Starring:
Date: August 9, 2013
Summary:
In the Land of Red Beans, a devious plot is hatched to accomplish the mission. But whom exactly is the devious?
Poster's note: foul language filtered in obvious places.
"Double & Dragon Pt. 2"
Land of Red Beans
COMBAT: It is now Keichi's turn.
*Crack* …. Keichi widens his eyes, the puppet disappears for a moment. Hibiki let her fall!? Keichi takes a deep breath, tears filling his eyes. "That wasn't the plan COPYIT!" He hisses to himself while bringing the dragon back, swooping over the crowds yet again.
COMBAT: Keichi finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Hibiki's turn.
Hibiki's eyes widen as the woman finishes her descent, a loud crack and then, as with death: nothing. The dragon makes another pass at the crowd, and out steps Hibiki.
"HEY!" the boy shouts at the wooden terrorizing beast. A second pair of hands again erupts from the boy's shoulders, again forming rapid seals, and again a whisper as cutting blades of air surge for the dragon in the sky. And too this time, Hibiki's own hands dance through seals, and a spit of water - a bullet of it - speeds through the air, aimed at the expanse of the dragon's wing.
RPCOMBAT: Hibiki attacks with WIND-CUTTER…37
RPCOMBAT: Hibiki attacks with AQUA-BULLET…28
COMBAT: Hibiki finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Keichi's turn.
RPCOMBAT: Keichi defends against with a MANDOREKU'S-INTERCEPTION…30
RPCOMBAT: Keichi defends against with a MANDOREKU'S-INTERCEPTION…29
Keichi was in pain, he didn't know for sure if he let her die, but it did seem that way! That was unexpected. "So maybe the rumours were true." Keichi says softly, while Mandoreku gets hit by the wind, barely dodging the water coming at him. He makes the dragon go down a bit, as if Hibiki wounded it, then he crashes it into the castle, spewing fire over the roof! "Come on Hibiki, put on a show!"
COMBAT: Keichi finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Hibiki's turn.
"Yes, yes, I know it's a pain. But do you- no, I - do I want to be whipped again? No, so shut up."
Hibiki lunges into a run, sprinting for the castle, his coat fluttering open, revealing a black shirt and fishnetted arms, his hands speeding through hand seals. A spit bullet of water again heads for the dragon, then another, and another, racing bullets of liquid intent on punching through the terrorizer's wooden frame.
"Do not fear!" shouts the boy as he passes the crowd, leaping onto the roof.
"I will save you!"
Hibiki stares out over the worried gathered masses, a small smile pulling his lips. Maybe there was something to this whole hero business.
RPCOMBAT: Hibiki attacks with AQUA-BULLET…30
RPCOMBAT: Hibiki attacks with AQUA-BULLET…26
RPCOMBAT: Hibiki attacks with AQUA-BULLET…37
COMBAT: Hibiki finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Keichi's turn.
RPCOMBAT: Keichi defends against with a MANDOREKU'S-INTERCEPTION…31
RPCOMBAT: Keichi defends against with a MANDOREKU'S-INTERCEPTION…47
RPCOMBAT: Keichi defends against with a MANDOREKU'S-INTERCEPTION…32
Mandoreku curls along his skitting bullets, making the first set miss, however when he claims he will save them, like any hero, when it counts, he hits, causing a water bullet to fly straight through the dragon's frame. Keichi winces. "Poor Mandoreku, I'm so sorry buddy!" He decides it's enough and makes the dragon flutter, before he flies it down into the forest, making sure to set off an explosive to make it more believeable before slithering the dragon back in its human form. People would only catch a glimps, so it's okay. Keichi quickly seals Mandoreku back into its scroll. "Now it's up to you buddy!"
The whole village is shook up, but Hibiki is praised into the heavens! The crowd picks up the boy and throws him in the air shouting 'hero, hero, hero!' While literally carrying him to the stronghold. Where guards are observing the mess. And the body is cleared out. One casualty, the noble is obviously aware of the assult, preparing to get dressed. A guard shows up at Hibiki's footstep. "Sir, you're going to have to come with me." He says, with a stern voice only a guard could have. What's next, a story about an arrow through a certain area of the body specifically vunrable to adventurers?
