[Plotboard] Flower Power

[apalooka]

It was a loud banging that roused Kohei from his action-packed dreams. They were almost always action-packed. With the Sand nin totally annihilating any and all enemies who stood in his way. And, of course, he always got the girl in the end. Best ninja ever. Kage kneel before him. Missing-nin quake in their sandals at the mere mention of his name. All hail the mighty Ogawa Kohe--

BANG! BANG! BANG!

And there was reality, coming in to ruin his perfect sleep. Kohei let out a noise that was extremely similar to a cow and pulled his head out from underneath his pillow.

“What?” he tried to say, but it came out a garbled mess. His brain hadn't completely caught up to the fact that he was awake.

“Let’s go, Ko-chan! Rise and shine! Big day! Big day!”

Kohei whined and tried to make his bed swallow him up. He was not a morning person. Several more knocks and Kohei the out a loud whine before literally rolling out of bed. His shoulder blades hit the wooden floor, jolting his brain awake.

“I’m up!” he said drearily as he forced himself into a sitting position.

There was a soft chuckle from behind him. Kohei turned around to level a glare at his dad who leaning against the door frame with a shit eating grin on his face.

“Look at my son. A special ranked jounin. I'm so proud.”

Kohei’s eyes narrowed even more at the dry, sarcastic tone his father was sending his way. But instead of answering him, the seventeen-year-old grabbed onto the bed and hauled himself up.

“Toooo-saaan,” Kohei whined, like the mature ninja he was, “why'd you wake me up?”

He honestly had no idea. As far as he knew, he didn't have anything he needed to do. He hadn't accepted any missions recently, so that wasn't it. Shio was busy all day, working at the hospital and then his parents’ place, so it couldn't be that either. This was supposed to be his lazy day when he got to sleep in, so why was his father waking him up so early? Come on it was-- Kohei glanced at the clock on his wall-- only noon. Wait, really? Geez, he had slept in. He dragged himself over to his dresser and pulled out clothes. Since he was up, might as well get dressed.

“You have a mission. Urgent.”

That got Kohei’s attention. He paused in putting on his shirt as he looked towards his father. Held up between the older man’s fingers was a folded square of paper. Kohei finished putting his clothes on as his father tossed the paper at him, shuriken-style. He caught it and opened it, scanning the contents. Well…damn.

The son of one of the council members was sick. Like deathly. Damn. There was a cure for the man’s illness, but it would be hard to get. The main ingredient was super rare. There was a picture of the plant needed, something called a Shining Bell? He had never even heard of this flower and Shio had drilled the names of medicinal plants into his head back at the Academy.

His assignment was to meet up with another shinobi, someone called Yashiro Nori, find the flower, and bring it back to the village before the councilor’s son succumbed to his illness. Sounded straightforward, except for one minor detail. Nowhere on the pieces of paper did it mention where the two shinobi would be able to find the plant.

He assumed it wasn’t grown in any of the city greenhouses, otherwise, this mission wouldn’t be needed. And, if the council knew, they would have mentioned it in the mission briefing. The final clue that Kohei and Nori were going into this blind, was the fact that they were told to meet together outside the Library. Kohei groaned mentally, as he descended the stairs into the kitchen. He hated doing research. Research Sucked. Capitol ‘S.’

He quickly downed the bowl of fried rice and eggs that his dad handed him before heading out the door, grabbing his thigh holster from the peg on the side of the door. The walk to the meeting spot wouldn’t take long. As Kohei finished fastening the bag around his waist and thigh, he wondered what this Nori-person would be like. Well, hopefully together, they would be able to locate this elusive flower and save the day.

Kohei liked the idea of being a hero.

[WrightJustice]

Nori had woke up early on this fine day and went about performing his typical daily rituals; praying to the Sun, her Holy Light and generally thanking the earth for life before getting thoroughly washed, dressed and having a delicious breakfast.
Once that was all done he finally set out on his day making a few family rounds and helping some elderly people in the general area get about for their morning tasks, just generally being helpful the whole morning before returning home for a small midday prayer when he heard someone knocking on the door with great urgency which made him quite alert and very curious about what was happening.

