[Plotboard] The Dark Below

[Niro]

Tatsuo sat on his bed, looking over the mission orders in his hand. He and the rest of Team 18 were being summoned to help with the recent discovery of...something under Iwagakure no Sato itself. There were rumors running around town but nothing concrete, a lot of it was being kept under wraps or a need to know basis for the moment. Whatever had been found, it seemed to be something big. Two teams had been sent down before them and each of them had lost contact with mission control. Those facts alone were enough to raise the hairs on the back of his head and for an inkling of fear and worry to be seeded deep within him.

He sighed as he rolled the scroll back up before lighting a match and taking it to the parchment. The paper caught the flame and Tatsuo tossed it into the metal trash can where it became ash. The others within Team 18, Mitsuo and Kotaru, had apparently received similar mission summons to his own and they'd be meeting up at the entrance of the Catacombs.

Tatsuo did a quick equipment check of his pouches before deciding to head out towards the tombs. For now, he'd wait to formulate a plan until his team had gathered.

[Yura]

Mituso sat outside of the entrance to the tombs, his pack of equipment laying at his feet, as he waited for the pair of Akari to arrive. The entrance to the tombs was currently closed, the result of some sort of incident that had happened earlier in the week. No one really seemed to know all of the details, but rumor had it that something new had been discovered. Something had needed to be explored and kept hidden from the public, at least for the time being. That's where they came in, apparently. The mission directive had been fairly light on details concerning their mission: Two teams went into the tombs, neither had come back, so for some reason a third was being sent in to investigate. He assumed, at least. Why else would they have been summoned?

In theory, both Tatsuo and Kota should be arriving at roughly the same time seeing as how they now lived under the same roof. If they were like him, they would have saw that they were being sent into the tombs and planned their equipment accordingly. In addition to his typical wares, Mitsuo had packed himself a heavy blanket (in case of drastic temperature changes), several torches/flares, extra rations, and a small set of warmer clothes, in addition to other smaller items. He wanted to be well prepared for an extend journey, no matter what it was. Once his teammates arrived, they could all proceed in and find out the rest of what they needed to know.

[Kao]

Kotaru had woken up early, just as the sun began to rise over Iwagakure. He wasn't too excited about Team 18's mission, especially since two other teams had already disappeared in the catacombs. In his mind, the village should be sending higher ranked shinobi to investigate, but perhaps the officials didn't think things were so dire that they needed to use those kinds of resources. Tatsuo was still asleep when he headed out of the house and to the market to find breakfast, extra equipment, and rations. He still wasn't comfortable living with Tatsuo's family so he decided to spend his morning alone in order to prepare for what would likely be a long mission.

Knowing Mitsuo, he would already be prepared as far as extra equipment, so he decided to buy flashlights for each of them, extra socks and underwear, and rations. He had already brought an extra set of clothes with him, so when he finished shopping his bag was a little fuller than what he was comfortable with. But everything he had was necessary, so he made his way to the designated meeting location.

Mitsuo was already there, as expected, and Kotaru greeted him by raising his hand and saying, "Yo. Time for another potentially dangerous underground adventure huh?" He looked around, not completely surprised that Tatsuo hadn't arrived yet. "Tats was still asleep when I left, but he's probably awake now and on his way."

[Niro]

Tatsuo had stopped by one of the many shops within Iwagakure on his way to the meeting point. Stepping into the supply shop, he took a quick glance around before grabbing up a large knapsack and began to fill it with rations, a thermal blanket, a fuuin-powered flashlight, and a spare change of clothes just in case. He had no idea how long they'd be...wherever they'd be but he wanted to be somewhat prepared just in case this didn't go as smoothly as he hoped.

The young man trotted up to the counter and placed down the knapsack with a grin on his face as the man behind the store counter began to count up the prices for everything. Tatsuo pulled out his wallet and from it several bills before exchanging it for the full knapsack. He slipped it over his shoulders and felt it settle into place on his back rather securely before he waved off the man giving him change and left.

By the time he got to the meeting spot, Kotaru and Mitsuo were both there. "Well, guess I'm the late one..." He sighed as he came upon the other two. "Ready? Let's head down then." Tatsuo took point as they walked into the catacombs before coming across an area being excavated, a simple pulley elevator set up that dropped down into the darkness with blips of light, most likely torches, set against the shaft. He stepped on it and waited for the other two to follow before he began to work the rope and descend into the earth.

[Yura]

"Yeah, well, let's just hope that this one doesn't include any giant spirits." Mitsuo replied to Kota as the younger boy approached, "It also doesn't surprised me that he was still asleep. He isn't exactly a morning person." He said, referring to Tatsuo before realizing that he was actually walking up. "Speak of the devil."

With a quick greeting to Tatsuo, Mitsuo picked up the bag of supplies at his feet, slung it over his shoulder and followed after his teammates towards the entrance to the tombs. Since all of the recent commotion regarding the tombs, visitors hadn't been allowed anywhere near them. The 'official' story was that renovations were being done, but no one realistically believed that. They didn't know what the actual story was, but they knew that it wasn't 'renovations'. Regardless, there was now more security than usual at the entrance to keep unauthorized personnel, civilians and shinobi alike, from entering.

"Excuse me." Mitsuo called out to one of the guards, "We're here for some sort of expedition mission to track down a couple teams of missing people? Where do we go for that?" He asked.

"Do you have the paperwork?" The guard asked. After some ruffling around in his bag, Mitsuo removed the scroll and handed it to the guard. After a few brief moments looking it over, the guard nodded his head, took out a lighter, and burned the scroll. "Take a right when you walk in, follow the hallway all of the way down until you can't go any further, go into the crypt on your right, and there will be more guards there. Tell them that you're here to see Hibiki."

"Thank you." Mitsuo replied, giving the guard a slight nod of appreciation. "So I guess they really don't want anyone knowing what's going on down here huh." Mitsuo said as they all walked, "Makes you wonder what we've gotten ourselves into."

