Private/Closed Naruto AU: Roleplay

[Retro Master]

Upon hearing the spirited voice of a certain lively Hyūga call out to him, Kiro expected the maids had finally caught up to him. Tayuya had been pestered by numerous maids earlier and that had left him under the impression he would be hunted next. However, once Kiro took a good look at the girl, who was dressed in casual wear, it appeared he was safe for the time being.

“I was just taking a jog around the area before I get back to training. Well, to be honest, this is my first time in this village during Christmas so I’m also trying to take in the atmosphere and see what’s up. It’s quite impressive how much effort the Hyūga are putting in to prepare for the upcoming festivities.”

Kiro casually shared his thoughts to the girl, not really minding the sudden company. Of course, he still had no idea why the girl had come up to him. Maybe it was the holiday spirit going around. He did get a familiar vibe from her but couldn’t pinpoint exactly who the girl might be connected to.

“Anyways, do I know you?”

Flashback ​

“Proof? Alright. Once we’re out of prison, when are you going to be available?”

Agile with his response, Kiro huffed in amusement before continuing to go along with their little ongoing repartee.

This conversation felt different. Especially compared to their previous ones. For him personally, there was a noticeable lack of friction between them two. He would admit most of that past hostility did stem from his side. But still, now they were able to have a natural, if not enjoyable, exchange with each other. Something which was a first with Sagisō.

However, it was ironic that they were having this talk while imprisoned. If it weren’t for the dreary, darkened walls that separated him from Sagisō, perhaps he would have completed forgotten where they were and how they had ended up in this position. Well, that last part wasn’t exactly rue. For him, it was exactly as Sagisō had said...

“Yeah, it was nice having a mother...”

Saying that term always left a bittersweet taste in his mouth. It was something about his mother, where even just being in her presence gave him this cozy feeling. There was this warmth he felt just thinking about her. Motherly affection shouldn’t be underestimated. Those were feelings that transcended time and space after all. Feelings that a young child thought they would never lose.

That day. That sight. That moment. Even the punishment the Uchiha had received from Jin couldn’t compare to the cold, empty feeling of despair inside of him. He nearly shivered thinking about it. To deal with this, Kiro simply took a breath, allowing him to drop those memories for the moment and refocus his thoughts to Sagisō.

Having a mother must’ve been a new experience for her. Obviously she was talking about Lady Hinagiku. He was pretty certain Sagisō had next to no memories of her biological mother. She had lost out on so much. Maybe it was just his bias, but he felt a mother played perhaps the most important role in a child’s life. For Sagisō not to have at least a mother like figure in her life for so long… confused him.

“Is Nadeshiko setup a certain way or did they just leave you on your own? Even though you weren’t born as a Nadeshiko, I find it hard to believe that in a village of all women, not one of them played that role for you.”

He spoke with just a little more interest than before, but still managed to keep his calm tone unchanged. His attentiveness also continued to remain the same as he awaited her response.

 

[Grand Master Koop]

With the sudden tug of her hair, Shura didn't get the change to react as Sagiso violently tightened the choke she had around his neck. As the pressure around his neck increased, Shura found himself gagging and tearing up. He pulled back his hands and pulled on the hair in the opposite way Sagiso was pulling. "This is bad, I need to finish this right now." Shura thought. He looked at Sagiso through his teary eyes, the way she looked and the tone of her voice make it clear that she pretty worked, Shura planned to use this fact.

Waiting until Sagiso’s foot was pressed firmly against his body, Shura suddenly twisted his body to the side, aiming to have Sagiso lose her footing. Following this action, Shura quickly circled around beside Sagiso and aimed to deal a chop to the back of her neck.

He would then follow up by grabbing Sagiso’s head and slam it to the ground either he entire forearm extended on her back while also pinning his knee on her back.

 

[DarkHydraT]

"Ah, I see. Are you sure that there is enough space for all of us? If so, we can leave if you want. And if you are okay with us not bringing anything, then I won't bother you any more. If you require something though, don't hesitate to ask us. It is not an issue at all." Kasumi smiled back at Atsuko, impressed by the kind soul of the woman in front of her despite her living conditions.

"I am sure you are capable with one, Mori was incredibly enthousiastic about the breadsticks Tomiko brought with her on the mission. I wish I could say the same about my cooking skills, they are good enough for me to survive on roasted rabbit and such but a three course meal is out of my league." Iwao said with a chuckle, not wanting to make the bakers feel inferior to them. After all, bakers and the like are the blood of the village. Without them, the population would starve once the money runs out to buy food.

Mori didn't say anything, he just hugged the teddy bear back. "He is lucky to have such a good friend as you, promise me to keep him safe okay?" He gave Mr. Snugglebottom back to Naomi and petted her head before turning to Tomiko. "I seriously doubt that, but I know better than to backtalk an inhabitant of the house I am in. If I remember my Academy days correctly, you are or were capable of pulling me to the Academy or in this case the street and throw me out." The Mole genin said with a cheeky smirk as Tomiko got a whistle out of nowhere.

"A roll call huh? Okay, let's see what you're planning to do." He said as he sat down on the ground, his curious parents soon following. There was a surprisingly catchy background beat playing and Mori knew he would struggle to get that out of his head. The comments made by the kids were both funny and informative, and he had to compliment them for how smoothly they followed each other up and how Hoshi took Tomiko's place for the background beat. All three of the guests began to applaud the performers when they were finished, but Mori had still one thing on his mind.

"Did you have to paint me as an unbeliever who would tell his parents things that would be negative about you? I clearly have faith in your goal, although if you don't trust me you might not be as good of a Tsuchikage as I thought." He smirked as he maintained eye contact with her, and something about those black, jet like eyes made it hard for him to look away. 'Thankfully' his mother gave him a swift chop to the head to break him out of his trance.

"Says you, you barely had enough motivation to get out of bed when you were young. I think you should be proud to see someone with so much ambition around you, maybe you'll get motivated yourself."

Mori didn't reply with the usual snark, he just rubbed his head and smiled. His father smiled too, but the reason behind that smile was not clear to anyone but himself.

------------------------------

"Yup, needed some fresh air and this way my parents can't recognise me. Plus I got used to flying around after our mission." Taji seemed surprisingly calm about it, almost too calm for her. She was always a bit nervous, seeing her this calm was suspicious to say the least. "A teammate huh? Maybe they're talking about the Chunin Exams and if she wants to join, it is not impossible to talk about."

Switching the topic, she turned her head to Kenji. "By the way, what are they going to do with that Tailed Beast we nearly got killed by? Are they already picking a jinchuriki or are they sealing it into something else first?"

 

[sSoul]

Taiyo
Shopping for Susei was simple due to the fact that she was very clearly interested in art; his mother proved to be more challenging, but ultimately, he decided on buying her a tea set. On his way back, the FBS master noticed a familiar set of twin tails, but decided to refrain from talking to her.

Chances are shes still sad and probably doesnt want to talk to me, not that I blame her...

I could always try I suppose.

Ok, but first, we need to know where she's going.

Unfourtunately for Taiyo, he couldnt get an exact idea on where the Hyuga heiress seemed to be going due to the fact that the two were heading in rather different directions.

It looks like she's going to the park.

Or at least in that general direction.

Then we're headed to the park with Susei.

Why?

Cause I wanna spend time with my little sister.

The trip home was uneventful, as it always was; as expected, Susei was hard at work drawing when her brother went upstairs to put away his gifts for his family. By the time Taiyo was downstairs, he was ready to put his plan into motion.

"Hey Lil sis, wanna go to the park?" The Leaf-nin asked, walking to the doorstep.

She immediately put down her craayons to think; immediately after she was done, the academy student gave her brother a cheeky grin.

"Only if I get to ride your back on the way there,"

Taiyo chuckled as, turned away from his sister, and got in position to fulfil her condition.

"Well, hop on,"

The little girl followed through as Taiyo had thought, and the siblings were headed to the park at that time.

 

[kyuukestu]

Mei

"Absolutely not. The summit is purely for diplomacy, an army has no place there."

Rapping her fingers against the desk she continued, "I shall bring no more than 10 with me, including yourself, you may choose 5 of that group."

Sagiso

As Shura began his maneuvers, twisting suddenly and throwing off her balance, Sagiso did as any person who abruptly fell would do; her body tensed and tried to grasp onto the nearest thing. Luckily, she had just the thing in hand, bundles of hair wrapped around Shura's neck, which she now held in a death-grip.

The noose tightened rapidly, now unobstructed as Shura moved his hand to perform a neck-chop. The chop flew true, as true as it could, as Shura appeared to aim for the back of her neck...which was odd to her as the wall was still at her back. The chop resulted in more of a side-blow, which though disorienting in it's own way, certainly wasn't as bad as what she was doing to Shura. She clenched her teeth as her vision momentarily wavered.

Next he proceeded to use his hand to grab her head and yank it downward. Smashing her head into the ground would've done wonders, as she'd already taken far too many head blows for her own comfort, but as Shura pushed her head downward he would notice something. The further he pushed her head away from him, the more tension he added to her hair, and thus the tighter the noose around his own neck.

Since Sagiso's hair kept the distance between their heads mostly fixed, Shura would find himself hard pressed to actually force her head in any direction at all.

 

[Grand Master Koop]

As Shura pushed Sagiso's head down, the sudden tug around his neck abruptly stopped his motion. He felt the noose around his neck bind tighter than it was previously. He started feeling lightheaded as the blood circulation was obviously interrupted. "Gah, I don't think I can keep going like this. Damn it." Shura thought as he loosened his grip and kneeled down next to Sagiso. He patted on the hair signifying that he was done.

Shiho nodded as she listened to Kiro describe what he saw around the can grounds. "Yeah it sure is a sight. This is something I look forwards to ever year." The Hyuga nodded and answered with her arms crossed. "It really looks like we're going way higher than the previous years." She added before hearing Kiro ask who she was. "Oh silly me, I forgot to introduce myself. My name's Shiho, I believe you know my brother Shura."

 

[kyuukestu]

Sagiso

Although she'd won the spar, Sagiso felt disgruntled. Reviewing the fight, she'd spent most of it getting man-handled by this inconsiderate daft.

She could feel the results of Shura's work as she rann her tongue over her lips, sharp tangs of pain firing off as saliva met wounds, and the sweet iron of blood on her taste buds.

'Fantasic...'

The big festival was tomorrow and now she had to go out there looking like she took three bricks to the face -a debatable point, as she'd pin Shura the dense type.

Either way, the Nadeshiko kunoichi was upset. Her hair had been knotted and tangle, her face battered and bruised, and honestly, she let Shura off too lightly.