As the tall man finished his prayers he rushed to his front door to find a younger shinobi stood there with a slight panicked look upon their face as they firmly held onto a piece of paper.
"N-nori-san!" they blurted anxiously,
"U-urgent mision!" he shouted more as he practically slammed the paper into the man's hands before running off like a freaked out cat.
Nori looked puzzled for a moment but hastily opened the folded paper and saw that it was indeed urgent as he was suddenly picked to be on a 2 man team in order to find some kind of flower, a flower he didn't recognise at all but apparently it had medical properties that where urgently needed to save some council member's son from dying which shocked him.
"May the light guide me and may the sun allow me to save this young man" he said out loud in shock as he read the mission details, almost like a reflexive swear or curse but more akin to a prayer.

With the mission report read Norio locked up and made haste to the meeting destination; the grand Sunakgaure library. They would hopefully be able to find the information on this medical herb there and would hopefully be on their way to get it as soon as possible so that the boy may yet live.
Hastily jumping around many obstacles and people the Special Jounin powered his way through the village until he finally landed before the archive building and swiftly scanned for his partner who was also pictured in his urgent notes.
"Ogawa Kohei-san!" he bellowed in the hopes to find the man as quickly as possible so they can get inside and begin their research, though still maintaining a rather polite and composed tone.

[apalooka]

He hadn’t been here in a good while. Hadn’t needed to.

But now as the large building loomed in front of him, Kohei was regretting his choice to not spend more time in the library. He had no idea where they would even begin to look once they entered the library. Shio would know. Shio worshiped this place. Kohei was wondering if he’d have enough time to go and grab his friend from the hospital when he was broken out of his thoughts.

“Ogawa Kohei-san!”

He looked over towards the source of the noise. A tall man with white face paint was shouting his name, scanning the crowd for him. Yashiro Nori. He seemed to match up with the picture he had been provided with. Kohei smiled and waved a hand above his head, attempting to catch the other man’s attention.

“Yashiro Nori-san! Over here!”

He caught Nori’s gaze and quickly jogged over to him.

“You are Yashiro-san, correct? I’m Ogawa Kohei, feel free to call me Kohei. Pleased to meet you,” he offered his hand in greeting.

He looked back up towards the Library, feeling a sense of dread at the size. Kohei glanced at Nori from the corner of his eye.

“We should probably begin searching, right? I have no clue where to even start inside. Hope you do.”

[WrightJustice]

As he was looking around, Nori heard the voice of an older teen call his and so he turned and saw the waving boy with charcoal black hair waving at him before he jogged right over. Just as his report said his partner seemed to be a bit younger and quite a bit shorter than him, though most people where given his own height.
"Ah, yes, quite so. It is a pleasure to meet you to Kohei-sa... Kohei" he spoke softly and with great manners, even forgetting to drop the honorifics at first as he grabbed the boy's hand and gave a firm shake.
"I suppose then you may also just call me Norio... Oh, umm, I mean Nori... Though I guess Norio is fine, everyone I know calls me that now I sometimes forget it is only a nickname" he added, letting go of the boy's hand to give a quick bow as he placed his hands together like he was giving a prayer.

With that he too turned and looked at the magnificence of such an elaborate building of which he had heard had started having some major renovations and expansions thanks to some kind of organisation, something along the lines of the scribes of hot sands or some such but he had not yet truly heard anything about them but had started to learn whispers of their doings.
"Yes, I suppose we should get inside, I am sure someone inside can lead us along the correct path that we must take to begin our understanding of this special herb" he commented in reply to Kohei's question, giving a polite nod to the boy before stepping into the building.

Once the pair where inside they would find that it was quite large and full of many different books of many different varieties, so many that it clearly drew in quite a lot of scholorly folks who where visiting to exchanges books or just simply research at one of the tables provided.
After looking around a bit, Norio noticed a cute looking librarian woman sitting at a desk who looked up as he entered and seemed to be waiting for him to approach and so that is what he did.
"Excuse me ma'am, we are looking for info on some medical herbs. In particular we need information on this flower" he said in a kind and polite manner as he approached and showed her his picture.
"Ah, yes" the woman replied as he seemed to wave over an assistant.
"Ami-chan, could you show these two shinobi to the section that has info on the medical applications of herbs" she spoke kindly with smile as the quiet looking girl smiled in return and give a quick nod before showing the way, though not before the receptionist spoke one last time.
"That flower does look quite rare mind you and if this is important mission business then it would be in your best favour that I also get in contact with one of our specialists who can help find you the info you seek. Though I'm sure Ami-chan will do her utmost best to help you for the time being" the woman noted before the pair of shinobi where taken down some hall into a section full of information on plant life and medical herbs.

