Bravo Cell: Second Mission - Tidying Up Loose Ends (Bravo Cell only)

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Pre-Mission Brief

Mission Title: Tidying Up Loose Ends
Mission Type: Custom
Mission Location: Rice Country
Shinobi Requirement: Genin +
Mission Rank: C
Mission Objective: Following the mission to arrange an "accident" for the new leader of the bandit's troubling Rice Country, evidence gathered by the assigned team points to outside influence in the bandits activity. As such one or more of the members the team assigned to the objective has been ordered to intercept a courier on their way back to the bandit fortress. Their orders are to locate this courier, eliminate any witnesses, then capture the courier along with any documents or other evidence that can help identify the people behind this bandit "armies" ability to withstand serious blows to it's cohesiveness. If the on-site team leader deems it possible the intercepting team may try interrogating the prisoner to gather any immediately useful information. Once that is done the team is to cover its tracks and return post-haste to Konoha with their prisoner for further interrogation.
Min Post Count: 4

Approval Link: Tidying Up Loose Ends
Open to: Bravo Cell Members (after arrival in Rice Country)

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Dawn had came to yet another day in Ta no Kuni and like the last few days it found one white-haired chuunin up before the sunrise to do the various tasks that his genin couldn't. Not with one having an that wouldn't be out of it's cast for another few days and the other looking a bit like a rag doll that had gotten into a loosing fight with a cat. So he had taken the last guard shift (yet again) and set up the days tasks. First had been to breath life back into the embers of their fire then make something edible out of their collected supplies that would keep the three going until they crossed the border about 8 hours away. Once they were in Fire Country proper he could see about getting his genin better medical care and some proper rest at an inn. Until then they would have to make due with what their sensei's field craft could provide for a shelter and edible if sometimes monotonous (the last three dinners being some variation on fish, noodles, and whatever wild edibles could be foraged along the way) cooking.

It was just too bad that Toshiro had forgotten one of his own rules - when things are going good you're being setup for a fall. In this case a fall that took the form of his summon Tonbi popping in. Literally as the four-foot tall pheasant appeared with the pop and cloud of smoke that were hallmarks of a (reverse) in this case summoning. Nor did the weapons-loving avian look particularly happy as he threw a scroll at his summoner then walked over to some of the scrambled eggs with wild onions and peppers along with a bowl of porridge before taking a seat on the ground. While the pheasant was stuffing his face, Toshiro had unrolled the scroll and read it's contents - the twitching of an eyebrow growing progressively greater as he came closer to the end of the scroll. Once he reached that point the chuunin had to fight back an urge to throw the scroll into the fire, instead rolling it up and shouting at the direction of the tent where his genin should have been just starting to wake up. "Matsunaka, Rin - get your ugly mugs out here. Looks like we have new orders."

Once his genin managed to drag themselves out of their tent Toshiro gestured for the pair to grab breakfast while he went about laying out the situation from the fallen log that served as a seat. "The egg-heads in Intelligence, courtesy those papers I found, seem to think that that there is an outside influence manipulating the bandits. An influence that is sending a courier towards the fort that we're supposed to intercept, capture, and bring back for interrogation." The situation laid out for the pair Toshiro gave the pair their options. "Since you two aren't exactly at a hundred percent I'm giving you the option of coming along or not. Supposedly the courier is only lightly guarded but you both know how rarely that means anything." That said the chuunin grabbed his own plate and began wolfing down what might be his last real meal for another day or so while waiting for the two genin's responses.

Posts : 1187

Eyes were wide open, body was perspiring and breathing was shallow. Rin had been awake for countless hours. But however had decided to do nothing with them. He had been thinking, but then his attention was drawn to the huge black panther padding around the 'room. He kind of feared it but on the other hand wanted to be it's 'friend'. Also he hoped that it and Kuro could get along. His own miniature black and white cat was curled up against his neck. It nuzzled him as it felt the disturbance. The boy pushed him away for a second as he got up and surveyed the scene. A mess, that was the easiest way to describe the cave that had become their home for these past few days. Clothes were strewn across the floor and his weapons were in a huge pile in the centre. He saw Matsunaka the Kaguya boy. Rin had to admit that he loved the Kaguya clan. Their bone powers were awesome. But not for the first time Toshiro was not in the room. He must be on guard duty again. To be fair Rin would have happily done it but barely did it.

On most days he would have got up to go outside to do some exercise. But today was not one of them. There was no point, all his body wanted now was to stay in bed and do nothing. Unfortunately his brain had other ideas. Propping himself up on his elbows, Rin shook his head and yawned. His hair was especially crazy today so he slightly brushed down the mess with his wrist. Feeling blindly for his t-shirt, his hand felt numb. The shirt was slightly stiff as it had been washed in a stream only twice. His time in the rice country had not been that fun. But that was entirely his fault. He had not been able to take part in the mission. But he had his fingers crossed that there would be an opportunity for him to redeem himself.

Gulping down what little water he had left and splashing some over his face, Rin stood up. But then dropped down again but not to sleep. This was for a few press ups and sit ups. After these past few days it had felt like him, Toshiro and Matsunaka had really gotten closer. Maybe these guys could become his new 'family' at least that is what he hoped would happen, eventually. Light flooded through the mouth of the hideout. It seemed to beckon to him, the light, the fresh air, the world. Walking out his attention was instantly drawn to a strange bird. It was huge. Rin had seen the species before, back when he was younger. It was called a pheasant , but this was bigger than any pheasant he had ever seen. It was eating and he considered scaring it of but then he noticed Toshiro. Obviously he had not noticed him as he soon called for him and Matsunaka to come out. Rin walked down with an inquisitive look on his face. 'I have a couple of questions. One what the hell is wrong with that pheasant. And two hey what we going to do today?' He sat down waiting for a response.

But Toshiro did not answer or maybe just did not hear him. So instead of pressing the questions further he decided to just tuck in to a lovely breakfast. Once he had finished Toshiro began. From what he gathered the people back in Konoha thought that the bandits were being controlled maybe even manipulated. That sounded just like some wacky conspiracy theory. But what he said after seemed pretty cool. They got to practically abduct the bandits and then bring them back for interrogation. He hoped that meant they could take them with force. But then again these were bandits and he doubted they would just come quietly. The Toshiro said something that he felt slightly insulted by, but it was fair enough considering the past few days. He asked whether he wanted to do the mission. In Rin's mind that was like asking a seven year old whether they wanted to have christmas this year. But he was not going to say any thing other than yes. 'Of course I will you must be mad if you think I don't want a chance to redeem myself. Rin smiled to them.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Later half of post BGM

Watching the two genin's responses, Rin's an (maybe too) enthusiastic affirmative and Matsunaka's a silent refusal to meet his sensei's eyes that said much, Toshiro found himself reading volumes into their words or lack thereof. The shorter one had bounced back quickly from the injury to his arm (helped along by a passing Konoha team that included a medic) and was ready to go. In a stark contrast the bloodline-wielding member of the squad was clearly still unhappy. Almost certainly because the sheer number of lacerations that had been sutured assured that any strenuous movement or use of the Kaguya bloodline would tear them open again For a genin who was almost entirely about his bloodline that had to be a serious mental blow and it had clearly shaken his outlook a bit about his own strength. Of course the reluctant chuunin-sensei knew that he probably should have erred on the side of caution and simply done this entire mission alone but he had reasons for taking at least one of them with him.

