Starring:
Date: January 20, 2014
Summary:
A party on the lakeshore
Poster's note: foul language filtered in obvious places.
"Of Bonfires and Sake"
Shore of Hananosei Lake
"Where's the music?!"
Uyeda called out over the sound of conversation and the crackling of flames, lifting his mug of sake. He walked around the bonefire, grey eyes sifting through the people, looking for something in specific. Or someone in specific, rather. "Where'd our musicians go?" he called out again.
"Good question," called one of the forty or so people just hanging out. But it really shouldn't have been that good of a question. Uyeda and his brother had only invited maybe 50 people to the bonfire gathering outside of the fishing shack. It really shouldn't be this hard to locate two or three among so few. So he extended his senses to search for their chakra signatures, finding one… already passed out nearer the lake and two in the woods. So he simply shrugged his shoulders.
"Our entertainment is probably off entertaining themselves in the woods," soon proclaimed Uyeda. "So everybody gather round. It's about time we start in on the festivities! Everyone who wants to take part, come in, come in!" He beckoned and took a quaff of his drink as the group began to trickle in, laughter and conversation accompanying them.
+ Minori had been in the area. Traveling, to be exact. She spent a lot of time wandering the world, searching for items of interest, and as she was preparing to make a small camp for herself earlier that night, she had stumbled across the growing party of… party-goers. Since the beginning, she had sort of stood along the outside of the group, not really integrating herself into the festivities all that much. However, eventually, she got to the point where she at least wanted to move in and stand nearer to one of the fires, which she did. She then spent her time fidgetting and examining people for anyone of importance or someone she might find more interesting than all the other louts.
Katama had stuck around the shack, dried off and ate the fish she'd caught earlier… and had watched Uyeda's preparations and creation of the bonfire. By the time the bonfire was lit, the sun downa nd people arriving, she'd already hidden her satchel and pulled on a few more layers of clothing to protect against the winter chill. In the moonlight she had kept back out of the crowd, watching, unsure if this was some kind of shinobi meeting or just a random party. She had refused refreshment thus far, unsure of the contents.
When Uyeda came out calling for people to gather round she faded backwards into the shadows… and bumped into someone. A man looked down at the diminutive girl in heavy armor and blinked a few times. Then it became apparent that he was very very drunk and either not shinobi or possibly too strong to worry about Katama's abilities. He grabbed her roughly by the arm. "Hey babe, come play with us!" and proceeded to drag her toward Uyeda. Shock had Katama walking along silently at first.. then when they were within range of Uyeda (and she'd recognised the man from before) she suddenly spun and kneed the man holding her arm, crimson eyes seeming to glow int he firelight.
"That's it, that's it — and don't worry. You only have to ogle me for a few minutes."
Uyeda waited until the majority of people were around before he lifted his cup and lifted his voice in the first official, "Welcome!" of the night. "Welcome to our annual celebration of another year surviving the road. The each of you here are either handpicked by me for being fun and savvy, or someone those people saw fit to personally invite. So to you lovely people, I—" he breaks off at the sound of a man's painful grunt, looking his way.
He arched a brow at the sight of Katama, a grin spreading across his face, "Why Katama of the Nambu clan, I didn't expect you to come in and join up. I wasn't sure you liked to enjoy yourself." He turned to the crowd, raising his cup, "Someone get her a drink and Kabuo some snow." He gestured to Minori too, catching sight of her. "And her too. A beauty without a beverage is a tragedy." He beckoned to the crowd with a hand, stepping closer to the bonfire. "All of the guests to the party, come step up. We're going to have introductions." A raised brow meant the same for Katama, Minori being someone he assumed had been invited.
+ Minori just so happens to be relatively close to Katama and her gropy goon when things go down. The Tenjin notices the drunk guy make a reach, and succeed, in grabbing her arm and is just about to stop in when he suddenly takes a hard knee. Minori chuckles to herself, grinning mischieviously at the other girl's ability to handle herself.
"Are you alright?" She asks, just as Uyeda begins trying to gather attention, and then points it in her direction.
When he mentions her and her lack of a drink, Minori narrows her eyes at him. She wasn't pleased with the prospect of having all the drunk men trying to get her a drink in order to get into her pants. Obviously it wouldn't work, but they might think it would. Not what she needed. Minori rubs at her temples and grumbles.
