[Plotboard] Eh, You'll Do.

[Sanjuro]

Kazuo frowned, staring at the report in front of him. He never wanted this kind of job, looking over papers and managing the ins and outs of the Sekkoutai, but ever since Rai had retired from Mamorinuku it fell on his shoulders. Most days he palmed it off on someone else but today he had been conned right back. One of the reports had caught his attention. One of the outposts that served as a first warning system had missed their check-in three times already. Technically something like this would fall under the preview of the Katameru folk, but since it was originally an outpost established by the Sekkoutai just outside of the forest surrounding Konoha, the report got sent to him.

What a freakin' pain in the ass.

Grabbing his coat, he pulled it over his shoulders and snapped his fingers. Koji awoke from his nap in the corner of the room and followed his master, snarling about it the entire way. Poking his head into the barracks of his own division, Kazuo would look for whoever was available. "Oi, Gerudo, grab some gear. We've got a mission." Without waiting for a response, he went up another level and found the Katameru barracks. Spotting the rather… distinct visage of Inuzuka Masami, Kazuo grinned. "Oh dear sweet cousin of mine! I need someone from the Katameru to come with me on a mission, and you're it! Gear up kiddo and meet downstairs in five." Again, he didn't wait for a reply before heading back down stairs and waiting on the front entrance for his hastily prepared team to arrive.

[Rain21199]

The long drowning noise of metal scraping upon metal echoed through Zakuro's ears, putting him into an almost trance. His sword was already sharp, but there was nothing to do but sharpen it some more. When he accepted Shikari's offer to join Mamorinuku, he thought that he would be going out and kicking some ass. He was going to be making a difference and actually doing something as a shinobi, but the reality was much more cruel. The job was boring as hell. The only thing that Zakuro had done since he got the job was do some of Kazuo's crappy paperwork and take a stroll around the wall a few times. That was literally it. Otherwise he just sits around waiting for instructions or gets sent home early. Of course, with a job like this, boring was good. It meant nobody was threatening the village which really was a plus, but it wasn't why Zakuro became a shinobi in the first place. He came to destroy those that would do harm to the village. He wanted to go out there and take down anyone that was a threat.

Suddenly Kazuo came rushing out of his office and shouted directions to the Chuunin. He broke out of his dream like state, and listened up to what he had to say. Mission huh? Seeing the Inuzaka this worked up could mean something interesting was happening. Then again, he could be just as eager to get out of this stuff building as Zakuro was. Curious, Zakuro strapped on what few pieces of equipment he had, threw on his jacket, and headed up the stairs. All he heard was Kazuo giving the same command to gear up to Masami and then he hurried back down the stairs before Zakuro even made it to the top. Turning around, Zakuro kept up the same pace as his commander. He knew that Kazuo was one who liked to keep to himself, so Zakuro kept quite, even though he was dying to know what was happening and where they were going.

[Kabu]

Masami meanwhile had found herself a wide open space and been hard at work with her training, sweat flying off her body as she sent punches and kicks towards an imaginary target. She was beginning to feel as if maybe she had been falling too far behind and so had recently doubled her efforts. It was beginning to show too as she had begun to show a great degree of mastery over her Genma, albeit still not to an entirely satisfying level, and she had even improved her skills in Ninjutsu and Taijutsu as well as increasing her speed and strength levels exponentially. It still wasn't really good enough though.. especially if she really wanted to perform her duties to the fullest of her ability.

It seemed that today her training would be put on halt however as she suddenly heard the voice of her cousin Kazuo shouting towards her... Something about a mission? Well.. whatever it was, it was surely important and she wasn't about to turn down a request. Luckily no time was to be wasted as she carried her gear at pretty much all times so she simply dried off her sweat with a nearby towel and headed downstairs, to wherever Kazuo happened to be waiting for her.

[Sanjuro]

"Huh. You guys were quicker than I thought you'd be. Good, that's good." Kazuo turned to address his team. He didn't know Zakuro that well, despite working together for a little while now. Things had been quiet lately. As for Masami, he knew what she was. Knew from experience with Taiga how… volatile she could end up being. It was a risk to take her out a mission but at the same time, she was family. Offering a tight smile to the duo, he passed the report over to Zakuro to peruse. Though perhaps a lack of report would be a better term.

"We've got a dead outpost. No one has made contact in the last three weeks. It's not unusual for check-in's to be late, especially when it is quiet, but this one is only just outside the forest boundaries. We should have gotten even a simple 'No Activity' sometime in the last month." Kazuo scratched his chin and sighed. "Hopefully it's nothing. Just some kind of miscommunication between us and them. On the off chance it isn't, we need to go check it out." Clapping his hands together in front of him, Kazuo's lips curled back into a feral smile but the look in his eyes was deadly serious.

First, he regarded Zakuro. "This will be your first official mission as part of the Sekkoutai. Well, aside from general patrol but that isn't really a mission. You'll need to keep your wits about you. Traversing the forest is dangerous, even for us, but if you perform well, I'll try and throw a few more missions your way. I know how boring it can be in your first few weeks here, believe me."

Turning his attention to his Inuzuka cousin, Kazuo's feral grin sank a little as he regarded Masami. She had been training, working on her physical self, and while that was all well and good Kazuo had to know. "Are you going to be good here, Masami? Tell me now and be honest. If something does go down out there, I need to know I can rely on you." The emphasis he put on the word you wasn't hard to miss. He had dealt with Taiga losing control, he had met the Daigenma. He had no interest in meeting whatever shitty beast Masami played host to as well.