Reasons Toshiro kept to himself, instead answering Rin's question about Tonbi that he had filed away for later. "First his name is Tonbi, second he is a summon, and third he's probably upset that he had to cancel his date and is going to be hen-pecked for it." Long practice with his summon's quirks allowed Toshiro to time bending down to pick up a local map so that it looked he hadn't even noticed Tonbi's response (in the form of three kunai) while not getting touched. That same practice also allowed him to give his summon the "one-finger salute" while looking at the map without having to first locate the pheasant. The chuunin also pointedly ignore the "bloody white-furred fox-loving chimpanzee" sent his way by the bird as he scoured the map looking for the best ambush point until he found it. If, and it was a big if, everything in the scroll about route and intentions was correct what the white-haired ninja was planning would be overkill.

Of course knowing his luck it would probably end up being just enough but Toshiro wasn't going to tell his genin that. Instead he sat them both down and began to lay out his hastily formed plan while pointing at the map to give them some idea of what was happening. "Listen up you two. Matsunaka you get to guard the camp along with your cat and Tonbi while Rin and I will handle the ambush. If we aren't back in 48 hours I want you to high-tail it for the border with Fire Country." Ignoring (something Toshiro had gotten good at lately) the tallest member of the team's slightly surly grunt at being left out of the bloodshed, the chuunin turned his full attention to the genin who would be alongside him as he laid out the bare bones of the plan. "Rin, you and I are going to ambush the courier and any guards as they cross the bridge. I'll strike first and scatter them then deal with any organized resistant - your job will be to keep any stragglers from fleeing past me. If things go south I want you to run while I provide cover." When Toshiro was sure he had the genin's full attention he dropped his bombshell on the other genin. "Rin... no survivors. We can't afford to take more than the courier prisoner. Anyone else, even if they surrender, has to die before we move out. Not just for our safety either - if one of them escapes its possible the bandits will figure out that the locals hired ninja to deal with them and take reprisals." That done the chuunin waited to see how the genin would handle that detail. Killing in the heat of a fight he would almost certainly be capable of doing but killing in absolute cold blood - even with a plausible reason - was an entirely different issue to most.

-------[6 hours later]--------

Perched on a low-hanging branch of one of the oak trees that shaded this end of the bridge, Toshiro had to keep from swearing out loud lest the sound ruin the plan. While the scroll had been accurate about the route (at least at this point) and that the guards didn't number more than 10, they had overlooked a few details. One being that he saw several ronin among the bandits and even if they were still small fry (he hoped) they still held an air of professionalism and competence. Plus they were clustered around the courier so he couldn't simply blast them all in the first strike without also killing the only person he needed alive. Then there was the courier herself. While Toshiro had no problems fighting a female and would be on guard for more... subtle attacks after she was captured, there was no promise that his genin were in a similar condition. Especially the later since this courier was a very well-developed example of the fairer sex and was dressed to make that obvious in a quite short and open-topped kimono. It also, no doubt purposefully, would keep the typical ninja from noticing the ninjato sheathed behind a narrow waist. Given the choice of clothing and weapon the white-haired ninja would readily bet a months pay that this courier was a kunochi.

Knowing that a quick fight was out of the question now, Toshiro used some of the hand signs he had drilled into his students to silently signal Rin in his hiding place to get ready. Since it was too late to make serious changes the pair would have to rely on surprise and extreme violence of action to avoid being overwhelmed. To that end the white-haired Leaf-nin started running through seal after seal until landing on the final one as a massive column of water shaped like a serpentine dragon rose from the water until it towered dozens of feet. In the process of doing that it also smashed through the middle of the wooden bridge, cutting off the groups retreat before it crashing headlong into the rearmost group of terrified bandits with more than enough force to snap bones like twigs. While the surviving bandits and ronin were screaming, in terror and surprise respectively, the chuunin already was on the move - pulling half his shuriken out and hurling them at the lead elements of the guards. Guards who focused on those projectiles and ignored the ninja running through hand seals as he charged - leaving them woefully unprepared when five shuriken became five hundred. All but two of the bandits in the vanguard had no chance as the throwing stars shredded them while two of the ronin barely managed to throw themselves into the water. A mistake they wouldn't get to regret as the pair of water clones who had been hiding below the bridge fatally stabbed them. A fate avoided by the remaining members through whatever means available - the courier pulling a kawarimi with one of the surviving bandits, the ronin using the couriers horse a shield, and the surviving bandit by the dumb luck to have tripped and fallen on his back.

All that Toshiro took in in the space it took for him to finish his rush while drawing one of his chakra-conductive katana and using it to block the kunochi-couriers slash as he reached her. Briefly teal eyes under white hair met sea foam blue ones under a black fringe before the former's owner broke the deadlock with a kick to the knee that was avoided. Formalities out of the way the pair began the deadly "dance" of cut-and-parry as the Konoha chuunin sought of disarm and overpower smaller swordswoman who simply wanted him dead. To that end he was trusting Rin to deal with the solitary ronin and single bandit who had survived the initial onslaught of jutsu.

Toshiro: 135 CP - 48 = 87 CP Kit: -5 Shuriken (5 left)

Spoiler:

Posts : 1187

Matsunaka refused constantly and Rin could never figure out why. There had to be a reason which he would probably find out later on. It was a shame, he would have loved to find out his fighting ability. But Rin knew the fellow squad member was from the Kaguya clan, this meant that he would be a formidable opponent. Still the purple haired shinobi wanted to fight him like crazy. But to be honest he would have happily fought anybody. That is why the mission today would be awesome. He would be allowed to fight people. Breakfast was nice, it had consisted of porridge. Ever since coming into the world Rin had always hated porridge. But then suddenly his love for it had grown upon his arrival of the rice country.

Light blue was the colour of the sky. It usually was, most of the time in the rice country it was hot and sunny. With this climate it was perfect to stay in. Rin was surprised it had not been majorly populated or built over with fancy hotels. Toshiro proceeded to answer his question. It was pretty cool that his captain had his very own summoning. Rin moved up to stroke it, however it tried to peck his hand. Quickly pulling away he thought.'Ok maybe not.' Toshiro had begun to study some kind of map. This would no doubt be something to do with their mission. Next he would find out what he was to do.

