Dancing with the Spies {Mission - Nuclear, Noisy - C}

Age : 49 Posts : 1036

Hanging just slightly back from his companions and scrutinizing their first interaction with "high society", Toshiro did his best to keep his expression to a smug and slightly superior smirk and his posture to the slightly. No small feat given his being torn between mirth and approval at this partner's performances. Kimiko had, like every other situation involving people, immediately started working that unconscious ability to get past other people's defensive walls and win them over. It wasn't hard to pick up on the small signs that the pair felt more at ease with the disguised kunochi than with any of the other guest they had seen so far. That easing of tension was also a belated answer to Kimiko's unvoiced question of "why always me". 'Because you do it so well.' Rin however was a bit more... stiff, clearly not at all comfortable as he was trying to pretend to be. 'In the future try to keep any high-class assignments a strictly professional or sneak-and-peek tone. The squirt almost looks like he's afraid someone is going to knee him in the family jewels.' It was as he filed that thought away for later Toshiro realized that their assignment was already in danger of being compromised. He had just stepped forward to give his own congratulations when the groom-to-be took the initiative and seized his right hand in a firm handshake. "Ah, Tsuken-san. I had heard you had found a wife but you didn't say she was so beautiful. I'll have to tell our mutual friend Toshiro-san that he doesn't have to worry about you going after his lady now." With those words Toshiro felt his heart rate rise faster than a firework, and seeing the fellow grin just slightly made his eyes widen far more than could be explained by the light. 'Crud! How did he know it was me?!' On the verge of panicking at the ruse oh so carefully crafted being already undone, and too worried to ponder how someone he couldn't remember meeting recognized him, Toshiro felt two fingers tapping against his wrist in a silent language used by some traders to talk when they didn't want to be overheard. Put into plain language it said "your kin told me", and panic turned into relief. If his kinsmen had told this fellow then he probably would keep things under wraps. Aided by that hope, once he had recovered his figurative balance Toshiro made a passable attempt to play along. "I am sure he will be thrilled to have one less worry. He always was a bit... possessive when it came to the lady he pick. You and he both have excellent taste in your life-partners milord."

"If you'll excuse us, we should see to thanking your uncle for the invitations. Himeri gets rather upset if she misses these events. With that Toshiro bowed one last time to his host and lead Rin and Kimiko in search of the Fire Lord, being the only one to have actually seen the ruler of Hi no Kuni in person. As he surveyed the crowd the snow-haired jounin quickly spotted that exalted personage who was indeed entertaining his wife on the dance floor. He also spotted another person of interest to all three disguised ninja, namely the spy who would lead them to their real targets if all went according to plan. "To the left by the buffet. It's him." At the moment one Kanto, Akira seemed oblivious to anything but the plate of food being handed to him - including the three ninja who could very well be the ones to end his life. Utterly unremarkable in appearance, the spies could have jumped out of the picture he had shown Kimiko days before due to being in the same tacky but ill-fitting dark grey suit. For the moment Toshiro was divided - part of him wanting to stay close to their bait to pounce on the handler at the first opportunity while another part thought it best to blend in and wait to avoid giving their game away. In the end he decided to do both by splitting the group up. "Saneko-kun, why don't you see if the buffet has that dish you couldn't praise enough then try to find a suitable prospect for a match." Hopefully the undercover genin would catch onto the hidden order in his sensei's words - to stay close to their target while the two jounin kept up the facade and identified potential handlers. Risky? Very but he was banking on Rin being the least likely of the three to be recognized before they could spring their own trap.

Without waiting to see if Rin complied, Toshiro turned slightly to Kimiko and made what to a noble might be a discrete effort to point out the ruler of Fire Country in his surprisingly modern finery. "Ah there is his lordship now. Shall we join him and his wife on the floor my dear?" Privately the jounin was hoping Kimiko would wait on a decision until after the dance was concluded. Why? Because dancing was on the same list as neckties and "mingling" in his book - activities he avoided whenever possible. In this case it wasn't from lack of knowledge, experience, or coordination but rather the plain fact that he was not good at it. Actually not good would be a gross overestimate of the lack of ability in that particular area he possessed - a friend once commenting that "if you have to dance I hope they issue steel-toed boots to the other dancers beforehand." Otherwise he would be for a personally embarrassing and highly uncomfortable time.

Age : 29 Posts : 3640

While their party was still speaking to the future bride and groom, Kimiko had thought she overheard something rather disturbing to say the least. She had been listening to Suzume at the point she heard her boyfriend’s name being mentioned by the groom, rather tactfully if that. ‘W-What?...’ She thought to herself, utterly taken aback and startled beyond belief. She didn’t know whether to feel scared or petrified, and she hoped that she managed to conceal her utter shock well enough. Judging by the fact that Suzume was none the wiser to her sudden freezing and body tension, she must have done rather well. As quickly as she had heard the name being mentioned, it was smoothed over once more as they were ushered away to meet with the groom’s uncle, the host for this spectacular party. She had heard what Toshiro said, however, inadvertently saying that he had found a wonderful life-partner. A flush rose to her cheeks and her currently green eyes were wide while they whisked away to the ballroom, comprehending this thought in her mind and all the implications that came with it. She hadn’t truly heard what her current self, Himeri, was upset about or why, and she hadn’t exactly thought it necessary to think any further into the matter either. Her thoughts were still buzzing away with what had been said earlier, about the life-partner statement said to the Fire Lord’s nephew. ‘I’m an excellent life-partner?’ She wanted to giggle delightedly, wrap her arms around Toshiro in what could be described her characteristic ‘death hug’ and question him further in that bold statement, but that would be a huge breach in character, after all. She cleared her throat delicately and drew from her clutch bag an ornately patterned hand fan, sporting camellia flowers in golds, silvers and ruby reds on the fan’s folds. Using this utensil, it wasn’t long until her cheeks felt normal in their temperature again, and it was at that point that things began to get rather serious indeed.

At the buffet table across the room, a person of particular interest to them was stood in a shabby suit with his eyes focused so intently on the plate of food in front of him that he didn’t even hear the waiter next to him asking if he would like any champagne. The spy’s identity was only confirmed when Toshiro lowered his voice to a perfectly acceptable whispering level to say that it was indeed their target that should lead them to the bigger, better target soon enough. With a silent nod, Kimiko acknowledged that she had seen the man and was aware of his presence. She was about to suggest that one of them, or all of them, move over to the buffet table (and that wasn’t only because she was utterly starving) to clock the man’s movements when her husband for the evening cut in and tactfully sent Rin to investigate instead. “Oh yes, and do have a look for a nice, amiable young lady. There seems to be rather a lot of them.” She prompted, gesturing to the young women milling about the buffet table. Some were picking at pathetic strands of vegetables, salad and other such things, while others eyed the buffet table hungrily as if wishing that everyone in the room averted their eyes at the same moment so that the girls could devour the buffet’s contents without being considered ‘fat’. In all honesty, the girls looked no brighter than a dead torch, and were all very samey-looking, even from afar. But of course, Rin wouldn’t actually be heading over there to make a match, he would be going over there to track the spy. If he actually ventured far enough to make a real match with one of those girls, Kimiko would slap sense into him later, as she was sure Toshiro would do as well.

Beautiful, flowing music was being played from a grand piano in the far corner of the room which set the pace for the current dance being enjoyed by the Fire Country Lord himself and his wife. ‘Himeri’ watched the dancers on the ballroom floor, in a way itching to get up there and join them. Although she would never admit it to anyone, let alone those she barely knew like she didn’t know anybody in this room, she loved dancing and everything that went with it. The rhythm, varying tempo and pace of a dance made her happy to be a part of it… alone… in her apartment… with nobody else around to watch. No doubt she looked utterly ridiculous while dancing, but she could perform half of a waltz (not the other half since she never had a partner to dance with). Almost lost in the music and watching the graceful waltz-like rich people dance being paraded on the dance floor, Kimiko was slightly delayed in realising that Toshiro was speaking to her. She turned to face him in return, her wide eyes blinking in shock at the statement. Believe it or not, she didn’t take her boyfriend pretending to be her husband as a dancer type; not at all. She assumed he would much prefer ‘dancing’ with weapons in hand, as opposed to just dancing for entertainment. But he was used to mingling with the higher classes, and everybody in such a band of society danced slow, graceful dances. So in a way it made sense. Her slightly quizzical look was removed from her face, however, when she composed her decorum and nodded her head crisply in response. “I think we should, Tsuken dearest.” She agreed, hoping upon hope that her waltzing skills were good enough to make her blend in with the crowds… and yet she never had chance to even try. The piece of music tinkled to an end, and polite applause was heard throughout the room for the musicians and the dancers alike. She clapped along with them, secretly disappointed that they weren’t able to dance together. But she could waste no time in brooding. The Fire Country Lord was currently enjoying his wife’s company, but otherwise, they were alone. Now was their chance.

