Starring:
Date: November 7, 2014
Summary:
Michiko and Naruko stumble upon Eremi who happens to be dragging along a dead body. This misunderstanding leads to a fight!
"Body Snatcher"
The Land of Wind
With Summer shifting to Fall, the scorching heat of the desert was less than normal, but still very present. Making travel from or toward the Land of Wind dangerous for those that aren't prepared for the journey. The possibility of dehydration during the day or freezing to death in the cold of the night always a concern, but the threat of the Silence and the growing hostilities of Bandits makes traveling harder than it used to be.
The main path often used by merchants and travelers as active today as any other day. Not much is out of place with the path and occassionally sand dunes make up the border. Closer toward the village however, a trail no larger than perhaps 16 inches wide leads away from the path and over one of the dunes and another after that. The trail seems freshly made, but surprisingly a pair of foot prints are seen just outside the trail, digging slightly into the sand and facing back towards the main path.
At the end of the trail, a few 100 yards away, stood a lone figure with no identifiable marks hovering over an unconscious man with a headband and symbol for sunagakure strapped to their head.
Michiko is on the road again, this time with Naruko. She's got more water on her than usual to combat the desert's heat, though one of the three canteens has already been emptied. The girl grumbles a bit as the constant shifting sand makes it hard to detect things, but there /is/ something she notices off to the side. Footprints. "Huh… Do you think it'd be fruitful to follow these tracks?" she wonders, glancing to her companion. The Iwata looks ahead to try and find the source of the tracks, squinting and shielding her eyes from the sun.
"Fruitful…that is a rather funny word to use out in a place like this…" Naruko groaned as she wadded through the desert sands. It wasn't the typical weather she dealt with… To be honest she had never been in the sun like this ever. The Uzumaki was adorned in a vibrant orange cloak to shield herself from the painful rays beaming down upon them. "We might need to…I would hate to get caught off guard in a place like this. Whatever these tracks come from…" Naruko's thoughts races, swallowing nervously. "Let's be safe but cautious,"
The figure standing over the unconscious Suna shinobi was dressed rather ragged, slightly dirtied and with a dark, sun-kissed tan. Possibly a resident of the Land of Wind or has at least spent several weeks out in the desert sun. Affixed to the man were no weapons, but instead several gourds. One would be grabbed and the contents consumed before the individual would bend down to grab the Suna shinobi once again and start dragging away.
"Well… I am a bit hungry," Michiko admits, wishing there was something fruit-like to eat. The desert was too dry and too hot for her tastes, and she finds herself missing Kumogakure even more than usual. She focuses a bit of chakra and attempts to move stealthily towards the figure, keeping her voice as low as possible. "I can't tell if it's a friend or foe from all the way over here… What about you, Naruko-san?" she asks. She's already got a plan in mind, but it's not a very good one right now. Especially with the mystery man dragging a body around.
"Looks like he is ….dragging someone? Definitely not a friend. You know…maybe he already knows who and what we are…" Naruko whispers back, lowering her body to the ground as she attempts to move forward and hopefully catch the figure off guard. Following closely after him she tried her best not to make a sound. "If he discovers us…we need to get him quickly, we can't afford to be wounded and lost out of here," Naruko advises.
The mysterious and quite possibly dangerous man was paying no attention nor giving any thought to the likelihood of someone already being on his trail. His focus and goal was on getting the unconscious Suna shinobi out of view and perhaps the heat as well, but finding shade this far out was unlikely. The early afternoon sun rising high in the sky behind him with no chance of cloud cover made sure of this. Another dune ahead blocked his path and he'd start his slow tredge upwards.
Michiko nods, keeping her voice quiet. "It looks like he hasn't noticed us yet. We should attack quickly… As soon as he gets a bit closer…" She waits for Eremi to get to a certain spot where he'd be a good target for her attack. A few handseals, and the earth near him would explode, sending sand and more sand into his eyes.
