Lost In The Crowd: Team Kasumi's First Task!

Age : 35 Posts : 1113

It had been a few days since the announcement of the new Genin teams. Amongst those awaiting the news, there will have been much speculation, excitement and nerves, too. For the Jounin who would be mentoring these up-and-coming shinobi, the knowledge of who had been assigned to them had already been delivered just over a week before the official list had been released. Some hundreds of miles away, Kasumi Satake was mulling this over. The campfire beside her was slowly dying and her compatriots presumably asleep, having retreated to their respective tents for the night. The kunoichi was kept awake by the thought of how tomorrow would play out. Not just for herself, though her urgent mission in Bird country had to take priority. No, Kasumi found her thoughts turning to the three Genin who would have woken today to individual letters resting on their doormats. Unable to directly mentor them from so far away, the young woman had taken steps to ensure they would not go unattended to...

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Morning!

As you already know, you've been assigned to a Jounin along with two other of your fellow Genin. Well, that Jounin is me - Kasumi Satake. I'd like to start by apologizing to you for not being available at this moment in time. Our Kazekage has ordered myself and a few others on a critical mission to Bird country, so I'm not going to be around to mentor you for a short while. But don't think I've forgotten you! I've arranged for a friend of mine to take charge in my absence. He's more than capable of assessing your abilities and teaching you a thing or two before I return.

Tomorrow at 10am, I'd like you to make your way to the suburban area of Sunagakure. Somewhere in this large district, your temporary sensei can be found. He'll be moving about and each of you will need to have located and introduced yourself to him before the day can progress. It's up to you how you go about this, but my friend will be reporting everything to me on my return. Treat this as a little test of your personal character and abilities. That's all I'm telling you, you'll have to figure the rest out yourselves!

One word of advice: treat him kindly and respectfully, but don't let him treat you any other way either.

Good luck, all the best,

~Kasumi Satake.

P.S. Give Renji a hug for me, won'tcha?

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His mouth widening with an enormous yawn, Renji's eyelids flitted open. As he began to stretch his body across the bed, easing out the stiffness from the night's sleep, he rolled his eyes with the realisation of today's date. Monday. Not that he usually held any particular distaste for Mondays, but today he had a task, and a considerable one at that. "Tch." He muttered, hopping down from the ruffled quilt and landing softly on the floor. Padding out of the room and into the kitchen, he leaped up onto the counter. Kasumi had taken precautions to ensure that her companion would not go uncared for in her absence. The box on the side was easily opened and inside, a vast selection of food awaited. Each had been placed in an equally easy-to-open container, these having been subsequently labelled with their contents. Pulling one of these from the larger box, Rinji replaced the lid and dropped back to the floor, opening the container of food and immediately tucking in. These procedures wouldn't have been sufficient for most house cats, but Rinji was different. Highly intelligent and very independent, he would have taken umbridge had Kasumi organized a carer to visit daily, sorting food and water for the little feline. As it was, the system she had set up worked perfectly.

His hunger satiated, the diminutive cat made his way into the bathroom and jumped up to the sink, where he perched precariously on the edge. A well-aimed paw buffeted the tap handle away from him and a stream of water began to cascade down into the basin. Rinji eagerly lapped at the liquid, before switching positions and pawing the handle back into the 'off' position. Pausing only to check the clock - 9.30am - he headed back to the bedroom. With a irritated sigh, he checked the mirror and re-arranged his red necktie, before falling onto his backside and bringing his leg to his mouth to clean. His paws worked from his wet tongue across his face and fur and his tail kept balance, kept him from toppling over. Though an ungainly exploit, the little cat seemed satisfied that he'd done a good job. Getting to his feet and puffing out his chest, trying to look important, he nodded once and jogged out of the room. A patter of feet could be heard as he crossed the harder floor of the kitchen before reaching the cat flap, which he promptly pushed through. Hearing it click closed behind him, Rinji's gaze traversed the scene before him - people in every direction, hustling and bustling about their daily business. As he made his way across the eaves of shopfronts and doorways, entering the heart of the suburban district, the streets became still busier. As a clock in the distance chimed ten, Rinji came to a halt atop a pale blue awning to a medicinal retailer. The small feline wrinkled his nose. "You sure have faith in these kids, Kas. How on earth they're going to find me amongst this lot, I'll never know." He murmured to himself. Having read the letter she'd sent her charges, Rinji was well aware they had not been told easily the most important thing they really needed to know - that he was a cat.

