Starring:
Date: May 17, 2012
Summary:
A madman issues a challenge. HEROS answer the call! Or would if Konoha wasn't so stingy. So Ryuu, Naru, and Ryoji are going to answer the call instead.
Poster's note: Profanity filtered in obvious places.
"Doors"
Rp Room 8. For the scene though…eh big field with a sole huge rock. It then navigates to an underground laboratory/labyrinth.
A peculiar task had been charged to a peculiar team. This mission was dangerous and unlike other has gone public. Quite simply put a challenge has been issued by a madman. This madman is named Kaito and is a renowned herbologist from the Land of Whirlpools. Kaito is currently holding a village hostage in Land of Fire. A plague has suddenly swept over the village. It wasn't fatal but it was a hindrance. He promised a cure should his demands be met. His demands, though confusing are rather simple. "I want three, count'em, three shinobi from the Leaf to play a little game with me. Enter my labyrinth and survive it until the end. That's all nothing more nothing less. No tricks but I do promise a variety of treats." and so the challenge was answered. Ryoji was 'chosen' to accompany Ryuunosuke and Naru into Kaito's labyrinth (if you want a specific location then…well. No you're not getting one.) They trusted him to lead Ryuunosuke and Naru, of all duos, into a game to determine the fate of a village for the right price that is. Granted this particular village was minuscule in size but they paid well so no arguments were raised.
The team was briefed and met up in the village before heading out. Right about now they'd be standing outside of what appears to be a large rock in the middle of a field. Yep, the only thing strange about this rock is a piece of parchment posted on its front. The parchment read 'Welcome leaf shinobi. We're going to have fun here today. But before the fun can begin I have a little quiz for you. Just a small quiz, something regular shinobi like you should have no problem with. It's only one question! Give it a whirl then you're welcome to enter: Off all the doors out there which should not be trusted?' the note ends there. Ryuunosuke blinks a few times then sighs already unenthusiastic about this mission. "This is almost too silly to believe."
All Ryoji wanted to do… was leave. To get as far away from Konoha as possible and never look back in its direction until he was well into a different land all together. Sadly, fate seemed determined to add more to his suffering. Ryoji nevertheless took things in stride, smiled and behaved politely after being 'enlisted' to 'lead' a couple of leafer genin, and even gave one of his signature nonsensical pep talks that would quickly be forgotten due to the sheer amount of confusion elicited by it. He was still doubtlessly detached about given his lack of acknowledgement of Naru, a companion at one time (more or less), beyond a quick wave plus the speech for both.
"None." How was it the Iga came to such a quick conclusion as well as even 'knew' what the words ensribed were is not readily discernible. Well, unless Ryuu or Naru decided to speak up and read it ahead of him. In the Senju case, a belated courtesy after recalling his Ryoji's 'handicap'. "Hn… No door can be trusted because they all hide what's beyond them. Even the clear screen ones for one's perspective remains limited regardless…" He chuckled mirthlessly as he stepped ahead of the group, then turned around grinning ear to ear. "Though, let us hope speaking aloud such an answer.. getting it wrong, perhaps? And.. well, didn't set off any traps, neh?"
The mission was definitely interesting, especially for Naru, though while it may have seemed silly to some Naru thought differently, the leave shinobi were being challenged, this game wasn't at all rigged for them to live, no this was probably going to be a painful experience if this Kaito guy actually meant business. Naru was adorned in her normal attirement, adorned in all black, the symbol of the fire element emblazoned on her bottom skirt, and just normal black shirt with fishnet along her arms and legs, she sighed softly and looked over the parchment. " Isn't Ei-chan suppose to be with you…Ryoji-dono?" Naru asked him though she turned her attention to the boulder before them. " You don't trust any doors… Especially a door that some guy wants to challenge us with," Naru states, crossing her arms along one another she lets off a soft sigh. " This challenge better be worth our while…"
Ryuunosuke basically agreed with both Naru's and Ryoji's answer. Doors are gateways to the unknown and unpredictable. One knows not what lies beyond until they pass through, by then it is usually too late. Ryuunosuke shrugs at Ryoji "Considering that we're dealing with a 'madman' I'm pretty sure we should expect something like that." Ryuunosuke comments with a grin. Suddenly there is a static about the area. AS eyes turn with confusion a voice rings true. "Ohohoho a bright and cautious bunch we have here! Very good answers but allll wrong. But it's not your fault. It was a trick question. Simply put all doors can be trusted. What can't be trusted is the danger that does or does not lurk on the other side." There is a cackle that annoyingly rings throughout the area. "For example." And suddenly the ground beneath all the shinobi drops sending them plummeting into a pit. "Trap doors."
