| The Missing Fiancee | Mission | Kimiko and Toshiro |

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

| Pre-Mission Details... |

Spoiler:

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

The day was young. It was currently 7am in the morning, and Konoha was still waking up from its slumber. The sun was out, the eternal blue sky appeared endless, and the birds were chirping their good morning song. Kimiko was awake, showered and fresh; ready for the mission that she had been assigned. She had the mission scroll sat beside her on the bed, reading it carefully while she pulled on her sandals. She hadn't been given this as a solo mission, one of her team mates, Toshiro, was to be with her. She looked forward to that; Toshiro was the team member that she liked the most, aside from their sensei, of course. She was still quite curious about what her team mate's specialities and fighting style entailed, even if she did know the basics. From what he told them at the team meeting, he was a weaponry specialist. However, that in itself was a broad statement. Today was going to be interesting, that much was for certain.

She finished zipping up her sandals and grinned to herself, clapping her hands together and standing up to look in her full length mirror to make sure she was at least presentable. She always dressed in a more official manner when she was going on missions. She wore a long-sleeved black fishnet shirt, over which was a dark blue cropped tank top, short black shorts with bandages tied around her thighs along with a black kunai pouch attached to her right leg, dark blue knee pads and black shinobi sandals. Around her waist was her usual black weapon pouches, and over her back was the black lacquer case that she kept her precious fan inside. She had tied her almost shoulder-length black hair into two pigtails with odd coloured hair bands, and her Konoha headband was tied around her forehead securely.

With all her preparations done, she grabbed the mission scroll and zipped it away in her weapon pouch at her lower back before heading out of her bedroom. Her mother greeted her at the bottom of the stairs with a slice of toast on a plate, and Kimiko only took the food, leaving her mother stood with a plate in her hands. "Bye mum, bye dad! I've gotta shoot!" She chimed, waving her hand casually as she walked towards the front door, taking a large bite out of her breakfast. "Good luck with your mission, Kimi!" Her mother called happily. "You'll do fine." Her father said reassuringly from the kitchen, putting down his newspaper briefly to smile at Kimiko while she walked out the door.

She walked at first, waiting while she ate her toast before she started to head off at a run towards the village gates. It was agreed that her and Toshiro would meet there, after all.

It didn't take her long to get there, and when she arrived, she waited patiently leaning against one of the huge pillars that made up Konoha's village gates.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Dawn and a new day had come to Konoha, bringing with it the promise of clear skies and a cheerful day. For one Hinamori Toshiro, the day had held an extra benefit - getting out of the village on a mission that he would actually get paid for. Toshiro had gotten the mission scroll yesterday and had packed everything that wasn't perishable the night before. Thus when he had woken up well before sunrise he had had time for a short workout and breakfast while reviewing the scroll one last time. Then he had gone to clean up and change into a new pair of black lace-up sandals, grey cargo pants with his sebon rack taped to the right thigh, and a grey long-sleeved shirt before donning the harness holding his bow, ninjato, and equipment pouch. He hadn't quite been able to suppress the growl in his throat as he looked up after having fastened his forehead protector around his head. While not exactly vain, he really would have preferred to have made the choice to get his hair cut instead of having it made for him. Especially when that choice was made by his gadget-obsessed sister Rukia's attempt to create a "chain sword" backfiring. That particular incident would represent the first, last, and only time he ever let her near his manga collection. She was dangerous enough (to whom was still in doubt) without adding inspiration to the mix. Final touches done, the genin let his thoughts wander to the mission ahead, and particularly his partner for its duration.

For whatever reason, it would be just himself and his teammate Kimiko on this mission without their jonin-sensei or Team Alpha's last member. Not that Toshiro objected to the other genin's presence - of all the members of the team, Kimiko was the one he enjoyed being around the most. She was someone his age (and height) who radiated an infectious enthusiasm and energy the only someone with a full-sized spear shaft up their rear couldn't appreciate. Yet she was also something of an enigma to the Hinamori heir-to-be. Toshiro knew a bit about seals due to using them to carry extra weaponry around, and it was not an easy subject to learn. That Kimiko, despite her somewhat goofball persona, would choose to delve deeper into that field said she was quite a bit brighter than she let on. Ambitious too. After all it took an incredible amount of ambition to set one sites on being a Kage and even more to keep aiming for that goal. So having time to learn a bit more about Kimiko couldn't hurt.

Regrettably for his good mood, Toshiro had forgotten that in addition to being accomplished kunochi, his sisters were also incurably nosy gossips. Nosy gossips who when it came to their little (or big for the most recent member of the family) brother could be quite "over-protective". So when Toshiro had left the mission scroll on the table, it was a given that they just happened to be looking in that direction when a careless bump of the table made it unroll. Of course only a few parts really interested them, primarily the words "coastline", "kunochi", and "up to several days". From that each of them put together a (inaccurate) interpretation of what was happening, something they were more than willing to share with Toshiro as he walked into the kitchen to retrieve the mission scroll on his way out. Interpretations that had the genin shinobi trying to keep from turning scarlet in embarrassment at their mother-hen and match-making antics.

"Otou, shouldn't you have a sweater with you in case if gets cold?"

"Toshiro, did you remember to pack an extra lunch?"

"Shiro-kun, maybe you should bring her over here after the mission so we can meet her?"

"Hey Shiro-chan, going to ask her for her address?"

"Big Brother has a girl friend!"

"Remember to pack some..." Whatever Hinamori Kyo was going to say was abruptly cut off as a sebon flew through the space once occupied by the teacup in his hand (leaving him just the handle) before hitting the wall beyond. In the silence that followed the cups demise, locating the source of the projectile was simple. Toshiro's hand was still poised over his shoulder in the release position with the tips of two more needles glinting ominously between his knuckles. The true intimidation came from the one teal eye that was visible over his shoulder. An eye that held a promise of mayhem to come in its teal depths. "If one word of this spreads beyond this room, I will personally make your lives living hells even if I have to go missing-nin to do it." His message delivered, Toshiro was able to stalk out the compound gate without further incident as clan members and the handful of servants hurried to get out of his way. Of course in doing so he failed to hear his grandfather and clan head make a rather interesting observation. "I said he took after you in more than a talent for ninjutsu Kyo. I remember a young man whose response to the fifth marriage proposal was to pin the letter and a rather impassioned two word response in the negative to the lady's door with a ninjato."

Once outside the clan grounds, Toshiro had taken the most direct route to the gates to make up the lost time. That getting out of the village would mean less chance of his siblings really embarrassing him was only a perk. Still, it motivated him enough that he arrived just minutes after Kimiko had, catching sight of his partner as he dodged to the side of an entering cart. With a last look behind him to check for siblings hell-bent on embarrassing him not finding any, Toshiro hustled the last few yards until he was to Kimiko's left before raising his voice. "Kimiko-san. If you are an only child give thanks to the gods - siblings are pure evil. Anyway, ready to find our missing groom-to-be?"

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

Kimiko was alerted to her team mate's presence when she spotted a shock of white hair, to which she beamed and waved in his direction while he waited for an oncoming cart to go past. She laughed at his greeting and strange statement to her about siblings. "Firstly Toshiro-kun, please call me Kimi! And secondly... I am an only child, but I did want a brother or sister. It gets quite lonely with just mum, dad and I." She smiled, stretching her arms up high above her head. "That's why I'm always out the house with friends, to make up for not having brothers or sisters." That much was most certainly true. Kimiko was a socialite by nature, and not having more people to socialise with was almost torture for her. She loved being around friends and it was her main past-time apart from her rigorous training routines.

With all that said and done, Toshiro asked her if she was ready to start their mission. She grinned and nodded her head firmly, clenching a fist determinedly. "You bet I am! We should get going; with every second we waste, the more worried that poor bride is becoming." She pointed out with a knowing smile, waving a hand towards the long dirt track that stretched out in front of them. "C'mon then, partner!" She chirped delightedly, spinning around on the spot and starting to walk backwards out of the village, obviously waiting for Toshiro to follow her. She was a natural leader, and she always took the lead no matter what the situation was. Of course, she could take orders; but only if the person giving them was strong enough so that she actually listened. She never listened to some of her friends when they ordered her about, because they were simply being bossy and not actually meaning the commands they were making. She believed deeply that respect had to be earned, and when she respected somebody she would listen without fail. There were some people that she respected unyieldingly with no reason for her to; those higher up from her such as the Hokage.

She walked with a spring in her step, twirling round occasionally to make sure Toshiro was following her. She turned round and walked backwards, facing her mission partner with her arms crossed behind her head comfortably."So Toshiro-kun; why did you say that siblings are pure evil? Did something happen this morning between you and your siblings before you came here?" She asked curiously, tilting her head to the side like a puppy might do.

It didn't take long for them to walk to the Fire Country itself from here, and the worried bride-to-be's house was part of a small hamlet near a large lake. It was this lake that her husband had disappeared on, and Kimiko couldn't help but wonder how big it was for the man to get lost on it. Nevertheless, the pair continued their journey heading towards this little hamlet near the lake. According to the mission description, the lake was visible very soon after one left Konoha, so Kimiko kept her eyes peeled for the large body of water.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

At Kimiko's gentle correction about addressing her by her preferred name, Toshiro couldn‘t help but wince at his own mistake. In the days since the Alpha Team's first meeting, that she preferred to be called Kimi had been something he had forgotten and he knew how annoying being called by a name you didn‘t care for could be. Toshiro still bristled when his sisters and parents called him “Shiro-chan”. He didn’t have time to dwell on that though as Kimiko started out on the trail towards the hamlet that would be the starting point of their search. He actually had to hustle just a bit to keep up with his raven-haired teammate, all the while wondering just where that unlimited amount of energy came from.

When Kimiko started walking backwards, Toshiro felt a shiver run down his spine - somehow he just knew that whatever was coming would put him in a bind. As soon as she asked about his siblings comment, he regretted ever uttering those words. There was no way Toshiro was going to tell Kimiko that his siblings had somehow concluded that there was more than being teammates between the two genin. He simply would never live that down. So he went with the tried-and-true method - tell the truth but leave out key details, lots of key details, and pray she didn't notice them missing. "They snuck a look at the mission scroll while I was getting ready and drew several different, and very incorrect, conclusions about the mission. Conclusions they couldn't keep to themselves that are rather... embarrassing."

Having headed off any further inquiries on that topic, Toshiro decided that it was his turn to find out a bit more about his teammate. Plus if his assumptions were right, Kimiko wouldn't hesitate to talk about herself and a Kimiko talking about herself was a Kimiko not asking questions Toshiro would rather not answer. “If you don’t mind my asking Kimiko, err Kimi, just why do you want to become Hokage?” Besides his more... selfish reasons, Toshiro found himself truly wanting to know why Kimiko wanted to be chosen for a position that required so much from those filling it. It certainly wasn't the "I want to be Hokage" phase as his mother dubbed it. That never lasted past the academy.

