Starring:
Tatsuo (emitter), Shugo, Shinobu
Date: November 25, 2015
Summary:
A mysterious marble shows up in the Land of Hot Water, so some shinobi from Konoha go to investigate it.
"Language in the Marble - Sounding the Alarm"
Land of Hot Water
About a week prior a strange marble slab had appeared in the Land of Hot Water, northeast of the Land of Fire. No one knew how it had gotten there as no tracks were left and nothing was signifying what it was even there for. And then one day strange markings appeared on it overnight, etched into the marble as if they had been there the entire time. Word had spread like wild fire and the Land of Hot Water had decided to stay out of whatever the cause was as long as it didn't affect them. But others from villages all over were rumored to be sending out teams to investigate the oddity.
Konoha was one of those Villages and the team was thrown together with whoever was available. Tatsuo would be leading the team, even though he was still yet a Genin. The others would be there to assist in taking down the markings or, if possible, making an actual rubbing of them. With the task assigned Tatsuo went to the gates to wait, his pack filled with enough items to last a few days.
Shinobu showed up at the gates as well, Kame on her head and a huge pack on her back. It was a wonder she didn't suddenly topple over due to the weight! The girl gives a tiny bow to Tatsuo in greeting and waits a bit to see who else shows up, if anyone else was assigned to this task. Kame yips a few times. ~Hi Tatsuo! What'cha doing? How're you?~ Also, the pup really wants pets right now, but that can be done later. She's feeling a bit lazy and uninclined to move.
Shugo had been sentenced to five days of hard labor, that is to say that Hige ordered him to go on a mission and he was not at all happy about it. How was he supposed to be lazy and pretend to almost die if Hige wasn't there to make it easier on him? Shaking his head slowly in exasperation, the Nara would tridge along toward the meeting area with one strap of his pack holding it to his back and his hands tying his hair back and up into its wild tail that signified he never spent much time caring about the ceremony of his hair being died up. He'd even switched to using a coil of purple twine just because it meant if it was discarded he'd have plenty more on hand. As he neared the meeting area however, Shugo smiled a bit and picked up the pace to that of a normal human being since he recognized the one that made his recovery from the jackrabbit terror a smooth and peaceful, if not meddled-with recovery. Not being allowed to practice while recovering was the most boring days ever. Raising a hand, the Nara waved slowly in greeting to both Tatsuo and the Inuzuka girl, Shinobi… or was it bu?
As others gather Tatsuo smiles to them in turn, giving a small bow to Shinobu and Kame, and then to Shugo when he appears. "Hello Kame, I was waiting and I'm good, thank you," he says with a bit of a grin to answer the little pups questions. Once everyone is gathered in place Tatsuo explains the mission. "We're going to the Land of Hot Water to get a scrubbing of this strange stone. It might be some kind of code or unknown language but we're just going to get it down and then get out of there. Hopefully we won't run into any trouble and it will just be a quick trip." Quick as in…a few days travel. "Any questions before we go?" Tatsuo seems a bit more confident today, though whether it's just an act since he's leading or not is the question…
As others gather Tatsuo smiles to them in turn, giving a small bow to Shinobu and Kame, and then to Shugo when he appears. "Hello Kame, I was waiting and I'm good, thank you," he says with a bit of a grin to answer the little pups questions. Once everyone is gathered in place Tatsuo explains the mission. "We're going to the Land of Hot Water to get a scrubbing of this strange stone. It might be some kind of code or unknown language but we're just going to get it down and then get out of there. Hopefully we won't run into any trouble and it will just be a quick trip." Quick as in…a few days travel. "Any questions before we go?" Tatsuo seems a bit more confident today, though whether it's just an act since he's leading or not is the question… *RE*
Shinobu tilts her head a bit, and then shakes her head. Nope! No questions here! She was ready to go! Kame just wondered, ~Are the people there nice?~ Her genjutsu would extend to Shugo, only affecting the Nara if he allowed it, so that he could understand the pup. "Umm… Ready…" is all Shinobu manages, waiting for the order to move out. She wasn't sure if she'd be at the front or back.
Shugo shook his head slightly to show he had no questions to think of but then paused for a short moment. "What can you tell us about the location; any conflicts of note or perhaps rather a sudden stop to conflicts?" Shugo asked with a slight tilt of his head. More often than not he wasn't interested in the goings on of a mission however this one felt.. odd.. collecting a rubbing on something that just appeared would do that to even the lazy Nara. Still, he didn't need to worry too much for the time being since they weren't there yet. "And will we be walking, riding, or running?"
