[Graded][Plotboard] Religious Revolutionaries

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Sat Jan 28, 2017 2:07 am

"It's a simple enough mission, and as you are a member of Mamorinuku this does fall under your purview. To be completely honest we doubt it will amount to anything but the Fire Country Monks have always had good standing with Konoha, so we shall investigate these rumours for them."

Kazuo sighed and scratched the back of his head, looking over the mission scroll. Sure, Mamorinuku handled relations with nearby villages but really that wasn't Kazuo's department. He was part of the Sekkoutai. He handled patrolling the forest and gathering intel, not playing politics with the neighbouring villages. He had learnt a long time ago he did not get on well with the old fogies that usually were in charge in those places. "You're sure someone else can't handle this?"

"You are the only agent not currently on assignment."

Another sigh. "Alright, fine. I'll deal with it. It shouldn't be too hard, right? Like you said it's probably just nothing but rumours. Seriously, resurrecting gods? These villagers get weirder every year." Tucking the mission scroll into his hip pouch, he started out the door and linked his fingers together behind his head, Koji trailing along behind him. "Oi, can I take someone with me?"

"No one higher than Chuunin. And neither of the Jinchuuriki's. After what happened last time we need to double check Sarutobi's seal. As for your cousin, well, she has her own assignments I'm sure."

Clicking his tongue in annoyance as he first three choices for company went right out the window, he made his way out of the mission hall and racked his brain for who he could bring with him. It was going to be a long boring trip, he figured if he dragged someone else along he could at least have somebody to chat and spar with along the road. Not that Koji wasn't great, just he wasn't the most talkative of sorts. Kazuo glanced down at the dog who sniffed and trotted ahead of him as if he had read Kazuo's thought. "Oh come on, don't get snooty. Seriously, you're so moody these days. Is it because you had to be saved by that kid?"

And like that a light bulb went off.

Funny, considering he was going to go and find himself an Awai.

Director · Post by **Director** » Wed Feb 01, 2017 7:18 pm

Fanho had been sat on a bench outside of the local bakery. He was munching on a strawberry filled pastry, coated in a sugar icing, and baked to perfection where it was warm, flakey, but overall delicious. The day was a warm, light breeze filled day, typical perfect weather in Konoha, sometimes Fanho wished a change in scenery would be nice. Another day in paradise... Which to be fair, they experienced light snow fall, heavy rains, and even storms when it got bad. But overall their weather remained nice and pleasant. Rarely above eighty degrees. As he cocked his head back taking a swig of his green tea he sighed as a flock of birds flew over leisurely, just enjoying the weather.

As did the Konoha populace with the conversations stretching out across the market place. Strangely enough he was apart of Mamorinuku, but even stranger he was a soldier without a unit. A rebel without a cause, but still apart of the organization. Not like that mattered his responsibilities in Mamorinuku dwarfed compared to his responsibilities for ANBU, and not to mention he was on the verge of earning Specialist Jounin. He just had to inch his way across the finish line, and prove to the council he was really ready for such a responsibility. None-the-less that was a worry for another day, today would be his day of-

And thats where things started to fall apart as planned when he saw Kazuo walking towards him as he took a chunk off of the pastry, and a sip of the green tea to wash it down. "Well fancy seeing you here. I was just finishing up having a snack oddly enough, and wondering how I got a day off." With a shrug as he took the last bite of his pastry before tossing the wax paper into a bin, and his paper cup now empty as he swallowed the last sips. With a sigh as he rubbed his neck and shot a short chuckle towards Kazuo. "Oddly enough, my gut tells me that getting this day off was never in the works to happen anyways."

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Wed Feb 01, 2017 8:25 pm

"Who needs a day off anyway when there are so many exciting adventures waiting for us just outside the village gates, huh?" Kazuo said by way of greeting as he strolled along the street towards Fanho. It had taken him a little more effort than he had expected to find him amongst the throngs of people that were in the market on a day like today. "Not that that's what we're going to do. By the sounds of it it's going to be a quick mission to prove that a bunch of monks are just being paranoid and superstitious. Huh, I just described a normal monk. Anyway, I figured since I was being sent on what could very well be a dead-end mission, I'd take along my favourite subordinate! So, up for a road trip? Great! I'll bring the snacks!"

The Inuzuka quirked an eyebrow at the Awai, offering a broad grin as he finished his spiel to show he was at least somewhat joking. "But in all seriousness, with Aina out of commission while she's pregnant and the others all otherwise occupied, I could use a partner. The mission comes under Mamorinuku's jurisdiction, technically. The brass wants us to look into some kind of rumour about a sect of the Fire Country Monks going rogue and trying to summon a god. It sounds like someone might've found an old summoning scroll, but I seriously doubt it." He tucked his hands into his pockets as he made his way along the streets and towards the main gates out of the village. "Anything you think you'll need? It shouldn't take long to get there and back, but we could be at the In'ei Temple and the surrounding village for a couple of days."

Kazuo never brought much on missions. He was used to spending weeks at a time out in the wilderness with nothing but the clothes on his back so he was always ready to go at a moment's notice. That said he was also not so self-centred as to not realize that not everyone enjoyed living in the wilderness as much as he did. Once Fanho made sure he was ready for the mission Kazuo would lead the way out of the gates and up into the trees that surrounded the village, navigating the path that would lead east and towards In'ei with a practiced ease. "Our contact is one of the monks at the Temple, Nagayasu Suteru. Apparently, we're meant to make our presence discreet; he sent out the mission request without the authority of the head of the temple." He turned and offered a wink to Fanho. "Who doesn't love a little intrigue?"

Director · Post by **Director** » Thu Feb 02, 2017 7:24 pm

Monks huh? The topic brought a sleight of the eyebrow from Fanho. Monks were notorious for their peaceful nature in the path of achieving nirvana. Earning a level of ultimate enlightenment, or so they believed. It was out of the ordinary for them to be summoning some kind of spirit. He gave a roll of the eyes before responding. "Whose superstitious, the monks or whoever assigned this mission? But nevermind, they're monks, they're all about that crazy belief system." As Kazuo mentioned his favorite subordinate Fanho gave a cock of the eye brown and a hazy half assed smile. At the very least Kazuo attempted to make it appealing.

"Actually this would be my first mission under Mamorinuku. I got accepted, and never placed. Guess they're just lazy with the paperwork." With a shrug he continued forth listening in on Kazuo's presumptions of a summoning scroll. But however it seemed more of a half baked fear turned into a quest for the two, rather than a probable event. But the risk of letting it persist and being real outweighed the possibility of it being minor. "A summoning scroll huh? I mean monks are pretty crazy with their religions, and some of these religions turn out to be true half concocted with some demi-gods power residing over."

His thoughts turned to Jashinism, even for the most part it was a truly 'spiritual' religion, it was still one of the few that held a stranglehold in the area. Dying out in areas, but re-birthing in a new. Hell, one of Konoha's most notorious missing-nin was a direct follower of it, believing in every crazy aspect of it. Going so far as to have a split personality. She was just weird. With the mention of supplies Fanho shrugged as he patted his back pocket checking for his wallet. "Well I have my wallet, so anything I need can be purchased on the road. And for the most part I keep majority of my tools in my pouch and holster. So anytime you are."

As they made headway for the temple, Fanho looked towards Kazuo, and as if he read his mind he began rattling off how it would begin. About the two meeting a monk, a contact who was suspicious of the other monk's motives. And how it was gonna be an infiltration mission to recon the temple, and deduce if they'd need further intervention. "Seems basic enough. How do you wanna intrude upon this temple? Transformation technique with a shadow clone for ultimate security?"