At the same time he had one eye watching for Kimiko's response the other was fixed on the trees behind her watching for the first sign that they were close to the lake. It was Toshiro who first spotted the spot of blue and reflected sunlight between the trees ahead that announced their arrival at the lake. "I think that is the lake we’re looking for ahead. Think we should head in that direction and follow the shore or stick to the trail?"

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

With Kimiko being her extremely naive, innocent self, she had no idea what kind of wrong conclusions anybody could come to after reading the mission description. Confusion showed on her face, and she tilted her head to the side once more while she tried to comprehend what Toshiro had told her. "Toshiro-kun, if you don't mind me asking-" She held up a hand as if she was about to ask a question, and she was, before her companion cut her off with a question regarding herself. Why did she want to be the Hokage? Her one-track, simple mind easily forgot about her earlier confusion and she beamed with delight and pride while she prepared to tell her team mate why exactly she wanted to become the leader of the village one day.

"Well, my ultimate dream is to bring peace to the whole shinobi world. I was certain of that after I met Toho-sensei; he had suffered so much with deaths of his team mates too early, and I figured that was because of war and unrest. So... if I can bring peace to the world, that won't happen any more. To get to that power level, I'll need to be a leader of a village, of course! And with Konoha being my home, the Hokage was my natural choice." She paused, checking back over her shoulder to make sure she wasn't about to walk into anyone or anything. "I've always wanted to be the Hokage for as long as I can remember though. It's a place of acknowledgement, and my reasoning behind getting there when I was younger was for that recognition as being the strongest member of the village. Protecting people is my goal, though." She nodded her head firmly as she finished; every movement she made full of passion and determination. It was obvious that she had actually put a lot of thought into this endeavour of hers, and it wasn't just a childish ambition.

This was her way of life.

When she finished filling in her team mate about her dream, he pointed out that the lake they were heading for was now in view. Kimiko turned around and, sure enough, spotted said lake quite easily. It really was large; she couldn't see the end of it from here. It probably didn't help that the sun's glare was reflecting off the water's surface as well, obscuring her vision even more. "Hm..." She muttered to herself in thought, stopping at the bend in the road. "We should go down to the lake's coast. I bet it's quicker this way." She said brightly, hopping down the slight hill and continuing again on her way to this lake.

The pair were well on their way yet again, and Kimiko realised that Toshiro hadn't really given a life dream of his that she could remember. She dropped back slightly and walked beside him on his left, a smile bright on her face while she turned her head to look at him; showing that he had her full attention. "So Toshiro-kun, what would you say your life goal is? You know what mine is inside out, after all; it's only fair if you tell me yours!" She laughed, crossing her arms comfortably behind her head while they walked.

The small hamlet was already coming into view; made up of no more than six houses. A small dock took up the side of the lake closest to the town, and small fishing boats were moored up in preparation for a fishing trip, or having just returned from one. Their client's house was one of the smaller out of the six, made up entirely of white boards with a tiled sloping roof. It was all on one floor, making it a bungalow with a neat porch set out at the front. That was their first destination, to acquaint themselves with the lady and to then find out where her fiancée was last spotted before he disappeared.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

It was with an audible sigh of relief that Toshiro found his hastily contrived plan to divert his partner's attention working. In fact it might have worked a bit too well - by the end of Kimiko's spiel Toshiro's imagination had put a (transparent) older Kimiko in the Hokages robes & hat over top of his partner and he had to admit to himself that it fit her. Even after shaking slightly to clear it didn't completely chase what he had seen. If Toshiro had had any doubts about how serious Kimiko was when it came to becoming Hokage before, they were permanently buried at that point. In their place was a feeling that wouldn't be a matter of if she became Hokage but a matter of when she became the Hokage. "Well, you really put some thought into that. Those are better reasons than "honor and prestige" ever will be, much better reasons." What the white-haired genin didn't mention was that he didn't think a time without any conflict was possible. While no historian, Toshiro had helped his godfather in the clan's library on a few occasions and had retained a smattering of what he had read. Part of that was that as far back as the clan records went (and that was further than most in Konoha knew), there had always some conflict. Clan versus clan, warlord against warlord, or nation against nation - someone was always wanting what someone else had and was willing to shed others blood to get it. To imagine a time when all that was put aside and conflict simply didn't exist... he couldn't do it. Maybe because his own hands had quite a bit of blood on them and he knew at some level that the family of the slain wouldn't accept anything less than his own in return as the price for peace. Still, even the idea of the villages not the throats of the others constantly had a certain seductive allure that Toshiro couldn't simply dismiss.

As he had been mulling over the concept of a sustainable "peace", Toshiro almost didn't hear Kimiko say they should take the coast, having just stopped "wool gathering" in time to see her jump down the small hill towards the blue visible between the trees ahead. Being that he was probably a bit heavier and carrying considerably more weight in equipment, Toshiro opted for a slower but somewhat less risky method of descent. He just stepped off and slid down on his heels, landing with knees bent to absorb the impact before jogging to catch up to his partner. He had again gotten a bit lost in thought when Kimiko asked him what his life's goal was. A question that when Toshiro thought about it, he was surprised to find he really couldn't answer even to himself. "I never really thought about that Kimi-chan. As far back as I can remember I've always been the one who would have to take over the clan leadership when my father retires after he takes over when Grandpa finally steps down. Nearly everything I've learned and done has been towards that end because if I'm not a capable leader the clan would end up paying the price. I guess somewhere along the way any other goals I had sort of got plowed under to make way for what I would need as a clan head."

Sighing at the realization that his partner had a goal of her own while his own life had been decided by his sisters absolute lack of interest and talent in administrative work, Toshiro had just started to wonder why that was when a memory flashed in front of him. To be exact, it was two memories - one of a mission where he had taken a detour to see his partner better equipped, and an unsanctioned mission that had shown him why some ninja went rogue. Those memories gave Toshiro a surge of inspiration - it wasn't a life-long goal, but it was something worth the effort. "I will say this though. I really want to change the way the village treats shinobi who don't come from a clan." At that he went on describe some of the missions he had run with other ninja, in particular the glaring differences in how well those with and without the backing of a clan or family were equipped. He also, without mentioning names, described just how unacceptable he found some of the places he had found comrades living in when he had to collect them for a mission. Just how unacceptable to him those conditions were was apparent in the way his teeth would grind at some parts and his hands would clench into fists so tightly that his fingernails would almost draw blood from his palms. "That isn't right. Everyone who wears this", at which point that Toshiro raised one hand to tap the plate of his forehead protector with his index finger, "swore the same oath to protect the village and its people with our lives. If you come from a clan, have a family, or are an orphan shouldn't determine who has the right tools to survive a mission, or who can pick and choose missions instead of having to take whatever they can just to earn enough to keep food in their belly. If I get the chance I want to change that. To see every ninja given at least a decent start until they can stand on their own. Even if it means having to personally pound that idea into the heads of village leaders one by one or all at once." By the end of near-rant, Toshiro was more animated than he had been in months. If Kimiko had known anything about reading body language, it would have been obvious that this wasn't a minor annoyance to Toshiro - it was a huge issue to the clan genin.

Of course there was the small matter that in the time Toshiro had been talking the two genin had managed to enter the hamlet proper and were getting some rather... unusual looks. Well it might be more precise to say that Toshiro was getting looks that ranged from surprise to annoyance while the one's sent Kimiko's way were mostly curiosity mixed in with pity for being in Toshiro's company. Once Toshiro finished, he finally noticed where he was and the somewhat unfriendly looks he was getting. Looks that made Toshiro's right hand itch for the feel of a blade until his common sense sternly reminded it that he would likely need to ask these people for information soon and scaring them wasn't going to make that part easier. He still wasn't intimidated by those looks. No, the fact that his other hand grabbed Kimiko's and he used some of the speed that was earning him the nickname "Toshiro no Torasame" (Tiger Shark Toshiro) among his clansmen had absolutely nothing to do with those looks. It wasn't until the two genin (or rather one with the other in tow) abruptly stopped at the door to the clients house , that Toshiro realized just what he had done and let go of Kimiko's hand. At the same time his body tensed up in preparation to roll with an impact, waiting for the slap (or worse) he just knew was coming. If his sisters had seen that they would never give him any peace, and he didn't want to think how many of the "things that WILL get you slapped by a girl" he had just done in his rush to get out of an embarrassing situation. 'This is just not my day. Just let it be over with quickly.

SC Used

Spoiler:

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

Kimiko beamed with delight when Toshiro praised her ambitions and her reasons for reaching for said dream, and she couldn't help but giggle slightly to outwardly express her happiness even more. It was nice to hear somebody being behind her dream so whole-heartedly; she had to say, it was strange. Most people scoffed at her and said that she was just a little nobody. Everybody knew that the Hokages had been from clans, and it was a stupid idea for her to even consider trying to achieve the highest rank in all the village with all of these odds being against her. Even their current Hokage was from the Uzumaki clan. No matter what the odds though, it was pretty obvious that she would do anything and everything to achieve her dream. It was her life; not a part of it. There was a brief, comfortable silence between them while Toshiro absorbed the rest of Kimiko's earlier speech, and the latter didn't mind. Sometimes she had a way with words that she never understood. She was not intelligent in the slightest, but sometimes... her heart overtook her head and said such deep, inspiring words that even the most dismaying of minds were forced to stop and think. Such a gift to have. Instead of those that were probably more 'useful', Kimiko was blessed with this strange and unusual one. Although it wasn't anything physically based, it had served much more purpose than other specialities she had up her sleeves, that was for sure.

Although she was a notorious chatterbox, she was on the flip side a very good listener. She quietened down and listened patiently to everything her partner had to say about his dream. In short, he hadn't really got one. His main aim was to make himself a good clan leader for when his grandfather stepped down, and then later his father as well. Ah... being from a clan. It amazed, fascinated and annoyed Kimiko to no ends. She simply smiled at that point, nodding her head in understanding but not saying a word. Again, silence enveloped the two while they walked, until Toshiro broke it. And in such a surprising way... he said that he wanted to stop the prejudices against clanless shinobi, when he was from a clan. "Huh?" She asked in surprise, looking round sharply and focusing her attention on her companion.

With how he spoke so passionately about an issue that didn't even directly concern him, Kimiko felt herself warm to the boy even more as a friend than she had done before. Her eyes softened, and her smile was small yet pleasant, reflective and pretty. Things that she was never usually any good at. She was always so brash, to the point... never wishy-washy and sweet. "Being a clanless shinobi myself means that I can sympathise with your want to bring about the end of the prejudices..." She pointed out, looking ahead and making sure that they were still on track to their destination. "But it's a surprise to hear such a thing from a shinobi in a clan." She said slowly, turning her head to the side slightly to look at Toshiro. "A nice surprise, nevertheless." She added. "What is also unfair is that every Hokage in my knowledge has been from a clan of some sort. I want to change that too. When I become Hokage... I'll help you break down those awful prejudices." Her fists clenched determinedly at her sides and a wide grin took over her face. "Together we can do it, Toshi-kun! I know we can! Two heads are better than one, eh?" She laughed, delighted and excited about this prospect of working together with somebody to achieve the same dream.

