Starring:
Date: December 17, 2013
Summary:
Itami is sent with a rather unorthodox team to deal with the Murky Soup Gang.
"From Hage & The Murky Soup Gang, With Love"
The Ruins of San Sara-Duruta
Any group out here in the remains of San-Sara is probably a remnant of the activity that took place out here. It was a terrible den of wickedness, but there were still valuables to be collected from here. Nothing was confiscated by Suna or the Land of Wind's Daimyo, so if one was bold enough, they could take advantage. Up to this point, the Murky Soup gang have been trying to stake claim here and though they haven't scrounged up anything too useful, they think given some time, they might be able to find something here.
The gang was headed by a bigger guy who the rest of the gang feared and respected. He was a strong man, almost a bit too strong for his own good. The rest of the gang just followed behind him because he was strong. They wielded various weapons and each of them had differing levels of skill with them. The leader's name Hage. His followers were, Zippan, Kombu, Garou, and Genji.
So another mission! Adorned in his completely covering combat armor, Yuuto travels through the desert along with a team that almost seems mismatched here. A dragon woman, a recovering psychopath, and a blind man who can make eyeballs and stuff. Still, whatever Itami put together is probably best for the mission. Moving swiftly through the dunes with the team he is a part of today, the newly reinstated Genin remains silent unless spoken to. If one were to even attempt to peek through his mask to see his face, it would be noted as impossible as the blackness of the mask is amplified by a haze of chakra that basically creates a two-way mirror to hide his face and more importantly his eyes from view from even dojutsu.
If there's one thing Ryoji learned after his last tangle with the Land of Wind's more infamous roving bandit gangs, it is to make absolutely sure of two very important elements were accounted for: 1) Proper intel was accounted for and 2) Always mind the gut. Now naturally the latter of the two elements >really< depended upon circumstances, because frankly, one can only mind so many things at once. Less of course your the founder of the Iga clan, Sousa, REDACTED, or and elder of the Iga Clan. The better thing would have been to do more research on the other members assigned to his team, if only the impromptu kind. BUT with Itami as their leader, weeelll, no real need, right?! :D
Depending on the kind of pace their team leader has them set, Ryoji is either trailing along a few meters behind the rest of the group or just at the tail end of them. He paced himself, for he knew how dangerous the desert could be even for the most well prepared. Although the real reason behind the decision was to observe the third member of their team. The fact that the man went the extra mile to assure that noone would be able to see his face was just too curious a thing to pass up. Thus far, nothing has been learned that made Yuuto particularily exceptional. Yet. That aside, in full business suit regalia (sand brown issue this time), Ryoji follows the others…
Itami was at the head of the team, making certain to take into account everything around them. She wasn't any sensor, but she had abilities that could make up for this. Tremor sense would only give her murky images of people around here, so she opted to use her ability to pick up scents to determine who was around here. She slipped a forked tongue out and picked up on any smells that would help her to determine anything. "A bunch of mooks," she sighed. That's what they were called, right? Yeah. The weak henchmen.
"There are a number of henchmen hidden around here. We have options, however. We can either take them out quietly or we can take them out as recklessly as possible? I think out in this wasteland, noise shouldn't be much of a problem. Let them know we're here and we're going to take them out."
She smirked and began to crack her knuckles. "All in favor?" She asked loudly enough for the henchmen to hear.
They didn't break out of their hiding place until one that was a little too close began to grow itchy from his hiding place under the rubble. He took a bit of time before jumping out with his dagger in hand to attack Itami. She retaliated by ducking out of the way and outstretching her hand to catch his throat. "…I wasn't finished yet. Why did you interrupt me? Although, I have to give you credit, you took a lot longer than I thought you would. I could smell you from afar. You're sweating for one thing, but your fear is at its peak. I don't think I'll kill you." She lowered him and patted him on his head before strengthening her grip to put him to sleep. "Alright, let's get this started."
She stepped up to the ruins and gave two good stomps to the ground to send out spires of earth to knock the tops off the ruins some henchmen were hiding under. Compromised, they had no choice left to fight.
While he's fairly sure Ryoji is inspecting him - possibly even checking out is derriere due to the immense staring from behind, though trying to figure out the purpose of the mask is more likely-, Yuuto doesn't really seem to be pairing the man any mind thus far. He simply follows along behind Itami in the order, observing the surroundings with his hidden ruby eyes.