There was nothing she could do about that now though, she could hardly move. Her hands had been tangled in hair that, for all intents and purposes, now tethered her to Shura. Wrought with anger she did something that would've been unthinkable mere minutes ago -"Wind Release: Blade of Wind!"

Forming needle-length blades on her fingers tips, Sagiso solve half of her problems at once by simply cutting off her hair. Next, just to satisfy her spite, her chakra network went hyper active -"One-Body Blow!"

A squall of chakra immediately cleared her vicinity with high-intensity blow-back. Of course, she hadn't bothered to spare Shura, one could even argue that attack was primarily aimed at Shura.

Disregarding that, Sagiso jumped to her feet. She pressed one finger over her nostril and blew hard. Then repeated with the other nostril. A splatter of blood hit the floors as she cleared out her nose, ridding herself of the lingering metallic scent.

That dealt with, she moved to check her hair. It had been shaved down to shoulder-length and trim very sharply (much too sharply for her own tastes). Scoping things out with her fingers she was convince, 'nothing but a shitty do'.

Scowling, she stalked out of the training room, intent on patching up her wounds and getting rid of this god-awful buzz-cut. Of course, she also remembered to warn Shura of his inconsiderate actions -"Hit me in the face again and I'll break your nose."- she was confident he would be more mindful in the future.

Sagiso ~ Flashback

"108 Stars, that's the foundation of Nadeshiko."

Although somewhat hesitant, Sagiso started off her explanation. "At any point in time, Nadeshiko only has 108 active members split it two groups, the 36 Heavenly Stars and 72 Earthly Stars. Each individual star is given a bevy of names and titles, for example, my full title would be - 36th Heavenly Skillful Star, the Wanderer, Yan Qing, Yan Yizhen, Sagiso Ajisai."

She mused over the mouthful of a name, knowing it was among the shorter of the Star titles. Sagiso held up her hand, splaying all five fingers in the air, before putting down her thumb.

First-

"36th refers to my Rank, 36th out of 108."

Second-

"My Star's name is the Skillful Star, and it belongs to the Heavenly 36 rather, opposed to the Earthly 72, thus Heavenly Skillful Star."

Third-

"The title associated with my star is Wanderer."

Fourth-

"Yan Qing is the name of the first Skillful Star. We honor her by passing down her name among each generation -an Inherited Name."

Fifth-

"Yan Yizhen is my courtesy name, you could also call it a coming of age name. When you're considered a capable kunoichi, you're bestowed a courtesy name to commemorate the event."

She paused for a moment, and considered mentioning the Uchiha's rite of passage. She knew about their tradition of performing the Fire ball technique to be considered an adult because it was mentioned in passing by her mother when she'd spoken of the Hyuga's own rite of passage. A moment's thought later, and she decided against it- "It's just like the Hyuga rite of passage -which I've yet to do- the Senbon sparring ritual. In the Hyuga Clan you spar 1000 times in succession to be deemed a fully fledged Hyuga, but in Nadeshiko, you're fully fledged after receiving your courtesy name."

Sixth- (She'd run out of fingers by this point, but Kiro couldn't see that.)

"Sagiso Ajisai, that's my real name."

Lowering her hand she rubbed idly at her stomach, "It is the duty of the current generation of Nadeshiko to train the next generation, they can either be your own child or...otherwise." Her voice trailed off at this, a rather touchy subject to her.

"I'm the third generation Skillful Star, I was trained by the second generation Star. She was a mentor and a mother...just, not my mother. She has a daughter around the same age as me but..."

There could only ever be one skillful star on active duty, and although Nadeshiko's titles were generally passed down from mother to daughter, Sagiso was one of the rare few exception. For any number of reasons, a Star Maiden's successor could be someone outside their bloodline. This usually happened when the Nadeshiko currently holding the position bore a son rather than a daughter, or didn't marry at all.

Spoiler: Bloop

In Sagiso's case, she was simply a more suitable candidate for the position given her kekkei genkai. It went without saying that because Sagiso had earned the title of skillful star, her mentor's daughter had not. That one decision had fractured the closest thing she'd ever had to a family...

'All because of that decision...'

Huddling into a ball, the Nadeshiko buried her face in her knees. She'd repeated that lie to herself many times before. Although she knew it false, she still held it dear. At least for now, it held her sanity intact, and her guilt at bay.

Furijia

Gritty on the outside but soft and chewy on the inside. Biting into a stick of Sand Dango, Furijia melted into the flavor. The sweet confectionery had been formed at it's core from tender rice-flour, baked into a sweet dumpling and then rolled in brown sugar. The coating of brown sugar gave the dango is characteristic sandy look and texture, but what truly made these dango a specialty of the land of Wind was their unique production method and the jam stuffed inside.

Squealing and squirming with delight, Furijia had almost fallen from the tree she'd perched in. The firm yet tender sensation of the dumpling as she bit into it, combined with the sweet jam the squirting into her mouth and lathed over her tongue could only be described with a single word -blissful.

Her muscles tensed with sensual pleasure, her legs stretched and her palm cupping her cheek. She leaned backward, her whole body stretching with feline grace- stretching just a bit too far as she immediately lost balance, and began tumbling off the branch and toward the ground.

 

[Godjacob]

"Well that will be more complicated than we anticipated. Seems your friend here may be in worse condition. That mark on his neck seems to be having adverse effects...making him more volatile. Dangerous. Under such circumstances the Leaf would likely desire to torture him and then put him to death and call it a day." Inoichi replied bluntly as Sakura's face paled at this. Granted, she had no love for Zaku at all but she was worried how Kou would take it.

Then Inoichi continued to speak.

"But there is alternatives to this. To stabilize the harmful effects of the mark so it isn't as corrupting a force. So a transfer to a place with more leg room but where a close eye can be kept an eye on him during this process is necessary. How long depends on speed of recovery post treatment." Inoichi replied, speaking as if the option for Zaku to just leave the village had been on the table. Presenting an option that seemed to protect Zaku from death at the cost of being made to "bunk" at Konoha while the evil curse mark was dealt with.

Regardless of Kou's view of it or the total truth to it, the head nurse spoke up. "Alright let's just get out of here and allow Zaku to rest and simmer down from that earlier surge."

Sakura was escorted out and the ninja was there to try to "help" Kou off Zaku while he would get some needed recovery. Sakura herself had a sigh.

Should've guessed this guy would do something like this. I have no idea what this kid sees in him.
Bonds are a weird thing, can't always put logic in them. But dismissing Kou isn't gonna help him expand bonds to include...less harmful influences.

-----------
Okabe's eyebrows were lowered when he saw this intruder try a new tactic and fire his heavy arms towards him as if they had been remote controlled; the metal and fused chakra was too heavy to push with his wind barrier so he ceased the technique as he opted to jump between them as he began to work to dodge and evade them.

Okabe began to form chakra around his right hand, beginning to form an arm blade, as his aim was to move and evade the attacks to try and close in on Reaver.

Meanwhile, having left a clone at the door, Azumi wandered inside with antidote prepped and covered up as she manipulated the one caravan soldier much as she could. Taking out another of the caravan before he was forced down with a dagger to the chest as he slumped down. But he had done his job all the same and as they moved to regroup they were greeted but several water tendrils with snake heads.

Ones that shot out and began to bite their necks.

Chizawa clutched her kids as screams were heard, she had a protective knife in her backpocket as her children clung to her for protection; tears in the young boys eyes as she tried to sooth them and comfort them all the while.

I have to be strong, I have to be strong for them. We will make it, we will make it...

-----------
"Oh trust me we can house more than 13 comfortably enough. No need to be excused for our sake alone I assure you of that much." Atsuko said with a smile as she worked to assure the ninja pair they had more than their fair space to go around.

"Well that is fine, after all you are meant to defend the village not make a three course meal." Kuro jokes a bit with a wink to him as he wanted it to be known that it was fine and appreciated the praise from the elite ninja.

As Tomiko and the group finished their role call, Atsuko & Kuro applauded with their guests at the coordinated display as the group took a bow. Mori offered his own two piece which led to teases from parent to child once more which had been an amusing sight. Tomiko had an almost cheeky grin when Mori complained about Tomiko's lyric about him in their little roll call.

"Oh come now, of course I don't see it that way. Just a little tease, don't be such a negative nancy~" Tomiko countered back with a wink as the twins had a good chuckle at that before an audible "beep" was heard though.

"Ah our meal for this little get together is ready. So gather around the table~" Astuko declared with a grin as Tomiko nodded and motioned for Mori and his folks to follow as there was a large circle table set up and the crew began to sit around it with space left open for the guests as Tomiko's parents went to the oven. What they would see was this large baked pie for the occasion that had this wonderful scent that drifted in the air.

-----------
Kenji had to admit, based on what he knew of Taji, seeing her so calm had been a bit of an eyebrow raiser. Maybe he'd have ask about it but Taji was quick to offer not only her guess about what Rika was called for but asked a question to him in kind.

"Well, unless Kumo stuffed its body in the outskirts or has some secret underground lair to hide it I think it is sealed in something. What I have no idea, and I am not sure who'd be picked for a host." Kenji admitted to Taji.

The meeting seemed to be close to conclusion, as Rika stood up and gave a bow to Ay. They might not have been able to tell from their distance but the faint stains of tears would have been seen on closer inspection as she walked out slowly.

 

[sSoul]

Taiyo
The journey to the park had recently came to a close, allowing Susei to dismount her brother's back. From there the two were on the swings enjoying a bit of a heart to heart.

"Big bro..." Susei started, clearing her throat, "Can I tell you something?"

"Sure, anything Susei," Taiyo replied, slowing gaining height and speed with each swing.

"It's about Mommy. When your out for your missions...at night, I think she cries to herself. She wont tell me why, but I think you may have to do with it,"

The Leaf-nin took this to heart, his mom showed no signs of tears, although she was reasonably concerned about him loosing his arms in favor for wooden appendages. He was quickly broken from this trance concerning his mom when he noticed someone falling from a tree. Without hesistation, Taiyo leapt from the swing he was on as it was rising and once he landed, began running to the suddenly distressed person. There was enough time for him to come to a complete stop and catch the person who made an unexpected descent. As it turned out, the falling figure turned put to be none other than Furījia Hyūga.

"Didn't expect you to be falling into my arms, and yet, here we are," After catching her, the FBS master decided to deliver a quip to accompany his action, much to the amusement of his little sister.

 

[DarkHydraT]

"I am trained to fight and protect our village, so I suppose I can afford to be awful at everything else." Iwao chuckled.

