[Graded][Plotboard] Merchant's Ire

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Yura
Posts: 4616
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2008 7:00 pm

[Graded][Plotboard] Merchant's Ire

Post by Yura » Tue Dec 05, 2017 6:05 pm

Mitsuo looked around as he and Tatsuo passed through the village gates. The sun had risen some time ago and yet it seemed as if very few people were moving about the town. It was odd to him as, in Iwagakure, even the early mornings were filled with villagers hustling from one place to another trying to get tasks done. Yet here, the streets seemed empty, the shops closed, and a farm off in the distance didn't seem to have a single farmer toiling away at its soil. "I've come to the conclusion that people aren't so lively once you get outside the walls of Iwa." He said to his companion as they walked, "Though I suppose if a group of bandits were terrorizing my village and making resources hard to come by, I would be cowering in my house too." He added, "That or I'd melt them."

Fishing through his pack as they traveled deeper into the village center, Mitsuo pulled out the envelope that they had taken from Michi at the Iron Shrine. Sealed with wax by the elder of the Iron Shrine, it had the name of the merchant written across the front. "So it looks like now we need to find this guy." Mitsuo said, tilting the envelope towards Tatsuo. Hirai, Futoshi, it read. While the task sounded easy enough, there was just one problem: There was no address on the envelope.

"How do you suppose we track him down?" Mitsuo asked as he looked around. They had reached the center of the village, though one wouldn’t know it from the lack of people. Merchant stalls, few as they were, were manned by merchants clearly bored from a lack of customers, if they were even manned at all. "Why don't you go ask her?" He somewhat suggested to his friend, pointing at a fairly older woman sweeping out in front of what he could only assume was her home, "I'm sure she's friendly." He added with an internal grin as he nudged Tatsuo forward.
CharactersShow
NameRankVillageTeamColor
SadakoGeninIwagakureTeam 13[color=#90D2D8]
Enkouten, MitsuoBanninIwagakureTeam 18|Jousai[color=#ff2200]
Retired CharactersShow
NameRankVillageTeamColor
Nara, ShikariBanninKonohagakureMamorinuku[color=#fb8a00]
Takara, MorikoGeninIwagakure[color=#ffeb66]
Inji, AyakoC-RankWaterfall[color=#8080ff]

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Niro
Tsuchikage
Tsuchikage
Posts: 9844
Joined: Fri Dec 11, 2009 7:00 pm

[Graded][Plotboard] Merchant's Ire

Post by Niro » Tue Dec 05, 2017 8:27 pm

Tatsuo rubbed the sand from his eyes and groggily followed behind the older of the two chuunin. He pulled his strap closer to his body and shivered slightly as the land was still cold from the night before and the sun hadn't yet been around long enough to warm anything up. He let out a weak chuckle at the mention of melting people. "If you make them into barbecue, I call dibs on eating them." Tatsuo joked as they continued their trek into the village proper.

Mitsuo had been right when he mentioned the people here weren't lively. Not one person had been wandering the street as they came into the market. The only people truly around were the small time merchants with their stalls and some poor old lady sweeping her front stoop.

Tatsuo listened to Mitsuo's words before giving his friend a frown. "Why is it me doing things first this time? I get first watch and now I have to interact with people first too? You're killing me softly here, it's sooo early..." He groaned as he began to walk over to the older lady. She stopped her sweeping midway through and warily eyed the tall teen making his way towards her.

Tatsuo lazily waved a hand at the woman in an attempt to show he wasn't hostile or anything to be afraid of at the moment. "Hello, I'm looking for a merchant who goes by the name of Hirai, Futoshi. Do you know where he lives?" Tatsuo asked with a small smile on his face before stifling a yawn.

The lady continued to look on in distaste before opening her mouth. "And who the hell are you to be asking for him? Some kind of robber? Maybe one of those dirty bandits?!" She accused him of before Tatsuo started to vigourously shake his head no.

"No, no! Not bandits, he hired us from a few towns over as protection and we're just trying to report for detail. He didn't include an address in his letter." Tatsuo tried to explain to the woman, hoping she'd calm down and provide him the necessary information.
#MakeIwaGreatAgain
NameVillageRankTeam
Tatsuo [color=#940839][b]IwaTsuchikageTeam 18 Jousai
Kinomichi [color=limegreen][b]IwaBanninJousai
Kotetsu [color=slategray][b]IwaGeninTeam 7
Ashura [color=coral][b]SunaGenin
Sai [color=#FF14A1][b]Kiri - MND-Rank
Yamato [color=#C71585][b]KiriA-Rank

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Yura
Posts: 4616
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2008 7:00 pm

[Graded][Plotboard] Merchant's Ire

Post by Yura » Wed Dec 06, 2017 8:25 am

Mitsuo would be lying if he said he didn't take a little joy in watching Tatsuo squirm under the accusations of the woman. He had honestly half expected such a response from the villagers. It was clear from the lack of activity in the village and the harsh looks that he and Tatsuo had been getting that these people were overly suspecious of anybody that they didn't know, likely because of al of the bandit activity.