Following the guard's directions, the boys would eventually come to the dead end that the guard had spoken of and enter the crypt to the right only to be met with another row of guards blocking what seemed to be a giant hole in the wall of the crypt. "We're, uh, here for a mission to track down some missing people." Mitsuo said to one of the guards, "We were told by the guards out front to ask for Hibiki."

"One moment." One of the guards responded, elbowing his comrade and whispering into his ear before said comrade ran off, disappearing into the entrance behind them. Moment's later, he reappeared and whispered something back in the first guards ear. "You can follow me." The first guard announced, turned and walking through the giant hole in the wall.

"After you guys," Mitsuo said to his teammates, offering to let them go first. He still wasn't fond over the idea of walking deeper into these caves. Not after last time.

[Kao]

When Mitsuo mentioned giant spirits, the genin's expression turned to a grimace. His last mission with Mitsuo was one giant spirit after another and they'd nearly gotten themselves killed more than once. They'd survived of course, but neither of them were too eager to meet any more hostile spirits. Kotaru followed behind his two friends and let them handle the official part of their mission and hung back as Mitsuo led them through guarded checkpoints. In the meantime he looked around in awe; the catacombs were, in his eyes, beautifully fascinating and he wondered how many of Iwagakure's dead were buried here. Thousands, probably.

Mitsuo broke him out of his trance and offered him and Tatsuo the lead, and Kotaru gladly took it. Out of the three of them, he was probably the most comfortable with their surroundings. Not even his last mission was enough to traumatize him and make him wary when it came to deep, dark caves. "Sure brings back memories, Mits," he chimed, looking back at the Enkouten. "Hopefully things go smoother since there's three of us."

Though Kotaru took the lead when it came to going through the hole in the wall, he certainly didn't want to talk to anyone. So he led the way for a while, and then when it came to meet this Hibiki guy, he stepped back and let the two chuunin handle the talking.

[Niro]

Tatsuo followed behind Kotaru and the guard as they entered the giant hole in the wall of the normal catacombs. The hole in the wall led them to a giant hole in the ground, pulleys and other equipment set up around it. The teams which had followed after the initial discovery of a small hole in the wall of the catacombs, which led hundreds, if not thousands, of feet down, had decided to create a safe pass down rather than let historians, researchers, and shinobi teams all bumble down the narrow passage.

The once small passage leading almost straight down had been dug out and excavated into a much larger hole. Its circumference was thirty feet, give or take, and down the sides of the gaping hole in the earth hung a multitude of torches. The guard took a step onto the elevator and motioned for the group of shinobi to follow.

After they took their spot on the elevator, the guard began working the pulleys and they began their descent into the lands unexplored underneath Iwagakure no Sato. The descent into almost complete darkness continued for a good half hour before the elevator reached the bottom of the shaft and deposited them into the cavern.

"Hibiki will be within the largest tent." The guard grunted as they all stepped off and he began the long trek of hauling himself back up to the top of the shaft.

Tatsuo stepped off the elevator and looked around, the space above them completely black and a cool breeze wafting throughout the enormous space. The very fact that there was a breeze, underground, spoke to him about how extremely large this undiscovered area was. Set up in front of the elevator was a forward operating base consisting of several tents and lanterns. As well as the tents and lights, several crates of gear and other necessities for such an operation were spread around.

This time, Tatsuo took lead as he trekked towards the largest tent in the base which was illuminated by several torches planted in the ground near the entrance of the tent. He opened the flap of the tent and found a single man leaning over a desk with a single lantern hung at the top of the tent which was bright enough to light the tent with ease.

"You must be the team then." Hibiki commented as they all filed in. He waited until Kotaru and Mitsuo were in the tent before he sat in the single chair behind the desk. "We've had two teams go missing already down here. Your mission is to find them and find what caused them to go missing. If they're alive, recover them. If not, retreat back. You're dismissed." Hibiki waved at them, signalling them to get the hell out of his tent.

Tatsuo nodded in the affirmative before turning and exiting the tent. Once outside, he began to follow the lights to the cavern edge where several anchors had been drilled into the earth with ropes attached and coiled up on the edge. Tatsuo stood out on the cliff edge and stared out into the dark for a moment, trying to glimpse something, anything but found nothing. Guess this is where it'd be hairy. He grabbed one of the ropes and began to secure it to himself before giving it a sharp tug and finding it satisfactory. "Once you guys are ready, we'll descend."

SpoilerShow

Text from top to bottom:

• Iwagakure Catacombs (burial grounds)
• Undiscovered portion of the Catacombs, what is being explored
• Base case/FoB
• Where we are
• Spider's Nest
• Bottom of cavern, stone forest. Giant rats, roaches

[Yura]

Mitsuo didn't like the feeling that this cavern area gave off. While there were certainly more people here, the whole thing was giving him flashbacks to his unsanctioned mission with Kotaru only a few weeks prior. "Pretty sure you just jinxed it, Kota" Mitsuo replied. He found himself looking all over the 'base camp' at the various people walking about, talking to each other about various aspects of their work. Clearly this whole thing was much more serious or involved than the village had been letting on. He followed Tatsuo towards the tent and merely stood there as the shinobi in charge, this Hibiki guy, gave them their instructions and sent them off to begin the mission. Mitsuo wanted to ask a bunch of questions for the sake of gaining all available information, but it was clear by the way that the older shinobi had acted that there was no room for discussion. They were merely here to do a job and that was it.

Walking over to the edge of the cavern, Mitsuo gave a quick glance over the edge and pulled back when it was clear that there was no bottom in sight. For the second time in a month, he was going to be descending into a lightless area filled with potential danger that he and his teammates knew nothing about. Taking one of the ropes, Mitsuo latched it to himself and ensured that it was secure before reaching into his pack and removing a flare stick and placing it in his belt pouch. Clearly, once they reached the bottom (in there was a bottom) they were going to need some light and he didn't want to be blindly reaching into his back to try and find it. "I'm ready whenever I suppose."