[OOC: Right, so your task is to locate Rinji amongst this busy setting. He'll be moving about, too. How you go about it is up to you, I'm just interested to know how your characters approach such a task. I know that actually finding him might be particularly difficult given you do not know that he's a cat... I myself haven't thought up a solution to this problem, so I'm leaving it with you. If it suits your character, don't be afraid to come to the conclusion that you cannot find Rinji. There's no way to 'fail' this task, per se. Oh, and you can find a detailed description and picture of Rinji under Kasumi's profile. That should help you describe him IC - if you find him. Good luck!]

Age : 29 Posts : 766

Yawning loudly, yellow hair slipped itself out of a black shirt, as Kazou's arms followed down the sleeves. he had slept, if not, the best since ever. Or so he thought. He looked around at the mess of a room, sighing as he looked for something. "Raghh, it escaped my mind again!", he said as both his hands met his hair and he looked up. He paced out into the kitchen, stressing about losing it. He walked back into his bedroom, and smiled. "Yes, I found them.", he said as he found his pants. He quickly put them on, and yawned once more before grabbing a light snack, and running out the door.

He found himself landing on his back, comidcally. He stressed about it, before getting up and looking at the ground. He noticed a letter, and picked it up. "Cool, a letter, for me.", he said as he opened it. His mouth dropped and he twitched. "WHAT??!! SENSEI'S AWAY ON A MISSION, WITHOUT ME?", he yelled, even though he didn't really know her, Kasumi Satake.

"Kasumi Satake, I'll find your friend, but who's Renji?", he said, wondering if that was his sensei's friend. "It could be someone she's very found of.", he said as he put the letter in his pocket. "I'M OFF TO FIND RENJI!", he yelled as he dashed off. He had little to go on, besides the fact that his name was Renji. And when that came to, Kazou stopped.

"WAIT, HOW DO I FIND SOMEONE I'VE NEVER HAD DESCRIBED TO ME!", he said, stressing once more over trying to think of what Renji looked like. He fell back, leaning on a wall and sighing as he folded his arms and sighed. "Great, looks like I've failed at this already.", he said, coming to the conclusion that he couldn't find that Renji person.

Age : 35 Posts : 1113

To Kasumi, it felt as if the day had dawned earlier than usual. Perhaps it was being in a different country, a different environment. Not that it mattered on this occasion, as she'd been up in plenty of time to catch even the very first moment of daybreak. The mission was quite the serious one, and preparation for the day ahead was imperative. Her fellow Jounin Kakougan had deserted the camp, off to seek resources or somesuch. He could handle himself - the kunoichi wasn't concerned. The young female Genin was busy tending to her many weapons. It was quite the collection for someone just starting their career as a shinobi. Kasumi both smiled and shivered at the thought of how much an arsenal she'd have when she was older and more experienced. And finally, the woman's thoughts turned once more to her new Genin, back in Sunagakure. Last night she was curious as to how they might perform. Today, she felt confident. Besides, Rinji had everything under control.

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"Get out of it! You little thief! I'll..." The furious voice echoed through the streets, although Rinji heard no more, having fled the scene as soon as he'd been found out. The shopkeeper had discovered the little feline after he'd 'apprehended' a tiny fish from the cart of goods the man had been pushing. It was quite a feat, in truth, as the fish had been stored amongst other cold items along with some packets of frozen water to keep them cool. Extracting it from under the shopkeeper's very nose had not been so easy. It was far too late once the man had noticed however, Rinji already having put twenty feet between the two of them. Smiling through a mouthful of fish, the cat bounded away and found a new shop awning to rest on. Dropping the food at his feet, he lay beside it and tucked in eagerly.

A full stomach and a contented grin, Rinji stretched himself right out. He was not really a 'people person', so even when he recognized some of the citizens walking past, he just didn't care to greet and speak to them. Admittedly, the sun's heat made this particular spot difficult to want to move from at all, though he knew in time he must. "C'mon Rin..." He murmured lazily. "Bah, it's not like I owe her or anything." He reasoned, rolling over onto his back and lolling his head over the canvas. The main street had turned upside down in his vision, a novelty the little feline couldn't help but smile at. The throngs of people below were only getting fuller and busier, and the small cat wondered if the Genin left it much longer to seek him out, they'd find it particularly tough. Fortunately, Rinji didn't have to wait very long before one of the three made himself known.