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Thu Feb 02, 2017 7:59 pm

Kazuo snorted at the mention of never getting placed into an actual squad and shoddy paperwork. "Yeah, after we lost Kawa things have been kind of up in the air. Aina stepped in but then got knocked up, who even knows what Rai and Shikatsuko are up to these days, and I'm certainly not qualified to lead." The Inuzuka shrugged and tucked his hands into his pockets as he walked. "So I guess, welcome to Mamorinuku officially? Technically I belong to the Sekkoutai; this kind of thing is a little out of my comfort zone. But, we all gotta pick up the slack occasionally, right?" A barking noise sounded from up ahead and Kazuo turned his attention to Koji, who had run off into the forest ahead of them. By the look of it he was chasing after a rabbit or squirrel. "Well, at least we can eat some fresh meat tonight?"

"As for superstitious, whoever assigned the mission probably just accepted it for an easy pay check rather than being really worried about whether it was actually a possible thread. If it turns out to be nothing, the village, and in turn we, still get paid." Fanho raised a good point though. A lot of religions are at least somewhat based in some level of truth, especially the ones that worshipped a specific god rather than a concept. Kazuo clicked his tongue against his teeth. "I suppose we'll just have to keep our eyes and ears open. If it does turn out to be true we can't afford them releasing a Demi-God's power in the middle of Fire Country. What a pain in the ass that would be to clean up."

Before he even had a chance to really consider a plan Fanho was already spitting some solid ideas. Kazuo grinned at the Awai. "I knew I thought of you for a reason." Koji was a little large to pass off as an average dog but he could probably still manage being passed off as a rare cross breed. That or Kazuo could have the mutt patrol the perimeter of the temple while he and Fanho looked around inside. "Using Koji to cover our backs by patrolling the outside… and then with your Shadow Clone to scout ahead of us and using a transformation to make sure no one recognizes us as Konoha ninja. Yeah, I think that's a workable plan."

Reaching up he slung his hands behind his head and interlocked his fingers. He didn't know Fanho that well. He knew he was reliable, having worked together to keep Taiga in check, but other than that he knew very little about the Awai. "You've been a Chuunin for a while now, yeah?" One of the easiest ways to get someone talking was to bring up something that might be annoying. Kazuo knew he got annoyed when people brought up his own ranking and how long he had been stuck as a Genin.

Director · Post by **Director** » Sat Feb 04, 2017 9:39 pm

With a nod of the head Fanho took note. He hadn't met Kawa, and only talked to Aina once for a brief minute. And he had no idea who Rai or Shikatsuko were. He was at a loss of since he was recruited by Shikari. "I got interviewed and tested by Shikari. She uh threw me for a loop with protecting her secretary from her golems." He said as he scratched the back of his neck. He slipped his hands in his pockets similarly as the two walked. "I can't say which unit I'd think I'd fall under. With the doujutsu I'm not a bad sensor, but I'm also good with barriers. Also I'm not a bad fighter." He watched as Koji ran off into the trees ahead.

"Fair enough, but knowing that monks are even capable of this type of deal makes my spine tingle. Just makes you wonder what else is out there." His mind recollected back to the S-Rank MN with the Senju implanted arm. The amount of power existing out in the world was insurmountable, and ridiculous in the yields people could wield such a thing. After all Fanho had already witnessed the power of three MN, all three with power rivaling those of the past Hokage Tousha. S-Rank, the word lingered in his mind for a minute as he shook his head free of the thoughts. "Can't imagine why anyone would wanna release such a stupidly destructive force, but people are crazy. I mean some people still believe in Jashinism."

With the mention of Fanho being a good pick he gave a grin in response. Having Koji patrol outside would've been the best move since he was an extremely large dog, but as were all Inuzuka ninkin. The shadowclones would blot out their position if there were any sensor, but them being monks Fanho doubted any of them had true shinobi control potential. But there were some samurai who harnessed the power to a rudimentary level to assist in beating average samurai. "If there is any sensors, we'll just look like another group of monks." The idea so far was solid, and worked out well.

The mention of Chuunin made Fanho nod. He had been Chuunin for a while, and was due soon for a rank-up. Actually really soon in-fact. He wasn't far off, and he heard wind the council was already discussing a round of rank-ups for Chuunin to Specialist Jounin and he was on the list as well as Gene. "For about three years and half now. Last I heard rank-ups were being discussed and I was on the list. But I won't know til' later." The thoughts of Chuunin brought Fanho curious to Kazuo's own Chuunin days. "What about you? How were your Chuunin days?"

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Sun Feb 05, 2017 1:31 am

"Right, right, Shikari. Honestly that clan has a weird obsessed with the name Shika, no wonder I can never remember any of them." Kazuo scratched the back of his head, a frown marring his face as he tried to sort all the different Nara's he knew from one another. "I meant Shikari, yeah. As for where you'd belong… I'd take a guess and say with the Katameru. While they may be defensive specialists they also tend to be the first to face oncoming threats head on. The eggheads over in the Kanjitoru direct the efforts with their sensory techniques from the safety of the village, and the Sekkoutai's entire job is to try and prevent people from coming in in the first place. We tend to use stealth and hit and run tactics in the forest. You… well, you'd light the bloody place up like a signal beacon." He chuckled and offered an apologetic shrug. "No offense or nothin'."

The path ahead was quickly becoming clearer as they reached the edge of the forest that engulfed Konoha. From here they could start following the roads that wound through Fire Country straight over to In'ei. Kazuo felt almost naked without the trees surrounding him but shrugged the feeling away and refocused on the conversation. "Honestly, people are idiots. A lot of folk would do anything for power, especially those that're powerless." The Inuzuka sighed and looked up towards the sky. He saw it a lot, visiting other villages to pick up information for Mamorinuku. "We don't realize it as ninja, we're surrounded by it from the day we are born, but being able to use chakra is an incredibly rare gift. We use it to fight and protect but it's such a powerful energy source that it makes even our day to day lives better. When you're going through smaller villages, places that are riddled with sickness and poverty, you remember that as ninja we're almost blessed in a way. If someone saw a way to get that power for themselves, the dangers? The risks? None of that compares to having a better life, one filled with power and wealth."

He wasn't the smartest person in the world but Kazuo had a knack for reading the feelings of others. He could smell their emotions a lot of the time, the chemosignals that their scent carried telling him exactly what they felt regardless of what they said. Having spent the better part of his Chuunin and Special Jounin career as part of the Sekkoutai, patrolling the forest and keeping an eye on the villages nearest Konoha, he had picked up things over time. He suddenly grinned and turned to face Fanho, walking backwards along the compact dirt road. "Good job, we could always use more leaders. And from what I saw down in Tea Country, you're definitely on your way to being strong enough."

"As for my Chuunin days? Ah, what can I say about the grand adventures of Inuzuka Kazuo, almighty Chuunin of Konohagakure no Sato? In a word…" Kazuo suddenly deadpanned, losing his smile. "Short." He chuckled and shook his head. "I was a Chuunin for maybe a year? I got my promotion maybe a few weeks before the Crush… Afterwards, I was recruited into Mamorinuku by Kawa personally. I was angry at the world and more than happy to get back at Yaku and Enma in any way I could, even if it meant hunting down random bandits or rogue ninja that happened to wonder into the wrong forest."