[Kao]

"Straightforward, that one," Kotaru muttered when they were out of the tent. He was a bit more flexible than Mitsuo when it came to engaging in a mission without knowing all the details, but this was a bit much. When he and Mitsuo had ventured to northern Rock Country in search of Kotaru's precious stone, the genin knew at least knew most of what they were getting themselves into. But now they were going in completely blind. He had been excited when they first entered the catacombs, but with almost no information about what was down there he wasn't sure that it was a good idea to send the three of them alone.

"Two squads go missing, so send in another one with no search and rescue experience and zero information," he grumbled as he secured himself with the rope. "Smart. Our superiors are so smart." He snapped a flare so that it would light and then held it in his hand as best he could. Then, with a loud sigh, "Let's go then," and he began to descend.

Soon the only light the trio had were what little came from the flares. Darkness pressed in all around them as they rappelled down and the air became more stifling and stale. After several minutes they came across an opening in the cliff face and, since he was a bit further down than the other two, Kotaru was the first to feel the sudden absence of rock. He gasped as he nearly lost his footing and almost dropped his flare, but managed to hold on to it. "Guys," he said as he held out the flare to illuminate the opening. "There's some kind of landing here."

[Niro]

Tatsuo was in the middle of the two other shinobi, their flares lighting the way and making it so he could focus on just rappelling down the side of the cliff face. "I mean...can you blame them? I don't think they even know what lies down here. No other team has made it back...which doesn't bode well for us." Tatsuo replied grimly as he slid down slowly. The darkness surrounding them was suffocating, almost like it was an ocean of black pressing down on them from all sides. He was not usually scared of the dark but this kind of darkness was...horrifying. There was nothing to be seen, nothing to be found. It seemed like an endless abyss so far and they only had so much rope before they'd be forced to engage in using chakra to descend and even then, who knew if they possessed enough chakra to even reach the bottom? They had no idea how far down this cavern went.

Tatsuo's frown stayed on his face as Kotaru found an opening in the cliff face. This was the first bit of information they had discovered and the fact the commander had not told them about it meant this was the first discovery any one from Iwa had currently made. "Let's take a break for a minute, get our bearings." Tatsuo commented as he descended onto the lip of the opening before stepping farther into to avoid falling backwards into the darkness. He pulled a flare of his own from his backpack before activating it and holding it in his hand. He detached himself from the rope and let it hang over the opening before he began to walk deeper into the opening.

The air inside was humid and the walls of the cavern were damp. Small little pockets of water littered the side of the cave and Tatsuo grew curious as he explored even more. His gaze on the ground, he walked into...something and grunted when he found he couldn't easily remove his arm. He looked up and found himself entrapped within a giant spider's web, spanning the entirety of the cave width and height. Try as he may, his arm was not coming loose without a fight.

Tktktktktktktkt

His eyes widened as he heard the faint, approaching sound of...something in the darkness.

"Guys! Get me the hell out of this web, NOW!" He shouted as he dropped his flare and began to use his other arm in an attempt to free himself.

[Yura]

Mitsuo turned away from the edge of the caverns as Tatsuo called out for help. "The mission literally just started." He said with a sigh as he slowly walked towards his friend, "What kind of trouble could you possi-"

Tktktktktktktkt

Mitsuo froze. While it was faint, the sound was growing louderand it reminded him of the sounds he had heard when he and Kota had explored the spirit caverns on their last mission. Rushing towards Tatsuo, Mitsuo removed his dagger from its sheath on his belt, upon realizing that he was trapped in a web, and began slicing at the thin silky ropes. The sound was louder which meant that it was getting closer.

Tktktktktktktkttktktktktktktkttktktktktktktkt

These webs, he thought, combined with that 'tktktk' sound, means...

"Spiders" He said with an astonished whisper just as the head of the first creature was appeared in the light of the flare that Tatsuo had dropped which had rolled further down the cavern. In the light it was clear: Large, dog sized spiders.

"SPIDERS!" He shouted, forgoing the rest of the cutting and merely grabbing Tatsuo by the shirt and yanking from him the web. Given the amount that he had already cut, the rest of the web strands broke free as he'gently' tossing Tatsuo back towards the cavern entrance and threw his dagger into the ground.

Quickly performing handseals, Mitsuo flooded the ground several meters ahead of him with youton, causing a 5mx5m area to transform into a pool of lava as a hoard of the creatures became clearly visible in the light of the flare. As several of the creatures 'ran' into the lava, they began letting out a high pitched wail as they began to melt, their bodies burning in the flame. Watching their fellow creatures burn in the lava, the rest of the hoard took to the walls, avoiding the lava that Mitsuo had just put down.

Shitshitshit Mitsuo cursed to himself as he retreated back, grabbing his dagger in the process.

"Kota!" He called out, "Light 'em up!"

JutsuShow

*Youton • Quagmire
C-rank Ninjutsu
After performing a string of handseals, the user focuses on a 5x5m area within 15m of their body. Lava then forms on the ground over the area. This jutsu causes 2nd degree burns. The lava hardens over the span of 4 posts, reducing the strength of objects by 1 strength per post.

[Kao]

Kotaru was looking over the edge of the cliff face into the pure darkness, wondering what kind of beasts and spirits were waiting for them below. He distractedly listened to his friends' exchange, and had turned his head slightly just in time to see Tatsuo freak out about the giant spider web he had gotten himself caught in. Before he could properly react, Mitsuo was already helping him out and the fallen flare illuminated just how big their problem was.

