Beta Team Mission I Part II

Age : 33 Posts : 79

[s o | d a r k | a n d | c o l d | i n s i d e]
[MUDVAYNE | ALL THAT YOU ARE]

It was dark by the time the trio arrived at the compound mentioned in the dossier, and maybe compound was an understatement. The walls were fifteen feet thick, and thirty feet high easily. Solid Stone, carved from the mountainside. The small fort within was actually carved so far into the mountain it was deceiving to the eye. Outside it looked like it could hold no more than ten men, but Karasu had already counted that many patrolling the top of the wall, and just as many patrolling the base of the wall. Add in two guards at the gate on either side, the total was quickly rising to and above thirty-four thugs. Of course Karasu was assuming that there were ten on the inside of the wall at least, plus any sleeping within the compound. Twenty feet above the barracks there was a small stone fort protruding from the wall, this is where the man they sought would most likely be.

As for where Karasu and his Genin were, they were situated on a cliff only a hundred feet from the wall. One hundred feet, here to the wall. Another fifty from the wall to the bastard's fort. Yeah, I can get there. Karasu thought as he lay on his stomach surveying the area. During the course of their travels Karasu had reversed his clothing, so his pants, jacket and shirt were now black. On top of that he had pulled up a hood he had tucked away inside the jacket, it had a peaked hood that quickly shrouded his face as he pulled it over his head. On top of that he pulled up a neck wrap to cover his nose and mouth. [ooc: See spoiler for hood, no embroidery, just the depth of the hood and the eagle-beak peak.] Sidling back towards the Genin in his charge he breathed into his hands to ward off the chill of the night. "Alright you two, listen carefully, there are about fifty guards between us and our target. So taking out one will make the others panic, no matter what we do, someone will always see what we've done. So we're going over them."

Karasu reached into his back pouch and pulled out two kunai and his fifty-meter length of ninja wire, the wire should hold one of them at a time. "We're going to have to go one at a time, once the last one is off, the next should go. Don't rush, but don't let them see you either if you can help it." As he said this he was watching his hands, which were tying a knot through the loop at the back of each kunai. "You two will follow me and keep watch while I dispatch the target. Understand? If someone sees you, get out of sight, make them think they saw something that wasn't there, anything. Just don't be seen. If you have to break cover it should be to tell me we have to finish up and get the hell out of there."

Standing up he turned, aimed and hurled the kunai across the gap. It flew through the air with deadly precision and speed, making a sharp noise as it sunk into the stone roof of the target's fortress. Stabbing the other kunai into the ground at his feet he plucked the ninja wire, listening to the wire vibrate like a harp-string. "If you all know what you're doing I'll give you a minute before we start this." Truth be told this didn't phase Karasu at all, if the mission failed it would be because he slipped. His plan was to get in, kill the target with a shock to the heart, and get out. Most people would think the man had passed in his sleep, others would think he had a heart attack. But Karasu knew just how much electricity it took to stop a heart from reading medical journals. And he could easily generate that much Raiton with one hand behind his back.

Spoiler:

Posts : 148

The team had finally reached their destination. It was a large compound with giant walls, presumably to keep out intruders. It was defiantly a place of an influential bandit. The blonde haired boy wondered about the target that they were there to take out. He thought about how much influence over the other bandits he had and what sort of reign he had. Something must be going right for the man if he had all this and no apparent uprisings. It was just something to ponder as he awaited more orders from the leader.

The leader, now in a black attire, gave some instruction. There were easily fifty guards on patrol, but given they are on the outside of the wall, it was hard to tell how many exactly were there. Taking out kunai and wire, team leader karasu gave further instruction and a hint to how they were getting into the compound. He said before that they were going to go above them, but now it made a little more sense. The three were to crawl and make their way across the wire and enter this way. A some what clever way to infiltrate a building that is swarmed with guards.

”One at a time and no rushing, got it.”