"You know that isn't true, you are a great singer! You just suck at caring about others like people who want silence." Kasumi ruffled the hair of her husband, a cheeky grin on her face.

"You had to hear me somehow, not my fault that my voice gets incredibly loud when I use chakra."

"I was on the top floor, you dork."

Mori shook his head, he heard the story of how his parents got together so many times he could recite it line for line. His father had a crush on his mother and after going on multiple missions with her, he decided to sing her a serenade. Whilst she was at the hospital after getting her yearly check-up and relaxing on the roof. The patients weren't too bothered and cheered him on, but the doctors scolded him for making so much noise.

"Whatever you say, queen of scrap. Although I believe I have more than enough reasoning behind being a bit negative when it comes to you. I haven't forgotten that sled, and I hope you haven't either." He put a finger on his chest, underneath his shirt there was still a big bruise from the collision. It didn't hurt when walking, but it wasn't pretty to look at either. "Now, behave or you and your gang won't get Christmas presents." He added with a grin.

The smell of the pie made his stomach growl, even though he just ate. His parents were better at masking their stomachs excitement, but they clearly enjoyed the smell of the pie too. "It smells amazing, I don't believe I've ever smelt something this good!" Kasumi exclaimed, with her husband and son approving with a nod.
-----------

"I see, when do you think they will appoint a jinchuriki? If it is sealed underneath the village then it is just a time bomb waiting to go off." Taji mused. "If a child is chosen, do they need permission from their parents? Or can anyone waltz in there to volunteer to become a jinchuriki? I haven't read much about jinchuriki and the like other than the basics."

She ruffled her feathers, her head turning to Kenji. "What are you going to do? Train for the next Chunin Exams? I am pretty sure that you can improve your previous showing by a mile."

 

[Nukas]

Amari had watched the battle intently, but she thought it should have ended a lot sooner. From what she could see, the hyuga male - she believed was named Shura if she remembered correctly - had lost a long time before he had actually tapped out from what she could see. If it had ended sooner, maybe the following tragedy may have never occurred. Sagiso had cut her long and beautiful hair. She never thought she would see the day, but Sagiso's hair in a few seconds had become shorter than Amari could ever remember having seen it. Amari could tell Sagiso was pissed as she stormed out of the room. Amari had hoped to get in some training with her sister after the battle was over, but she could tell that was not going to happen any time soon. "You should have given up earlier, would have been a lot easier on you. Now you have to deal with the aftermath which I can't imagine will be pretty," she said to Shura after Sagiso had left the room.

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Kou blinked at inoichi’s words. He had had wide eyes and small pupils, obviously in shock at the information he had received. So these guys were gonna kill him anyway?? What In the...how do I get us both out of this mess intact?!

The young boy was hung on Those words. ‘Torture’. ‘Put to death.’ He have a gulp. This confirmed his suspicions. It was like they were in a secret villains hide out as they discussed their evil plans. Kou gave a sheepish smile.

“Heh....heh....well look at the time, soooooo I think it’s best that Zaku and I be on our way now. Good seeing you all...like...sometime later....FAR later...”

The nurses and doctors attempted to grabs him, but the rat on his shoulder hissed, snapping at anyone who got close, obviously protective of Kou. Kou swatted another hand away, trying to maintain his mask of being okay. A ninja now attempted to lift Kou up from the medical bed. Kou, refusing to leave Zaku again after what just happened gripped the bed’s cushions.

“No! Get off of me!”

The rat made a loud hiss as tiny inklings of chakra appeared from time hairs, not enough to hurt anyone, but enough to be visible. It was snarling like an animal trying to protect its young

These leaf people are crazy! Not a minute in this room and they are already talking about killing us! That’s a nope from me. Nope nope nope nope nope.


...........


Reaver growled, the man parrying his attempts to smash him with his metal fists. He tried again and again, the enemy outmanuvering him at every turn. He truly was a master swordsman. He saw okabe’s trajectory, weaving toward him with his chakra blade. Reaver saw this, swerving his metal hands up right as the swordsman was a foot away from him, grabbing onto the blade. The palms grabbed hold, starting a struggle to see which would over power the other.

“A WARRIOR EH?” Reaver questioned. “PITY SUCH TALENT WAS SQUANDERED ON INSECTS SUCH AND BANDITS!”

That’s when he heard a scream. He turned his head to the direction of said screams, seeming just down the hall. His eyes focused even further, turning back to Okabe.

“WHAT KIND OF BANDITS BRING CHILDREN? UNLESS...” Reaver began to laugh in his deep distorted voice. “YOU BROUGHT YOUR FAMILY!”

 

[Grand Master Koop]

After the sparring match ended, Shura was on his knee next to Sagiso. He let out a sigh before glancing upwards at Sagiso. “Huh, even though she won she looks even more upset than before.” Shura though to himself.

Turning his attention back to himself, Shura started attempting to untangle himself from the hair when Sagiso suddenly shouted out her jutsu and cut most of it off, solving the problem but roughly. Before he had much time to think about it, Sagiso unleashed a One Body Blow all around her and Shura quickly reacted by putting up his arms to block. The Hyuga was sent flying back. Shura landed on his feet, he looked at his arms that were now looking slightly bruised. “The hell was that for.” Looking at the person now across the hall from him, it seemed like the victor of their sparring match was looking extremely bitter and irritated while the loser was simply feeling discontent about the situation.

He watched as Sagiso stormed out of the room and heard her aggressive comment. Shura let out another sigh as he worked to untangle the now cut hair from his arm and neck.

Shura looked at Amari who had been there observing the match since it began come up to talk to him. “If I hadn’t kept going, I would not have know how far I could have gone.” Taking a few heavy breaths in and out, Shura let the oxygen circulate freely inside him. Standing up after, Shura made his way out of the training hall. “If I’m wrong to want to go all out, then I don’t mind being wrong.”

 

[kyuukestu]

Baiyan

'Oh...'

All things considered, the duo of Azumi and Reaver seemed to have things perfectly under control.

Her sword hung silently at her side. She'd expected something...more.

"Every ambition must start somewhere...", she supposed. Great things had humble beginnings, and every plan to change the world started with slaughtering helpless whelps. Joyous.

Lingering around the entrance to the camp, the Sword Star maintained indifference. She disagreed with this needless slaughter, not because she was self-righteous and believed in messages of love and peace. Instead, it seemed to her that these bandits were...a bit subpar. Call it arrogance, but Baiyan was a Heavenly Star and her own personal pride disdained to bully the weak. She would not stain her sword with the blood of the unnamed. Especially not those burdened with children.

The bellow of Reaver's voice revealed the vulnerable nature of these so-called bandits.

'Children?'

The mere mention of the yet fangless babes caused Baiyan's brow to furrow. Bandits who roamed with children..? Odd...very odd indeed.

 

[Grand Master Koop]

Sitting on n his chair, Rasa looked up when he heard Pakura and her team enter his office like he called. “Ah, you’ve arrived.” Standing up, Rasa moved to the window. “I’d like to congratulate you all for a job well done.” He turned to face them. “When you came back from the 8 tails mission and brought back a completely different Jinchuriki, it was a surprise but not an unwelcomed one.”

 

[Retro Master]

“Shura’s sister? That’s interesting. Your brother and I were on the same squad during that mission. I don’t know how much he revealed to you though.”

Unsure of how much information on the mission had been given out, Kiro chose not to mention any of the details. Those details primarily consisted of Shura’s questionable actions such his complete disregard to the plan early on in the mission. The Uchiha supposed he should be grateful for that. In fact, thanks to the mistake, Kiro had basically led the team to the same island the jinchuriki was on and allowed Shura to find her.

But of course, they managed to find some way to screw the capture up. Shura abandoning the team when they had the jinchuriki probably wasn’t the best idea. Unfortunately, he wasn’t the only Hyūga who might’ve cost them. That was an even more complicated theory he didn’t want to get into, so he dropped it.

Pocketing his hands, the Uchiha glanced again towards the bustling members of the clan in the distance. Various food, materials, and decorations were constantly being carried around. However, the one thing that remained constant was the clothing they all had on. It reminded him Shiho wasn’t dressed up like the rest of the clan. Maybe that wasn’t a requirement.

That idea left him to wonder why she was all the way out here in the first place. His mind wandered back to her thoughts on the preparation, wondering if perhaps Shiho just wanted to witness the beauty of her clan’s work. Kiro wouldn’t blame her if that was the case.

“It is quite a sight, I’ll admit that. In my opinion, the only thing overdone is the clothing. Compared to the fashion choices from the rest of the Hyūga I’ve seen so far today, you’re a welcome change of scenery.”

As if to confirm, Kiro looked back towards the girl as he stopped speaking. He supposed this displayed the togetherness of the clan. Impressive work by the Hyūga Head the Uchiha thought. Of course, this meant it was only a matter of time before Shiho and any others who had yet to join the movement were taken. The prisoners wouldn’t even be spared by this movement either.

“Shiho, do you know if we’re all required to wear holiday themed clothing? I was thinking that I should probably find something better to wear after I finish some training. I’m probably going to head over to the training hall soon actually...”

 

[kyuukestu]

Furījia

"I would've been fine, really!"— are the words that seemed to stick in her throat as Furījia found herself face to face with Taiyo. Frozen like a deer in the headlights, the girl stared blankly as Taiyo delivered his cringe-inducing line. A cheesy little quip that only needed an accompanying trade-mark smile. It was dorkish —adorably so— and part of her loved it. The other part of her wanted to burst into giggles, but she did worry Taiyo might find that a bit...disheartening.

The two halves of her eventually reached compromise when the remains of her dango caught up with her. A well-placed splat of sugar and flour covered Taiyo’s head and finally, the Hyuga broke, “Pfffft—”

She laughed freely and without restraint, but only for a few seconds...or ten, before she smilingly asked, “Do you like sweets?”

Natsu Hyūga


While the Clan prepared itself for the Winter Festival on the morrow’s eve, the Head Maid was —surprisingly— taking no part in such preparations. That wasn’t to say she didn’t support them —for she was also decked out in the season’s preferred stylings; Red velvet cloth with whitened trims formed the basis of this maid’s dress, while her hair hung freely, decorated with quaint baubles giving its base green strands the appearance of mistletoe— instead, it simply wasn’t her priority.

She had more important things to do than bake cookies and hang stockings. One such thing was finalizing the edges on the changes to the Clan’s operations. The Clan had seen many changes between the Lady Hyūga’s appointment as Clan Head, and she apparently had no intention of slowing down.