Both of the genin were ushered to sit down by their leader. Rin assumed that this meant there was to be some kind of massive speech, which would not be good. Toshiro started with Matsunaka. As expected he would have to guard the camp. But there would probably be no point as nothing ever happened to the camp. But there was a section of what the chuunin said that slightly worried him. 'If we aren't back in 48 hours.' This raised the question in his mind of, what were they actually going to be doing. But this was soon explained. An ambush. Rin had to swallow hard when Toshiro mentioned mentioned no survivors. Killing a man in cold blood would be an incredible challenge, but Rin reckoned that he probably could do it. However Toshiro then said that it was his job to stop anyone from fleeing. If he could find it in him to murder someone, he would definitely not let anyone past him.

Rin nodded to his captain. and turned on his heel to go up to the hideout and get ready. Already wearing his tracksuit he took off t-shirt off. Then placed the metal plates on his forearms and held them in place with the long stretch of black tape. Black under armour covered his chest. Then his t-shirt was added to complete his 'uniform'. Rin had gone against taking his cloak as it would probably slow him down. And lastly his weapons. It would be impossible to take all of them so just a select few. Katana definitely, ninjato as well, the newest additions to his arsenal Ulaks. This would be the first time he had used them in a fight. Of course they had already been used in training, but never an actual fight. And then lastly his custom kit, The Midnight Beast. Mikadzuki would be to big to constantly carry around, let alone conceal. Just before he turned to go Rin remembered something he had bought just before they came to the rice country. It was not meant for combat but it could be used for that as well. Popping open the lid of the small wooden box to reveal, his gas mask. He had name it The Inhaler.

--------[6 hours later]-------

It was supposed to be here that the courier would come. At least that was what the map that Toshiro had, showed. But if it was wrong everything would go badly wrong. Rin was in among the foliage of a large birch tree. It would have been incredibly hard for someone to see him as he was so high up. Soon the targets came into view. There were not as many as Rin had expected there to be. But he guessed it was kind of a relief, as there was less chance of things going wrong. Some of them carried weapons one even carried an ugly looking club and another, a field sword. Rin loved those things but had never really felt like using one as they were quite slow. It was the kunoichi, the target that looked well interesting. Wearing a very revealing kimono that was very distracting he had to admit. But then he noticed a ninjato. He guessed she would use her bust to distract her target then, well stab them.

Learning hand signals was something that his leader had been very keen for them to do. Know Rin understood why. It was a quick, easy and most important silent way to communicate. It certainly was a good idea to get them to learn it. Maybe if he was ever the leader of a genin team he would teach his students this. From this he was told to get ready. Rin assumed that they were going to sneak attack them, but this would be pretty futile, they were outnumbered. But what happened next stayed in his head for the rest of his life. Toshiro began to do some hand signs and out of nowhere a huge water dragon burst from the water. It then proceeded to smash down their only way back and annihilate most of them. Rin was practically glued to the spot thanking The Lord that this boy was his leader. Most of the bandits had begun to flee in panic but Toshiro threw five shuriken. THese in turn multiplied, Rin still was yet to move. Then more Toshiros proceeded to come out of the water and kill more of the Ronins. He was dumbstruck by the sheer power of his mentor. 'Ho-ly shit this is awesome, how is this guy not a jounin?' Then him and the Courier nin proceeded to fight a deadly dance. She seemed to .be able to keep up with him. Which was a surprise, how could anyone keep up with this white haired demon.

Surveying the scene of destruction that had been left by his squad leader. There were but two people left for him to deal with. He could not fail. They got up and found each other and begun to run. By a lucky twist of fate he did not even have to move, as they were about to run towards his tree. Rin drew his Ulaks and got ready to jump down and take them. He steadied his breathing and refreshed with one of his in fight, calming meditations. Just as the leading one passed beneath him he jumped from his hiding spot and landed two footed on the bandits shoulders. Burying the Ulaks deep with in his head. The body crumpled and fell. Time seemed to stop. Rin stared down blankly at his first ever human kill. He felt empty inside. It filled him with no emotions what so ever. But then their was one, enjoyment. That was not good. How could he have enjoyed that, it was disgusting. But nonetheless it was there. A tiny dwindling spark of that most cruel emotion. But then another one hit him, disgust. And that overpowered its predecessor. But then time seemed to go back to normal pace. The dead mans friend had drawn his katana and was already bearing down upon him.

Only his speed saved him. He managed to draw his sword and now they were locked in combat. But Rin was on the offensive. He drove the opponent backwards until he entirely stopped and they were locked with no movement. Now Rin had the advantage. His one handed seals. Beginning to do the seals for Kuroi Kaminari. There was a slightly puzzled expression on the Ronin's face. Until a burst of black lightning appeared on Rin's hand and it was buried with in his stomach. But this would not be enough to kill him. So Rin drew Kokuyoseki ha. And plunged it in the mans wind pipe. Almost instantly the mans eyes rolled back in his head. Rin with drew his ninjato, cleaned it and sheathed it. Then collected up his Ulaks and ran off to help Toshiro. Leaving his first ever two kills face down in the mud.

Rin 50CP-7=43CP

Spoiler:

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Leaning to his left to avoid the return thrust that was the kunochi's response to his closing the distance opened by his kick, Toshiro's own blade responded with a fast but fairly weak slash aimed just above her sternum. A strike that she avoided by taking a half-step back and bending backwards slightly. That small retreat was what the chuunin had been waiting for as his longer blade abruptly reversed its course and came back as a thrust to the chest. Something that was avoided with a deft side-step-and-reply that took the form of a short controlled cut at the face that covered for two more steps to the side. The woman's attempt to get around the chuunin for to make a break for the end of the bridge was cut off by the chuunin taking a large step backwards that kept the more experienced Konoha-nin between the kunochi and the possible escape route Rin represented. That open space also provided Toshiro with enough space to make a powerful diagonal slash, backed by chakra that would have shattered the kunochi's sword had it connected. Instead she opted to retreat and the Hidden Leaf chuunin turned put that gathered chakra to use striking the wooden planks of the bridge. An action that sent a hail of small splinters towards the female who barely raised a hand in time to protect her face as she jumped back further towards the ruined end of the bridge. A decision that proved costly as Toshiro had advanced immediately after his failed attack and recovery, pressing his advantage with a flurry of slashes that left no room for a counter-attack as he forced the courier to keep moving back towards the ruined end of the bridge. Just shy of that end he stopped and let the female take her last few steps back unopposed until she stopped abruptly.