In the underneath of the area there were vines that proved sturdy enough to support a person's weight. Ryuunosuke, having fallen the farthest, barely managed to grab hold of the vine before reaching the bottom which was lined with skeletons and jagged stalagmites. About 10 ft above Ryuu is a ledge. It seems to be a pathway leading into the supposed 'labyrinth.' "Attention. If you are still alive please proceed to the hallway leading into the labyrinth. hehehe"
Ryoji's grin faltered for a just a moment before fading all together after Naru's question. Although hesitant, he -did- answer albiet with merely a casual shrug. Hoping without truthfully believing it would be enough of explanation. As luck would have the static that filled the air gave him the perfect excuse to remain silent, observant and listening despite how much it hurt his sensitive ears.
"Liar. It remains the doors given the craftsman as well being at fault." He muttered darkly and after a moment’s pause started to repeat his words aloud; only to feel the ground give way beneath his feet. "Figures…” He murmured without bothering to save himself at first from whatever ill fate awaited him below. However, his body own self-preservation instincts could not be denied…
A hand whipped out as soon as vine brushed against his form, holding fast with the additional add of the tree walking exercising being applied. He almost cursed once he realized what had been done, but the futility in the act was simply not worth it. Aiding Naru on the otherhand was not. Thus, a net of chakra reinforced hair is created just in case… for both of them.
As soon as he 'felt' that everyone was on stable enough ground Ryoji cocked his head back and started spitting wads of flesh just about everywhere. "Hn… How kind of you oh voice in the sky.." Is murmured just as he swung forward and let go, landing in a crouch along at the tip of the ledge.
Naru was quick on her feet and as soon as the ground collapsed under them they fell to towards the ground… "Trust…all doors…?" It seemed like nonsense to Naru but they were dealing with a mad man after all, she recoiled and slug her body close to the wall and grabbed the veins, first supporting herself and finally placing her feet firmly on the wall, focusing a small bit of chakra so she could literally walk her way down, slowly and steadily, The Senju had some issues though, which caused her to grimace just a bit…They were so useless at times… " You okay? Senju?!" Naru calls out to him, slowly making some sly steps downwards until hopefully reaching the bottom…She landed firmly on her feet, letting out a sigh while rubbing the side of her head. “So…Now onward into this labyrinth hmm? We need to keep a close eye on….everything…"
"You can trust a door to be a door. Nothing more nothing less. Silly expectations are what give the illusion of such an object being 'untrustworthy' hehehehe." The voice echoed. "Wow. He is a madman after all." Ryuunosuke looks to the bottom seeing a net of some kind he sighs and starts pulling himself up the vine. Naru did catch him off guard but he responded. "Yeah I'm ok." It seems like Ryoji was looking out for them as well. A strange fellow but at this point Ryuunosuke trusted Ryoji more than, let's say a door. He climbs on to the ledge joining the others. "Well that was fun." He remarks sardonically while dusting himself off. The voice rings through the pathway now, much more clearly. "Eww what is it that you've spit…on no matter. Onward." Thanks to Ryoji's actions the group would be provided with a handily guide through the labyrinth. With it they would avoid dead ends and more pitfalls. However they would find that the only one passage would lead them to a large room with square titles. AT the other side of the room was a continuing path. "Hold it. Now I'm going to need a volunteer for this part. I'd advise that only ONE of you step forward. The other two will have to patiently wait." And so it would be left upon the group to decide who should moves forward.
Ryoji rose, shaking his head negatively at the madman's 'reply' to the rhetorical. All the while his hair quickly shrunk back to normal now that they weren't of any use anymore. The Iga facepalmed lightly as another thought occurred to him and muttered something along the lines "Sticking with braids" among other less nonsensical words.