She linked her arm through that of her husband’s and walked across the dance floor to meet the married couple currently at the centre enjoying each other’s company. The Lord himself looked to be considerably older than his stunning wife, but they seemed happy enough which was a nice sight. Unless of course his wife took duty to a whole new level, which was more likely in this circle of society. “Good day to you both.” Kimiko said, her ‘rich person’ voice ringing clear and true across the dance floor to the desired recipients of conversation. The Fire Lord and his wife turned to look at the approaching couple, still sporting smiles on their faces. “And a good day to you as well, my lord, my lady.” The wife echoed dutifully, bowing her head and curtsying expertly on the spot where she stood. “Why thank you.” She would have said that they were no lord or lady, but the rich were not wont to playing their status down; that was a well-known fact.

{OOC: Why does this remind me so much of Game of Thrones?...}

Posts : 1187

Rin stood in silence while his seniors also made their introductions. All the while maintaining perfect 'rich man's' attitude. Had the boy not known the pair, or known that they were no normal people, he would have been entirely convinced by their act. As the 'adults' were talking amongst themselves the youngster began to look around the room in which they were currently in. The trio had passed through a large archway and were now in what appeared to be a room used solely for dancing. It had a white marble ceiling with various images painted on its top. The beams were delicately laden with gold leaf. A constant flow of music was coming from an orchestral style band. The double bass player already looked incredibly tired and that he would rather eat his own vomit that carry on standing for then next however many hours. He fixed his suit and turned his attention back to the four people near to him. After Toshiro had instructed him to keep an eye on their target, his stomach had been filled with butterflies. Also it would be important to get away as soon as possible so that he did not miss him. But Rin knew that his main priority was to tail him until he led them to his puppeteer. Placing his hands on his back the boy pretended to stretch, however in reality he was checking to see if his Ulaks were still in place. To his relief they had not become undone in any way. They were incredibly uncomfortable so it would be a reliefe to get them off as soon as possible.

In order to not make a further fool of himself Rin left the other two's company to find the spy. After walking up to the counter he was able to spot him once again. His tactic would be to order a drink, sit a few seats away from said target and pretend to admire the women while keeping track of his objective. It seemed easy in practise but things did not always go as planned. He walked up to the bartender and ordered a juice drink. Had it been a wedding that was not a mission he would have surely attempted to get an alcoholic beverage. But it was important no to get drunk or in anyway side tracked for that matter. Speaking of being distracted the amount of girls his own age around him was increasing rapidly. As was the boys heart rate. The last thing he wanted to do was lose sight of his target but it would be easy to with the amount of female bodies around him. Another thing that he did not want to do was alert the spy to his presence. Taking a deep breath he attempted to keep calm and on top of the situation. He attempted to think ahead to what he might do with in the future few minutes. After a few minutes if the spy had not left he would get up and keep at a safe distance but make sure he was still able to identify his objective. Then if and when he did leave the bar Rin would tail him and try to alert Toshiro. But if for some annoying reason he were to lose the spy within the next few moments he would also tell Toshiro and Kimiko.

The food table was directly in front of the drinks counter so his next step would be to get food from the table still without getting found out. He got up and slowly made his way to the side of the table that was facing the bar. There was a mountain of meringues and eclairs, as well as bowls of punch and green jelly. Cakes and biscuits, chocolate and sweets. It was like you had taken a school of diabetic kids dreams and multiplied it by ten. Taking up a plate Rin started serving himself. All the while keeping one eye on the spy. It looked like he was about finish his drink. Which meant that he was more than likely to be leaving soon. If that happened suddenly it would be fine if the boy were to dump his plate and follow him. Possibly the best way of capturing the spy would be to slightly shepherd him towards the two lovers so they could take immediate action. Rin picked up a few berries and popped them in his mouth then some little cakes and what ever else ther wass that he could cram into his mouth in one go. After piling his plate high with confectionary he headed over to the seat in which he had previously been situated. Once he had put his plate down his hands moved to the black pearl necklace that was always around his neck. It had become an almost second nature to wear it as he never felt truly complete with out it. The pearl was a happy reminder of his second home in the Land of Iron. But so was Kuro, speaking of the little cat Rin could not help but think about what his furry, feline friend was up to. He was in fact so enticed in his thought that he almost missed his target get up.As soon as the spy had taken a few steps the shinobi also stood up and was preparing to tail him. It was now that the chase would start.

*Amy I know what you mean
*And again I am so sorry about how long it took for me to post this and how short it is.

Age : 49 Posts : 1036

[OOC: Apologies on the delay. Its been insane here even by my standards.]

With Rin latched onto their bait like a hound after a rabbit and Kimiko ably disarming any suspicions with wit and charm, it fell to Toshiro to locate partygoers who might be the handlers they sought. While the eyes of those nearby were scrutinizing the interaction between this pair of unknowns and the engaged couple, his own roamed the crowd - assessing each ones potential. Among that list were several nobles who were known to be too ambitious, a few merchants who stood to gain if Fire Country was weakened, and visiting dignitaries from all the major and many minor nations. Caught up in doing that while keeping his outward expression a match to that of the other couples, Toshiro almost missed when the latest round of dancing ended (mercifully without his being dragged into it). That delay was enough that the it was the Fire Lord himself who spoke next in the over-refined voice one would usually associate with "pureblood" nobility. "Ah Lord and Lady Yazuma. So good of you to be here - I was worried you wouldn't be able to attend" While Kimiko was taking note of the age difference between husband and wife, her boyfriend was doing his utmost to keep his expression neutral. It wasn't that he disapproved of the age difference so much as the circumstances of the pairs marriage and some of the rumors floating around the pair. Doubts and disapproval aside though Toshiro still made what he thought was a passable attempt at being polite. "You honor us sir. And it's Himeri who brooked no interference in our attending." Pleasantries out of the way the male jounin went back to his covert surveillance of the crowd and left Kimiko to handle the rulers of Fire Country, stepping in only when needed or asked. That in turn set the tone for the rest of the evening.

It would only be at some point late in the evening that matters came to a head for the three Leaf-nin. For Toshiro it had been as he suffered through the process of "mingling" after Kimiko had been pulled into dancing with the groom-to-be. As trying as it had been for Toshiro to deal with this people, especially given how some of this "peers" made no attempt to hide how they practically undressed Kimiko with their eyes, he had (mostly) kept a leash on his temper. At least none of them had dared to do more - not since the heavily inebriated younger son of a minor peer had brushed his hand against Kimiko's rear. Since none of the guests had been looking that way when it happened, no one could actually say they had seen "Tusken" elbow the fellow in the kidney or use one foot to direct the resulting stumble into a table whose ice-sculpture centerpiece had rather sharp edges. The brat would eventually be able to eat, courtesy the Fire Lords personal physician, and no doubt gain a healthy fear of trying to poach from a jealous boyfriend along with a number of scars. After that the ones brave enough to ask "Himeri" to dance had kept their hands strictly where they belonged and their eyes glued to her face. They might not be able to prove anything, but no one wanted to risk getting on this "Tsuken's" bad side by molesting his "wife". The jounin had just disengaged himself from a particular painful conversation with yet another minor noble when he saw the "bait" making his way towards a couple Toshiro didn't recognize. The female half was easily one of the most attractive (Kimiko always being the most attractive in her boyfriends opinion) women present if the number of stares she directed her way was the measure. It was the male that set the jounin's danger sense screaming. For some reason Toshiro was positive he had seen that coldly superior smirk on a pale face framed by long black hair in a braid before. Settling that feeling might have been easier if he could see the fellows eyes, but those were hidden behind usually dark glasses that resembled a visor.

While he wasn't usually one to go on "gut feeling" alone, that was what convinced Toshiro to give the signal for his kin to start moving. One hand formed into a half-snake seal quickly had "servants" and "minor guests" pulling away the bulk of the party as far from the target pair as could be done. At the same time some of the cooks reached under their tables to check on hidden weapons just in case things truly got out of hand. When the "ready" sign was sent the jounin gave a slight nod in recognition while going about doing his part. That being collecting his girlfriend-slash-partner (made easier by the end of the current round of dancing), regrouping with the sole genin on the mission, and then making the actual arrest. "Pardon my cutting in." A light hand on Kimiko's shoulder hopefully would get the afore mentioned kunochi's attention and once he had her going in the right direction Toshiro dropped the bombshell. "Dearest, there is someone here I believe you need to meet. It seems that Saneko's tastes run to older women with rather suspicous companions."