[Rain21199]

Zakuro didn't need to look down at the paper that was put in his hands. Kazuo said what was on it and more in a short few sentences. Damn! And here I thought there was an attack or... well anything. He the promise of more missions in the future kept the look of disappointment off of his face. Act professional Zakuro, he told himself. Its the only way to get out of this building and do something with your time. The Chuunin looked over at his teammate. He's seen her around but they've never actually spoken. He could tell she was just training because of the glare of sweat that reflected the light in the room. Zakuro couldn't help but wonder how good of a fighter she was. He knew Kazuo was skilled, but he had never seen this Masami girl in action. He looked forward to getting aquainted with another shinobi.

This was most likely the best time for an official introduction, so Zakuro turned towards the Inuzuka girl and stretched out a hand. He greeted her with a friendly smile, "I've seen you around, but I've never officially introduced myself. The name is Gerudo Zakuro. Its a pleasure." After the introduction was over, Zakuro turned back to Kazuo. "So, how long do you reckon it'll take for us to get there and about how many folk were stationed at the outpost? I just want to make a good guess as to what kind of force we can expect, on the off chance this is something serious." If it were a large number of shinobi, then either it was attacked by a mod or a group of extremely trained individuals, if the numbers were smaller, then there could be a much wider possibility of causes. Both of which didn't seem fun to Zakuro, but he was ready to kick some ass no matter what.

[Kabu]

So that was it.. an outpost hadn't been heard from in quite some time. Masami crossed her arms and furrowed her brow as she intently listened to Kazuo's explanation of the situation. She didn't know a great deal about the outposts but it was certainly odd... even if there had been some trouble, they would likely have at least sent a request for help, unless they couldn't.. This was a situation that only had two probable scenarios, at least that could come to mind right now. Best scenario it was likely a slip up.. but worst case was that the operators had been either captured or killed, perhaps both in some cases. She didn't want to think about it but she knew from personal experience that the worst case had to be given the most consideration but.. In any case those outposts were very important and they needed to absolutely do something about the situation now that it had escalated to the point of a personal visit.

She was then interrupted from her musings by Kazuo addressing her specifically, brow furrowing further and a frown forming on her face at the intense questioning and the realization that he knew.. she didn't know how he knew or how much he knew but he definitely knew about the Genma. In some ways it was a relief but.. was it causing him to have doubts about her? She couldn't really blame him but still it was a bit irksome to know that she wasn't fully trusted.. Nonetheless she couldn't be too mad, her expression loosening as she responded. "Honestly speaking.. At one point I would have said that I couldn't make that kind of declaration.. but now I can say without a doubt that yes, you can rely on me. I am fully confident in my ability to maintain control of myself." she said calmly and deliberately, looking directly towards Kazuo as she gave her most honest answer, one that while entirely honest, even surprised her to some degree.. it wasn't usual for her to have this degree of confidence in herself, but.. it was a good feeling.

It was at that moment that Zakuro addressed her and she turned towards him, taking his hand and shaking it a moment. "Likewise to you, I am Inuzuka Masami. she said to return the introduction before turning her attention back towards the situation at hand, chiming in with just one simple statement. "We should probably go in expecting the worst.

[Sanjuro]

Kazuo watched the doubt appear in Masami, the question as to why he knew about her status. It was one of the perks of being in command of a division responsible for the safety of the village, he got read in on certain things. It was how he had originally found out about Taiga as well. As she spoke, her confidence growing to the point that Kazuo could hear her heart beat steadying and he knew she believed she would be fine. His serious look quickly switched back to usual casual smile and he clapped her on her shoulders. "Awesome! I'm looking forward to seeing you in action. Is it wrong I'm kinda hopin' we run into at least a little trouble? Heh."

Splitting his attention between the two, he smiled and folded one arm behind his head while the other fell to his side, trailing down Koji's neck and behind the ninken's ears. "This is nice. Team building, creatin' new bonds. I'm proud of you guys, really." He waggled his eyebrows before addressing Zakuro's questions. "At a decent pace we can reach the outpost in a few hours. From the main gate, we'll have to cut west for a bit before headin' north west until we get out of the forest. Past that it's about a half an hour hike over grasslands. The outpost isn't hidden, it's a walled off compound out in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by some old ruins.

"As for the unit stationed there, standard three-man cell. One sensor specialist, a long-range communications specialist, and general combat support. The sensor and the communications guys wouldn't be much use in a head-on fight against another ninja but they're still Chuunin. Combat support is a more well-rounded guy from what I can see…" Here Kazuo flicked the file over a page, looking at the team assigned to the outpost. "Yeah, they shouldn't have had any trouble unless they were facing a small army or a highly skilled enemy ninja."

It was time to start moving. Kazuo motioned to the pair to follow and he made his way out of the building, Koji in tow. "Masami is right. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. We'll go in quiet, get the lay of the land, see what we're dealing with first. If all seems fine and dandy, we can go knock on the front door and demand to know what's up. If not, then we won't get viciously murdered because we ran in head first like a bunch of fresh-out-of-the-Academy Genin."

[Rain21199]

Zakuro followed closely at Kazuo's side, following him as religiously as the dog that he had trained. Their team consisted of sensors, so Zakuro felt no desire to take great care as to what was going on with his surroundings. His eyes were likely to not be much of a help when put up against the nose of an Inuzuka trained dog, or even an Inuzuka themselves. He was on alert though. They may be close to the wall, but these woods were still a dangerous place for anyone to wander about.

