Mission: Lesser but very important?

[Deleted User]

For Soshiki Hotana

It was an ordinary rocky day on the rocky wasteland known as the earth country, with yellow grass covering large expanses here and there making some areas look like a praire, and the occasional pine trees. At a few locations one could find a gathering of dozens of trees which had managed to survive and grow due to rare areas of moist soil, which usually meant an underground source of water too. It was in one of these spots where rookie special ops member Eshiko was awaiting the well renowned Special Jounin.

Having been part of the search team dispatched to find the location of the 'Object', it had not taken long for them to track it here, mostly due to the expertice of one of their best squad leaders who specialized in long range scouting and tracking. Ironically he, the rookie, had been left behind to deliver the 'all too important' briefing information to the Special Jounin and her two Chuunin subordinates for this mission.

Though of course he was not happy with having to sit there, waiting for her. He knew it was important that they were given all necessary information, as the town that the thieves had escaped too were just on the Rock countries borders, it would not take much to have them escape outright. And to top it off they did not have enough Shinobi to block every path out of the town or the country, even worse, they did not know the extent of their abilities or their numbers...

---

OOC: Alright, if you so wish you can start out in Iwagakure and meet your two new best friends, one is a taijutsu specialist and the other is a ninjutsu specialist, if you so wish you can describe the taijutsu specialist in your next post, but I'd like to directly describe the ninjutsu one. If you do not wish to describe any of them you can assume they traveled separately or arrived slightly before/after your character. (Or just say you didnt bother with checking them out until later xD I'm a little tired right now so I'd prefer to not think up two characters I'll probably never use again right now)

I hope this is okay as a mission, if not I can always change it. Its intended to be first and foremost a stealth mission, with possible battle segments depending on your actions.

[K9GM3]

There came Nana, in all of her glory. Behind her were two ninja of Chuunin rank, one of them constantly staring at her hips thinking that she wouldn't notice. Mirrors were her specialty, so of course she had noticed, she just didn't say anything about it. It was actually kind of flattering.

The one checking her out was a supposed expert in ninjutsu - Jounin level, even. The reason he wasn't a proper Jounin was that his genjutsu sucked more than a musquito did, and that he was known to not take a lot of initiative - ever. His hair was messy and short, black in colour with a few dark brown highlights in it. He claimed they were natural upon first meeting Nana. Apparently he was as proud of his good looks as his current superior. His build was very light, and his eyes were close together. Overall, he didn't seem very strong, but his expertise in water-related jutsu was nothing to scoff at. His unique style stemmed from the time he spent in the Waterfall Village, and he, Nagabi Hanzo, would be the team's main attack force.

The taijutsu unit was, above all, powerful. Muscles nearly ripped through his shirt, and his eyes showed an obvious rage at whoever stole "the Object" beneath his long blond hair. It was a common feature on any mission for him, really. Despite his powerful punches, Nana planned to keep him close instead of out there attacking everything that moved. Hanzo was quite capable of handling offense, the man nicknamed Ruin would be in charge of defending the team against anyone who managed to get close.

The three-man team approached the rookie. Nana resisted the urge to flirt and merely looked at him with information-asking eyes.

[Deleted User]

Eshiko had been waiting patiently for several hours, when suddenly three people appeared at the edge of the 'meadow', before they approached it by walking normally. Seeing this the rookie stood up in a ready position, but relaxed when he saw that the one in the lead was a female, even more so when he recognized her face, having been shown her profile before the other special ops members had left to investigate further and set up perimiters around the town.

She was a beauty, no doubt about that, and it seemed one of the chuunin accompanying her had the same thoughts, keeping his eyes more on her hips than what was infront of him. 'Geez, I wonder if he will be able to do his job like that...' Eshiko thought as he scratched the back of his head before returning his gaze to 'Nana', who seemed to be waiting for his report. "Alright, I take it your Soshiki Hotana, the Special Jounin sent to retrieve the 'Object'?" He asked, and after recieving a response he continued.