It was the perfect setup for Naruko to follow through with her own slew of attacks. She watched as they managed to catch him off guard, and the earth around him began to explode and hopefully pile him under the earth briefly, just in time for naruto to form bolts of fire, forming along the palms of her hands and slinging them out like bombs. If the earth didn't put enough sand in his eyes hopefully the following explosions would…. "I think I got him," Naruko whispers quietly, waiting to see the result of their barrage.
Dragging the body, oblivious to his surroundings, Eremi wasn't expecting an attack, especially not one of dirt to explode around him and hinder his vision. It was a move he's seen in application time and time again from his companion and actually expected it to be from her. At least up until a blast of fire careens into his back, shocking him with a dose of reality for when the next attack comes he's already vanished. Unconscious body and all.
He'd reappear though, just a few feet from where he was. The unconscious shinobi resting upon his shoulder. With the dirt clearing his vision, he had expected to be greeted by a pair of skilled and aged Suna Jounin, but instead was face to face with young ladies. One at least having an affiliation with Kumogakure, "Ow…" The man spoke softly, but firmly. "That hurt you know? What's that all about?"
"I don't know if it's enough, though…" Michiko mutters, eying the man. Luckily, the attacks hit the first few times, so it at least weakens the man. But he dodged the one firebolt too easily for her taste… "Stay on your toes, Naruko-san…" The girl eyes Eremi, not actually hearing his words since he's speaking in a low voice. A few handseals later, the earth below him and nearby would begin to swirl around him, the girl hoping to trap the man before trying to talk with him.
"You are up to no good. What are you doing dragging a man out in the middle of the desert?!" Naruko exclaims as a series of clones poof to life along each side of her. Quickly they run forward, aiming each a punch on each of Eremi's sides, hit or miss they would explode in contact or proximity, her attempt at making sure he was put down fairly quickly. This guy wasn't that tough, she did manage to pelt him with her jutsu after all.
Eremi watched the hand signs Michiko began to use and again his thoughts turned to how it was like fighting his companion as the ground beneath him began to swirl. There wasn't much time to respond unfortunately, especially not with the whirlpool's size suddenly increasing. The clones would run toward him and he'd nearly avoid them before being pulled into the earth. "Well…" Shifting his shoulders some, the unconscious man still held tightly. "Would you believe I found him like this and wanted to find him help?"
Michiko peers at Eremi, knowing he's trapped for the time being. She glances to Naruko, then back to Eremi. "Maybe…" she says hesitantly. She makes a few handseals, and a half-dome of earth is created for protection from the sun. It surrounds the man Eremi had found as well as Eremi. "Do you mind being stuck in there for a little while? The Suna-Nin is safe from heatstroke now, at least."
"Are you sure we should trust someone like that in the sands… It might not be the best idea," Naruko spoke up, frowning as she took a closer look towards Eremi, nothing seemed to much out of the ordinary, well aside from his oddness in the desert. "Most people come out on teams at least… Who the heck are you?" Naruko asks, a little relentless now as he was caught under the earth. As she got closer to size him up she pumps a fist back and brings it force, a nice punch in the stomach for good measure. "And why should we trust you?" Brutal questioning…
Eremi watched as the earth dome rose above him, but returned his gaze to Michiko, "I do mind in fact. I have other plans." His focus shifted to Naruko as the young lady approached him. "I'm known as Eremi." He'd reply truthfuly and yet, a punch would still find his gut. Twitching slightly from the attack, he'd still hold firmly before pulling one foot free of the sand and then the other. "You probably shouldn't trust me. Here I am, carrying a Suna shinobi in the middle of the desert. I might be a very dangerous man." He'd turn from Naruko, disregarding her as a threat as he moved toward the dome and set the man down in the shade. "Might be best to get out of here now while you can and warn others about what you saw. You still have a chance if you take off running now. I'm pretty slow after all."
Michiko watches Eremi as he removes himself from the ground and places the fallen Suna-Nin under her earthen dome. "Naruko-San, we should probably report this. Let's go." With another handseal, the Iwata explodes the ground near Eremi, using it as a cover to escape. Or at least hide for a bit! She disappears into the ground with another few handseals.