Pff, who rides in Narutoland? "We'll be running. And from the information I was given there hasn't been any real significant changes within the Land of Hot Water. Just this strange arrival and the Daimyo's not wanting any involvement in whatever it might be." He looks between the other three as he tries to recall, "As far as I can remember the Land of Hot Water has no problems with the Land of Fire, so we should be okay. The object itself is in a large field along a trail that apparently is not a main thoroughfare." He waits to hear any more questions, then nods and turns to start off. "I'll take point. Shinobu-chan please take rear guard with Kame-chan." And then he's off, taking to the tree branches and moving at a good clip.
Shinobu nods and turns all her senses on hi-alert once they're a fair distance from Konoha. No need for them all to be caught off-guard! Kame takes a ride on Shinobu's head for the first section of the journey, not that the young Inuzuka minds. "Weird…" she comments in response to the location of this strange marble slab, a small frown crossing her face.
COMBAT: Shinobu focuses 1542 stamina to turn it into 2000 usable chakra!
Shugo would nod slightly and kick off behind Tatsuo while maintaining a fair pace to make sure he didn't cause Shinobu to lag behind in their trek. Yawning due to having been awakened from his nap, the Nara was clearly not on high alert but he still had the basic sense to begin focusing chakra on instinct once they'd made it a fair distance from the village. He'd not be foolish enough to make everything too easy to overtake him. And he still had enough sense to be cautious of little fizzy animals with murderous intent as well..Wicked beasts.
COMBAT: Shugo focuses 1749 stamina to turn it into 2000 usable chakra!
COMBAT: Tatsuo focuses 5168 stamina to turn it into 7000 usable chakra!
Skip ahead! The shinobi would rest at intervals though Tatsuo keeps the pace at a good clip. When it got dark camp was made, food was eaten, and shinobi slept. The next day would be much of the same in which nothing exciting happened on the trip. Boring to get there, yeah? Trees give way to fields as they near the Land of Hot Water.
Once they near the border to the Land of Hot Water Tatsuo slows down so that everyone can have a little bit of a restful walk on the way towards their mission objective. This is where he keeps a close eye around, not wanting to run into any trouble. After all, there's no telling who else might want to look at this thing.
RPCOMBAT: Tatsuo defends against with a PERCEPTION…23
RPCOMBAT: Shinobu defends against with a INUZUKA-SENSES…44
Shinobu and Kame would cycle back and forth between who was keeping hyper-alert as they traveled. Shinobu would be doing her fair share of work while they traveled, helping set up camp and cook food if needed and so on and so forth. They were both a bit sad to see the trees disappear, though. Once the trees were gone, though, the Inuzuka duo would be even more alert. Kame kept to Shinobu's head and looked back while Shinobu kept an eye on the front. Apparently the system worked well, as the group didn't run into trouble.
When Tatsuo slows the whole group, Kame would finally hop off the girl's head and pad alongside her partner. Both of them are making sure no trouble is gonna appear with their acute sense of smell.
RPCOMBAT: Shugo defends against with a PERCEPTION…15
Being about as alert as one would expect of the Nara, though he maintained it throughout their trip while runing along the way. When it came to cooking, Shugo would help through gathering herbs and mushrooms, picking the ones that were safe to eat in his experience and avoiding ones he didn't know from the forests near his home. He was a bit curious of them though.. perhaps he'd try studying the other ones some day when they weren't on a mission. Shugo also didn't mind spending the night mostly on watch to keep an eye out since the darkness allowed his shadows to reach out much more easily and gave the Nara his chance to train even as they traveled. Once they had began slowing down, Shugo would follow along behind Tatsuo and keep an eye out, curiously scanning over the new area as well as trying to scan for anything out of place in their local area.
The Inuzuka duo would catch many scents as they crossed the border, as the border was marked by a wide dirt road that was well traveled. As Tatsuo lead the way further along, however, the scents would mostly drift away. As they neared the marble slab it was quite visible though it was far enough from the main road to be only a speck. No one else was around at he moment though the scents would tell Shinobu that others had been there before them. The slab itself was four feet tall and two feet wide with strange writing on it in large 'letters'?
Tatsuo stops in front of the slab and frowns at the thing, looking it over with a curious eye before looking back to Shugo. "Shugo-kun. Can you take the rubbing please? Shinobu-chan and Kame-chan, please continue to keep a watch out and let us know if anyone is coming."
RPCOMBAT: Tatsuo defends against with a PERCEPTION…23
RPCOMBAT: Shinobu defends against with a INUZUKA-SENSES…32
RP: Shinobu transforms into KAME.