The next big change built on the system of factions she’d implemented. The Clan was transitioning to operations which hybridized their aristocratic foundations with the flexible nature of a guild. Simply put the Clan would lodge the creation of a guild, in which membership for clan members was mandatory. The reveal of this new change was meant to be tomorrow as the tournament being hosted served a two-fold function, one, as entertainment for the citizens and two, as a selection screening for guild recruits.

Obviously, the fact that the tournament was open to everyone meant that the Hyūga were prepared to allow anyone to join the guild, and rightly so, as members outside the clan would show their usefulness later down the line.

The backbone of this guild and its outlines had been detailed in a letter which she’d just submitted to the Hokage’s residence, and invitations to the tournament and the dinner had been sent to the various Clans of the leaf, with the former (tournament invite) also being sent to prominent groups or individuals within the village.

Simply put it was a system through which tasks could be completed with the clan as a proxy in exchange for ‘points’ and said points could then be turned into the Clan as a type of premium currency. It didn’t do much for securing anyone immediate benefits but did pay off in the long run. It allowed the common shinobi to make use of the wealth and influence of a Noble Clan, which allowed access to a whole host of new opportunities.

Though it only catered to the more capable shinobi, being a merit-based system, it made the village’s shinobi stronger as a whole by spreading the Hyūga’s reserves of wealth among them.



Yet, as much work as the guild system would be, it was not the only task Natsuo had been assigned. She was also tasked with delivering a certain message to the Uchiha. Calligraphed by Lady Hinagiku herself, with ink graceful strokes and sharp lines, a message inscribed upon a wooden board, which Natsu carried as she arrived at the Uchiha Clan.

Picking up a few nails she pinned it to a nearby tree, where she was sure the Uchiha could see. After which she faced the clan, bowing to no one in particular, and left. In flowery, but no uncertain terms, the message quoted a few incidents as of late; the lack of Uchiha support during the Yuki Clan’s demonstration, their hands-off approach to the now numerous sound-prisoners within the village, and the fact that they hadn’t coughed up any money to pay for this extravagant event. All these, and many more were worded under the guise of ‘Village Security’ and thus, the Uchiha’s domain.

In no uncertain terms, this was an attack on the Uchiha Clan, a message that said get off your lazy asses and move with the program. It seemed to be a completely random message that served no other purpose than to satisfy the Hyūga mistress’ vanity, and that’s because, on the surface, it was exactly that.

Upon closer inspection, anyone with a sufficiently matured Sharingan or Byakugan would be able to see minor discrepancies within the message. An odd stroke here, a misspelled word there, little quirks that on their own could be mere coincidence, but together painted an entirely different picture. Beneath this rant was a hidden message, one addressed to Fugaku. It read—

Spoiler: Hinagiku's Note

On my way back to the Village I stopped to assess the damage to the nearby coastal cities. To my dismay, I noticed several citizens had been placed under a controlling genjutsu. I suspect, with great certainty, that this is the work of the Mist Village. The genjutsu placed held chakra similar to their Hōzuki Clan.

Having more expertise with genjutsu than myself, I thought it best to pass this off to you. Although I’ll also bring this situation up during tomorrow’s dinner, a day’s wait could cost us dearly, so you’ve been informed beforehand.

The Mist village’s recent ‘aggression’ is cause for concern, an eye must be kept on them. The matters at our border should be dealt with sooner rather than later, and I believe with the mass fan-fare my clan has created, it should be possible for a few Uchiha to slip out of the village unnoticed by unwanted eyes.

Signed - Hinagiku Hyūga

 

[Godjacob]

Okabe's teeth growled a bit as his chakra rose and rose, the sound of his families cries heard all too well. A wind current generated around him as the chakra around his blade began to twist and contort.

"They are none of your business! Wind Style: Torrent Edge Jutsu!"

Okabe called out his technique as the blade Reaver clashed with began to produce a powerful twister around it; one made of razor sharp wind currents as his aim was to use the current to push him back and then slash with these intense wind-boosted slashes across the intruder.

Speaking of those...

Three caravan members, armed with duel-blade spears, surrounded Azumi. Who in turn had her umbrella out and seemed unexpressive as they charged in. Azumi managed to jump in the air between them as their weapons all missed her, and they looked up to deal with her as she would have to come down...

Woosh!

A pair of senbon struck each of their necks as they fell limp on the ground as Azumi opened her umbrella and gently lowered down after she delivered her airborn strike. Azumi glanced over to Reaver.

Seems this one is the only skilled member of the group. Aiding Reaver to deal with him will eliminate our biggest...

CRASH!

Azumi hopped back as her thoughts were cut off as a hammer struck the ground where she had stood; which had left an indent as a muscular masked member of the group eyed her as some chains had been wrapped around his otherwise bare, topless & toned figure. Azumi folded up her umbrella as she avoided another power strike and tried to slam an umbrella into the back of his neck.

Only for him to be unphased, letting out an almost animal-like growl as he sung back. Azumi blocked the blow but the force knocked her across the underground lair as she just managed to land on her feet.

Outside the caravan, it appeared a ranger had began to return from a scouting trip only to see their lair entrance exposed. Even more, this female member who wore a mouth mask observed with her crystal blue eyes as someone seemed to observe it from a distance.

Enemies had found them.

The scout member moved to a distant position as she pulled what seemed to be a bow and arrow. The tip of which began to shine with chakra as she pulled back in silence as she focused on trying to strike this women who observed from behind; around the back of the neck to be specific for a swift and presumably easy kill.

Woosh!

She fired once she locked on as the arrow flew; its aim to try and pierce the woman in the back of the neck to take it out before she'd worry about who got into base.

------------
"Man blackmail on the holidays? You really are a Grinch. And I said I was sorry about that how many times now?" Tomiko replied back to Mori with only a slight grin though as Naomi saw the bruise she reached into her pocket and pulled out a lone band-aid she passed to Mr. Snugglebottom who in turn handed it over Mori. "H-here, this might help."

"Well in our defense a pair of people were meant to be in charge of the breaks." Ren replied as he glanced over to the twins as each one pointed to the other.

"She didn't press hers!"

"Don't blame me I did my job! you are the one who screwed it up!"

Atsuko, once she had set the large pit on the middle of the table with Kuro, had her arms folded when she saw the bruise on Mori on top of the conversation as she shifted her expression to Tomiko. "Oh, a sled accident huh? I was told that nobody got hurt by it....Tomiko?"

"U-uhhhh....well, I-uh....we uh....hey that pie there looks great! Smells better to!" Tomiko said with a big sheepish gtin as a drop of sweat rolled down her cheek while she tried to shift the conversation to the pie as Atsuko shook her head while Mao already pulled his shirt over his head to hide his guilt-ridden expression.

Hoshi reached out for the pie first, but was slapped by Jirou. "Ow!"

"Wait till they cut it." Jirou replied as Hoshi stuck his tongue out at her. Kuro had a chuckle as he began to cut the pie into nice, large even pieces as the strawberry scent drifted through the air.

-----------
"Considering most stuff on Jinchuriki is kept under the radar I wouldn't know what to tell you. They could stuff it in a baby for all I know. Don't know what the selection requirement is." Kenji said to Taji as she speculated what the host for the Tailed Beast their team helped bring in would be as he considered all options. Even the admittedly extreme & ridiculous example he referenced.

Then the question of the exams came up, and Kenji had a chuckle at that.

"Well, would be pretty hard to do as bad as I did before. Got carried in the literal sense there, so there's no where to go but up. And yeah that was my main plan." Kenji admitted to Taji. "Were you gonna enter?"

Rika herself exited the Raikage's office, her face paled and with an expression of shock if not worry as she tried to collect her breath and settle. Could not afford to draw attention as she began to walk back home.

-----------
"Geez this kid is stubborn." The ninja mused which in turn only caused Inoichi to let out a chuckle.

"I take it you've had no experience with kids before?" Inoichi joked, reminded so much of when Ino was a little kid with Kou's behavior. Course, she was attracted to harmless school boys and not a dangerous individual of an enemy nations.

In any event, a nurse came over to help. Tracing along Kou's hands to try to send the most simplistic signal to his brain to get him to let go. A medical technique used to try and combat clingy patients or loved ones before as the ninja continued to not aggressively but with some firmness work to pull him off.

Sakura observed with a sigh. "Be gentle with him." She tried to urge, as based on what she had seen Kou was a good kid by all accounts. Even if his choice in affections with it came to Zaku had been a mystery if not complicated.

-----------
Madoka naturally kept silent as Rasa exclaimed his praise to them. She nodded in kind, happy to hear the words of her Kazekage on a job well done even if the end result had not been the Jinchuriki one expected. Something her sensei was quick to address with her follow up comments.

"A pleasure Lord Kazekage. Yeah the mission didn't go according to the letter due to...complications, but we were able to make off with a bit of equivalent goods to say the least~" Pakura replied with a grin. Kin may not have been their target but thankfully it seemed Rasa had not been to object so long as it had been a Jinchuriki.

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Reaver, gripping into his metal hands, but through the wind storm. The strong current creating slices on his body, slowly but surely. His cheek, leg, forehead, and growing. Reaver suddenly, let his left hand go from the grip of the sword, letting the metal hand take its place. He reached out behind his back, pulling out a a long foldable scythe. The scythe flipped and folded out, as Reaver swung the concealed weapon at Okabe while his sword was already busy.


......


Scrappa looked to and fro the other members around the table, getting up from his seat and hobbling around.

“I take that as a no...” he spoke, clicking his walking stick on the the ground. “You see...I’ve never been over fond of ninjas. Given whatever they wanted since birth on a silver platter. Lucky blooded, I call ‘em.”

He began to pace around the table, a creaking of old bones or something else apparent in his movements.

“Ninjas however lack one vital aspect: Ingenuity. They never needed it, with the powers they have. That is why I have taken measures to insure that I am never at the mercy of such uncultured of creatures...”




......


Kou seemingly couldn’t help letting go of the bed, even though it was for a split second, it was enough to remove him from said bed. Upon this touching of him, the rat that had been snarling when ballistic. It leaped to the ninja that had gripped Kou, aiming to drive it’s teeth into the bridge of their nose.

Kou struggled in their grasp, unable to out strength the ninja. “Ngh! Let me go! You can’t do this!”

 

[sSoul]

Tsuki/Seiun
“Well done, my dear Tsuki~ This is the gateway to many new abilities yet to come~”

The Yuki smiled at her sensei's approval, which when complield ontop of her own pride in her sucess, made her in a very good mood with a boosted amount of confidence in herself to boot.

"Speaking of Tsuki, I placed a an entire box of those pills at your bedside. Make sure you take them twice a day, once in the evening and once in the morning, this is very important.”

A whole box? Hmmm, won't the effects eventually get less and less potent as I take them over time?