Seeing her eyes go wide as part of one foot hung over empty air and slow-moving water, Toshiro didn't try to hold back the shark-like grin as the nature of her situation dawned on her. Trapped between a river that was clearly her opponents element that held who knew how many more water-clones (or worse) waiting for someone trying to run or swim to the other side, and going through another that opponent who was just a bit better at blade work (and had a genin rushing to provide support if the sounds of feet hitting planks was any indication) was not a good situation. Especially since the only blow that had been landed against him in the exchange was a tiny cut in the side of his shirt while her already brief kimono was in danger of failing entirely from the number of cuts that had sliced the material and on occasion the skin underneath. In total it wasn't the sort of situation that was the sort to boost the trapped party's morale and it only got worse when Toshiro's grin got even wider as his left hand left its place on the hilt of one katana to reach up and draw the other one as he pumped water-natured chakra into both blades. Now almost amorphous, the metal easily answered the chuunin's mental urge to shoot forward as he pointed one of the blades to where the suddenly elongated blade would slice along the side her bust. It was the shinobi's equivalent of a "shot across the bow" - a silent warning that he could kill or cripple her from where he stood almost a foot out of her reach.

Faced with two such weapons and out of room to dodge with her back to the river, the unnamed kunochi could clearly see the writing on the wall. Further resistance would simply result in her getting injured or worse trying to protect something that would fall into the Konoha-nin's hands regardless. A harsh reality that saw her carefully lower her ninjato before dropping in front of her. "Fine, you win." It should be noted (Toshiro certainly noticed it) that whatever her roots this woman was clearly adept at some of the older kunochi arts. Not only was her voice refined to the point where she could probably get a male to react to just it's sound if she so wanted, but she made even the simple act of undoing the belt that held her equipment pouch as arousing as if she was striping. Then she got to her knees and put her hands behind her back before letting that velvet voice work its magic. "If you promise to let me go I'll be a good girl. I'll even let you have your wicked way with poor little me without resisting. Unless you want me to resist that is..." The last was said with a very clear meaning that despite Toshiro's best efforts brought a fierce blush to his face. Something not exactly helped by the painfully long view any male present would have gotten of her assets as the kunochi bent forward until she was lying face-down on the bridge and the very deliberately way the hem of her kimono rode up her rear as she did so. Whatever other talents she might have, this was one female who clearly knew just how distracting she was and how to make the most of that. "I'm flattered but not interested seeing as my girlfriend would kill me." He just hoped that his genin wouldn't fall victim to the same pitfalls he had avoided. As depressing as it was, too many otherwise able ninja had their careers ended early by not thinking with their big brains around a kunochi.

In fact it was only long practice with his sibling's similar tactics that allowed the white-haired chuunin to keep his mental balance as he set about securing his team's prisoner. Extending one swords blade until the point touched the kunochi's throat, the other was sheathed and the now-free hand went to a pocket on his chuunin vest from which it removed a roll of wire before carefully going about securing his prisoner. First her wrists were secured then the elbows before setting about tying her fingers to make forming even one-handed handseals impossible and finishing up with her knees and ankles. The entire time the chuunin was doing his best to counter the very subtle but effective tactics of this adversary. Tactics that caused various points of interest to brush against his hands while she made a number of very suggestive comments. It was those comments more than anything that finally convinced him to make a gag out of some of the larger pieces of the courier's garb. Once the kunochi was trussed up like a game bird and his blades back in their scabbard did the elder Konoha-nin realize he had mad a mistake. Someone would have to carry their prisoner. Sighing worth of a martyr, Toshiro picked up the kunochi's weapons pouch and tossed it to Rin to carry before he hefted the squirming bundle onto his shoulder and began to walk back to the team's campsite.

Of course the entire time that bundle was doing her best to make Toshiro change his mind about refusing her offer. For the entire trip back he would be acutely aware of every time his burden squirmed or made a suggestive noise. 'Of all the couriers, why did it have to be a nymphomaniac kunochi. Even if she does have a great rear.' When he realized just what he had thought the chuunin's shook his head to clear it as he tried to derail that particular train of thought. 'Bad thoughts! Think Tobirune doing a striptease.' In that he was successful - maybe too successful as he had to fight down a sudden bought of nausea. 'That is just wrong.' It was going to be a long trip back to their camp.

Toshiro: 87 CP - 26 = 61 CP Kit: (5 shuriken left)

Spoiler:

Posts : 1187

Rin viewed the battle and the sheer destruction it had caused. Men and animals were lying dead. A small bridge had been destroyed and so had a few pieces of the natural world. All in the space of a few minuets. But it was not over yet. The target was yet to be captured. After his fight with the two men, his blades would need to be cleaned. Both of his Ulaks were almost completely covered in blood. He wiped these on his shirt and cleaned them with his fingers and saliva. Then unsheathing his katana he did the same. From climbing up the tree he had created a huge gap for the kunochi to escape through. Even though he had no doubt that he was probably faster, he did not want to take that risk. Rin jumped down again. He still had not found his mentor and the female ninja, but he could hear them. There was a constant sound of katanas clanging. Sprinting onwards towards the sound, Rin thought of the events of the day. It was all so confusing. When he had woken up this morning, he had never imagined he would be fighting bandits and Ronin. The sound of clashing steel grew closer. It sounded as if their fight was truly one to behold.

It did not take to long to find. By the time he got there the fight was still in full swing. They seemed slightly evenly matched. But it was clear that Toshiro had the upper hand. The sky was still blue and a radiant sun shone through the canopy of trees above his head. The fighting had scared off all of the animals that had been nesting. The only sound that could be heard was the wind rustling through the trees and the clash of metal. It was unlikely that he would be needed at all, so he hung back incase the kunochi made a run for it. Toshiro was slowly edging her back towards the little bridge that had been destroyed by the dragon previously that day. 'Wow' He thought as Toshiro started hacking up pieces of wood. 'Toshiro has some amazing strategies, maybe he will teach me some day.' He hoped. The effect of using the wood was a success. It focussed the opponent more on dodging the piece of wood flying up to meet their face, than the sword swinging at their head. Then Toshiro advanced.

'That was another thing. Maybe his mentor would teach him some Kenjutsu as well. Rin thought. But it was at that time Toshiro began to do a flurry of attacks. His blades danced and his hair went wild, as if his head was lost in a rush of snow. As he advanced, so did Rin. If he pressed up it gave the kunochi less chance of running away. But she was probably not going any where. With no room to attack against the full fury of the white haired chuunins blade. And the fact she was ever closer to falling off the edge of a bridge. Into probably water clone infested waters, he doubted she would ever get out. It was futile, she could not win. The best thing for her to do now was simply to surrender. She was entirely trapped with nowhere to go. Because of this Rin began to run towards them to see if he could help. He had some rope in his genin pouch that could be used to tie her up. When he got there the battle was entirely over. Toshiro could kill or fatally injure her with ease. As he crept closer he withdrew his katana snuck up behind his mentour and aimed his katana at the kunochi. 'Sorry, I just wanted to be apart of the moment.' He said. With him there it would not really do much he had just felt left out. Even with out him there she was already cornered, resistance was futile. Even if she did find a way they would have caught up with her. But Rin did not doubt she would use some strange technique to get her self out of this.