Itami's antics draw a slight smirk from the young man beneath his mask, a simple nod given. As the first assailant is quickly caught and disposed of, he comments, "I wonder if they've considered that this ground is cursed to be continuously destroyed by Sunagakure when inhabited by trash such as themselves." After a light pause, he'd ask loud enough for the gang members to hear him, more intending to strike fear than actually get an answer, "No survivors then, Councilwoman?" With that he would sink into the ground, using a trick he recently picked up from Itami to disguise his movements while she prepares to stir the cockroaches from their nests. While hiding, he would reach back and grab his scroll from his back, quietly preparing for what is likely to be a massive beating of these idiots who think they're hidden from this team.
Ryoji was thorough with his inspection of Yuuto, though the trek limited him to reliance on those sensory organs distributed in the tangled folds of his curly red hair; a crimson forest, or so he once heard someone describe. Even then — Itami speaks up, silencing whatever backtracking the Iga had done during those quiet few moments following their initial arrival. Just as he opened his mouth and answer, one of said mooks capture his attention. It is the audacity of the man that kept the Iga silent long enough for no warning to be called out. Not that it was actually necessary, but still, maybe it would have been appreciated.
Regardless, the first pin is dropped in mere moments. "Eto, Itami-chama. Mayhaps would be a good time — " That is about all the Iga manages to get out before the councilwoman decided to blow a lid on the Murky Soup Gangs operatives. Ryoji cringes from the noise, then lets out an exasperated sigh. A facepalm soon followed it when Yuuto spoke up as well. "And here I questioned the meaning of Shino — " Something whistles past his ear. Maybe? Or perhaps the Iga's imagination? Whatever the case maybe, the former wanderer seemed destined to never finish a sentence today! Be that as it may, the Iga would adapt and keep in mind to stay at least stray ten meters away from the others before taking a kneel and clasping his hands together. A prayer before the fight? Possibly…
Itami kept busy with shaking up the dens where the henchmen were hiding at. Of course, all this commotion reached the 'head office' of the leaders who were just under rubble that was a bit more stable than the rest. They set up shop there and had crates set apart where they collected any remains of value about this place. The four subordinates under Hage were all scared out of their minds at the sounds they were hearing so far, but their leader seemed unphased. Maybe they should be too? Maybe.
Zippan was the first to pipe up. "I'm gonna go fight. You guys can stay here and cower all you want to," he states as he spat at the ground. He hoisted his blade on his shoulder and looked them over. "I want to see what they're made of," he says as he leaves their bunker and heads out. It seems he's pretty fast as to the rest, he appears to just flicker away. In truth, he just had fast feet. Once he found a high point, he pointed his sword out to the group and called out, "HEY! I WANNA FIGHT THE STRONGEST OF THE GROUP!" That was his only message.
Itami lofted a brow at the guy and looked to Ryoji and Yuuto before bashing a couple heads in. "Okay, hold on…" She stated to Zippan. "Alright, so…this group is not as strong as I thought. If anything, they're not really worth killing, but if you wanna kill them, then that's on you. We just came here to handle them. If they're put in jail or not, they'll probably just be a bunch of low rank thugs for us to deal with every so often." Zippan seems irritated. "Hey! Don't ignore me!" He chimed and ran from his perch. "Ryoji, I think you can deal with him. You have sensory over this area, right? You can anticipate all his moves and take him out." She mentioned this to him since she didn't want to mention Yuuto and his ability to do the same.
Zippan jumped into the air and performed a flip as he was coming down, blade extended to try and cut at Itami. She was only moments away from being sliced, but didn't seem like she was going to move.
Ever wondered what really goes on behind those dark, tainted eyes of Yuuto? That mind that was effectively broken over and over again over the course of several years? The answer isn't pretty, and it might be even more disturbing that Yuuto has found a way to use these events to his advantage in combat.
As the onslaught continues, a few rather disturbing creatures rise up from the ground. First, what appears to be a gargoyle with a pterodactyl-esque, then a faceless golem bound some sort of chains, and finally a rather short man in a cloak with a seriously deformed face and talon-like fingers. The gargoyle leaps into the sky, flapping its wings and moving to intercept Zippan by going to grab him by his shoulders and fly into the air with him with the other two strange creatures charge other members of the group that Yuuto's sharingan has picked out to strike and claw at them.
It was as Itami had said, mostly. While Itami made with the racket and the mooks got with the attacking, the Iga had been a slipping those dastardly sensory organs of his beneath the sand. Not from his mouth mind you. Oh no, no, no! What few he could spare amongst that forest growing out of his head were being secretly dispatched along tendrils of hairs. Hairs that had buried under the sand in just thin enough bundles as to avoid notice, though granted, they could've been upon the surface and the bandits probably would not have given them much heed compared to Itami.