He said quietly with a head nod. Haruo began thinking more on his plan to silence the guards if need be. He had a couple things up his sleeve such as a small raiton jutsu that paralyzes, ninja wire to tie people up with and medical gauz to put in to the mouths of the men that were to be tied up. Another thought came to mind as he planned. His new sensei had changed his attire on the way here, being in a black outfit would help sneak into the fortress. The genin was wearing a red trench coat, a color that would and could stand out in the darkness. So he took of the coat revealing his black long sleeve shirt that he wore. Now the kid was ready. He had a small plan, dressed in black, and somewhat prepared for their task at hand.

[So to be clear, Setsuna's and I are to just sit back and make sure no alams are raised?]

Age : 35 Posts : 306

Darkness had covered the sky by the time the team had made it to the location of the compound. Setsuna had shifted his eyes to their animal form as they got close so his vision would be at its best. As his slitted eyes peered out at the compound from his spot by Karasu. The zoanthrope counted around fifty guards around the area and he found himself looking at the large wall and starting to have doubts about the mission. Hearing Karasu tell them that they would be going over the wall made Setsuna feel much better.
“So we need to make sure we go over them silently and give them no reason to look up” he whispered as he watched the guards walk along the walls and stop at times to look around.
As Karasu explained that the three of them would go one at a time on the ninja wire and they needed to go at a decent speed, not to fast and not to slow either. Karasu explained the basic plan of the mission to the two genin. The basic idea was that their sensei would take out the target while they stood watch seemed easy enough. Setsuna made sure to nod his head in understanding

As they started to get ready to go across the kunai, Setsuna decided to speak to his team. “Karasu-sensei , Haruo , I feel I should alert you two to what my bloodline grants me before we begin . As you have heard , I can transform into a hybrid of a tiger and a full tiger myself but a handy ability I have from it is the ability to parts of my body into the respective parts of the animal and get the bonuses of the animal” he said quietly before he transformed his ears. In seconds two tiger ears popped on top of his head to replace his human ears.”with my ears like this I can hear better then a normal human, this way I‘ll be able to keep a better look out” he added softly with a grin .Looking at his team mates he waited for the first one to go across the wire to the target.

(sorry about the wait and how short it is. birthday and relatives make it hard to post)

Age : 33 Posts : 79

[l i f e | i s | j u s t | a | m u r d e r | t r a i n]
[DETHKLOK | MURDERTRAIN A COMIN']

The first Genin, Haruo, might not be too good at listening, but at least he understood the meaning of stealth. Having ditched his blood red coat to reveal his black shirt was as smart a move as any given the requirements of the mission ahead. Neither of the Genin were ready for this, this was a B-Rank mission for Kami's sake! Chuunin level if Karasu was remembering his ranks correctly, which meant the both of them were in over their heads. Not Karasu though, his life had been full of missions, or at least as full of missions as he would like. Being an insufferable slack-off was something he was rather good at. He preferred reading to fighting any day of the week, and had stated this to the Hokage at one point when the man had asked him about his writings. But that was a completely different story. One of Karasu's eyebrows jacked up when the second Genin known as Setsuna grew a pair of neko ears, improved hearing he claimed. Well I'll be damned... Karasu thought as he reached up and scratched his scalp under the hood. I really need to keep more up to date on things like this. Kids turning into cats, what's next? Birds? Karasu ended that line of thought for the time being, there was nothing he'd like more than to be able to fly like the animal his name translated to. Shaking his head briefly he nodded to each Genin in turn and turned towards the wire.

Tensing his legs he began to launch forwards but caught himself before he could even begin. Turning once again to Setsuna he spoke, "In addition to the ears, might I suggest a tail? Improves balance." He finished his sentence and turned back to the wire, ready to go. His legs tensed and his back arched like a speed sprinter, then he released, and just as soon as he was on the Genin's side a moment later he was gone. The only evidence that he was in fact on the wire at first was the rapid dips forming at regular intervals and the soft twang of the wire. Sprinting across like a tight-rope walker he reappeared just long enough to nearly lose his balance, regain it, and disappear again. Reappearing on the far side he crouched low to avoid detection, scanning the area for any signs of a guard having seen him. None had.