Age : 29 Posts : 3640

In spite of it all, Kimiko was rather enjoying playing the part of a noble. It let out a side to her that she never even knew existed, and even if she had to change her appearance drastically for this particular role, something she despised, it was quite enjoyable for her to elevate her tone, accent and vocabulary for the sake of fitting in with the higher classes. Acting in general had always been something she liked, but it had been no more than an admiration when she saw her first play aged fifteen; a tragic number performed in the Kumogakure play house while she was there. She had never thought she would ever enjoy acting for herself, and thought that the whole idea was rather ridiculous. But here she was pretending to be born a noble, married into an influential clan, and managing to fit in. Nobody present seemed to suspect a thing, and if they had noticed anything ‘fishy’ about her act, they weren’t letting anything on. The Lord of the Fire Country greeted them alongside his wife, welcoming both Yazuma clan members with great dignity. He expressed a delight at the fact that they had been able to attend after all in spite of difficulties arising for them, and Kimiko gave the man a polite smile. Her husband chipped in that it was her doing that they had managed to be here tonight, and she proudly raised her head a little in a manner that just oozed self-importance. “Why thank you darling, but the pleasure is all mine.” She assured Toshiro, patting his hand where it was grasping her arm. “How could we miss such a wonderful occasion, after all? We have already bestowed our best wishes to the bride and groom to-be, of course. They really are a superb match.” She gushed, just like good rich women should. She was remotely aware of her beloved surveying their surroundings, and thus she realised the need to keep the Lords of the Fire Country especially busy in conversation. “Pray tell, my lord and lady, what brought about the match?” Stories were a wealthy man’s weakness. As soon as he heard that question being asked, the Lord raised his head and his eyes glittered in pleasure at the invitation to talk about how he had manoeuvred such a wonderful match for his nephew, and he continued to talk all the legs off a donkey. Their conversation alone lasted half an hour, perhaps more. After feeling as if she could no longer have the will to live if the conversation continued, Kimiko politely begged the leave of herself and her darling husband. They left the dance floor just as another round of dancing was starting up, and for the rest of the evening for rather a long time, everything seemed to merge together in flattering nobles, gossiping with ladies and being twirled around the dance floor. It fell to ‘Himeri’ for all of these duties, and her beloved ‘Tsuken’ remained out of it the whole time; exchanging the smallest of pleasantries with the nobles that approached them, and keeping far away from the dance floor at all times.

The Katsumi in disguise had been rather unaware of what had been happening all evening thus far with men observing and admiring her, and was even greatly shocked upon witnessing a poor young man’s unfortunate accident on the ice table. She couldn’t help but notice the slightly smug, triumphant look in her boyfriend’s eyes after that had happened, however, and she could have sworn that he had something to do with the ‘mishap’. She had been none the wiser to the hasty feel copped of her backside, and instead brushed it off as her own imagination or Toshiro wanting to test her nerve as a true actress for the evening, but now it was becoming crystal clear who had copped a feel of what and how they had ended up. She had shot her ‘darling husband’ a warning look just before being whisked off to dance for the umpteenth time that evening, and kept her eyes on him while she was spinning gracefully on the dance floor with whoever it might be at the time. She had honestly lost count of how many dances she had been part of after the sixteenth. Old men, young men, snivelling men and pathetic men were among those who asked for her hand to dance, and at every request, her ‘Tsuken’ had nodded curtly after examining each man very carefully indeed. It was obvious at least to Kimiko that he was looking for the handlers in their situation, but he hadn’t found any joy in any scrutiny for the whole evening. After a dance with the Fire Lord, his nephew had quickly picked up the reins, sweeping over to the currently blonde female and offering a subtly calloused hand for her to take. “Would m’lady join me for a dance?” He asked in that soft, flowing voice of his. She smiled and curtsied slightly, bowing her head and placing her hand in his to follow him back onto the dance floor. She probably knew each and every twist in the elaborate, expensive wood laid on the floor by now because of how many times she had danced upon it. “I would be honoured, my good sir.”

The Fire Lord’s nephew was a marvellous dancer, and his lead was strong. Kimiko barely even had to think about what she was doing because he seemed to do it all for her. While dancing, it was a good time to converse because the music was loud enough for voices to be drowned out, and the other dancers were all to enveloped in their own dance partners to wish to hear anything. “Lady Himeri, pray, tell me something.” He began, pausing and looking at her facial expression before continuing when he knew it was safe to do so. “What is being wedded like? Of course I have heard so many romanticised tales of the affair, but I know that you would be honest with me.” His tone betrayed a sense of knowing something, and Kimiko’s mind was cast back to earlier in the evening when Toshiro had been speaking in hushed tones with the Fire Lord’s nephew. It was betrayed that the groom-to-be knew of Toshiro’s identity, and by that turn, he also knew of the Katsumi’s as well. “A wedding…” She pondered aloud, a smile touching her lips; the kind that hid a lot of things and made it obvious that she was all about subtly. In reality, it was quite the opposite, however. “It is an experience like you would never imagine. Nothing can prepare you for it; no amount of tales or hearsay. Everybody’s partner and vision of a perfect betrothal is different. It is purely your own, and nobody can take that from you.” Her green eyes flickered briefly to where the Fire Lord was dancing with a sister of his, far away at present. His loud, bawdy laughter could be heard from here. Her dance partner nodded slowly in understanding, his eyes spelling mischief as they performed a rather outlandish twirl that caught the attention of all men and women alike in the room. He leant close to her face, holding his hand back in a grand gesture, a smile on his lips. “Thank you kindly, my lady. I think, that you would do well to remember that as well.”

The crowds clapped politely, no louder than was generally acceptable by noble standards. A mere show of appreciation, no more. The Fire Lord’s Nephew escorted Kimiko off the dance floor, bowed in farewell and went as if to say something more, but his gaze shifted over the young woman’s shoulder as if looking at something or somebody else. Her beloved’s voice cut in brusquely as ever, excusing himself from encroaching on what remained of the dance. At that, ‘Himeri’s’ dance partner left, leaving the pair with a sly smile as he disappeared to find his wife-to-be. She turned to face Toshiro after feeling a gentle hand being placed upon her shoulder, eyes full of questions as to what he might have found that made it so important to interrupt their charade. Or rather, her charade, since she had been the only one to dance and make merry with the other guests thus far. In his noblest of voices, Toshiro stated that he had found a possible handler, of course very well masked to avoid any suspicion on their part. “I see.” She said crisply, scanning the room briefly for the male that her boyfriend was speaking of. It didn’t take long to spot him; he stuck out like a sore thumb that had been badly bandaged. “Well, shall we become acquainted with this gentleman? He seems rather… enticing.” Without much further adieu, Kimiko took her husband for the evening by the arm, and gently led both of them through the crowds, apologising every so often to anybody she may have barged past a little more forcefully than she intended. If this really was the man they were looking for, they should aim to try and move him to a different room, one smaller and less crowded, preferably somewhere empty, in order to question him and get what they needed.

Posts : 1187

OOC: I am so sorry but Ive spent the past age racking my brain trying to think what to write but Ive got nothing. I know it might best if you just skipped me and I'll come back next week stronger than ever. Once again I am truly sorry guys.

Age : 49 Posts : 1036

Pacing Kimiko, Toshiro's own focus had stayed on the pair of likely handlers who were now discussing something with the evening's unwitting bait. As he and Kimiko closed in on the pair they sought Toshiro was increasingly sure of two facts. That this was the handler they were after, and that not only was the black-haired male familiar but it wasn't through amicable circumstances. Without even knowing who that fellow was Toshiro's hand was twitching towards one of his concealed kunai. And it wasn't just the cold arrogance and smug superiority that the fellow seemed to radiate like a bonfire radiates heat rubbing Toshiro the wrong way. Somehow the snow-haired jounin was positive that this fellow had made the short list of people who had earned his loathing and the even shorter list of those who had done so and were still alive. Despite that he couldn't put a name to the person who was even now gesturing for the spy to precede him and his companion through an open doorway. A decision that made Toshiro growl slightly - from studying the plans for the room the previous day he knew that the door lead to a hallway that ended in a moderate-sized botanical garden. While it would almost certainly be empty of other partygoers and allow the Konoha ninja to use some of their more destructive techniques without (much) collateral damage, it wasn't exactly ideal for trapping the spy and handler either. Now he was going to need Kimiko and maybe even Rin's help in pulling this off without either person of interest escaping.