"Great…"
Katama watched the man Kabuo crumple and gave him an imperious glower before looking up at Uyeda as he speaks to her. The man might have aimed at embarassing her but she just stared at him and blinks her eyes a few times. Someone in the crowd produces a gourd and hands it to Katama to which she bows her head slightly and steps forward as asked. She'd been right to assume those around her were fighters of some kind as they had 'survived another year on the road', so now that she was officially surrounded by them she wasn't looking to start a fight. So she stepped forward, glancing to Minori as she too is singled out and given a drink of some kind. One brave man pats Katama on the shoulder and winks at her in approval of her 'technique' and she simply gives him a blank look that makes her look entirely innocent and confused.
Minori, however, asking her if she is alright brings a dark look to Katama's face and a half smirk forms on the girl's lips. It's only there for a moment but it's definitely a look of someone who enjoys putting the unruly in thier place. "I am fine, thank you." The more sober men, seeing Minori preparing to step in to help katama and katama's armor (not to mention her actions) make a kind of corridor for the two of them to step forward. She bows her head semi-formally to Uyeda once she's up there. "Uyeda-san. I was not aware you had a gathering planned."
*Uyeda had to leave, Yuuto Joined*
Amongst the drunkards and other travelers… Well, most of them are drunkards anyway… A black-cloaked figure would rise up out of the ground next to Katama, looking like some sort of Hell-spawn as it comes up next to her. His black mask gives no indication that he anything near human to a drunken eye as he looks around, quirking an eyebrow beneath that mask as he does so. "Could things have just continued to get any weirder while I was gone?" he mumbles to her.
+ Within moments, Minori is swarmed with drinks that she probably could not drink anyway… way too many! She thanks the new fans as she recieves more and more offers, and eventually manages to sneak away and make her way over to Katama. "Ah… looks like I may be the one needing saving!"
When Yuuto suddenly appears out of the ground, Minori lets out a surprised gasp and spills her drink all over as she fumbles for it. Thankfully, very little gets on herself. "Gah…"
Katama jumped just a bit as the figure materializes next to her. She hated that ability of Yuuto's. Minori's reaction gets a small glint in Katama's crimson eyes, amusement playing there, though she'd jumped too. Her voice is smooth and teasing when she speaks. "Same old trick, Shishou?" She lifts the gourd of sake to her lips and takes a swig like a man.
Behind Minori another guy is heading straight for the girl with another drink and Katama sighs, stepping forward and wrapping her arm around Minori's waist and tugging her close like she'd seen the males do to the serving girls they wanted to take elsewhere…. Then she proceeds to let her chakra crackle with energy and her eyes scowl at the poor man bringing Minori another drink. He quickly backs off and the other men watching all give the three odd people lots of space. No one was too sure about the small but obviously strong Katama and if the girl wanted Minori they'd move on… best to survive the survival celebration.
They are being watched, however, dark eyes observe the three from across the flames, quiet for now, though the wishes behind the interest remain shrouded like Yuuto's face.
"Is it old if it still startles you?" Yuuto ask rhetorically with a shrug of his shoulders. He watches the exchange between the girls and the men, shaking his head as letting out a chuckle. "Honestly, how is it that you find enjoyment out of this sort of things if all you have to do is fight people off the whole time?" he asks aloud, obviously not really concerned if any of those around care if he finds their practices dumb. "Perhaps it's some sort of warrior spirit thing, though I can think of many things much more useful in that aspect." He then tilts his head curiously at Katama's protectiveness over Minori, wondering if the girls know each other or it's just instinctive.
+ Minori lets out a squeak of surprise as she is suddenly pulled into Katama. Unfortunately, the tug Katama gives her catches her off guard and she bangs up against her armor with an oof! "Oh, hey there. Didn't expect you to be so… forward." She sips at her drink and then gives Katama a wink. "I certainly appreciate it, though." She then glances to the new, strange man, and shrugs. "Free drinks… obviosly."