Kazuo said that a three man squad was stationed there. Looking around him, Zakuro couldn't help but think maybe they should've gotten some back up. Of course, he didn't question the skills of his superior, but there's always the chance that whatever force may have taken out the group at the tower, did it with ease, and that they're able to defeat a force twice that size. If that's the case, there were going to be some issues, but Zakuro decided not to dwell on it too much, despite being told to "expect the worst."

Zakuro remained quiet for the most part. He wasn't very good with people and spent the vast majority of his time alone on a isolated training ground. If even that got full, he'd go off to some patch of grass somewhere and train in peace. He really didn't know what drove him away from others, but he just couldn't stand to be around too many people at once. By all definitions of the word, Zakuro was a loner. The loner looked down at his feet and listened to the pitter patter of the feet on the packed dirt path. He waited for the eventual conversations between the two relatives that was likely to ensue.

[Kabu]

Masami quietly followed Kazuo out of the building, mulling over the information given. Anyone stationed at one of the outposts had to be fairly capable in a fight as well as having some degree of skill in gathering information, otherwise they wouldn't be able to effectively do their job or defend their station in case of an attack. It just made the current situation all that much more troubling knowing that, assuming that this wasn't all some big mistake, they would be dealing with a fairly formidable opponent. She had no doubts that they would be able to handle whatever it was that was waiting for them but she still couldn't help but feel some degree of apprehension.

Of course even while seeming to be lost in thought she kept her eyes and ears focused on her surroundings, a frown crossing her face as she saw Zakuro looking down at his feet. "Oy Zakuro, you should keep your head up and eyes forward, you need to engage with your comrades and need to be ready and willing at any moment." Trust me, I had to learn my lessons the hard way she said, clapping him on the shoulder. She knew that she had no right to be lecturing the boy based on her prior ex but still she couldn't help it. If her experiences could help one person then that was enough.

Regardless of whether her words had any impact or not, she then turned back towards Kazuo, eager to know more about what they were dealing with. "Do we have any information at all concerning the surrounding area? Was there anything suspicious going on from before communications were cut off?"

[Sanjuro]

The mission was unsettling; Konoha didn't send rookies to man outposts. He looked down to Koji, the ninken standing at chest height, who looked back at him with a look that said 'you know my opinion.' As long as they get to spread their legs and leave the confines of civilization for a while, Koji didn't care why. The Inuzuka ran his fingers through his shaggy mane, roughly rubbing at his scalp. If there was a threat that had been enough to take down a team of Chuunin maybe he should be bringing more than just a three man cell to investigate? He had to weigh resources versus potential threat. There was no guarantee that this would turn into a combat situation and he was bringing a walking war deterrent in the form of Masami.

Despite his earlier comment, he just hoped it didn't come to that.

Drawn from his musings by the voice of his cousin, Kazuo turned his attention to the duo and noticed what Masami was pointing out. Zakuro wasn't paying attention to their surroundings, staring at his own feet, shrinking in on himself. It wasn't anything new, Kazuo knew Zakuro was more of a loner from what he had seen around the office. Shrugging, he decided to stay out of it; if the kid wanted to talk he would. If he didn't, then Kazuo had learnt better than to press. As long as he was ready to fight, and seeing the slight tension to his muscles he was, Kazuo didn't care if he was a loner. He smiled and nodded along with Masami's words but otherwise left it to the two of them.

"Like I said, it's a walled off compound surrounded by some old ruins. I'm talking ancient, broken stone architecture that’s crumbled and eroded. Plenty of places to hide; if I remember right we picked the only place that seemed stable and without any holes in the outside to place the outpost. It's meant to monitor any activity coming from the west, send a heads up to Konoha if we have any delegates from Suna or slavers from Rock coming through the area." As he spoke, he motioned them through the gates while handing a mission scroll to the guards on duty that allowed them free passage out of the village. "Nothing suspicious. A slight uptake of the usual bandits using the ruins as a hide out, maybe a few more slavers than usual, but nothing that would have suggested they would go dark like this. Either something happened real quick and fast, or something happened underneath their noses."

Kazuo leapt up onto Koji's back and the dog leapt up into the trees, carrying his master. Koji had finally hit his growth spurt; as the runt of the litter Kazuo had wondered if he ever would be as big as the other ninken. He still wasn't as gargantuan as his dad's ninken but he was still an intimidating size. The dog sniffed the air, finding the safe path through the woods, while Kazuo kept up his conversation. "If we do run into anything, I want you two to find hiding places and wait for my signal. We'll try and handle things with negotiations first and if that doesn't work out… well, I'm sure you guys will enjoy breaking stuff."

[Rain21199]

Masami's words made him pick his head back up to look at her. She seemed sincere when she talked, mentioning her past experiences. That intrigued Zakuro. Since when did keeping quiet lead one to trouble? He didn't know, but hopefully it wouldn't cause him a problem any time soon because Zakuro had no intentions of becoming a social butterfly. This would be more than evident when Zakuro shrugged his shoulders and replied with a simple "I guess." He was here to fight, not to interact with his peers.