"Are you kidding me? We can't leave without bringing the body with us. I don't care even if his name is 'Eremi'," Naruko calls out to Michiko, the stain of her azure blue eyes carefully looked over the figure as chakra began to pick up, and focus down into her limbs, enough to make her a little more nimble on her feet. "You are going to give us the body now," Naruko expresses, running forward reeling back a tightly curled first, and lunging for Eremi once more as she had gotten close enough. Hit or miss with the lunge, she applied a swift rotating kick to spin him backwards away from the body. "We can't leave without the body!"
Prepared this time around, when the dirt starts to rise, Eremi has already moved. Not quickly, no, but with enough forethought to know which direction to move. Still, regardless of the steps he takes, the man is unable to keep track of Michiko as she sinks into the ground. "Wise words from your friend, little lady. Might want to listen." A small smile forming even as Naruko presses forward and without much thought, Eremi steps aside from the blows, but never too far from the shinobi he was dragging. "That there body belongs to me." Moving in between the girl and the unconscious shinobi before delivering a flick to the forehead followed by a palm thrust.
From underground, Michiko makes a seal with her hands, and an earthen hand shoots out of the ground in an attempt to grab Eremi. If it succeeds, the earthen grave will be right behind him, and the hand will drag him into the coffin. Stone ribs will enclose him, and the entire grave will sink slightly into the ground, preventing further movement so Naruko can grab the body.
The flick seconded by a pal mstrike was enough to stagger Naruko, and annoying slow. She regained her balance, shoving her feet into the stand to skid along the desert dunes, keeping herself upright. She noticed that as soon as that happened that the earth beneath him began to to make due, allowing a smile to loom about her lips. "This could have been easier if you just did as we asked," Naruko somewhat taunts, breaking out towards the nuconcious man, and using this moement to try and pull who it was over one shoulder.
There was a shift in the sand behind Eremi, as if a something from below was trying to reach out. He felt it. The disturbance. And instinctively reacted to the danger that was threatening to ensnare him from behind. In a blink he vanished, disappearing from his spot only to reappear next to Naruko as she reaches for the shinobi. "Not so fast." Chuckling at his own joke. "I said that one belongs to me." A hand would come down to smack at Naruko's. "While your friend keeps hiding, you take the beating. That doesn't seem fair."
Michiko blocks Eremi's attack on Naruko, a half-dome forming between the Uzumaki and the fist. She resurfaces from the ground, once more attempting to blind Eremi before ducking into the ground again. "Naruko-san! Grab the body if he's blinded!" she shouts before diving once more into the earth, not wanting to suffer an attack.
There were some hiccups in acquiring the body… Mostly because for some reason Eremi didn't want to back down. Why was such a body so important to him anyways? Before she could defend against the incoming attack a wall of earth came between both Eremi and herself. At that moment she grinned lightly, holding up a single ram seal while her chakra began to churn. "Okay, let's see how well you do against even more of me!" Naruko exclaims, suddenly a series of 12 clones formed along side of her, vaulting over the earth wall and coming in to catch Eremi in a multi attack combo. Each of them through out fists and kicks, literally in an unpredictable manner to completely catch him off guard. Perhaps after the mix up it would be easier to get the unconcious shinobi…
Smack! The sound of Eremi's hand high fiving an earthen dome that rose from the ground, preventing him from getting another strike against Naruko. "If you're going to keep interrupting my fun, you have to be a part of it." Spinning about, he'd catch sight of Michiko just as she makes a few seals. "You need some new tricks." The earth around him would shift again, but he had already taken off toward the girl before she could sink beneath the sand once again. Quickly closing the distance between the two, he'd launch in the air at the girl with a succession of kicks.