"Ok, you've already heard the general state of affairs I take it? Well I'll give you all information we've managed to gather so far, but first the briefing." He said as he took out a scroll from the pouch on his back, as he started to unroll it. "About four days ago a certain object was stolen from one of the many lesser Daimyo of this country, however despite his official position he handles something of utmost importance to our country, that is the relations between the Earth Country and the Water Country. As some of your might know one of our primary 'exports' are slaves going to the Water Country, now it just so happens the object which was stolen from the Daimyo was something entrusted to him by one of the Water Country's greater Daimyo! In other words, it is of utmost importance for our country relations that it is retrieved, and as quickly as possible, the better." Eshiko explained, taking a deep breath after his long winded speech.

He was now finished with rolling up the scroll, and proceeded with showing its content to Nana and her Chuunin companions. Depicted within the scroll was a beatifully crafted sword, a double-edged sword with a straight blade which seemed to be somewhat longer than that of a regular katanas, with the blade covered in golden kanji symbols along the middle, with the blades edges also seemingly golden. The guard was well embellished with gemstones and intricate golden symbols, while still remaining practical. While the hilt was clearly made to be usable with two hands, wrapped in fine black leather which ended with a ruby set at the bottom of the hilt. No doubt that sword was worth a fortune, and knowing the Water Country it could very well possess special abilities as well.

"This sword, dubbed the Golden Edge, was stolen from the Daimyo's mansion. We have tracked the thieves to the nearby town, and it is your job to retrieve it. Here." Eshiko explained as he handed Nana a smaller scroll. "This contains all information we have gathered so far. I suggest reading it before entering the town, above all else, I suggest using a disguise and approaching the town in a very ordinary manner, they will no doubt have people on watch. Remember, putting the criminals to justice is only second priority. Do not let them get away with the object!" And with that Eshiko disappeared.

In the scroll that Nana had been given was all which he had already explained written, coupled with what they knew of the enemy. There were apparently atleast seven of them, with atleast three of them being chuunin level missing nin, though there were suspiciouns to there being an eight person which could very well even be a Jounin level shinobi. All in all, the info they had been able to gather did not seem very accurate or useful to say the least, which was probably why the rookie had given her the scroll rather than say it himself... Atleast they knew that there was two missing nin which were hanging around the town's main gate.

[K9GM3]

Before herself and the two Chuunin, she summoned a mirror wall after looking into the scroll. "OK, both of you please look into this." As they looked into the mirror, Nana cast her signature jutsu on it, and the two were placed under her Tactical Reflection genjutsu.

Their formation during travel would be a V shape, with Nana at the base and the two Chuunin slightly ahead of her. She would use her mirrors to check behind them, while her subordinates would cover front and both sides, Ruin on the left and Hanzo on the right. The scene switched to a combat situation, the one that they would use in their attack on the bandits, should it come to that. In it, Hanzo and Nana stood in front, with Ruin a little bit behind them. Hanzo was working his waterfalls on the enemies that Nana had cornered, while Ruin punched back any enemies that managed to get close.

The vision in the mirror changed again, to an ambush situation. In this, Ruin and Hanzo used their respective techniques to clear some room, while Nana cast genjutsu on anyone she could. After that, it continued as it would in a normal combat situation.

Some short text followed to explain to the both of them why they had been assigned to those tasks, and then the genjutsu ended. "Any questions?"

[Deleted User]

OOC: Now I'm a bit confused, seeing how you controlled their actions in your first post I thought you were going to control em for the rest of the mission @_@

The two chuunin stood back while the special forces rookie was giving them the mission briefing, mostly to give Nana some space, but as they could clearly hear him from there, they probably didnt see it necessary to approach anyways. Once the guy left Nana created a mirror out of nowhere, something which surprised 'Ruin' a little while the other man, Hanzo, only raised an eyebrow, wondering what she was up to. Of course, both of them had heard of her abilities, but they had never seen it in action. Though when asked to look into the mirror the two did'nt hesitate to do so, she had been chosen as their squad leader for a reason afterall.

