Ikaku [Pt. 3] Orientation

Age : 31 Posts : 1118

Previous Chapter

Ogatami was now initiated into the Ikaku organization, his period of hazing and trials were now over, thankfully. He proved himself to not only be a strong individual, but also one of loyalty as well. This was tested when faced with the Police Force of Konoha, and not managing to slip one detail about the Ikaku through his babbling mouth. Even when faced against the intimidating officers of the Police Force, he remained composed and retained his secrecy, something, Rogan, their leader, commended him for. The small band of future criminals flickered through the village during the time of the setting sun. The sky became grayed with the summoning of thick clouds of the night, and the temperature started to cool rapidly. It's been more than twenty four hours now, and Ogatami still didn't get any sleep yet. He was both physically and mentally exhausted, and his body was simply being animated by his sheer strength of will. He started to nod off in the midst of his travels, and trip occasionally when landing on a rooftop. Sunaya, caught on to the display of weakness before the others did, and assisted him by putting his arm over her shoulder. They both jumped in unison together and shared a moment of intimacy during that time, yet neither one of them decided to speak on it, saving themselves from the potential awkwardness. After a while, the gang finally reached the Mountain's Graveyard area. Since everything was mostly shrouded in mist, Ogatami, didn't realize he entered the sector unlike the others. It wasn't until he saw the remains of huge creatures and skeletons until he got a clue that their base, was probably inside this twisted domain.

In Ogatami's perspective, it felt like they traveled an hour within the graveyard before reaching a cabin near its southern region. This location, unlike the rest of the immense graveyard, was actually a moist woodland area covered with plenty of moss. They all stopped a few yards front of a wooden cabin that was located at the base of a awkwardly angled tree. The creepy appearance of the whole scenery didn't seem to bother the other members of the Ikaku; they must have been use to working in this sort of dark environment. Ogatami looked over the heads of his fellow Ikaku members, and analyzed the woodland surrounding them in both a physical, and sensory perspective. Although the area appeared dark in many aspects, he sensed that it was still rich in life force and nature. He sensed the thousands maggots under the tree bark, the moles under the earth, and the ravens that nested in the branches above. It wasn't the picturesque one would picture when visualizing nature, yet, Ogatami managed to find life and beauty within it. His connection with nature was a marvelous gift to possess, but also a curse at some times.

They all made it to the entrance of the wooden cabin before entering. All of the members, excluding the leader, Rogan, departed from the cabin and tree-hopped back to towards the village. Although they were secretly young criminals, they were still young citizens after all, and surely had other responsibilities to attend to besides Ogatami's mere initiation. Once they entered back into the mist, their presences were gone, which continued to creep Ogatami out even more. He was still in the arms of Sunaya, who aided him on his travels to the strange cabin from back within the village. At this point, Ogatami was in a rather lucid state with half baked eyes and a goolish demeanor. He breathing became heavy with the urge to sleep, but he remained awakened to prove that he was strong enough to complete his secret assignment to it's fullest. Rogan, the burly blue haired boy, walked passed the duo and pushed them as he passed, knocking Sunaya off her balance, which caused Ogatami to jerk in fear and confusion. He laughed at this bullyish gesture, and Sunaya balled up her fist in anger. He chuckled briefly, and held the door knob as he began to speak.

"So, we're here. This is the entrance of the Ikaku's Western Headquarters, or simply W.H.Q." He disclosed. Ogatami looked at the cabin and evaluated the perimeter. It was way too small to be the base of operations for a gang as notorious as the Ikaku, even if it was just a branch-hideout. Speaking of which, the thought of the locations of the other hideouts began to circulate through Ogatami's mind. More importantly, who could be in them. "So this is the western quarter? Exactly, how many are there?" He asked, not trying to pride too much at the moment. "There's five, one in each cardinal direction, and one in the center of the Mountain's Graveyard. The bases are hidden, however, from other members of the Ikaku who are not permitted access to that point." Made sense, Ogatami thought. It wouldn't be wise to have everyone within a criminal group have access to all the organization's secrets and knowledge. Discrepancy is one of a criminals greatest asset, along with his wit. Thus, whoever devised the multiple hidden headquarter idea for the Ikaku, must be a brilliant fellow, he thought. He also assumed, that the leaders of the Ikaku must have been located in the Central H.Q., to manage all four other bases as their central heart. "Alright, let's go in."

Age : 31 Posts : 1118

The inside the cabin was everything Ogatami imagined it would be, old, rotten, and grim. It was large, to compensate for its lack of rooms or even a bathroom for that matter. Just one large square room that was equipped with a kitchen area in one corner, and a living space on another. The wooden flooring and walls where grayed due to the aged wood it was composed of. An antique furniture set was stationed at it's corner, which consisted of a pair of rocking chairs and a table that looked like a simple glass cup could crumple it with its weight. In the middle of the square room, was a large red carpet that appeared to be the only clean part of the cabin. Rogan was the first to enter, the sound of his heavy footsteps echoing through the cabin as he stepped. Following him, was Ogatami and Sunaya. Ogatami looked around the inside cabin for a more in depth view from what he saw previously on the porch. He wasn't impressed, not at all. He was a boy brought up in luxury, and even setting foot in a place this unpleasant was unsettling to him. Yet, he knew there was something more to this place than what it seemed. So, he decided the side step the pre-judgement until the real fun set in.

