Senju Clan Lore

The Struggle of the Senju
- Written by Senju, Rikirama

"Our history is said to be synonymous with being a Shinobi itself. One steeped in conflict unyielding. Like a curse not too different from that which the Tsume Clan believes in. Its the curse of power. Having it makes playing peace maker a taxing duty. After the Uzumaki-Tsume Clan Conflict, our legacy became that of the middle ground. But because of our clan's notorious strength stemming from our trait of maintaining stamina that rivals the vast chakra of the Hoshigaki coupled with rumors of rare Kekkei Genkai, what was supposed to be a peaceful middle ground began to feel like a forced ruling to some of the conflicting parties we got involved with.

First, the Uzumaki...our Cousin Clan, disowned us for vowing to keep them from irradiating the Tsume Clan and vice versa. A clan that was once like a younger sibling to them. I was only about eight at the time, but my father once told me that they treated it more like an alliance to the Tsume more than an offer for mutual protection. This sent them off to find allies of their own. Allies within the Kaijin. So you can say that our involvement only made things worse. It became a war in it's own right, though a short lived one. It took the Tsume fleeing to the Land of Lightning to end the pursuit. However, by that time, the Senju had already suffered massive losses, driving us to seek shelter with the Hyuuga. A clan that was on the verge of war with the Uchiha at the time.

Again, we were the peace makers. However, the peace we brokered this time wasn't one that would interfere with their conflict, but one that promised to increase the power of both clans against the other clans of the world who had begun to form alliances. This is how the Village Hidden in the leaf came to be. But even that seemed to be only a band-aid. A Temporary fix. As the village grew, accepting more clans... A clear wedge had begun to form. Rumors began to circulate about red eye'd devils who could control your mind with just a glance. And the bigger the village grew, the more people there were to perpetuate this rumor. It grew out of control, many of the Uchiha blaming the Hyuuga. Who'd deny it, then belittle how the clan couldn't control their emotions. As you can guess, this ignited a great deal of small-scale skirmishes. Even as the Senju took up the role of Police, we were just overwhelmed.

This was something brewing long before the Kozan-Mura conflict.

Our numbers were already small during the founding of the Village. Though we had children after, the size of the clan wasn't going to quadruple over the course of thirty years. Double at best. But still, we didn't have the numbers the other clans boasted, so it only made sense for the Shinobi from our clan to maintain the village's defense. We were the last line, and had the stamina to keep an enemy from  piercing the outer wall for days. At-least, that was our reasoning for supporting the Hokage's decision to keep us posted inside the village.

The next four years were a blur. War and Mayhem from the front lines. Watching the village's budget for Shinobi Graves increase drastically. Everything just moved so fast....then suddenly...things hit an all time slow. Before I knew it, I'd been covered in the blood of our own comrades. Those who swung at me with a mix of love and hate in their eyes. A cocktail for the most passionate and fearsome foe... A friend. My body moved on its own. I didn't want to kill anyone, but I couldn't let them kill me either. I couldn't let them bring an end to the Peace we'd worked so hard to maintain...I just couldn't.

But I guess I had no choice..

My next moment of lucidity at the time was as the Akimichi's hand flattened the Hokage's Mansion. Everything and everyone one froze. We knew what it meant. A Horn sounded, a signal horn from our side warning of enemies approaching. It was the Suna-Iwa forces..

Konohagakure had fallen.

Over half of my people were either slaughtered, or imprisoned during the years that followed. By the time I was fifty eight, another difficult decision came in the form of an old friend. The head of the Tsume Clan at the time had been my childhood crush. I met her during the time our two clans shared a camp. But what she wanted from me could've very well been the end of my people who've already suffered so dearly getting involved in other people's conflicts. At the time, we had less members than we had during Konohagakure's founding.

-Will your Clan die like cowards, running from it's pursuers, or will it live up to it's rumored might and die trying to fight for a future worth living in?-

There was no doubt in the effect her words had on my people. And the next thing we knew, we were marching towards the boarders of Lightning Territory to convene with the Kirigakure forces.

 The Senju-Hoshigaki-Platoon atop the Yuki Wall. Our combined Suiton produced the Tidal Wave to be Frozen over by the Mizukage...just in time to intercept an attack by the Suna-Iwa Canon fire. After the initial Yuki Wall crumbled, we retreated with the rest of our company. Our mission had been completed.

I wasn't the one making the decisions before, but I made that one...and as I hand the duty of Clan Head off to you...my children. I can only hope that it was the right one."