"Seth, firstly..." Akio began with his strict tone, as if he was about to give a lecture--but then just sighed and smiled. "You're a really bright kid, so stop acting like a complete dumbass, okay?" He folded his arms and dropped his hands to his sides as he continued, "Seth, you are a rare breed of shinobi. The potential that I see in you is off the charts. When I first saw you when you were assigned to my team, I saw that fire in your eyes... and, well..." He sighed yet again and let out a slight smirk. "It reminded me of the fire I had in my eyes when I was a kid."
"When I was in the academy, I was looked down on. I was horrible--seriously, go ask Itachi how my grades were in the academy. I would go over to his house for tutoring nearly every night. Hell, I couldn't even get the transformation jutsu right. But Itachi was there for me when no one else was, and he opened up my potential--he believed that I would one day do something great," Akio was speaking directly from his heart, his emotions began to take control of what he was saying. "Itachi originally thought that it would be becoming Hokage. But now I finally know what it really is." Akio paused, letting his words sink into Seth. Akio's slight smirk had evolved into a huge smile, "And that's mentoring the future Hokage..."
Akio stretched his hand out it and placed it on the top of Seth's head, closing his eyes as he smiled. "You."
He removed his hand from his head and put it on his shoulder, "Don't think nobody believes in you for a damn second, Seth. Because I do. I believe you'll be either the Sixth, Seventh, Eighth Hokage--whatever number you end up being! I believe you'll change Konoha for the greater good, maybe even the entire world. Seth, I actually died during my fight against Pain after I shouted at you to go. And you know why I defended you to my death? Not because I thought you were weak--nonononono, but because I'm willing to stake my life on the fact you can make this world a better place."
Akio then removed his hand from his shoulder and folded his arms again, "I just wanted you to know this Seth. I will always believe in you, even when others look down on you." He narrowed his eyes, successfully preventing any tears from sneaking out from his tear ducts. "That Izu kid? At this moment, he's your rival Seth. Prove him wrong about you. I want you to show him just how strong you really are--not just with your jutsu..."
Akio pointed at Seth's chest, "But with your heart as well. Understood?" He asked, his stern tone finally returning with his last word.
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