When they entered the hamlet, Kimiko was surprised to see that people were milling about. And what was even more surprising were the looks that were being shot Toshiro's way. They seemed... annoyed at him. She looked at her mission partner with shock and curiosity, about to open her mouth and ask what was going on, when she was instead taken by the hand and led along very quickly indeed to their clients' residence. She didn't protest, but simply followed as quickly as her little legs would carry her. They reached the place much faster than she could have done by herself, so she was grateful for the help. She turned and smiled happily at her companion, and yet again she was surprised by his posture. He seemed to be tensed up, waiting for something. "Eh? What's wrong, Toshi-kun?" She asked, thinking something was wrong. "Thanks for the speed boost as well!" She giggled at the sound of what she just said and shook her head to herself before turning and rapping her knuckles on the front door.

A woman answered it immediately; the door being flung open with such force that a small gust of wind ruffled Kimiko's hair and loose clothing in the process. "Hello, ma'am! We're the shinobi employed to complete your mission request." Kimiko said politely, bowing her head lowly and performing a slight curtsy out of respect. "My name is Katsumi Kimiko, and this is Hinamori Toshiro." She firstly introduced herself, and then her mission partner, gesturing at the aforementioned people as she mentioned them. The woman looked relieved, holding onto the door frame and smiling weakly. "Thank goodness you've arrived, Kimiko-san, Toshiro-san. I really am worried..." She seemed to wander off inside her own thoughts briefly with that statement, before shaking her head to snap herself out of it. "Please, step inside."

Kimiko led the way inside the house, wiping her feet politely on the doormat and then standing up straight; shoulders back, chest out, and ready for instructions to be given. "My name is Fuukami Yoza. My fiancée is Azame Juun... he's been missing now for nearly two days." Yoza explained, her hands clasped together tightly so that the whites of her knuckles showed. She was very pretty, with a slender figure, charming face and long, jet black locks that contrasted heavily with her ice blue eyes. She mustn't have been a day over twenty-five, but looked almost double that age with worry. "You've already read the mission description, yes? Then you'll know the description of his boat in order to find him." She paced back across the small hallway, moving to a small table, picking something up and moving back again. "Here, take this. I packed a bag for you both to share; it is chock full of fresh food, water and survival supplies. I didn't know whether or not you'd need it, but... better to be safe than sorry, yes?" She smiled weakly. With that, Kimiko placed her hand firmly on the woman's arm, a genuine smile on her lips.

"Don't worry, Yoza-san! We'll find Juun-san and bring him home safe and sound! Just wait for us, okay?" She then took the backpack that the woman had packed for them, and slung it over one arm briefly. "C'mon then, Toshi-kun. Let's go!" She claimed, turning on her heel and opening the door that they entered not very long ago. While the pair walked away, Yoza ran to the door and waved hastily. "O-Okay! Come back safely!" She cried out.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

'Any second now. Remember to roll with the impact. I just hope she doesn't get me kicked from the team over this.' Those were the words that kept running through Toshiro's head as he awaited the righteous retribution he was sure Kimiko was preparing to deliver. He had seen the same thing happen far too many times in the Academy, and on more than a few occasions with his sisters, to not know what would be coming. Thus when Kimiko's words finally registered with the white-haired genin, his initial reaction was to be shocked. Where was the scream of "Pervert!" followed by a tooth-rattling blow to the face or worse? A quick glance at Kimiko's face showed absolutely no sign of what he had expected to see - no masked anger or disgust, no forced politeness. For the first time in years, Toshiro began to question if just maybe his "kunochi should be treated like an active explosive tag" policy had been based on faulty information. Maybe, just maybe, he wouldn't have to assume every combat-trained female outside of his own family would interpret contact in the same light as his classmates had, nor the violent reactions that ensued.

The time lost from that dawning realization had Toshiro scrambling when events kept moving forward. His small bow to Yoza-san was a bit sloppy and he probably could have done a better job getting the dirt off his sandals before coming in, but at least he remembered to duck so the part of his bow that stuck above his shoulder didn't hit the door frame. At least when he was inside he managed to give the situation at hand the proper attention. Content to let Kimiko handle the client herself, Toshiro settled for listening and examining the room for any scraps of useful information he could while staying at Kimiko's side. The hallway was tidy, with a table at one end that looked to be recently made if Toshiro was any judge. Besides that the only other articles of note was a picture of a woman who could only be their client standing next to a man with his arm over her shoulder that was wearing a bulk coat and a blue "captains" hat with an orange star on the front of it . Juun-san, assuming that the man in the picture was him, wasn't a physically imposing man as far as Toshiro was concerned. Maybe a hands width taller than the client he was neither skinny nor fat, with brown hair shorn in a working mans cut. The only thing that stood out in Toshiro's eyes was his hands, one over Yoza-sans shoulder the other practically engulfing her own. Given his size, Azama Juun looked to have large hands that showed signs of obvious physical labor. Then there was the client herself. Toshiro would have agreed with Kimiko that Fuukami Yoza was rather pretty, certainly pretty and young enough to put to rest any suspicions that her fiancé had run off with another woman. That she was sincerely worried, or an incredible actress, was also firmly set in Toshiro's mind - he was sure if she held her hands any tighter she would need a pry bar to get them apart.

When Kimiko had called for her partner to follow, Toshiro had given Yoza-san what he hoped was a reassuring look then had smartly followed his teammate out the door. It wasn't until they were out of earshot of the client that he put what he had noticed into words. "Two days missing. This isn't just a matter of losing track of time and staying out too long. Something has gone seriously wrong. If Juun-san had been able to beach his boat along the shore, he should have been back by now. It doesn't take much brains to follow a shoreline until you run into the only settlement on it and this lake isn't that big. That means he's likely stuck somewhere on the lake itself, or injured too badly to move on his own. The biggest problem I can think of is how we can cover the entire lake and its shore quickly without risking missing him."

Inside the privacy of his own head, Toshiro was cursing that his summon Tonbi was still recovering from a wrenched wing back at home. This was exactly the sort of mission where his ability to fly would have saved them hours if not days of searching. Without that advantage the two genin would have to search on foot or by boat, a much slower and more error-prone process. Nor did he care for the boats he had seen tied up to the pier. They were all skiffs, little more than large row boats with single masts and no cover at all from the elements. Good for someone who never went out further than they could come back in a single day, but not exactly well-suited to working on extremely shallow water or for more than a day straight. For a moment he had actually considered just creating a pair of aquatic mounts for himself and Kimiko using a jutsu, but shelved that idea. Not only was the jutsu itself a heavy drain his chakra, but if Juun-san was injured, they would need the extra room a boat offered to transport him safely. The entire situation was one Toshiro was far too familiar with lately - all the options he had had serious drawbacks that made them all equally uncertain. He just hoped that Kimiko would have a trick up her sleeve that would work better. "We are going to need some way to cover that lake. We could borrow one of those boats, or I could try a jutsu I know. I know a bit about sailing, enough to handle a small craft, but I don't know this lake at all - we could end up stuck on a sunken tree or sandbar. The justu would get around that since what it creates is just solidified water, but it would nearly wipe out my chakra reserves and we would have to find someway to carry Juun-san if he's injured.

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

While the pair walked down towards the lake, Kimiko observed the body of water and what surrounded it carefully. It was mainly sparse, scattered woodland, which served no purpose at all by the looks of things. It also couldn't explain how Juun had disappeared, which meant that she would need to use a bit more thought... or look a little bit further. On the horizon, or as far as she could see, there was a dark, sinister shape. What could it be?... As they drew nearer, she could just about make out the mouth to a cave, and with that she felt as if they should head straight for it. Around the lake was bare; and if a boat was moored up there, it would be pretty obvious for anybody to see. That, and Juun could walk back to the village leaving his boat there. The cave provided need for hazard, in case the boat smashed into the mouth of it, and that could explain why Juun wasn't yet home. He may have been injured like that... even though these were assumptions, they were the best ideas Kimiko could come up with. And as such, she would have to assume that perhaps the part about the cave seemed the most sensible.

She turned to her mission partner as he pointed out that they had one of two options; either to use one of the boats at the dock, or to take advantage of Toshiro's elemental affinity and a jutsu he could perform. Of course the boat was much more practical, even if it did have its downsides. The pair of them would need their strength, and therefore their chakra was vital. Using it on a draining jutsu wasn't a good idea. "We'll use a boat, Toshi-kun. I have an idea anyway." She said reassuringly, leading the way down to the dock area. Upon stepping on the dock itself, quite a loud creaking sound startled her. This dock must be old, because Kimiko didn't weigh much in the slightest. She frowned slightly as she walked on it, speeding up her pace so that they could get in a spare little boat as quickly as possible. There was one right at the end which had sails on it, and that was her target.

When she reached it, she briefly waited for Toshiro and smiled at her mission partner before stepping down onto the sailing boat. She seated herself nearer the front so that there was room for another person, and then looked out across the lake again. She shielded the sun from her eyes and pointed across the water to the dark shape in the distance. "That's where we're headed. There's no other hazards as far as I can see around the lake, and that cave looks very suspicious. If we don't have any luck there, then we'll have to scour the whole lake... so hopefully my hunch is right." She said optimistically, clenching her fist and grinning widely. "I hope that those sailing skills are enough, Toshi-kun, because I have no idea how to sail a boat!" She pointed out and laughed, crossing one leg over the other and waiting patiently. The day was still young, so they did of course have the time. But... the worried Miss Yoza wouldn't care much for them taking their time. Time and precision were off the essence in this mission, that much was starting to become clear. If they took too long, it may be a lost cause. If they weren't precise enough in their search, they might miss vital details.

Kimiko placed the bag that Yoza had packed for the pair of them in the middle of the small boat, her eyes never shifting from that ominous cave on the horizon. Something just didn't feel right about it, and she wanted to know what it was. Even if they didn't have any joy finding Juun there, she wanted to see if her instincts were right about the place. Just then, the sound of slow creaking and heavy footsteps drew her attention up to the dock. A stout man in a long rain coat sporting a wild beard was stood over the pair of them; hands dug deep into his pockets. He was wearing knee-high rubber boots, and he appeared to be ready to go off on a fishing trip. "I heard you two were off to Ragrock Cave over there." He gestured with his head at the dark shape ahead of them. Kimiko nodded and smiled. "That's right! We're shinobi here on a mission to find a missing fisherman, and I think there's something fishy about that cave... if you'll pardon the pun." She grinned at that, not quite knowing she had made a joke until after she said it. The strange man leant back slightly, looking down at the pair even more with a number of mixed emotions in his eyes. Anger, intrigue, sorrow... such a strange mixture. "Ah, Juun-san. Between you and me... if he has drifted into that there cave, he's a goner. Done for." He said with a sinister twist in his voice, turning on his heel so that his back was to both Kimiko and Toshiro. "And I wish you luck if you too are heading there. You'll need it..." With that, he walked away again with a heavy limp.

"Pft." Kimiko scoffed slightly, shaking her head. "That's stupid. Nothing but tall tales! We'll be fine, so let's head out, Toshi-kun!"

