Starring:
Sousa (emitter), Kuoroke, Mushi, Chiyoko
Date: September 21, 2012
Summary:
Another dangerously insane patient from the asylum draws an elite team to deal with her.
"Myoushu the Doll Collector"
A town in the Land of Wind
C- or B-rank: There are still a few crazies from Garatsuku Asylum roaming about the Land of Wind. Do what's necessary to round them up, but be careful — some of them are former ninja, and even those that aren't can be dangerously unpredictable.
Someone made a terrible mistake in the aftermath of the Garatsuku Asylum breakout. It was an understandable mistake, of course; there was chaos amidst the hospital, with patients both dangerous and helpless on the loose, and rounding them all up as a whole was a higher priority than checking each one. Whoever was responsible for accounting for this patient must have just glanced into her cell, saw the still form was sitting quietly in the corner as usual, and moved on in their rush to report which psychos are still on the loose. Still, if somebody had noticed it was a decoy slumped in that corner, there would have been an A-rank mission assigned right from the start. This is not a patient who should have been allowed to wander free for any longer than can be managed.
Guujin Myoushu, her dossier reads. Age 34, but afflicted with a genetic disorder which prevented her growth from progressing beyond adolescence. Master puppeteer. Obsession with dolls. Committed to the asylum for acts of mutilation and murder in service of attempts to make people into dolls (some still living, others not so much).
Myoushu's presence in the Land of Wind became known recently when she took several hostages in an outlying town. Local law enforcement is unable to deal with her, not only because of her expertise as a ninja, but because she uses the hostages themselves as weapons. So they have been complying with her demands for basic needs while she plays with her victims, and they have sent urgent word to Sunagakure for help. Help is now arriving in the form of two Sunagakure Council Members and an expert med-nin. Some of the hostages are likely to be in deadly condition, after all.
Kuoroke rolls up the former inmate's file, and puts it away. "If you want my opinion, the doors are trapped, so we should just create a new entrance through one of the walls. The worst-case scenario is us collapsing the building on her, which at the very least will improve our position and weaker our opponent. In short, we can't lose." The Kuroki reaches into his cloak and produces a number of explosive tags, motion to the nearest wall. "Right there."
Mushi had just arrived when the patients broke out from the Sunagakure asylum, but she didn't help in the initial struggle. It wasn't that it'd be breaking any kind of neutrality code to help ill people, but handling the certifiably insane wasn't something she was as skilled in. Most of the people who managed to make their way to the Center were sane enough to do so-and she'd just dealt with enough crazy guys for a year recently.
However, when the mission to go fetch one escaped patient went around she'd offered her services. Beforehand she'd made it clear that she was a medic-for-hire, and would follow their lead. And now keeps quiet pace with the two Council Members. She does look thoughtful at Kuoroke's plan. "Collapsing the building on her," Mushi says, "but there may be some hostages inside who'd also get caught in that type of explosion. As a shinobi she may be able to survive a building collapse, but normal people wouldn't. Isn't there another way to get in, or maybe a smoother way to punch a hole?"
The presence of a puppeteer this dangerous is a little disturbing to Chiyoko. While she has, in the past, pondered the effectiveness of a human puppet, it's never been enough to make her want to murder another person just to do it. Of course, if this girl's kept track of her research and attempts, maybe some bandits would be 'willing' to suffer or die in the name of-.. Best not to think about that right now. Maybe Chiyoko can question this girl a bit when she's brought in. For now, she has to focus on the initial capture and rescuing the hostages.
As Kuoroke speaks, the Coucilwoman looks over to him and gives a solemn nod. "Yes, but that should be a last resort. Once I get inside, I can capture her inside my Guardian Puppet. All I need is a weak point in the roof or a window to go through with one of my puppets, then I can let you all in." With that, she starts looking around for any such point on the building.
The head of local law enforcement, who showed the ninja to the building, goes momentarily slackjawed and speechless when Kuoroke suggests collapsing the building. After the other two object, he manages to chime in. "Definitely no collapsing the building! Folks around here have FAMILY trapped in there!" DX Seriously, what is this, Kirigakure? :P Fortunately, Chiyoko's perusal of the building's exterior does turn up a potential avenue of entrance. Up on the roof, there's an air duct leading down into the building. In fact, if you put your ear close to it, you can hear lilting, random singing bouncing through the metallic passage, indicating that Myoushu is somewhere near the ducts. It's not really big enough for a human to get through, but maybe it can still be used somehow?