Hanzo accepted his role as the groups primary attacker with ease, it was afterall what he was best at. Ruin on the other hand was a bit reluctant to be on the defense, he wanted to punish whomever was responsible for dishonoring their country, but after the explanation at the end of the genjutsu he understood why it was important for him to be defensive and protect his team.

"Any questions?" Nana then asked as the genjutsu ended.

"Only one. What is our plan of approach?" Hanzo asked shortly after, he was most likely wondering wheter they would follow the rookies advice or just rush straight in.

OOC: Sorry for the time it took and the crappy quality... Been a bit busy these last few days and my muse is dry right now...

[K9GM3]

((OOC: Not control. I described them. They're NPCs, and in your hands.))

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"We pose as missing-nin interested in buying the Golden Edge. Which reminds me to give you these -" she handed both Chuunin a forehead protector, both of Takigakure, with a visible scratch through it. "You two are the treasurers of a missing-nin organisation called Tsunami. Hanzo, seeing as you have the most experience with Takigakure no Sato, you should answer any questions that are asked.

I will pose as a guard," she continued while reaching under her dress to replace her forehead protector with a crossed-through one, again of Taki. "Tell them that our organisation is small, but that we would like to increase our power with special weaponry. Once we get to the actual sword, Hanzo and I will begin the assault. Ruin, if you see an opportunity, grab the sword. Once we get out of the building it's kept in, we flee. Me and Hanzo will attempt to stall any pursuers, Ruin deals with those that catch up. According to the scroll," she motioned at the paper she was still holding, "an escort will await us two hundred meters south of the town. At that point, one of our village's Special Jounin will seal the sword into a scroll for easier transport and deliver it to the village while our escort delays the attackers."

[Deleted User]

OOC: Yah, I guess it was a description, but it kinda made their personalities for them as well, and I really dislike controlling characters others have made (not to mention, I did ask that you let me describe the ninjutsu guy ) But oh well.

"A prety well thought out plan I would say," Hanzo began as he was scratching his chin in thought. "but there could be a few complications." He finished as he let his hand fall to his side.

"What do you mean?" Asked Ruin, probably not thinking as far ahead as the ninjutsu expert. "Well, to be fair. The information about the sword being stolen at all has been kept as secret as possible, until just now we did not even know that it was indeed a sword from the Water country. How would a small organization called Tsunami know about this? And where to find the thieves?" Hanzo explained his reasoning, before he shifted his weight to his left side and rested his right arm on his waist.

"Which brings us to the second complication... The fact that the thieves have been waiting in this town for atleast a day suggests that they are either waiting for someone, or searching for something. There is a high possibility they were hired by someone to steal the sword to begin with." Hanzo then said, with Ruin nodding as he understood what the other chuunin was getting at. "I think he has a point. If that is the case, how should we go about it?" Ruin asked, turning to Nana.

[K9GM3]

((OOC: Whoops, misread. Thought you asked me to describe the ninjutsu guy...))

---

"Your first point is valid, but shouldn't be of any concern. Remember, 'our' organisation is not looking for the Golden Edge, it's just looking for special weaponry. If they bring up the Golden Edge, we work from there as potential buyers for that specific weapon. If we don't find out its location, we leave peacefully, retreat and come up with a new plan. Similarily, we're not looking for them, we're looking for potential sellers. They're hiding in a village, they shouldn't be surprised that visitors come. On that note, do act like a missing-nin would. Don't reveal your profession until you find out that you're dealing with other missing-nin."

She let out a small sigh. "Your second point is more concerning. If they have indeed stolen it for a specific person, we have little chance of being seen as potential buyers. We could try outbidding the designated buyer. If they're unaffliated, they might switch to a highest bidder. If that doesn't work, retreating and thinking of a plan B would be good."