Tktktktktktktktktktktktktktktktktktk

"Whoa!" A pack of huge spiders came skittering towards them. His turned his head to make sure Tatsuo wasn't thrown too far and over the ledge while simultaneously forming several hand seals. The spiders screamed - screamed - because of Mitsuo's jutsu and the sound sent a shiver through his body. "Already on it!" Kotaru clenched his hands into claws and held them in front of him and two twin, swirling jets of flames erupted from his palms. The flames twisted around the narrow tunnel, reaching the spiders that had taken to the walls and ceiling. More arachnid screaming filled the boy's ears and he backed towards the end of the passageway, flames still streaming from his hands.

"Now's a good time to start heading back down!" he yelled over his shoulder. The jutsu wasn't going to last long but he was holding them back. He lingered behind to ensure he was sure his friends made it to safety before the flames ran out.

JutsuShow

Twin Spirals
C-Ranked Ninjutsu
After performing the needed hand seals, Kotaru clenches his hands into claws and holds them in front of his body. A swirling jet of flames will erupt from each hand, traveling at a speed of 12 and hitting with a strength of 8. The flames move in a spiral pattern with a diameter of up to 10 feet, though this can be adjusted plus or minus one foot per 2 points of control. This justu lasts up to two posts.

[Niro]

Tatsuo flew back as Mitsuo ripped him from the spider web and began his assault on the small horde rushing forth from the cave. He grunted as he came to a stop and used Kotaru's shoulder to help him up. The pool of Youton and the blast of Katon were doing the trick in repelling the spiders and as they continued to run forward in an attempt to capture their prey. Eventually, the small horde thinned and decided there was too much resistance for spiders of their own size to overpower. The wave of spiders retreated, the bodies of their burnt and charred brethren lining the floor of the cave.

"What the fuck? Those things were HUGE for spiders. This is crazy." Tatsuo called out. "We can't leave here yet, what if the previous teams are deeper within the cave? We have to go in deeper and find out for sure before we continue going down."

Tatsuo channeled chakra through his multiple shiin. His melashiin and temershiin inflated from the base of his spine, the multiple thin dark violet tendrils lazily in the air and the thicker, larger single tendril of his temershiin following suit. His lacrishiin spread from his throat down to the rest of his body, leaving his head uncover. He had decided to not call upon his astrashiin, the reduced vision wouldn't help in a place with little light such as this.

"I'll take point so you two don't get swarmed by 'em and bit. Hopefully they can't puncture my lacrishiin." Tatsuo commented as he pulled out two flares from his pack, cracked them to activate, and took a hold of them with two of the four tendrils of his melashiin, each wrapping tightly around the flare and stretching to their max distance in front of his body. "I don't have any Katon jutsu to keep them away so you two will be on burn duty if...when we find more."

SpoilerShow

~Basic Formation: Melashiin
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
Type: Melashiin
Channeling chakra to their shiin, they cause it to inflate, fully forming into its full glory. Taking the shape of a long fleshy protrusion, the melashiin is able to recover at double the rate of a normal body part would. The strength and durability of a melashiiin are equal to 3/4ths of the user's strength and stamina.

~Basic Formation: Temershiin
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
Type: Temershiin
Channeling chakra to their shiin, they cause it to inflate, fully forming into its full glory. The temershiin takes the shape of a wide and powerful tail. The strength and durability of a temershiin are equal to the user's strength and stamina.

~Basic Formation: Lacrishiin
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
Type: Lacrishiin
Channeling chakra to their shiin, they cause it to inflate, fully forming into its full glory. Taking the form of an almost opaque glass armor, the lacrishiin almost completely covers the user's body. As a pseudoarmor, the lacrishin has no inherent strength, but has a stamina equal to the Akari's stamina+3, while causing the Akari to move at 3 less speed.

[Yura]

The smell of burning arachnids filled the air as Kota's flames and Mitsuo's lava continued to roast the spiders that had begun to charge at them. After a certain point it seemed like the spiders had suddenly realized that they were outmatched and retreated further down the tunnel, much to Mitsuo's relief.

"He's right, Kota." He sighed, groaning internally at the thought of exploring deeper into the cave. It wasn't going to end well, plain and simple, and Mitsuo knew it. Based on the last time, the creatures that they encountered were likely to get stronger the deeper that they pressed into the cavern, but at the end of the day they had been given a mission and they were going to see it through. "If those people are alive, someone's going to have to save them."

Once Tatsuo finished arming himself with his various shiin, Mitsuo lit a flare of his own and waved Kota on ahead of him, intending to bring up the rear of the group should anything suddenly appear behind them. "Everyone remember to step around the bubbling hot lava." Mitsuo said as the approached the area filled with the corpses of burned and melted spiders.

[Kao]

"So you're saying," Kotaru started as he closed his fist so that the flames dispersed, "you want us to go into the cave of giant spiders on the off chance that we find someone alive?" The genin groaned; he was almost positive that they wouldn't find anyone alive in there, but they had their orders and being the lowest ranked shinobi out of the three of them guaranteed that his opinion didn't matter much. Resigned to their possible fate of being drained of their innards by giant spiders, the boy manifested his melashiin. The tendrils twisted behind in and wrapped around each other and then coiled close to the boy's body so they would take up less room in the narrow passageway.

He gestured forward, indicating that he was absolutely not going first. "After you." It was good that they now knew katon and youton techniques were useful against the spiders, but Kotaru was worried at how much use he could be. Katon wasn't his strong point but he would have to do everything in his power to keep the spiders at bay while he and his teammates looked for any survivors.

JutsuShow

~Basic Formation: Melashiin
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
Type: Melashiin
Channeling chakra to their shiin, they cause it to inflate, fully forming into its full glory. Taking the shape of a long fleshy protrusion, the melashiin is able to recover at double the rate of a normal body part would. The strength and durability of a melashiiin are equal to 3/4ths of the user's strength and stamina.

[Niro]

"Even if they aren't alive, we still need to confirm it they're no longer among the living and what exactly did it. If we're right and they did come into here...then at least we know WHAT did it." Tatsuo replied as he inched his way deeper into the cave.