Kuoroke speaks in an even, slightly annoyed tone. "I specifically stated that is the -worst case scenario-, which means it's entirely on the 'most damage possible' side of the bell curve." the Kuroki has clearly spent too much time around Sousa. "It's highly unlikely. Please try to keep your heads and your senses of realism…" He looks at the team. "Chiyoko, you're a puppeteer, can you try to figure out if there's a way to relieve her of her weapons? Mushi, as a medic-nin, you're best suited to keep them healthy if we manage to free them."
Mushi nods to Kuoroke, as she strokes her chin thoughtfully. She's looking at the bunker like it's a big puzzle that she needs to solve. Then, she glances at the law enforcement officer. Very closely. Is she checking him out? She makes a few hand seals and the sand and loose dirt flies up around her. There's a poof of white steam, and there stands a perfect replica of the officer. Then she shakes her head and reverts to her normal form. "You're from this village," she says to the officer. "Can you tell me who we could best disguise ourselves as if we want to try to go in without seeming like a threat? Someone she may take and leave as a hostage or lower her guard around. A younger girl maybe or the person she treats with to make her demands. It'd be nice to have someone in place before the confrontation."
Upon spotting the airduct, Chiyoko smiles and gestures up to it. "There we are," she says, reaching down to a pouch strapped around her thigh to retrieve a scroll, which she unravels, causing a small puff of smoke. Once the smoke fades, a bowling ball-sized Crystal Ball, floats between her hands as she spins them around it. With a nod to Kuoroke, she replies, "Sure. If I poison her hands and wrists to the point she can't use them, she can't control puppets. Be sure you're all standing far enough back to not take any damage when I use my puppet to break the door open from the inside if that ends up being necessary." Looking back up to the roof, she ponders her strategy for a few moments. "I suppose this is where we separate the puppeteers from the little girls with dolls, hmm?" she asks with a smirk before turning and walking over to the building, moving out of the line of sight of the doors where the psycho might be able to see through. She sends the orb-shaped puppet up onto the roof then leaps and uses it to pull herself up smoothly to land with grace on the roof. Once on the roof, she walks over to the air duct and withdraws a small screwdriver from the pouch on her leg to loosen the frame on it and set it down on the roof. That smirk comes to her face again as she hears the singing. This should be fun.
With a few motions of the woman's fingers, the Crystal Ball floats up into the air duct and moves along through it silent. If one ever wondered the reason why she keeps such a small puppet with no joints for movement, outside the mystique of being a seeress with her crystal ball, this is it! For now, she leaves the puppet suspended inside the airduct, not bursting through just yet as she attempts to feel out the chakra signatures of people inside to figure out exactly where they are and where Myoushu is.
The lawman blinks as Mushi transforms. Ninja sure can do some impressive stuff. o.o "Oh, um, I'm the one who usually leaves stuff for her. She sends the hostages out to pick up packages. Nobody ever leaves, and I'm sure they wouldn't go back in if they had a choice."
Chiyoko's ball puppet manages to descend the duct without bumping against the sides. There are chakra signatures scattered around the room, most of them slumped against walls in neglect. The strongest sits underneath the vent as it goes along the wall near the ceiling, with a few of the other chakra sources gathered around. "You're all such good friends," remarks the childish voice coming up through the vent. "Why, I bet you'd all put your lives on the line for me, wouldn't you?" ;) A pause. "Hmmm, isn't it about time for our next tea set to be delivered? Migi-chan, could you check the door please? Mind the wires." A moment later, a woman comes out the door, walking in the stilted manner of a marionette, a look of paralyzed anguish on her face.
"Well, I could break her hands, too." Kuoroke answers. "That would incapacitate anyone, and doesn't really make the best use of your expertise. I meant from the puppet side, severing the chakra wires or attaching your own, or something similar. In either case, take away whatever power she has over them. Something that would disarm her and make possible to get to her without having to tear through whatever people she has in there in the process. At least not significantly. In the meantime, I'll make sure she's contained during the fight."
As the door opens for someone to walk out, Kuoroke darts for a hiding place at the opposite side of the building. While he's there anyway, he quickly produces a tag and places it on the wall and slides it over the ground towards the unopened entrance. Then, he waits for the others to do their part.