COMBAT: Keichi finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Hibiki's turn.
Hibiki is hoisted atop the shoulders of the crowd, carried aloft by the fine villagers until they deposit him by the stronghold, a particular guard coming out and addressing the youth, who nods, naturally, as if this entire thing went perfectly to plan.
"Hibiki wonders where we're going," he says, disappearing from sight. Hopefully, Keichi can keep up, and keep tabs, about everything that needs done.
COMBAT: Hibiki finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Keichi's turn.
Keichi tries to keep up, since he hid he wasn't seen as an enemy, so he could get close to the palace, watching Hibiki until he entered the gates with the guards. "No weapons drawn in the presence of the lord. You must adress him by his proper title. You will bow when meeting him.." So many instructions…. Eventually, he gets to the inner courtyard, where the Daimyo is sitting, a woman waving wind into his face. While a man with small glasses pours tea for him and his guest. "Welcome to my stronghold." The lord says. Waving everyone but the guards and the woman away. "Please, make yourself a home, hero.." He smiles. "You did a great thing today, that - thing - nearly killed me!" He says calmly. "Now I can't help but wonder, why would someone commit such a selfless act?"
COMBAT: Keichi finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Hibiki's turn.
Hibiki sits, takes the drink — drinks. His eyesbrows raise.
"Tasty."
He looks at the world around, the decadence by which the Daimyo lives, the lord which he himself serves, though not of this place — not of this village.
"A selfless act? We certainly would've died too if that… thing did any more damage."
The boy takes another sip, glances longly at the fan-waving woman.
"Though you do seem well protected."
The lord nods and chuckles. "Fair enough, so it was defending yourself." He looks at his guards. "I have plenty of guards, but none of them ninja. This is a non-shinobi land kid.." He grins. "Say, I was wondering if you were interested in work. I could use someone like you in my court. Unlike my elder brother, I do value ninja. The law, politics… It's all so double faced, why bother?" He grins. "No I think, a more direct approach is worth so much more.." He leans in… "Tell me kid, ever done an assasination before?"
Hibiki takes another drawing sip, leveling the remainder of the tea into his mouth, running it over his teeth. He swallows.
"Tell me what is required, and we shall tell you if it's possible."
The youth sits up a little straighter in his chair, his eyes again running to fan-waving maiden.
"Hibiki believes we might be able to strike a bargain."
But what of the actual mission at hand? How to dupe this room that some evidence may turn up? Or is Keichi already sneaking?
Keichi tried sneaking into the fortress and soon got caught, pretending to be a lost tourist, walking away with a defeated face. Oh no, Hibiki is on his own right now. And Keichi is starting to think maybe he should have been the hero! "Better not screw this up kid." Keichi grits between his teeth, sitting down on a bench just outside the fortress.
The lord claps his hands and smiles. "Oh-ho-ho excellent, so you will do it!" One of those spoiled kids who always got what he wanted no doubt. A 'maybe' is a yes in his book! "It is actually very simple." He whispers. So only Hibiki could hear it. "I will invite my brother up soon, for tea…. And to make up for something he thinks I did." He pauses. "Then, when he leaves my fortress, a 'bandit' shows up and kills him! Out of the blue! I'm next in line, take the throne and make this country great again!" He holds up his hands while basking in his own fantasy glory. Before clenching his fists. "And take what's rightfully mine in the first place!" He looks at Hibiki. "You'll do it, yes?"
Hibiki stares at the man, the other's vigor belying the stark self of the first. Hibiki holds his cup in his hand, only the top of his palm and the bottom of the vessel touching. The youth stares at the fine ware.
"Hibiki reminds: as he said, he believes we can strike a bargain. We will not acquiesce without knowing the terms of trade."