A cat's hearing far surpasses a human's. Even the smallest feline is able to pick up on things people simply cannot. Of course, Renji didn't need a keen ear to hone in on the loud declarations relating to the very task he had been given. If the voice did not belong to one of the three Genin Renji was to keep an eye on, he'd have been shocked. Scrambling up the drainpipes and onto a low roof, he found his bearings and padded along in the direction of the voice. It had long since stopped - only uttering the one sentence - but it was more than enough. Hopping from one precipice to the other, Renji soon found himself perched on a ledge overlooking the noisy Genin. Sighing at the boy's obvious restlessness, he stepped forward and landed silently on a shopfront canopy below. "At least he's enthusiastic." The little cat muttered to himself.

No sooner had he done so, however, than the young Genin seemed to give up in frustration. "Oh?" Renji whispered. He was still some thirty metres away - and well hidden - but his eyesight was good enough to notice the furrowed brow and tightly shut jaw. It was true that Kasumi hadn't made the task easy on her new charges. Finding someone you yourself had never met was difficult enough, but when that someone is in fact a cat... It was not like the small feline really cared though. He just enjoyed watching them struggle. Renji wasn't a mean or nasty individual, rather, he was grumpy. Furthermore, one of his few pleasures was watching others experience similar feelings. The frustrated figure now leaning against the wall, however, irked him somewhat. There was no way Kasumi would stand for this attitude, and Rinji made up his mind to sort the youngster out. He wasn't sure if this kind of thing was in his 'jurisdiction' as a mere guide for his mistress' pupils, but he simply had to step in.

Darting behind various covers (a wooden post, a small noticeboard, five sandstone bricks), he approached the Genin from behind. There was a small alleyway just to the right of the wall he was currently leaning on, and Rinji decided to give the boy a little surprise. As he stopped at the end of the alleyway, he glanced out at his target. Just behind the Genin's head was a small window. Perfect. The feline thought silently to himself. As nimble as he was, it took the little cat no time at all to scale the wall and climb slowly down from the roof to the small window sill. Smiling wickedly, he drew his longest claw to its full length and pressed the tip firmly against the base of the boy's neck. "Don't even think about it." He hissed menacingly. "You know, boy, I was hoping for better. Poor Kasumi-san." He muttered, before retracting the claw and instantly bounding away into the alley. The swiftness of the movement would not have been seen by the distracted young Genin, and Rinji soon found another spot along the thoroughfare for him to observe. Hopefully, this boy would be spurred on by his words. For Kasumi's sake, as much as anyone's.

[OOC: Hmph. I'm hoping the other two will come back to this, but for now we'll continue as is. If it reaches two weeks from when I PM'd about this topic and there's still no word, I'll PM Hugh or Cara about teams, see if we can't get some extra Genin in. Anyway. Don't know if it's the kind of thing Kazou might think of, as he seems a more 'physical, energetic approach' kinda guy, but I realised that some of the townsfolk will know of Rinji. You could just ask someone about him. ]

Age : 29 Posts : 766

Kazou yawned. The heat was starting to get to him as he looked up. "It's really bright out today.", he said. Of course, it would be bright and hot in a desert, but Kazou was too wrapped up. Well, I could always ask someone, but I need to be self reliant, he thought as a claw touched the back of his neck. Kazou shivered, with no thought on what to do. But when he heard a voice say, 'Don't even think about it.' , Kazou realised it might not even be a person he had to find. It hissed at me, it must be a cat, or a snake, he thougth, questionly about the species he was dealing with now.

Hoping for better, he thought. His face gained an angry look and be bore his teeth. I'll show you better, he thought as he felt the claw remove itself. Kazou quickly turned around, breathing deeply to find nothing. "WHAT!!!", he yelled out, both hands landing on his head in frustration. "I SWEAR THERE WAS SOMETHING THERE!", he continued. He looked around. He continued looking around, his frustration slowly evapourating from him.

"Hey, an alley, maybe!", he said as he dashed towards it. Of course, Kazou was totally unprepared. "Hey, Kitty Kitty, come out and play!", he said as he walked into the alley. "Oh man.", he said as he looked down the alley. He sighed. I really wanted to make a good first impression, he thought as he folded his arms across his chest. That cat is right, I'm not that good, he thought, getting discouraged by thinking about what the cat had said to him.

Even his face was depressed. He was frowning now, and couldn't help but want to cry. He held the want back, taking a deep breath before his frustrations took over. Okay, I'll just stand here and wait, that cat is bound to come back, he thought, remaining in the one spot.