Katama noted the odd tilt of Yuuto's head at her grabbing Minori around the waist and when the girl hits her heavy armor with possibly bruising force, Katama winces a little and lets up on her grip. "Forgive me. It seemed they would not leave you be and they fear me for some reason…." She honestly has no idea why she's scared the morons surrounding them…. She didn't think anything of kneeing the man who had grabbed her just as she'd not hesitated to break the arm of the boy who had grabbed at her chest. Katama then covers the faint blush on her cheeks by taking another deep draw from the gourd of sake. It was starting to warm her and it showed on her face. Rather than the usual hard expression whena round strange people katama looks flaming near effeminate. She hands off the gourd to Yuuto, pressing it against his chest. "This armor's heavy…." And she started to walk off in search of a good place to strip it off.. unless stopped of course. Still the eyes watch the three interact.
At Minori's words to him, Yuuto would look to her, his expression yet hidden by the black glass of the mask. "… No thanks," he replies with a shake of his head. He looks to Katama, blinking several times under his mask as he figures out she's going to remove her armor. He'd gotten somewhat used to her relaxing when they hung out in her apartment, but this is sort of foreign to him. Really, he might be seen as sort of awkward in this situation if it weren't for the really ominous feeling around him due to his attire… Maybe he should've killed that Uyeda guy instead of giving him a treasure map and the opportunity to turn this into a party.
+ Minori graces Yuuto with another quick glance in his direction before her arm slips around Katama, apparently intent on sticking with her for the time being. The Tenjin sips at her drink she acquired from an unknown man, hoping it wasn't drugged or something, at least it smelled and tasted clean. However, she is unable to resist commenting on Katama's choice of drink. "Is that any good?" She inquires, a little flush to her cheeks. She downs the last bits of her beverage and tosses the container to some goon nearby before looking to Katama again/ "Need a hand?" She offers and continues to hold her, even leaning in and against Katama somewhat.
Katama wandered off into the crowd Minori in tow and the two disappeared from sight as Katama went to where she'd hidden her satchel and started stripping off her heavy armor leaving her in just leather and silk. "I'm good…. I can do this in my sleep…" She pauses a second. "I /have/ done this in my sleep." She tucks the armor away securely and hides the items again. She was never good with regular sake so the genshu she'd swallowed hit her hard So when she stands up again she ends up leaning more on Minori than the other way around. "Shishou should take off his mask… these punks are no danger to him…." Good thing they were behind the shack and no one heard her say that…. Or had they?
A man is waiting for the two girls as they come bacck around the corner of the shack. "Are you ladies alright? Like a refill?" He offers them each a cup and smiles. Katama narrows her eyes a little then carefully accepts the drink, sipping at it carefully. It's sweet like wine almost too sweet, but it's quite good and Katama's downed half of it before she can think about it. "Thanks…."
Having been left among the riffraff by the girls wandering off, Yuuto looks around and groans a bit. He REALLY should have killed Uyeda before… He folds his arms over his chest as he awaits their arrival, letting out a sigh of boredom and annoyance. When they finally come back into view, he looks over and blinks a few times as he sees the girls, at least Katama thus far, taking a drink from a complete stranger…. This night is really going to be a pain.
Rather than bother walking through the crowd, he sinks back down into the earth and moves under it over to where they are, though he doesn't surface just yet.
+ Minori followed, or clung to, Katama, and the duo disappear from the party to where Katama takes the time to strip out of her armor. Minori watches, casually, as she sips her drink, eventually finishing it off by the time that Katama has finished removing her armor. "In your sleep? That's pretty impressive. I'd have trouble doing something so precise." Minori chuckles to herself and moves over to Katama's side just in time to catch Katama in a semi-hug when the girl leans up against her. "Already falling for me, eh?" She snickers mischieviously before tugging her into a supportive single-arm hug in an effort to direct her back to the party. "I would ask why he wears it, but I imagine that is a secret."
The man offering them refills ends up refilling Minori's drink that she had so diligently defeated earlier, and thus the Tenjin throws it back, draining as much as she can before she lets out a gasp and wipes her lips on the back of her forearm. "Whew… I needed that… even if it tasted funny." Minori looks to Katama at her side, her anti-douchebag buddy, and bestows a pleasant smile upon her. "Anywaaaaay… I am Tenjin Minori, of the Kitsuki-Tenjin. May I acquire the name of my lovely date?"