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

If the pier had grumbled at Kimiko's feather-weight touch, it practically screamed when Toshiro put his greater weight on it. For just a moment the white-haired genin had braced for a dunking if a board gave way. When the boards held, he hurried on at a quicker pace until he was even with his partners shoulder. From there he had a slightly better view of the cave that had held Kimiko's attention on the shore as he listened to her explain why she wanted to search there first. Toshiro was a trained shinobi, taught to look for rational explanations and to question the evidence of his senses when something seemed off. Superstition was not something he gave a lot of credence to. Still there was something about the cave, even from this distance, made him... uneasy. Uneasy enough that he quickly turned his attention to Kimiko's choice of vessel for their search. A choice Toshiro readily approved of. To a cheerful demeanor and looks (Toshiro had indeed noticed that smile and found himself wishing she would smile like that more often), he could add good sense.

While the other boats were wide-beamed and relatively deep-hulled to go out in all weather and hold a hefty catch yet unwieldy, this one was clearly built for an entirely different purpose. Shorter than the others and narrow, the single mast was rigged with two smaller sails similar to the arrangement of a sloop. What really caught Toshiro's attention was that this one practically sat on top of the water and the mast was clearly designed to fold down into the hull. A configuration that said that she (he was pretty sure watercraft were traditionally female) would be fast, nimble, and able to go places the other boats couldn't. Places like a cave that gave Toshiro the heebie-jeebies even with tens of miles between it and himself. Even the boats name, painted onto the rear... err stern was a good sign. "Lady Fortune's Favor" - if there was one deity that Toshiro wouldn't mind on his side, it was Lady Luck.

When the sounds of heavy footsteps had come from the dock behind him, Toshiro had first looked toward Kimiko to gauge her reaction. Of course that didn't stop him from getting ready to slip a kunai from his sleeve into his hand at the first threatening gesture the unknown person made. It wasn't until the figure asked if the two genin were headed to "Ragrock Cavern" that he relaxed a bit. Apparently this was a local who was curious about what two strangers were doing in the hamlet. That the cave had a name and a reputation, obviously not a good one, with the locals wasn't exactly comforting to Toshiro. Kimiko might dismiss the warning as tall tales, but he wasn't quite so certain. Not after the time he and his deceased teammate had set off to deal with "a blood-sucking demon" that was terrorizing a village and come face to mouth parts with a leech that was bigger than both of them combined. The man's parting remarks though had Toshiro ready to jump out of the boat and put a kunai to the makes neck then start questioning him. It wasn't until after the figure had left the dock and went out of sight around a shed that the genin figured out why he had felt that irrational urge to interrogate the man. He had sounded absolutely certain that Azama Juun wouldn't be back. Too certain and without any of the usual tinge of fear that would be present when locals talked about places with evil reputations. At that point Toshiro cursed, once but with great feeling, the fact that he hadn't gone with his gut instinct. Somehow he just knew that he had let a key piece of the puzzle slip through his fingers. "Kimi-chan, I think there is more going on here than we were told."

That said Toshiro went back to removing the last mooring line before taking the seat amidships and using the oars to carefully back the boat away from the dock. Whatever clues the stranger had held were out of his reach now - the best he could do was focus on getting himself and his partner to this cave with an evil reputation alive and in one piece then back again. To that end once they were clear of the dock and facing the right direction Toshiro pulled the oars aboard (shipped, a part of his brain supplied the correct term) then unfurled the sail. Apparently the "Lady Fortune's Favor" had a ready answer to the old question about what was in a name and it was "a lot". No sooner had he set the sail and tied the lines down than a stiff following wind from just the right direction kicked up. Soon the boat was gliding across the lake; leaving Toshiro little to occupy his attention besides trying to spot any hazards in time and sneak glances at his partner.

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

Kimiko turned to look at her mission partner when he voiced his concerns about going to the cave with there being more than meets the eye. She smiled and shook her head dismissively, quite confident that there was nothing wrong with that cave apart from it looking a bit foreboding from here. "Honestly, Toshi-kun, we'll be just fine! Don't worry and stay strong; it's when we worry that we lose track of what we're doing and where we're going. If we panic and flee, our mission will never bee completed." She said; wise words from somebody who never usually spoke them. "So onwards, to Ragrock Cave!" She pointed towards the dark shape on the horizon, smirking slightly as they left the dock and started to sail towards said cave...

~ Later that day... ~

It had taken them about three hours of smooth, speedy sailing to reach Ragrock Cave, and while they were still quite a fair distance away from it, Kimiko could see why locals would be scared of it. The mouth of the cave was menacing enough; it was wide and lined with jagged, pointy rocks that resembled gruesome teeth in a way. There was also quite a heavy undercurrent that pulled them towards Ragrock, so not much sailing or directional skills were needed. The current directed them straight through the mouth of the cave, avoiding the pointy rocks that threatened to sink them as well. So far, so good. As they drifted inside the cave, Kimiko turned to Toshiro and gave him a reassuring smile. "Ready, Toshi-kun?" She asked him, tilting her head to the side briefly while she waited for a reaction from her mission partner. The inside of the cave was vast... and extremely dark. The dwindling light from outside was barely enough to show them what they were running into, and that was quite a scary thought. When the light started to fade completely, Kimiko made a few quick hand signs, muttering "Honoo Ha" under her breath and opening her mouth wide. Three flaming leaf-shaped projectiles spat forth and lit the rest of the way inside the cave.

From the small time window between when she had performed her jutsu and before it dwindled, she could make out the basic cave layout. There was a narrow 'stream' that their boat was following, and on each side of them was dark rock complete with pillars reaching up to an unknown distance. Her flaming leaves finally ran out of juice above a pool that the little stream was flowing into. Again, they were plunged into pitch-blackness. Kimiko muttered a curse under her breath and searched through her head for a better jutsu to act as a light. "Shōmei Heirō." She called out, her voice echoing back at her several times afterwards.

She performed a string of hand signs, and slowly, a bright halo of light formed atop her head. The flames danced and flickered, but it was quite an effective torch. Their boat kept moving through the pool, towards a large platform of rock. She spotted a dark shape on the east-most side of the platform, and she turned her head towards it to better make out what it was. She gasped quietly upon recognising a shape that resembled a boat, and at that... a fishing boat... that matched the description from the mission scroll exactly. The boat was wrecked; it had obviously ran into the platform without a light to guide it. "Toshi-kun..." She pointed at it noiselessly, her breath catching in her throat. Something about this place... really wasn't right. Suspicions or not, she hated the feel of this place. It radiated an evil aura, and for some reason the lack of air in here made her feel tight-chested.

Their boat continued to the platform of rock, and they were able to bring it to a controlled stop. Kimiko stepped off the boat first, keeping the Illuminating Halo jutsu activated as a light for them both to use inside this dark cave. She strained her eyes a little and coughed; flames probably weren't the best idea because they required oxygen to burn. But it was their only bet to be able to get around in here. So she would have to deal with it. "That's Juun-san's boat. We need to go and search it... now." She demanded, already striding out towards it, concern etched on her face.

Jutsu Used:

Chakra Remaining:

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

During the several hours of manning the tiller during the trip to "Ragrock Cave" Toshiro had started to relax slightly. He still kept an eye out for any hidden snags, but more of his time had been split between small talk with his partner and trying to figure out just what had been behind the stranger's words. The later ended up a dead end that he had to shelve for later - he just didn't know enough to guess at a motive. And he wasn't willing to accept the "scorned suitor" theory without corroborating evidence. That was the domain of his sisters and especially Momiji with her sappy romance novels. On the first though he better success, having managed to keep his partner from having to do all the talking until she was hoarse. His success on that front had absolutely nothing to do with Toshiro's enjoying telling someone about the time his puppet-using sister Rukia's first self-made poison ended up giving the cart horses some... potent flatulence. Flatulence which lasted all night and into the next day when all four of them were "volunteered" to help clean the stables out.

As the two genin had neared the cave that was their first search location, Toshiro had found that it had gotten progressively more difficult to not be silent. For whatever reason, Ragrock Cave had the impressive ability to be very... intimidating for a pile of rocks. Impressive since that didn't include the extra danger of an unusually powerful current combined with very sharp-looking rocks, or the thought of having to fight that same current to get out. Combined with the sheer blackness that was visible inside the cave and it wasn't surprising that Toshiro needed Kimiko's unshakable resolve to lean on. After all, if she was going to act like the figurehead of a warship going into battle, how could he balk at following her.

One they were inside the cave though, every sense he had started screaming "Get Out!" As if something didn't want them there and was about to make its anger at their intrusion known. Even Kimiko's illuminating katon jutsu hadn't dispelled that sense of dread - Toshiro had been ready to swear that the light only seemed to make that sense of "something" angrier. In the face of that it was a small comfort, but Toshiro's hand had gone seeking the hilt of his ninjato. The familiar feel of the leather and wood was a reminder that whatever was in here, if it could harm the genin it could be harmed and he had his tool of choice for harming things first close at hand. So reassured, Toshiro had put a hand on Kimiko's shoulder to halt her before she had taken more than a few steps. The hand that wasn't keeping his partner back had also been raised, this one held in a one-handed seal just as a solid copy of the white-haired genin came into existence before it went back to the boat and started tying a line around one of the smaller pillars. "Kage Bushin - it will keep watch on the boat." Toshiro felt slightly bad for lying to his partner, but he didn't want whatever, or whoever, was watching them to know that the clone in the boat was effectively helpless in a fight. If the hostile presence thought it was a much more capable shadow clone that couldn't be "killed" without Toshiro learning everything that might give it second and third thoughts about attacking in the first place. Time that could be spent finding Azame Juun and then getting the heck out of this place where something didn't want them.

Ploy for extra time in place, Toshiro had then taken the lead in approaching the missing fisherman's wrecked skiff. If something sinister was waiting there to spring a trap for them, Toshiro would rather be the one to trigger it than have Kimiko in that role. He was faster, used to close quarters combat, and Kimiko might not be able to keep the jutsu giving them light going if she was hit. If the worst happened, well one of his sisters would just have to lead the clan and he was sure Kimiko would see both their ambitions through to the end. Strangely at peace with those thoughts, Toshiro felt the unease fall off his mind like water off a ducks back. Hand on hilt, he almost glided along the shelf of rock with all his sense on high alert - if anything moved besides the two genin and the waves, he would be ready to give it a taste of cold steel. When he had reached the wrecked boat without anything nasty happening (yet) and carefully peered into the wreckage, he couldn't help the whistle of astonishment that slipped out. Whatever had done this was more than a little current. Instead of a small hole and some leaks, the entire lower front quarter of the skiff was completely caved in. At least there wasn't a body present in the pile of broken boards since Toshiro doubted even a shinobi could have survived whatever impact had snapped multiple inch-thick planks like so many matchsticks. Still, there was no doubt that it was their client's fiancé's boat - the yellow stripe was obvious and in the light of Kimiko's jutsu Toshiro saw something under one of the intact seats. It took some uncomfortable twisting and he had gotten a long gash along his wrist and forearm from a hidden nail, but the genin managed to get out the object for a better examination. Silently, he held it up so that Kimiko could see it clearly. The object was a blue captains-style hat with an orange star on it just like in the picture back at Yoza-san's home, with one addition that was visible when Toshiro flipped up upside down. On the inside was a blackish-red stain the size of Toshiro's hand. A blood stain.