Turning once more to the Genin he made a hand-gesture not unlike the military sign for move up. So far so good... He thought as he continued to look around, his eyes darting back and forth across the scene. Searching for a raised head, or an unnecessarily nosy guard running for a bell. Not a soul to be found doing anything Karasu would have to start slitting throats for.

Good, he'd hate to get blood on his hands so soon. Another part of Karasu's psyche was the one that dealt in absolutes, Black and White, Good and Evil, Right and Wrong. Life and Death. By definition there could be only one or the other. There was no Freudian cat in a box so to speak, though he did understand that some Shinobi existed without affiliation to a Village, wandering the world, working for coin. He respected them, for they were the ones that were not above the law, but were simply working below it, around it and through it. If he ever had to be impartial about anything, he'd rather be one of them. Not allied to anyone, not taking any sides, not fighting someone elses battles. Fighting because it was the right thing to him. And that was what he despised most, people who fought for the wrong reason. A prophet once said, "Anyone can draw a sword, but only a few draw their swords to fight for the right reasons." Karasu would "draw his sword" today to protect the people of the neighboring villages.

Posts : 148

Haruo looked puzzled as setsuna described his bloodline. It was the first time actually hearing the description of what his bloodline could do. It was truly an amazing thing that he could do. The blonde haired kid would love to do something like that, turn into an animal and gain its natural abilities. The genin would like to turn into something cuddly or defensive, this way he would either be such a distraction to people to catch them off guard, or be able to take a hit. Truth be told, He was a little envious of the ability. To do such a thing must be so magnificent and fun to do. Soon setsuna turned his ears into those of a tiger, and Haruo grew even more attached to the idea, though he was fairly certain he didn't have the same blood. He was soon overcome with the urge to reach out and grab the ears to feel and see if they were real. They looked so soft, but he had to resist just carelessly reach out. They were on a mission and this new fascination would have to wait.

Looking back to the team leader. He had mentioned something to setsuna about a tail and how it would balance out. A logical thing, especially for what was about to go on. Karasu then got into position to make his way across the wire. His back arched and then he was off. The wire dipped and bounced slightly as the jounin made his way across the extremely thin path. Given Setsuna has a heighten sense of hearing and possibly any other senses, Haruo decided to go next to move. With someone on either side of the wire, he could move with two people able to identify whether they were caught or not. So he inched closer to the wire and placed a foot on it. It was a little sturdier than it looked, which was a good thing. He took a few steps back and started out in a full out sprint, trying to place every footstep dead on.

He made it across the wire with swiftness and a great amount of luck. It was a good test of his abilities, or in his mind it was. The boy hadn't walked on such a thin substance before, so this was a major victory. Now that he was across, he stood in the shadows and tried to keep the a good look out while his furry friend were to come over.[/center]

Age : 35 Posts : 306

Setsuna stretched a bit as he heard his sensei speak about a tail for better balance and the tiger nodded as he cut a small hole in his pants and focused on transforming yet again. As Setsuna did this he noticed Haruo looking at his ears and the look in his eyes showed that he wanted to touch them, Setsuna glared slightly to make sure that didn’t happen. After a few moment a tiger tail snaked its way out of the hole and was waving in the air calmly. The Zoanthrope watched Karasu go across the wire quickly and silently and as he heard no noise the genin assumed that he had not been seen. Haruo was next to go and Setsuna watched the guards on the walls and the ground to make sure the blond didn’t get caught. A guard raised his arms and yawned for a second and Setsuna felt a bolt of panic go thru him for a moment before the guard went back to watching outward.

Seeing Haruo reach the other side intact and unspotted Setsuna could only focus on getting himself across the wire. Taking a few steps back, Setsuna took off across the wire making sure to keep his balance. The boy found that the tail he had made it very easy to keep him balanced and go across at a good speed. As he approached the end and got off the wire, Setsuna turned and got down and looked to make sure he had not gotten caught. Hearing no alarms and yelling he felt calm and confident. As he turned to his teammate and sensei the dark haired boy gave a thumbs up as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. He hadn’t even noticed he had started sweating, it must have been his nerves but he could calm down a bit now.