[Deleted User]

OOC: Sorry about the time it took, didn't know how to start the post and then I kinda forgot about it... If you want I can pass it right away since I was just at the end of the already big time-limit >>;

"Acknowledged. I'm glad to be under the command of such an intelligent woman." Hanzo replied with a smile on his lips. Though it was clear he was adding to it, he meant what he said as 'Nana' had thought ahead of him. Ruin simply glanced at Hanzo and shrugged, "Sounds like a plan." He then said as he put his Iwagakure forehead protector on the ground and placed the Takigakure one in his waist pouch.

Seeing this Hanzo snapped one of his fingers like if realizing something. "Ah yes! Good idea Ruin. There's a chance they might search us, so it might be best to leave our forehead protectors here. And naturally, wearing the other one visible will signal that we are indeed shinobi, even if it shows we look like Missing Nin." He said as he mimicked Ruin by dropping his own protector while hiding the fake one.

"Is there anything more we should be aware of, Soshiki-senpai?" Hanzo asked after finishing, about ready too move out.

--- Description of what lies ahead ---

The village is surrounded by a stone wall almost two meters high, looking like if it was made by doton ninjutsu due to its smooth and nearly perfect surface, with a few taller platforms with a commonly dressed person stands on watch, wheter they are villagers or part of the thieves is impossible to tell far away. By following the road toward the village one would find an opening in the wall where the road continues through, with a wooden 'gate' that looks like it has seen better days.

There are two men standing infront of it dressed in leather and chainmail-like armor holding a pair of spears, behind the gate you can see a few shop stands along the road as well as some people wandering about. barely out of sight nearly directly behind the gate stands a man in slightly finer clothing than the villagers, though he seem to be turned toward the village rather than the gate and as such his face is not visible.

[K9GM3]

"One thing. We absolutely cannot afford to be recognised, that would blow our cover immediately. There may be Iwa-missing-nin among the bandits, so we'll need to use Henge. Just change a few things about your appearance, so that you can easily remember what you look like now. Hanzo, if you could comment on whether we look like we could be originally from the land of the Waterfall, that'd be appreciated."

With that, she used the Henge technique. She grew an inch or so, her nose became a bit smaller, her hair became darker while her eyes turned brown, she gained higher cheekbones and a few freckles appeared on her cheek. One wouldn't recognise Nana.

[Deleted User]

The both of them nodded in agreement and proceeded with using Henge no Jutsu shortly after Nana, changing their hair-colors, adding facial hair or removing it, as well as re-arranging their clothes a little to hide any sign of Iwa from them. There were other changes too, though they were quite subtle. "I suppose this might do, although there could be a possibility of them seeing through it... But as we are attempting to look like Missing Nin, I suppose that would be explainable." Hanzo said, not really talking to anyone in particular as he scratched his chin which now had a short 'beard' covering most of it in a rather simple but still not bad looking style.

The two of them looked about ready to move out, they were merely waiting for Nana to give the order.

OOC: If you feel it necessary in order to move ahead I don't mind if you make some small assumptions or such, just use the description I gave off the village from the previous post and act accordingly

[K9GM3]

"Alright, let's go," Nana said, getting into her place in the formation. Ruin and Hanzo did the same thing, and they started moving. While on the run, Nana created a mirror that she kept hovering a little in front and above her, so that it wouldn't block her sight but still let her see behind them easily.

As neared the field of vision from the village, Nana took the mirror out of mid-air and broke it, leaving most of the pieces behind, save for one. She refined this piece so that it was round and smooth, then held it to her. While her appearance may have changed, her ability to manipulate glass would be a dead give-away to any guard with any knowledge of Iwa. As such, she'd have to pretend not being able to.

"Slow down," she said to Hanzo and Ruin as they came closer to the gate. "Act like travelers, wanting to take a rest in this village."