[apalooka]

Yep. The Library was just as intimidating as he had imagined. Even more so. Why did Shio like this place again? Kohei gulped down his discomfort at entering the building as he followed Norio inside. The older ninja seemed nice, reliable, maybe a little overly formal, but that wasn’t a problem. And he had the initiative to ask the library staff for help.

Kohei would have asked for help. Eventually. After he got over the sheer amount of knowledge in one spot. But the librarian turned out to be nice. Good looking, as well. And didn’t that make everything easier. Kohei was slightly disappointed when it turned out that the cute librarian wouldn’t be the one accompanying them into the rows and rows and rows of scrolls and books. But the girl who was called forward to assist them, Ami, was just as cute as her superior. In that quiet, bookish, sort of way.

He thanked the librarian for her help. Even accepting her offer for a specialist to come and find them. Though only if one was available, was what he told her. He hoped Norio would be all right with his forwardness about the specialist. While it would be good to have someone who knew what they were looking for, they didn’t have time to just sit and wait for them to possibly show up.

Ami led them through the stacks, heading towards a medium-sized section of shelves, surrounding a sun-bleached wooden table. She informed them that this was the area where all the information about known medicinal herbs was housed and that they were free to start searching for information on their flower.

As Kohei glanced over the numerous amounts of scrolls and books lining the shelves. Dear lord there were a lot of them. And they didn’t seem to be organized with any system Kohei recognized. He asked Ami, hoping she would know where to begin. She gave him a sympathetic smile and told him that they were organized based on author. So, unless they knew who had written about their rare herb, it wouldn’t be much help. Kohei had to hold in a groan. It wouldn’t be polite to shout his distress in a library.

As the two shinobi got to work searching through the stacks, Ami scampered off to see if she could find a specialist to help them in their search. Kohei grabbed the biggest looking book he could find and opened it to the index, searching the tiny print for any mention of a Shining Bell.

Nothing. Joy.

He closed the book and grabbed a different one. Nothing in that one. Nor the next one.

He managed to hold in the sigh. Just barely. He was about to ask Norio if he was having any better luck on his half of the stacks, when Ami returned. Following along behind her was another woman, perhaps a few years older than Kohei. She had shiny white hair, tied up into a short ponytail, her eyes were a similar in color to his own and her creamy skin seemed to be completely unblemished. She was amazing looking and Kohei felt his breath catch. The library just became five hundred times more appeasing. He had to stop himself from pushing his floppy hair out of his eyes and pasting a flirtatious grin on his face. They were here for a job, and if Ami was bringing this gorgeous goddess young woman to them, it must mean she was here to help.

Ami introduced the woman as Naegi Rira. Kohei knew the family name, everyone did. The Naegis were famous for their connection with plants. If anyone could help them find the rare herb, it was a Naegi.

Rira thanked Ami for her help and turned to the two males. “Tell me what we’re looking for.”

They told her, and without a pause, Rira had crossed the room and pulled out several books and scrolls that the boys hadn’t looked at yet. Setting them on the table, she quickly paged through them and opened the scrolls. Her attention was completely on the pages in front of her, glancing back and forth between the books and the scrolls. Kohei couldn’t have tried to flirt with her even if he wanted to. Not that he wanted to.

[WrightJustice]

Once Ami had showed the pair to the desired section of the library, it seemed she went off to help look for that expert the receptionist mentioned which would end up being a great help since neither of the pair appeared to really have any knowledge on what they where looking for and time was precious right now given the mission they where on.

Where Kohei had gone towards one of the larger books in the area to skim through the index on any signs of information, Norio had in fact gathered a bunch of smaller books and scrolls since he figured, from what he learned form his father at least, that the smaller books would be more specialised and might have a higher chance of having more specific information on the flower they where looking into.

However, regardless on whichever kind of book the pair seemed to look into, there was nary a piece of information on the precious herb as far as they could find but luck would be on their side as a majestic, regal looking woman approached the pair.
It was clear from just her looks that the beautiful woman was a Naegi which was confirmed when Ami introduced her, to which Nori politely replied in turn with a bow before letting her know what exactly was up with the help of Kohei of course.