RPCOMBAT: Shinobu defends against with a INUZUKA-SENSES…39
Shinobu and Kme kind of smell all the different scents, but otherwise most of the strange things disappeared with the wind. Or they were intermixed with the area around them, confusing their noses. "I think… Others have been here… But I don't smell anyone…" Shinobu reports with a frown. She could tell her senses weren't picking up on some things, thanks to the odd mixture of scents, but she had no idea if she was actually missing something important or not
Shugo would nod a bit while reaching into his pack for the supplies needed. A scroll of parchment paper and a few sticks of coal were soon produced from the Nara's pack while he moved toward the odd slab and began pressing the parchment against it so he could proceed with the rubbing. As lazy as Shugo liked to be, things like this made his bit of dedication to detail come out as the Nara worked the charcoal stick back and forth a few times whenever a 'letter' would show up, working to darken the edges for the rubbing so that it was more easily read once they would return home. He'd take the rubbing one line at a time, unrolling more of the scroll and using a fresh length of the parchment per line so that each portion was clearly identified as its own line on the monolith.
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Kunai vs Tatsuo from 20 to 50 and get(s) a 23. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Kunai vs Tatsuo from 20 to 50 and get(s) a 36. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
RPCOMBAT: Tatsuo defends against with a WATER-RIBBONS…41
RPCOMBAT: Tatsuo defends against with a WATER-RIBBONS…48
Tatsuo watches their surroundings while Shugo works on the rubbings. Luckily for the group, things are fairly silent throughout the process. It's when Shugo just finishes that someone else arrives. And they aren't happy to see the Konoha nin there. Kunai fly from a number of hands towards the four without warning. "Get away you filthy Leaf. This is ours now!" A woman appears with two others, all wearing hitai-ate showing the Hidden Sound.
Only paying attention tells Tatsuo that something is coming and water flashes across between himself and the kunai, deflecting them harmlessly away as he looks to the Sound shinobi. "You are visitors to this land just as we are. You hold no right to this object," Tatsuo says, eyes narrowed.
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Kunai vs Shinobu from 20 to 50 and get(s) a 47. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Kunai vs Shinobu from 20 to 50 and get(s) a 40. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
RPCOMBAT: Shinobu defends against with a INTUITIVE-ACTION…57
RPCOMBAT: Shinobu defends against with a INTUITIVE-DODGE…44
Shinobu blinks a few times as a few scents get a bit more distinct, and she looks up to see a kunai flying at her. The girl ducks quickly, avoiding the incoming kunai almost easily, though the effort she put in to avoiding those was a bit greater than shown. As she moves, Kame goes to sneak off and hide. Might as well have someone waiting in the wings! Shinobu just faces the sound-nin and allows Tatsuo to talk for the group.
COMBAT: Shinobu attacks target 1 with WOLF-SOFT-CLAW with a roll of: 32
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def Shinobu from 20 to 40 and get(s) a 25. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def Shinobu from 20 to 40 and get(s) a 32. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def Shinobu from 20 to 40 and get(s) a 22. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Kunai vs Shugo from 10 to 30 and get(s) a 21. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Kunai vs Shugo from 10 to 30 and get(s) a 25. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
RPCOMBAT: Shugo defends against with a SHADOW-SKIN-I…26
RPCOMBAT: Shugo defends against with a SHADOW-SKIN-I…17
RPCOMBAT: Shugo took 150 damage.
Shugo would be rolling the scroll when he felt the first kunai sink into his back only to drop off uselessly as the shadow beneath had been focused to defend against it. The second blade however found its place in his back and caused an annoyed groan to leave the Nara as he finished rolling the scroll and tucked it into his pack while turning about to face the attackers. Forming a few quick hand seals, Shugo's shadow would jet forward and split into three as they raced along the ground toward as many offenders as he could manage to lash out with while only using this level of attack. As the blade in his back fell free of his skin, Shugo winced a bit but began speaking calmly to the sound nin, "Just relax and stop stabbing people, it's not like we came here to cart this thing anywhere… "
COMBAT: Shugo attacks target 1 with SHADOW-IMITATION with a roll of: 22
COMBAT: Shugo attacks target 1 with SHADOW-IMITATION with a roll of: 14
COMBAT: Shugo attacks target 1 with SHADOW-IMITATION with a roll of: 25
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def Shugo from 14 to 35 and get(s) a 19. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def Shugo from 14 to 35 and get(s) a 34. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def Shugo from 14 to 35 and get(s) a 27. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Some Sound Attack… vs Tatsuo from 20 to 60 and get(s) a 22. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Some Sound Attack… vs Tatsuo from 20 to 60 and get(s) a 30. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
RPCOMBAT: Tatsuo defends against with a MIRROR-OF-THE-TIDES…46
RPCOMBAT: Tatsuo defends against with a MIRROR-OF-THE-TIDES…31
The Sound shinobi don't seem very interested in hearing the reasons of the Leaf nin as they don't even respond, but instead make hand seals and send out an attack that vibrates the air around them. Two at Tatsuo, one at Shinobu, and one at Kame since she was spotted! Shugo, though, his Sound shinobi is caught by the shadow and freezes in place, unable to complete his handseals and instead letting out a curse.