When they got through the gates, the tempo of travel increased. Kazuo and his dog jumped into the trees, and Zakuro followed closely behind. This man was one of the best trackers in the village. If there was anyone you wanted to be with during a search and rescue mission, it was him. His orders were for them to hide if they encountered anything suspicious. Zakuro, of course, would listen, but reluctantly. He was a hot headed boy, and really didn't enjoy watching from a distance. He wanted to get in there and fight. Not stand around and wait for something to happen. The only problem with that is that it has no tactical advantage whatsoever. Zakuro understood tactics. Hell, he was actually pretty smart. What he didn't understand was how people sat around in a tree for an hour waiting for the perfect time to strike. His lack of patients was outstanding, and it could very well be his downfall one day. Let's hope that day wasn't today.

[Kabu]

As they exited the gates of the village, Masami noticed one of the guards looking at her a bit strangely but rather than acknowledging it, she simply kept walking, saying nothing nor even looking in their direction. This was something that she was more than used to at this point and where it may have bothered her at one time, she was now able to simply ignore it and go about her business. In this particular instance however, she was more concerned about the mission at hand. Something definitely wasn't adding up, and they were very clearly missing crucial information, though she had no idea of what it could be. Could there maybe have been a spy in the group sent to the outpost? No, that was impossible, there was no way that they could have maintained their guise for this long without some sort of slip up. Even if that wasn't the case, it was getting harder and harder to believe that everything was okay, even as much as she wanted to believe otherwise. Something just seemed off to her about the entire situation, though she really hoped that she was just being paranoid.

At Kazuo's orders, she quickly nodded. "Got it boss. Silent and invisible, as it should be." she said. It could be fun to knock a few skulls together but she for one knew the importance of the orders given. It was best not to go in headfirst until they had a more clear idea of their end goal, and on that same note it was much safer for just one of them to move in first, and besides stealth had been a key part of her training and now was a great chance to put it into practice, and if they ended up in combat then that was all the better.

Still though, she was greatly hoping that it wouldn't have to come to that.

[Sanjuro]

The trip through the forest was thankfully quiet. Koji's nose led them around any potential detours and at times it was as if the trees bowed out of their way, sensing their urgency. Obviously, they were just trees, but the forest was made by the Senju. Kazuo wouldn't doubt if they had some sort of weird, chakra-driven sentience or something. He pushed the others as fast as he could without forcing them to use up chakra to keep going. If there was something wrong, he wanted his team to be fully capable of dealing with the threat. Wasting chakra before they even reached their destination was asking for trouble.

As they were reaching the edge of the forest he knew they would face a large swath of grasslands before they got to the ruins. "We're coming to the end of our safe travel area. This is still Fire Country, there shouldn't be anything too dangerous between us and our goal, but we don't have the benefit of the forest for cover anymore." He scratched the few brown hairs growing on his chin in thought. "We also won't be able to cover our approach. It's still a ways to the ruins, about half an hour at a decent pace, so if anyone has any ideas as to how we can do some scouting without being spotted, you've got the next twenty minutes to work it out."

[Rain21199]

Faced with an open plains in front of him, Zakuro knew he would be screwed out there. If his life ever depended on him needing to be stealthy, he would die. It just wasn't a strong suit of his. The Chuunin's repertoire consisted of nothing but being loud and reckless. He didn't have any sensory techniques, he didn't have anyway to burrow underground, he couldn't turn invisible, and he couldn't move fast enough to render himself unseeable. "Hmmm, yeah, I've got nothin'. Masami, you got any ideas?" Kazuo had an incredible sense of smell, but that probably had a few limitations as well. In the end, they may end up having to risk it, or, someone would make a distraction while the others sneaked ahead. Ugh, if it came to that, it would probably be him staying behind... Who better to make a distraction than big 'ol brute Zakuro Gerudo.

[Kabu]

Though the trip was quiet and thankfully uneventful, Masami still kept her ears perked the entire way, listening for any strange or out of place sounds. Luckily she didn't hear much aside from their own footsteps and the usual sounds of the forest but still it never hurt to be extra careful, even if it was simply out of some sense of paranoia.

Soon enough they exited the forest and came to an open plain, her head tilting at the sight. Stealth wasn't really an option at this point given the situation and yet they still needed some way of gathering information without bringing suspicion onto themselves. And just charging in guns blazing would be an even worse course of action. "I do have one idea.." she spoke as Zakuro asked if she had anything in mind. "We could just proceed normally and I could take point to try and gather a rough idea of what's going on before we arrive. My ears and nose are the best of ours and I've been practicing my tracking and detection skills." she spoke, turning towards her companions in turn. As much as she still hated what had been done to her, there was no denying that while being a curse in itself, it was also in some ways a blessing in disguise, and now was the perfect chance to prove it. She just wondered if they would really go for it given the circumstances.

[Sanjuro]

Kazuo stared at Zakuro for a moment, wondering how exactly he was a member of the Sekkoutai and not part of Katameru. He was a brawler and a capable front-line fighter, with his decent speed he would make a good first responder to any incoming threats. However, a tracker he was not. His lack of stealth or ability to perceive incoming threats made him a poor fit for the Sekkoutai branch and he was proving it right now with his lack of input. Closing his eyes and fighting back his sigh, the Inuzuka turned to his cousin and stared at her in turn. Masami wasn't well known for her capabilities as an Inuzuka. Kazuo had trained with her once and she had gotten better since then but it was an open secret that she did not like what had happened to her and had avoided taking up true Inuzuka training for a long time.

Still, she seemed confident enough. And they lacked any chakra sensors, they would be forced to rely on smell. Kazuo's own was good but his wasn't genetically enhanced as Masami's was. He just hoped her confidence wasn't misplaced.