With only just a bit of details given it seemed Rira's mind sparked to life instantly as he swiftly gathered a bunch of books and scrolls and even seemed to start cross referencing information from them once she pinned down the exact pages, even helping the pair of idiots compile all the information on a single sheet of paper with her amazingly gorgeous handwriting.
"Here you go boys, this should be all the details you need to find such a rare flower" Rira spoke in such an angelic voice as she turned and handed the paper to Konei with a grand marvel of a smile.
"Sounds like there has actually been some odd shortage of information on its whereabouts but last given details mention some friendly greenhouses further out in the country" she added with eloquent grace as he glanced between the two.
"Any further questions before I get back to my duties?" the angel of a woman then asked, though Norio wasn't sure there was anything more they needed to know that she didn't already write done for them but he looked over to the younger lad to see what he had to say.

[apalooka]

Mission failed. Kohei was dead. Death by smile.

If it was physically possible, the teenager would be nothing but a puddle of mush in the middle of the library. Rira was awesome. The only reason he was able to grab the paper she handed to him was pure instinct. And it was pure luck that he was able to get any information from what she said next. Something about friendly greenhouses, far country, any other questions?

Would asking for a date be considered an inappropriate question? Probably. Kohei simply shook his head and bowed to Rira in thanks, not trusting himself to open his mouth and say anything. It wasn't until she had disappeared back into the stacks that he was able to form a coherent thought. And that he remembered that they were on a deadline.

He whipped up from his bowing stance, probably giving himself whiplash, and finally took a look at the information she had given the boys.

Wow, she had pretty handwriting.

Stop Kohei, focus.

Gold-brown eyes skimmed down the page, reading what Rira had compiled together. She wasn’t kidding when she said there was a shortage of information. It seemed that the only place where the flower grew wild was some obscure island in the Water Country, and that was the last place they would want to go, even if they had had the time for it. But there were some greenhouses with specimens that were closer. Two greenhouses, to be specific.

One was in the north. Very near to Iwagakure. Welp, that place wasn’t an option either. But the second one, there seemed to be much more of a viable choice. It was in the Wind Country, which was a plus, near the border to the Fire Country. The only downside was that it wasn’t a greenhouse where they could just enter and purchase the flower. It was privately owned, by some rich landowner.

Rira had written some notes about how this woman had a thing for rare flowers, how she collected them for her own viewing pleasure. The comments were bordering on scathing and Kohei couldn’t stop the grin appearing on his face. Although it disappeared when he saw that she had also written how the woman wouldn’t be very willing to part with her prize flowers.

Insert groan here. Well, it wasn’t like they’d be able to go to any of the other locations, so this is what they would have to deal with. Kohei relayed the information to Norio, handing him the sheet of paper. He pulled the map Rira had been using closer to him and looked at the area the woman’s land was located.

His frown deepened. One thing Kohei did know was maps and the quickest most direct route would lead the boys straight through an area that was known for its bandit attacks. He let out a huff and told this to Norio. There were other routes, but none would get them to the property as fast as this one. Kohei had faith that the two of them would be fine, but it was up to Norio whether he wanted to play things safe or not.

[WrightJustice]

Norio watched as his new companion seemed to get flustered over how beautiful the Neagi woman was and almost couldn't handle accepting the paper he was begin given, as for himself he just couldn't see himself being with her given his past relationship and everything related to why they broke up.
Then again maybe he was just being to hard on himself and maybe he needed to just get with someone, though it was difficult to accept such a thing whilst still feeling like he had to do more in the name of the Sun to make up for providing less of his time to such devotion when his mother died.

Once Rira left, the pair of shinobi reviewed the information together and it definitely seemed like they didn't have much choices in where to look for the flower they needed with the best option being some privately owned land within the Wind Country.
"Well it seems we are indeed in quite the pickle but our best option does indeed appear to be this greenhouse and if it takes us pushing through a band of outlaws to get there then so be it" he commented in a calm but harsh tone.
"With the guidance of the Sun's holy Light I am sure we will make it there safely and will be able to persuade the owner to give us just one single flower"
With that he nodded in affirmation towards the young Kohei and listened to what he might say before heading off towards the library's exit where he might thank the receptionist for her and the library's efforts in assistance.