He stopped 'praying' only long enough to quickly dispatch those that charged in to closely to him, or were attempting to strike Itami's flank while she was handling another set with Kunai produced from the inner folds of his suit.. Aside from that, Ryoji had been waiting patiently for orders and for everything he set into motion to be in place.
Watching.
Anticipating..
Searching…
If not for Yuuto's creations attacking first, Zippan would've been treated to a nice sand.. which. >.>;; Alas, the man's creations were fast; thus, leaving free to continue spreading the tendrils and sensors, binding those he could to whatever were left of the ruins, or tripping them up as they treked upon the sand. It mattered not if they hid, the Iga knew all… Sorta.
Well, someone dealt with Zippan. It wasn't Ryoji, clearly, as some twisted ink creations attack Zippan instead. Well, that leaves Itami to finish off her job of tearing up the rubble dens while Zippan handles the ink creations. "You almost got me!" He called out as he landed on the ground just a few yards away from where his attack took place. "I think I'm gonna enjoy fighting you," he pointed to Yuuto. "Catch me if you can!" He zipped across the sands and called out his attack. "Whirlwind blade!" Who calls out the names to attacks?
Well, needless to say, it appeared to be formidable as he churned up some sand to mask him in his attack. The sand was something less to worry about but the blade hidden behind the whirling mass was the true threat. Meanwhile, Ryoji would have more henchmen to deal with. If they clear them out, it'll only leave the head and subordinates left.
Stealing the thunder of the sane (well, sort of) is rather amusing for the masked Genin… until Zippan escapes his clutch. Rising from the ground, Yuuto would smirk at the man and shake his head slightly. "If that's how you want to go out," he says with a shrug before he'd lunge out of the ground and over the incoming sand, wind picking up around his body like an aura and propelling him forward as he reaches back for his short sword and attempts to jab the blade directly into his back. Meanwhile, his remaining creations would continue to fight to aid the other two shinobi as best possible.
Ryoji would murderlize the lot of them!
Just kidding! Those he caught within the ruins and bound to the floors, pillars, and walls were strangled into dreamland. Sure their compatriots might've tried hacking at the tendrils binding their friends. That is to say, the brave but foolish ones. And… they would've succeeded if it were by blind luck the Iga had bound them. But that… is not the case. Whenever they tried to hack or pull, a pulse of chakra had been delivered down the tendril, strenthening even the weakest ends to that of a steel-like in quality.
It was funny and made funnier to Ryoji when he decided to toy with them so morrow with a disembodied eyes popping out of holes in the wall, bobbing and weaving and frieghtening them to the point that if they did not simply flee the ruins outright they may very well try to plead for help from the head honchos. If they do and if unimpeded, Ryoji's sensor taps follow them.
It is taxing to say the least trying to keep an eye, ear, or nose on everything at once. So much so, the Iga clasps his hands together once more and built up as much chakra to his hair as possible. Gone is the man ready to tackle hostile takeovers, and in his place stood a thing of horror! The beast of hair with blinking eyes weaved into its 'body' and multiple tongues lawling out of a gapping maw rose onto all fours and began to stalk along outskirts battle field with only very thick and seemingly endless tail buried in the sand from where it once sat. As much as Ryoji may have wanted to aid the others, the need to survey things and keep their enemies caroled took precedence. Plus… the fear he sensed wafting from their foes was just too intoxicating to ignore any longer. Strange for a guy who normally proclaimed being a 'man of the people'.
And the battle was in full effect. The henchmen were being tossed two and fro without so much as placing a dent in the advance of the three shinobi. It should be impossible for three people to have this much power. They're not even at the fullest extent of their strength, which probably makes this a lot worse. Itami, finally reaching the end of the line strikes at the ground tossing up the last of the henchmen and takes aim at the main hideout, tossing up all the subordinates except for Hage himself. Looks like he can take a blow.
Zippan, not realizing that Yuuto has come upon him, continues spinning up until the point he's stabbed in the back. He stops spinning now and the whirlwind draws to nothing but a soft wind as he looks behind him and subsequently reaches for his back to make sure that what just happened actually did happen. "How did you sneak up on me?!" He questioned.
It might be odd that Hage only comes out now. In fact, he wasn't in the hideout with the others. He went as quickly as he could to capture Zippan before he fell to the ground. Hage was a large, muscular bald man, but what's more is that he had some unusually beautiful eyes. That…that was a problem. He was crying over losing Zippan and even gave him a nice, long kiss on his head. "…." Itami wasn't sure what to think about that. "My sweet Zippan! He was the cutest one of the gang!" He cuddled him before laying him to rest on the ground.