SC, Jutsu & Equipment used:

Spoiler:

CP: 47

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

Kimiko stopped briefly when her partner place a hand on her shoulder, and looked at him with a puzzled expression on her face for a few seconds. She spotted the clone Toshiro made, and she felt slightly more assured hearing that it was one of the Shadow variety. They were much stronger than the average illusions that most shinobi could make, and they were able to engage in combat. She smiled weakly at the white-haired male and nodded her head before turning once more and heading towards the wrecked boat. She was about to protest at Toshiro taking the lead from her, but upon hearing a strange, groaning creaking sound, she fell silent once more and walked closely behind him. She hunched her shoulders over slightly, regretting her earlier words about this cave being nothing more than an object of superstition for the inhabitants of the hamlet. It was starting to appear that her assumptions had been wrong.

When he stopped suddenly, she bumped into his back and carefully moved her head backwards so that the burning halo atop her head wouldn't scorch him. She gingerly moved to Toshiro's side, staying close and walking with him so that he had the light to guide him. When he pulled out a dark object, she leaned in closer and examined what it was; gasping when it became obvious as to what its identity was. It was Juun-san's fisherman's hat with the orange star on the front. Not only that... when Toshiro flipped it upside down, there was a dark stain on the inside, no doubt a stain of blood. Kimiko gulped audibly and clasped her hands together tightly. There was no denying it; she was scared now. She had never witnessed anything like this, and she had never been led to believe that the supernatural actually existed. Apparently, this cave was contradicting all her earlier beliefs. Her instincts were screaming at her to run back to the boat and try to get out of this death trap, but the strong kunoichi inside of her mocked her for being such a coward. The pair of them had to stay and complete their mission, and this shouldn't be a repellent, but an intrigue to figure out the mystery that was forming around Azame Juun's disappearance. She sighed to herself; her inner voice was right. Besides, she had Toshiro at her side who would protect her, and she needed to protect him in return.

"Okay..." She said lowly, looking around to her back and the apparent never-ending darkness behind her. Even the make-shift torch above her head didn't penetrate far into the blackness. She crouched down to the floor, her brain telling her rather logically that if Juun-san wasn't in the boat, he had most likely managed to get out of it and wander away. Much to her surprise, not only was she partly right, but she was also quite wrong. "Toshi-kun... look at this..." She tugged at her partner's leg, pointing at the ground just behind them. It appeared to be splatters of blood which heels had been dragged through, suggesting that whoever had been bleeding was pulled out and dragged by somebody else. "It appears that we aren't alone in here." She said grimly, standing up once more and feeling her fists self-consciously clench; the whites of her knuckles showing.

She started to follow the staggered blood trail slowly, keeping to the outside of it so that she didn't mess up the quite clear tracks they had to go by. She paused briefly and looked back at her partner, nodding her head at him in the direction that they should walk in. The trail led into the pitch black behind them, and Kimiko dreaded to think how far back this cave actually went. Thinking that they were about to walk most likely into the line of fire, and into the scary unknown made her slightly uneasy.

Somewhere deep in the cave's depths just then, a low human groan echoed back to them. Kimiko bit her tongue in surprise and jumped back a step, shaking her head to herself while she nursed her tongue inside her mouth. "Ouch..." She muttered to herself, looking in the direction she thought the sound came from. Who, or what, could that be? She swallowed her fear and continued to walk towards it, following the trail conveniently left for them and hoping that somehow, they won't have to find out what that sound was.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

When Kimiko had spotted the blood trail with its obvious drag marks Toshiro had actually felt relief swell in him even as he nodded his agreement with her assessment. To drag a full-grown man who was likely dead weight (no pun... hopefully) required strength - strength that only something alive could possess. That thought - that whoever had done this was among the living - was very reassuring. Spirits and ghosts were the domain of priests and miko's and he was happy to leave such problems to them. When it came to making the deserving living, well into the not-living, Toshiro was something an expert. Where there was expertise there was a well of confidence bordering on fearlessness just waiting to be drunk from, which is exactly what Toshiro did. He didn't have an option in his mind as Kimiko's expression said that the entire situation was starting to wear at her resolve as it had worn at his. That done he had put a hand on his partner's shoulder when she turned to give it a reassuring squeeze that said better than words "I'm here and I won't let anything happen to you".

So braced against the unknown and having done his best to share some of that courage, Toshiro followed Kimiko while ransacking his brain at a furious pace for plans and counter-plans. Now that there was irrefutable evidence that someone with hostile intent had been (and maybe still was) here, he felt justified in expending whatever chakra would tip the odds in their favor if that someone attacked. He had already stowed Juun-san's hat into his pouch, using the time his hand was inside the bag to run through one-handed seals. In the dark they wouldn't be visible as they silently padded from the water onto the rock, but Toshiro knew they were there, pacing the genin among the rocky pillars to the left and right. Three feet plus at the shoulder of lupine-shaped water whose teeth were just as solid as the real thing. If anyone attacked the genin the water wolves knew their orders - find the fool then rip them apart. If the person happened to be a local, well he would deal with the fall out later.

The precaution of flankers (that doubled as a trump card) in place, Toshiro followed Kimiko as she moved down the blood trail. He left the actual following to her as his own senses were already busy searching. He wasn't looking for an attacker though, but the signs that would warn of an incoming attack - a whoosh of displaced air, the glint of reflected light off a blade, anything that didn't belong in the quite dark. If an attack came he would be ready to counter it with overwhelming firepower or pull Kimiko out of the line of attack. The later he almost did when she jumped back when the distorted groan reached the genin's ears. Even then he had just managed to keep the kunochi from knocking them both down by grabbing her elbow and taking a half step back to absorb the impact. At the same time a brace of kunai found their way into his other hand as he strained his senses even further. Something, or more likely someone, was most certainly out there and he wasn't sure if it was a friend in pain or an enemy trying to lure them. It was while trying to locate the source of that noise for a proper pin-cushioning that Toshiro spotted what might be a clue. A small rivulet of water flowing just at the edge of their light that was following parallel to the direction of the blood trail. It was a guess but he knew that given enough time water would eat away rock until it made an opening. If their clients fiancé had been dragged from the wreck against his will, then that would be the logical place to keep him.

Once again grabbing a hold of Kimiko's shoulder, this time Toshiro leaned in as close as he could to whisper his hunch into her ear. If anyone was listening he wanted them to wonder and worry what he was saying. Maybe if would make them move to where one of his "pets" would make a snack from them. "Kimi-chan, look just a bit to your left. If water if going this way I bet there is an opening to more of the cave in the same direction. That is probably where our echo came from and if he's still here where Juun-san is."

Spoiler:

CP: 38

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

Kimiko felt reassured by Toshiro's efforts to make her feel better about venturing into the pitch black cave, and she smiled at him in return for the squeeze of her shoulder that he gave her. She just kept walking, however, at a slow and steady pace. Her brain had shut down mostly, and she was now following what her instincts were telling her and not what her logic should be providing. She mainly went by what her instincts said anyway, but now that they were confronted with a potentially violent enemy that had seized the man that the pair were looking for, she found herself moving completely of her heart's accord. She was practically unaware about the secret jutsu her partner had cast, and only noticed them when she saw a shimmering of water out of the corner of her eye thanks to the glowing jutsu above her head.

While they were moving slowly but steadily into the cave, she had her attention grabbed once more by a grab on the shoulder. She paused and did as Toshiro told her to do, looking to the left and seeing the small stream clear as day. She nodded her head slightly as she listened to what her partner spoke of as well. This stream of water would (hopefully) logically lead to a wide opening in the cave, and that's probably where the groan had come from earlier, and where Juun might be since the blood stain went in the same direction as far as she could tell. "Alright, Toshi-kun. Let's use the water as our guide now." She walked along beside it, keeping her eyes a little bit ahead so she could see any twists or turns in the small stream if there were any. So far, it was completely straight. "To think that this mission is a C-Rank..." She muttered to Toshiro, shaking her head. It certainly didn't feel like one; she felt as if she was on a potentially dangerous B or A-Rank mission. What if the person who had kidnapped Juun-san was a trained shinobi of a higher rank than both of them put together? What would they do then? Odds were that they'd both be killed right out. However, logic denied that theory. Juun was only a fisherman, why would a high-ranking shinobi want to kidnap him? It didn't make any sense what-so-ever.

While she was deep in thought, Kimiko heard some distant movements. She stopped, holding up a hand to tell her partner to stop. The footsteps continued for a couple more paces before they too stopped, and she realised that whoever it was tried to cover their movements with other noises. She shook her head and continued, exaggerating her steps and hearing above that, muffled steps in the distance again. Her eyes instinctively narrowed while she looked down the stream towards where the noises where coming from, and she continued to walk at a faster pace in that direction.

She picked up on a light in the direction that they were walking in, and although it was small, it acted as another guide for them. Muffled voices started speaking, and she continued to move faster and faster until she started to jog, and then took off running. The voices stopped, and she could see a dark silhouette look in her direction. It didn't move, however, simply stood there in a casual position. "Ah... looks like you finally arrived." A voice mused, and judging by the mouth moving on the silhouette, it must have come from that. It was a male voice, that which belonged to one of an older generation. "Who are you?" Kimiko demanded, her strength returning while she stormed over towards the stranger. When she was close enough and the other light provided the ability to see without her make-shift torch, she dispelled the jutsu. The man appeared quite old, and very tall; at least 6". His grey hair was long and unkempt, reaching his shoulders. He was wearing worn out attire; a dirty t-shirt over which sat a leather jacket with rips down the sleeves, and baggy black trousers that appeared as if they had been a different colour at one point. He wore no shoes either, so his feet were filthy.

"I'm just a lowly tramp." He said, bowing in a mock manner to the pair of Genin. "And you two are shinobi on a mission to retrieve somebody I'm currently looking after." He pointed out, to which Kimiko growled lowly and glared at the man. "How do you know that?" She asked, advancing a step. The man held him his hands innocently. "I have eyes and ears throughout this cave." He pointed out, holding up his hand where a bat flew to and perched. Even though it was really weird to think that both of them had been watched for the whole time they were in the cave, it was even weirder to think that this man could communicate with bats. She shuddered slightly and wished that she never asked the question. "I was a shinobi once too, you know. A decent Medical Ninja. That's why I've been looking after this man. I found him in the wrecked ship a few hours ago, and since then have been looking after him. At first I thought he was dead, but was relieved when I found a pulse." He said more to himself than anybody else.