Hibiki drops the cup, catching it on the insole of his foot.
"A good idea, yes?"
The boy kicks the cup softly pack into his palm, holding it forward slightly inclined.
"May I have some more, please?"
"Certainly.." The man says, motioning one of the servant over who pours Hibiki some more. He is a little confised by the way Hibiki speaks. Then again, he dismissed it just as quickly. "Yes, bargain.." He grins. "I can pay you as much as you like, and offer you a place in my court as my personal guard." He smiles. "You will have the biggest houses, the greatest dinner, the best tea… And all the women you could want!" He looks at Hibiki. "Does that sound like a deal?"
The youth swallows down another glug of tea, placing the cup into his left hand.
"We most certainly do have a deal. However, as a consideration, Hibiki requires a downpayment. The amount I will let determine how well of a job you want done."
Hibiki stands, placing his cup next to the leg of his chair, stretching his shoulders, rolling them back beneath his coat, his eyes forward. Waiting. Waiting. For the forever. And then.
The man nods and glances at Hibiki. "Ofcourse…" He says while waving over a guard, whispering something into his ear. "A downpayment… For a capeable Shinobi…" The guard returns with a small decorated chest, when opened, it reveals to be full of silver and gold, coins mostly. Though also melted pieces of random things. "Yes, does this satifsy?" For a farmer, that's a fortune right there. For a Shinobi, not so much, but it's still a lot of money! And certainly more Hibiki or Keichi have ever been payed for anything!
Hibiki looks at the small chest, the sparkling pieces and melt-down trinkets, all squealing the fat squeal of money from within their gilded prison. The youth snaps the lid closers with his toes.
"Yes, fine. Where shall I wait to capture the target?"
My, how money turns all to nothing if all were gold. Hibiki hefts the chest, clutching it against his chest with one arm. He already begins to make way for the exit, as the daimo could well follow and detail.
The lord nods and follows Hibiki. "He shall arrive tomorrow, he will leave from the back gates. He'll have a small escort, but nothing to worry about." The lord grins and nods at Hibiki. "Good luck!" He says with a sinister voice. Before leaving him to walk the rest of the walk alone…. Or … Escorted by guards rather. All the same really. Keichi is fiddling with his fingers as he usually does before peering at Hibiki. "And?" He asks once Hibiki leaves the fortress.
The youth looks at the clasped chest on his chest, a small smile flicking his lips.
"We forgot: which one is the needing justice?"
The boy looks up, his cheeks a bit rosy, though strongly so, unusually so, and he throws his head back in the direction of the fortress.
"Was that the guy?"
Hibiki takes another few steps further away from the fortress, back towards the town proper.
"Come, come. We have time regardless. Food is on me."
Keichi nods at Hibiki, following along while wondering what Hibiki is on about! "Yes that's probably - the guy - …" Keichi blinks and walks with Hibiki back to the restaurant for… more food apperently. "What's in there?" He asks, pointing at the chest Hibiki's clutching. "Is that evidence!?"
"It's not evidence if there's nothing there," says the youth, stepping beneath the curtain of what steams to be a ramens shop. Hibiki tucks the chest on the ground beneath his seat, placing his feet atop it when he takes a seat. He smiles at the pretty young waitress and the scowling older gentleman behind the counter.
"One pork ramen. Special."
The youth looks at Keichi with eyebrows raised.
"You want anything?"
"A vegetarian ramen please. No pork." He looks at Hibiki and pauses for a moment. "Seriously, what's in the chest?" He asks. "Tell me what happened inside man! I'm dying to know!" He looks outside. "What do you mean with 'we have time?' Keichi his mouth opens and closes again. He's dying to know what's going on and Hibiki isn't letting out a single word! The torture!
The scowling gentleman and the pretty waitress nod and blush, respectively, both moving to work to prepare the dishes, one chopping whilst the other stirs the broth, checking for pristine temperature and precise flavor. Hibiki glances at the chest at his feet, and then gives his gaze to the muscled back of the old man chopping pork.