"Alright. Looks like we're going to have to sacrifice stealth and hope that we notice the enemy, if there are any, before they notice us. Masami and Koji will take the front, put those noses to good use. Zakuro, in the middle, you'll respond to any threats that Masami and Koji point out or that we somehow miss. I'll bring up the rear and cover our tracks as best I can in case they have a rear guard. Again, we have no idea what we're up against here, so move with care and keep your head on swivel, alright?" Kazuo's serious face melted into a broad grin and he gave the group a thumbs up. "Let's move out!"

The plains ahead were broad, open, with rolling grass hills that rose and fell, making looking out in over a distance rather difficult. They were currently fortunate enough to be moving upwind. Any scents ahead of them would be carried straight to the duo keeping their noses out for any foreign scents. Kazuo kept his ears pricked for any sounds coming from behind; picking up scents from behind them would be difficult due to the wind so he was going to be relying on them not being quieter than a fieldmouse.

As they moved through the plains, they would begin to find small worked stones here and there, covered with grass and flowers, which grew larger the further in they went, sometimes foundation stones and the occasional small wall of worked stone that had degraded over the years but had yet to collapse. They were getting closer to the ruins and in turn their objective.

TechniquesShow

[Predator's Instinct • Primal Ear]
B-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Kazuo has attuned his sense of hearing to the point where he can passively pick up the sound of objects moving quickly towards him out of all other sounds. This is especially useful for noticing approaching projectiles, opponents or objects advancing at high speed. By picking up the direction of the sounds, he is also capable of back tracking them to their rough point of origin. Even though he can process this information it is useless if Kazuo's Taijutsu and Speed are not high enough to react, but it does allow for him to avoid surprise attacks.

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

[Rain21199]

A small smile spread across Zakuro's lips. Even the slightest possibility of combat made his blood boil. He loved a good fight, he discovered that much on his mission with Fanho. It was the only time he truly felt alive. Out of everyone here, Zakuro was the one that hope for confrontation the most. Hell, he was praying there was going to be something out there that he could crush. Even since that trip it was as if he gained a thirst for blood. One that he most definitely wanted to quench.

The Chuunin tapped the chain attached to his sword. As he did so, the chain began to expand in length. Zakuro started to wrap the chain around his shoulder as it countinued to grow in length. If there was anyone out there, it was likely they would attack from a distance. The chain gave Zakuro all the reach he needed to fight most opponents. That, and he had a pouch filled with senbon just waiting to be loosed on any opponent that made the mistake of showing themselves.

His legs moved quickly as he tailed Masami and Koji. He listened for any warning of enemies that Masami would utter. As he ran, his smile grew. He enjoyed the thrill. Not knowing if each step would be his last. Ah, what a life.

[Kabu]

Masami simply nodded and moved to the front of the group, nose and ears twitching as she dashed forward alongside Koji with Kazuo and Zakuro not far behind, attempting to capture any and all sounds or smells within the area. While it was true that she had neglected her training for a long time, she was confident that the training that she had so far put in would make due at a time like this. Of course there was the chance that they had put up a guard against being sensed but unlikely as it was in the first place, they should be able to push through it regardless. After all, nobody could think to account for someone with genetically enhanced senses to exist, much less track them down.

Soon she caught a faint smell, frowning as she sniffed at the air. Their destination was still farther out and yet this smell was rapidly approaching, getting closer by the second. She did catch more scents even farther out, the number of which was staggering, but right now she was focused on what was closest to them. She could focus more on the latter once this problem was solved. "Brace yourselves, I think that we're about to have some company. It's just a couple people from what I can tell but they must be acting as a patrol and that's not good for us unless we take them out swiftly, preferably before they can make note of who we are." she said, just loud enough for her two allies to hear but quietly enough so there wasn't a chance of being overheard.

[Sanjuro]

Koji growled in affirmation of Masami's words, his nose twitching high in the air as he followed the scents coming towards them. He padded the ground two times before doing it once more. Two distinct scents but there was a third further along behind them. Threaded in amongst the scents of humans however there was another scent that Masami would be able to pick up. One of ash, smoke, and a hint of some herbs or chemicals that would be difficult to place. While they were keeping a nose out ahead, Kazuo had been lagging a little, covering their trail as best he could. It took a little doing, erasing their tracks, especially in an open field like this.

The warning came in time for Masami and, more importantly, Zakuro, to prepare themselves. Only a few moments passed between Masami's warning and the two figures appearing over a hill above thirty meters ahead of them. They had the high ground and unfortunately there was no decent hiding place immediately available for the Konoha ninja. It would be up to Masami and Zakuro to react and take down the incoming threats before they had a chance to send out any kind of warning to the other sources of scents that Masami could faintly pick up.

They had a single moment to react. Kazuo simply watched and waited, a pair of kunai at the ready in case they didn't move in time.

[Rain21199]

Zakuro moved on a dime. He didn't have time to think, only react. He moved in front of the group and held four senbon in each hand, ready, waiting for some sort of ranged attack from the two. Zakuro would be the shield protecting Masami, Koji, and Kazuo. Nothing would get passed him, at the very least, he would die before he let that happen. In a place like this, Zakuro could never be too sure if the people he saw were friendly or assailants. The best way to tell would be to let them have the first hit. Strategically, it put the group at a disadvantage, but it was better than having a civilian causality for a simple check up on an outpost.