"With everything happening during the Crush and the loss of lives, it didn't take me long to become a Specialist Jounin." Kazuo lifted a finger and tapped his nose. "There is a reason they call us Specialists. When it comes to tracking, there aren't many in Konoha that can match my nose. Maybe the Hokage and Kuodachi. Seriously, how that bastard developed his senses to be better than mine I have no idea."

Director · Post by **Director** » Sun Feb 05, 2017 9:10 pm

Shika tended to be a naming them amongst the Nara clan. Except Fanho's student, who was actually older than him. He was an outlier, Berser. "To be fair I know one whose name is different. His name is Berser, he was one of my old students." He gave a chuck as he reached up and scratched the back of his head before resting his hand in his pocket. "He's actually older than me, like Taiga." As Kazuo continued on where Fanho would've probably been placed. Fanho couldn't disagree. That is probably where he would've been placed to be fair. He was good at defense, and would've been a better response team fighter.

"Can't argue with that analysis, and to be fair I am from the lightbulb clan." He issued it with a chuckle. No harm done, Fanho thought self depreciation was one of the best ice breakers. Puts others to ease when one can make fun of himself. As the conversation drew towards the things people would do for power. It fell into a more understandable place as Kazuo elaborated. What they took for granted, what went unrealized the amount of power the wielded. For these countries without those resources or lacked to produce them, it was god like. To be able to heal wounds within seconds, produce blazes capable of engulfing mountain ranges, and producing power enough manpower in tiny villages to overthrow countries. It was amazing.

However that brought with the price of maintaining that power, were that there would be those always striving to achieve it, or aiming to bring down the entire system that was built with it. Good and evil purposes, but the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Sometimes they spiral out of control, or they get warped into a sense of thinking that brings down their good intentions. Not to mention some villages did good deeds and achieved good work, while others 'intend' to do good, but end up bringing upon bad. Some of the villages even do it unwittingly. Such as accepting missions, or going to war over menial things. Yet, a war hadn't happened in Fanho's lifetime, the breeding of peace had been maintained for a while now, but that didn't mean it was solid.

Rather the peace that existed in the world was very fragile, a single tick or break could shatter what was built. Destroy entire civilizations, countries, states, villages, and families. Fanho had almost got lost in his thoughts when Kazuo's talk shook him back to reality with the mention of leaders. "What? Oh yeah. I just wanted to make sure Taiga didn't go off the deep end. He isn't exactly mentally steady or mature. And I'm not his favorite person to add on-top of all that." With a sigh and a gaze towards the sky as if looking for answers he continued on with his minor venting. "I dunno, I just worry about him. He feels so alone, but can't see that there are people there for him. But I guess he gets caught up with Gene's demeanor." As the conversation took a turn towards the invasion, albeit some were still licking their wounds, others still harbored anger, and while it seemed as if the village recovered structurally.

The invasion was something Fanho lived through, an event most of the younger generation would forget, or would hear in history books. But none-the-less Fanho had resolved his anger into a goal, of training to be stronger than past generations, and to maintain the resolve of the 'Will of Fire'. As most of his peers had taken the same reaction, and from what Kazuo was talking. Everyone had resolved, and bounced back bigger. But what physical scars disappeared on the village, for some the mental toll remained. With the mention of Kazuo being a specialist, and having enhanced senses. Fanho peeked an eyebrow at the mention. "Well I don't doubt that, and you know Kuodachi? I went on a mission with him recently, one of the best genjutsu experts in the village."

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Sun Feb 05, 2017 10:15 pm

Kazuo clicked his tongue and let out a sharp sigh. "That brat is going to be the death of me one of these days, I swear." He shooks his head and rubbed the back of his neck as just the mention of Taiga was enough to bring tension into his shoulders. "The problem with that guy is that he's focused. Too focused. One thing catches his attention and everything else falls to the wayside. Doesn't matter what anyone else says or does. He only learns by doing and eventually he's gonna do something stupid and it'll be too late to learn from it." In frustration Kazuo growled and punched his fists together with enough force to make his arms rattle. "I don't think anyone could claim to be Taiga's favourite person in the world. He's selfish like that. Always thinking of himself and his goals first. Makes you want to knock his block off."

"And as for Kuodachi. Hah. Don't get me started with that guy. You know the first time I met him was the day of our Chuunin exam? I got shafted as a Genin, swapped from team to team a lot but most of the time I was by myself. Honestly it got to the point where I could match a Chuunin in terms of skill level by myself. Well, myself and Koji. Anyway, they put me on a team with Kuodachi and Saburo. You know he used to suck at Genjutsu? Couldn't use it to save his life. I mean, neither can I, but I didn't go on to master the bloody art now did I?" Running his fingers through his hair, Kazuo chuckled. "Anyway, yeah, I've known Kuodachi for a long time now. We tend to have differing opinions on a lot of stuff, but we work well together if you ask me. Bit slow though, physically I mean. He's a great tracker and eyes like a bloody hawk but he'd be horrible in a pursuit situation."

The soft padding of paws on earth drew Kazuo's attention away from the conversation as Koji finally caught up with them, having ran off in the forest earlier. There was fresh blood coating his snout and his tongue was lapping at his maw, making Kazuo raise his eyebrow at the ninken. "Don't go whining to me for food later ya bloody guts." Koji flashed the equivalent of a smile at Kazuo before it turned more feral and the dog looked directly at Fanho. The Inuzuka caught the remnants of fur stuck between two of the dog's shiny white fangs. Rolling his eyes, he turned his attention back to the road. "Ignore him. He's been in a mood since Tea Country. Apparently, he doesn't like having to be tended to. Personally, I think he likes you. If he really hated you, he would have died before letting you touch him. He's as stubborn as Taiga, just less annoying because he can't actually talk." The loud howling whine that came from Koji made Kazuo wince, his enhanced hearing suffering at the high pitch. "On the other hand, he can do that."

Sticking a finger in his ear and trying to clear out the ringing that was echoing through his skull, he jerked his head forward and Koji put on a burst of speed, overtaking the duo and scouting the road ahead. "Ever been to In'ei? Weird place. It's a village that was built around a temple that's supposedly older than Konoha. Even the folk that aren't monks up at the temple are really religious." Kazuo had never stopped in In'ei. He had passed through it once before, a few years ago, when he had been tracking a giant beast that had slaughtered a group of people on the outskirts of the Konoha Forest. He'd looked into it after the mission and found out what he now knew but otherwise hadn't even thought of the place until this mission. "I should travel more..." It was almost an afterthought, not really something he meant to say out loud, but it was something Kazuo could definitely see himself doing.

Getting approval from the village for travel? That was another mission entirely.

Director · Post by **Director** » Tue Feb 07, 2017 7:08 pm

With a sigh Fanho drew his eyes to the branches of the trees they passed. With a shake of the head he continued on the conversation about Taiga. It was true he was a pain to deal with, he had a short attention span, but not shorter than his temper. The fact he was a jinchuriki made it all the more dangerous because he had so much more power. However Taiga didn't realize or had the mental comprehension to see that others did care about him. It was troublesome trying to prove it, or make the connection when every step Fanho made seemed like he took five steps back. "I mean he likes you fairly well, perhaps you're the only person he likes. Other than whoever he hits on. But they don't reciprocate it."