Tatsuo brings water of the air itself that forms a large shield in front of him, the water vibrating with the sound but keeping the vibrations from reaching the boy beyond. "I don't want to harm other shinobi, but if you're going to fight us then we'll fight back. Shinobu, Shugo, work to disable but don't kill." With that said he makes a hand seal and the wall breaks off into chains of water that start whipping out after the woman that attacked him.
COMBAT: Tatsuo attacks target 1 with WATER-CHAINS with a roll of: 34
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Some Sound Attack… vs Shinobu from 20 to 60 and get(s) a 47. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Some Sound Attack… vs Shinobu from 20 to 60 and get(s) a 24. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
RPCOMBAT: Shinobu defends against with a INTUITIVE-ACTION…38
RPCOMBAT: Shinobu defends against with a INTUITIVE-DODGE…39
RPCOMBAT: Shinobu took 200 damage.
COMBAT: Shinobu attacks target 1 with GATSUGA with a roll of: 41
COMBAT: Shinobu attacks target 2 with GATSUGA with a roll of: 47
COMBAT: Shinobu attacks target 3 with GATSUGA with a roll of: 46
COMBAT: Shinobu attacks target 1 with GATSUGA with a roll of: 32
COMBAT: Shinobu attacks target 2 with GATSUGA with a roll of: 36
COMBAT: Shinobu attacks target 3 with GATSUGA with a roll of: 45
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def from 30 to 60 and get(s) a 36. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def from 30 to 60 and get(s) a 59. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def from 30 to 60 and get(s) a 35. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def from 30 to 60 and get(s) a 51. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
[NPC System]: Baddies roll(s) Def from 30 to 60 and get(s) a 34. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
Shinobu winces a bit at the sound, though Kame is able to avoid the vibrations thanks to some quick movements. Once Shinobu recovers from the sound-attack, she crouches down onto all-fours, only nodding to Tatsuo once before she would suddenly spring into action. She and Kame would come down upon the enemy in a whirling tornado of fangs/claws, passing twice across the enemy.
COMBAT: Shugo attacks target 1 with PHYSICAL with a roll of: 15
COMBAT: Shugo attacks target 1 with PHYSICAL with a roll of: 11
COMBAT: Shugo attacks target 1 with PHYSICAL with a roll of: 11
Shugo was already reaching for where the sound nin kept their kunai when Tatsuo's orders to disable sounded out and Shugo sighed but did as he was told. Widening his stance and bracing his hands on his hips, the Nara began to count in a clear voice, "One, Two, Three, Four. One, Two, Three, Four." while each number was matched by a firm sweep of the right heel inward to strike against the crotch. Only when all eight strikes were delivered did Shugo release his hold with the shadow so the man could react as needed. After all, he didn't want to go over board and break something in the poor sound nin, or to dent the protective cup he wore for himself.
[NPC System]: Leader roll(s) Sound for Stealth vs Tatsuo from 30 to 70 and get(s) a 33. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
RPCOMBAT: Tatsuo defends against with a PERCEPTION…33
While the girl manages to avoid Tatsuo's chains as well as the Inuzuka's attack, her companion falls victim to the multiple blows from the Inuzuka and gets smashed into the ground. As for Shugo's trapped victim…well, he never had a chance to defend himself against Shugo or the Inuzuka, so he's looking a little on the dead side. The girl lets out a curse and shoots out an attack. However, this time it's not aimed at the shinobi, but rather the marble. Sound seems to almost visibly surround it for a moment before it shatters under the pressure. "I won't forget this you Konoha scum!" she shouts before abandoning her fellows and retreating, shooting sound at the three as a distraction.
Tatsuo watches the slab as it shatters, then winces and covers his hears as the sound hits him like a loud high pitched whistling. He turns to watch the girl, not so messed up by the sound that he can't see her flee, but that's not the mission. Instead he looks back, eyeing the other two on the ground for a moment with a frown before looking to his companions. "Are you both okay?"