"Who killed my Zippan?!" He was fuming mad and was ready to destroy the one who did him in. The subordinates hide behind a few rocks while watching their boss. Maybe they might be able to fight the others, but they're going to stay very far away from their boss.
"You'll never know," Yuuto answers as his target falls dead. One annoyance down, Yuuto would feel somewhat accomplished… at least until the big guy comes out. He blinks a few times at the display of affection, reaching back to his back to grab his scroll and quickly draw two figures on it while the man is busy kissing the corpse then fuming. The figures then fly off the page, one looking like Yuuto himself and the other none other than the man he just killed. "I think it was that guy!" Yuuto exclaims as he points to the clone that looks like him. The clone then points at the clone of Zippan, saying, "No, it was him!" The clone of Zippan looks between them as if confused before drawing a blade just look Yuuto's and charging Hage to thrust it directly at his throat.
The crimson beast kept on walking, absorbing all in passing, be it information or blades. Nothing could pierce the thick hide of the thing, though some did have the brilliant idea of attacking what appeared to be eyes inlaid its hairy body. Those that did lost the ability to wield a blade soon after, courtesy of a lack of appendages able to maintain order and still wield said weapons.
None shall slip away… hopefully.
Ryoji draws to a stop upon hearing Hagu's outcry and half-turned towards the source. "A fellow patron of that order," Ryoji murmurs, turning fully now as Yuuto made his move. With just a thought, tendrils of hair spring up from the sands behind Hage and try to wrap around his limb and head with the intent of exposing more of his neck to Yuuto's readied blade. The act comes at a stiff price in the form of his focus being stretched to its very limits. If one of those mooks gather their courage about them then…
Ryoji's efforts in sensing the field have kept most problems to a minimum. At this point, there's no possible way for a sneak attack to happen. Though, that doesn't stop the subordinates from trying to do their part. Their boss is angry, but they still have to be active somehow and Ryoji becomes the target of Kombu and Genji while Itami is forced to take on Garou. Kombu and Genji looked oddball enough. One had a mug like a lion while the other looked more like a beetle. Garou was a bird like guy and as he began to leap into the air, it became apparent that his features matched with his abilities. He began to take the form of one with talons and all, seeking to attack Itami from the air. Kombu and Genji are heavier hitters as evidenced by their body types. They both took the forms of the respective animals they appeared to be and proceeded to get to work trying to take out Ryoji's sensory organs. Not dealing with the hairy beast directly is better than trying to go up against that writhing mass. Garou takes his dive down towards Itami with talons extended and as he swoops, he managed to catch enough of her to give her a decent clawing as he passed by. If he could do that, he's certain he could deal with her with no problem.
Hage punched both of the ink creations out, feeling enraged that Yuuto would even dare utilize Zippan's likeness against him. "How dare you use him against me! Now I'm really angry!!" He nearly shrieked. "Come out and fight me or I'll be forced to find you!" He looked around for Yuuto, though saw nothing of him around.
"Oh dear! He's gonna find me! I'm scared!" Yuuto's voice would seem to ring out from all around. "Why don't you just give it up instead?" he asks as a Genjutsu would try to overtake the man, attempting to force such a fearful feeling to overwhelm the man that he would fall to his knees. Just as he attempts to force this, the Genin would rise up from the ground in front of the man with his blade coming up first, coating in wind that attempts to thrust it up through his gut and into his chest cavity. "Don't get too choked up! Your makeup might run!"
—Nothing. Luck and/or tactics seemed to be on their side today. Partially, anyways. The Iga -did- miss binding Hagu when the man moved after all. He never turns to look at them but each are noted by entrance. Quite frankly the Iga felt a little ashamed for not having bound them premptively, though, the possibilities of that happening and trying to assist the others was almost nill. It would be better to stop trying but… the thought is dimissed with a shake of a head. A second later and the man-beast falls to a knee, crying out in the process while arm like tendrils of hairs clutch at the vague shape of a head.
Someone… Something….
He falls onto his 'hands'. It is only after another sharp jolt shoots through him that he begins to realize just what a mistake it was to stretch himself out they we he had was. Just now did he see the draw backs of the beast, that achilies hill that was a lack of fine tune control over those sensors. Gathering what wits about him that he could manage, Ryoji cocooned what sensory organs he could in hair, effectively reducing his 'field of vision' in exchange for a few extra moments to rethink. That is, assuming the tactic is enough to stop a couple of powerhouses from shredding through the steel-like quality of his hair.