As the conversation took a turn for Kuodachi, Fanho listened intently, with a cock of the eyebrow as Kazuo mentioned that he couldn't use genjutsu at first. As the conversation turned it revealed Kuo was quite the tracker, however Fanho knew that from his previous mission with him. Though Fanho gave a chuckle. "Huh? I've always had a knack for ninjutsu. I was able to use katon, raiton, and hiton at Genin, and even master B-rank techniques." With a crack of a smirk Fanho delved into his own Chuunin exam. "I had to carry Gene through ours. I took three broken ribs, and a hell of a beating only to find out one of them was a clone. Meanwhile Gene was off to the side picking apart the battle, but he didn't really assist. He was the only one walking out without bruises."

As Koji drew near his fur meddled with blood Fanho gave a laugh as the banter occurred between the two. "Susaku, my summon is just as stubborn. Difference is he can voice is opinion reaaalllly well..." As thoughts of Tea Country came back Fanho gave a nod. He had saved Koji from well, being impaled, sliced, and diced. But he hadn't really kept count because he was more focused on making sure himself and Koji didn't get speared. While Taiga was phasing through each blow. The mission was definitely underestimated the abilities of the villain, but at the very least there were minimal casualties. Just some cuts, bruises, and injuries that would heal.

"In'ei? I've never been. Sounds weird though, like a whole overly religious village centered around this thing. Do you what they believe in or practice? Sounds different than the average peaceful religion like theres some deeper meaning." It seemed weird that a village surrounded and built around a temple. That was typically peaceful, just up and is now suspicious. It gave a bad taste in Fanho's mouth and itching feeling in the back of his head. He felt something just wasn't right, but they would investigate and discover soon what instigated those feelings.

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Thu Feb 09, 2017 12:33 am

"Not a clue. I've never been one for religion, never understood why you would put your faith in anyone other than yourself and your family." Kazuo folded his arms and frowned as he tried to remember what he had read about the village. He knew they were religious and they weren't extremist, which was why the Daimyo tolerated an entire village being built around the temple. They paid their taxes and mostly kept to themselves. "The might follow some old teachings or incarnation of this supposed god they're trying to summon? I guess we'll find out when we get there."

As the hour passed and they travelled in surprisingly boring coniditions Kazuo was beginning to wonder if this really was just all going to turn out to be nothing. Usually something would have happened by this point in a mission; ambush on the road, sudden stranger appearing and asking for their help. But the half day trip to In'ei had been, for all intents and purposes, completely quiet and utterly boring. Cresting a small hill, the first thing Kazuo noticed was the massive wall extending off as far as the eye could see in either direction, connected to a gatehouse that from this distance he could only just make out. The Inuzuka slowed his pace a little and let out a slow, impressed whistle. "For a village that started as nothing more than a place for pilgrims to rest, it sure is impressive."

There was a river that went almost half a mile back and disappeared into the village and Kazuo could see wagons and pilgrims all heading into and out of the village. Kazuo's eyes narrowed as he spied the temple. Right in the centre of the village, it was barely visible over the walls from his place atop the hill. It was large, far larger than he had expected it to be. The last time he had been here he hadn't paid all that much attention. "That… is going to take a lot longer to check out than I thought." He turned and offered a wry grin to Fanho and shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows, maybe we'll get lucky and our contact will have some more concrete info to tell us in person?"

Making his way down the road, following the winding river that lead in to the village, Kazuo started to focus more on all of his senses. The constant din of the chatter among the people, the occasional whinny or braying from horses and donkeys, and the crunching of the compact dirt road under foot and hoof and wheel was almost annoying to his ears. Sure, Konoha was a busy little village, but that was mostly ninja constantly flying around with barely a whisper and a smaller number of civilians. And the forest surrounding the village was filled with animals, the constant hum of insects. The sounds of civilization were something Kazuo never thought he'd really get used to. As for the scents; they were coming from everywhere. He could smell a lot of incense and underneath it all there was a linger scent of almost… sulphur?

"We're supposed to meet our contact outside the temple. In some little tea house on the other side of the village. Just follow the river, apparently."

Director · Post by **Director** » Sun Feb 12, 2017 12:27 am

With a shrug as Fanho glanced out into his surroundings with a curious cock of the head. "Well its probably the same thing as chakra. Faith in something to give you power or cure your ailments. No matter the risk or how silly it is. Gives you hope for a better future." With a essence of coldness washing over his voice he gave a deep sigh as he closed his eyes in thought for a minute for continuing on. "Alternatively, people use it to justify their wrong doings as with some form of authority's orders." With a glance at the nature around them the birds singing, and a small creek forming a minor waterfall over round smooth pebbles glistening in the sun. He turned his head towards the village coming up. It seemed like the front side of a barn, big, long, and quite the yuuge wall. Albeit didn't cover the entire perimeter of the village. What lacked in wall, made up in a guard patrol.

"No kidding, they've been adding onto this for a while now. This isn't just some pilgrim village now. Its nearly a full blown city." As they walked closer, Fanho began taking in the sights of the village enlarging as his view grew better over the place. Businesses, stalls, and buildings everywhere. It was a proper bustling city in all honesty. With the temple in the middle as its center piece, proudly demonstrating the key point of their mission. If word was true, they were reviving a spirit. There would be a lot of collateral damage to be dealt with heavy losses of life. They'd need to act quick and intervene further if necessary. Otherwise their whole mission would be a bust if they couldn't prevent a mass loss in life. "Yeah, this is gonna take considerably longer considering the scope of this place. Not to mention that temple is huge."

Even the scents that overwhelmed Kazuo's sensitive nose and ears. Fanho's was also assaulted, albeit on a less greater scale, it was overwhelming enough for him to smell some of the incense, and hear enough of the shouting resulting from gambling halls. If anything for a village centered around a temple, it was still a village without totally being dictated by morals. At the very least they'd be in a tea house soon, able to take a break from the non-stop sense assault, and be able to scope up a plan with new found knowledge from the contact. Hopefully it wouldn't take them too long to reach the contact, and he'd be helpful. Otherwise they'd be walking into the lion's den unaware. "Do you think this contact is reliable? And if hes even in enough to tell us exact details of the temple's doings?"

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Tue Feb 14, 2017 12:44 am

Kazuo shook his head, clearing it of the myriad of distractions but also in a showing of that he didn't know the answer to Fanho's question. "Hard to tell before we meet him. Either way the mission has already been paid for; if he's brought us out here on a wild goose chase then it's just our time and his money he has wasted. If it does turn out to be a solid lead but he doesn't have enough information to give us something to go off of, we'll just have to do a bit more leg work." The subtle growl from Koji caught Kazuo's ear, cutting through every other sound in the vicinity. The Inuzuka's eyes flicked down to the hound before turning to follow the direction his snout pointed. A flurry of robes vanished behind a building, not so fast as to escape his eyes but fast enough to draw attention to itself. "Great. We've been here all of two minutes and we're already being watched."

Rather than break off their current heading Kazuo continued to follow the river, crossing a large wooden bridge at one point, before finally coming to a halt at their destination. The tea house was small, simple, little more than a stand really. He waved two fingers towards Koji, motioning for the ninken to sweep the perimeter and then keep a look out for their little spy friend, before pushing the cloth flaps that hung across the top of the entrance aside and stepped within the confines of the tea house.