And he was not wrong, well she did but not the kind of technique he was thinking about. Rin had been expecting some elaborate ninjutsu that involved something cool. But instead she began to strip. Then began to talk about she was willing for them to have their way with her. He was tempted to ask if he could but there were about a million things wrong with it. One he was on a mission, two she would probably kill him, three there was probably something wrong with her and lastly Toshiro was there and he did not want to seem like an idiot. Even though his mentor probably already thought that. Then the Konoha chuunin said something about him having a girlfriend. 'Really? I had no idea, he is so lucky.' Thought Rin. It was a shame though but pretty sick that she had even said that. She was a nymphomaniac. Rin had never met anyone like that and he hoped one day he would meet one again. Because after all they seemed pretty funny but disgusting nonetheless. Rin sheathed his katana and from his pocket produced some rope, but like always Rin doubted that they would use it.

Toshiro tossed him the kunochi's weapons pouch. His mentor was lucky. He got to cary and tie up the prisoner. Rin would have loved that job but he knew he probably would have failed doing it. The only weapons in the pouch were a ninjato which had nothing on his own ninjato, some shuriken and a very interesting looking curvy blade. It looked as if it was easily concealable. It was probably something like a shoe blade. Rin took out the shuriken and hurled them at a tree. They flew straight and made a satisfying thunk as they penetrated the wood. It would take them a while until they got back to their camp. Rin had to admit he felt sorry for the Bravo squad leader. As he had to carry a squirming, sex-crazed woman on his shoulder for all that time. They would probably stop for a rest a couple of times along the way. Maybe he would offer to carry her if he wanted. Rin suddenly realised that he had been wearing his gas mask this whole time. Having got used to it quite early on, he had lost the feeling. It had not come in handy for that mission, but he knew it would eventually. No do out looked cool and probably quite sinister and scary. He slid it down off his mouth. So that it hung loosely from his neck. He gulped down fresh air. It felt cool and nice against his sweaty face. He had hung back and let Toshiro go on in front. But he was only a couple of paces behind. Any way he did not want to go to close to that woman, just incase he fell under her spell.

Starting to feel bored Rin began to rap. He was certainly getting better. Now rhyming was coming easier to him and his raps made a lot more sense than they used to. But even this got tiring after a while. He had been told to practise for short amounts of time every day. And since being told this, it was exactly what he had been doing. After a few more minuets they stopped for a while. Just so that they could rest and get some water. It was here that he drew his ninjato and katana and did some training. And even when they got up to go he carried on 'killing' the trees. The kunochi began to slightly laugh at him and Rin stopped because he wanted to seem cool. Rin had no idea how long it would take them to get back to the camp. But he kept his mouth shut and walked on in silence.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

'Three hours. Please Kami next time I try to be responsible - kill me. It can't hurt more.' For what felt like the hundredth time since he had taken the kunochi who was doing her best to seduce him prisoner Toshiro wished he had told Rin to carry the squirming burden on his shoulder. Sure most males would have thought he was crazy but they weren't in his position to understand all its downsides. One, he already had a girlfriend who was just as, if not more, attractive as the squirming bundle over his shoulder. A bundle who was quite capable of sticking a knife into himself or one of his genin if Toshiro dropped his guard. Then there was the matter that her squirming was causing his chuunin vest to chaff against the right side of his neck and shoulder in addition to make her feel heavier than she was. That part he attempted to rectify by threatening to have Rin knock her out and while she had (mostly) stopped squirming his hands had ended up being higher than he would have preferred. The only break in his prisoner's litany of attempts to wear down his resistance had been when Rin's rapping (something he did his best to pretend never happened) and practice had made her emit what might have been giggles.

That reprieve hadn't lasted long enough in Toshiro's opinion and far too soon he was back to being the kunochi's focus. So it was with an audible sigh of relief that the teams campsite finally came into view. Now he could hand off the squirming bundle of female wiles on his shoulder to his genin for a few minutes. To that end he unceremoniously (and with no small amount of relief) removed his hand from the kunochi's rump and dumped her onto the ground with what (had she not be gagged) would have been an undignified squawk of surprise. Then he looked over his shoulder at shortest member of the team with a grin that equal parts anticipation and relief. "Okay Rin, time to see how you handle a prisoner. I'm going to get dinner started and when I come back I'll check your work. Don't bother trying to extract any information - we'll leave that to the ANBU when we drop her off - just make sure she can't get away. No broken bones or major cuts either since we don't have a medic. When you're done bring whatever you find with you." With that he started to walk towards to the fire while pondering the issue of what to cook given teams collective supplies when inspiration struck. It was juvenile and petty but Toshiro couldn't help but smirk just a bit at the idea of returning some of the torment she had inflicted on him during the walk back. "Oh and feel free to strip her if you feel it's required to check for any concealed weapons. Sometimes kunochi hide them in their undergarments or cleavage."

If the look on the face of the kunochi (who wasn't older than nineteen if Toshiro had to guess), coupled with her frantic attempts to squirm away, on hearing the chuunin's parting shot were any indication she wasn't looking forward to the last bit happening. To the chuunin that was a fair indication that, her actions before not withstanding, she wasn't quite as casual about being taken advantage of as she had implied. Something that made his smirk morph into a slightly sadistic grin as he turned his head and saw the mixture of pleading and outrage in her eyes. "Remember this Rin. Never bluff unless you're ready to have that bluff called." With that Toshiro went back to planning the evening meal. Maybe he would cook up some of the beef and rice he had bought when they had come across a farm - it would be a good way to acknowledge the slight improvement to the days end.

Toshiro: 61 CP Kit: (5 shuriken left)

Posts : 1187

The sky was slowly turning golden. It had an orange strike down the centre, it was as if someone had sliced through ice with a glowing hot katana. Rin felt really bad for Toshiro, it was official, that kid had amazing self control also strength and stamina. That girl must have been a bit older than him, so probably quite heavy. Also she was trying to convince him to have his way with him. It must of been incredibly annoying. But the fact that he had a girlfriend must have slightly helped him with that. As he knew that if he did have his way with her, his girlfriend who ever she was would kill him. If he was not already killed by the kunochi. Rin expected that she was hiding something, a weapon concealed on her person. He was certain that Toshiro would not get hurt, after all the target was trussed up like a turkey. They had almost completely completed the mission. This was his first C rank mission in a while. And he had done so much on it. Rin had to admit that they got the pay of a B rank because it had been a dangerous mission. Well that and he just wanted some more money. Rin wandered if they would ever get a replacement for that Kenshi kid. After all this time he doubted he would be coming. He could not help but wander what happened to him. Maybe he had fallen ill or maybe him and his parents had left to go to a different country. It would be really good to get someone who would do lots of missions with them. After all Matsunaka was not doing much. But maybe that would just be a one off. He hoped so, after all it would be really cool to get to know Matsunaka better.