Coming up along side Tatsuo, Mitsuo flashed the woman a small yet polite smile. "I apologize ma'am," he said, slightly lifting his hand as if to silently calm the woman, "As my companion said, we are only looking for Mr. Hirai so that we can protect him from the bandits on his next delivery."

Taking a small step back, the older woman blankly stared at Mitsuo for a moment before shaking her head a little and looking back at Tatsuo. "Just the two of you?" She asked, "I find it hard to believe that just two...boys, are going to protect Futoshi from those cretins."

"Oh I assure you ma'am, we can handle ourselves." Mitsuo replied, "No harm will come to Mr. Hirai."

Studying the boys for another moment, the woman let out a soft side before turning an pointing down one of the streets. "Alright well if you follow this street, take your third right and then follow that street and take your second left. His is the third house on the left." She explained as Mitsuo pulled out a small pencil and jotted the directions down on a piece of paper. "We ain't got no house numbers. Never really need them, to be honest. We all know each other and we rarely get visitors."

"Thank you so much." Mitsuo replied, putting the paper and pencil away, "You've been a great help." Giving the woman a small bow of thanks, Mitsuo gave Tatsuo a nod and began walking down the street.

"Well that was interesting." He said, slightly smiling as he silently mocked his companion.
CharactersShow
NameRankVillageTeamColor
SadakoGeninIwagakureTeam 13[color=#90D2D8]
Enkouten, MitsuoBanninIwagakureTeam 18|Jousai[color=#ff2200]
Retired CharactersShow
NameRankVillageTeamColor
Nara, ShikariBanninKonohagakureMamorinuku[color=#fb8a00]
Takara, MorikoGeninIwagakure[color=#ffeb66]
Inji, AyakoC-RankWaterfall[color=#8080ff]

User avatar
Niro
Tsuchikage
Tsuchikage
Posts: 9844
Joined: Fri Dec 11, 2009 7:00 pm

[Graded][Plotboard] Merchant's Ire

Post by Niro » Sun Dec 17, 2017 12:56 pm

Tatsuo's eye twitched as the lady took no issue in believing Mitsuo but not himself. Maybe it was the purple eyes that seemed out of place with the colors most normal people possessed in contrast. He'd file that bit of knowledge away in his mind for later and maybe start delving into some minor genjutsu in order to mask them while out in the field. Even he understood it was best to not freak out the civilians within Rock Country while out in the field.

The younger chuunin followed his companion as he led the way down the street, the people of the town still shooting them wary glances although the perceived tension between them and the shinobi had been alleviated somewhat by one of their own. "Geez, these people are either way too on guard or these bandit attacks have been going on for longer than we were aware of. Gonna guess longer than we or Iwa have been aware of, I just really hope they don't have too big of a foothold in the area or else it might get a little messy..." Tatsuo commented in a low voice, his eyes scanning the houses and people as they continued to walk to Futoshi's house.

The two boys finally came upon the house they were looking for. In comparison to the other houses within the village, it was quite large. It stood at three stories high while the majority of the buildings in town had a ground level only and some possessed two stories. Those buildings he guessed were both shop and home and this one seemed similar. It was a dark brown, blending in with the drab colors of Rock Country itself with what seemed to be a decent bit of property behind it.

"This is it." Tatsuo muttered before he raised his hand in a fist and began to rapt his knuckles against the front door, hoping it wouldn't take the merchant long to open it and be ready. The quicker they moved, they less chance they had of encountering the bandits entirely.
#MakeIwaGreatAgain
NameVillageRankTeam
Tatsuo [color=#940839][b]IwaTsuchikageTeam 18 Jousai
Kinomichi [color=limegreen][b]IwaBanninJousai
Kotetsu [color=slategray][b]IwaGeninTeam 7
Ashura [color=coral][b]SunaGenin
Sai [color=#FF14A1][b]Kiri - MND-Rank
Yamato [color=#C71585][b]KiriA-Rank

User avatar
Yura
Posts: 4616
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2008 7:00 pm

[Graded][Plotboard] Merchant's Ire

Post by Yura » Sun Dec 17, 2017 4:55 pm

A few moments passed between Tatsuo's knock on the door and the eventual unlatching of the door's interior lock. When the door eventually swung open, an older man, well into his fifties, stood in the doorway. For a moment the man stood there silently before a wave of what appeared to be fear washed over his face as he slammed the door shut and the boys could hear the interior latch slide home once again. If they listened hard enough, the boys would hear the man calling out from behind the door. "Sadao! Eiji!" He was shouting, though what that meant, neither boy would likely know.

