So this is a Blade (Ririko and Cyrus)

Ririko walked through the halls of what once had been the shogunate academy, now used more like an apartment complex for shogunate shinobi. Ririko didn't personally live here, no she preferred Eden. Still, these halls held many memories, she could almost see the ghosts of herself and fellow students shuffling off to their various classes. Under her skin her Shishuspaida moved around, uncomfortable at the thoughts of Ririko, her nostalgia chilling them. They moved into the warm acid that filled her body to heat up. She let out a sigh, many friendships were made here, most didn't last. Her days in the academy were quite early, she was one of the first generations of students. Her fellow students from her generation were either dead or had gone on through very different paths in life, most of them were dead though. Some remained the the shogunate, some joined the ASC, and some of the darker ones joined Pandora or simply went missing. Not like it mattered to Rii all that much, instead the thoughts of those who filled her past was simple curiosity, nothing more. One of the most interesting cases was that of Yvette Ocelot, she had dropped being a shinobi entirely and gone on to lead the organization known as Epsilon. Perhaps she could be considered the most successful of Rii's classmates, but it was difficult to say. Rii knew the whereabouts of a couple more, two of which were within the shogunate, but Rii hadn't seen them yet. Cyrus and Kimiko, she had been roommates with Kimiko back in the academy days, but she hadn't spoken with Cyrus much. Both of them were Blades of the shogunate now.

Why then was Rii so far behind them? Well after the academy fell she found herself drifting between continuing to be a kunoichi and not. Various factions arose during this time, which Rii quietly observed from a distance, however she was hardly interested in furthering her own career as a kunoichi. How many years passed in that state of mind? She couldn't really remember, but the destruction of ibaragakure made her wake up to the state of the world. With destructive beings like the Dobutsu and Pandora roaming around, nothing was safe. So then it came to the point of choosing where to align herself with, the ASC was noble but rather weak compared to the other factions. Pandora's values were laughable to Ririko. So where would she go but to return to her roots at the shogunate. Now here she was. The leisurely stroll through the dorm halls was nice and all, but she needed to breathe, and so did the spiders which were uncomfortable. Ririko made it out to one of the decks overlooking the courtyard and leaned over the banister, taking in a long deep breath. Much of the world around the Academy had changed but it still felt the same to her.

Cyrus had received word that a certain Shogunate shinobi wished to meet with him. Considering all that was happening on the continent in preparation for the war and everything he needed to get done, Cyrus really didn't have time. Initially he thought of declining her request to meet, but after a rather long few days of war preparations and council meetings, Cyrus ultimately had decided he wouldn't mind a leisurely stroll through the old academy and a talk that didn't consist of which area to strike first to avoid the most casualties. As he walked up to the old academy building, he sighed. He had spent most of his life in these halls and classrooms. Hell, he still technically lived on the campus of the academy. The dorms of course had been converted to apartments, but they still were once dorms. At the young age of just sixteen much had happened in such a few short years since he had fought Roxas Kukinorite in the Chunin exams.

As he entered the building, ghostly faces of classmates past walked alongside and in front of him. He imagined what the hallways once looked like, filled with bright eyed students eager to start their lives as shinobi. The days before Samehada, before the Dobutsu, and before this latest upcoming war. Simpler times, peaceful even. All good things must come to an end though, tis the way of the world. As he passed doors opened to empty classrooms, Cyrus would look in every once in awhile when he passed a familiar one. Ninjutsu 101, Taijutsu 204, etc. Finally, after a few minutes of walking, after several turns, Cyrus came upon a door leading out into the courtyard. He had made it up to the third floor, and the door was slightly ajar. He silently stepped through the doorway and found a young girl leaning out over the banister railing, observing the comings and goings of those in the courtyard. I heard you were looking for a Blade.