Maybe when they got back Rin would ask his teacher if he could teach him some kenjutsu. If he could get as good as his mentor he would become unstoppable. But it would take ages to even come close to Toshiro. By the time they got back to the camp he was knackered, but probably not as much as the Bravo squad leader. After all he had just carried a squirming body for god knows how long. Calling Kuro down Rin scratched the cat's chin. The only reason that the small animal had not been taken on the mission was because Rin had not known what to expect. Five enemies of fifty, expert missing nin or lowly bandits. And because of this he did not know how dangerous it would have been for Kuro. Quickly he ran up to the camp and grabbed his scythe. After feeding him, the purple and blue haired Genin wandered back over to Toshiro and the prisoner. It was evident that the snowy haired shinobi had just put her down, and you could see that it was like a mountain had been lifted off his shoulders. He turned around and grinned at his subordinate. Then began to explain to him what he wanted Rin to do. He was to guard the prisoner as he gathered food. Now he had been told that he was allowed to strip search her. This brought out a mix of feelings. Joy, but since he respected people and their privacy he did not really want to. But if she was hiding a weapon it was better to do that then someone gets injured by her.

Just as Toshiro said this she began to squirm and wriggle. Rin was not sure whether it was the new addition to his arsenal. The six foot long scythe, or the fact he was allowed to strip search her. As a passing remark Toshiro said something that Rin found very funny. "Remember this Rin. Never bluff unless you're ready to have that bluff called." He smirked at this. Then turned his attention to the young woman. Rin had decided not to strip her but instead cut the piece of cloth covering her cleavage and leave her undergarments. That would have been incredibly harsh to do that. With one swift and quick movement he did that. Nothing fell away, she was clean. He then withdrew Naito Motsu and pointed it at her windpipe. Then he dragged her to a tree close by and and tied her up by the waist. His rope was rough which meant the more she moved the more it would chafe and give her pain. And once again pointed his katana at her and waited for Toshiro to return.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

As Toshiro made his way to the fire that was the literal and metaphysical center of the three Leaf-nin's camp his mind was a whirlwind of different tangents. While he tried to emulate his first jonin-sensei, and the only one he really regarded as worthy of that title, by helping his students equally he wasn't going to delude himself that he didn't have a favorite student. That favorite was currently making sure the teams prisoner didn't find some way to escape. Nor was it a decision based (at least not entirely) on something as superfluous as the pairs shared skill with, and love of, weaponry. Quite simply of the two genin who made up his team Rin was the one he felt the closest too - almost like the chuunin imagined having a little brother would feel like. Of course that the short genin was the one Toshiro could teach the most to didn't hurt either.

It was that sort of thought, coupled with the occasional glance to make sure either of his genin weren't in trouble, that kept busy what part of Toshiro's mind wasn't occupied making dinner. It was last of the three that the chuunin was focused on as he removed one of the smaller scrolls from his vest and unsealed both the raw components for the evening's meal and the implements to cook it with. An act that took maybe ten minutes of actual work and another twenty or so of making sure that the cuts of beef, pot of rice & vegetables, and potatoes didn't get too charred. In that time the chuunin reached several decisions about the future. First, that he was going to teach his students at least the basics of field cooking. Besides letting you make what you had last a bit longer, knowing how to make something edible made being in the field a bit less of chore. Plus they would need some sort of plausible cover if they were sent on infiltration missions and, while almost universal, there were some places that unemployed farmhands stuck out like a lit explosive tag. Cooks however were truly universal and they frequently had unsupervised access to a target's food and even person. Secondly he was going to have to see about filling in the empty spot on the team soon - preferably with someone whose skills would balance out the team even a little bit. That or he was going to have to reevaluate the original purpose of the team; maybe going so far as to see about filling out the, ugh, paperwork take Rin on as an apprentice. Finally, he was going to have to see what made the courier so important or his curiosity wouldn't stop bugging him.

As the last of the three was the only one he could immediately address, when the meal was done he ate his own meal then refilled the plate with enough to feed the team's prisoner before calling out to his students. "Okay brats. Dinner is on the fire. Eat up then the rest of the day is yours until it's time to turn in. I'll take first watch and Matsunaka gets second while Rin takes the last. I want to be in Fire Country by tomorrow evening so we're going to be up early and moving hard." Once he had taken Rin's place, impressed that the genin had enough self-control to not strip her given an excuse, and set the food down he created a clone that put its blade against the kunochi's neck while the chuunin himself set about untying her gag and freeing her hands. "Don't even bother thinking about getting away. I'll just run you down and you really won't like your time with us after that." Judging by the glare the girl shot at the white-haired Konoha-nin that had been what she had been considering before starting to eat. Once she was finished Toshiro retied her hands and arms (he would leave her without the gag for now) before picking her equipment pouch and searching it. Besides the ninja tools Rin had found, Toshiro removed a scroll that was probably what this entire mess was about along with what might have been a diary. He was just about to discard the bag when he found something pinned to the side. After carefully unpinning it he brought the item out to examine in the fading light. The item itself was a relatively simply pin in the form of an square of gold with an 8-pointed star, whose rays were done to look like hands forming a Tora seal, in the middle and 3 small comma-like marks around it. The effect it had though was anything but simple.

At that point things happened almost faster than the eye could see. There was the unmistakable sound of flesh hitting wood, what might have been a female scream of fright, and a much hoarser male shout of "where did you get that?!" Anyone looking in the direction of the tree to which Rin had tied his teams prisoner would see a sight that few had seen and lived to tell about. That being one white-haired chuunin in a murderous rage. Toshiro had his left hand wrapped tightly around the kunochi's throat and was holding her up almost a foot off the ground one-handed. In his right hand was the pin held barely beyond the tip of the girls nose as she tried to plead for her life, get enough air to stay conscious (or even alive), and answer the question of her suddenly berserk captor before he choked the life out of her or worse. It wasn't until she gasped out something that might have been "client gave " and "proof of orders" that the embodiment of raw fury released his stranglehold. He ignored the sobbing and gasping female who had hit the ground with a painful-sounding thud as he tried to come to grips with the full implication of those words.