"… I thought it would be harder to find this guy." Before Kazuo even had a chance to look around for any subtle tells that would lead them to his contact, a young bald boy wearing monk's robes was waving wildly at the duo from the bar stool right in the middle of the stand. Kazuo blinked a few times before letting out a slow sigh. No wonder they had been noticed so quickly coming into the village. Kazuo was all for enthusiasm, but he was pretty sure this kid was an idiot. "Let's get this show on the road then, shall we?" Chuckling, he waved back to the young monk and lowered himself into the stool beside him.

"You guys are the ninja Konoha sent right? I sent that mission request away a week ago and I've been coming here every day since! Oh jeez, I'm so excited that you're finally here! The temple could definitely use your guys' help!" Kazuo watched the kid talk a mile a minute, subtly scenting the air and focusing on any pheromones that came from the monk. He sensed excitement, primarily, no sense of deceit or falsehoods. Underneath the excitement though there was just a tinge of something else. Fear. "Oh, I'm so incredibly sorry, that was very rude of me. My name is Suteru! Would you like some tea? The tea here really is very wonderful, they collect water from a spring that the owner keeps a secret. Oh, shh, that's just between us now okay?"

Kazuo smiled and nodded, the sweat drop running down the back of his head as he considered just how similar this kid was to his own youth. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Suteru. I'd love some tea, and maybe some information as well? You called us here to investigate some rumours, right?" Even as he spoke he glanced over Suteru's head at Fanho and basically begged the Chuunin to draw the kid's attention away from him for a second.

SpoilerShow

[Beastman Style • State of Affairs]
C-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Having spent so much time honing his sense of smell, Kazuo has become more attuned to the way smells can reflect the emotional state of the one who emanates them. He can tell when someone is nervous or excited, scared or happy, etc, from their scent alone.

[Beastman Style • Lie Detector]
A-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
By using his enhanced senses of smell and hearing, Kazuo is able to act as a type of natural lie detector by detecting the faint change in a person's heartbeat and scent due to perspiration when a lie is told. This is rendered ineffective against those who have an A-Rank or higher technique to fool Kazuo's senses, or those who do not have a heart beat or sweat glands (i.e. Elemental Body).

Director · Post by **Director** » Thu Feb 16, 2017 8:22 pm

With a nod Fanho kept strolling along side Koji and Kazuo making glances at the different shops and stalls. An impressed look washing over his face as they all were very busy, a hustling and bustling city very lively in activity. As he was amazed by all the stalls and stands, Koji's slight growl and Kazuo's sudden look towards his ninken told Fanho something was wrong. Which as soon as Fanho picked up on it, Kazuo was already elaborating how they were being followed within a few minutes of walking inside. "Huh, did you get a bead on who it was? I presume its the temple monks." With a sigh Fanho kept his eyes peeled forward leaving the lesser known threats for Kazuo to detect, it was obvious Fanho lacked in that regard comparatively.

As they walked into the tea shop Fanho glanced around the small tea shop as it was made apparent quickly upon entering who the contact was. The wild waving, enthusiastic grin creeping across his face. However Kazuo made enough of a face to suffice for both of their feelings of contempt for the obvious tell-tale sign they had arrived. Fanho doubted that the two thought any difference of the young kid. Well... Definitely young and naive. With a deep breath Fanho followed behind Kazuo as the two chuckled sitting on the other side of the right hand side of the young monk on the other side of him from Kazuo.

As he listened to the kid's spiel about the tea, and how the water is collected and yadda yadda. Fanho focused more on keeping Kazuo and the kid in his sights. Trying to pick up on signs Kazuo was dropping as well as keep the kid flanked from doing anything that would be haphazard to the duo. As Fanho noticed Kazuo's pleading looks of drawing the attention of the kid, Fanho gave a subtle nod as if agreeing with the kid, but more so towards Kazuo's order. So Fanho gave a flick of the hand opening his palm up before resting his chin in it.

"So Suteru, about those rumors like he said. About when did this stuff start to make headway, and about how serious of a situation are we talking about?" Fanho talked as he flagged down a tea house waitress before asking for pen and paper. As the waitress came back, Fanho took the pen and paper handing it to Suteru. "We'll need a statement from you to report back to our officers to notify them of the situation." Fanho thought that would distract Suteru enough for Kazuo to do whatever he needed to do. Even give him ample time for anything extra he needed.

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Sun Feb 19, 2017 3:23 pm

Kazuo winked over Suteru's head at Fanho when the boy monk turned his attention to the Awai. He could have stayed and handled the diplomacy but he would be better suited outside. Still, they needed to keep up appearances. While Suteru was distracted Kazuo weaved a set of hand seals and booked it outside with a speed that most human eyes would be hard pressed to notice. Even as he moved, his chakra settled into place and a copy of Kazuo remained seated, looking as though he had done nothing more than adjusted the way he was sitting. Kazuo ducked into the crowd and weaved another set of hand seals before finally stepping out into the open looking like an exact copy of Suteru.

Now he just had to find Koji and wait.

"Oh, right, the rumours! Of course, of course. Ah, well, you see, I only joined the temple a few months ago, you see? My mother passed six months ago and she told me that my father was a monk here. So I came here looking for him but the monks told me he went missing. I begged and pleaded, ya know, because I didn't have anywhere else to go. They let me stay as long as I pulled me weight and took to their practices, so I get most of the boring chores the other monks don't want to do. Cleaning the floors, dusting the relics, making sure the library is kept tidy, those kinds of things you see?"

He paused, taking a sip of his tea. "Are you sure you don't want any tea? It really is quite good." The attempt to stall was obvious, the boy was a poor orator. Finally he shook his head and looked up at Fanho with worried eyes.

"I… I didn't want to get into any trouble. But when I heard what I did I knew I needed help. The monks wouldn't help me, I didn't know who to trust. I used to live near that big forest, my mum and I, and we met a ninja once. If I couldn't trust the people around me I just had to trust someone that wasn't from here, right?" He took a shaky breath. "I, uh, I overhead a conversation I don't think I was meant to. I was dusting the relics one day, it was late; all of us were supposed to be out in the field for meditation but I was behind on my chores because I slept in. Well, anyway, I heard two of the monks talking and one of them said my dad's name. They said he and some other monks that had all disappeared were seen a few days ago, this was almost a week ago mind you, just outside of the village walls. They said that they found it, whatever it is, and then they started talking about how they could get it inside the village without getting themselves killed."

Suteru drained the rest of his tea and stared at the empty cup longingly, clearly wishing for more. Or perhaps something stronger. "That's when I got together all the money I had and sent a message to Konoha. I need help in finding my dad. If he is caught in something dangerous, then I should help him, ya know?"

It took Kazuo all of two minutes to track down Koji. The oversized mutt wasn't difficult to spot, though he had at least been smart enough to stick to back alleys rather than make a spectacle out on the main street. Kazuo made no overt motion to speak with the dog, merely making a few hand signals that he did his best to disguise in case the spy was watching. The Transformation technique didn't cover his scent, only his physical appearance, so Koji knew exactly who Kazuo was despite his disguise. The dog growled and started digging through a pile of trash, nudging it all to the right. Kazuo looked through his peripherals even as he honed his other senses towards the indicated direction.

He was being followed. How interesting.

Now that he had a bead on his stalker, Kazuo turned into a smaller alley and heard the footsteps pick up to keep pace. All Kazuo had to do was find a nice, quiet, dead-end alley and then he and Koji could box in whoever was following them and Suteru. A feral grin appeared on Suteru's boyish features, something that appeared completely out of place. Kazuo was going to enjoy this.