The cave itself was wide, maybe 15 or so feet across with a similar height. As they pushed past the charred corpses of arachnids and continued on, several spider webs were spun against the walls and across the cave itself. Tatsuo drew out two kunai from his leg pouch and began to lightly slash against the webs until they broke apart and gave them passage. He tried his best to be gentle with the web, knowing from his little knowledge of spiders that those above ground used the vibrations along the web to know when prey was caught. The chuunin hoped his light cutting would be enough to mimic a breeze but not enough to signify any prey being caught.

The idea of prey paused Tatsuo for a moment. What...exactly did giant spiders feast on? How did they get this big in the first place? The idea was enough to send a chill down as spine as he continued leading them deeper into the cave. The flares hissed in his hands as he rounded a corner and his eyes widened at what they saw.

The cave opened up into a large pit in the ground, double the size of the cave width and reaching thirty or so feet across. Lined against the pit walls was a giant, continuous mass of spider webbing that also ran up the wall and covered even the ceiling in its silk. Giant holes covered the upper walls of the chamber being the only place the webbing did not cover. Cocoons of varying sizes lined the walls up to the ceiling where one coccoon hung down in the middle of the pit. Tatsuo scanned the pit for spiders and...surprisingly found none. He eyed the holes in the wall suspiciously as he set down one flare with his melashiin.

"Stay here." He whispered to Kotaru and Mitsuo as he gently crept down the side of the pit to the first cocoon which was vaguely human shaped. Tatsuo began to slash at the cocoon and his blood ran cold from what he uncovered. The body wrapped up in the spiders silk was drained dry of its fluids yet an Iwagakure headband adorned the head. "Shit." He cursed as he grabbed the head band off the body and crawled back up the pit to the ledge where he left Kotaru and Mitsuo.

"Spiders definitely got 'em, look at this." Tatsuo told the two as he held out the head band.

"He....lp....me..." A weak voice called out and Tatsuo spun around, his eyes locking onto the cocoon hanging in the middle of the room. The person inside began to struggle and within seconds, something erupted from one of the holes in the upper wall, landing on the cocoon and dragging it down to the bottom of the pit.

Tatsuo's eyes went wide as their flares lit up the space enough for them to see what it was. It was a giant spider, taller than most men and standing at roughly twelve feet tall. The giant black spider reared up on its back legs before letting out a deafening screech which caused Tatsuo to bring his hands to his ears. Two more similarly large spiders emerged from the holes in the wall but one opted to stay along the walls and one on the ceiling. A loud thud was heard behind them, inside the tunnel from which they entered, and Tatsuo turned his head to find another similarly sized spider now within it about 30 feet into the tunnel. Each bared their fangs at the surrounded group of shinobi and began to close in, ready for their next meal.

"We're gonna have to fight..." Tatsuo spoke aloud to his team mates as he dropped the second flare and readied his shiin for the confrontation.

[Yura]

Mitsuo walked carefully behind both Tats and Kota, following their path exactly and being sure not to disturb the various webs anymore than Tats already had by cutting them. If he had to wager a guess, it was Tats getting stuck in that first web that had drawn the horde of spiders to their location before which meant further disturbance would bring them running once again. Remaining hyper-vigilante, Mitsuo constantly looked back in the direction that they had come to ensure that they weren't being followed by any creatures that may have been hiding. The last thing they needed was to be ambushed on both sides by them.

As they reached the cavern, Mitsuo heeded Tatsuo's suggestion as he waited at the top of the pit while his teammate descended into it. Standing guard and watching the tunnel, Mitsuo turned when he heard Tatsuo quietly curse only to see him holding a headband emblazoned with the crest of Iwagakure. "Damn." Mitsuo mumbled quietly. Truthfully, he had been expecting this outcome, but that didn't make accepting it any easier. This could have been them. This could have been himself, Kota and Tats had they not fought back well enough. In fact, if could still be them if they didn't get out of these caverns. "We need to report this t-"

"He....lp....me..."

Mitsuo's head snapped towards the sudden voice just in time to watch as an impossibly large spider latched on to the cocoon holding what appeared to be one of the missing shinobi and drag him away screaming. Heart pumping, Mitsuo watched as multiple similarly large spiders began to descend from above while the first let out an ear piercing scream. Hearing a large thud behind them, Mitsuo spun to find yet another similarly sized spider starring them down from the tunnel.

Shit.

"Help Tats!" Mitsuo 'ordered' as he began to advance on the spider in the tunnel. From what he could tell, this tunnel was their only way out which meant that this spider was the primary one that they needed to defeat. Unfortunately, Mitsuo couldn't exactly do what he had done to the spiders earlier and create a pool of lava to trap it in as the tunnel here was a bit narrower. If he created the same pool of lava, there would be no room left for them to run unless they took to the walls. So instead, he was going to have to combat it directly. Forming handseals as he moved, Mitsuo flowed youton chakra into his right hand, forming a solid call of lava. With a twist of the hips, Mitsuo threw the lava ball at the spider, only for it to lunge to the side, dodging the attack completely. The movement surprised Mitsuo as he realized that while the creature may be large, it was also fast. As if confirming this observation, the spider suddenly lunged in his direction with it's fangs barred. Realizing that it was moving too fast for him to adequately dodge, Mitsuo performed a few quick seals and flowed doton chakra into his arms, forming a manica of stone over them just as the spider was a mere few feet away.

Bringing his arms up quickly, the spider's fangs impacted Mitsuo's manica, the force of it sending him flying backwards. Landing on his back, Mitsuo used the momentum to roll backwards, coming up into a crouch and then leaping backwards to give him more distance. Glancing down at the manica on his forearms, he found that while one was cracked in several places, the other had portions of it completely missing, indicating that the spider had considerable strength.

I'm gonna need a new plan.