"Oh, don't worry. This is just our cover up. It's a very interested genjutsu, you know." Rogan said. He continued to walk towards the center of the cabin as if about to do something. Ogatami looked at Sunaya for any hunches on what he might do. Sunaya didn't look back at him, instead, she was focused on what Rogan was about to do. Ogatami thought it was strange how she didn't appear tired in the slightest sense even though she carried him to this location all the way from the village. Her strength and endurance were impeccable, especially for a young kunoichi. Ogatami's speculation was becoming more true the longer he was around her, she possessed an incredible life force within her. Rogan performed hand signs and released the spell that casted the glamour over the cabin. Everything seemed to remain the same at first, which Ogatami started to question, until Rogan moved the red carpet that was on the center of the floor. A secret doorway was revealed as soon as the carpet was moved, showing a wooden door connected to a latch that had to be pulled for it to open. "-And, here we go." He opened the door, which revealed a set of stairs that descended into a lit hallway underground. Sunaya walked Ogatami a bit closer to the hidden passage, and now, all three of them peeked their heads down there to speculate.

"Oh, wow, that's cool." Ogatami said while sitting back up. Sunaya looked at him and smirked. She reached for Ogatami to aid him while standing, but he humbly denied her gesture, he wanted to stand on his own. Rogan walked down the set of stairs and was embraced by the hallway lights at the very bottom. He waved Ogatami, and Sunaya, to follow him once he reached the landing. After all three of them entered the underground hallway, the proceeded down the hallway until reaching a large door on their right. They passed many hallways and rooms before reaching this one, meaning that this base was more complex and diverse than Ogatami initially thought. Everything, so far, appeared to be quite high end. He wondered what this room was, and what the inside would probably look like. "This is our dressing room." Rogan said, pushing open the door. All three entered the room which sort of appeared like a large closet space. Rows of clothes were racked against the wall, as well as shoes and accessories that were held in a condiment near the rooms back. In the middle of the large closet space, was a sitting area with red couches. Ogatami sat there for a few minutes, and looked at the large assortment of clothes, now, he was starting to feel at home.

For an hour, both Rogan, and Sunaya, tussled and argued about what outfit Ogatami should wear. "No, this kid is a Reaper, you and I both know it""-Absolutely not! Leave him as a initiate!" They would go back and forth. Eventually, both of them came to a final decision. This became apparent once their bickering stopped, and sounds of agreement was heard across the room to Ogatami. He shook himself out of his nap, and sat up on the couch. He wiped his eyes to remove some of the blur from his sleep, and saw both of his friends standing infront of him, holding up a clothed hanger. There it was, his new Ikaku gang outfit and the attire he would wear when conducting criminal activities. A black full body suit, with a crimson scarf that was stitched into that of a hood. That, and the skeleton mask and ears, were the most defining parts of the outfit. "Looks.. different." He paused. "I was expecting something, a bit.. less.. scary?" He admitted. Rogan and Sunaya looked at each other. "Oh, the black hoods are for the grunts, kid. I know you possess a powerful type of chakra, and you're a skilled shinobi" He admitted. Ogatami eyes widened at his accusation. Was he a sensor? Did he know the truth? Where did this sudden faith in his abilities come from? His mouth was open, and moving, but not words came out. "Oh, stop, Sunaya told me you have a nature to multiple types of elements, and you graduated top of your class!" He spoke. Ogatami's eyes shifted to Sunaya, who tried to look as innocent as should could. "So, she spilled the beans about me, hmph. Whatever." He thought while shaking his head. "So, what does that mean for me?" He asked Rogan. The leader, tossed Ogatami the uniform before speaking. "It means, you're going to be doing some, 'special', missions that require more advanced skill. This uniform is called the, 'Reaper's Agent Attire', it's for exclusive members of the Ikaku that only those with great potential can possess. You should be honored, those who wear this, usually become elites within the organization." He voiced. Ogatami sighed heavily, yay, more work, and drama.

He went into the room, and changed into his Reaper Uniform. When he came out, for the first time, Rogan appeared genuinely pleased by him. "You look like a honorary member already, Ogi" He said. Ogatami's heart sunk, for he knew that he was only a spy at heart. He didn't know that he would feel so attached to the gang and its members as much as he was starting to, and it wasn't a great feeling. He faked a smile and tried to talk his way out of the emotion. "Okay, what's next?" He asked. "Well, you just get some rest. Our first assignment is in a few weeks. Before that, however, you need to do some training. You're a Reaper now, you need to be at the top of your game." Sunaya told him. Ogatami was escorted to a bedroom within the hideout, and rested there for the night.