After what might have been minutes or hours Toshiro could only come up with one way to resolve the situation for good. He needed to find something to prove or disprove that the sibling he thought he had put an end to was still alive and behind the bandits. He just hoped that when he found that proof it would prove the later. There would be one place to get that proof if it had indeed been his sister, assuming she still held to her old habits. He would just have to reach there before the local scavengers (human or animal) made off with it. Without looking at the two genin he was going to be putting a heavy burden on, Toshiro spoke with as much authority as he could muster. "Change of plans. Rin you take first watch. I've got some back-trailing to do in case the worst is true. If I'm not back by sunrise you two carry our prisoner over the border where an ANBU team will meet you. Hand her off to them along with the mission scroll. And tell them...", right then the genin's teacher and captain paused as if dreading what he was going to say next "tell them to put the rogue pheasant back onto the roll of missing-nin." That done Toshiro took off with his water clone alongside him, leaving the camp and its prisoner to two genin, a pair of felines, and one summoned pheasant who looked just as sick as his summoner felt. A sickness that the four foot pheasant summed up with his usual eloquence. "Damn it."

[ooc: further posts I'll do as Tonbi. If Rin posts his exit post consider this Toshiro's exit post]
Toshiro: 61 CP - 8 CP = 53 CP Kit: (5 shuriken left)

Spoiler:

Posts : 1187

In the time it took for Toshiro to get back with food. Rin searched the kunochi for more weapons, as he had decided to be better safe than sorry. To avoid stripping her down he simply kicked her around her derrière. This was quite funny as the girl glared at him and made grunting noises. If looks could kill he would be a dead man. If she did escape Rin was sure he would be first of her list. Having experience with people that hid weapons in their mouths, he decided to check just incase. This would mean undoing her gag. As soon as he did this she began hurling abuse at him. 'Little perv, I'm going to kill you, how are you so small?' And so on. Rin simply shushed her and began to open her mouth with his finger. This was promptly bit, hard. Quickly withdrawing his hand he winced. Doing it the second time he put the index and thumb of both hands in her mouth. Then peered in, and thank go he did. Pressed into the side of her cheek was a small file. It was not big enough to be used as a weapon but could probably cut through a rope. 'What do we have here?' Rin said as he took the file out and waved it in front of her face. But just before she could reply he popped the gag back in her mouth.

Rin was so glad that he had Toshiro as a leader. The genin felt safe when he was with the chuunin. But that was probably helped by the fact he now knew what he was capable of. One to one training with his squad leader would be amazing. It was a shame that they had different elemental affinities but they did both have a love for weapons. Rin could not imagine being under anyone else's command. Despite the one year age difference he felt close to him, maybe even like an older brother but that was stretching it a bit. It would be really cool just to do a couple of mission in and around Konoha with him. But back to the matter in hand, the job he had been trusted with. Looking after the prisoner. It was not the most fun job in the world but it was important. To pass the time he had decided to practise shuriken throwing. It was fun because a. it was training and b. he got to freak out the kunochi by throwing sharpened stars dangerously close to her head. One time a throw went scarily off target and ended off about a centimetre away from the girls neck.

Soon after that there was a familiar call from Toshiro saying that dinner was ready. Also that he had last watch. This was good because it meant that he had something to do while he was wide awake, instead of just staring into space. Just before he left his shuriken were gathered up and placed back in his pouch. As he made his way over to the fire Rin had one quick look over his shoulder at the prisoner. She looked exhausted and hungry, he had to admit Rin felt slightly sorry for her. Dinner looked really good, the potatoes looked nice as did the beef. Also there was nice vegetables and rice. There was not much but enough. Rin could have eaten the whole pot it was so good. He wished he could cook as well as his leader. Then once he had finished he trekked up to the tent. When he got to there and fed Kuro Rin got his fishing rod out. Having already found a small lake somewhere near the camp most of his days had been spent there.

Finding a comfortable spot in a tree just over the small lake Rin dangled his rod in the water. The tree itself was less than a couple of metres from the camp. So far he had caught twelve fish in their time in the rice country which was pretty good. Basking in the amber light of the late afternoon sun Rin began to think. It was possible to become a ANBU member at the rank of chuunin. So all he needed to do was get to that rank as soon as possible. In an ideal world he would be a chuunin of the leaf village within a year. At least that was his aim. It was unlikely that it would take that long, but he needed to do more missions. He would prefer to do these missions with people rather then himself. But this would mean that he would have to either meet some more people that were his rank. Or do lots of missions with Toshiro. Either of these would be cool. If Rin was honest with himself he would like to do lots of missions with Toshiro and the Bravo squad and a couple with other shinobi his rank. Also he wanted to have more opportunities like this, go off to other countries and have a chance to do multiple missions there. It would also be cool to go to a country to do lots of training. Probably the grass country as it seemed to have the nicest scenery. After a very short amount of time Rin got bored of fishing. Also he realised that if they were going to leave in the morning it would be best to go and pack.

Just as he got back to the centre of the camp Toshiro came out of nowhere. There was definite rage and anger in his voice, even though he was probably doing his best to suppress it. Something had gone horribly wrong but Rin could not tell what. After all the prisoner was still there and had not gotten away. The team leader explained how there had been a sudden change of plans. Now the purple haired genin would have to take first watch instead of last as Toshiro would have to go off. Then explained what they were to do if he was not back by sunrise. 'I wonder why he would not be back? What's going on?' Rin thought. Even though he knew it would be better to keep his mouth shut. He simply nodded and wished Toshiro luck in what ever he was about to do. Then the last thing he said before he left sounded important. If they were to meet the ANBU with out him they were to tell them, 'put the rogue pheasent back onto the roll of missing-nin.' What ever that meant. But still Rin knew it must be important so made sure not to forget it.

Once Toshiro had left Rin took up the position of lookout. Scaling the tree on which the prisoner was tied to and looking out over the beautiful scenery of the rice field country. Still he made sure that their prisoner was insight incase she tried to escape. It was quite boring just being up in the tree so Rin dropped down and started doing some exercise. Nothing major just some basic moves. Then he began to do some taijutsu training by doing punches against a tree trunk. Soon he made up a game. Going by two punches each time, he had to do the punches on one tree. Then run to the tree trunk behind him and back. Then go back to doing the punches. He did this until his lookout time was over. By this time his knuckles were split and bleeding and his fingers had scrapes all over them. Maybe he had done it a bit too much but it was good training. He had managed to get to seventy consecutive punches in a row. But by by then he was exhausted. Rin knew that he was going to have to leave in the morning whether Toshiro would get back or not. So he decided to pack his stuff away.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Sitting on the stump that was serving as his roost, Tonbi found himself having to make the decision to tell his summoner's genin about certain events that may or may not become relevant. After almost three years of being as his summoner's side constantly, the pheasant could read Toshiro like an open book most of the time. It hadn't taken him much time to put together the clues and his summoner's last words before running off had cinched it. To the pheasant there was no doubt that one Hinamori Asusha could very well be alive and up to no good. In the end he young bird simple said to hell with secrecy - he had never been expressly told that he couldn't talk about the events to others and the fledgling needed to understand why he might find himself in the sights of assassins someday. Waiting for Rin to finish his exercises and Matsunaka to finish whatever it was he had been doing, the bird used a wing to gesture for the pair to be seated. Then he started to speak with the slightly-higher-than-normal pitched voice that was the norm for his species when using human language.