"Huh? Oh, well pardon me sir Kitty~ I did not mean to spit on you, but there just so much gunk between my teeth and no other places to get rid of it at.." He trailed off with a half-grin in his voice before he moved onwards along with everyone else (hopefully). Meanwhile from the shadows, along the nooks, the corners, and the ceiling itself his 'spit' slithered, rolled, and crawled discretely. "And not really Uchiha-san unless your relaxed about it too.. being too tense is simply not gonna be helpful." He added without so much as a glance in Naru's direction.
Of course, Mr. Kitty just /had/ to throw off his focus a little bit by asking something silly of them again. "… Uchiha-san, front and center." Ryoji commanded (more or less) pointedly with a hand ready to grab Ryuunosuke by the shoulder should he try to step up instead.
"Hmm?" Ryoji's sudden beckoning of her had definitely caught her off guard, she thought maybe he would step up himself, not the other way around, nevertheless she moved forth, Ryoji was a little… interesting, perhaps a little disgusting aat times. It had been awhile since she had seen him in action… His non serious behavior was annoying but she knew he met well. "I work better under stress," Naru states honestly, brushing the side of her cheek suddenly her eyes begin to illuminate with the sharingan, burning and watching forth as she moved forward … This was a maze…and she was going to remember everything and anything she could see… Let’s see if i see anything…" She states quietly under her breath, moving forward towards the continuing path hoping to catch something off guard…Or unusual… Or maybe nothing at all…
Ryuunosuke blinks looking to Ryoji then Naru. He grins at the both of them in amusement. His attention returns forward but despite this teams seemingly chaotic chemistry he found each of them to be rather complimentary towards one another. When they come to the large room Ryuunosuke figures it's another trap of Kaito's. Upon hearing Kaito's instructions he was certain of it. He'd be ready to step forward if Ryoji had not spoken up. Why Naru? Well that wasn't hard to figure out with a little forethought. OF the three, she would have the sharpest pair of eyes. Ryuunosuke nods and waits alongside Ryoji.
AS soon as Naru stepped away from Ryoji and Ryuunosuke, row of small circles lines the path before and behind the duo. From the circles burst streams of flame. The flame prevented easy escape trapping Ryuu and Ryoji and holding them in place. However, as they would soon discover, the a new row of torches would appear and another set of streaming fire would be erected. "As you can see your friends are in grave danger. But fret not. To save them all you need do is make it to the other side and tap that button before the time limit elapses….currently that limit is 20 seconds. Ohohoho tick tock." With that the voice cuts out. Now what Naru would see before her is a space lined with tiles, each about 1 square meter. With her sharingan she should be able to see chakra in several tiles. There are tiles without chakra coursing through them at all. If she's learned anything about Kaito's Game so far, she'd step cautiously.
Ryoji stared blankly ahead even as the flames burst from the very ground at their feet in an all too predictable manner. Which was part of the reason why he sent Naru ahead given a combination of apathy for Ryuu and his own lives plus a loose sense of trust that her experience would be enough. If not, there always was the possibility of some hidden flaw within the trap design, a physical one in which his organs might pick up on, was around.
Regardless of this being the case or not, his focus remained mainly on observing from the outside and seeing if he could 'advance' his organs further beyond their current room. "Whew~ Is it really hot in here or is it just you Senju-san?… though, I don’t think you are one of those fire types are ya?", He asked offhandedly just to keep the almighty voice in the disguise distracted… perhaps?
Naru motioned ahead, she could see that some of the tiles were chakra induced while others were not, it still was rather tricky though considering who she was dealing with, she began to move slowly, attempting to avoid anything that was being manipulated by chakra, hoping from tile to tile hopefully without causing any problems. “Leave it to me…" Naru whispers quietly under her breath, more or less certain that she would be able to get out of here and move about safely. With each tip toe and movement she made her way closer to the button, hopefully to reach the end without setting anything off and come right back…
It seems Naru had guessed correctly. The tiles without chakra seemed safe. Her progression forward was smooth so far, but she now had 9 seconds left. Meanwhile Ryuunosuke blinks at Ryoji and then smiles "No Ryoji-san I believe that would be the fire." He goes on to say "And no I am not the fire type but it's ok. Naru-san can handle this." Despite his dislike of Naru, Ryuunosuke did have faith in her as a comrade. He trusted her more than a door too. "Leave it to her." He grins while folding his arms. The young Senju noticed however that their little tails were going to be getting hot soon. "Huh….of course there is always a plan B, just in case." he says stepping forward a bit. The trap so far had no noticeable flaws. The flames would continue to close in on Ryuu and Ryoji, from behind, unless the button Kaito mentioned was pressed.