Before she could dwell on the credibility of Hama's logic for much longer, Tsuki's sensei brought her focus back to the here and now.

Now the fun part...”

Fun part?

“You see young Tsuki, black water taints, not just poisons. So if you remove the black water, it will replicate more and more. That’s where we come in. Now I don’t expect you to do THIS at your skill level, but watch closely as I stop this process.”

So once again, the whip wielder found herself observing the master at work. What she was unprepared for was Hama readying a myriad of needles that, upon further inspection, were covered in a green substance all for the purpose of seemingly sewing the paitent like clothing.

“The process is too fast for one to really take in, but this is how it works: Half of my needles are covered with venom. The black water acts quickly to try and eradicate this fluid, but the coagulant factor of the venom slows down its response time. So it it focusing on my attacks with the venom instead of replicating itself. It’s trying to stay alive, like a wild animal. While I’m doing this Tsuki, change out your needles regularly.”

After explaining this, she realized that her own needle was turning black due to the influence of the water, as such she found herself removing the needle while also trying to wrap her head around the daunting amount of paitents she'd have to treat.

So much for celebrating Christmas...

Meanwhile, Seiun took a good look at B.O.S.E.C's mischevious smile, allowing one to arrive on his face as well.

Go̶o̧d ͢Sei͝u̸n͡..͜.n̶ow.̴.̢.w͟is̨e̵ man͢ k̛now̛s҉ ̢tha̷t ́f̕ear ͝is͟ ͢a ͝wea͟k̷n̷es̴s tha͡t҉ ̀m̨u̡st͡ ̧b͠e ͘e͝x̵pl͠oi͠t̕ed. F̕e̵ar̨ i͜s ̧o̵v͜errun͏nįng͏ ţh̡i̕s͠ pl͟ac̶e̷,͡ t̀ha͢t ̨m͝ean̷s ̀we͢a͡k̷nes̕s ̸o͡v̶e̶r̛ru̧ns͞ ̴it a͘s̷ we̵ll.̷”

The Rainy Rouge turned his attention to the building that the construct seemed to be pointing to. It was sturdy, four story tall, tradtional looking building that had branches reminiscent of those found at a college.

“We śh̷oul͝d̷ p͡a͡y à ̵viśi̵t ͡t͡o̸ the mist͝’҉s M̀useu͏m͡.͏ ͞Sh̵a͏l͟l we̸?”͞

I have ni objections, but if I may ask, what could possibly be in that old fart of s building.
Taiyo
A few minutes had passed since the Hyūga had fallen into Taiyo's arms. She looked as if she wanted to say something, but it was as if Furījia couldnt find the words

A thank you would be nice.

After giving his little remark, he noticed thst the Hyūga was staring at him blankly, almost as if she was expecting something more. Taiyo planned on putting her down when something landed on him. This caused Furījia to begin to break out in a fit of giggles, which caused the FBS master to have a revelation.

Wow...she has a cute laugh

Add that to the list...wait...

Oh...

Ohh....

The Leaf-nin then proceeded to put her down, while letting out a chuckle of his own. He then decided to put her down so he could answer her question.

"Yeah, believe it or not, I actually have a bit of a sweet tooth," He then remembered that her sister also shared this trait, "Oh yeah that reminds me!" Taiyo ran to the swings to pick up Susei. He then went back to the Hyūga after his sister got rid of the sweet that was in his hair.

"Furījia, this is my sister Susei," As he said this, the academy student then extended her hand to shake, accompanyied with a smile reminiscent of her brother's, only eminating innocence instead of warmth.

 

[Grand Master Koop]

Shiho smiled at Kiro when he mentioned being on the same team as her brother. “Yeah, that’s why I said you probably know him.” She observed Kiro as he seemed to have been think about something.

There’s wasn’t really a reason why Shiho had decided to come talk to Kiro, she just did because she felt like it. Hearing Kiro y’all about their clan’s wardrobe choices, Shiho put her hands into the pockets of her skirt as she began looking around. “Yeah don’t get used to it, I’m changing into my own set of holiday colours tomorrow.” She looked at Kiro. “You’ll have to as well.”

Hearing Kiro say he was headed to the training hall, an idea came into Shiho’s head. “Oh, if you don’t have a costume yet, I can make one for you. The sewing room isn’t that far from the training halls.” She began running towards there, motioning Kiro to follow. “Also yes, it is very absolutely required.”

 

[Retro Master]

Even as a prisoner, he had to play dress up for the Hyūga. His hopes had been raised by Shiho but it turned out she just wasn’t wearing her chosen dress today. For a second, Kiro thought he was screwed until Shiho mentioned the sewing room before running off. Apparently that was also required.

‘Might as well get this over with then.’

Kiro thought to himself as he began to follow Shiho to the sewing room. The girl was either being extremely generous towards him or was actually a maid sent by the Hyūga Head in disguise. Either way, he didn’t feel like dealing with whatever punishment Hinagiku might’ve had for him on Christmas...

 

[kyuukestu]

Furijia

The Hyuga heiress was proud to admit she’d only sorta forgotten Taiyo was holding her. When he suddenly put her down to respond to her question in the affirmative, she stumbled slightly. That, however, seemed to go unnoticed as with a cry of —"Oh yeah that reminds me!"— the hyperactive shinobi ran off.

Staring blankly, but only for a moment, at his retreating back, Furijia turned back to her tree and set about retrieving her bag of sweets. Just as Taiyo was returning with his sister, Furijia dropped from the tree, this time, landing confidently on her feet. She held in her hand a hefty bag, filled to the bring with mouth-watering, teeth-rotting, cavity-inducing candy.

As Susei was introduced, Furijia reflected her smile. Rather than shake the younger girl’s hand, Furijia curtseyed; pinching her skirt and bowing slightly. Then, sticking her hand into the bag of candy, she pulled out another Sand Dango. She reached out and shook Susei’s hand, simultaneously, passing the girl the sandy confectionery.

Next, she turned to Taiyo, holding up the bag of candy, “Wanna share?”

Shoshitsugetsu

The Mist’s craggy coast was one of Shoshitsugetsu’s favorite places to be. The ocean was vigorous and active, waved smashing against the rocks, throwing up sprays of salty mist —just the way she liked it. Seated on one such rock, the Eternal Ocean Nightmare Queen, stared aimlessly at the horizon.

Far beyond where the sea met the sky was the border of the Land of Fire. Although she wasn’t 100% certain, the recent events would likely result in the various shinobi powers checking their coastal towns for damage. That possibility meant that the mass genjutsu previously set up at the Land of Fire was at great risk of being discovered —assuming it hadn’t been exposed already.

On her own volition, she’d immediately had all the genjutsu placed dispelled and the shinobi in the area pulled back. That being said, she wasn’t a fan of leaving behind evidence. The genjutsu would result in people missing memories and failing to recall actions, and while she’d ensured to leave no further trails to follow, a competent investigator would still find her tracks.

While she could certainly hide the manipulation of the citizen’s themselves, she couldn’t hide the after effects; the various changes to the town which had been made while under the genjutsu. Although difficult, deduction from these changes to the town were in no way impossible, and Shoshitsugetsu had no plans to leave it as such.

Of course, she wouldn’t go herself, that would be far too conspicuous, but instead —”Mother...you called?”

The waves breaking against the rocks slowly coalesced into the image of Hyoryugetsu, and surprisingly, the girl looked rather haggard.

Spoiler: ”Skippable Fluff”

There were no wounds on her skin to prove it —the Hydrofication technique made sure of that— but the weariness in her eyes and the tattered nature of her clothes betrayed her condition.

“Did you succeed?”

In response to Shoshitsugetsu’s question, Hyoryugetsu pulled out two sparkling pins. One of coral, depicting a still lake, and the other of glass, iridescent in the sunlight. These two pins represented her position in the Palaces of Lake and Phantasm. Having defeated the previous holder of the Lake pin, Hyo had taken their spot, becoming the new Lady of the Lake.

Nodding with approval, Sho delivered the task at hand. A few troublesome nails in the Land of Fire now needed to be hammered down, so to speak. The task would belong to Hyo, who’s departure would be far less noticeable than her own.

Baiyan

*sigh*

“Nadeshiko Style: Reverse Tsumabegaeshi!”

A light-consuming arc swept behind the Sword Star as her black blade clashed with the arrow approaching from behind. Although she was blind, she was a sensory-type shinobi, and she constantly kept visual of the chakra signatures around her. That including the chakra-filled arrow that had sought to take her from behind.

Sheathing her sword as quickly as she’d drawn it, Baiyan slowly turned around to face her opponent. When she’d slashed against the arrow earlier, she’d also added wind chakra to her blade, and a distortion of air now carved through space, heading towards the location of the archer.

Yasu

Just as silent as Madoka —if not more so— Yasu painted the picture of stoic. Blending into the wall behind him, he kept his head down, happy to let the Kazekage and Pakura trade pleasantries. Situations like this were...discomforting at best, and downright horrific at their worst. Finding something of significant interest out the window, Yasu remained fixed on it. Notably, he could see the group of Nadeshiko kunoichi exiting the village and disappearing across the sand dunes.

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

The spectral creature known as B.O.S.E.C shushed Seiun, a single clawed finger up to it’s crescent shaped mouth.

“It is ͞bette͡r if ̨y̛o҉u ̴ju҉st͘ ̕comṕly̨,͢ ̶Seiun̷.́”̴

The digital aberration swirled around him making an attempted shrug, even though it was hard to tell with only a few parts of a hand and wrist components.

“̨B̀ecau̕s҉e͞ one ͝is̵ o҉l̵d, ͏dǫes̵ n͝ot eq҉ua͟t̡e t̀o͏ ̛us̕e̕ĺes͘ś.̧ ͡Who͞ ́kn͟o̧w̕s? Y͜òu҉ ̴c̛ou͠ld҉ l҉e҉a͞r̷ǹ ͝ą ͝t̵hi͟ǹg or ͞tw̧o ̢fr͞o͠m̸ t͏h̛e҉ pa͝s͞t̛ ҉al̢o҉ng ̧t̶hè ͠wa̧y.”



......


Jin grunted, scratching his Jin at Mei’s response with 10 overall guards. His eyes locking with her’s.

“We mustn’t arouse suspicion. We must keep our numbers hidden. Only I will be going with you personally. The other honor guard will be elsewhere, ready to strike when they receive a signal from me. But I will bring two, as to mask our chakra signature. One sensory type is all it would take to sense more than those two.”

He turned around, facing the door. There wasn’t much else to discuss with Mei, as he was straight and to the point with his request.

“Now. If that is all.”


