikely pick was what led him eventually to his role as Raikage. Listening on, Ayumu learned that it was seemingly uncommon for a Hokage to retire willingly. Truth be told, Saito retiring and handing the position to Ayumu had been rare as well. The last few Raikage had departed under less than ideal circumstances-- two in recent history were now dead.

What Ayumu now learned was that apparently the new Hokage, Takeshi, had been selected not be Umashi but by the council of Leaf. As a matter of fact, it seemed Umashi had some philosophical differences with the man, perhaps even problems with how he was running things. That said, rather than try to get in the man's way at every step, he had apparently decided to step aside for the sake of keeping the peace in Konoha. He mentioned that his family as a whole had left. That meant that Yomi and the children were out there as well, maybe waiting to see what would come of this meeting.

"I see," Ayumu said, nodding slowly to let Umashi know he was with him thus far before letting him continue. Ayumu had hardly noticed that the tea had arrived but remembered it as Umashi took a sip of his and followed suit. He usually drank coffee, but tea now and then was a refreshing change of pace. Fortunately, Umashi was not here as a call to arms against his predecessor. That was not something Ayumu would have been able to help him with. What he was asking for was something surprising, but perhaps not completely crazy. He wished to move his family to Kumogakure, not simply to retire, but to join the ranks as Kaji and Tatsuo had before him. This would be the largest group of Leaf shinobi to migrate to Kumogakure... and the most significant politically. Former Hokages of the Leaf moving to Cloud, even joining the ranks? That was not only unheard of but nearly inconceivable. Were it not for the alliance between the two villages, it would have been entirely impossible. Suddenly, Ayumu realized that Umashi had stopped speaking and was waiting for a response.

"This is... rather unexpected to say the least. Whatever your opinions on this Takeshi's policy, that he would grant such a request without any resistance is surprisingly... generous, as I see it. Perhaps he sees the value in having you out of the picture but would rather you be with an ally than doing your own thing elsewhere?" Ayumu mused. So what Umashi had hinted at while they spoke at the gates was exactly what Ayumu thought. It had been on his mind ever since, processing on the back burner while they traded small talk. Was this truly the best idea? Was Takeshi really OK with it? Would this cause problems down the line? It was hard to answer those questions. Umashi had already made his plans clear to Takeshi and the new Hokage had already put his stamp of approval on the idea. What would happen if Ayumu refused? It probably wouldn't be any better than the consequences of accepting. Was there any reason to refuse? Certainly adding two kage level shinobi to Kumogakure's ranks would be a boon. In the end, it seemed that was likely the best choice in Ayumu's mind.

"I suppose I would be a fool not to accept one of Konoha's finest into our ranks... Umashi, you're hired," Ayumu said, finally having made his decision. He reached across the desk to shake Umashi's hand to seal the deal. When the two of them had met as kage of their two villages all that time ago, this outcome was something Ayumu would never have predicted. "I just hope that Konoha doesn't expect that I'll retire there when I'm no longer the Raikage," he joked. He wasn't sure when his time as Raikage would be up, hopefully it wouldn't come unexpectedly soon as it had for some of his predecessors, but he couldn't imagine picking up and moving to another village. What a huge decision this must have been for Umashi and Yomi to make.

"What of Yomi? Is she planning to retire, or would she be joining the ranks as well?" Ayumu asked curiously. Could the story get more crazy than it already had?

 

[Seijin]

Umashi held the biggest grin on his face when Ayumu accepted his job application however he was forced to break his eye contact with Ayumu at the mentioning of what Yomi planned on doing. With all honesty, Umashi wasn't sure if Yomi was as exactly calm as he was about the whole ordeal when it was all considered. In fact, he was pretty sure that if they would have stayed in Konoha that Yomi would have probably tried to kill Takeshi, that or she would have been backing the first person to try and overthrow him. It was only thanks to a higher power that she had willingly followed him out but he had had to allow her to travel on her own as she blew off some steam by further emptying his pockets and bank accounts. "She would like to stay with the medical field if she can but she's open to whatever needs doing. Her retirement, much like mine is one that's more about her being free from duties to Konoha versus sitting at home on her hands." Nodding his head to himself, it would be the first time that they wouldn't be working with each other but Umashi was confident that things would remain the same at home, if not better.

Taking another sip of his tea, he sat it down before thanking the Raikage. "We really appreciate your generosity, we couldn't hardly thank you enough . . . though I will have to ask that you don't retire anytime soon. New leadership typically destabilizes things for a bit and what with Takeshi being only a year into his tenure . . . we definitely don't need the whole of the major Eastern powers being ran by new leaders." Nodding, Umashi spoke the truth of the matter. If the major villages went to crap then the country typically followed and if the country followed then the whole region was at risk. They just simply couldn't afford that happening at this time. Cracking his knuckles, Umashi smirked at what the next steps possibly could be. "So . . . who would we be reporting to? I'm ready to work!" Word would soon be sent to Yomi concerning their new post, but while he had the whole house to himself, he'd have some fun and get the party started a bit early.

OOC: Topic OOCly left unless stopped. Figured that whatever you say could just lead to them talking for hours or more later ICly off panel.

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

OoC: I intend to make an IC post to topic leave when I have a bit more time but I wanted to make note that you're approved for ANBU in Training rank (I believe that was what you wanted- if not, message me) so you can request your banners/permissions/topic moves

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

It was still very hard to believe what was going on here, but Umashi seemed happy and Kumogakure was gaining some very skilled shinobi, so it had to be a good thing... hopefully. Not only Umashi, but Yomi the Hokage between Umashi and Takeshi that Ayumu had not yet had the chance to meet. He'd received a letter from her once, but that was the extent of their interaction. It seemed now he would have the pleasure soon enough, presuming she would come once she heard word from Umashi that the proposal was accepted. Unlike Umashi, she didn't seem interested in leaving the medical field.

"Well, I suppose she and I will have a chance to discuss where she'll fit in here once she arrives. If she remains in the medical branch, our wives may be working together," Ayumu responded. Ayumu might have mentioned at some point that Shinrya Kahako, the current medical Sennin, was his wife. Umashi would find out soon enough if he hadn't. The former Hokage thanked Ayumu for being allowed to join the village. In truth, it was beneficial to both parties. It was never a bad thing to have another powerful shinobi Ayumu could trust to have his back. Umashi was eager to start, and wondered who he'd need to report to. Ayumu chuckled at that.

"Well, about that..." he began. In truth, presently the ANBU were reporting directly to the Raikage- namely, Ayumu. If Umashi was looking to don a mask, Ayumu would have the ability to keep a close eye on Umashi's progress in integrating with the village. Once he returned, Kaji would likely be quite shocked to find his old boss was now his subordinate as well. These were interesting times.

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