Katama chuckles as Minori inquires about Yuuto's mask and she smirks, though her eyes are hard and truthful. "You couldn't drag that answer from me if you tried." When the man appears and gives them drinks, Katama tries standing on her own feet and she succeeds through sheer determination, allowing Minori both of her hands again. Katama accepted the drink and downed half of it quickly. The sweet flavor reminds her of the clover honey a retainer family made back home and she licks her lips, eyeing the drink before swallowing the rest of it before smiling. "That was very good…." Turning to Minori she bows halfway — all her balance will allow — before she answers the girl. "I am Katama of Clan Nambu. And that guy earlier deserved his fate." She blinks twice before she snickers quietly. If she wasn't drunk it would have been creepy.
As the two girls start to feel the effects of the alcohol, Yuuto would blink a few times from his spot under the earth. He scoffs a bit, seeming annoyed still… And he decides to stay underground for now and enjoy not being bumped into by random drunkards.
+ "Hmmm…" Minori swirls her drink around a bit, contemplating. "Nambu… Nambu… I don't know if I recognize it." She chuckles a little, swooning up against Katama, going so far as to slip her arm back around the girl. "I certainly would like to gather some… information…" She practically slurs the last word. Even in Minori's delerious state, she still had the mass of political training that urged her towards information acquisition.
Katama doesn't notice that the man who supplied the first too-sweet drink poured her a second and then promptly disappeared into the crowd, smirking to himself. Katama meanwhile looks at the glass like a kid looks at some new wonderous candy. "This is .. really good.. it's not sake. it reminds me of honey…clover honey… my family's retainers made that honey. it was good." She doesn't realize that she's speaking in such a way or that she'd dropped her ever-present guard and looks almost like a normal 23 year old at a party… almost.
She sips the drink again, taking a slow draw from the cup and savoring the flavor as Minori states that she did not recognize the name and Katama proves that she's got no tolerance for alcohol… by simply giving out personal information freely, though it's only about herself and it shouldn't be much of a secret… "I am not shinobi. I am a samurai a princess of the Nambu Clan and given in sworn allegience as a kuroyari." She nods proudly, letting Minori swoon against her again.
As the girl brought the cup back to her lips her chakra flared slightly, as though she'd activated her awareness in combat. Her eyes glaze slightly and she looks around her with a confused look on her face. "Were there midgets here before?" She looks closer, then just looks confused. She pulls away from Minori and looks around her, before pushing Minori against the wall of the shack, one hand on her sword hilt. "What the… what are they Tenjin-san? do you recognise them?" From the moment that the man who supplied the drinks had disappeared, several pairs of eyes had landed and stayed on the two girls, watching from various places in the party…
As he waits underground, Yuuto spots some rather… weird flaring. Her words bring a blink, as he doesn't see anything's chakra around them, which means she's experiencing a bit of what he experiences daily… That's not good. Rising up in front of the girls, he keeps his arms folded over his chest as he looks between them, shaking his head. "What the heck did you two just drink?" he asks, quirking an eyebrow beneath his mask. "Though it is slightly amusing to have my student seeing what my affliction is like, this is neither the time nor the place." Looking over his shoulder, he searches with his Sharingan to try to spot the guy who gave them the drinks…
+ Minori also recieved a refill that she completely missed. It was as if it had just occured as she held her near-empty glass. "Mmm… it is… good…" She mumbles a bit, eventually raising the glass and taking another drink of the liquid. "Samurai? Princess?" Minori smiles brightly, and in a similar manner to Katama, divulges information she normally wouldn't, something strange for her. "I am a princess… ish…. thing, too…" She sways forward slightly, leaning in towards Katama. "I come from Kitsuki… its a samurai village… you should… should totally visit…" Then she is suddenly pushed up against the shack, causing her to squeak in surprise before she gives Katama a dumb smile. "Mmm… you're rough… I like it." She was completely out of it, more or less, at least. So much so, that she wasn't sure what she was looking at when Katama asked her to identify whatever it was that was around them. "W-what? I don't see anything…"
It was then that Yuuto decided to appear in front of her. His mask-bearing visage shocked Minori into a soundless gasp where she proceeds to prod Katama repeatedly. "L-l-look!" She points at Yuuto. Minori slowly begins to form a coherant though, and realizes that she is probably in danger, so she cowers behind katama. "Save me!"
Katama narrows her eyes, slowly sinking into a defensive stance. She draws one of her swords, in preparation for an attack that never comes… However, when Yuuto comes up from underground she reacts much different than before. Rather than chiding him or teasing him about his same old trick she takes a swing at his helmet with her blade, only managing to stop the attack in time before yelping "Shishou! Stop doing that!"