Mushi is watching the bunker carefully as the woman comes out. She angles in such a way to not be seen by either the puppeteer or the puppeted human, but have a good view of the door. And watch how the woman steps to be able to avoid those wires, narrowing her eyes in concentration. She's rubbing her palms together restlessly, thinking, but then she shakes her head. "Too risky," she mutters. Trying to replace that woman would be just too much especially since she knows nothing of the lady much less the voice she'd need to hear to imitate it. These thoughts go quickly through Mushi's head, and as the woman would get the boxes Mushi opens one of her scrolls and opens it with a poof of steam. There would be all kinds of cooking utensils and, of all things, Mushi would grab a few tea bags and stuff them in her pocket.
When the puppeted woman walks out, Chiyoko winces slightly. That's just evil… Which makes it a really fun idea to do to bandits. She reeeally hates them. After pondering for a few moments, Chiyoko moves her hands through a quick set of seals. One might wonder the purpose of this until what appears to be a white-haired little girl in a purple sundress falls through the vents onto the floor. A miniature Chiyoko perhaps. The girl lets out a whimper as she lies on the ground, rubbing her knee. A tear rolls down her cheek as she rolls over to look at the escaped psycho, asking in her best crying voice, "C-can you help me?" And the distraction begins, but will the woman fall for it?
When Chiyoko's little girl decoy appears, Myoushu whirls about. For a moment, a greedy reaction flickers in her eyes; a new dollie, and such a cute one too! But it quickly is replaced by cunning. Despite her insanity, Myoushu is no fool, she's an expert shinobi, and little girls don't just fall through air ducts. "Heh…looks like somebody else wants to play too…" Myoushu twitches her fingers, and several of her hostages rush forward to seize the little girl. "Well they CAN'T!!! I don't share MY dollies with ANYBODY!!! I'LL BREAK THEM FIRST!!!" >O Looks like things have gotten mighty hot, but at least she's not paying much attention to the entrances — !
With recon apparently botched and quickly going downstream, Kuoroke returns to his initial plan: a violent breach and then going after her. He spreads explosive tags out over the wall, steps back, and, throwing aside his cloak, blows the explosive tags up. In the meantime, broad lines along his limbs and spine, and lines crossing them going around those limbs and his torso, light up, signifying he is ready for a fight.
Mushi watches suspensefully as the puppet drops in, and she winces when she hears it all go wrong. However, she doesn't wait around to find out what might happen. She dashes for the front door, though only to be seen and distract. She doesn't try to push past the wires or other traps laying there. She looks to where the woman's voice had initially come from, frowning. She makes a few seals and a wave of chakra would fly out. Not striking anything but passing over everything like a wash of light. To most of the people inside it'd do nothing to them, but the woman whose picture turned up in the medical file she'd find herself paralyzed momentarily unless she acted quickly. It's a widespread attack that nevertheless discriminates between targets.
"Aw, you don't want to play with me?" the little girl asks with a pout as Chiyoko leaps off the roof, extending her strings and using them to swing through the new entrance create by Kuoroke. Just as the hostages rush, the little girl is hoisted by up the strings to 'fly' over them. Meanwhile, Chiyoko unravels a scroll, and with a puff of smoke the Guardian Puppet appears beside her. Using the opportunity of Mushi's attempted stun, the enormous puppet comes out of the smoke flying at the crazed puppeteer, its doors rotating open in an attempt to capture her and lock her inside as they close.
*KABOOM!* Bits of wall blast inward when Kuoroke detonates his tags. Myoushu doesn't immediately react, though, because Mushi's chakra wave catches her and fixes her in place. >.<; And when Chiyoko's other puppet swoops in to make the capture, it's all over. Myoushu is neatly scooped up and locked inside, severing the chakra strings which gave her control over the hostages. "NOOOOOOO!!! MY DOOOOOLLIIIIIIIIIES!!!" she screams from within the portable prison. DX
After the area is secured, there is plenty of work for Mushi to do. A few of the hostages were already dead, likely the first ones Myoushu abducted and used as weapons. The rest are paralyzed with a drug, leaving them alive and warm, but helpless to resist the pantomimes Myoushu put them through. Most of them are suffering from malnutrition; for all that one might pretend to have tea parties with dolls, they aren't supposed to actually eat anything. :P Some of them have painful muscle sprains simply from being left slumped in awkward positions for long periods of time. And of course, a few were injured by flying debris from the explosion. e.e; Fortunately nobody killed by that, though.
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!