He pressed against the doors of the office, leaving the Kage alone with her thoughts. Sighing, the Yuki clan head walked through the halls of the kage’s Mansion...to find a certain hunter-nin awaiting him at the exit.

“Father!”

Kai walked up to Jin, a determined look upon his face. Jin furrowed his brow, giving a stern expression toward the boy.

“Kai? This is highly unusual. You should be out refining the defensive-“

“Why did you do it?!”

Jin didn’t say a word. He simply stared down Kai, who breathed heavily, desperate for answers. Searching for the words, Jin looked down at him.

“I don’t know what you are-“

“Don’t lie to me!” Kai yelled back. “You were there. You always spoke of eliminating the vile Xeno threat if they were to attack our heartland! But you didn’t do anything!”

“Kai...adjust your tone with you speak to me. I was assessing the situation and providing damage control-“

“Bull. SHIT!”

“Kai!”

“It’s our duty as Yuki to protect the mist! Like antibodies in a human body. But you failed to do that. Instead you ordered all of them to back away and let whatever that was take Kanshi!”

“You don’t know what your speaking about son-“

“That thing didn’t kill Kanshi, you did!”

“ENOUGH!”

Jin unveiled a thin layer of water that resided under his black kimono. The water streamed out and collided with kai. Kai didn’t expect the attack and was hit directly by the water, slamming into a nearby wall. The water quickly froze over, kai’s Body outside his head completely covered in the ice. Jin walked up to him, a fury in his stoic face.

“You’ve weared my patience thin Kai.”

“...Ngh!”

“I will be lentient on you for your outright disgraceful behavior toward a clan head and your father. You will sit here attached to this wall until the ice melts. If I find you have gotten out with help, I will freeze you again and watch you myself.”

Kai couldn’t bring himself to respond, he just gave a defeated huff, as it was futile to challenge a much stronger Yuki. Jin, satisfied I’m his actions, continued past Kai. Kai, glaring, looking betrayed, watched his old man leave.

He doesn’t fight the Xeno, but is quick to freeze me against the wall? This isn’t right. My father would never do this! He will answer for this...he must answer why!

 

[DarkHydraT]

"Need to keep you in check somehow. If I let you do whatever you want, I'd find you and the others crashed in my home with cups of ramen everywhere." Mori quipped, half expecting to find the gang in his home once they get back. Accepting the band-aid offered to him, he put it on the bruise. It would not work in the slightest, but Naomi didn't have to know that.

"Thank you Naomi, I feel no pain already!" He smiled as he gave her a thumbs-up, implying he was okay.

"Oh stop the blame game already. Next time I'll take care of those brakes, that way we know who is responsible if it all goes wrong if everyone is okay with that." The mole genin suggested, waiting for the gang to react.

Stifling a laugh, Mori looked away as to not put Tomiko into an uncomfortable position. Iwao looked at his son disapprovingly but didn't say anything. He didn't approve of his son laughing at the expense of Tomiko, but he knew he would not be any better in his shoes. Kasumi on the other hand kept an eye on her husband, she saw him bite his lip just a moment ago. That was a bad sign, but maybe he could pull himself through this
-----------

"I didn't give it much thought before, but I think I will. I can't hide here and never feel strong enough to compete. I have to start somewhere, and I might as well start now. I can keep training until I sprout wings, but the competition will just get stronger as well. I can't let Kumo's honor be on only your shoulders again. I might not pass, but I can atleast support you if I fail." A cloud of smoke covered Taji's bird figure as she cancelled the transformation jutsu and revealed her human body sitting on the branch, softly smiling at Kenji.

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

King Mori blinked at the original, a deadpan expression plastered on his face. He didn’t seem too keen on mori’s Cheesy dialogue. He facepalmed, shaking his head. Shortly after this, the king reached behind his back and cartoonishly brought out a wooden sign with red paint, saying: ‘I’m with stupid’ with a red arrow pointing to Mori.

 

[kyuukestu]

Mei

With the Yuki Head having departed, Mei made her decision, and jotted it down. She would bring with her two people in the open, Jin, and Shoshitsugetsu. However, Jin’s antics were not the greatest of her concerns. Instead, that lofty position began to the summit itself; how would she present the threat of Damos without inadvertently betraying the Mist’s weakened position?

It was a tricky question, but the Mizukage had a plan — ”Chino, send word to Hama, we shall prepare a little demonstration.”



A petite silhouette swept from the window of the Kage’s mansion, bounding across the roof tops until she was at the black water’s treatment facility. Strolling through the body-laden halls, Chino made her way through the facility as she came upon Hama and her disciple.

“The Lady Mizukage believes it to be in the village’s best interest that this Black Water be put on demonstration at the upcoming Kage Summit, therefore a sample of the Black Water and your presence have been requested by requisition.”

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

“Hm hmm hmmm~”

Hama whistled and hummed ss she and Tsuki went about treating the patients within the room. Wiping her brow, she gave a satisfying sigh.

“And this one is done, onto the next~”

Before she could bring out a new subject, Chino, a servant of mei’s Came into the room. Hama pondered at the sudden appearance of them, giving a smile to Tsuki.

“You can go off and enjoy your Christmas Eve Tsuki, you’ve learned enough for today.”

Giving a little flick of her wrists to shoo and encourage Tsuki to leave the the pair alone. After she did so, she carefully brought a new patient to her table whilst listening to Chino’s message.

“Hmmm...”

Then, Hama broke from her pondering stance and turned back into her signature sing song expression.

“I don’t feel like it~”

This would no doubt come off as a surprise to anyone who would have heard this conversation, that is, unless they knew Hama.

“Sorry darling, but I don’t take kindly to messengers. I only consider it worth my time if whoever wants something from me give me the time of day to come in person. Don’t worry, it’s not you. Your doing just fine sweetie~”

 

[kyuukestu]

Mist Village

Shrugging her shoulders Chino stalked up to the counter and retrieved one of the cups containing black water. Pulling out a scroll, she stored the whole thing inside with the enclosing technique, and then stored that scroll inside yet another scroll. Twirling the twice sealed sample in hand, she waltzed out of the Medical treatment center, waving good bye as she did so.

“Tata then~ “

 

[Godjacob]

Okabe's eyes widened slightly as Reaver seemed to slip by as its hand was almost on auto pilot while he moved around. He had no way to know what he had aimed to attack with as the faint sounds of a weapon unveiling had been all he heard.

Irregardless, he broke his attack and lept over Reaver to land some distance back. However, the grimace on his face and trickle of blood on Reaver's scythe would show he had not gotten away unscathed as a cut was present along his back. But for the sake of the caravan Okabe had to suck it up.

Woosh!

Azumi herself seemed momentarily occupied as this monster of a man swung with that hammer and just ducked underneath the strike as she hopped back. She had tried to strike the leg of this massive caravan member but nothing came of it as he seemed to shrug off the blow. Was it immune to damage, could it not feel pain? Azumi had no way to know all she did know was she had to figure out a way to take him out and do it quickly...

------
The archer's eyes only widened slightly as her arrow had been slashed at by this mysterious unseen chakra as this current shot towards her; some sort of wind attack as naturally she moved to the side as she swiftly moved along the foliage to avoid whatever attack that had been.

Somehow the woman had caught her sight from behind. A sensory type? Was that why she had hung back? In any event she needed to focus as she regrouped to a new hiding spot as she prepared an arrow and made some hand signs.

Woosh!

Before long another arrow had been shot, this one however was laced not just with regular chakra as it had crackled and produced an electirc coating around the arrow; which increased not merely its piercing capabilities but also its speed as it shot at almost a blinding speed towards the scout. The aim clear and simple; try to strike her down with a high-speed arrow before she had the time to react or avoid it.

She seemed dangerous for a scout, so she needed to take her out and take out out quickly before she locked into her new position.

-----------
"You know you are the master of sending me mixed signals. First you support my cause for Tsuchikage, but now you imply I can't even be trusted with the gang & some cup of noodles. Perhaps whenever you decide to get around to inviting us to your place then we can talk~" Tomiko replied taking Mori's tease in stride.

Naomi had a smile as Mori fed the white lie to her while he put on the band-aid, though the focus shifted towards Mori decree that he'd be the one to handle the breaks of the sled.

"Really? You'd actually ride with us? Sure you'd work up the nerve ?" Hoshi asked before he got an elbow from Jirou that caused him to yelp. Tomiko had a laugh before she interjected.

"Mori may tend to over worry, but he is fearless when he needs to be. I know that better myself, if you ever do want to ride with us we have plenty of room." Tomiko replied with a grin before slices of the freshly cut pie were laid out to each member present at the table; Mori's parents first and foremost along with Mori himself thereafter as soon everyone had a freshly made slice to go around.

"I think the teases can be saved till after we eat." Atsuko replied with a gentle smile as Kuro handed out utensils and napkins as well.

-----------
Kenji listened to Taji as she expressed desire to improve but also play a role in "relieving" the stress of representing Kumo on his shoulders as he shook his head; an amused grin all the same as he transformed back into his normal form.

"Yeah, I've seen the peer group of the other nations. Scary bunch, even the ones who have not yet been promoted. I need to do better, I will do better....but that is no reason you should settle for support. You've got time, and together I feel we can help each other to help give Kumo a better showing." Kenji countered back, with some resolve he had not had in some time. Between Taji here and Sakura back in the exams people have had a habit to go out of the way for him. And he had nothing to show for it to earn this kind of benefit or generous thought from anyone.

That had to change, that would change. He would be certain of it.

"Ah thought I picked up some familiar scents."

Kenji glanced as by a nearby building rested Aisha, who had a freshly offered Kumo headband around her neck she wore with some pride as both Luna & Sun as she had a toothy grin having overheard the tail end of the convo.

"So, training for the exams? Well mind if I tag along? I could use some training as well and I figure it would only helps us and they make good sparring partners." Aisha proposed as she stroked Luna & Sun at once as she had made her offer.

-----------
"L-look kid all we are doing is helping your friend not g-get a trip to Ibuki or worse. Now e-easy!" The ninja said, as he kept a tight hold on Kou though snapped his head back to avoid his teeth coming for his nose as he worked to walk out of the room with Kou in toe.

"E-easy Kou, I know how you feel but picking fights isn't gonna make the situation better. Or give me much ground to help..." Sakura urged Kou, the last part with a whisper, as honestly his efforts were more likely to hurt Zaku's chances then help him; not that she cared about Zaku given what she had personally seen him do but for Kou's sake she had to try and settle Kou however she could.