Casting a confused look over at Tatsuo, Mitsuo raised his fist this time and knocked on the door once again. "Uh...Mister Hirai?" He called out, hoping to get the attention of the man behind the door, "We were sent by the mo-" Before he could finish his sentence, the front door of the house flew open and Mitsuo only had time to see the point of a spear glimmering in the daylight as it moved towards them. Acting on instinct, Mitsuo grabbed Tatsuo by the back of the shirt and pulled him backwards as he too lept out of range of the spear. Upon landing several feet away, Mitsuo noticed two young muscular men standing in the doorway, both of them carrying spears with their points aimed at the boys. Sadao and Eiji, he presumed.

"Damn bandits!" One of them called out, "So confident and brazen that you would even try to rob this man at his home?!"

"Not while we're around!" The other yelled, essentially echoing the thoughts of his companions.

Mitsuo cast Tatsuo another quick glance, trying to assess their best course of action here. Mitsuo himself was fairly certain that he and Tatsuo would be able to handle anything that these two tried, but he wasn't confident that doing so would benefit them in any way. The people of this village were on edge; it was understandable that they would be mistrustful of a pair of outsiders who had unannounced business with a seemingly well off resident. Their best option was to try and diffuse the situation peacefully.

"We aren't bandits!" Mitsuo called out, putting his hands out wide to show that there was nothing in them, "We are simply a pair of shinobi sent by the monks of the Iron Shrines to act as escorts for Mr. Hirai on his delivery to and from the Iron Shrines."

"Liars!" One of the men called out, "The only shinobi that have ever roamed these plains have been nothing by a detriment and a menace to us all! Do you really expect us to believe that the pair of you are here to help us?"

Mitsuo looked over at his partner again. Disregarding their current situation, he didn't like the way that the man had referenced other shinobi that roamed the area. If he were speaking about members of the apparent bandit troupe, it didn't bode well for their escort journey.

"We can prove it!" Mitsuo replied, slowly reaching into his rear pouch to grab the envelop from Michi. He knew that doing so would cause the guards to tense up in preparation for an attack, but it was the only way to prove their identity to these people. Pulling the envelop from his pouch, Mitsuo waved it a little before tossing it over so that it landed at the guards' feet. "That is a sealed letter from the monks of the Iron Shrine verifying our presence here." Mitsuo explained, "If Mr. Hirai reads it, he will see that we aren't a threat to him." He added as one of the guards slowly knelt down and picked it up.

Giving each other a look of silent agreement, the guard who had picked up the letter suddenly disappeared while the other continued standing in the doorway with his spear raised. Minutes later, the second guard returned, whispering something into the first guard's ear who in turn let out a grunt of annoyance. "Fine, I guess you were telling the truth." The first guard said as he turned back to Mitsuo and Tatsuo, lowering his spear, "Mr. Hirai will meet you in his den. Follow us."

With an internal sigh of relief, Mitsuo felt most of the tension leave his body before turning to his partner. "Shall we?" He asked rhetorically, moving towards the entrance to the home.
CharactersShow
NameRankVillageTeamColor
SadakoGeninIwagakureTeam 13[color=#90D2D8]
Enkouten, MitsuoBanninIwagakureTeam 18|Jousai[color=#ff2200]
Retired CharactersShow
NameRankVillageTeamColor
Nara, ShikariBanninKonohagakureMamorinuku[color=#fb8a00]
Takara, MorikoGeninIwagakure[color=#ffeb66]
Inji, AyakoC-RankWaterfall[color=#8080ff]

User avatar
Niro
Tsuchikage
Tsuchikage
Posts: 9844
Joined: Fri Dec 11, 2009 7:00 pm

[Graded][Plotboard] Merchant's Ire

Post by Niro » Thu Dec 21, 2017 10:32 am

Tatsuo stood there the strange welcoming with an eye cocked in disbelief. These people were seriously THIS paranoid? A couple of bandits wouldn't brazenly knock on someone's door and wait for it to open several times before robbing the place. They'd come charging in, weapons brandished and ready to do whatever damage necessary to secure their plunder. These people seemed to be so wrought with fear that it was clouding even the simplest of thoughts for them.

He had a feeling that this would be a much more tedious trip than their original trip to the Iron Shrine and that was saying something.