(sorry low muse)

Age : 33 Posts : 79

[t o | a | b e t t e r | w o r l d]
[BLACK TIDE | SHOW ME THE WAY]

Karasu nodded to both of his Genin once they were both safely across, pointing at both of his eyes and then waving at the yard, silently saying that they were to watch the yard as instructed. After finishing the motion Karasu sidled to the edge of the roof and looked over, an open window, some luck at last. Holding onto the edge of the roof he swung his body down and through the open window, landing silently on a bearskin rug. Ugh, brutal pigs.

"I take it you don't like my taste in decor Assassin. Well that's just too damn bad." Came a voice from across the room which Karasu had not expected, he nearly jumped and threw his sword at the sound. Out of the shadows stepped a fat man in combat gear, an enormous cigar between his lips and enough gold on his fingers to gold leaf Ichiraku's Ramen shop. In his hand was an orb with a string attached. No, not attached,[b] Karasu realized with some degree of disturbance, [b]Damn thing is a fuse. Well, this situation needs to be defused. Karasu mentally slapped himself for making a joke with such a horrible pun in it, but this had to be defused if Karasu was to finish the mission.

The fat man put the bomb's fuse to the cigar as he filled his lungs with smog, the end of the cigar glowing like a cherry. Suddenly the fuse lit, and it didn't take Karasu more than a second to figure out how long he had before the whole room went kaboom. It was a long fuse, a very long one. Thirty seconds, tops. He put his hands in the air in mock surrender, "Yeah, alright. You got me, I am an assassin. As such only one of us is leaving this room alive." He vanished, only for a split second but if the man's eyes were any good he'd notice the disappearance. If they were really good the target surely would have at least seen Karasu move from one end of the room and then back. But alcohol and cigars had left his eyes on the verge of cataracts, though the man could tell that there was something...off, about the assassin when he came back into the visible spectrum. He heard the assassin say, "And it's most assuredly not you."

The Bandit chief looked at the bomb, now devoid of a fuse, and realized what was different about the assassin. He had the fuse in his hand, still lit. He would feel a jolt in his chest, momentary but enough for his brain to tell him that he could no longer hear blood being pumped through his body. Looking down he saw the assassin's hand on his chest, a flicker of electricity on his fingers. His head tilted back, his body quickly following suit, hitting the ground with a solid thunk.

Karasu stepped around the man's body, taking the defused bomb out his hand with his left hand. With his right hand he reached towards the man's eyes and closed them. "Requiscat en pace" Standing up he turned and walked towards the open window, placing the bomb on the solid hardwood desk as he passed it. To anyone who came into the room and saw the Bandit Chief's body, they'd assume he'd died of a sudden heart attack or something of the sort. Karasu's attack had left no puncture wounds and no burn marks, mission completed. Not more than a few minutes after leaving his Genin charges he would rejoin them. Twirling his finger in the air he made the military sign for 'Lets wrap this up.'

Posts : 148

Karasu ordered the two genin to keep an eye out on the large yard below them. They were in charge of making sure no one spotted them or karasu while he took care of the main objective. It wasn’t a glamorous job, but it was important. Someone had to do it, and that was Haruo and Setsuna. Luckily for them, setsuna had his senses enhanced by his bloodline ability. With him here, keeping an eye out and making sure no one is spotted would be slightly easier.

As karasu disappeared, Haruo moved back as much as possible to stay hidden in the shadows of the building. They needed to stay quiet, hidden, and alert to survive or do the mission flawlessly. The blonde kid point kept most of his view to the left side of the yard. This way Each can keep a stronger focus on a smaller portion. He tried to motion to setsuna that he would take this side, or at least hand sign his plan to the other genin.

No one really noticed they were even there. A few times he thought someone saw them, but it seemed it was nothing. Eventually Karasu came back from his portion of the mission and gave a signal to wrap up. It was a somewhat high pressure situation for them, but it was finally coming to and end. He slowly leaned forward and off the wall and moved closer to Karasu and setsuna. It was time to wait for the signal to move across the wire and head back home.