TechniquesShow

*[Basic Jutsu • Clone Technique]
E-Ranked Ninjutsu
After completing a set of handseals, the user forms a slight chakra 'body', thus creating a single, massless clone. The clone created from this technique is very basic and will dissipate when hit with anything. These clones do not possess vital signs or a unique chakra signature, meaning they don't disrupt the environment, and anything on their person is superficial. The clone has 1 in each stat. They are limited to basic movements.

*[Basic Jutsu • Transformation Technique]
E-Ranked Ninjutsu
After completing the needed handseals, the user of this technique will be able to alter their physical appearance to match that of another person. By consistently emitting chakra throughout their body, the user is able to keep their appearance adjusted at the cost of their stamina draining over time. As this technique is quite strenuous to uphold, experienced shinobi may see more clearly through this delusive disguise. This technique lasts for a number of posts equal to that of the user's stamina.

[Predator's Instinct • Distinct Sounds]
C-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Kazuo mentally takes in and registers the default sounds of an area; creaking on a boat, wind against walls, their own breathing and other sounds one would expect. By doing this Kazuo becomes more acutely aware of sounds that 'don't belong', such as footsteps in an empty room or a branch breaking in a quiet forest. The contrast of sounds is what is important here, not the type, and Kazuo can discern differences in natural sound versus those made by action in most cases unless the actions are deliberately made to sound natural. This focus on distinct sounds once again opens up the user to sonic attacks very damagingly and can often deafen the user.

Director · Post by **Director** » Tue Feb 21, 2017 8:37 am

Fanho held his hand up towards the young boy as a sign to slow down, and listen to Fanho for a minute. "I'm gonna need you to slow down, and start from you overheard their conversation. You're gonna have to give me details. I'm not gonna run into a situation I know nothing about. Do you know what it is, and if so how big of a threat is this thing posing." Fanho's tone commanded the boy to straighten his words, and to start formulating some coherent sentences with details for him to get to the bottom of his story. From the sound, he was stuttering over himself, afraid of something, but Fanho couldn't tell what since it was Kazuo who dipped out to figure out who was on their tail.

"Look, I want you to look me in the eyes and tell me what makes you so afraid right now. There's something you're not telling me, and if you want me to help you I need to know what it is. I can't protect you if I don't know what I'm protecting you from, you gotta give a little for me here to piece it together." Once again Fanho resorted to his commanding tone of demanding the attention of the boy to think through his words carefully so he could listen and get to the bottom of what was making so skiddish.

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Thu Feb 23, 2017 5:27 pm

Kazuo finally found what he was looking for; an alley that backed onto the wall that surrounded the village like a box with only one way in or out. Walking down to the very end of the alley he heard the footsteps come around the corner well before he heard the voice. "We know what it is you have done, Suteru-san. You should not have called those ninjas. This a matter of the temple, not something for outsiders to be involved in. You disappoint our masters, Suteru-san… the temple took you in and this is how you repay that gift?"

Slowly Kazuo, still in the guise of Suteru, turned around and offered a faked look of fear and sadness that looked more like constipation. "But, but I had to! Don't you understand!?" In a blink Kazuo was gone, leaving nothing but a swirl of wind in his place. A heartbeat passed and suddenly Kazuo was right in front of the monk, his transformation gone. The monk stumbled backwards, letting out a scream, and tried to run only to find himself face to face with the large, snarling form of Koji. "I'm not Suteru, ya know? Now then." Kazuo reached out to wrap his fingers in the monk's collar and heaved the man up with one hand. "You want to tell me what it is you lot have been up to, hmm? Or am I gonna have to convince you to have a chat?"

"I told you, I don't know what it is, they just said it was old and it was dangerous. Like, killing a lot of people dangerous." He gulped and finally stared straight into Fanho's eyes. "They said it needed sacrifices, okay? That people needed to die to bring whatever it is here. But if they couldn't control it then it could kill everyone! I'm scared that my dad is going to be killed. Or that he is helping them. All I know is that there must be some kind of tunnel in the temple because I saw them go into a room but then they never came out. When I went in to see where they were, the room was empty. I… I can show you to it, I think."

Director · Post by **Director** » Wed Mar 15, 2017 11:05 pm

The monk Kazuo had cornered furrowed a face of discontent at the Konoha shinobi before jerking his head the other way opposite of Kazuo closing his eyes. "There's nothing you could do before the eyes of Benevolent God that would get me to speak. And you cannot kill me, as I am your only source of information." He would cock his head slowly to face Kazuo playing as if he had the upper hand. Truly believing that Kazuo wouldn't kill him, as he was his only lead then and there. As well as his best chance at more intel. Which cause the man's smile to creep even more triumphantly and creepily.

Fanho glanced at Suteru as he finished his sentence, he could sense the fear that rolled off of every word Suteru spoke. And every tic, quiver, and break in his voice. He was deathly scared, but it wasn't so much himself that he seemed worried about. But his father who seemed too entrenched in this. None-the-less Fanho's main focus was on the room Suteru spoke of. Obviously it seemed there was a secret passage, one Fanho could easily find due to the use of his doujutsu. Which would allow him to see through the darkness easier, and if a ninja were amongst the monk's, which Fanho presumed so. It'd allow him to see through their invisibility.

"Can you draw me a map of the compound, and directions as to how to get to there." He said as he slid another paper towards Suteru he had borrowed from the waitress once again. In Fanho's mind he only wondered what had happened to Kazuo, and if he was able to find whatever it was he was looking for. He presumed it was the tail that had been following them earlier. Which if anything he hoped Kazuo was able to get some answers. However the more Fanho payed attention to Suteru, the more something seemed off about him. As if he was stalling or doing something fishy. But Fanho couldn't put his finger on it exactly til he listened a bit more to the kid.

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Sat Mar 25, 2017 6:20 pm

Kazuo's head slowly cocked to the side, his feral smile growing a little wider. He could appreciate a zealot; his cause may be wrong but at least he had honour and didn't immediately spill his secrets and sacrifice his beliefs. A religious zealot was like a ninja in a way; devoted to a cause in the way a ninja was devoted to his village. The difference was Kazuo was logical, rational, in his beliefs. Religious zealots often abandoned rational thought in favour of doing whatever their supposed gods demanded of them.

"You may think that, but you aren't. Ya see, we ninja are real good at a couple o' things. One of them is information gathering. Kinda part of the job description. I can get information from a corpse if I have to. I don't like to, it's kinda messy, and I wouldn't want to cut on a holy man to get him to talk. But see, if what your order is plannin' on doin' is gonna harm people of Fire Country, well then I got a duty to do." He nodded and Koji stalked up to his side, grabbing onto the man's ankle and clamping down with a ferocious bite. His stomach roiled; Kazuo wasn't one for torture. He hated it. With Koji holding one end, Kazuo tightened his grip around the priest's throat and started to walk up the wall of the alley, pulling the man one way as Koji pulled the other. "I wonder how far your neck will stretch before your head just pops off."

Suteru nodded eagerly and took the pen and pad from Fanho, sketching out a very crude map of the temple and drawing a line along the path that would take them to the room he mentioned. Underneath the map there were two words; They're Here. He looked back up and grinned at Fanho, his smile obviously shaky, as his eyes flicked to a customer that had just walked in. He was a large man, imposing, but dressed entirely in civilian garb. The man sat down at the end of the bar and ordered, subtly watching the duo though to the ninja trained Fanho it was almost painfully obvious.