So it was that the pair of jounin made a detour to "rescue" Rin from the ravenous pack of daughters that had encircled him. Maybe it was his looks or that he was one of the few males who were actually nice (without ulterior motive) to them, but at least half a dozen females were hanging off the undercover genin.
In a way Toshiro felt sorry for the squirt. His student was unlikely to have a lot of expose to "girly girls" and that particular lesson was one Toshiro had been intentionally remiss in. Mostly because he feared the consequences of Kimiko finding out that he taken his students to a port town, gotten them liquored up, and paid for a "working girl" for each of them. His own mother had been absolutely furious at her husband and father-in-law for doing that "traditional lesson" to Toshiro shortly after his making genin, and the jounin had no desire to be subject to whatever punishment his own better half would come up with should he follow in their footsteps. So Rin was almost certainly under-prepared for dealing with predatory females and this particular school reminded the jounin of nothing as much as starving piranha whose river had just been invaded by a fat cow. Nor were all the man-eaters so young - some might have actually been close to his own age. Why they were interested in Rin, well that could run the gamut from a "crush on first sight" to thinking he might be a ticket to a secure life to things Toshiro preferred to not think about. Of course one or two of them might, just might, have been worth the genin's getting closer to but right then Rin was needed for his part of the evening. To that end the male jounin inserted his arm through the bevy of females, latched onto his students bicep with an iron grip, and with a "excuse me ladies but my brother is needed elsewhere" yanked Rin out of the circling predators.

Ignoring the various expressions and statements of disappointment at said females preferred company being taken away from them, Toshiro placed Rin behind himself and Kimiko. Then firmly pulled the younger male behind him as now-expanded party resumed their hunt. Having let Kimiko do most of the talking along the way, it wasn't until the three were safely into the hall that the male jounin asked one of the more important questions on his mind. "So see anything you like Saneko? And did you get any invitations to visit after the party?" Hey, he wouldn't be Toshiro if he didn't rib his student some. Especially after extricating said student from a position most males his age would have fought tooth and nail to stay in. Plus there was a, albeit minor, legitimate reason for such a rather personal question as seeing if one of the females had actually propositioned the genin. Namely if such had occurred it would be up to his sensei to A) give the poor genin what passed for "The Talk" when the parents hadn't or were absent, B) determine if said female was actually suitable and C) if he should warn his student about the dangers of a wealthy woman scorned. Toshiro being something of an expert on the last - there was a whole story behind why he slept with a kunai under his pillow. That it would also provide the teacher and absent students with a source of amusement and no few free rounds of their favorites vices was just incidental. Honestly.

So with "Saneko" now in tow the three Leaf-nin followed their prey down the hall, around a corner, and soon into the glass-covered indoor garden. On entering it wasn't terribly difficult to locate the three. Almost dead center in the garden was a moderately sized fountain shaped like several cavorting dolphins and next to that was the spy and the individual who Toshiro was certain was his handler. A handler who was now without the dark glasses that had obscured distinctive white eyes. With those features revealed it took the male jounin all of two second to put a name to the handler. "Aido." Spoken barely above a whisper it may have been, the name was spoken in a tone that carried absolute hatred. As much - maybe even more - as first time Toshiro had seen the full depths of his rogue sister's black soul. He didn't even wait for his partners to ask what was going on before his fingers were running through the seals for one of the most destructive jutsu in the jounin's arsenal. "Whatever you two do, the white-eyed freak is mine." Just as the last word was said a column of water shot up from the fountain and smashed down on the surprised trio who scattered in three directions. True to his word, no sooner had the long-haired male recovered than he had to use two of own kunai to block Toshiro's. Hyuuga Aido couldn't however block the gibbering gremlins that crawled up his spin at his white-haired adversaries tone. "So you finally show your face in Fire Country you sick freak."

Toshiro: 185 CP - 12 = 173 CP

Spoiler:

Age : 29 Posts : 3640

Knowing Toshiro as well as she did meant that Kimiko knew something, or in this case someone, was wrong. She had spotted the likely suspect after it was noted out loud the possibility of him being their desired handler, and the woman on his arm most likely having something to do with it as well. There was something about the way the woman conducted herself, but after looking at her for no more than a second or two, the Katsumi felt like she should shove her fist right in the other woman’s face… more than once, just for good measure. It was hard to describe what was so irritating about the strange woman, but the Jounin didn’t like it one bit. First, it was duly noted that they had three possible opponents, and Rin had to be taken away from the ravenous gaggle of girls who seemed so desperate to just leap on the youth and smother him in kisses. Kimiko actually wanted to giggle at the sight, but kept a tight-lipped pout and hoped for the best. Although she knew everything about Toshiro, she wasn’t completely in the know about all of that ‘everything’, especially not the fact that after becoming a Genin, her spouse for the evening was taken to experience another woman under the influence of alcohol. Even if she did know, she would just push it from her mind and not think about it. Saying that she wasn’t the jealous type would be a huge understatement, and even though she was secure in the way she looked, she probably wouldn’t take kindly to the fact that another female had the pleasure of her now-boyfriend, no matter how short the time spent together actually was. It didn’t take long to drag Rin out of the ‘shark tank’ so to speak, with women swimming around him instead of cold-blooded fish, and by that token, it didn’t take long for Toshiro to be poking fun at his student once more. The girls seemed rather disappointed that their ‘Saneko’ was being taken away from them, but soon seemed to get over this fact and go after other young men. A few stayed huddled together, wailing about how they wished to try and get their ‘papa’ to marry the respective girl off to Rin.

The three of them swiftly continued with the hunt to find their three targets after they had begun moving in the direction of a doorway. When they made it to the hallway, Toshiro immediately started the ribbing for Rin. Her better half asked his student if there was anything he liked, anything being women, of course. He followed up by asking if the youth had gotten any invitations to visit/ take things further with the girls he had been swamped by, something which earned a well-timed roll of the eyes from Kimiko. “Behave yourself, Tsuken. I’m sure if Saneko met any girls he likes, he doesn’t have to tell you about them.” She shot Toshiro a glare, although there was no malicious intent within her gaze. It was more playful than serious, also betrayed by her slight smirk. It didn’t take them long to wind their way after their targets, and they soon found themselves in a greenhouse of sorts; only much larger than the average person’s greenhouse, and much more elaborately filled with expensive plants and the like. At the fountain were the three that the two Jounin and Genin had been following. Having taken off the glasses that he formerly wore, the supposed handler was revealed to have very bright white eyes, characteristic of the Hyuuga clan, although not particularly a give-away. Other individuals had the pigmented white eyes, but they were rare indeed. That led Kimiko to believe that one of their opponents was a Hyuuga with the Byakugan; their legendary eye technique that enabled them to see chakra points of an opponent. Having had an obsession with clans in her youth, the Katsumi had learnt every one that hailed from Konoha, and then some. She knew clan names, traits and Kekkei Genkai if the clan had such an ability, or secret jutsu if not.

It seemed that Toshiro and the white-eyed man were… acquainted. Her better half growled a name to give the otherwise unknown handler; Aido. She didn’t begin to question it even though she was curious, because she knew that her boyfriend was well-travelled in the world and knew a lot of people from all over the countries, major and minor alike. His clan ties aided him in this endeavour, but more often than not he knew the individuals through combat. That being said, this Aido character did seem somewhat familiar now that she set eyes on him properly. Where could she have seen him before though? She furrowed her brow slightly in thought, and before long her attention turned to the blue-haired woman beside Aido. The stranger seemed… angry at present. No, seething would be the right word to use in this instance. Her whole body was shaking and her fists were clenched while she glared at Kimiko. The currently blonde Katsumi was taken aback. What was this female’s problem? She most certainly didn’t know the stranger, and she didn’t do anything apart from study the appearance of Aido to see how she recognised him. Toshiro claimed at that point that the possible Hyuuga was his to fight, and started proceedings off with a destructive Suiton jutsu to scatter their opponents. Without further adieu, her better half dashed off to meet head-on with Aido. Before the undercover Jounin had any chance to even begin looking for an opponent out of the blue-haired woman and strange spy, the blue-haired woman launched herself from in amongst the shrubbery of the greenhouse heading straight for Kimiko.

She dodged swiftly, pushing weight down to her feet and springing off to the side, her kimono fluttering in the air as she flew briefly in the air. Her flat shoes made contact with the ground again soon after, skidding a little underfoot but otherwise stable and acceptable for fighting in. “What’s your problem?” She demanded of the strange woman, careful to keep her voice down just in case anybody was attracted to the garden after hearing loud voices. “You’re my problem.” The stranger snarled, charging headlong again. She ran through some strange hand seals and held up both palms. Glistening needle-thin projectiles were suddenly hurtling towards the Katsumi, and it was all she could do to drop down to the floor and avoid them. They would have ruined her outfit if they had made her into a human pin cushion, and she couldn’t be having that. She swiftly rolled over and sprang back to her feet after avoiding a stamp to the face, and countered with a strong right hook that connected hard with the side of the angry woman’s face. In spite of taking a direct hit that definitely left a mark and the impact made her nose bleed, the stranger didn’t even so much as blink. Her eyes were still seething with rage; almost black from the angle the light (or lack thereof) shone within them. “You slut, you slut, you slut! He’s MINE, you hear! Aido is mine!” Natsumi screeched, running through yet more hand seals. This time, Kimiko was ready, albeit bewildered that this woman seemed so dead-set that other women would want her ‘beloved’, especially ones who had no interest in him whatsoever. Jealousy really was a terrible thing. The formerly ebony-haired female ran through all-too familiar hand seals, completing the string before her opponent could. “Juha: Reppushou.” She called out, swinging her dominant right fist round to the front. At point-blank range, this attack would cause some damage. Fuuton chakra expelled swiftly from her fist, taking the form of a beastly claw that hurtled straight at the crazy stranger lady. The crystal ‘thorns’ that her opponent had produced were shattered as the blast of wind passed through them, and impacted headlong with the stranger.