She sighs then, speaking to Minori but keeping her blade out and ready. "You're save, Tenjin-san. He's just my Master. He likes doing that." And then to Yuuto, her eyes glazing further as her body succumbs to the drug. Around her the shorter shapes seem to streach and spread, changing and twisting, becomming some of the party guests, changing shape and Katama seems confused by Minori and Yuuto's lack of ability to see what's going on around her.
As the attack comes down at his head, Yuuto would a bit and shakes his head. "You can't seriously be THAT weak to alcohol," he comments as he looks her over. "Then again you're not normally that frightened when I appear." He blinks a few times under his mask as he watches her chakra continue to fluctuate a bit. "Katama, I think it's time you take a seat," he says, stepping forward to try to grab her wrist then place a hand on her shoulder to try to move her to lean up against the shack.
+ Minori relaxes slightly when Katama notifies her that she is safe, and then slumps up against Katama's back. "Hnnng… you're my hero…" She wraps her arms around her waist again. "My legs feel funny…" Minori notes before she slumps to the ground, releasing Katama a bit. "I'm not… did I drink too much?"
the Tenjin looks up to Yuuto, then back to Katama. "Yeeah, you should sit down with me. It's… much better down here. Hehehehe…."
Katama radiates tension that Minori can even feel through the leather armor the kuroyari is still wearing, though the girl is lucky Katama's blade isn't turned on her when she wraps her arm around the samurai's waist and leans against her back. But Katama's stance doesn't waiver. The strength she's gained from wearing such heavy armor keeps her easily in place. However, she is not getting any better. Her crimson eyes are unfocused, unseeing, almost like that girl Yuuto had to capture the other day. So when he successfully grabs her wrist she's unprepared to defend herself from anything tangible and she finds herelf forced backwards and up against the wall of the shack. In the process, her glass tumbles to the ground, spilling the contents over a rock. the too-sweet smell should be familiar to Yuuto… /Very/ familiar…. She turns her head and jolts hard enough to pull her hand from Yuuto's grip as if she'd just run head-first into something large and threatening. The usually calm, composed woman lets out a startled yelp and as she moves her arm to slash at it she even loses her grip on the blade she has been wielding and it clatters to the stones at thier feet….
With the spilling of the glass, Yuuto's eyes wold suddenly get extremely wide under his helmet. "No way," he says as he looks down at it, his heart suddenly starting to beat a lot harder than normal. His eyes look back up to Katama as she examines her… There's no doubt about it… Burnit, he's been too busy ignoring this party to see the signs around him. He doesn't even seem to notice Katama's wrist coming out of his grip for a moment… and suddenly his aura would grow very dark, something one might expect to feel around a demon. "Where did he go?!" he suddenly demands of anyone around as he turns around, his voice much deeper and darker than previously, as if someone had flipped a switch inside him. He reaches to his back, drawing a sword as his eyes dart around, searching through the crowd for the man that gave them this drink. "You… will… not…"
+ Minori watches, groggily, as Katama is pushed up against the wall next to her. "Heeey… be nice!" She then notices the shadows moving about out in front of them. "W-what are those?" She raises a hand and points out to the crowd. "Do you see those things?"
When Yuuto begins his inquisition process of trying to find who-ever-it-was that he was searching for, Minori grumbles a little bit and then tips to the side, falling to the ground. "What's going on? Things are… strange…"
Katama hears Yuuto's voice and the scrape of a sword being drawn before she turns and puts her — recently unarmored — hand through the shack's wall, blinking as she pulls her fist back out of the hole, blood on her knuckles. She looks at her own hand then, blinking at the blood before she gasps, stumbles, and falls directly on top of Minori, panting. "I.. I see them …… I don't ….. know what they are…" Sweat has broken out across her body now and her eyes continue to appear unseeing but it's obvious that Katama is seeing /something/ because she's staring in horror at er scraped hand. In the next moment she's scratching at the small cuts on her knuckles as though trying to dig something out of her hand.
Meanwhile, 6 sources of chakra stand out in the crowd, 2 near the small group, watching intently. Two are by the bonfire and two more are in the woods. Each is intent on watching what is happening to the three shinobi by the shack..