'Option A or Option B, Option C leaves me vulnerable and Option D would certainly—' "Whut whut!? Oh… well yes, the flames. Very hot indeed but nothing of serious worry or whatever." Ryoji replied, rolling his eyes. The hotter it became however the less flippant he felt about the whole situation… not that he stopped multi-tasking between observing Naru, examining the tiles thoroughly without risking too much exposure, and coming up with a few more idle comments for Ryuu. Speaking of which…
"Not a flier eh? Well that's good otherwise you'd probably burn just from being near the flames… Hnn… Uchiha-san, please try to avoid being directly in front of the button!" He called out hastily before forming a focusing seal, the always favored ram one to be exact. Ready and willing if push came to shove to fire a chakra bullet at the button /or/ try to get a few chakra coated thick bundles of hair to it instead.
Naru kept up her speed, she didn’t even bother looking behind her… She didn't need distractions, she raced forward almost elegantly as she skipped over tiles, nearing closer and closer to the button before she attempts to leap forward, fire was around here so she really didn’t think she had much to worry about, this was her main element after all and she was getting quite proficient at getting the jump over it. Nevertheless she springs forward, hand out to press down on the button. Rather than having her feet planted on the floor she attempted to push it directly into the wall, making it easier to push away if anything was to surprise her from the sides…below or even above…
Ryuunosuke notices Ryoji's movements and places a hand before Ryoji "What are you doing? I said she's got this." He repeated. They were running out of time though. With each passing moment the space allowed by Kaito's trap grew smaller and smaller. Ryuunosuke still had faith in Naru though. Thankfully her leap let her reach the button with 2 seconds to spare. The flames around Ryoji and Ryuunosuke slowly die. Ryuunosuke sighs in relief "Told ya." He waves to Naru "Cut it closer next time why dontcha?" he teases with a smirk. Suddenly an alarm goes off and the entire area begins to tremble and shake. "Oh good job. You pressed the button. Well to be specific the self destruct button. Honestly you people confound me. You don't trust doors but you trust buttons? I'll never understand it." Kaito's voice rings in the static. "Well the labyrinth is going to collapse. You better hurry. Oh but don't worry about me I'll be fine. And just so there are no hard feelings between us I left the cure in a 'trustworthy' place." And with that Kaito is gone again. Ryuunosuke groans "Worst game ever. Let's move." With the same aid from Ryoji's flesh wads the team can navigate through the crumbling labyrinth avoiding any traps that were still active, and yes there were quite a few, all of them actually remained active despite the self destruct sequence.
The final room they would come to would be a lot smaller than the last and has two doors. No other exits seemed to be insight and if that weren't bad enough by reaching this room the team set off another trap. A huge tremor went off and behind them a massive torrent of water seemed to be rushing their way. "Where the heck did that come from?" Ryuunosuke snaps. Looking back at each of the doors they'd soon figure out they'd have to choose one and hope it would lead them to safety. "Ahem. My parting words to my commendable players. One the other side of one of these doors is the cure AND exit. The others well….not so lucky. You can only open one. The others will be sealed after you open one. It's quite easy though. As I said, I've put it in a very 'trustworthy' place. Ta-ta. Thanks for playing." The torrent of water wasn't a ways away but the team could clearly see its encroachment and would want to hurry.
"…. Tch, overconfidence little Senju." He stated without conviction, then settled in to wait…
If Ryoji ever found the man behind all their current misfortunes, he worried in earnest as to rather or not he would actually hug him for how the trap maze was constructed or punch him just for eating up so much of their time. Truth be told, he kept leaning towards the former as they ran through the exit with Ryoji behind the genin just in case, but calling out orders to leap, duck, roll, or whatever else needed to be done to avoid the traps until the final room was in 'sight'.