Natsumi fell back hard on the stone ground as the chakra exploded upon impact, and in spite of taking a direct hit, she got straight back up again. Her kimono was ruined already having been ripped in numerous places and not leaving much to the imagination. Kimiko watched the female scream with rage and charge forwards once more. “I’m going to erase you from the earth piece by piece!” She hissed, her voice sounding all the more sadistic than it had done before. ‘This woman’s crazy…’ The Katsumi thought to herself, taking a step back and preparing herself for dealing the woman a great world of pain.

Jutsu used:

Chakra remaining:

Posts : 1187

Unfortunately the 'chase' did not go as well as the boy had previously planned. Rin made at least thirty steps before a teenage boys best dream became his worst nightmare. A gaggle of females roughly his age were surrounding him. To be honest hhis was his fault in a way. After attempting to pursue his target the young man had rounded a corner and had literally ran into the centre of them. They introduced themselves one by one and each attempted to start a conversation with him. Had this been any other time Rin would have been loving all this attention, but this was not a normal time. By the end of this no doubt his ego would have a tremendous boost. By standing side by side the girls had formed a compact ring around their target. He was an injured antelope amongst a pack of Hyenas. If there was one thing he had to do now it was to escape. Firstly because he had to find his target and secondly he did not want Toshiro to make fun of him if he was seen in the middle of this circle. Too late. A hand grasped onto his shoulder and he heard the familiar voice of his mentor say. "Excuse me ladies but my brother is needed elsewhere."

'Oh God' Was all the purple haired shinobi could think. Now that he had been caught in the presence of so many females no doubt he would be subjects to serious ribbing. And sure enough it started sooner than he had wanted. "So see anything you like Saneko?" Rin tried to shrink away and hide from the gleeful gaze of his mentor, but there was no where to go. It felt like the Jonin was actually enjoying seeing his subordinate squirm. He felt like having a rant about how it was not fault and how he was a victim. But they both knew that he had enjoyed it really. Luckily Kimiko stepped in swiftly. "“Behave yourself, Tsuken. I’m sure if Saneko met any girls he likes, he doesn’t have to tell you about them.”He was grateful for this and decided move the conversation on. "Moving swiftly on, the man you asked me to monitor earlier went that way. My guess is by now he has found his friends."

It took the trio a few minutes to find their opposing trio. They were in the palace greenhouse, if you could call it a greenhouse. It was more like something that you would have at a zoo that tries to recreate a jungle. An open space had been cleared out for the party but there was still many exotic and strange plants. As soon as they stepped in side the room Rin recognised his former stalkee. He was now with a man of slight stature but similar age and a woman who looked equally deadly. The boy was proud to say that they were both smaller than himself. "Whatever you two do, the white-eyed freak is mine." His mentor said.
"Fine by me, I'll have the little guy." Rin said slowly, eyeing his opponent up. "I'm confused do we kill them, or just capture them?" It was now time to but his primary strategy into action. Strike hard, and most importantly strike first. They broke up into single units and made their way to their targets. Hopefully his little opponent would not be too much trouble but it would be cool to fight someone with a lot of battle experience. The best thing to do would be to lure his target into the main room so he can not use a massive amount of ninjutsu then use his weaponry to stick him.

But before this plan could be put the man of slight stature disappeared in a flurry of sakura petals. Ok even though this was most likely a genjutsu it would still be annoying if he just did this repeatedly. Rin closed his eyes and tried to get passed the jutsu, because it was probably quite a low rank jutsu it would most likely go after a while so there would be no point in dispelling it. And no doubt after about a minute it had gone. But by now his target was so where to be seen. If this man was more evasive than he had thought the most important thing would be to stop him from leaving. Luckily he could use his katon jutsu to burn down plants that the guy may be hiding behind. He could only hope and pray that he was faster than the man. The exit was directly behind him and he quickly swivelled on his heel to face it. There were a few people standing near it which he could use to his advantage. After making his way up to them Rin cleared his throat. "Excuse me have you seen a man approximately five foot three inches, he has fine brown hair and blue hair? Only he's my dad and I am ashamed to say that I lost him. I promised my mum that I would stop him from drinking too much." Once they had confirmed that he had not passed through the door he asked them. "Ok, well if you do could you please stop him and tell him that Saneko is looking him? And even better if you could hold him until I get back. I really don't want him to cause trouble." The people agreed and the boy went off to find his 'dad'.

Due to excessive reading on the part of Rin he had some idea of what to do when dealing with genjutsu users. He had hoped that what he lacked in fighting he could make up in speed, and reading. What he deeded now was a huge 'bad guy' magnet. But unfortunately since these did not currently exist he would have to try his hardest with out one. His primary tactic for looking people was to find the highest point and scout around. But given the circumstance it would be a bit weird at how a 'posh wedding guest' was clambering around on the tallest plant in a greenhouse. So he would have to adapt to his situation. Another thing that would be good to find out was how big this 'jungle room' was. He could now see why the other three would meet in here. If they were being followed - which they were - they could easily sneak attack their enemy. But just as soon as he took a few steps into a row of plants he could feel a hand grasp his ankle. Looking down as his body was dragged into the ground was. "Well shit."

Age : 49 Posts : 1036

While Kimiko was dealing with an incredibly jealous, to the point of irrationality, female and Rin was learning about earth-style ninjutsu via experiencing it", Toshiro was busy doing his utmost to correct one of Konoha's oversights. Namely the continued existence of one Hyuuga Aido. Even had Aido found words to reply to his opponent he was given no chance to say them. Instead the rogue Hyuuga found himself entirely on the defensive, forced to dodge such a flurry of stabs and slices such that any offensive maneuvers resulted in getting more pain back than he dealt out. Aido had learned that hard lesson when his attempt to end things quickly with a Jyuken strike to the heart had been turned against him. Instead of dodging it like most would have, Toshiro had knocked the strike aside with a knife-hand before grabbing the limb and putting his adversary into a rather painful throw that had Aido getting up a close-up of the flagstone floor. If the rogue hadn't hastily wrenched his arm out of the white-haired jounin's grip matters might very well have ended there. No doubt that had been Toshiro's intention for the heel drop that had it landed would have brutalized the downed opponent's kidney. Because it hadn't though the two antagonists were locked in a staring match just yards; on one side a rogue who had once been the "Pride of the Hyuuga" for Konoha before his plummet from grace with byakugan active, on the other a jounin who had garnered a reputation outside of the village as proof that not all Leaf-nin were "soft" looking ready to commit murder.

It was that reputation that had the normally assertive Hyuuga hesitating to take the offensive. Well that and Aido didn't need his byakugan to realize that his opponent had every intention of inflicting massive and likely permanent injury at the first opportunity. That urge to commit mayhem (beyond the norm) was clear as day in the animalistic growl coming from the jounin's throat and every bit of his body language. So for once the arrogant nuke-nin curbed his urge to aggression in favor of playing this defensively - a little voice ignored until now saying this was not an opponent not to be taken lightly. As for Toshiro, well he was trying to remember that he was supposed to take this trash back to Konoha alive. No small task when every impulse was screaming to pound the nuke-nin into an unrecognizable stain on the ground after gouging out his oh-so-precious eyes and feeding them to the crows. All because the events that had resulted in Aido leaving Konoha one step head of some particularly bloody-minded ANBU had involved one of Toshiro's cousins. His favorite cousin in fact so it should come as no surprise that the urge to simply scrap the mission in favor of settling accounts was overpowering. It was into that conflict between duty (bringing back the handler) and honor (delivering retribution for a major trespass against clan and family) that a small voice piped up with an observation that would have sent chills down the spine of anyone else aware of it. The orders were that Aido only needed to be brought back alive and able to talk - nothing required he be in one piece to do that.