Tatsuo let out a small grunt when Mitsuo yanked him back, the tip of a spear replacing the spot he had been in previously. His eyes narrowed in annoyance as the two guards accused them of being bandits, again, when it was obvious they were anything but. The younger chuunin sighed in annoyance as he watched Mitsuo deal with the two buffoons. Guess the man was used to hiring brawn and not brains. That'd probably explain why their convoys would get tricked by simple bandits.

The mention of other shinobi though piqued his interest. So the bandits definitely had some sort of ninja working with them, whether it be a ninja from another nation or a rogue the chuunin had no clue as of yet. Either way, it upped the danger factor significantly compared to some measly bandits. This also led him to wondering just exactly how large this operation was for the bandits.

Finally the two guards allowed the duo to enter the household after checking the authenticity of the letter from the Iron Shrine monks. Tatsuo gave the two guards a dirty look as they turned around and led them into the house. It was quite large but very plain on the inside, probably a countermeasure against people actually wanting to break in and steal goods.

The duo were led to a den in the middle of the household, a small fire crackling in the fireplace with torches lit in the room to give light. In the middle sat the elderly man from earlier on a nice looking chair in which he was reclining while smoking what looked to be a cigar. Tatsuo was already annoyed with the situation after dealing with the guards and this only served to annoy him further. The monks were lucky the two chuunin liked them otherwise they'd have walked away from this mission at an earlier time. Tatsuo took a moment to himself to squash his current emotions and focus on the mission at hand.

"So you two are the ninja sent by the monks, eh? You don't look like much." Mr. Hirai began, toking from his cigar and eyeing the two boys up. "You sure you'll get me through this in one piece?"
#MakeIwaGreatAgain
NameVillageRankTeam
Tatsuo [color=#940839][b]IwaTsuchikageTeam 18 Jousai
Kinomichi [color=limegreen][b]IwaBanninJousai
Kotetsu [color=slategray][b]IwaGeninTeam 7
Ashura [color=coral][b]SunaGenin
Sai [color=#FF14A1][b]Kiri - MND-Rank
Yamato [color=#C71585][b]KiriA-Rank

User avatar
Yura
Posts: 4616
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2008 7:00 pm

[Graded][Plotboard] Merchant's Ire

Post by Yura » Sun Dec 31, 2017 1:48 pm

Mitsuo entered the house with Tatsuo by his side, passing between the pair of guards that just moments ago had been threatening to skewer them in the streets. He remained calm as he walked, likely calmer than Tatsuo, as in a way he sympathized with the two men. There had been quite a few bandit attacks in the area, according to their recently acquired intel, and the man that paid their bills had told them that a pair of bandits were at the door. If he had been in a similar situation, Mitsuo very well may have reacted the same way; though perhaps with a tad less aggression.

Entering the den where Mr. Hirai currently sat, Mitsuo couldn't help but feel that the room, or even the whole house, was a bit out of place for the village that they were in. This man clearly made good money as the room was adorned with several items that Mitsuo was sure the rest of the villagers could have only hoped to purchase. Well tailored curtains, expensive statues, essentially a plenitude of objects that only those with more money than they knew what to do with would buy.

"I think we are currently the best chance you have, sir." Mitsuo replied honestly to the older man as he continued to look around the room, "From what we've managed to gather, there are former shinobi within the ranks of these bandits which means ordinary guards aren't going to be able to stop them." He added, his statement earning him a deathly glare from one of the guards from earlier. "Regardless, the monks at the Iron Shrine need your supplies and we have every intention of making sure that they get them."

"Well, maybe they should be willing to pay more." The old man replied, causing Mitsuo's head to snap away from the items on the wall and towards the man, "I am putting my life at risk with those bandits out and about after all."

Mitsuo looked from the old man, over to Tatsuo and back to the man again. "I believe that is why they sent us, sir." Mitsuo said, his voice a bit more harsh than before. He wasn't happy with the man's tone, it reeked of entitled superiority. "They don't have much to give so they offered us as protection instead."

"Yes, well, they are lucky I don't charge them more for this." Hirai replied, seemingly unaware that he had offended his new guardians or simply uncaring. "I'm not a charity after all. But alas, I suppose I should just accept what little they have to offer. Money is money."

"If you help Sadao and Eiji pack the supplies onto the carts, we can be on our way by noon." He added, gesturing towards the same two guards that had come to the door earlier.
CharactersShow
NameRankVillageTeamColor
SadakoGeninIwagakureTeam 13[color=#90D2D8]
Enkouten, MitsuoBanninIwagakureTeam 18|Jousai[color=#ff2200]
Retired CharactersShow
NameRankVillageTeamColor
Nara, ShikariBanninKonohagakureMamorinuku[color=#fb8a00]
Takara, MorikoGeninIwagakure[color=#ffeb66]
Inji, AyakoC-RankWaterfall[color=#8080ff]

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