[NPC System]: Leader roll(s) Sound for Stealth vs Shinobu from 50 to 100 and get(s) a 78. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
RP: Shinobu transforms into KAME'S-EXPERIENCE.
RPCOMBAT: Shinobu defends against with a INUZUKA-SENSES-II…90
COMBAT: Shinobu attacks target 1 with MAULING-WOLVES with a roll of: 39
Shinobu winces as she hears the very loud and very very annoying sound of the whistle. It was… Painful. For both her and Kame. Of course, Shinobu and Kame can still see and scent, so the girl can't really get away so quickly. A few handseals are created, and then a wave of genjutsu would be thrown out to try and force the enemies within range to a halt. That being said, the only one who had a chance to even be actually caught would be the fleeing girl… Should the genjutsu catch, she would envision wolves running alongside her before jumping to tackle her down and then tear out her throat. "H… Hai…" Shinobu tells Tatsuo, the girl rubbing her ears a bit.
[NPC System]: Leader roll(s) Sound for Stealth vs Shugo from 30 to 70 and get(s) a 50. - Rolled by: Tatsuo
RPCOMBAT: Shugo defends against with a PERCEPTION…21
COMBAT: Shugo attacks target 1 with SHADOW-IMITATION with a roll of: 25
COMBAT: Shugo attacks target 1 with SHADOW-IMITATION with a roll of: 15
Shugo would cover his ears and let out a sound of pain at the loud noise while his shadows beneath him festered in response. finally plugging his ears with his fingers, the Nara's eyes opening to peer around but not seeing where the sound nin had run off to. Annoying ninja, shameless to as she left her allies behind for Shugo to send his shadows after. While the woman might have gotten away, maybe her friends would have some information for them when they got back home to the village. If Tatsuo agreed to take them in for the assault. It wasn't part of the mission though.
The woman manages to avoid the genjutsu with a well placed genjutsu kai, continuing her retreat right on out of sight. Of the other two one is definitely dead from not only being held in place but from being drilled into twice by the Inuzuka while held in place. The other man wasn't able to avoid the attacks and is still not moving though he seems to still be breathing. Tatsuo goes to Shugo, holding out a hand to check then mend the injury he received from the kunai attack before asking for the scroll. "Can I see it please?" He was intrigued by what had been written on the now destroyed slab that would lead the Sound shinobi to destroy it.
COMBAT: Tatsuo heals Shugo for 536 with LIGHT HEALING JUTSU.
COMBAT: Shinobu heals Shinobu for 464 with LIGHT HEALING JUTSU.
Shinobu would make a few handseals to try and help heal some of the ringing in her ears. Well, whether or not that works is one matter… She also heals some of the damage from the vibrations while she's at it. Then Shinobu would peek over at Tatsuo and Shugo, moving to see what they were going to look over. Kame wanders over with Shinobu and settles down on the ground all sulkily. ~I dun like them~ she barks to the group, the pup's ears still aching from the high-pitched sound.
Shugo would nod at Tatsuo's request and reach into his pack while that healing coursed through his wound. By the time it had sealed closed, the Nara was offering the scroll of rubbings to Tatsuo while reaching back with his free hand to stroke at the slice in his Haori. "Those guys have more screws loose than I do.." Shugo muttered while he withdrew his shadows from the downed duo and trying to peer over Tatsuo's shouler so he could have a look at what the younger Nara could see. Perhaps he could read whatever it was…
Tatsuo takes the scroll with a nod of thanks before unrolling it to look it over. A faint frown of concentration appears as he looks at it, but then he just shakes his head slightly. "Doesn't make much sense," he mutters under his breath before rolling it back up. He glances towards the two sound nin before looking to the others. "Come on, we got what we were supposed to get. Let's get back to Konoha. We have a long trip back still." And with that he'd lead them away at a more moderate pace than they'd come. No rush anymore, right?
Shinobu would peek at the scroll, but she couldn't make heads or tails of it. She already sometimes had difficulty with advanced kanji, too! The girl would just nod to Tatsuo and follow, keeping rear-guard as they moved along. That being said, Kame was just going to relax on the girl's head and recover from the painful sounds that happened earlier. Dang sound-ninja…
Shugo would fall into step with Tatsuo while sealing his pack once more and giving a slight nod of his head. "Sounds like a good plan then.. Thanks for patching me up too, it feels a lot better now." The Nara would comment while giving Tatsuo a pat on the back as he smiled lightly. The trek back would be a nice quiet one, unlike the resounding annoyance of those sound nin.