That realization brought a grin to Toshiro's face that was both positively shark-like and utterly disturbing. That change of expression was also the only warning Aido had as the Hidden Leaf jounin appeared to vanish. Training kicking in, the nuke-nin turned and raised his hands to block the attack that would be coming from behind - an attack that never came from an opponent who wasn't there. A fact that had just registered on the Hyuuga when his world exploded in pain and stars appeared in his field of vision. Had another Hyuuga seen what happened they would have been aghast for two reasons. One being that it was only the "inferior academy" taijutsu that saved Aido from a serious concussion by rolling with the blow and two the sight of how easily the "unbeatable" Jyuken had just gotten, well, beaten. And not by another bloodline but by someone exploiting the most basic of weaknesses. Namely that while Byakugan allowed it wielders to "see" in all directions at once, the human brain can only focus on so much at once. Toshiro had attacked from an unexpected side while his adversary was focused somewhere else, and the results were with very... satisfying. Namely the sight of Aido's face being a bloody mess thanks to the tendency of head wounds, even minor ones, to bleed excessively. Not that the snow-haired shinobi would give the nuke-nin a chance to notice that as Aido had only gotten halfway to standing before he was under assault again. A straight kick to the face was blocked with crossed arms that proved to be a mistake as the arms were grabbed and the dazed Hyuuga found himself yanked off the ground yet again as Toshiro rolled onto his back then sent Aido to smash his already sore face into another decorative fountain. Now a complete bloody mess, Aido was barely aware of his surroundings or his opponent throwing a number of shuriken. He did take note when that handful became an obscene amount of steel, courtesy the Shuriken Kage Bushin, all headed his way however and in his current mental state could only defend himself in one way. In a text-book display of Hyuuga skill the nuke-nin began to spin while projecting chakra from his entire body. The result was a solid dome of chakra that stopped the hail of steel on impact.

It was a truly impressive Kaiten and no doubt some ninja would have been frustrated or even intimidated by its effectiveness. Toshiro wasn't most ninja though. He was the product of a clan with centuries of conflict on its books and especially conflict with the Hyuuga along with having a very personal reason to see Aido dead. More so the Hinamori had the sort of inside information (courtesy Hyuuga who had found refuge from their clans less savory ways among their enemies) on the inner workings of many Hyuuga techniques. Among those was a fatal flaw in the "Absolute Defense" of the Hyuuga's main house. While the Kaiten could easily stop nearly anything from getting in, it offered no defense if the attack came from within the dome itself. In this case the attack originated from the water still within the dome. The jounin had kept making handseals even after the Shuriken Kage Bushin was done with the result that even as Aido escaped certain death from the hail of steel, in response to which a spinning mass of water rose from within the dome. While capable of inflicting serious injury by itself, the Suigadan was particularly effective in this instance. Not only because it came too quickly for Aido to avoid while still in the spin, but the very spin that made that Kaiten so effective also turned what was a relatively small hole in one thigh into a massive circle of ripped flesh across the whole leg and into the other. The resulting wound sent a spray of blood into the air that colored the faltering "Heavenly Spin" a reddish tint even as Aido screamed in shock and pain. No sooner had that "perfect defense" faltered than Toshiro was back in his prey's face striking with even more fury than before as he sough to not merely subdue his adversary but cripple him such that no amount of medical jutsu could undo the damage.

Shrugging over a burned tenketsu in one upper arm, Toshiro used the resulting opening to slam a knee into the open wound in Aido's leg. His opponent's focus broken by the abrupt surge of pain there was nothing in place to stop the descending foot from stomping on the arch of that leg with the result being the audible crack of bones snapping and another howl of agony. An open-handed haymaker to the chin abruptly cut off that shout (along with the tip of Aido's tongue) just before a knee to the family jewels made sure that his Hyuuga wouldn't be procreating. Another knee, this one to the gut, sent the air whooshing out of Aido's lungs even as the foot extended and sent him slamming into the nearby wall. By now resembling the victim of a school of barracuda more than a proud Hyuuga that Aido was even able to stand was a testament to his refusal to admit defeat. That inability to accept the outcome would prove itself true the seconds after Toshiro closed in to secure his catch. Pushing himself of the wall, Aido stood briefly on wobbling legs as he screamed his defiance at the one who dared think him the better of a Hyuuga. A shout of "Damn you" was followed by another of "Hakke Hyaku Nijūhachi Shō!" as the rogue threw everything he had into a technique that had cost him so much to learn. Caught by surprise Toshiro was bombarded with strike after strike that sought to completely shut down his ability to use chakra. Of course had Aido been in a better frame of mind and not rendered near-blind by rage and blood loss he might have realized one important detail. While his blows were hitting, Toshiro had been able to move enough that instead of closing all his tenketsu some had merely gotten burned. It still hurt on par with some of the worst drubbings he had gotten sparing with his sisters but he could function to a degree. At least well enough that Aido's triumphant announcement of the 128th strike was cut off as a hand grabbed the striking fingers before they could connect.

For a moment Aido found himself looking straight into the eyes of the man who could easily be his executioner, and in those fractions of a second he was felt something he hadn't since before entering the Academy of Konoha. Terror. In those green pools whose pupils had become slits like a reptile's Aido could see something that terrified him to the very core of his being. What the rogue saw he would never say because that moment Toshiro made his move to finish things once and for all time. "Idiot." Immediately after that single insult came another sound. A scream of pain as the trapped fingers were used to put Aido into a painful arm lock before being slammed with his back against the trunk of a nearby tree. Then the rogue could only scream again as the Hidden Leaf jounin pulled two brace of kunai from his sleeves and one at a time slammed them between the bones in his prisoners arms and wrists so that they were pinned above and on opposite sides of the tree. Not only would his victim find if impossible to make handeals but any attempt to escape without first removing the kunai would do so much damage to Aido's arms and hands that it would cripple him for life. Now understanding how helpless the Hinamori he had raped before fleeing Konoha felt, Aido froze as his doom grabbed him by the neck so that he would have to look Toshiro in the eyes. "Be thankful the ANBU want you alive or this would be your grave." By that point the hand around the rogue's neck was gripping hard enough that breathing became difficult so it was no small amount of relief when it was removed. Preoccupied with filling his lungs with as much air as he could despite his ribs protesting, Aido didn't see the handseals the preceded the small cloud of smoke that enveloped Toshiro. When it cleared he might have laughed at the sight of the snow-haired jounin standing next to an over-sized phesant with white and black feathers. Might because one look into the bird's unusually bright gold eyes made his stomach try to outrun his heart to find a place to hide behind his brain. A situation not helped by Torshiro's next words. "If he moves, cut something off. I'm going to help the squirt." With that the white-maned shinobi left Aido to the not-so-tender mercies of his newest summon Kanako (though she preferred her nickname of Kanko).

"You know, there are very few things that get me really upset." Those words, uttered in a surprisingly pleasant - almost lyrical - voice caused the nuke-nin to feel just a tiny bit of hope. That hoped died a painful death when Kanko removed a whetstone and the tanto blades from their container on her back. "Rapists are pretty high on that list though. So I have just one request. Please, move. I would hate to explain to Shiro-chan that I cut your family jewels off and stuffed them up your nose just to relieve some stress." For the time between Torshiro leaving to assist his fellow ninja and their trio's return to collect their catch, that part of the garden would hold only the sound of one rogue Hyuuga whimpering in terror before four feet of avian female retribution for his crimes against woman. Truly, justice does find everyone in the end.

Toshiro: 185 CP - 49 (jutsu) - 30 (accumulated CP damage) = 106 CP

Spoiler:

Age : 29 Posts : 3640

Even if Kimiko wanted to see how her boyfriend was getting on with his fight against Hyuuga Aido, she wouldn’t know and she couldn’t even wish to know with how busy Natsumi was keeping her. The most annoying aspect of the crazy woman was the fact that she was a Medic. A speedy one at that. She was able to try and heal herself whenever the Konoha Jounin was pausing to make a charge for another attack, and that just couldn’t do now, could it? The chocolate-eyed kunoichi gritted her teeth and clenched her hands into angry fists, frustrated with herself for not being able to keep her opponent on their toes. This rage of hers was pushing her forwards, and the more she seemed to see the Katsumi as a threat, the more powerful she became. It was scary in a new level, and it breathed new life into the meaning of the word. It had been a long time since the former ebony-haired female felt true fear, but she was experiencing it now. ‘Come on, Kimi, get a hold of yourself!’ She thought firmly, taking a deep breath. ‘She’s weaker than you, and you know it. She’s just… finding a better will to fight. That’s it. That’s right. Find it. Find that will to fight! Make it greater than hers!’ Although the resolve itself had been found, she still needed to grasp onto something tangible, something real. Natsumi was fighting to protect ‘her’ Aido, and she was unbelievably jealous. That was what was making the woman so powerful right now, that and her ability as a Medic Nin.