With the genjutsu falling on Hage, his mind began to betray him a bit as it ran around making him think about his fears. Zippan was his number one lovely and now he's gone. That leaves Kombu, Genji and Garou left. They were the other three that he could look to for support. He watches as each of them poof away, backstabbed by the Zippan apparition that was dared used against him. He cupped his hands to his face and shook his head at the horror of it all! Why would he do this to them?!
With the blade reaching into his body, it broke the genjutsu on him and he looked down at the weapon in his body. Now that he had a good look at Yuuto, he observes the haze surrounding him. So dark and mysterious! Maybe there's hope yet! "You might even be a runner up for my snookums Zippan! You're hiding your face, but that just makes things much more interesting~," he chimed as he grabbed at Yuuto, ignoring the blade in his chest. Well, somewhat. "I didn't know you were into that sort of thing~." He winked at him and blew him a kiss. Of course, this was no ordinary kiss. It was a jutsu intent on paralyzing him. It was perfect for subduing favorable men for his enjoyment.
Itami was still dealing with the bird guy and honestly, she wishes she had lightning at her disposal right now, but she thinks she can handle him well enough. That talon was a lucky shot against her, but from here on, it was going to be her move. She showed that she could transform too and took the form of a lizard. Of course, birds are a choice prey for lizards and she's looking a bit peckish, anyhow. She decided she was going to take the bird down by using the very sky against him. With a handseal, she sent down a rush of wind to blast him back to the ground so she could put an end to him.
Kombu and Genji seemed to be having success with dealing with Ryoji, but with him drawing the sensory organs back in, this means they'll have to take him head on. Not a problem. Kombu moves first and lifts his paw up to slash at the hair that took over the Iga. Usually, his claws could cut through anything, but this hair was a bit different tan what he was used to. What kind of hair was this? Forget all that. Genji decides to take the beetle approach and use the horn on his head to lift up some earth and chuck it at Ryoji to stop his advance. That ought to leave an opening for Kombu to try and find a way to deal with this mass of hair.
As the blade digs into the man, Yuuto would tilt his head slightly as the man really doesn't seem affect by the fact that there's a fairly long blade swimming among his vital organs… The nice thing about being an Uchiha is basically seeing everything coming, but this guy's just weird. "Really now? Maybe I'd be into making a waterfall of your blood all over your boyfriend's corpse. Would you enjoy that too?" Yuuto asks as he brings his hands into a seal, seeming to be attempting a Kai. However, having already pushed a surge of chakra through himself, what he is really doing would become more apparent as ink from his other creations that were splattered by the large man earlier forms into a hand between him and Yuuto that rises up and attempts to drive the blade further into him, aiming to plunge it into his heart.
The claws could not pierce but the force is enough to bowl the Iga over, knocking the wind temporarily out of him. Ryoji hardly has enough time to catch his breath before a change in the air pressure and the sound of something large passing through the air alerts him to the beetles plan. There is only few short moments at most to act. Ryoji wastes not a second on second guessing himself when a plan slowly forms.
Genji's attack struck home!
Actually… not. Rather or not either of the duo realize the ruse in time is all up to their individual skills. Ryoji could only hope that wouldn't see hm soaring high above them, hair practically non-existent as a sacrifice for the escape and kunai in hand. Several, to be exact. All of which he threw in pairs at all who dare tried to oppose the suna team. While the shots were from perfect, if they hit they would hopefully serve their purpose in guiding the exposed bandits closer into his allies grip. Clipping wings in bird guy's case, impaling Hagu at the back of his legs, a blade to Kombu's gut if he wasn't quick enough, and one hopefully between the joint plates in Genji's case. All the while Ryoji spun in the air, falling certainly but taking advantage of the new placement to try and deal damage.
An extreme gamble in short given the fact he sacrificed the last of his kunai for the barrage as well as one of his explosive tags to get back at Yuuto for stealing his chance at rescuing Itami. "Yuuto! Retreat!" Hey, at least he did warn him too. :P
Hage responds to Yuuto by tsking. "You're a bit feisty. I'd like that in my choice of men, but for you it's simply unbecoming. I think we can work out those kinks later," he giggled and his grin turned mischievous, perhaps even a bit malicious. The blade that was driven into his body would be forced out by sheer muscle power alone. "It hurt, but just a little," he mentioned. "Now I'm just going to have to give you a spanking. I think I'll need to be a bit heavyhanded, but I'm sure you can handle it," he stated.