"Oh lovely, he intends to drown us hn?…… Well, let's see then…" He emitted nonchalantly with an easygoing pep in his step as he strolled forward ahead of the others. Observing their form, sniffing at the corners, and after careful consideration brushing along the surface of their form before withdrawing and nodding to himself. "Fresh Air, the faint races of chemicals.. perhaps herbs… and—-Senju-san calm down. It’s not like you'll drown /that/ quickly." He stated briskly before returning his attention to the doors… and stepped towards the one the 'sensed' would have what they needed to get out and successful…
Of course the button would lead to their inevitable doom…. Alarms sounded off, the Kaito guy speaking over them telling them how stupid they were to do so… Everything was rigged, and quite frankly Naru was slowly becoming framed off… inevitably the gushing torrent of water exploded from the rear and began to fill up the room…They had to think quick… "Two doors…" Naru spoke softly, her eyes still activated with the sharingan, though she couldn't necessarily see directly through them, she could see if there were any chakra signatures… If that was going to be useful or not, she tapped into her other senses, listening intently despite the gushing water… Perhaps Ryoji would have the best bet at this…. She waited patiently. “Shut up Senju and just wait a moment…" Naru cursed at the genin, she disliked him…. Though mostly for all the wrong reasons… "Ryoji-dono… I nominate you for this one!"
Ryuunosuke rubs his head at Ryoji "Oh thanks for that." He says. Naru's command shut the young man up for the moment but it didn't quell his rising anger. While Naru and Ryoji checked the room Ryuunosuke stood at the center first looking between the two doors then turning around to see how close the torrent had gotten. Pretty damn close. Looking back to the water Ryuunosuke thinks hard "Trustworthy place?" He groans "Nothing's trustworthy in this damn labyrinth." A surge of anger causes him to stomp his foot and the resulting sound would be peculiar. A hollow, wooden sound. Ryuunosuke blinks noticing this oddity. "Uh…anyone else hear that?" he asks looking at his feet. Dots begin to connect although compared to the other two, Ryuu's dots were connecting a bit slower. "Trust all doors. Expectations create the distrust…the guy has a jacked up notion of 'trustworthy'." Ryuunosuke states moving away from the center of the room with his eyes aimed downward.
"Uchiha-san… don't ever use that title in my regard okay?", He stated more than asked without turning away from stepping towards the door on the right. He did on the other hand take note of Ryuu's suggestion and merely chuckled at first without any signs of going in further; presumably if body language gave anything away.
"If you mean the trap door towards the center than yes, but… I hoped he wasn't that silly as to do something like that Senju-san." He stated casually, still examining the right door before finally turning about again and strolling forth to Ryuu. Indifferent or simply too focused to notice just how far the torrent of water had come towards punishing them for surviving thus far.
Ryoji could not honestly blame the water hazard for that either. They were being slow about proceeding…
"… Senju… Uchiha… proceed first if you would… I'll… I'll catch-up in a moment." He emitted mysteriously as he kneeled down to knock, then brush over the hollow space near Ryuu. Afterwards, all it took was a bit of elbow grease and luck, if not an extra pair of limbs being made out of hair, to pry it up the door. Before allowing the others excess Ryoji made a point to 'spitting' into the hole, wait a few seconds longer to make sure things were safe, then wave them on forward.
As soon as the other two were on their way Ryoji stayed behind for a little longer to look around and 'think' about what exactly was he doing. To wonder if surviving today would be worthwhile without a certain heiress being….
Naru had no idea what Ryoji was up to but she knew very well what she personally had to do. She began to stroll along, even jumping up slightly to maneuver on top of the water to make things a little quick for her or at least what little there was of this, she smirked and nodded, "When did you become so prim and proper?" she asks, though glances down into the trap door… It almost seemed like a death sentence especially if the water was to creep down into below, she took the chance though and went ahead on in, leaping down into the trap hole she was swallowed in an abyss of darkness until she hit the floor below … There wasn't much preparation so she just secured her fall, falling and rolling on her back while looking up at the ceiling.. " Okay…what now…"
As Riji suspected there was a trap door. It was the only exit and just in time too because the water torrent would be upon them in mere seconds now. There wasn't much time to worry about why Riji said he would catch up. Ryuunosuke had to fight every urge to stay quiet. He lets Naru down first then joins her shortly. He yells back up to Ryoji as he falls "Ryoji-san, we don't die for our comrades. We live for them got it? Don't you die you portaaaaaal!" and with that Ryuu hits the bottom rolling and kind of doing the same as Naru. The water would crash into the room now with the force of a raging river. "Way out, way out, gotta be a way out." Ryuunosuke says as the water falls down the trap door. Ryuunosuke spots a jar before them containing a flower and behind them he sees a set of stairs. The area is still shaking and rocks fall from the ceiling. Through the cracks in the walls water leaks. "Damnit all. Naru-san head for the stairs." He says getting up and snatching the jar. "We gotta go." Making his way behind Naru for the steps Ryuunosuke can't help but wonder if Ryoji survived.