JutsuShow

*Doton • Manica
C-Rank Ninjutsu
By channeling doton chakra into their arm, the user will form rock from their shoulder downward, encasing their forearm and hand in rough and simplistic layered plates of stone. The stone passes over the hand on the back-side but leaves the palm-side uncovered allowing full dexterity of the hand for seals. This essentially resembles a manica, which is a segmented armor that spans the length of the arm. The armor has a strength of 15 and forms at a speed of 5.

*Doton • Manica
C-Rank Ninjutsu
By channeling doton chakra into their arm, the user will form rock from their shoulder downward, encasing their forearm and hand in rough and simplistic layered plates of stone. The stone passes over the hand on the back-side but leaves the palm-side uncovered allowing full dexterity of the hand for seals. This essentially resembles a manica, which is a segmented armor that spans the length of the arm. The armor has a strength of 15 and forms at a speed of 5.

[Kao]

Kotaru stood silently at Tatsuo went up ahead to investigate the pit and the cocoons. If those cocoons were the squads that went before them, there was no way they were still alive. His suspicions were seemingly confirmed when Tatsuo returned with an Iwagakure headband. The boy sighed, unaffected by the realization. It was unsurprising that their fellow shinobi didn't make it, especially after seeing the giant spiders. Kotaru shrugged callously and gave his best I told you so face and was beginning to turn back to the tunnel when he heard a tiny voice from a cocoon.

"He....lp....me..."

And soon enough, the trio were faced with four giant spiders, much bigger than the ones from before. They were in for a fight, one that Kotaru felt could have probably been avoided. Kotaru's head whirled to Mitsuo after the order, but there was no time to protest. The spider that kept to the wall set its many eyes on him, and it screeched as it started to rush him.

"Oh, fuck!" Kotaru shouted as he formed hand seals as fast as he could. When he finished, two fire clones appeared on either side of him, and he quickly grabbed one around the waist with one of his melashiin tendrils and the clone leaned forward and grabbed its knees and tucked its head down. With a mighty yell, the genin spun around once and then threw the clone toward the spider. As he hoped, the spider reared back and pierced the clone with its jaws, and as soon at it did the clone exploded in its face.

Behind him, Mitsuo had been sent flying back and Kotaru looked in his direction just in time to see his friend roll into a crouch. "Don't die, you idiot!" the genin screamed. He grabbed the second fire clone with a tendril and prepared himself for another attack.

JutsuShow

(x2) *Katon • Flame's Shadow
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
After performing the correct hand seals, the user will create a copy of themselves out of katon chakra. The clone will be able to move with the stats labelled below, while also exploding with the force of a single exploding tag upon death into a burst of flames. The clone will only last for 3 posts.
Taijutsu: 2
Stamina: 1
Strength: 1
Speed: 2

[Niro]

'Three in front and one in the rear...This isn't the most ideal situation. You can't bring the roof down on these ones like in the shacks, Tats. Both Mits and Kota are here and above us somewhere is the base camp. Dropping the ceiling on 'em might cause the entire cliff face to have some sort of chain reaction and kill a lot more people than you intend...Okay, gonna have to stick to taijutsu, Kouton, and the smaller Raiton.' Tatsuo thought to himself as he watched the spiders begin their advance.

Mitsuo begun engaging the single spider behind them and Tatsuo really hoped he would be enough. Kotaru would be with him for the upcoming assault as Kotaru began sealing, Tatsuo followed. His long string of seals finished and instantly afterwards, liquid metal spread across his mela and temershiin, turning them into metal monstrosities. The living weapons attached to his body spread out wide as Kotaru launched the clone at the spider. It impacted against the first and with a bite, popped the clone causing it to explode. Tatsuo took the moment to dash in, shiin at the ready.

The spider that Kotaru had flung the clone at screeched as the flames licked at it but there was little lasting damage. Its carapace was too tough for something as simple as a single tag to damage it and Tatsuo grit his teeth as he came within striking distances. The arachnid reared up on its back most legs before crashing down on Tatsuo, intent on piercing him with its legs and then making him into a meal. The shinobi had other plans however.

His melashiin wrapped around the spiders own legs and his temershiin blocked the last two appendages that came aiming for his chest. Tatsuo grunted as he held his ground before letting loose a roar of frustration and throwing the spider backwards and into the pit. It landed on its back and scrambled for a moment before being able to right itself while the second spider which had appeared from the opening rushed forward to take his place. The massive spider struck forward with its fangs and Tatsuo coiled his shiin in front of him to block, the strength of the impact being enough to send him skidding back to Kotaru.

"Damn...these guys are tough." He muttered before glancing behind him at Mitsuo. "Hang in there!" Tatsuo called before looking at the three spiders advancing on them from the front. "...I need a few seconds of time. Can you do that? If you can, once I call to you, jump as far as you can backwards and I'll catch you." Tatsuo half-asked as he began to seal.

'Maybe just a wall...'

SpoilerShow

Kouton • Titanium Spears
B-Ranked Ninjutsu
After performing the correct hand seals, the user will coat their Melashiin in a silvery metal. This hardens their Melashiin considerably, allowing them to strike and fight with it as if they had +9 strength. The metal causes their Melashiin to become less dextrous, however, and reduces their taijutsu by 9.

Kouton • Titanium Lance
B-Ranked Ninjutsu
After performing the correct hand seals, the user will coat their Temershiin in a silvery metal. This hardens their Temershiin considerably, allowing them to strike and fight with it as if they had +9 strength. The metal causes their Temershiin to become heavier, however, and reduces their speed by 9.

[Yura]

Defending himself against yet another lunge from the giant spider, Mitsuo was somewhat oblivious to the actions of his teammates behind him, giving all of his attention to the creature in front of him. Narrowly dodging several of the spider's attacks, Mitsuo realized that while he was landing some solid counter blows, he was slowly losing ground. If this kept up, he and the others were going to find themselves surrounded with no way to escape and very little room to move. If they had any chance of escaping, Mitsuo was going to have to defeat the spider in front of him as it was blocking the only exit from the cavern.