Director · Post by **Director** » Tue Apr 11, 2017 8:33 pm

OOCShow

Changed my chars personal color to space purple because it looks 10x better.

"Gaaah- Guuuu!" The priest could only muster guttural noises, his throat grasping at air, but to no avail. He struggled to breath under the immense pressure, and the fact his mid section felt like it could tear in half at any minute. He beat on Kazuo's arm with weak bats as Koji suffered his minuscule kicks that felt like light tabs against his snout as he regurgitated noises. As he repeatedly bat away unsuccessful, the priest's eyes began to roll backwards slowly as his movements slowed down. At this rate if Kazuo continued his forceful choke, the priest would surely die of oxygen deprivation.

Fanho noticed the customer as soon as Suteru's eyes had flicked back and then to the paper once again. Fanho took the pen from Suteru before writing at the bottom of the paper Leave now, and I'll deal with him. Fanho's eyes flicked upward towards Suteru with a grin and held his hand out. As he gave a nod for Suteru to beg his leave, Fanho swung his seat around to face his tea, but not yet letting the man that had just entered in a cloak leave his peripheral vision so he'd have tabs on him at all times. When the man made a move, it would only take Fanho seconds to speed after and catch him. From what he could see, it seemed like a regular civilian, and wouldn't pose an active threat unless there were multiple.

He began to play with the pen flicking it between his fingers with seamless ease as he sipped his tea keeping an eye on the man. If he were to make a move after Suteru or Fanho himself, he had already pinpointed the perfect throw to pin him to the wall with his cloak utilizing the pen. The man wouldn't be able to escape anywhere, and as soon as he disabled him. Fanho would send a clone after Suteru to ensure he didn't get attacked either or ambushed for that matter. It seemed as the day went on the more Fanho and Kazuo would have to fight their way in. Its gonna be a long day. He sighed as he gulped another sip of tea.

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Thu Nov 30, 2017 5:52 pm

Kazuo swore under his breath and quickly motioned Koji off when it became obvious the monk had had too much. The dog let go and Kazuo dropped the man to the ground, fishing some wire from his hip pouch. "More than one way for you to be useful to me." Securing the man's hands and feet with the wire, Kazuo made sure to crack him once over the head with just enough force to cause unconsciousness for a few hours. Checking to make sure he was still breathing, Kazuo nodded to himself and then turned to Koji.

"Well that didn't work out according to plan. Time for plan b." A few hand seals and a cloud of smoke later, Kazuo vanished and was replaced by an exact replica of the monk he had just almost strangled to death. "Koji, hit the rooftops and try not to get spotted. I'm going to go find Fanho and get into this damn temple. What the hell are they planning that they'd risk death sooner than talk?"

The dog barked once in acknowledgement and disappeared in a blur of brown. The heavy thud overhead told Kazuo exactly where the dog had landed, and the man shook his head. He really needed to work on that mutt's stealth. Adjusting his posture to match the monk's as best as he could, Kazuo started making his way back to the tea house he had left Fanho and Suteru at, hoping they hadn't decided to take off while he was gone.

Suteru gave an obvious sigh of relief as he read the note. He was close enough to having a heart attack from the stress as it was, if he had been asked to stay for much longer he would have cracked under the pressure he just knew it. Quickly gathering himself and leaving his still half full cup of tea on the counter, Suteru walked as quickly as possible out of the stall before tearing off in a full-blown run down the street and towards… anywhere that wasn't here. As soon as Suteru stood, the large man did as well, though he wasn't moving to follow. He was headed directly for the seat that Suteru had just vacated, right next to Fanho. His left hand curled into a fist, knuckles audibly cracking, and there was a glimmer of steel from the fold of his kimono that his right hand was reaching towards.

Director · Post by **Director** » Sun Dec 03, 2017 10:10 am

The monk had slumped to the ground gasping, and apparent he was on the verge of collapsing due to the oxygen deprivation. Much more and the monk would have knocked out, maybe for a couple of days, or maybe forever? Really he wouldn't have taken much more though as he sat glazy eyed at the sky before Kazuo had issued his final bonk to the man's skull. At this point the monk could use a much needed rest from the kink session he had just been forced through. It also wasn't an enjoyable kink. But after all was said and done. The man had drifted to lala land.

As the large burly man made his way towards Fanho. He could hear the audible crack of knuckles, and barely catch the glimpse of metal in the mans cloak. If the man really wanted to go there, they would go there Fanho guessed. But not before a bit of banter. "You know its impolite to cut someone down without a bit of dialog. Haven't you ever read a book?"

With a shrug Fanho gripped his ceramic cup before smashing it on the counter of the shop gripping a sharp pointed piece about four inches long before spinning around at a speed someone who wasn't a shinobi would struggle to keep with before making an attempt to kick the mans sword away from the mans hand. From there he'd try to get a grip on the neck of his shirt, and nudge the shiv of ceramic he had just made into the nook of his neck. Barely drawing blood, but enough to make a point. Quite literally. "Now you have two options, we can sit down and talk it out like couples counseling, or we can duke it out and I'll win. One of these is somewhat in your favor." He'd grin and squint his eyes making light of the situation.

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Mon Dec 04, 2017 2:12 am

It was a kid. Bando had dealt with kids before. Even if it was supposed to be some ninja kid, Bando had the will of fire on his side. The old gods would grant him the strength to smite those that would prevent their rising. His knuckles cracked, and he reached for his blade to get rid of this problem, so he could return to important matters, such as his prayers, when suddenly, his blade was on the ground and the kid was trying to shank him with a sharp piece of shattered teacup held to his throat.

Bando suddenly doubted his gods.

"… I aint ever bin ta couples counselin'. Sounds… fun?" The tense, awkward smile that looked more like a grimace told Fanho that Bando hadn't had the privilege of dental care; the stench of his breath alone was likely a lethal toxin waiting to be weaponized. "I was told by Jinzo ta keep an eye on tha bratty kid we took in and deal wit' anyone who looked like trouble. Can't have the ritual bein' interrupted by… shite, what'd he say? Oh, yeah, 'a bunch of know nothing ninja who have held all the power for too long.' 'is words, not mine, please dun shoot the messenger."

While this was going on Kazuo had made his way back to through the village the short distance he had taken away from the tea stand, this time his transformation technique resulted in far less heads being turned towards him but those that did were filled with looks of respect or reverence. It honestly was kind of disconcerting, how much these villagers seemed to have faith in the monks that were supposed to uphold the teachings of the Fire Temple. They had no idea that whatever these zealots had planned could possibly ruin all their lives. All in the pursuit of religion, some higher calling. He wanted to shake his head in disgust but shrugged off the urge to maintain his façade.

When he reached the tea stand, he pushed open the curtains in time to see Fanho stood up, one hand fisted in the collar of a rather large man with the other holding a jagged bit of ceramic against his throat. Bando noticed Kazuo come in and his eyebrows shot up. "Master, I- uh- I didn' say nuffin', I swear! Please 'elp me!"

Kazuo blinked once, twice, then turned and smiled to Fanho. "Get anything useful? All I got was a crappy souvenir set of clothes saying 'I'm a monk, let me pass.'"

