Yousuke blanched at his teammates admission and his not-sensei’s casual dismissal. He had a feeling that assumptions and half-guesses would get them nowhere with this woman. She asked them a question though and to that end he would answer it to the best of his abilities.

It was not an easy question but thankfully he knew exactly what to say, "I cannot give you a reason. I cannot tell you how you should spend your life, nor can I demand you drop everything in order to take in three students. It is your duty to do such but it is not your obligation. Just as I am not obligated to defend the man behind me.”

These were big words from a lowly genin, dangerous even, but they were all that Yousuke could think to say. He had been saving these words for a very particular woman all his life and if he would not live to meet her then he would get them off his chest now. Looking at the woman and her reasoning for not taking in students and it became very easy to imagine her as his mother. It helped that she was currently scaring him half to death.

He took a step to the side, no longer barring the woman’s path to the merchant, but continued speaking, “But it is my duty to defend the man. I do not need to prove my worth to you; for the master I have chosen to serve is Soragakure and if I have been called on to defend such a man then I will not stand down as such.”

“If you demand it, I will fight and I will die by your hand. It is as you say, we cannot best you nor can we outrun you,” he admitted lamely, “But know this, I will not give my life to you so easily.”

As he spoke his calm gave to passion and the longer he looked at the woman the more and more he could see his mother staring right back at him. Frustrated by this he added, “There are many things I must accomplish before I die and I will not let my dreams end here, even if I have to tear the mask off of your face myself!”

“The entirety of my dreams and ambitions could not hope to be contained by that mask of yours.”

With all that said and done he charged at her.