At the same time, the purple haired ANBU finally caught ground with the one-eyed Jonin and resident seal expert. Well one of the best among the non-comatose candidates as she relayed word of what happened in the hospital room. To some extent Kakashi internally blamed himself, as he should have overseen some precautions when it came to the seals at it extended to that mark that Anko also bared.

"Well, guess I should go and help Inoichi clean up this little mess. Wouldn't want a scene, has it been decided what is to be done with him?" Kakashi asked curiously.

"Information is needed, and in light of certain successful practices of the Hyuga it is decided he will be tasnfered over to the Inuzuka to watch him and possibly pry any information out of him on his own accord." Yugao explained as Kakashi gave a nod, curiously reaching into a bag to continue off his favorite piece of literature.

"I see. And when shall such a transfer be made?"

"Soon, he is in stable condition now. This incident not withstanding. Though Lady Hisao wants a look over him. She will likely go to visit once Inoichi is finished and that incident is quelled."

"I see. So this is Lady Tsunade's decree?"

"It'd better be, or that Sarutobi really is all I hear from the Hyuga."

Kakashi & Yugao's conversation had been interrupted by a new voice, as he glanced up and saw a curious group with them. One was Lady Hisao herself, with a trio of black-fur wolves on hand along with two other men who seemed to also be of the Inuzuka; as evident by their rather large brown-furred canine companions as they observed him from the roof of a building they had been in front of.

----------
As the notice was read with its hidden message, another curious set of eyes gazed upon the one reading it. To the average observe, it was nothing more than a mere butterfly. Nothing to take note of, but to the trained eye the butterfly's patterns and focus around the letter as it was read had been a clear sign of something.

Something that signified the interest of another clan about the contents of the letter. And the one who held it.

----------
Daichi had never been one for more well...formal affairs, which in all likelihood was not why he was not in such a festive mood as the Hyuga had been. Though even with that fact or his own rather disinterest in all this it had not changed annual tradition as he began to make his way to the Akimichi.

Inoichi was said to meet them later, as the Ino-Shika-Cho had not merely been a staple whenever members of their clan ended up graduating in the same class, but an also a festive get together. To exchange good will and of course some personal matters between them.

Daichi entered the Akimichi compound, and he found Akimichi head Osamu already waiting. In an open section that was by a little garden with a table set for three as Osamu had a bowl of ramen in hand.

Even for formal affairs, he could not help but bring a meal along. Though Daichi made no mention of that as he moved to one of the two open seats as some tea was laid out by the three seats.

"I see you are well prepared for this Osamu." Daichi said to his former teammate as Osamu had a chuckle as he downed several noodles.

"Well, given last year you kept me and Inoichi waiting a half-hour later when you were host for the pre-arrangements I figured I should set a better example for the Akimichi Dai." Osamu replied with a grin as he referred to Daichi by his old nickname as Diachi had a sigh and took a sip of tea. This was bound to be a long meeting, depending on when Inoichi would be finished with his business.

 

[Grand Master Koop]

Shiho ran back into the clan mansion, now with Kiro following along. “The sewing room is past the training halls so we can head there after you do whatever you want there.” When they arrived within view of the halls, Shiho noticed two figures walking out of the room, a girl and her brother. “Oho, what’s this I see.” Shiho smirked to herself.

 

[Mystic Zander]

“ICHIKO! ICHIKO WHERE ARE YOU?!?!” A rather labored and panicked Kido shouted through the dense foliage lining the edge of Kumo, billowing smoke visible in the distance behind him.

“Kido....what’re we gonna do....they’ll kill us both for this....” The burgundy haired shinobi muttered from a tree branch high above her beloved, rubbing a small baby bump she’d only recently began to notice.

“Ichiko....we’ve gotta leave. We’ll never have a future if we remain in Kumo. Please, come with me.” Kido pleaded as he jumped along the tree line, meeting Ichikos gaze just as he finished his speaking. The young shinobi held a hand out to Ichiko, awaiting her response.

“But why? How will we ever be free? We’ll spend the rest of our days being hunted...you, me, and....her...” Ichiko mumbled with misty eyes, gently running her fingers along her belly. This caught Kido’s attention, he leaned down, placing his hand on top of hers.

“How do you know it’s a girl?”

“I don’t know....I’ve just got a feeling.”

“Heh.....ya know...I bet your right.” Kido replied as he gripped Ichiko’s hand firmly, lifting her to her feet.
“But if you want a future with her, and me....we’ve gotta try. It’s the onl-“ Kido was cut off by the sound of voices closing in on them, likely members of the Denki clan.

“Ichiko...” He added in a quiet yet panicked tone, turning towards the tree line, “We have to go now.”

Ichiko stood there for a moment, allowing Kidos words to sink in, before interlocking her hand with his.