"Masami, Kazuo, stay behind me. If they attack at this range, I'll be able to stop whatever comes. Trust me."

[Kabu]

Masami frowned as a secondary scent hit her nose, almost immediately after she had caught the first group of scents and warned her allies. It was a horribly disgusting smell and even worse was that she couldn't seem to place it no matter how she tried. On top of wanting to make her throw up, something about it bothered her bu t for now at least she had to ignore it and focus on the task at hand.

It seemed that her nose had been right on the money as two figures appeared over a hill some distance away and luckily she had already moved to prepare herself for combat, her hands resting on the hilts of her knives even as she looked over towards Zakuro, perplexed at his sudden actions and remark. Did he mean to let this group have the first move? "No, you idiot. We move now and do so as a unit. I get that there's a risk in attacking but if they see us and we don't do anything they could alert their allies instead of attacking and then we'll be in trouble." she growled, immediately dashing forward, keeping low to the ground and her steps focused and silent, hopefully popping up unexpectedly in front of their targets and rather than drawing her knives as initially planned, chose simply to rely on her bare hands, palm striking one of the guys in the jaw to unsteady him and following up by drawing one of her knives and attempting to slit his throat, all the while being fully prepared to take on the other in case of her allies being distracted or not reaching her, though she desperately hoped that she wouldn't have to use more energy than necessary dealing with both.

JutsuShow

Predator's Step
B-Ranked Taijutsu Discipline
Prerequisite: Padded Step
Through constant practice, the user has learned to entirely silence their footsteps and keep any unnecessary body movements to a bare minimum even while moving at full speed.

[Sanjuro]

Zakuro's apparent hesitation in launching a pre-emptive assault resulted in Masami charging into two individuals who, while they couldn't hear her approach, could most definitely see her alone. A quick whistle from Kazuo had Koji following Masami. The two were both carrying bows strapped to their back but only one had a sword at their waist and while they saw the approach the didn't have time to draw and string a bow before Masami was on them.

"No, don't pl-GAH!"

Masami's palm strike found it's mark and the man attempting to plead for mercy swiftly found himself choking on his own blood as he bit his tongue. Staggering backwards, Masami's dagger was out and sliding across his throat even as the other screamed and began to run away. Koji, who moved faster than either of the humans and definitely faster than these random new comers, pounced on him from behind and drove the man to the ground. The screaming grew louder but a sharp whistle from Kazuo that carried on the air told Koji not to bite the man.

Masami would notice something that the ashy, chemical smell had initially covered. The scent of drying blood. Looking at the man now gurgling on his own blood and clutching at his throat in a vain attempt to somehow prolong his life and prevent his death, she would see he had dropped something in her vicious assault. A rabbit, not long dead, had been tied to a length of string and dangling from the backside of the man's belt, unable to be seen from the front. It appeared that whoever these men were, they were out hunting.

Kazuo bound forward, ushering Zakuro forward as well if he hadn't already moved. He frowned with distaste at the dying man. "Next time, Masami, aim to incapacitate instead of kill." It was not only a waste of life, especially if these men were simply hunters passing through and not some kind of forward scouts, but even if they were the enemy they expected to find then a living enemy could provide information a dead one could not. "Dead men tell no tales." He muttered as he moved to step up beside the one Koji had pinned under his considerable weight.

"Please! I don't want to die! Get this thing off me! Please!"

Kazuo motioned for the dog to remove itself, Koji doing so but still remained right in front of him, teeth bared, ready to snap at any moment. The Special Jounin cast a glance over to Zakuro. Masami had the right idea but the wrong execution. A pre-emptive assault was the best choice in the situation they had been in. But Zakuro had at least been concerned with a loss of life. He motioned the young man forward, willing him to question their prisoner. If he was going to be a part of the Sekkoutai, he would need to know how to gather information and there was no time like the present.

[Rain21199]

Zakuro continued his movement forward, expecting Masami to stay behind him for the time being. "I'd rather take a beating than kill an innocent... FUCK" He watched as Masami zoomed past, rushing towards the two targets. Zakuro went into an all out sprint to keep up, but he wasn't fast enough. As soon as Masami reached the man, his life was over. There was no denying it. They were all soldiers train to kill. If they wanted someone dead, they would die.

Zakuro slowed down considerably, his face was warped and twisted. It was obvious that he was pissed. Masami was a higher rank so she didn't have to listen to Zakuro, but listening to common sense was something different all together. As he made his way up the hill, he heard the man still alive pleading for his life. They were the words of a coward, someone that would be easy to break. Turning towards Masami, Zakuro grabbed the collar of her shirt, lifting her slightly so they were closer to eye level.

"If I say trust me, next time you better fucking trust me." He said while pushing her away. "If I thought for even a second they were planning to run, these senbon could've stopped them in their tracks, but no, you had to run off. Next time, why don't you fucking think before taking a life."

Turning to Kazuo, Zakuro saw him motion to the man on the ground, but he didn't get the hint. He was trying to cool down, and he was having a tough time with it. In a tone that was a bit more agressive than he wanted, Zakuro growled to Kazuo, "What?"