Mitsuo's biggest issues when fighting the spider were its surprising speed and considerable strength. Anytime he tried to launch some sort of ranged attack, whether it was a ninja tool or a jutsu, the spider was able to dodge the attack either entirely or in part and then close the distance. If he was just able to eliminate the creature's mobility, he was confident that he would be able to finish it off. Formulating a plan, Mitsuo leapt backwards while performing handseals, slamming his hands into the ground as he landed. A few meters in front of him, the ground erupted as three chained blades burst from the earth, charging at the spider. Approaching it from three different angles, the creature didn't know how to dodge, screeching as the chains coiled around it and staked into the ground to pin it down. Knowing that he now had an opening, Mitsuo began performing handseals, flowing youton chakra into his right hand to form a ball of lava. Throwing the ball as hard as he could, it impacted the spider right between the eyes, bursting with enough force to recoil the creature backwards a bit and spread molten lava all over the creature's front half. Almost immediately the spider began to screech, its body audibly searing from Mitsuo's attack, as it writhed around, still chained up. After several moments, the creature went limp and the screeching stopped, its face essentially melted.

With a sigh of relief, Mitsuo turned back towards his teammates to see two more of the creatures advancing on their position. What are the chances that there are more than just these four? he thought to himself. They needed to escape and it seemed that Tatsuo atleast had a plan for that. "I've got it!" Mitsuo called out in response to Tatsuo's plea for time. Rushing forward, Mitsuo began performing a string of handseals before flooding the ground with youton chakra once he approached his teammates. Several meters in front of ahead, between them and the spiders, an expansive pool of lava began to form, catching one of the spider's feet and causing it to screech as it retreated back away from the lava. Hopefully this would give Tatsuo the time he needed.

JutsuShow

*Kouton • Lock Down
B-Ranked Ninjutsu
After performing the required hand seals, the user will kneel down and place their hands on the ground. Then, three chains with 50cm long blades at the end will burst from the ground toward a target at 20 speed. They will bind the target with 20 strength and attempt to either stake them into the ground or impale them upon the blades in the end of the chains. These chains remain taut and strong for 5 posts.

*Youton • Improved Lava Bomb
C-rank Ninjutsu
After performing a string of handseals, the user will form a sphere of lava the size of a tennis ball in one hand. The sphere can be thrown and explodes on impact, with a blast radius of 2x2x2m and a strength of 10. This jutsu causes 2nd degree burns. The lava hardens over the span of 4 posts, reducing the strength of impacted objects by 2 strength per post.

*Youton • Quagmire
C-rank Ninjutsu
After performing a string of handseals, the user focuses on a 5x5m area within 15m of their body. Lava then forms on the ground over the area. This jutsu causes 2nd degree burns. The lava hardens over the span of 4 posts, reducing the strength of objects by 1 strength per post.

[Kao]

As Tatsuo sent the first spider flying back into the pit, Kotaru's head whipped to the one that was rushing forward to take its place. He flew through hand seals and bared his teeth when his cousin was hit and pushed backward to the genin's position. With his cousin out of harm's way for the time being, Kotaru thrust his hands forward, one above the other, and two twisting spirals of flames erupted from his palms. Due to the positioning of Kotaru's hands, they were so close together that the flames almost spiraled into one giant swirling column. Unlike in the tunnel, these flames were wider, controlled to cover a greater area so that the spider's entire body would be blocked by the fire. The spider screeched and moved backward and tried to step to the side outside of the flames, but Kotaru moved his left hand to follow its movements and keep it at bay.

Then, he felt an urgent tap on his shoulder. The genin looked behind him to see that it came from his clone, still wrapped in his melashiin and ready for its suicide mission. It gestured toward the third spider that was quickly coming toward them from the right. "Heads up!" he screamed as he reared his melashiin back and then slung the clone toward the third spider. His aim was slightly off, so instead of hitting the spider in the face the clone landed on the ground just in front of its giant, hairy spider foot. The beast stepped on the clone, detonating it, and the force of the blast blew off chunks of the spider's leg. Unfortunately it barely slowed down and Kotaru was forced to swing his right arm towards it to catch it in his flames.

By that time Mitsuo was at his side forming seals and soon after a pool of lava formed at the spider's feet. Kotaru didn't let up, but he took several steps backward to give Tatsuo room and he would keep the flames going until he was ordered otherwise.

Jutsu UsedShow

Twin Spirals
C-Ranked Ninjutsu
Pre-requisite: 12 Control
After performing the needed hand seals, Kotaru clenches his hands into claws and holds them in front of his body. A swirling jet of flames will erupt from each hand, traveling at a speed of 12 and hitting with a strength of 8. The flames move in a spiral pattern with a diameter of up to 10 feet, though this can be adjusted plus or minus one foot per 2 points of control up to a maximum of 15 feet. This justu lasts up to two posts.

[Niro]

The giant spider Mitsuo had staked to the ground and then poured molten rock on had no chance. Its body went limp as it died on the spot, blocking a decent portion of the caves width but just enough for them to shimmy past for when they left. The other three spiders screeched and retreated just out of the range of the flames spewing from Kotaru's hands, not willing to let themselves catch fire and die to their meal. The exploding clone proved futile with only the cones of flame being enough to hold back the incoming monstrosities.

Mitsuo's intervention in to the fight in the back of the tunnel was much welcomed. It provided Tatsuo with plenty of time to finish his plan with the lake of lava being enough to dissuade the spiders from advancing any further. Tatsuo grit his teeth as he finished sealing and building his chakra. "Get back!" He yelled out to Kotaru, his melashiin spreading out wide and waiting for the boy to jump back so that they could catch him and place him on the ground once he was safe. The second he was clear of the danger of both the spiders and his own jutsu, Tatsuo thrust out a hand and a beam of Raiton lanced forward from it. He had wanted to limit himself to Kouton or Taijutsu within the tunnel but with the size of the enemies and their numbers it wouldn't be possible to win by limiting his arsenal. The chuunin knew he needed to take a chance to win and a solemn look came over his face as the beam impacted the first spider at the joint where the cephalothorax connected to the leg, tearing off four of its eight legs and continuing through to the second spider where it exploded with enough force to blow its body in half and send the third spider reeling back in surprise.