Director · Post by **Director** » Mon Dec 04, 2017 10:09 pm

Fanho's eyes squinted at the old battered man, who obviously wasn't one of a high social class. It was no wonder he was taken in by some class of cultists monks, but at the same time he was nothing but a pawn. It was hardly likely for Fanho to get any information out of him. Some messenger this guy was, he wasn't even a samurai, or if he was he had certainly fell on hard times. Some samurai were lulled into the luxuries of life such as women, fame, and money. But at the end of it all, this guy did just try to kill Fanho. So rather he fell on hard times or not, he wasn't too kind to the man as he pressed the ceramic shiv down harder twisting it a little to draw a trickle of blood out. "I think I know a few things or so, like dental care is important as well is not drinking on the job. And messengers typically don't try to kill the people they deliver messages to." As Fanho rolled his eyes and sneered with a grin he tugged the guys collar before slamming him back into the wooden wall of the booth behind them. The drunken bastard ushering a line of "Ouh!" "Dam'!"

The young Awai's eyes fluttered towards the man that walked in. At first glance Fanho was thrown off by the disguise as he blinked directly at Fanho twice. It was a tell tale sign it was Kazuo as Fanho rolled his eyes playing along with the drunken hard-luck "samurai" in-front of him. "Perfect timing! I'll just talk to the boss man directly, please hold!" The Chuunin placed his hand on the slurring "samurai's" neck applying pressure as needed. He gasped for air before falling down in a hump of sleeping, beer smell infested mess. Drifting off somewhere probably about alcohol, praying, or that he hadn't had his ass handed to him by a kid. "Not much other than he sucks at mail delivery. But I can certainly copy his looks, albeit I'd rather not look and smell like a bum. He doesn't seem too high on the totem pole here. But that Master Jinzo sounds like the boss man we need to speak with."

As they were about two-fifths of the way into the village, it seemed they were only on the verge of where they needed to be. Perhaps the deeper they walked in, the more monks they'd see wandering around they could take advantage of the situation. However it was very clear the two weren't welcome, so from here on out they'd need to stay disguised and hush their movements. "Perhaps the deeper we go, the more monks and lieutenants we'll find. But Konoha shinobi aren't welcome here, and it seems like towns people are in their pocket." Fanho weaved a simple set of hand seals as he changed into the appearance of a villager he saw earlier with some minor differences as to not attract attention. It'd be a enough quick glances would deter them imploring more about himself. "Either way, it sounds like they're getting dangerously close to achieving this ritual they want."

Jutsu UsedShow

*Ninjutsu • Advanced Transformation Technique
C-Rank Ninjutsu
An advanced form of the Transformation Technique, after performing the correct hand seals and holding the final one temporarily, the user will coat and mold chakra around their body into the shape and form of something or someone which is no more than twice their size at a speed of 4. This technique's true advantage is that the disguise is given physical substance. This means, for example, if they transform into something with claws, they will have claws that can physically be used. For the disguises 5 post duration, if it is damaged by a hit of 16 or more strength, the disguise "poofs" from existence. This includes collateral damage caused by striking an opponent that may occur to the disguise.

Sanjuro · Post by **Sanjuro** » Thu Dec 07, 2017 4:49 pm

"Yeah, I didn't find out much except the guy I was tailing was a serious zealot. Preferred being strangled to death than talking." Kazuo frowned as he spoke and he shook his hand out as if it would cleanse the act he had performed. "Anyway, people like that are definitely up to something. Looks like this won't be as boring as I originally thought. I… can't tell if I'm upset about that or excited. Maybe both? Probably both." He nodded at Fanho's assessment. "We definitely need to find someone high up on the food chain that is willing to talk. That or break into the temple and find out ourselves. Either way, we're suffering from a supreme lack of info right now and it's leaving a bad feeling in my gut. And no, that wasn't the food I ate on the way here either so don't get smart."

As they wandered through the town, Kazuo noticed the looks they were getting and decided to follow suit with Fanho. His visage shifted from the monk he had been copying to that of a more generic villager. Something that wouldn't draw attention at all. "We should send a message back to Konoha. If this is as serious a threat as that kid suggested it might be they should be on alert. I don't know where the outpost is in this village though, don't even know if we have one established here." Kazuo scratched his chin, which was now sporting a full brown beard instead of the stubble he usually wore, and looked around. "Where did the kid get to anyway? He sent a message to Konoha to request the mission, he'd know where to find messenger birds around these parts. Won't be exactly secure but it's better than nothing."

Director · Post by **Director** » Thu Dec 07, 2017 7:11 pm

Fanho nodded with a sigh of disappointment. Of course the valuable one that Kazuo interrogated was of no use. These guys were die hards except the bastardizing ones, which they hoped would be killed off easily. The Awai nodded in agreement with the Inuzuka. If they were to find out more, they had to go directly to the source. It wouldn't be an easy task, but it was better than walking in with their pants around their ankles. As Kazuo brought up the topic of food, Fanho's mouth opened to make the pun, but was quickly cut off in a rude manner. He shot an exasperated look at Kazuo to make it clear, not cool bro.

With the mention of messenger pigeons, Fanho had a summon he could part with a note. That and he'd be back within minutes due to the power of summoning. A much more viable postal worker, than some literal bird for brains. "I'll send my fox summon. He'll be back within minutes. Good thing about summons and all them." As they darted into an alley away from prying eyes Fanho performed a few hand seals as Susaku appeared before them. "What is it this time?" Ignoring the sarcastic nature of the fox, Fanho rolled his eyes as he simply finished his note on a piece of parchment. The note read with details of the nature of the situation. The danger that existed, as well as that they were ready to move in when given the go-ahead. "I'm gonna send you back to Konoha, I need you deliver this message for me." Susaku yawned as he nodded, knowing the importance if Fanho wasn't cracking jokes with him. In a minute the fox disappeared in a puff of smoke as the two shinobi waited. Things would get interesting, very soon.

Jutsu UsedShow

*Ninjutsu • Spiritualism Technique
C-Rank Ninjutsu
The base technique for summoning, the Spiritualism Technique allows users to bring forth their summons to fight on their behalf. Once an agreement has been made between the user and his/her summon, s/he will be able to use this technique to call upon it at any time unless stated otherwise. The chakra used for this technique varies, as it is dependent on the size and rank of what is being summoned. Once it has been summoned, the user will experience a constant drain on his/her chakra for as long as the summon is in place. This drain is also dependent on the size and rank of the summon.

Name	Village	Rank	Color Code
Hirohito, Hideki	Kirigakure	Bannin	#0047AB
Higurashi, Kazuo	Iwagakure	Special Jounin	#FFC40C
Akechi, Gendo	Cold Country	C-Rank	pink

Name	Village	Rank	Color Code
Hirohito, Hideki	Kirigakure	Bannin	#0047AB
Higurashi, Kazuo	Iwagakure	Special Jounin	#FFC40C
Akechi, Gendo	Cold Country	C-Rank	pink

Name	Village	Rank	Color Code
Hirohito, Hideki	Kirigakure	Bannin	#0047AB
Higurashi, Kazuo	Iwagakure	Special Jounin	#FFC40C
Akechi, Gendo	Cold Country	C-Rank	pink

Name	Village	Rank	Color Code
Hirohito, Hideki	Kirigakure	Bannin	#0047AB
Higurashi, Kazuo	Iwagakure	Special Jounin	#FFC40C
Akechi, Gendo	Cold Country	C-Rank	pink

Name	Village	Rank	Color Code
Hirohito, Hideki	Kirigakure	Bannin	#0047AB
Higurashi, Kazuo	Iwagakure	Special Jounin	#FFC40C
Akechi, Gendo	Cold Country	C-Rank	pink

Naruto Saigen Roleplay