His eyes darting around as he sees the six figures, Yuuto growls a bit and stabs his sword into the ground in front of him. "Looks like they already know I'm here… But you will not take her," he says, a deep rage showing in his tone as he reaches up to unlatch the clasps holding his helmet on. He drops it by Katama, holding a hand out at her as he says, "Sit still you two. What you're seeing is not real… Katama… I'm sorry I got you involved in this." As his face his revealed, his enemies may wish he'd kept the mask on as deep crimson eyes stare out, pointing directly at each of the men as his chakra flares up around him, dust flying up and ground cracking around him as he grabs his sword again. "Come at me then!"
COMBAT: Yuuto focuses 6000 stamina to turn it into usable chakra!
COMBAT: Yuuto finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Katama's turn.
+ Minori watches, awestruck, as Katama suddenly rams her arm through the wall of the shack, and is just about to chuckle at the amusing sight when the woman suddenly falls atop her. "Hrrk!" Is a relative semblance of what Minori probably sounded like when Katama landed upon her stomach and chest, effectively knocking the breath right out of her. "Ugggnn… you're… you're bleeding!" Minori reaches up and attempts to place her hand over Katama's. "Stop that, you're hurting… yourself… I think…" Perhaps she would save her from injuring herself further, or mabe she'd get smacked around by the delerious Katama. Worth it? Probably… Either way, she had no idea what was going on, what Yuuto was talking about, or what the ember she was seeing. It was not good!
Katama looks up at Yuuto's voice and lets out a short "No!" when he pulls his mask off then ducks her head as if dodging something which puts her right in Minori's reach and s the girl covers the grotesque vision Katama's seeing on her hand, the samurai looks up to Yuuto, eyes wide, suprised that he would care to protect her against what she could only think of as demons. Wait… did he just say not real?! Of course it was real! couldn't he see the maggots in her arm?!
Meanwhile, the two closest individuals rush forward, one throwing a kunai at Yuuto. The projectile was probably poisoned as well, of course. And the second one draws a single shinobi blade and takes a swing at Yuuto with it. The two by the fire widen thier distance and watch the action while the two int he forest start circling around behind the shack itself.
COMBAT: Katama attacks Yuuto with SHARP…18
COMBAT: Katama attacks Yuuto with SWORD-STRIKE-II…24
+et
COMBAT: Katama finishes her turn.
COMBAT: It is now Yuuto's turn.
COMBAT: Yuuto counters against a SHARP(18) attack from Katama with a WIND-SLASH…27
COMBAT: Yuuto has successfully countered the attack.
COMBAT: Yuuto counters against a SWORD-STRIKE-II(24) attack from Katama with a WIND-SLASH…26
COMBAT: Yuuto has successfully countered the attack.
As the blades come his way, Yuuto grabs a kunai in his free hand, tossing it to intercept the incoming blade and go directly at the man who threw it. The one coming at him is ducked underneath as he goes to stab directly at his gut. "That the best you can do?!" he growls out as he would look directly at the man's eyes. "Fear," he commands as he attempts to force a Genjutsu over on him before forming a handseal that sends a trio of stone columns up around the one who tossed the kunai at him. "I will tear you asunder and scatter your souls across the abyss!"
COMBAT: Yuuto attacks Katama with KUPPUKU…41
COMBAT: Yuuto attacks Katama with RISING-STONE-COLUMNS…46
COMBAT: Yuuto finishes his turn.
+ Minori is completely lost. She is seeing things, and for the most part, she has the ability to reason that they are not quite real, especially when confirmed by Yuuto. However, Katama seemed to be having some difficulty with that particular aspect. Therefore, Minori keeps her hand on the other girl's in order to stop her from wrecking it. It was the best she could do for now. "They're… not real!" Minori had no idea what Katama was seeing, but she couldnt see whatever it was, so that was justification enough for her.
COMBAT: It is now Katama's turn.
COMBAT: Yuuto attacks you with WIND-SLASH and rolls a 27. Action?
+defend dodge
COMBAT: Katama defends against WIND-SLASH(27) attack from Yuuto with a DODGE…21
COMBAT: Katama loses the roll and sustains 532 damage.
COMBAT: Yuuto attacks you with WIND-SLASH and rolls a 26. Action?
COMBAT: Katama defends against WIND-SLASH(26) attack from Yuuto with a DODGE…21
COMBAT: Katama loses the roll and sustains 528 damage.