‘I hate these bastard Medics.’ She growled audibly, the floor beneath her dominant foot cracking and dislodging as her own anger started to seep out and make her strength grow. She may not be a Medic, but she had her own superhuman kinds of strength. She could utilise five elements, she had the power of powerful lions to aid her in battle, she was proficient in all ranges of combat, and she had a dream. Something that separated her from the skank standing opposite in amongst the flowerbeds. Her chakra had been likened to enormous levels and when provoked, it manifested into an all-consuming force. Her inner thoughts were interrupted by a scream from Natsumi, something that sounded anguished, almost like a dying animal making its final battle cry to try and find help. The blue-haired woman dragged nails down her face, leaving gouges in places out of what Kimiko assumed to be grief. “A-A-Aido…” She managed to gasp, her eyes fixed at a spot in the gardens where the Hyuuga had just been defeated in a brutal manner by one Hinamori Toshiro. That look of shock and sorrow soon turned into one of blind rage, such possessive emotions that became so… sinister. “That devil… that… Toshiro… he did this…” Natsumi focused on the white hair of the male Konoha Jounin as if in a trance, beginning to walk slowly in that direction. “He ruined my life… just like that… without Aido, I’m nothing… I need him… he loves me…” Her voice was still hushed, as if she was turning over thoughts inside her head instead of out loud. She stopped in her tracks as chakra began to glow around her hands, preparing for some kind of jutsu. And by the feeling settling in the Katsumi’s gut, it wouldn’t be good. “I’LL DESTROY ANYONE OR ANYTHING THAT HURTS AIDO!”

A pin seemed to drop somewhere inside Kimiko’s mind, the sound echoing inside her thoughts along with the last desperate cry from Natsumi. She stood with her eyes wide, body beginning to shake with anger. It was one thing to threaten to kill her. She could live with that. In her own mind, she wasn’t particularly important when compared to those she loved and held dear. What the Missing Nin had just done was a grievous mistake. While the Katsumi was a skilled fighter across the board without the need of an ‘emotional edge’ per say, when riled up to this point it became dangerous for her opponent to continue breathing, let alone try to fight her. ‘Devil’ was a description that couldn’t even begin to fit the currently blonde female as she slowly turned her head to focus on the woman who threatened Toshiro. “What did you say?...” Her voice was quiet at first, her long locks shadowing her eyes with her body slightly hunched. This caught the attention of her opponent, that was for certain. Natsumi turned, hands still glowing with blue chakra as her onyx eyes were set on Kimiko. “Did you not hear properly, dear?” Her voice was sickeningly sweet and patronising, which only angered the Konoha kunoichi further. “I said that I would wipe that shit stain of a Jounin from this earth. You will have to take a back seat for now, I’m afraid.” She almost sounded full of regret, but it was obvious from her hungry devilish eyes that she rather relished this prospect. Bloodlust was a word that suited this woman well. Just as she was turning to begin her assault on a currently unwitting Hinamori, she was alerted to a blinding pain searing through her left arm. Somebody, no, something had grabbed hold of her arm if the five point of painful pressure could tell her. The sign of an appendage being applied with such a pressure that it was digging through her skin and muscle. She slowly turned, a cry of pain leaving her lips involuntarily. The sight that met her eyes was… terrifying. In such a short space of time, Kimiko had moved from the spot almost five metres away and was now stood directly behind Natsumi, her right hand clamping down into the Medic Nin’s arm. Not on the arm, literally sinking through the skin. Such was the power of her grip. The scariest thing about it?

No chakra was being emitted from the Katsumi’s body whatsoever.

It would be an understatement to say that Kimiko was protective when it came to her beloved. Just the thought of anybody threatening him made her want to kill a kitten out of anger. When somebody did actually threaten him, in such a violent way as Natsumi had, that person was marked for death or a million worlds of pain. Her chocolate brown eyes which were usually full of such merriment, kindness and delight were now only filled with hatred and a determined, burning passion to pummel the blue-haired kunoichi into dust. The battle was already lost for the Missing Nin, that much was clear. “You just made the gravest mistake anybody could ever make…” It was true that when she was truly angered, the Katsumi turned into her lion counterpart in such scary ways. The hiss in her voice and deep growl emitting at the back of her throat constantly made sure to continue scaring her opponent. “Nobody threatens the ones I love and gets out of it alive. Do you understand?” Her voice was so full of venom and hatred it seemed un-natural, impossible. A painful pause ensued between the two woman while they stared each other down, one out of fear and one out of rage. And then, everything seemed to happen at once. In a swift movement, Kimiko ripped her hand away from her opponent’s arm, taking a considerable amount of flesh with it. To drown out the pained cries of Natsumi, the currently blonde female shouted, “Try and heal that, bitch!” Blood rushed from the wound inflicted and it had stained her hand blood red, luckily not touching her perfect kimono. The same could not be said for her opponent. After making a few familiar hand seals, a dark smoke began to form in her palms that she moulded into a long, thin whip made out of smoky flowers. She used the whip to ensnare Natsumi who was still too blinded by pain to do much apart from wail. The whip burnt through what remained of the woman’s kimono and started to cause painful burning on the top layers of skin, making them peel away in a gruesome fashion.

Leaving the whip wrapped around her opponent, Kimiko released the jutsu with another hand seal and watched the flowers explode, leaving Natsumi in a cloud of burning, acidic smoke. She was already making more hand seals, this time choosing to utilise a Doton technique to mix things up a little. She slammed a palm down to the floor, and the earth beneath Natsumi’s feet began to churn and attack the woman’s legs, making her get trapped and stumble over painfully to the floor. And then, for complete overkill purposes, she began making yet more hand seals, choosing to call upon the most powerful Katon technique in her arsenal. She spewed forth a small fireball, that upon making contact with the ground next to Natsumi’s face, erupted into an all-out blaze. With screams so loud and blood-curdling that it was almost comical, at least to the currently macabre Katsumi, the blue-haired Kessho was left as little more than a heavily mutilated charred corpse. There was no mention of keeping her alive now, was there? They only needed to capture the handler and the spy. Natsumi was just an extra tag-along with far too many problems, choosing the wrong woman to mess with. Judging from the pathetic coughs and whimpers coming from her charred body on the ground, however, the despicable being was still alive. Barely. “Please… please…” She rasped as Kimiko crouched down next to her face. It used to be so beautiful, but now great rivulets of burning skin were leaking from her face. Her eyes had been protected by the looks of things, probably by closing the eyelids as a reflex reaction to the burning sensation. Other than that… not much left remained. “Do us all a favour and just bite the dust.” The blonde remarked coldly, picking herself up from the ground and walking away. It would be hard to explain why the once immaculate indoor garden had been charred beyond recognition, but… it was totally worth the effects.

Jutsu used:

Chakra remaining:

Posts : 1187

This would end up incredibly badly for the boy if he was stuck in the ground. He had no supreme strength to try and bust his way out. And since he did not possess the Doton element there would be no way out of this. So he had three seconds to come up with a plan before he was screwed. Too late. Rin was up to his neck in floor, he could feel the guy that had dragged him slip slowly away. 'Of course, that would be his ticket to get out of here.' The boy thought. If the guy had left a path way all he would need to do is get his head through the gap. Then he could follow the trail back to his tormentor. The problem would be how he was going to free his head. He could feel the bottom of the hole at his feet. Then to the right was the passage which the man had made. Luckily due to the fact the man was quite a lot bigger than him it would be easy to fit through.

Rin considered his options. The floor was slightly tiled and was held together by old cement. It was thinner than he had expected as he could feel a different material around two inches below his throat. His only advantage was that he could move his body about three inches. This was clearly the space that the man had made while sneaking up on the boy. Unfortunately this would not do him much good. Unless, he could burn the area around his neck. The only problems this might cause is that he might end up burning his face. Seishin Sajin was the only jutsu he possessed that could be used to weaken clay with in a circular motion. And it would be the safest. Rin closed his eyes and began to do the seals with his right hand. Once these were completed he put his hand directly beneath his chin and let them go. He did this a repeated circle until the energy stopped. By this time the ground had become slightly cracked and visibly weakened. Even though it had not been strong enough to actually penetrate the flooring it had simply heated it up enough to make it slightly softer. He tucked in his knees so that gravity could hopefully do its thing.

Unfortunately the first time he did this nothing happened. But after the next four times Rin dropped and as did the rubble. After looking up and confirming that he could not fit through the hole that he had made the boy followed the tunnel. He would be forced to crawl the god knows how long tunnel. It was pitch black but luckily it was pretty much straight, apart from a few minor changes it eventually went into a slight ramp leading up to where he had presumably left and entered. Rin emerged into the harsh light of the room. After spending that time in pitch black it took his eyes a few minutes to re-adjust. He guessed that he must of been under there for three to four minutes. This meant that the man could not have got incredibly far. Most likely he had gone back to where he thought the boy would be, to gloat. It was a long shot but a good place to start.