He underwent a transformation himself. His muscles all over his body bulged and veins popped out everywhere they lay to the point that his clothing ripped off his body. He was hulking and huge and ready for some action. "I'm coming for you~." With that, he kneeled down and used his muscle power to rocket himself forward at Yuuto to give him a whallop he'd never forget. "Punch drunk love attack!" He cried out with his fist extended. He was flying through the air like a missile and even left a sandy contrail behind him as he blew over the landscape.
The bird was forced out of the sky and with further help from Ryoji and the clipping of wings, he wouldn't be making his way back into the air. Now he was in Itami's territory and she gave a sawtoothed smile to him. Leaping to close the distance between the both of them, she landed atop him and proceeded to death roll him in the sand. She tore him up enough that feathers and blood rose up into the air and floated back down. Ryoji's dealings with Kombu and Genji are going along with some ease despite the loss of organs. There were still enough around for him to launch an effective attack against them and effective it was. Kombu's gut would take a hit and despite his lion like form, he was left vulnerable and Genji was left locked and in pain from having to deal with hair wrapped up in all his moving plates and joints.
The additional attacks against Hage wouldn't do anything. In fact, the impaling didn't get as far as it could have had he not 'transformed'. His muscles were like a shield and offensive all in one and all his attention is directed on tapping into Yuuto.
This guy actually managed to surprise Yuuto a little. Popping a sword out of his own sternum mid-combat and actually continuing to fight is pretty impressive. Without much time to grab his scroll and his sword on the ground, Yuuto is force to try to block and ends up smacked right on the helmet and sent spiraling backward into some rubble. Now hidden amongst the remains of a building, he would cough a bit as he retrieves his scroll, opening it up to send a massive gargoyle and dozens of snakes off the page, the gargoyle attempting to tackle and pin down the man so the snakes can latch on and bind him down.
Ryoji counted himself lucky he hit the ground rolling half-way down a dune and then skidding down another few feet more. Still, there was more work to be done. While his strikes and last minute hairy distractions had given him enough time to land unimpeded, there was still the chance his adversaries could recover in time. It is for that reason why he focused his efforts in prepping himself for the finale. Sensory organs of all manner are spat out in every which direction. Ryoji did not stop at there. No. This time he would do what in a sense he should've done earlier. Hands seals are flashed through in quick succession and end on that of the tori (bird) seal.
"Omoikane… Version Two."
Following those murmured words is something akin to the improbable. Ryoji raced along the san towards the beetle like man in a matter of moments, compeletely unhindered — or so it would seem — by the loosely packed sand beneath his feet, weaving to and fro along the way at such speeds that he almost seems to fade out of existence completely. "BANSHEE STRIKE—" He calls out after re-appearing just at the beetle man's feet, fingers pointed earthward and palm facing out with the faintest hints of chakra swirling just above the skin. "VEERRRSSSIIOOON!" He struck out with the palm right as he leaped up with the intention of driving the technique towards the spot just above where the heart should lie. "TWO!!" Is cried out upon contact, distoring and rending all at ounce when the second pulse of chakra follows an instant later.
With her attacker taken care of, Itami takes a look over the field and sees that Yuuto has just been knocked towards the rubble. She lifts her head towards Hage and then seeks out Ryoji. She sees him initiating his attack against the beetle, Genji. The strike pierces through the guy and goes straight to his heart. It's weakened and eventually stops, causing him to drop to the gound. Mmhmm. She thinks that she can help him in taking Kombu out of the picture.
She bounds across the rumble and sands until she makes one final leap and aims her claws straight at her target's chest. He was still reeling from Ryoji's previous attack, so without much of a chance to defend, he succumbs to the claws that strike his chest.
"It's time for us to go and deal with the leader. It looks like Yuuto is having a hard time," she calls to Ryoji while looking back to inspect the damages. What she sees is a number of ink creations in attack against Hage. The gargoyle lands atop him and looks as if its pinned him down, but Hage raises up and gives the beast a crushing hug, causing ink to splatter all across his body. "Now I'm all filthy," he pouted. Surprisingly, the snakes reached him and bound him up in choice places. He couldn't move as they aimed for particular joints instead of seeking out muscles.
Thinking to offer additional assistance, Itami sets out a wind jutsu to try and pin him down where the gargoyle failed.
"Ooh, look I caught a boar," Yuuto voice rings out rather eccentrically as he leaps out from the rubble to the top of it. With the wind from Itami's attack pushing the target down, he gets an idea and grin slightly beneath his mask. "Let's see how well this piggy roasts!" he calls out as he quickly moves through a set of handseals then brings a hand up in front of his mouth to where the helmet is vented to breath out a massive ball of flame at the man that explodes with even more power than it would normally due to a boost from Itami's wind attack that holds the man down.