[Kabu]

Now, Masami could have likely dodged Zakuro if she had tried but instead she simply stood in place as he grabbed at her, gritting her teeth and willing herself not to slug him even as he yelled at her. It was aggravating really, to be yelled at for doing what she thought was right. "They wouldn't necessarily have had to run off to call off for help. Doing nothing would have likely gotten us overwhelmed and either captured or killed. And I'll be damned if I'm going through that kind of hell a second time." she responded, very clearly angry even despite any attempts to remain calm. Having come to her senses from her initial assault she now knew very well that she hadn't needed to kill that person but she had been acting to protect her friends and she was certain that she had made the right choice.. despite the guilt that she was beginning to feel at having possibly killed an innocent person. Surely she hadn't though... right? There was no way that hunters would have been wandering this way.. right? She certainly hoped that she had gotten the right guy... Could she handle it if she had really killed an innocent. Frankly, she wasn't sure.. at all.

Resisting the urge to sigh, she shook off Zakuro and turned her attention towards her cousin whom was more calmly reprimanding her. "I'll be more careful in the future, Kazuo." she whispered quietly, looking over towards the corpse next, nose twitching as she once more caught the scent coming from the rabbit, no longer feeling sickened but rather, lucky that it was just one. She wasn't sure that if she could handle that rancid smell if it were amplified even more than it was.

And finally her attention turned towards the still living man. "Well Zakuro, this is your show now. We're counting on you to interrogate him and see what he knows."

[Sanjuro]

Kazuo said nothing about the bickering between the two. He knew a little of Masami's past, not a lot but enough, and he knew Zakuro was as bull-headed as they came. As long as they didn't come to blows then Kazuo saw no need to intervene, they would sort themselves out. Sure enough, Zakuro soon turned his aggression towards Kazuo and the Inuzuka merely folded his arms over his broad chest and glared at the Chuunin. He liked to think of himself as an easy-going guy, happy to laugh and joke and roughhouse with his friends, but right now he wasn't just serving as a teammate he was the leader of the Sekkoutai and his subordinate was being directly confrontational. It took more effort than he cared to admit to not simply give in to his aggression as Zakuro was doing but right now he had to be the one in control.

"The Sekkoutai are information gatherers first, Zakuro. It's time you proved you are more than just your muscles and exercised that brain of yours." Turning away, he crouched over the man and lifted him up by the scruff of his neck. "You've seen what one of my friends here is capable of. You really, really don't want to find out what the other one is capable of. So, I suggest you answer his questions."

"Whatever you want to know, please, just don't kill me! I don't want to die! Please, whatever you want, just let me go! For my sister's sake if not my own! She needs me!"

Kazuo let go of the scruff of his neck and motioned for Zakuro to get to work. In the meantime, he would take the body of the dead man and haul it over his shoulder like a rolled-up carpet, looking for somewhere he could either bury or burn the body without drawing attention or starting a wildfire. As he walked away, he whispered just loud enough for Masami's enhanced hearing to pick it up. "Open your senses, find their scent trail, and backtrack it as best you can. The wind is good, you should be able to tell how far we are from any other people."

He would take the time to not necessarily dig a hole but punch one straight into the ground below, tearing apart earth and stone, so that he could drop the body within and then cover it with some of the ruined stonework and bricks to make it seem like part of the natural collapse of a building. Before he did that, however, he took the time to study the clothes the man was wearing, the facial features, and retrieved his weapons. He had no intention of actually fighting with them but he had an idea that could put them to another use.

TechniquesShow

[Earth Shattering Event]
B-Rank Taijutsu Manoeuvre
Prerequisite: 35 Strength, [Upper Body]
In essence this technique is nothing more than a very powerful punch. Kazuo slams his fist into the ground at his feet with all his might, causing it to rupture and break apart into large chunks in a 5 meter diameter around him. These chunks are sent skyward at random intervals a number of meters up to his 2/3rds of his Strength for 2 posts before they fall back to the ground, allowing Kazuo to use them as stepping stones to reach higher vantage points or as projectile weapons. Anyone within range of the initial quake with less than 20 Taijutsu will find it difficult to maintain their footing and can easily get caught up in the following eruption.

[Rain21199]

"Very well." Zakuro looked down at the frightened man who laid on the ground. He looked like he was about ready to break and Zakuro hadn't even put a hand on him yet. This was supposed to be a test? Might as well test him on his ability to breath air while they're at it. Reaching down, Zakuro grabbed the collar of the man's shirt and lifted him high into the air with one arm. He squirmed and shouted, "No, please! Please!"

"What were you doing here? Talk quickly." Zakuro's face was still contorted in anger, but now it was just for show. The initial rage towards Masami had washed away from him. His mind was on his task now. "I'm just a hunter. We were gathering food for our families. Please let me go!" Tears began to well up in the man's eyes. For a split second Zakuro was actually considering letting him down until he heard the unmistakable sound of earth being torn apart. He glanced over to see what Kazuo was actually up to. He had created a massive hole in the ground, and he was looting the body for whatever reason. That pissed Zakuro off even more. Looting an innocent bystander's body... At least he was mad until he saw Kazuo pick up a weapon. Not a tool for hunting, but one for murder.

Turning his attention back to the matter at hand, Zakuro looked back at the man in his grasp. 'So, the spineless hunter act was just a facade. He'll spill the truth soon enough.' Slowly, Zakuro let the guy's feet touch the ground. A small smile spread across his lips. He thought he was being let go. That happiness would be short lived.

Zakuro kneed the man directly under his ribcage, causing all of the air in his lungs to escape. He immediately followed by wrapping his hand around the guy's head and forcing it into the dirt. "I gave you a chance to do this nicely. Why were the two of you out here? Your hunter story is bullshit. Tell me the truth or I WILL break you."