Kimiko looked to the dark shape under a blanket on the cave floor, and recognised it to be Azame Juun from the photo in Yoza's home. She smiled slightly and walked across to the figure, crouching down beside it. "Can we take him back to his worried fiancée...?" She paused, waiting for a name to be given by the man who had effectively saved Juun's life. "Komo." He told her. "Komo-san." She finished, looking up at him with a smile. He nodded his head, waving a hand at the figure. "Please, be my guest. I was wondering how long it would be until somebody was sent to search for this man. It was very unfortunate for him; his boat must have drifted too far towards the strong current that runs into Ragrock Cave at the wrong time of day." Komo murmured the last part. Kimiko picked her head up curiously, "What do you mean, wrong time of day?" She asked.

"Ragrock Cave's current is at its strongest in the early hours of the morning, midday, late afternoon and late night. In between those times are when it flows the opposite way thanks to the strange formations of rocks deep inside the cave. After settling here to live out my retirement in the solitude of nature, I started to study the cave's peculiar behaviour. Even though it defies all logic... I too think that the cave has a mind of its own." He smiled wistfully and waved a hand away from him. "You best get going, both of you. The current will start flowing out of here in quarter of an hour judging by the lack of breeze in here." He had gently licked one of his fingers and held it to the air during his miniature speech.

Kimiko nodded her head, not wanting to question the slightly crazy man's judgement when he was all they had to go on. She nodded at Toshiro to come and help her with lifting Juun, and thanked the strange man quietly.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

As he followed a step behind his partner, Toshiro had to silently agree with Kimiko's assessment that the situation felt like anything but a "low-risk C-rank". At that point he would have said that the mission called for a full ANBU squad instead of two genin. Still they were so far in now that going back would expose them to greater risk, leaving the best option to keep moving forward. Attention focused on listening for an incoming attack, the white-haired genin hadn't realized that their steps had developed an echo until his partner raised her hand in the universal gesture to stop. An order Toshiro followed readily, especially when he heard the slightly "off" echo. That it wasn't his water-wolves was a given - they were as silent as their namesake. That left only someone else and Toshiro wasn't willing to assume good motives from their silent watcher. Hence why a pair of kunai, already fitted with "short-fused" explosive tags, appeared in his hand, ready to be sent flying towards where he thought the last step had come from. That he couldn't see what lay ahead or that the explosion couldn't tell friend from foe simply ceased to matter to him. Better a failed mission with his partner alive and well, even if he got reamed for it, than both of them dead because some paper-pusher hadn't considered the possibility of foul play when ranking the assignment. If he threw the weapons slightly high, the explosion would illuminate whoever was waiting in ambush as well as showering them with high-velocity shards of rock and steel. It might even leave the target of their rescue alive if he was close to the ground or just out of sight, assuming he wasn't already dead.

At least that was Toshiro's plan. It was bad luck that he hadn't counted on one factor - Kimiko's impetuous nature. Unable to see the light head since the much bright light from Kimiko's jutsu washed it out for him, Toshiro had no idea what caused his partner to turn her quick walk into a jog then a head-long dash that put her in his line of fire and made him check his arm mid-throw. In another situation he could easily have caught up with her, shouted at her to stop, maybe even yanked her back and demanded to know just what in Kami's name she was doing being so reckless. The sheer abruptness of the action had left the white-haired clan genin starting, utterly gob-smacked as she dashed ahead. The whole time he was seeing a different figure, one that was taller with raven hair worn in a short ponytail who had also charged into a situation without thinking and had ended up paying the ultimate price. It wasn't until he realized that Kimiko had almost gotten past his effective range in the cave that Toshiro shook off his shock and sprinted after her, using the pillars of rock for sudden changes of direction as much as possible. The whole time he was silently chanting 'Not again. Not. Again.' as disturbing images of what might happen (again) kept replaying in the genin’s mind.

Toshiro had just gotten close enough to hear the echo of an older male voice and Kimiko's challenge when she cut off her jutsu. Much to the silent cursing of Toshiro, who had come to a screeching halt against a pillar and found himself now faced with a problem. Namely that he no longer had a clean throw at the unknown figure and without Kimiko's jutsu if the other put out the torch he would be throwing blind and as likely to hit his partner as his intended target. Left in that familiar "all the options are bad, pick one" scenario, Toshiro had done what he hoped was best. Carefully walk towards Kimiko until he was even with her shoulder and be ready to react to any hostile move with lethal intent of his own.

That the figure, who certainly looked like a tramp, knew they were shinobi and who they had come for had gotten a reaction from both the genin. To Kimiko's feral growl Toshiro added his own snarl as he moved just a fraction ahead of his partner and very close to her side. A position that just happened to be nearly perfect for blocking any incoming attacks with a drawn blade or his own body. It was a protective position that earned the clan genin an arched eyebrow from the old man as if to say "oh so that is how things are", which elicited another snarl that sent the bat flapping away in fright. In the process Toshiro missed the slight widening of the old mans brown eyes at the silver clan emblem pinned on the genin’s collar. The male genin had only relaxed his guard slightly when the elder had said he was a “retired” shinobi. That explained the sense of being “watched” and their unseen shadow, and since he hadn’t attacked the two Konoha genin then it wasn’t likely he would attack them now. Especially in light of his putting a fair amount of effort into taking care of an injured stranger/ trespasser. When he had moved to Kimiko’s side at her gesture it was apparent to Toshiro, even with only basic first aid knowledge, that Azama Juun had used up a great deal of luck just surviving and had needed some serious care. His head was wrapped in a blood-stained bandage and one arm was wrapped tightly to the torso and showed signs of being splinted. Any other injuries aside from scraps and bruises had either been avoided or treated well enough by “Komo-san” that they might never had happened. As much as it galled him that the outcome of the mission had been decided before the genin had even arrived, they truly did owe the old man a great deal for his help. While he hadn’t asked for anything in return (save the implied that they not inform anyone of his existence), Toshiro didn’t like the idea of not repaying the debt owed to the strange man. It wasn’t until he saw what passed for their “hosts” supplies, mostly a worn pack that was probably older than Toshiro’s farther, that an idea sprung into the genin’s head. " I guess we owe you a great deal Komo-san. Now we can give his future wife good news instead of bad. If you wish, Juun-san’s fiancé filled a pack with supplies if our search took several days. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind if a “passing medic-nin” just happened to be handy and we traded them for his help.”

At first Toshiro thought that "Komo-san" was going to refuse the offer, until the old man grinned slightly. ”I think I might take you up on that offer grass-runner. Even a hermit gets tired of fish and what he can forage at some point. Tell the young lady that the “wandering medic” says thank you and wishes the two of them a long and happy life together.”

Debt happily discharged, Toshiro went knelt behind Juun-sans head before managing to get a solid if awkward grip under the man's uninjured arm and around to his torso. Then he lifted upwards and after a few seconds of wobbling was able to get a secure hold on the dead weight in his arms. That done he turned to look at the hermit before speaking. "I’ll have a clone bring it after we load Juun-san here aboard.” Final words to the old man done, Toshiro next looked at his partner. “If you can keep his legs up and lead the way, I’ll carry the rest and we won’t have to drag him. I would hate to waste Komo-san’s work because we broke something else getting him loaded.”

Once the two genin had finalized their plans and were loading Juun-san into the boat, Toshiro turned to speak to his partner. "Kimiko,”, he said in a low voice that was raw with emotion ”if you do something that reckless again, my age or not, I am going to turn you over my knee and paddle your rear until you can't sit down for a week. I don't know what possessed you to charge head-first into an area that could have been loaded with traps and ambushes, but just because you might not value your own life doesn't mean I do not. I am NOT losing another friend to their own recklessness. Is. That. Clear?” At the end Toshiro was practically biting off his words and shaking slightly. Most people would assume that the shaking was the result of the finally released anger at his partner's reckless actions earlier. They would be partially correct. Anger at his partner's actions was there but mostly to mask something else that was visible in his eyes. Fear. He would never admit it but Toshiro had been scared to death and still was. In those few seconds he had watched his partner charge head-long into the blackness he had come to an epiphany. Katsumi Kimiko had, in the short time the genin had been teammates, wormed her way into a very short list. The list of people whom Toshiro would trade his life for because losing them was simply too painful to consider. The chance that she might charge into a situation where it wasn't some “retired” shinobi with a kind heart waiting and his not being able to pull her out scared him. No, it was more truthful to say it terrified him to the point it left his limbs feeling as hollow as a drunk's sake bottle. If making Kimiko hate him was the price to prevent that, well it was a price Toshiro would pay a hundred times over if he had to.

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

Kimiko was happy that her partner had offered a form of gratitude towards Komo-san who had saved Juun's life, no doubt. She couldn't help but feel sorry for the old man living here by himself in the pitch-blackness. However, he had said himself that this was a life he had chosen; and she couldn't argue with that. She nodded her head firmly at Toshiro's suggestion of giving the old medic their pack of supplies in return for looking after the man they had been searching for. The older man thanked both of the young shinobi graciously, and asked for them to wish the bride-to-be a happy future. A smile took over her face as she heard this, and giggled warmly; the sound tinkling around the cave like chiming bells. "Of course, Komo-san! Arigatou again." She bowed lowly in a swift, sweeping motion to show her gratitude. Toshiro had picked up Juun around the torso, and he told her to carry his legs and lead the way back to the ship. She nodded in understanding and made a few hand seals, after which the same illuminating halo sprung atop her head in a flourish of light. Without that, they would be pretty lost trying to find the boat again.

She held Juun’s legs with little to no difficulty due to her not really holding much at all in comparison to what her mission partner was, and they made their way back to the boat carefully, yet at a fair pace. Kimiko followed the little stream they had used to find their way to Komo-san quite closely, not wanting to get lost now that they had indeed completed the mission of finding Yuuka’s fiancée. It had been a strange mission to say the least; one that the young kunoichi was expect to end in tragedy rather than a happy ending like it had turned out to be. However, even though things had turned out for the better, there was no way that this particular mission was a simple C-Rank. If they hadn’t been guided safely inside the cave, or not seen the shelf of rock that Juun’s boat had crashed into, they could have met the same fate that he did; and probably much worse. And so with this thought, she was glad that things had ended as they had done. A smile was even touching her lips at this thought. Lady luck really had been shining down on them today, and if not then it was all a miracle as to how they were still in one piece and able to complete the mission. Relief flooded through her body when she spotted their boat at the edge of her limited line of sight, and she instinctively sped up her pace a little bit to get there faster. She walked slowly onto the boat, careful not to drop Juun or fall over due to her uneven centre of balance. When she was safely on the boat, she laid down the unconscious man behind her; lowering his legs and feeling her partner lower the man’s torso down as well. She hopped off the boat gently, seeing how much space was left on board. There was room for her to squish up small at the front, and for Toshiro to sit at the back and steer them back to the hamlet that they had ventured from.