Curious how the unconscious bystandered was faring, he'd turn only to see several versions of Naruko racing toward him. A punch, a kick, each would pass by as he stepped out of their range. Assuming they were more tangible, he was surprised when after they attacked, they began to explode. "That's pretty dangerous, sweetie." Dancing about the field to avoid being hit before only one of Naruko remained. "Tag!" Eremi would exclaim as he attempted to bonk the girl on her head.
Michiko defends against the kick with another half-dome of earth. She peeks out from the side, commenting, "But my current techniques have been working rather well so far… But I suppose if you insist…" The girl makes a few new handseals, and the earth below Eremi turns a bit slippery. It might unbalance him enough that the sand that comes 'washing' down as a torrent of mud tries to keep him in place. With that attack, Michiko sends a powerful burst of flame at Eremi that follows along the flowing earth.
Bonk! Naruko got slammed directly on the head, only to harmlessly explode in a mass of fire which took her place. "Looks like you hit the wrong one!" Naruko exclaims directly above him, with one open palm fire chakra began to collecting in her hand, a marble of an orb gradually growing in size until it was the size of a fist. Her glide downwards wasn't as climatic, the rush of Michiko's attack was hopefully enough to weaken him while Naruko attempted the final blow. Extending out the sphere of fire and blow directly on top of him, or shattering the sand dunes if it was a miss.
Another dome, Eremi frowned in disappointment. "I meant more that you keep trying to impair my movements. I like being free. Anything less is irksome." Handseals would flash before his eyes, but unsure of what was to come, he could only tilt his head in curiousity. At least, he thought it was his head, when in fact it was his entire stance as he was starting to slip from his position with no traction to hold him place. "No fun." He'd call out as the flicker of flames flashes in his eyes before engulfing his form. When the fire disperses, Eremi and much of his clothing is clearly singed, if not burned. "You definitely turned up the heat."
Another laugh escapes him, even as he realizes the Naruko he had bopped, was nothing but a clone. "Two fire users. You know I can create fire too?" Glancing about for Naruko until hearing her from above, a makeshift sun forming in her hand. "That's dangerous. You could hit the sleeping guard as well." Not wanting any more harm to come to the unconscious shinobi, Eremi dropped to the ground as he twisted his legs tightly around each other before leaping into the air with a spiraling uppercut aimed for Naruko. He didn't linger for longer after that, as Michiko was still an equal nuisance, he'd charge at the girl with a series of punches and kicks with such speed it would be difficult to avoid.
Michiko hmms. "Then maybe allow us to take the body?" she asks curiously. It doesn't seem like he's wanting for that to happen, though, even as her attacks hit. She blocks the attacks that were meant for her, and even attempts to defend Naruko with a giant wall. As she defends, a faint flicker of chakra surrounds her, much like flames. She winces at the punch and glances over to Naruko. "Let's retreat for now. We're not going to win today." With a light nod, she makes a seal, then the earthen walls she erected both explode and turn into a rushing river, mostly to distract Eremi as Michiko attempts to grab Naruko and dash off.
It was an agreeable situation. Her best technique and yet she still wasn't able to get a hit on him? The sheer speed he was able to display only brought a frown to her face as she groaned. "You lied… you aren't slow at all!" Naruko whined, relating to his previous comment as she nods and tries to move along with Michiko. Even if they did manage to get the shinobi could they really out run Eremi? She sighs heavily and quickly begins to back track, keeping up with Michiko whichever way they may be led.
"But I found him first…" Giving a very small hint at how Eremi managed to come into possession of an unconscious body. Dirt would fly immediately beneath him followed by the earthen walls exploding as they try to catch him in their current. The conversation between the two eluding that these attacks are merely to help in their escape, Eremi avoids the incapacitating attacks and yet, still doesn't give chase. "I did, I'm sorry." He'd offer to Naruko before the two started to take off. "Leaving already?" A frown would form, but last only a moment until it turns into a grin. "Well, I had fun. Bye, Naruko-san. Bye girls-name-that-was-never-mentioned-san." Waving as he walked over to the unconscious body and picked up once again.