"That was the truth! I swear to gAAAHHH" Zakuro grabbed the 'hunter' by the arm and twisted it hard behind his back. Just a little more pressure and his shoulder would be dislocated. "Do not test me." Zakuro leaned in close to the man's ear. "Why. Are. You. Here?"

"Hainiko and me were grabbing food to feed the people at our camp, I swear, we didn't kill any of em."

"Kill who?"

"T-the shinobi at the tower. The main assault group did that. We're just support."

"How many of you are there?" He put more pressure on the guy's arm. His bones started to make a soft cracking noise.

"AH, please! Uh, there's, uh, six of us in my group. Five now. There are more groups. I don't know how many. Please, just let me go..."

Zakuro let go of his arm, but at the same time, lifted his head and smashed it into the ground. Blood began to pour out of his lip. "Who do you work for? Who's in charge?"

"I don't know!" His words were more garbled now. It was obvious that it hurt him to talk. "I've never been close enough to him. He's always surrounded by some weird smoke. That's all I know. I swear. Please..." He sobbed. "Stop!"

"You helped a group of people kill Leaf Village shinobi and you honestly thing I'm going to let you walk away? This moment will be your last."

"What? No... PLEASE NO! I helped you." Tears poured down his face as he pleaded and squirmed to get free of Zakuro's grasped. He kicked and flailed, but the difference in strength was too much. "Please.... Please...."

In on quick movement, Zakuro grabbed the man's shirt, lifted his head a few inches off of the ground, and slammed his fist into the guy's temple. The first impact of Zakuro's fist to his head was enough to send it forcefully into the ground. The impact of his head hitting the ground was enough to render him unconscious. He stopped flailing. After that, Zakuro delivered three more blows with his right hand to the bandit's temple, slightly caving in his skull and likely turning his brain into mush. His breathing stopped.

Zakuro stood up and brushed the dirt off of his clothes. He looked to the others for what the next step of the plan was.

[Kabu]

Masami's ears pricked up as Kazuo whispered to her, giving her instructions to which she silently nodded. She was glad for the task even if a bit disappointed that she wouldn't be able to witness the interrogation. Ah well, they all had their own roles to play and she would be able to get some sense of what was going on when she returned, not that she would be going very far. She simply had to find the scent and try to find where it was coming from as well as maybe determine how many people there were.

Anyways, she concentrated a moment to tune out anything unnecessary for the task at hand and as per Kazuo's instruction sniffed the air, just a moment later catching the scent that she was looking for. There was something odd though. Still sniffing at the air, she followed the path that the scent led her on. It wasn't long before the single trail became several, most incredibly faint, though some incredibly strong. "About a mile to the northeast is a camp of five. Slightly farther north is another group of seven. I'm not sure what their goal is but they must be acting as an advance troops, obviously to signal the main group." she muttered to herself, noting that the strongest was coming from even farther beyond that, however it was the smallest group and she could even smell something else but she couldn't quite tell what it was, both of which were concerning given the situation. She was sure that they could handle themselves on the way there but nonetheless it was concerning. Their opponent clearly knew what they were doing and were obviously planning something big.

Regardless she was still on the lookout, hoping to find something, anything else that could help them out. Given that they had no real way of telling how strong their opponents actually were this was the best that she could really do. Any information that she could gather would help out in the long run.

JutsuShow

Tune Out
D-Ranked Taijutsu Discipline
Through training the user has learned to more easily tune out unnecessary sounds and smells, allowing them to more easily focus on a single target without getting distracted by the area around them.

[Sanjuro]

Kazuo slowly made his way back to the group, his heightened hearing picking up the conversation and the following squelching sound of Zakuro's interrogatee. Shaking his head, he pulled the bow over his shoulders and tied the sword to his waist. He winced at the look of the man when he finally rejoined his team but looked at Zakuro. "I hope you've got that out of your system now. Masami, come here and hold your hands together. Zakuro, you better hope you got that guy's face memorized before you did that to him."

Assuming Masami approached, he'd take some ninja thread from his pouch and bind her hands together with the steel wire. "Sorry, but you're the most obviously a 'ninja' with your physical changes and, well, you're a woman. Bandits like these will assume that was why you were captured instead of killed straight away." Once he was done binding Masami's hands, loosely so that they'd be easy to slip but at a glance appear properly bound, he performed a few hand seals and took on the appearance of the man he had just buried. "Zakuro, you'll have to do the talking when we reach the first camp. We want to get as close to the main boss as we can, and we never got to hear my face speak. Copy the voice as best as you can and keep your damn cool."

He let out a high pitched whistle, a few short bursts, which told Koji exactly what he needed to dog to do. The giant hound growled and took off at high speeds, far away from them, heading in the direction that Masami had pointed out originally but giving it a wide berth. The ninken would stay in range for Kazuo's whistle to reach his keen ears but far enough away to not draw immediate attention. It would be useful on the off chance that their little charade didn't work.

He jerked his head in the direction of the camp, giving one last glance to the man Zakuro had rather brutally killed. He wanted to scowl and tell Zakuro that he had been in the wrong but… even if they had left him alive, bound until they were done and then returned him to the village for trial, if he didn't die to nature before they retrieved him then all that would happen would be a prison sentence at best and execution at worst. He didn't agree with Zakuro's method but it did expedite things a little.

Putting it out of mind, he began the long slow march towards the outpost straight through enemy lines.