“Alright then Toshi-kun! Let’s…” She started brightly, her voice cheerful and full of triumph. That was until she was interrupted by her companion’s serious stare. She frowned in confusion and moved over to him, crouching beside where he was knelt and wondering what was wrong. Just by saying her name, she knew from the tone of his voice that something was greatly troubling him. When she listened to him speak again about her being reckless, she was stunned into a very unusual silence. Her eyes were wide with shock, and her whole body froze. She hadn’t seen Toshiro angry before; he always struck her as the calm cool type that wasn’t easily frazzled or irritated. What had happened must have obvious shook him, because despite her knowing that he was angry, something told her that there was other emotion in his voice. What was it though?... That was quite hard to tell. At the end of the male’s powerful speech, she turned and looked him straight in the eye. Her doubts beforehand were removed from just that glance. Spending so much time with people meant that she was naturally in tune with emotions and picking out even the most subtle ones from the way somebody’s eyes appeared. Fear was spread throughout his whole turquoise orbs; another emotion that she wouldn’t have pinned on somebody like Toshiro. It just goes to show how much people can surprise you, and Kimiko chewed the outside of her lip nervously while she considered the boy’s whole speech. He had obviously been exposed to an awful trauma regarding another friend and reckless behaviour, and that explained the way he was speaking so passionately about her not rushing into things with such little thought.

“I…” She started but then stopped abruptly, absolutely lost for words. Her throat felt dry, and a lump from nowhere started to rise up and almost choke her. She knew this feeling; this tearful feeling that she rarely got. She never cried, that was Kimiko’s strict rule regarding her emotions. She was an open book with her ever-expressive eyes and facial expressions, but one thing that she would never let other people see were her tears or sadness. “This is the first time… that somebody’s ever told me not to be reckless.” She pointed out, chewing her lip again and having to avert her gaze so that she could mentally curse herself and force her tears away. “Weirdly enough… I’m only ever that thoughtless when I’m with a friend or team mate. Rushing into things without thinking them through; no matter what the consequences… I do that to protect those with me. Even if those people are ones that I hate the very being of.” She took a deep breath that wavered slightly, and she screwed her eyes shut. “My life is nothing in comparison to saving another person’s. Although I may risk it for anybody… that doesn’t mean that I’m all that happy about it. That’s what separates my feelings so drastically.” She looked back at Toshiro with a strong facial expression; her eyes were glittering, her lips were curved up in a soft smile, and she appeared to be whole again. “I will do anything to save my friends with a glad heart. That’s why… I readily put myself between you and the potential danger we faced back there. I was happy to, and determined to keep you safe.” She added gently, putting her hands on Toshiro’s shoulders firmly in an endearing yet firm gesture.

“Until now, I’ve never really thought about the fact that other people may feel the same way. You’ve obviously experienced a horrible ordeal in the past to make you react so strongly to this, and I’m sorry for putting myself at risk. Neither of us should go it alone though. Just because I’m not allowed to risk my life for you doesn’t mean you should for me, okay?” She gripped his right shoulder tightly, but not too tight as to make it seem like a forced gesture. “Whatever we do, we do it together. And you can do the thinking for me; I’m not too good at the intelligent stuff.” She laughed softly, moving her arms and using them to embrace her friend instead.

She was right, she wasn’t any good at the ‘intelligent stuff’. She was good at everything else about raw emotion; feelings, and thinking with her heart. It guided her in the right direction, kept her on the path to her dream, and kept her close to those who mattered the most to her. After a minute or so of her heart-felt embrace, Kimiko pushed herself up so she was crouched up some more. She offered her hand to Toshiro and beamed at him. “Need a hand… partner?” She asked warmly.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Toshiro had been expecting some sort of reaction to his words, just not the one he had gotten. Being yelled at for thinking her weak for being a girl, or a very rude "mind your own business" wouldn't have surprised him at all. A Kimiko so obviously on the verge of tears though, that was the last thing he wanted to see. That sight cut cleanly through the fear-fueled anger to make the white-haired genin feel absolutely sick. Kimiko hating him he could live with if it kept her safe, but hurting Kimiko? He would rather die by his own hand first. He had been on the verge of apologizing for speaking like he had and asking how he could being to make amends for speaking so to her when Kimiko's words finally registered. At that point the sick feeling got worse until it began changing into something else. That something was a cold anger at the people who had been, in his mind, been using Kimiko to protect their own hides. Even her reasoning for doing so didn't put out that rage - tempered it with restraint but it was still there. What smothered it was his partner putting her arms around him. Toshiro was no stranger to physical contact given that he was part of a large family and clan. However that was family and he was used to them while Kimiko was not family and an embrace had been the last thing he expected. It also didn't help that when she hugged him he had become acutely away that, somewhat tomboyish attitude aside, Kimiko was most definitely a girl. So it was completely reasonable (in his opinion) that Toshiro would loose track of any other thoughts when he registered what was happening before his mind almost shutdown. It wasn't until Kimiko broke the hug and extended her hand to him that Toshiro was aware of more than just how loudly his heart had been and still was pounding.

Where the impulse to do what followed their separating would always remain a mystery to the genin. While he had a flair for using words and gestures to instill fear in others and had some ability with saying one thing and meaning another, soothing others with words was a skill he would never profess to have. Thus after he had accepted Kimiko's offer with a nod and an extended hand of his own his keeping the hold on her hand was unusual. Then putting his other under her chin and using his index finger to carefully wipe away the one tear she hadn't been able to hide had the self-monitoring part of Toshiro's brain was checking to see if any ice rinks had opened in Hell. The words that followed that completely out of character gesture cemented things - if anyone who knew the genin had been looking they would be wondering just what sort of genjutsu they were under. "You know it's not healthy to keep things bottled up Kimi. You've let others lean on you for so long it's only fair that you lean on them once in a while. That is what friends are for - we help each other and don't think less of the other for needing that help. Even if it's just being able to show our true selves." That said he gestured towards the boat that was currently being held in place by the clone that was smirking at the two genin. A smirk that vanished before it could say anything at the deadly glare on its creator's face that promised unholy amounts of pain if it uttered a single word. Uppity clone suitably cowed Toshiro, sporting a wide grin, made an exaggerated bow and said "Ladies first my fair Kimiko" in a near-perfect copy of the too-cultured accent he had remembered snotty nobles using from his families trips to Fire Countries capital. Once Kimiko was in her spot towards the front, Toshiro took his spot at the rear by the steering gear.

Naturally that required his clone to get somewhat wet to make room, and the clone's response was a rude gesture that the white haired genin didn't even acknowledge. Instead Toshiro picked up the pack of supplies Yoza-san had packed for them and handed it to the soaked clone. "Take this back the way we went until you find the old man or a torch then set it down and disperse." Then he grabbed the length of rope that had previously secured the boat to the shelf and threw it into the water leading back towards the exit. Such an action might have been deemed strange until a pair of lupine heads broke the surface with the rope in their mouth and eyes fixed expectantly on Toshiro. "Start pulling us out but keep it slow. When that current Komo-san mentioned comes I want to be pointed in the right direction and not at those pillars." From that point there wasn't much left for the clan genin to do but stay alert as the small boat was towed into the channel.

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

Kimiko smiled when her companion took her hand, and she tugged him up to his feet. She hadn't noticed a lone tear slip down her cheek, or rather; she hoped that Toshiro didn't notice. She went to discretely wipe it away before he saw it, but was surprised when he beat her to the punch. She gingerly looked up at her friend through her eyelashes, getting ready to shy away with embarrassment at him having seen her 'cry'. She waited for the teasing of being a big baby, of the firm statement that she used to get along the lines of 'Toughen up and chip up'. With her tomboyish attitude, she had mainly been friends with males, and those were actions she had from her other friends while growing up as a child. As such, an early resistance to crying was built up and she could safely say that she hadn't cried since she was very young. She was surprised when Toshiro acted with compassion and told her that she shouldn't bottle things up and instead allow other people to help her every once in a while. That was a... strange concept. She had always been such an independent girl and never allowed anybody to help her with anything; even her parents had trouble with her when she was a toddler. Now being told that she should accept help from others was a very hard thing to accept.

"But if I'm going to be the Hokage, I'll need nobody's help. I need to get into the habit now of protecting everybody and being strong by myself." She said quietly, her fringe falling over her eyes and leaving a shadow. "And I never cry. Crying is for the weak." She said while she was secretly cursing herself for more tears bubbling up inside her. She sighed softly and looked back up when she was sure that she was safe from the risk of crying, giving her mission partner a small smile. "But if you really think it'll help... I'll allow myself to do that sometimes."

She smiled as she went to the small boat and was allowed in first by Toshiro's clone, even being called a 'lady' (another rarity in itself). She carefully got into the boat so that she didn't jostle it too much, or sit on Juun. She pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged them to herself, squishing up as much as possible so that the unconscious man wouldn't have his privacy invaded by a thirteen-year-old girl. She watched her partner's clone take the supply pack in the direction they had come from to thank Komo-san, the kindly Medical Ninja who had made sure their mission a success. She looked down at the dark waters, not seeing a bottom to its depths. The light above her head barely penetrated more than a few centimetres beneath the surface. She watched and waited, allowing Toshiro to do his thing in regards to sorting the boat out properly so that they could follow the current out of this cave. Whereas a hollow breeze had been blowing before, the air around them seemed eerily still all of a sudden.

With an almighty surge, the boat moved away from the shelf of rock and towards the small stream that had brought them here. "Is this... the current?..." She questioned herself quietly, gingerly dipping her hand down into the water. She felt something under there, not of a living variety, but of strong currents of water leading them back in the right direction. They passed into the stream with not as much as a bump on the sides, and cruised down it at a leisurely yet almost urgent pace. As in; it was leisurely on the surface, but they really were moving with some pace. She looked back, and grinned as she cupped her hands around her mouth. "Goodbye, Komo-san!" She yelled at the top of her lungs, hearing her voice echoing and reverberating into the depths of the cave until it was barely a whisper. Just as they were about to exit the cave, she could have sworn that she heard the old man's voice call back to her; "Goodbye!".

Before they knew it, the mysterious current had dragged them back out into the fading sunlight. The sun was setting on the lake, casting beautiful reflections and beams of light across the water's surface. It took Kimiko's eyes a while to adjust to the sudden light, but when they did, she gasped breathlessly and laughed with delight at the sight she saw. "It's so beautiful!" She exclaimed happily, leaning over the edge of the boat at the front and looking at her reflection in the water illuminated with new light. She extinguished the jutsu above her head and leant her back against the side of the boat, looking at the sun with a dreamy look in her liquid chocolate eyes. They had achieved their mission and bonded closer as friends because of it. This was a feeling of happiness that she didn't want to leave.