"His brother comes tomorrow. He-"
The boy thrusts his head towards where the fortress would be.
-"wants to see him. And then wants me to see him. Thus-"
Hibiki scratches the underside of his chin, puckering his lips into a ridiculous, unintended face.
"-we have until tomorrow."
Keichi peers at Hibiki, peering at the musuclar man and back. His gaydar is giving off brief pings, but he ignores it for a second. Looking right back at Hibiki. "His brother?" Keichi blinks. "The DAIMYO!?" He waits to see what else Hibiki has to say…. "He wants you to-…"
The camera zooms out, showing the restaurant they're eating in this time, shaking as Keichi's voice takes over: "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?"
So after a brief fade to black the scene continues, Keichi peers at Hibiki through squinted eyes. "What exactly does he want from you…. Just, to meet his brother?" Keichi wasn't sure what that meant. He surely didn't assume it was a plot first and foremost. But he was weary regardless.
The old man finishes chopping, dropping into a steaming bowl just placed before him by the cute girl several slices of pork and vegetable. Into another bowl he drops only the latter. Before the two the wares are placed, and with an incline of the head and whispered thanks, Hibiki grasps his chopsticks and pulls strings of warm noodle from the bowl.
"Mmmhmm, exactly. All this-"
The youth heels the chest to a jingling rattle.
"-to meet his brother. What land are you from again?"
A torrent of noodles get rushed into the boy's mouth, the top of his eyes glancing up at Keichi in obviousness. The Genin slurps.
Keichi shakes his head and begins eating his ramen as well. "I mean, - why - does he want you to meet his brother?" Keichi looks at Hibiki. "What are you going to say to him!?" Keichi really couldn't believe what was going on. "And even then, how is it going to help us towards our goal?"
The boy shakes his head slowly, sticking ramen into his mouth, and then a thin slice of pork.
"Hibiki believes that if you can't figure it out yourself, you shouldn't be asking. Either think, or wait until tomorrow."
The boy slurps another slew of noodles into his mouth, his bowl nearly drained, his attitude seemingly back on, though his face is full and flush, and he looks youthful and healthy. He crosses his legs, repositioning his feet over the chest, chewing, eyeing the waitress, who keeps blushing and smiling, and the old man, who does quite the opposite.
Keichi sighs. "He asked you to kill him didn't he?" Keichi rubs his nose. "You know we can't do that… right?"
Hibiki replaces his bowl upon the counter with a satisfied, "Ahhhhhh."
Another customer comes in and sits down, a stool away from Keichi. He's dressed as a guard, and looks exhausted.
"Beef bowl," says the stranger, and the old man nods. The girl doesn't blush when she looks his way.
"If you think," begins Hibiki, wiping the corner of his lips with his fingertips, "that we are shinobi simply because of what we can do, you do not understand the nature of shinobi."
The boy glances at Keichi, and reaches down, opening the chest and drawing forth a respectable sum to pay for both meals and a deserving tip. He places the money on the counter.
Keichi wasn't quite as fast at Hibiki, needing a minute to finish his bowl of ramen. "No, I'm no Shinobi. I'm merely a traveller who knows a few tricks." Keichi follows Hibiki as he pays. "So you did get payed to kill him! That's perfect!" Keichi reaches for the chest. "Give me that, I got an idea!" Keichi grins while a plan is forming in his head. "And no killing tomorrow! Seriously!"
As they argued over the chest and what they should do, night soon fell. Keichi would have insisted on camping out, now they got enough money, he simply headed for a hotel and assumed Hibiki would go along with it.
The following morning, Keichi wakes up with a loud yawn. The Daimyo was set to arrive in an hour, and Keichi is still none the wiser. "So what's the plan?" He asks while looking in Hibiki's direction!
Hibiki hadn't actually slept much, a pretend more than rest, whereby when the day drew up, he was ready to be done with it already: arisen.
"Come, come," says the youth, tapping the corner of Keichi's bed to motion him awake.
