"I didn't know you knew Genma well enough to know he was religious," Ginta said thoughtfully. "Although I guess maybe it came up in the debriefing. Or maybe you just read it in his file?" How much of Genma's story did Hiro know, to be sent to do a debriefing after the horror that Genma and Raidou had just been through? A sideways glance showed no obvious reaction on Hiro's face, but it wasn't like Hiro gave much away unless he was extremely provoked.

"But yeah, destiny... It's not always religious. I mean, I had a certain amount of destiny just because I'm Gousuke's grandson and the genes carried, right? Not that it's a bloodline like yours or anything, but there's some kind of genetic component to being a good ninja, and Grandfather was really good, and I definitely take after him, except in looks. And then you add the whole social standing thing with the Sakamoto family and all..." He waved a hand airily, and several koi followed the trajectory.

"So I was destined to be in ANBU because where else do you go when you're the best and you'd probably suck as a sensei? And you were destined for ANBU as soon as Sandaime-sama and Hiashi-san made whatever agreement they made that got you sent over the wall, right? Since you're not a runaway like Haruichi."

That hit the mark, if the way Hiro's eyes narrowed for a second was any indication. But then Hiro had just about said exactly that, with his comment about politics. Ginta tossed another pellet, trying to skip it across the surface. It hopped slightly before it was snatched up by a greedy silver-edged mouth.

"So you didn't even get a chance to volunteer? They just showed up at your place and said, hey kid, go report to Arakaki?"