~ 2 Hours Later... ~

It took roughly the same amount of time it took them to get to the cave that it did to get back to the docks at the small hamlet, and by that time, darkness was starting to fall. Kimiko got off the boat first, hopping up onto the dock and taking the rope that tied the boat in place to secure on a firm wooden post. The hamlet was empty, and lights were ablaze in the windows of every house which suggested that everybody was at home. Her eyes locked onto Yoza-san's home that she shared with Juun, and a smile touched her lips as she realised that both her and Toshiro would be bringing her good news very soon.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Left with nothing to occupy his time while the boat glided out of the cave on the current, Toshiro's thoughts had drifted to the events of the day as the two genin and their unwitting passenger sailed back to the hamlet's dock. He had set out that morning expecting to find a fisherman who had gotten lost and ended up buried to his neck in mysteries. There was the one involving how Juun, a local who surely would have heard about the currents around the cave, had gotten sucked into his predicament in the first place. Thinking about that brought him back to the unknown man whose had sounded so certain that Juun wasn't coming back. Then there was "Komo-san" who Toshiro was sure was a bit more than a "simple medic-nin" with more than a few quirks and a love of solitude. Of course there was always the very creepy Ragrock Cavern itself which Toshiro had been quite happy to leave. Perhaps the biggest mystery of all though was Kimiko herself. When Toshiro had set out on the mission he had expected to learn that his teammate was as straight-forward as she was talkative. Instead he had discovered a Kimiko who was far more complex. Trying to resolve the various contradictions between the hyperactive tomboy, a serious kunochi with an equally serious ambition, and the sensitive girl he had seen briefly had the clan genin's thoughts going in circles.

Thus it was with no small amount of relief that Toshiro shipped the oars as his final stroke brought the borrowed boat alongside the dock where Kimiko vaulted out and started securing the rope to hold the vessel in place. While she was occupied with that task her partner discretely signed for his water wolves to make sure nobody suspicious was loitering around the client's house or the shack at the shore alongside the dock. Basic precaution taken (and hopefully not needed) Toshiro gave their missing groom an appraising look tinged with reluctance. While he wasn't tall Juun-san had been fairly heavy and as dead weight extremely awkward to move. To say nothing of having to move him without disturbing the splint on his arm when they were loading him into the boat. Getting such a load up to the dock when the boat was moving even slightly was not going to be easy.

Plus there was the little matter that in the two hours it took the genin to reach the hamlet, he had utterly failed to sort out his feelings for his raven-haired partner. He knew it wasn't the sort of feeling he had for his siblings - he never felt as sick as when he thought he had hurt Kimiko when they had their spats. It wasn't the passing interest he had shown a few girls after missions that ended outside of the village either - he never let his emotional guard down around them like he had with Kimiko. A friend was something he wasn't sure of either; he thought he had a few people who might qualify as friends but these feelings were very different. With them he was more prone to sarcasm and good-natured ribbing than what he had done in that cave. And while he was willing to hurt someone who harmed his friends, he had been willing to obliterate even a possible threat to Kimiko. Once the two genin had deposited Juun-san with his lover and had reported a success, Toshiro intended to take the time to figure out just what his partner was to him.

"Kimi, we're going to have to lift him up and onto the dock. I'll lift him up and you pull him onto the dock the rest of the way." That said the male half of the team shifted their mission objective around until he was sitting up with his back to the docks then began lifting their wayward fiancé onto the dock. Of course Toshiro was no full-time sailor so he overlooked one tiny little detail. Namely that if weight is put on one side of a small boat it will not only move down but away. Hence when he put that final amount of force to help push Juun onto the dock Toshiro suddenly found himself barely balanced briefly over the water before as the boat obeyed the laws of physics. A position that left him only enough time to slightly before gravity asserted it's power and he went face-first into the water. When his wits recovered after a few second he was able to swim to the surface. There, after spitting out the water he had swallowed, summed up his opinion of the lake with one word. "Yuck!"

Age : 28 Posts : 3640

Kimiko turned her head to look at Toshiro when he spoke to her, and smiled at the suggestion given about how they were going to achieve their mission aim. She was instructed to pull Juun up onto the dock while her partner pushed him. "Understood!" She chirped, mock-saluting and kneeling down in preparation to grab Juun's legs. They were going to have to be very careful because the poor man was injured very badly, and any wrong move could only injure himself further. She took his feet when they were lifted up to her, and she snaked her arms up his legs to get a better grip. She pulled very gradually, her tongue sticking out very slightly with concentration. The weight wasn't an issue on her side of things, it was being very gentle and firm at the same time to make sure he didn't slip out of her grasp. She shuffled backwards when she was running out of room to rest the man's legs, and continued like this until Juun's whole body was safely on the wooden dock. She sighed with relief and crawled to the man's head, inspecting for any more damage. As far as she could see, there was none. The bandage wrapped tightly around his head was still there, and his eyes were still closed peacefully in his unconscious state. It was then that she seemed to realise that there was something, or rather, somebody missing. Toshiro, to be exact. She looked back across at the boat just in time to see him lose his balance and fall face-first into the water.

No matter how sternly she told herself not to laugh, eventually she couldn't help it. When he surfaced from the very murky lake, she erupted in laughter. She hunched over and held her stomach while she laughed; the scene that had happened before her just being too much. She laughed until a few tears of laughter dripped from her eyes, and she finally calmed herself down in time to hear Toshiro give his thoughts on the lake. It wasn't a very good opinion, that was for sure. She giggled softly, cradling her aching stomach where she had laughed far too much, and leant down towards her mission partner with an arm outstretched. "Hehe... you've got something just there..." She spluttered slightly, plucking a piece of slimy seaweed (or lakeweed, if one was to be completely accurate). "Congrats on that spectacular fall, Toshi-kun! I'd rate it... ten out of ten." She grinned, waving her hand at him as an obvious sign for him to grab hold of it. "Come on then. If we want to get back to Konoha tonight we need to get moving and deliver Juun-san to his beloved Yoza-san." She prompted, smiling instead now.

The mission was of course not yet complete, but it felt as if it was. Kimiko was relaxed now; the earlier tension had disappeared from her body and movements, and she was back to her old self again. When Toshiro had got himself out of the disgusting lake, the pair combined their efforts to carry Juun back to his home. They moved carefully and quite slowly, taking special care while walking up the porch. They paused at the front door, and Kimiko who was carrying Juun's legs again, kicked the door in a rhythm she hoped sounded like a knock. Within seconds, a dressing gown-clad Yoza appeared, swinging the door inwards so urgently that she nearly smacked herself in the face. "Mission accomplished, Yoza-san." Kimiko claimed softly, smiling and looking up at the woman who was now having to fight hard to keep the tears of joy from spilling down her face. It was a battle that she was obviously losing. She couldn't bring herself to say anything just yet, and instead just used hand gestures to show the two of them where they should be going. She directed them into the very cosy front room and instructed them silently to lay down her fiancée on one of the couches. He was promptly covered up with a thick blanket, and given a loving kiss on the forehead (which wasn't injured, surprisingly). "Thank you both... so much..." Yoza finally managed to say, her hands clasped together at her chest while she looked down at the two Genin. She suddenly pulled Kimiko into an embrace, and then Toshiro. The warmth and feel of that hug reminded Kimiko of her mother, and she smiled almost sadly while she remembered the past events that had been happening at home.

Now was not the time, however, to feel sad. Her earlier happy smile replaced the somewhat sorrowful one, and she squeezed Yoza's arm reassuringly. "He's going to make a full recovery. He'll just need plenty of rest, and... no more fishing for him for a while." She advised softly, clasping her hands together behind her back and standing proud. Helping people and seeing their happiness was part of the reason why she loved being a kunoichi so much. It was reassuring to know that good remained in peoples' hearts, and she wouldn't have to be fighting that much evil in the future. "I... don't know to thank you enough..." Her head darted back and forth while she spoke, as if looking for something to repay the shinobi with for their efforts. "Don't worry. Our reward will be your wedding." Kimiko smiled.

And with that, the pair left and headed back the way they had entered the hamlet before. Kimiko walked silently, her hands still clasped behind her back. She wasn't watching where she was going exactly, and was instead looking up dreamily at the sky. Their work had made a woman very happy, and had brought back a couple that would have been tragic to break apart. It was giving her a very warm feeling inside, one of happiness and achievement. She really felt... fulfilled. She sighed gently to herself, smiling and spinning round on the spot. When she was facing the front again and they were about to emerge onto the road back to Konoha, she spotted a flash of light as it darted across the sky. She gasped loudly, and her chocolate brown eyes followed it in the direction it went. "Look, Toshi-kun! A shooting star!" She pointed up at the remaining silver trail of the rare phenomenon. Instinctively, her eyes screwed shut and she clenched her fists into determined little balls while she wished as hard as she could.

'I wish... that I can bring peace to the shinobi world... stop this fighting and bloodshed... and keep my friends safe... I will be the Hokage...'

She opened her eyes again and looked at Toshiro, giving him a small, warm smile. "Did you make a wish? And what did you wish for?" She asked curiously, staying where she was in the middle of the dirt road.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Spitting up yet more water, Toshiro had been unable to do more than glare impotently when his partner had plucked some duckweed off his head after her laughter subsided. Another place or even a better time and he might, just might, have been in a mood to appreciate the situation. Being drenched in water that still held a decided chill tends to make finding humor is difficult. Of course he had been sorely tempted to yank Kimiko into the lake when she extended a hand to help him out but two things crushed the reflex. One being that it would technically be leaving their mission objective unprotected. The other was Toshiro admitting to himself that his partner had a rather pretty laugh instead of the usual "girlish" giggle that was torture to the ears. Hence why instead of giving to temptation he just sighed and said "The next fall into a lake is yours. Maybe you'll make it an eleven." as Kimiko helped him out of the water.

Once out of the water and again supporting most of Juun's weight, Toshiro followed Kimiko as she led the way to the client's home. During that time he hadn't devoted much thought to just why he felt so protective of Kimiko, being more concerned with keeping his grip on Juun without getting the man wet from contact. It wasn't until after Yoza let the two genin in and they had deposited their burden that Toshiro had been able to give his partner a grin that said loud and clear "done, finally." Then he found himself enveloped in a hug from a client that he absently returned. His mind one on what had just briefly seen; for a social creature like Kimiko to look sad when hugged said something was very wrong. He would keep his peace about it though and if she decided to say something so be it - Toshiro had a feeling that he had already

When the two genin were back on the path towards Konoha, the male half of the team had divided his attention between keeping himself and his partner on the path and making another attempt to sort out just what he felt for her. It wasn't until Kimiko pointed out the shooting star then asked Toshiro what he had wished for that things clicked. 'Oh kami. It can't be. No. I am SO not.' The way he was openly protective around even the hint of a threat to her. How the small things she did like smile seemed to make his day brighter. His inability to disagree with her. How badly he took her running of into danger. At that point he buried his face in his hand with a 'who am I kidding' as he accepted the unacceptable. Hinamori Toshiro had, despite his best efforts, developed feelings for his teammate that went well beyond friends. Looking at the kunochi, he had to swallow the lump that formed in his throat. Kimiko might not be aware of it, but with her face like that and the moonlight washing the color out of things it took her from cute to stunning. A fact that her partner was all too aware of 'Do I... no. This has to be some sort of passing thing. Besides I'm sure she wouldn't see us as anything but friends even if it was serious. I am too young for this crap damn it.' That thought put to rest, Toshiro yanked himself back to reality when he realized he had been staring for good minute without saying a word "Eh, I was sort... well too busy watching it to think about that Kimi-chan. Besides, I'm sure you did well enough for both of us. Race you to Konoha - last one there has do the nasty part of the next D-rank! That said Toshiro took off down the path towards Konoha, mission completion, and hopefully time to figure out just what he was going to do about his predicament.

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