Ryoji waits a moment to make sure his foe is down for good before acknowledging Itami's suggestion with a curt nod. Afterwards he dashed a couple of meters to the right, and then buries his hands into the sand just deep enough to make contact with the tendrils of hair buried earlier by the scuffling. Banking on the risidual chakra left in the strands, Ryoji sends a pulse down the threads, breathing life once more into the scattered array. They converge upon the final adversary, buried and secure until Itami's macroburst forces away their cover. During that moment they all spring into action from just about every side of Huge, crawling up his legs and spring up and onto his hands, dragging him down further and sealing him into place if his strength cannot hold up to the dual assualts.
The combination of fire and wind makes for a healthy combination in giving Hage a hard time. It seems he's done for until the attack dissipates. He lies there for a while before rising up from the ground with his skin darkened. He smiled and batted away some ashen skin. He was in pain, but he knew very well how to endure. "I don't roast very well, you know," he remarked. "Too many muscles. Not very good for cooking~. But you're more like a lean meat. Probably means you're softer too~ <3."
Itami turned her attention to Yuuto, feeling discomfort for him if he didn't already exprienced some for himself. That and…this guy just took a direct attack from the both of them. Is this a battle of wills? The strands of hair that cover him gain notice as he begins to grip them and feel them out. "These could probably make a good wig. They're a bit messy, but manageable." Itami grumbled to herself. "I think we're going to need to be a bit more coordinated than this. He is…stronger than us as he is now. I think I should transform and take on a stronger form. Yuuto, if you haven't, I suggest you do the same. Ryoji, I have no clue how your abilities work, but if you have a stronger form, use it now." She states as she goes into Lizard's Soul. That should be sufficient enough to match his muscles.
"Soft?" Yuuto asks, seeming amused by that thought for a moment before shaking his head. "Well, if you're too tough to cook, maybe we need to give you your coup de gras and shove you in a hole somewhere." At Itami's words, the Genin would give a simple nod, closing his eyes within his helmet before opening them to reveal two tomoe spinning out to settle around the pupil of ruby eyes. He would then reach to grab his sword off the ground, rocketing toward the man with a burst of wind around him as he attempts to slash across his chest, flickering around to do the same at the back of his legs in an attempt to slash his Achilles tendons and ground him.
The combination of fire and wind makes for a healthy combination in giving Hage a hard time. It seems he's done for until the attack dissipates. He lies there for a while before rising up from the ground with his skin darkened. He smiled and batted away some ashen skin. He was in pain, but he knew very well how to endure. "I don't roast very well, you know," he remarked. "Too many muscles. Not very good for cooking~. But you're more like a lean meat. Probably means you're softer too~ <3."
Itami turned her attention to Yuuto, feeling discomfort for him if he didn't already exprienced some for himself. That and…this guy just took a direct attack from the both of them. Is this a battle of wills? The strands of hair that cover him gain notice as he begins to grip them and feel them out. "These could probably make a good wig. They're a bit messy, but manageable." Itami grumbled to herself. "I think we're going to need to be a bit more coordinated than this. He is…stronger than us as he is now. I think I should transform and take on a stronger form. Yuuto, if you haven't, I suggest you do the same. Ryoji, I have no clue how your abilities work, but if you have a stronger form, use it now." She states as she goes into Lizard's Soul. That should be sufficient enough to match his muscles.
Over the roar of flames and that of the wind the Iga's extrasensory monitors one thing in particular: Hagu's heartbeat. As a result, he knew well before all jutsu quelled that their adversary was not done with them yet. An unfortunate thing but something they would rectify soon, hopefully. As for Itami's command, well, knowing the Watanabe as he did the red-headed wonder made certian to put a bit more distance between himself and the immediate collatoral damage range before trying to assist. He kept his senses open to the exchange between Yuto and Huge all the while.
Once in position, Ryoji took a kneel and formed a single sign. The crimson forest returns once more and borrowed into the sand again. He was no heavy hitter and the only 'transformation' he had available was already in action. Even so, if he could just time his suprise yanks well enough he might just able to open Huge's guard up enough? He'd tried and even go so far as to try and tickle the man to submission.
"Ooooooh~. You'd do that for me?" Hage made googly eyes at Yuuto. "No one has ever offered before. Let me come over and give you a big hug! I could just cuddle you all day!" He chimed at Yuuto as he burst toward him with wind. He extended his arms to catch him, but he had a bit of trouble with all that wind helping him move around. With the addition of Ryoji's hair, he was struggling to move.