Things were looking pretty bleak for Ryoji…But Naru knew better, she knew Ryoji had a plan, he had the opportunity to fall down with them if he willed it, she just peers around, seeing the flower in a jar, and then Ryuu telling her to head for the stairs. “Like you even need to tell me!? Naru bats back but begins to make her way swiftly, she moved up towards the stairs, once they would get there it was a simple shot back to the surface…She was curious about Ryoji though…She had no idea what to say or what to do to make sure he was okay… " Darn it…why do you have to be so reckless?" Naru cursed under her breath… She kept heading up… hopefully reaching the surface
That stair case lead to an exit, and with the water nipping at their heels not a moment too soon. The labyrinth caved in on itself and it was flooded. Things didn't look good for Ryoji at all. Ryuunosuke steps out after Naru the looks back hoping to see something, any kind of hint that Ryoji was ok. Not a even a single strand of his red hair was spotted though and Ryuunosuke was beyond furious. He sets the jar down so that he doesn't crush it out of rage. Ideally the mission was a success. Save the village. Although Konoha also requested that if possible Kaito was to be captured, but the madman had long since fled. "He's gonna have gate to pay…" Ryuunosuke growls as he clenches his fist tight. "Well!? How long you gonna keep us waiting?" No matter what the mission, it never felt like a success if a comrade was lost in the process.
Ryoji stared blankily down at Ryuunosuke but uttered not a word in reply. To do so would not be in favor of keeping his thoughts pure as intended. He did — just as the Senju turned to leave — offer a small smile in return for such 'invigorating' and dramatic words at teh very least for younger man's peace of mind. Then slowly started to shut the door while his gaze affixed itself to the torrent that burst forward due to the cave breaking down from where the entered to where he remained. He stood up and…
…..
Naru and Ryuu are given only one warning and one warning only before the water that began to quickly fill the tunnel behind them burst upward into a spout: A mass of red surfacing. If their lucky and kept their gaze upon despite the suprise the source of the explosion is still not readily visibly. But, if they were to had follow the more solid mixed in with the column…
"Pew~ Eck, bleh! Well.. guess these are probably ruined.. but still, worth the way in a little way…" Ryoji muttered in between a few pants after upchucking three fragments of wood into his hand. One of which he held in the light to examine more closely for a few minutes before it finally donned on him to look down from his precarious perch upon the boulder. "Hnn… hmpf, that does remind me though, I am not a 'portil' for that is not a real word… Aaaand, if ya had used it correctly i'd be saying that I would not exist without having a fatha in the first place… now, where is Kitty-san by the way?" He asked apathetically with his chin propped against the heel of his palm.
Strangely enough for a guy who supposedly spent so much time swimming.. barely a drop of water coated his form….
Naru looked over Ryoji, though surprisingly with amazement as he more so revealed himself a look of absolute disgust filled her face… Up choking fragments of wood…. Ryoji really did know how to get the wrong things in his mouth… “You are….gross…Sometimes," Naru merely spoke up, rubbing the back of her head in bewilderment… She wasn't sure just what Ryoji had done but he was… Okay it seemed.. " ha… Oh well I'm just glad you are okay!" She shouts out and offers a wave of her hand for him to come forth. “Looks like this mission is a success…But I don’t think this will be the last time we see this guy…"
Ryuunosuke looks up in awe at Ryoji. He is shocked. Not too shocked however to not be angered by Ryoji's retort. "Shut the portcullis up! What was the point of all that? You could've just left with us. I mean were you trying to lock me off? You're a portal. I don't care if you have a father or not YOU my friend are a portal." Though his words had rage in them Ryuu was just as happy as Naru to see that Ryoji is ok. Though Kaito escaped, the mission was a success. However with men like Kaito, one can always expect another encounter. The game must go on after all.