"I suppose I should explain some things - at the least you deserve to know why you might be facing assassins after your own hides in the near future. It all started about three years ago..." From there Tonbi went to relate the events between Toshiro and Kimiko's meeting up to what they had thought was the end of the matter in Shi Mori. How the relationship between Toshiro and his then-teammate had changed from maybe-friends to something more. The reaction the chuunin's sisters had had and how it had driven a rift that split the six siblings down the middle between those opposed and those in favor. How things had escalated until Toshiro's girlfriend had gotten sent into a coma and Toshiro himself had "gone off the deep end" that resulted in his nickname of "the devil shark of the Hidden Leaf". He described how shortly afterwards the rift between the siblings (save Asusha the second-eldest) had closed up and Toshiro's girlfriend had recovered. Finally the ugly episode where that last sibling had gone rogue and committed nearly every crime imaginable until Toshiro, his girlfriend, and their summons had literally dropped the roof (and an entire hill) onto her. "Some how he found something on that courier that hints at Asusha having survived that early burial and that fact has him scared half to death."

Taking stock of the pairs reaction to the revelation of something their sensei had been keeping to himself, Tonbi finished up his little lecture about why the pair's lives might just be in immediate danger with a direct warning. "And he isn't scared for his own life. What has him scared is that Asusha will go after his girlfriend, her family, and even you two just for being connected to him. She proved that when she wants something she doesn't care who she hurts to get it. The vixen even kidnapped and tried to use his girlfriend's younger sister as the "power of human sacrifice" to seal away some pseudo-bijuu. If she didn't balk at that or trying to kill her down grandfather I doubt she would hesitate in the least to have your throats cuts one night just because it might hurt Toshiro." Then the pheasant gave a rustle of his wings as he got comfortable for a long night of standing watch before sending the pair back to their beds with his usual blunt manner. "Now I suggest you two get some sleep. If Toshiro isn't back I intend to see you two safely across the border before I go find him." When neither moved fast enough for his tastes, the summon added a few throwing stars chucked at their feet for emphasis along with a "Shoo fledglings, back to your nests. I've got a camp to watch and it's harder to do that if you're both up making more noise than a herd of rhinos." As the brown and black-feathered pheasant took up his watch he spared one glance towards the stars in thought. 'I hope you're wrong Toshiro. By the Great Egg I hope you are wrong because this is going to get very messy very quickly if you're right.'

[Exiting Topic: Post your exit post Rin]

Posts : 1187

Having no idea where Toshiro was or what he was doing his mind began playing tricks on him. Coming up with strange reasons why he would leave so suddenly. Maybe he was in trouble or maybe he was dead. No, after witnessing Toshiro's power when fighting the bandits there was no way he could lose to anyone. And because of this Rin wanted to be trained by the chunin. But still he could not help but wander what was actually going on. Hopefully he would find out sooner or later. There was little lighting in the tent. Maybe one day he could learn or develop a jutsu to create a ball of floating light. After packing everything that he felt that he needed to pack Rin had got these things left out. The clothes that he had left out and his pouch and ninjato. Rin figured that while waiting for his squad leader to return he might as well just do some training. But that was pretty much all he ever did in his spare time. He had to get stronger if he wanted to become a great and powerful ninja. Once getting all his stuff into one large heap for later he headed out.

A lone tree was standing a yards from the camp. This would be his target. As soon as he left the safety of the base he ran full pelt towards it ninjato poised. Once he felt like he was close enough Rin jumped high into the air getting ready to strike. Upon landing he struck. After a few quick strikes under rapid procession he switched to his kunai and shuriken. Once again he got up into the air. But this time he used act of tree climbing to get up high and spring off the trunk. Then turning in the air he threw his shuriken. Every single one of them hit the target, only not quite as accurately as he had hoped. Yes each and everyone of them hit the trunk but they were completely scattered on it. Once Rin had landed he collected up the shuriken. Just before leaving to go back to camp something came into mind. There was something that he had seen. People would tie themselves to something like a tree, bt their feet then trie and pull themselves up. Today Tsukiyomi, Rin would try this as well. He still had a little bit of rope left. Hopefully it would be just about enough.

Using the act of tree climbing for the second time that day Rin soon was at a suitable branch. It did not take him long before his feet were tied up and he was dangling in the air. At first it was hard to even move his stomach even a fraction. For this exercise one needed to have incredible core strength. It would probably take him weeks of training this before he could do about five reps. He had barely got a few centimetres he started to get tired. Then about twenty when he finally gave up. Cutting himself loose Rin flipped down, carefully grabbing the rope as he did so. Upon landing he tucked the rope back into his pouch then headed back off to the camp. Tobi was there simply resting. Rin liked his masters summon, it seemed pretty cool even though he had never properly talked to it. After all there was something slightly unnerving about talking to a bird.

But there it was, roosting. Well sitting, Rin approached it, well approached the fire that was. After a couple of minuets of warming himself by the fire a new presence was felt, Matsunaka. After a couple of minuets Tonbi seemed as if he was about to speak. 'I suppose I should explain some things.' Rin suddenly looked at the pheasent. Turning his body to face him so that he could begin, Rin got comfortable. 'At the least you deserve to know why you might be facing assassins after your own hides in the near future. It all started about three years ago...' The summons continued. Tonbi proceeded to explain about Toshiro and his girlfriend Kimiko. And how they had met up. Rin assumed that this would somehow connect with why his team leader had mysteriously gone off. It seemed as if the courier had got something that gave a clue of his sister being alive. Also it turned out that the sister of the white haired shinobi completely off the rails. As had his mentor, but he had a good reason to. Also for some reason there was a chance that their lives would be in danger if she was alive. Once Tonbi had finished with his lecture about the life of Toshiro they were instructed to go to bed. Rin had decided to sleep wrapped up in his cloak as his actual sleeping bag was packed away. So when the pair of geinin go up to their tent Rin simply lay their, thinking.

[Exit]

Rin- 50-2=48

Spoiler:

Chakra Cost: 1 (1 per post)