With him struggling he wasn't able to move fast enough to keep Yuuto from attacking choice areas of his body. He was able to stop a few, but not enough to keep him from taking a great deal of damage. Admittedly, the pain was welcomed so long as it came from Mysterious-chan~.
Itami joined in the fray by jumping in and raising her claws to brazenly slash around Hage's body along with Yuto. The combo of their efforts is enough to tear deeply into his body and make wounds that'd create difficulty to move. "I think we can all give him a death blow now. All together. I feel this guy has been fairly unpredictable and I want us to be able to down him as one instead of separated," she stated as she readied a final attack against him.
"If you'd enjoy being killed by me so much, stand still," Yuuto says with a slight smirk while his blade slashes through the large man's flesh. At Itami's command, he says, "Hai." Quickly reaching to his back again, he grabs his scroll, drawing out a few figures before a massive griffin flies off the page to attempt to pin the man down, a dozen cobras following it and coming in from many directions to try to bind him down to die in the upcoming strike.
All is absorbed. All is taken in. The thick scent of Hagu's blood on the wind was just what the Iga had been waiting for. That, and the final word from Itami. Unlike Yuuto, Ryoji does not answer in words but by action. After digging out an explosive notes a second hand joins the first in the sand, drawing some of the buried tendrils to it.
"Mane of Pain."
Seconds later, the hairs still wrapped about Hagu's body grew taut, assisting Yuuto's ink creations in holding Hagu down for the final assualt. But there is more. Some were puppeting the man as much as possibly, opening him up as much as many wounded areas as possible for the Iga's true attack. Tendrils of hairs with the keen edge of spears shoot up from the sand to dig in deep into Hagu's wound, borrowing deep and concealing a suprise should Itami's attack still prove not enough. A very unlikely thing though given just how powerful the councilor truly was… but still, never hurts to have a back up plan, right?
The explosive tags should be perfect for finishing Hage off. He wasn't going to be doing anything now except accepting death. He grew teary eyed and focused only on Yuuto for the entire time saying, "You should at least let me see your face before I die. Then I can think about it all the time in the afterlife~. If I'm lucky, I'll be able to come back and see you in my fabulous ghostly form," he giggled. So, he clearly wasn't worried about the pain. All his pain came from the fact that he won't be able to see Yuuto again.
Inhaling deeply, she gatered up all the chakra she could to focus it into one blast of fire to help the explosives do their job. The guy did admit that he didn't cook well, but with his body opened up, the fire should burn him normally
At that request, Yuuto would pause a moment the chuckle a bit. "Sure," he says, reaching to grab his scroll and open it up. Just as it seems the man might see a picture of Yuuto's face, a guillotine blade of ink would fly off the page to slash at his throat in an attempt to either behead him or at least go far enough into his throat to fully cut off oxygen and bloodflow to his brain and kill him.
Fire. Explosions. Decapitation. This merry band of Sunagakure shinobi certianly did not seem to know the meaning of overkill! Then again, Hagu has survived their assaults up to now on their own, so why not be extra certain? ;D
In the end, so long as the ultimate results ended with Hagu's being removeed as a threat, Ryoji was willing to allow his attention to waver from their current adversary. Mostly that is. And it is not as if the Iga hadn't been keeping an eye on the surroundings as well. Which, as some of the remaining bandits in hiding might realize, was definetly the case by means of being bound in place by a few re-routed hair tendrils beneath the sand. Some, but not all, /if/ there are any who remain to see their bosses fall.
Even should that be the case, some may very well still escape from the blind man's grasp due to exhaustion creeping upon him. Panting, Ryoji wavered in place for a few moments before trying to attract either Yuuto or Itami's attention to any that remain. Let them deal with the mop up… maybe.
"Another chapter… closed."
What's left over after that grand finale is…not much. Hage's body survived, but he didn't. He was genuinely burned and bore the bruises that came with binding as well as the blast marks from explosions. His head lay away from him with a happy expression, having had the greatest time getting to know Yuuto. It was shortlived but his heart was dedicated to him always. Mysterious-chan is his forever~.
"I think it's done…" Itami remarks. "It's about time too. He was tough. That's scary to think about," she mentions as she reverts back to her normal self. "The gang is taken care of, at least and they probably won't be doing much around here anymore," she looked towards the ruins and saw that any henchmen that were around got up and scrammed long ago. The subordinates were taken care of and Hage was defeated. "Time to head home."