"Finish 'em off!" Tatsuo barked as he used the damage caused to begin sealing a second time before kneeling down and slapping his hands against the tunnel floor, three chains of Kouton, like the jutsu Mitsuo used earlier, lanced forward into the pit, aiming to slice through the remaining bits of the giant spiders so that they could finally retreat and continue their exploration of the cavern below.

SpoilerShow

*Raiton • Thunderous Lightning Cannon
B-ranked Raiton Jutsu
After performing the correct hand seals, a beam of lightning will erupt from the user's hand. The lightning will travel 50m at 20 speed and explode with the force of 4 explosive tags on contact, while applying the Raiton shocking effect throughout the explosion's area.

*Kouton • Lock Down
B-Ranked Ninjutsu
After performing the required hand seals, the user will kneel down and place their hands on the ground. Then, three chains with 50cm long blades at the end will burst from the ground toward a target at 20 speed. They will bind the target with 20 strength and attempt to either stake them into the ground or impale them upon the blades in the end of the chains. These chains remain taut and strong for 5 posts.

[Yura]

Mitsuo wasted no time launching into an attack once Tatsuo’s bean stopped firing. The raiton blast has done significant damage to all three of the spiders in the pit, seemingly disabling one while killing another and damaging the third. Stunned and disabled, the final two spiders should (hopefully) be easy targets.

Performing hand seals, Mitsuo flowed chakra into both of his hands, forming a ball of liquid lava in each. Being at the top of the pit, Mitsuo had an advantage over the creatures as if gave him a better vantage point. Watching as Tatsuo’s chain blades pierced through the body and face of the first spider, Mitsuo focused his attention on the third spider as it tried to right itself after being struck by the earlier attack. Much like he had done with the other spider, Mitsuo threw both of the lava spheres in his possession, first the right then the left, straight at the third spider. While the first orb hit the spider in the side near the top of one of its legs, the second one struck the creature in the face causing it to screech much like the other spider had done before eventually going limp.

With both of the final spiders defeated (one skewered (one melted), Mitsuo breathed a sigh of relief. “Hopefully that’s the last of them.”

JutsuShow

2x

*Youton • Improved Lava Bomb
C-rank Ninjutsu
After performing a string of handseals, the user will form a sphere of lava the size of a tennis ball in one hand. The sphere can be thrown and explodes on impact, with a blast radius of 2x2x2m and a strength of 10. This jutsu causes 2nd degree burns. The lava hardens over the span of 4 posts, reducing the strength of impacted objects by 2 strength per post.

[Kao]

Kotaru watched from a safe distance as Mitsuo and Tatsuo handled the last of the spiders. He watched in awe as their effective teamwork destroyed the creatures, and when the final spider went down he sighed in relief. Their venture into the tunnel could have ended very, very badly but thankfully they were able to work together and live another day. That was more than they could say for the team that had come before them. "Nice," he said simply to each of his teammates. He looked around and admired their handiwork then glanced around the cavern to confirm that that was the last of them.

As he looked around he continued, "Now that we know one team is dead, let's go f...i...uh...." the genin trailed off when his gaze turned to the ceiling of the cavern. At first he thought there was some dark rock formation above them. But rocks don't typically move. The entire ceiling seemed to squirm and shift above them and an impossibly low hiss resounded in the cavern. Backing up so slowly that he might as well have not been moving, the young Akari whispered, "Guys...we have...a big fucking problem...."

[Niro]

Before the last spider died, it let out an ear piercing screech that reverberated off of the walls of the pit. Tatsuo brought his hands to his ears again due to the noise and his eyes widened as the entire pit began to rumble. Was this his doing from the Raiton? His question was soon answered as several boulders began falling from the roof of the pit, crashing onto the bodies of the giant spiders below and turning them into spider-paste.

The cause of the rumbling was soon discovered as the ceiling of the pit seemed to open up and something else came into view. From the new opening in the cavern, an absolutely mammoth spider head appeared. The head itself was double the size of the spiders they had just fought and as the creature began to struggle through the hole in the ceiling, Tatsuo was able to get a glimpse at just how big the spider was. Its head took up the majority of the space in the area, its eight eyes swirling around and locking onto the group of shinobi in the tunnel. The fangs attached to its head were easily twice the size of Tatsuo and the creature itself was so big it couldn't fit more than two legs into the pit. The two legs that were able to free themselves from the hole in the ceiling were now placed on the walls of the cavern and doing their best to haul the rest of its body out of the space.

Tatsuo's jaw hung slack at the sight even with rocks falling from the roof of the cavern. The displaced rocks were nothing to the carapace of the spider as they just shattered upon contact or rolled off with no damage done.

"We..we gotta move. I thought those were big but this...this is something else altogether." He called out to his team mates, his head turning on a swivel as he took in the destruction. Tatsuo grabbed both of his team mates by the shoulders and turned them around before taking off down the tunnel and to the spider body half blocking their escape. "Go!" He called out, ushering the two team mates past the body before he himself scrambled past it and ran as fast he could down the tunnel.

The three scrambled their way down the tunnel and past the webs filling it and eventually they had ran far enough from the pit that they could no longer feel the tremors in the earth from the ginormous entity that lived within the bowels of the cliff side. Tatsuo reached the mouth of the tunnel and grabbed his rope, securing it to his person and awaited his team mates to do the same before exiting the cave and continuing the descent into the dark below, this time with the headband of the previous Iwagakure ninja which had perished in his pouch.