Starring:
Date: July 17, 2011
Summary:
Nori and Yuuka go out to pick herbs and vegetables in the Blood Marshes, but they run into some unexpected trouble.
"Attack of the Wraiths"
Blood Marsh - Heart of the Swamp
Vegetables were something best found in the deepest parts of the swamp. So, Nori brought Yuuka along today for another adventure in the place he most considers his home. A huge duffel is slung over his shoulders, and he eagerly springs from mucky hollow to muddy bank as he pulls up an asortment of onions, leaks, strangely colored potatoes, and other roots. He even found some lime flavored moss. "Good for making a salve to heal wounds, and nutritious!" He chuckled, tossing it in his pack. Occaisionally he would grab various herbs and place them in small wax packages within his toolkits. He wouldn't say what they were, but the way he handled some it was obvious they were dangerous.
While Yuuka has been in the Blood Marsh a few times in the past, her aquamarine eyes still glance around with some hesitance as she follows after Nori. If only to keep up with him. When he holds up something he's found to show her, she tries to smile, but not without another cautious glance towards the menacing marshes. There were plenty of things out there that she has yet to encounter. Hopefully they'll just stay out there.
Just as Yuuka looks out for monster, a blood-curdling shriek rings out from further in the marshes, then from a spot on the opposite side, and then seemingly from all around. The shriek gets louder and louder until it finally stops all at once. A moment later, a black wraith-like creature rises from the swamp water. A blood red aura hangs around it as it floats up out of the marsh. Then, several of the same creature come down from the trees around them, the shriek ringing out again. The creatures are apparently NOT staying out there.
Nori blinks at the wraiths as they appear around Yuuka. "Oni?" He grins, his blue eye flickering. "Been so long since I'd seen any in the swamp, I was starting to be curious. They don't usually show up when theres more than one person, though…" He shrugs, and starts walking towards the banshees, his hands out like he intends to tackle them.
Yuuka blinks her bright eyes as she hears the first shriek, her shoulders tensing when another rings out, then another and another. As the creatures begin to rise from the marsh itself, she absently takes a step back, her eyes darting between them. Hearing Nori's comment nearby, she blinks once before snapping her eyes back at him, "Can you be any more casual about this, by chance?"
Another shriek rings out as Nori begins to approach the creatures. The blood red aura of the creatures grows even brighter, their power surging throughout the area. As their power surges around, they begin to move around the area, crossing each other's paths in circular patterns meant to confuse the eye. A twisted, sick voice rings out from them all in turn over and over like a deathly whisper, "Souls… Souls… Souls…"
Nori grins. "Yeah, I could ignore them completely, but that wouldn't help you any," he says, his chakra surging in visible tendrils of electricity around him. Reaching up behind his shoulder, he draws a bone blade as if from a sheath, and prepares destruction. "Oi, you damn spectres, leave the girl alone or I'll eat you like I ate your cousins." His teeth grow visibly sharper and his features more feral as he prepares to launch his attack.
Yuuka narrows her eyes on Nori with a flat look, obviously not amused by his remark. "Hey, I am not a /girl/. And you were the one that said just a few days ago I could take care of myself!" she scowls lightly, obviously irritated. Between Nori and the wraiths that think they could gang up on her. "See, this is the reason I was reluctant to come out in the Blood Marshes."
"Souls… Souls… Souls…" The deathly, whispering chant continues repeating over and over. Just as Nori prepares to launch an attack, one of the wraiths stops about twenty feet from Nori and Yuuka, between both of them. As another shriek rings out amongst the whispers, it stretches its hand forward, and an enormous tornado-like gate opens up in front of it. Its flow is powerful, yet it is not trying to pull them in. Instead, it is attempting to drain chakra from both of them and into itself.
Nori watches at the gates open, his eyes narrowing. His muscles tense, and he dives sideways to try and avoid its terrifying suck. However it is no avail, he feels his life force draining, and it seems he rolled around in the mud needlessly. "Devils teeth," he swears, picking himself up out of the muck, he swirls his sword around to free it of the mud.