“...your right. Let’s go now Kido!”

~~~

“Katsuo, wake up. We’ve arrived.” Kido shook his sons shoulder, causing the multi-banded ninja to awake with a jolt.

There they were, the large double doors leading into the Leaf Village.

“It’s been awhile....glad to be home.” Ichiko muttered over her shoulder, giving her son a pat on the leg as they all loaded off the wagon they’d previously been traveling on.

 

[sSoul]

Taiyo
To the mutual surpise of both Akugami siblings, Furījia had decided to curtsey as opposed to the standard handshake. The little girl stared blankly at the Hyūga heiress until her handshake was returned, and with a little gift.

"Thank you Miss Furījia!" Susei exlclaimed as she looked at her candy,"Big bro, Ill be on the swings," The academy then left the two to resume her previous endeavors.

"Sorry about that, just figured that you should know her, both of you being people I care about and all," Taiyo internally winced, but decided that he should just roll with what he said, "Anyways, I'd love to share any of the sweets you have in your bag,"

Hopefully she doesnt take that the worng way.

She probably will, no doubt in my mind.
Tsuki/Seiun
The treatment process of the paitent was going well; Hama was humming which usually indicates that she's in the mood. Tsuki had tried her best to keep up, but she wasn't satisfied with her own performance. Finally, the elder Yuki medic had given a satisfied sigh and a wipe of her brow to accompany it.

“And this one is done, onto the next~”


The younger Yuki medic was lightly panting due to exhaustion, despite the pills that she had been given by hher sensei. Fourtunately, it seemed the universe was smiling upon her, for at that moment, a messenger of the Mizukage had arrived to speak to Hama.

“You can go off and enjoy your Christmas Eve Tsuki, you’ve learned enough for today.”

Tsuki politiely bowed to her elders before walking away. Now, her mind could be occupied with less important matters.

Well, the only "friends" I have that I cpuld give gifts to are Kai, Hyo and Seiun. Neither Kai nor Hyo strike me as the types to want gifts, though I can ask Hama about the former. As for Seiun...really anything will do. Maybe something to decorate that axe of his.

Meanwhile, the Rainy rouge was busy being shushed by the spectral figure, much to his displeasure.

“It is ͞bette͡r if ̨y̛o҉u ̴ju҉st͘ ̕comṕly̨,͢ ̶Seiun̷.́”̴

Seiun decided to nod as a way to show B.O.S.E.C that no further questions will be asked of him.

“̨B̀ecau̕s҉e͞ one ͝is̵ o҉l̵d, ͏dǫes̵ n͝ot eq҉ua͟t̡e t̀o͏ ̛us̕e̕ĺes͘ś.̧ ͡Who͞ ́kn͟o̧w̕s? Y͜òu҉ ̴c̛ou͠ld҉ l҉e҉a͞r̷ǹ ͝ą ͝t̵hi͟ǹg or ͞tw̧o ̢fr͞o͠m̸ t͏h̛e҉ pa͝s͞t̛ ҉al̢o҉ng ̧t̶hè ͠wa̧y.”

This caused the missing-nin to chuckle as he walked towards the museum.

You know, if you weren't a spectral construct, I'd imagine you as a history teacher. I mean with lines like that and with your possible ability to know people's life story, you'd be a damn good one.

 

[Nukas]

Amari just watched as Shura left the room after his short response, not waiting to even see if she would reply. While she thought it a tad rude, she honestly was glad that he was gone. Her sister was obviously upset and she didn’t care for Shura that much anyway. Anyway, it gave Amari a chance to meditate for a while by herself. She sat down, closed her eyes, and focused until she could feel her own heartbeat. Her meditation was used to center herself and take in all of her surroundings. She learned that she should meditate often from the previous solitary star soon after she was brought in by her.

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Kou listened to sakura’s words, his struggling with the anbu slowing, grinding to a halt. Soon enough, he was plopped outside the hall, noticeably a distance away from zaku’s door, on purpose most likely. As the anbu and ninja left to attend to Zaku with Kakashi, Kou looked down to his hands.

Why is it I’m always here?

He slumped over against a wall, putting his head into his knees, and his arms over that. It seemed that Kou had accepted the futility of his actions.

“I t-try you know...” Kou eeked out. “I try to give back those t-that have given to me but...”

Remembering all the incidents. Sagiso throwing him to a wall, Dosu nearly killing him, and reaver nearly blowing him sky high. He was powerless to assist Zaku with fighting Sagiso, Sakura fighting Dosu, and even the pervert Madoka who bravely stood in reaver’s warpath. And Tomiko...he owed so much to him, but simply couldn’t pay up.

“Whenever I try to pay back that kindness, I screw up...” Kou sniffled. “I can’t do anything...”



......



B.O.S.E.C. Laughed in it’s distorted fashion, amused by seiun’s words.

“I̢ ͏a̧m ͟an͏y̴th̀ing͜ yo̵ù n̶e͝e̡d҉ ͘m̨e̶ ͜t̢o ҉be. B́ut ̛t̶h̛è ̵co̵m̛p҉l̴imen͜t͞ ͠i̴s̕ a͜p͏p̶reciated̸.”̛

B.O.S.E.C. Watched eagerly as seiun made it to the front of the museum, opening the door before him. It was met with the cold air of the indoors, with a small hint of musk. The entrance room to the museum was decorated with white glossy marble floors and blue wallpaper lining the walls. On said Walls, were numerous artifacts such as the first nugget of gold found in the mist, Ancient battle armors used by mist soldiers, ceremonial fans and katanas, a large rectangular display of many important Shinobi in mist history’s headbands, and finally a large two wall taking history of the mist’s creation and inception.

At the entryway door, there was a checkout counter, manned by an older man in a chair that seemed to have seen many things in his old age. B.O.S.E.C. Leered, looking to the two hallways to the left and right of the room.

“H͝er̡e ̶w̢e a͜re..͟.”

 

[kyuukestu]

Furijia

"Sorry about that, just figured that you should know her, both of you being people I care about and all."

A dim blush emerged on Furijia’s dusty cheeks, Taiyo’s comment of affection taking her by surprised. Her fingers pinched at the hem of her dress, toes drawing shallow circles in the dirt. The rock laying at her feet seemed awfully interesting all of a sudden.

The idea that someone outside her family held affection for her, and had confessed so openly, made her slightly giddy. It was...so sudden! ...so abrupt! She wasn’t ready —not at all— and she was flustered.

She was immediately the self-conscious. How did she look—

Hair? Dark, silky streams flowed over her shoulders and guided down her back —she’d let her hair down today. Clothes? Only a peek of sky blue could be seen between the grey, furred, vest she wore.

—she looked fine. Simple, but fine.

With her image in no immediate danger, Furijia’s questions took on a different focus. Her fingers clenched at her dress, feet digging into the ground. She now stared directly into Taiyo’s eyes cheeks flushed.

“Why...? Why would you care about me...”

The blush on her cheeks hadn’t faded, in fact it grew even stronger, face and neck heating up as a thought came to her— ‘I hope this isn’t cause he saw up my skirt..’

Sagiso

The cracks in her lips tasted of sweet iron. A busted face was not how she wished to present herself tomorrow. She already knew beforehand, that she would be performing, both in the tournament, and as a singer. In hind sight, she probably shouldn’t have gotten into a fight in the first place. However, that was already been done, and so Shura took the full brunt of her irritation.

That said, she hadn’t spared him a glance as she walked off. On her way she passed Kiro, and alongside him was the small child who always seemed to be leering at her breasts. An odd pairing, to say the least. The sight of the Uchiha happened to jog her memory, and she called out to him— “Kiro! You need to report to Mom to retrieve last mission’s reward.” Her voice had been loud, allowing it to travel the distance between them. Following up in a softer voice, she reminded herself. “Now I need to tell Little Ko—”

That’s when it struck her. Being a Kunoichi of the Sound, and a user of auditory genjutsu, Tayuya would obviously be good at music. Right? Why else would their symbol be a musical note?

Quickly, Sagiso adjusted her path. A new target in mind. It was only minutes later that she slammed open the doors to Tayuya’s residence.

“Little Kosho!”

 

[Retro Master]

After catching up to Shiho, the first person he noticed was Sagisō. More specifically, the unfortunate lack of hair. One glimpse at her was enough to give him a reasonable idea on what had transpired. Judging by the blood and bruises, she must have just finished sparring with Shura. A pretty rough spar it would seem.

Sagisō didn’t look all that enthusiastic about the results. Neither did Shura. In fact, the few remnants of hair from Sagisō that remained on the male Hyūga seemed to be proof that he had found himself in quite the hairy situation. A situation which would’ve definitely forced his hand… probably right into her face. That being said, he still had an idea on who the victor was.

His brief analysis was cut short when Sagisō called out to him. Upon hearing that he would be receiving a reward, his mind went straight to the possibilities.

‘This mission had to be S-Rank. If I remember correctly, the reward for an S-Rank mission is at least 1,000,000 ryō! There’s some stuff I could do with that amount.’

Perhaps his work had paid off during the mission. Why else would the Leaf be willing to reward a prisoner? The Uchiha needed to find Hinagiku before someone changed their mind. He was also really grateful that Sagisō had given him this important information. However, before he could actually thank her for once, she was already heading the other way whispering something. That left Kiro to turn his attention to the culprit.

“Let me guess Shura. Sagisō beat you, didn’t she?”

Kiro questioned the obvious, believing there was no way Sagisō lost. As for Shura, he supposed cutting her hair was a commendable accomplishment. That long hair had been a dangerous weapon. Kiro remembered his own leg had been impaled by the hair and almost rendered completely unusable. Fortunately for the Hyūga, Sagisō had not been aiming to kill.

“Anyways, Shiho, I need to see Lady Hinagiku right now. If I don’t return soon, I’ll try to find you. That or you can wait in my room.”

The Uchiha shared an apologetic look with Shiho for a brief moment before running off to find the Hyūga Head. Kiro knew he needed the clothes and made a mental note to find Shiho afterwards. Hopefully Shiho knew where he was staying if she wasn’t going to wait here. Either way, his new priority was to secure whatever that reward was.

 

[Grand Master Koop]

Running past Sagiso, Shiho got a brief look at the Kunoichi’s breasts through her skins tight outfit. “Nice.” She said to herself before coming to a stop in front of the training halls. “Here we are Kiro, so whatcha want to do here?” She asked enthusiastically. When Kiro said he needed to see Hinagiku, Shiho’s expression saddened a bit. “Oh, well that’s fine. I’ll see you at your place.” She called out while waving the Uchiha goodbye.

Shura turned to look at the duo who just arrived. When Kiro walked up to him and asked his question, Shura sighed. “You’d guess right.” He responded before watching the Uchiha run off. The Hyuga’s attention was then turned towards his sister who looked less peppy in the moment.

“What’s wrong Shiho?”

“Oh uh, I realized I don’t know where Kiro’s room is.”

“Hmm, I think I can take you there.”

“You know where it is?”

“Ive never been there myself but I do know the area he’s staying in. He staying in the same room as that sound girl I’m tasked with watching Tayuya.”

“That’s great! Thanks bro.”

“I was going to pass by there anyway.” Shura rolled the abundant hair around him around his shoulder to make it easier to carry.

The Hyuga siblings then made their way to the residence of the prisoners. Arriving there, they saw Sagiso who was already there barging I’m on Tayuya. “Oh what’s this interesting scenario.” Shiho said out loud.

 

[Godjacob]

Sakura watched as the door to Zaku's room closed while she turned to Kou who had slumped onto the wall and seemed to be having a moment which caused the girl to frown. Sakura had no love loss for Zaku or Oto, but the kid seemed nice enough during this time "together" and even if he had been impulsive but his heart was in the right place.

Even if for the wrong person.

Should I say something?
I mean you can, whether or not he'd listen is another matter.
Maybe, but I think it'd be good if he had some posit vie support. Otherwise he'd only see Zaku as an influence.
Look I get he isn't a bad kid, but not like we need to make it a priority to win him over or something.
Maybe not, but as a medical-nin I swore to help people in need no matter circumstance and right now he needs someone to turn to.

Sakura finished her internal debate with a sigh as she walked over to Kou, moving to sit next to him as she was silent at first unsure of what to say. After what seemed like an eternity but in truth had been only but a few moments she turned to Kou.

"H-hey uh....I know this can't be easy. If you need to talk about anything, I am all ears." Sakura offered to Kou as she figured giving him someone to talk with was a good first step to resolve what troubled him; merely just letting him know she was there for him.

-----​

As the room was thankfully cleared, the nurse made certain to check that Zaku was stable condition, naturally she had to make sure that this sudden outburst and odd mark had no immediate adverse effects. Thankfully, after the initial speak his heart beat seemed to relax and his vitals appeared stable. Would make things complicated if he had dropped dead or something else comparable.

"Yo."

The heads turned just as the nurse worked to try to secure Zaku to the bed as Kakashi hung on the open window, naturally he had his favoriate book in hand as he gave his casual greeting as Yugao had returned into the room already.

"The Kakashi Hatake showing up on time? Truly this is a day of celebration." Inoichi joked as Kakashi's habit had been an not so secret talking point about the white-haired Jonin, who had entered the room as his lone eye focused on the flip of the page.

"Well thankfully my personal ANBU escort was able to keep any stray cats off the path. So you can count your fortunes, especially considering that the daunting task of dealing with a bed-ridden Genin." Kakashi mused, with only a touch of sarcasm.

"Well most Genin don't have that, and unfortunalty with the last of the known Uzumaki line within the Leaf gone and Lord Hokage comatose our sealing experts have dwindled to try and deal with it. So to prevent another chaotic scene you are among our last options we have to work with." Inoichi explained or rather reminded Kakashi who had shifted his focus as he turned to Zaku's frame; his eye no longer on the book as it scanned along the recently activated mark as he seemed lost in thought for a minute or two before he glanced to the others in the room.

"I'll need space."

-----------
"Zzzzzzz...."

Tayuya had naturally been asleep through all this, as she cared nothing for this ceremony and after a brief private workout aimed to rest up but it appeared that fate was not one to grant Tayuya and peace or serenity as a loud knock came at the door as the distinctive if not overly peppy tone of Sagiso was heard as Tayuya grumbled while she was referred to by Sagiso's self-given nickname to her.

"S-shut up...noisy bitch...." Tayuya muttered under her breath as she got up. Not because she had any desire to see what Sagiso wanted but more on the assumption she would pester with those knocks until she had done so. Slowly she opened the door with a major case of bed hair as it had been frizzled, not that she cared.

"What the fuck do you want?" Tayuya asked with her usual tone and natural "enhancer" of choice, not even caring that Shura was there or anyone for that matter.

-----
​

Just outside the Hyuga Compound, a pale skinned and rather unimposing women in a dark green vest with short black hair in a bowl hair-cut and a pair of glasses approached the front gates; as she seemed to have an interest with it, what interest had not been known but as a lone butterfly landed on her finger a silent exchange was shared as she nodded before she went to one of the Hyuga Guard.

"Good evening. Is Lady Hinagiku present? Or is she still away?"

 

[sSoul]

Taiyo
As soon as he saw Furījia's blush, Taiyo knew that she had taken it the wrong way. As she was fumbling through her own emotions, the firey shinobi was doing the same.

This is bad...

I agree, what are we supposed to do, break her heart? Not gonna happen.

I'll...play this off somehow.

Unfourtunately, the Hyūga heiress wasnt initially making matters any easier as she stared into Taiyo's eyes to ask a simple question.

“Why...? Why would you care about me...”

It was at this moment that the FBS master had an epiphany, a realization that could save him from this position. From this moment, a feeling similar to those associated with a romantic liking began to fill the Leaf-nin's heart, and while it was minor, it gave him inspiration to give her an answer.

"Why do I care about you? Well, thats a weird question to ask," Taiyo started out, "Frankly, I believe that it shouldnt matter why I care about you, but if you need details; its because I trust you, its because I believe in you, its because I admire you and your skills, skills that I'd love to see more of. But the underlying reason why I care is because...I think you deserve it,"

Seiun
The rouge-nin appreciated B.O.S.E.C's laughter in response to his joke, primarily because it gave the construct an element taht is commonly associated with humans; a sense of humor. Once he was inside, the first thing that Seiun noticed was the chilly air that had a smell of musk. The second thing he noticed was an elderly man at what seemed to be a checkout stand.

“H͝er̡e ̶w̢e a͜re..͟.”

Seiun nodded to B.O.S.E.C before deciding to try and walk past the old man, hoping to avoid the conversation.