Age : 35 Posts : 306

Setsuna saw the hand motion that Karasu made and instantly the tiger genin was looking around the area making sure that the bandits were unaware of there presence. The Zoanthrope moved into the shadows of the building and kept watch on the right side of the yard also the enemies on the walls. Setsuna knew that if the got caught that it would get nasty very fast. As he watched is sensei go into the room thru the window, Setsuna kept his ears perked for any kind of danger

Suddenly hearing a noise and voices from inside the room below made Setsuna realize that the boss was in the room and had spotted Karasu. The man however foolishly thought he could handle jonin from what the genin could hear. The sound of a fuse being lit made Setsuna nervous for a second before he heard the sound of electricity, the noise was very faint but with his increased hearing the feline genin caught it and smirked.

Noticing that nothing was wrong and that none of the bandits had seen them. Setsuna watched as Karasu rejoined them on the roof, he smirked slightly before he suddenly caught sight of some movement. It was two bandits walking towards the entrance of the building from the right. From what Setsuna could see they couldn’t see them and were not aware of anything. He quickly turned to his teammates and he quickly signed. ‘we need to escape quickly’

Age : 33 Posts : 79

[b a c k | t o | p u t | i t | i n | m o t i o n]
[DOPE | IM BACK]

[ooc] This is gonna be short, screw the 600 word minimum I wanna get this done and how much can I really say about walking a wire and then running home?

[ic]

Karasu nodded to Setsuna, time was of the essence and moving as fast as possible at this point was imperative. At the same time, if they were spotted during their escape then everything they had just done would be undone. The bandit company might just find new leadership and attack the neighboring villages if they suspected their boss had been murdered. "Alright, lets move. Tea and Ramen are on me boys." He whispered to them both before disappearing across the wire. Reappearing on the other side he'd wait until both of them were across before pulling the wire to remove the Kunai from the far side and reel the whole mess in. No need to waste resources. Once all that was done he'd head off in the direction of Konohagakure.

A wise man once said, "You know, being a warrior is not just being able to strike your opponent down with a sword. It's finding good reason to draw your sword in the first place."

Good Reason... Karasu mused in his head, The only reason I need is the Village, the only home I've known. I'm a lazy bastard but I won't watch my home burn again. All of this he thought on for many more hours as he made the return trip to Konoha.

[Exeunt Topic | Returning to Hi no Kuni]

Posts : 148

It was time to leave, for good. Setsuna motioned signs himself about how they needed to move quickly and karasu was in agreement. Before leaving, karasu whispered that ramen and tea were on him, he preferred doughnuts, but one can never complain about a free meal, especially when it was of quality. He nodded while watching his elder cross the wire for a second time. Karasu really was talented, though an obvious thing from several different factors.

His mind wondered for a second on his sensei, but now wasn’t the time to do so. Haruo moved up to the wire and took a deep breath. Once he calmed his nerves a bit, he tried his best to rush across the thin metal and land on the ground safely. It seems luck was on his side today. He made it soundly and moved to grab his coat. Leaving no traces would be for the best. He turned around and waited to watch Setsuna make his move if he hadn’t already. The blonde boy was ready to get home.

[Exiting & Returning to Konoha]

Age : 35 Posts : 306

Setsuna nodded at Karasu’s words and grinned at the prospect of a cup of tea. As the his sensei and teammate went across the wire, Setsuna made sure to keep an eye out for the guards so they didn’t blow there cover. As he finally saw Haruo reach the end, Setsuna quickly backed up and then sprinted across the wire to the other side making sure he used is tail to keep his balance. As he reached the other side the zoanthrope transformed his eyes and ears back to normal and smirked ‘mission accomplished’ he thought to himself as he stretched a bit.

As Karasu pulled the wire bridge out of the wall and wrapped it up. Setsuna waited for him to finish before he took off with the rest of his team, inside the genin was feeling extremely proud of what he had done. He had just done his first B rank mission and without any complications. ‘ I’m looking forward to telling this story to my friends’ he mused in his head as he kept moving .

(exit topic / returning to Konoha)

(Topic End )