"We need to leave soon. And the one we want to get rid of is the one in the fortress, right? We forgot. Oh yes you did, too!"
The grumbles and steps towards the door, pulling his coat tighter about himself. He was ready to go; to intercept the brother before he officially arrived.
Apperently Hibiki has a plan. However when the boy mentions not being entirely sure Keichi grabs him by the collar and tries pushing him against a wall firmly. "Listen you little brat. Our mission is to defame the lord of this castle. The man who gave you this dual-mirror chest… You hear me?!" Keichi waits for Hibiki to confirm, before letting go. Or else he simply wouldn't let go. That kid's really grinding his gears now. "Now, you're moving because you have a plan, right?" Keichi pauses. "Because if you so much as point a finger at the Daimyo I swear by the Kami that you will not come home alive!"
Hibiki seems nonplussed about the action and the consequential state of affairs, for he simply sticks the wall, limply, even his head dropped to the side. His copper-flecked eyes sit wide and uninterested as Keichi lectures on. He blinks, waiting. Waiting until the other finishes, and from then his own speech, brought forth like a hammer piking into nail.
"Release me."
Keichi sighs and finally lets go of Hibiki. "Better remember that!" He says firmly, before rushing down the hallway and down the stairs. Nodding at the reception girl who had a bit of a worried face, due to all the commotion she heard upstairs! Keichi waits outside the front door for Hibiki.
The other takes his time, taking with him the chest, coming down slowly, nodding as well to the stationary girl at the front, leaving proper coin, out the entrance and into the morning, the boy moving beyond Keichi with but a twitch of the head.
They were headed to interrupt the brother before he arrived to town, and travel they did, moving swiftly until the moment came when they were near. Hibiki stops.
"All right," he says, pulling a length of twine from within his robes, handing it to Keichi.
"Tie me up."
He turns, and through his back runs a great shiver, and then behind it come his hands, steady and fisted.
"You intercepted me on my way to kill him. The chest is proof of the payment, as is our testimony. Hibiki says stop being so twin worried, as well."
COMBAT: It is now Hibiki's turn.
COMBAT: Hibiki focuses 3500 stamina to turn it into usable chakra!
RP: Hibiki transforms into DYOU-II.
COMBAT: Hibiki finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Keichi's turn.
Keichi looks at Hibiki who - does - have a plan surprisingly. Keichi wasn't entirely sure what good this would do, since it's only the Daimyo who already knew off the treason! But he ties Hibiki up, and looks around. "So we'll intercept him in the streets… When it's crowded! Good idea!" Keichi smiles. Though then wonders why they travelled so much as he ties Hibiki's hands up. "Other hands as well, please." Yes, he saw them alright! If Hibiki complies he ties those up as well. "So how will we convince the people if we bring you in so far off?" Keichi shakes his head. "I can make some fireworks to attract people's attention!"
When the leather tie is tight and secure, Hibiki nods.
"Mmm. Hibiki thought perhaps your dragon again. Not too much; just to attract."
The youth rolls through his shoulders within the constraints, not enjoying being pinioned at all.
"You ready?"
And without waiting, off they went a little further, closer to the busier parts of the town.
Keichi nods and brings out Mandoreku. "Your turn to shine boy." He spent some of the early evening fixing the damage done previously. Making him fly up as he walks with Hibiki, obviously trying to catch everyone's attention! This time, he didn't really create any damage!
RP: Keichi transforms into MANDOREKU.
COMBAT: Keichi focuses 5100 stamina to turn it into usable chakra!
COMBAT: Keichi finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Hibiki's turn.
The dragon would draw attention. First a trickle, come because of actually seeing the beast; and then a mob, drawn from their homes and work to digest the rumor that they wished sparked to life. What truth there was, too — such memories fat and full of life. And what timing too! For as the remainder of the mob approached, arrive did the daimyo's brother, in full regale, to be displayed before the people, and Keichi clasping the villain that is to be Hibiki.
"Play the part," whispered the boy, and with a small tug, did begin leading them forward to the brother.