Yuuka blinks her bright eyes when she sees the wraiths come to a stop between herself and Nori, frowning slightly with growing concern just before another shriek shatters through the air. The dark arm stretches out, the wind picking up to swirl in a power vortex right in front of it. With the number of creatures around them, the kunoichi is struggling to keep up with them, unable to see it until its too late as Yuuka can feel her chakra being sucked out of her. Shuddering, her shoulders quiver, feeling weaker already. Growling under her breath, she lifts a hand over her shoulder as she begins pulling out a long blade from her shoulder.
"Souls… Souls… Souls…" A dark chuckle seems to ring out from some of the wraiths at Nori rolling around in the mud. The attacking wraith moves back into motion with the others, going in the circular pattern with them. The whispering begins to get louder and louder, yet still sounds like a deathly whisper. Two of the specters flicker, each appearing in front of one of the Kaguyas, driving shoulders at them in an attempt to knock them over. "Souls… Souls… Souls…"
Nori watches the approaching wraith, and his feet barely move. As the blow impacts, Nori seems to move fluidly with it, absobing the hid solidly, and then reaching out to touch the wraith. But its too fast… it leaves his reach, and suddenly theres a sound like a whip as the force passing through Nori's body ends up without a place to go. Nori's body shivers in as the muscles seize and contort in him, but its not enough to knock him down. With a growl, Nori whirls around and leaps into the air, spinning his body in midair like a top as a flurry of bone needles explode out to pepper the wraiths.
Yuuka scowls as she tries to mentally shrug off the dark chuckle that is beyond unnerving, watching Nori otu of the corner of her eye while another wraith appears in front of her. Before the one in front of her can drive its shoulder into her torso, her senses screams out in her. Tensing only slightly, Yuuka digs her foot into the ground and pushes off, disappearing a moment after to then reappear several yards behind the specter. Curling her arms around her, blade angled, she suddenly spins and releases the sword into the air, throwing the sword in such a way for it to hit not only the wraith that tried to ram her, but several behind it as well.
The creatures whiz by the two, seemingly untouched by their attacks, and fall back into formation. "Souls… Souls… Souls…" As another dark laugh rings out, a single wraith appears in front of Nori. It holds a black piece of paper with a glowing seal on it. The seals opens a smaller funnel this time, attempting to suction chakra from the Kaguya once more, though not as much this time. Is there a way that this creature could take someone's soul by taking all their chakra? If this goes one, they might find out.
Unsure of the purpose of the seal, Nori reaches out a hand, and generates a bone shield between himself and the creature. WIth a grunt, he notices that once again his life force is being drained. "Bastard," he growls, summoning up his strenght for a last ditch effort. His eyes narrow, and he swings a fist towards the beast, unsure whether it will connect or not, seeing as how none of his prior attacks had.
Yuuka tightens her fingers around the end of the hiltless blade, her eyes widening slightly when she sees the blow made to Nori's bone shield, though the defense doesn't seem to make any difference. Regardless, Nori still throws another punch at it. Her chest tightens and the kunoichi spins again as she throws the blade at it, willing the blade to split into two in midair right before it slashes at the creature.
As Nori takes a strong strike at him, the creature literally stands completely still and lets itself get hit. It is slammed hard by the hit, yet only moves back a little. Two of the other creatures intercept the blades Yuuka throws, knocking them aside. Dark laughter fills the air, and blood red flash fills the area. As the flash fades away, all the creatures have faded away, and Maikeru stands where the creature that Nori was standing just was. "Not bad, Nori." He turns his head to Yuuka and gives a nod. "Yuuka. You fought as I would expect of you two." As he turns his head back to Nori, he continues, "Your strategy could've been better, even though it was a surprise attack. We'll work on that later. Maybe after I teach you a few things, next time I won't have to take it so easy on you." He gives a menacing wink before vanishing into thin air, gone.
Nori looks at Maikeru, his eyes narrowing. "I thought I recognized some of those techniques," he says with a growl, his eyebrows knitting further when Maikeru disappears. He goes to look after Yuuka, a small tinge of concern in his eyes though he tries to hide it with a smile. "Oi oi. Venomous snakes don't seem that bad now, eh?" He chuckles lightly. "Guess this didn't turn out to be quite the grandiouse adventure I'd said it would be."