It was hard to navigate around the room, it was annoyingly large and most of the plants looked the same. With the amount of rows there were. It was clear where the door to the room was as there was a buzz of conversation coming from that area of the room. If his memory served him well, which it usually did, the place were he had been trapped was in the top left corner of the room. So he made his way there. It only took him about a minute by running but hopefully this would be quick enough to catch up. As sneakily as possible he rounded the corner. And sure enough there the man was, he seemed to be confused. But to be honest if you have just lost a captive Rin would be confused as well. No doubt he had returned to gloat, but now that there was no one in the hole the guy would leave. So now was the time to strike. He had the element of surprise, which would be useful. Considering the guy used genjutsu, which Rin could fall into easily. Which meant that he would would have to attack before he had the chance to perform a jutsu. Also what he had seen of the mans doton jutsu was annoying as hell. So it would be important to keep the fighting off the ground before he disappeared. As stealthily as possible he the boy prepared to attack.

Once he was about one meter away from his target the tiger pounced. Hooking the back of his blade around the man's neck he began speaking. "Don't move or I-." But before he could finish his sentence the man's hands began to move. "Oh no you don't!" Rin shouted. As soon as his eyes were closed the boy wrapped his arms around the man and used all his strength to lift him. From this he executed a drop tackle then grabbed him by the scruff of the neck. This was a huge mistake, it appeared as if while being in the air his opponent had been able to start a sequence of hand signals. And now they had started to sink into the ground. The purple haired Genin was now being dragged, face first through the floor of a green house. It was no doubt one of the least enjoyable experiences of his life so far. After around a minute of real life but a life time in the mind, they emerged on the other side of the room. Now that they had come back to the surface and the man saw that he still had a boy attached to him he was visibly annoyed. So he started again. "Oh no you don't. Im am not going under ground again, no way." Rin shouted. Swiftly, with one hand he used a jutsu. And his hand erupted in black lightning.

After placing his hand onto the man's chest the Konoha Genin screamed. "Take me under ground one more time and I will cut off your hand and force feed it to you. Thanks to you I think I am claustrophobic." Evidently the man did not think that this was a serious threat and once again they disappeared underground. This was clearly a way of him hopefully losing Rin and it was incredibly tedious. But this time when they arose from the ground the Genin was ready. He had unclipped his Ulak and was gripping it tightly in his right hand. Once the pair was in the air he outstretched the mans arm and plunged his knife through his wrist. "I warned you." He shouted. The idea of immobilising one of the man's hand to stop him from using jutsus had come to him earlier. Unfortunately his knife was not sharp enough to go straight through the hand, so he would just have to resort to stabbing it repeatedly. After twenty seconds the man's hand had been reduced to ribbons. They were now lying in a pool of blood and to restrain him even further Rin cut took two pieces of rope from his pouch. And bound his arms and legs, the man's head had lulled and he was now sobbing due to the pain. "I don't know whether Toshiro wants you dead or not. So you're going to have to come with me. Push me once more and what happened to your hand will happen to your neck."

Chakra 50-15= 35CP

Sorry I took such a long time. It's been hard with my first exam week, but after this week they will all be over. Thank god Very Happy

.

Age : 29 Posts : 3640

{OOC: I’ve been given permission by Nuclear to wrap this mission up and NPC as Toshiro for the time being. We got through it! Badda-bing! ;D It's a terribly short post, but goodness... after looking at the length for the rest, I don't think that matters...}

The battles had now been won by each respective Konoha shinobi, and, well… they had left the indoor garden in a bit of a mess. No, ‘a bit’ was an understatement. They had practically wrecked the place. Kimiko felt the guiltiest of this due to her massive over-kill on the most powerful, destructive Katon jutsu she knew, and now they had little time to waste before the snobbery of the party decided to take a leisurely stroll through this place. She gathered up the things she had dropped, namely her sequined clutch bag, and hurried across the paved pathways to meet up with Rin, the Genin they had brought on this A-Rank mission, and her beloved Toshiro. “We have to get a move on.” She spoke urgently and in hushed tones, deciding in the end to take Natsumi with them. If the Kessho woman regained consciousness and regaled the authorities with information about the three that had been involved, it could end badly; especially if the disguises managed to stick for a while (namely the Katsumi’s bright blonde hair). She hoisted the woman over one shoulder and made a circle around the indoor garden, gesturing for her two male accomplices to step on it in their movements. Toshiro followed obediently, knowing all too well what could and would happen if they were caught anywhere near this area. He was… surprised at his other half’s way of dealing with the woman involved, but Natsumi wasn’t particularly important. They had the main man, and the spy involved in the whole ordeal. That was more than the mission originally asked for, so they were doing well thus far. Thanks to his kin, after a few select hand signs being flashed in the direction of the right-most panelled glass, enough commotion started happening in the ballroom to draw all attention there, if only for a short amount of time. What they had done exactly was a mystery to him, and in all fairness, he didn’t want to stick around and find out. Kanko led a very disgruntled, petrified-looking Hyuuga Aido as the group made a break for it, weaving through a great number of corridors that the formerly ebony-haired female remembered from the basic floor plan of the castle. If she remembered rightly, there should be an emergency exit up ahead, a back door of sorts that led into the outdoor courtyard where the carriage should have parked up…

Thankfully, coupled with a great sigh of relief, the set of double doors appeared right up ahead. She reached out a hand and utilised the quick-open mechanism, throwing both of them open and running across the courtyard heading straight for the carriage that had brought them here. Kimiko opened up the carriage’s back doors, dumping the unconscious Kessho woman across the back-most seat, and helping to shove Aido inside after her, along with the blithering idiot of a spy that had been hired. She slammed the doors shut and gave the signal to her two companions that they needed to get moving, namely by leaping into the carriage and making a speedy get-away while they still had the chance to do so. “Excuse me, Yazuma-san, what’s going on?” A guard rushed up behind her, sounding concerned instead of angry or suspicious. It wasn’t common courtesy for a guest to leave such a high-profile party early. “Oh, I feel rather queasy and came out to get some fresh air… only I don’t feel any better. We’re heading home, I’m afraid. Please give my apologies to the bride and groom to be.” She paused, a meek and mild appearance taking over as she played off the ‘ill snobbish rich woman’ down to a T. With a small, barely noticeable smile, she tilted her head to side and whispered, “Please forgive me for this” before smashing a strong fist into the guard’s face with a sickening crack.

He immediately fell down unconscious, and that left them time to make a hasty get-away. She clambered up into the carriage, and as soon as she shut the door firmly behind her, the carriage driver was off, working the horses hard to get away from the scene. She sighed with relief, slumping her head onto Toshiro’s shoulder and watching the buildings whizz by. So this was their mission accomplished…

Not bad… not bad…

{Exit x2 for Kimi and Toshiro}

Posts : 1187

Once he had managed to catch up with the other two shinobi it was clear that they would have to get out of there as soon as possible. They decided to only take Natsumi and Aido, but Rin did not want to let his own opponent, Akira, go with such ease. As soon as he found out that they would be going without him the boy trussed him up with the hope that he would be found and arrested. Just before they left the Genin turned around to look at the destruction of the greenhouse. It would cost a lot to replace everything. They were leaving it in absolute state, so it would be important to get out before they were spotted. It was clear that it was Kimi's fight had made the most mess. Maybe she really could beat Toshiro in a fight. There was no way that they would be able to get out through the front door, especially with an unconscious woman and a visibly captive man. So they were forced to go through the rabbit warren that made up the back of the palace. But luckily for them the female Jonin must have had some sort of amazing memory because she appeared to know exactly where they were going. The other two had to usher Rin along as he kept becoming mesmerised by the weaponry and paintings hanging above his head.

It is hard to keep track of time when you have been trapped inside a room for a long period of time. But the only thing he could think about now was getting as far away from the place as quick as possible. They hurried across the courtyard with the wind in their face. Up ahead of them was the carriage and they reached it in no time. Once the doors were opened Natsumi's body was led across the backseat and Aido was forced into it. Rin clambered in as well and sat across the way from Aido. No doubt the question crossing his mind was Why don't I kill this kid now or take him hostage and escape? The Genin drew his knife and kicked the man in his testicles as hard as he could. This was more to show who was boss in this situation. He looked down at the expensive suit he was wearing, despite the fact it had been underground about three times it was surprising to see none of it was really ripped. It was considerably dirty, but this was nothing a clean would not sort out. All of a sudden a voice that he did not recognise came from outside. “Excuse me, Yazuma-san, what’s going on?” It must have been either an attendant of the party or a guard. As otherwise they would have addressed her with her real name. And then came Kimiko's voice. "Oh, I feel rather queasy and came out to get some fresh air… only I don’t feel any better. We’re heading home, I’m afraid. Please give my apologies to the bride and groom to be" A sickening crack was then followed by the dull thud of a body hitting the floor. Once Kimiko was in the carriage they set off. Rin took his last look at the palace and then headed on into the future.

*Exit