COMBAT: Yuuto attacks you with KUPPUKU and rolls a 41. Action?
COMBAT: Katama defends against KUPPUKU(41) attack from Yuuto with a SELF-INFLICT…34
COMBAT: You lose your stamina for 1 attacks.
COMBAT: Katama loses the roll and sustains 0 damage.
COMBAT: Yuuto attacks you with RISING-STONE-COLUMNS and rolls a 46. Action?
+defend tense
COMBAT: Katama defends against RISING-STONE-COLUMNS(46) attack from Yuuto with a TENSE…17
COMBAT: Katama loses the roll and sustains 542 damage.
COMBAT: There are no more attacks for you to defend against.
Katama looks at Minori with large crimson eyes, similar in appearance to Yuuto's though not as unique, but there seems to be some kind of lingering trust within her as she stops trying to shred her own arm and looks to Minori for support. "Not.. not real? Are you sure?! I feel them!" She realizes that she's not breathing properly and tries to fight it, to control her breath more and it gives her just enough focus to allow her to latch onto Minori's strength. She would close her eyes but the battle playing out nearby draws her attention…..
The first attacker gets slammed with a counter kunai and he takes it in the neck, striking a major artery. One down… The second guy doesn't do so well either, taking Yuuto's blade to the gut then being slammed with the Kuppuku…. He is not strong enough to fight it and ends up in a ball ont he ground, bleeding out as he screams in terror. The next two come from either side of Yuuto, both slashing like mirror images of eachother, hoping to catch Yuuto between the blades, perhaps take his head off…..
But they are not the only ones making thier moves One man comes up behind Minori, attempting to use the back of his blade to incapacitate the girl. Right behind him is a second man who, should Minori be struck by the first blow, he will drag her off even as the first man makes a strike against Katama in the same way, aiming to stun the girls and drag them off to the woods…
+attack sword strike iii=yuuto
COMBAT: Katama attacks Yuuto with SWORD-STRIKE-III…41
+attack sword strike iii=yuuto
COMBAT: Katama attacks Yuuto with SWORD-STRIKE-III…41
+attack bladeback strike=minori
COMBAT: Katama attacks Minori with BLADEBACK-STRIKE…40
+attack bladeback strike=katama
COMBAT: Katama attacks Katama with BLADEBACK-STRIKE…23
+et
COMBAT: You must finish defending against all attacks first.
+defend tense
COMBAT: Katama defends against BLADEBACK-STRIKE(23) attack from Katama with a TENSE…3
COMBAT: You lose your stamina for 1 attacks.
COMBAT: Katama loses the roll and sustains 488 damage.
COMBAT: There are no more attacks for you to defend against.
+et
COMBAT: Katama finishes her turn.
COMBAT: It is now Yuuto's turn.
COMBAT: Yuuto defends against SWORD-STRIKE-III(41) attack from Katama with a INK-CLONE…59
COMBAT: Yuuto wins the roll.
COMBAT: Yuuto defends against SWORD-STRIKE-III(41) attack from Katama with a INK-CLONE…69
COMBAT: Yuuto wins the roll.
COMBAT: Yuuto successfully interrupts the BLADEBACK-STRIKE(40) attack aimed at Minori by Katama…58
COMBAT: Yuuto defends against BLADEBACK-STRIKE(40) attack from Katama with a UNDERGROUND-FISH-PROJECTION…54
COMBAT: Yuuto wins the roll.
RPCOMBAT: Yuuto defends against with a UNDERGROUND-FISH-PROJECTION…64
Yuuto seems completely caught off guard, and his head would pop straight off!.. and turn into ink along with the rest of his body. Popping up from the ground, he would go to grab both girls and vanish back into the ground with them. Several feet underground, he's made a small bunker for them with his earth chakra it seems. "Stay still," he says as he lays them down. With the whiff of that potion finally getting to him, he shakes his head a bit, and then his eyes get wide again. He sees a vision that seems to completely shake him as he looks at Katama before he suddenly leaps up out of the ground, drawing a scroll from his back that he opens. Several double-headed black lions with dragon-like wings and serpents for tails fly off the page along with dozens of black snakes, attempting to pounce the attackers in range and bind them down.
COMBAT: Yuuto attacks Katama with INK-VICE…71
COMBAT: Yuuto finishes his turn.
COMBAT: It is now Minori's turn.
COMBAT: Minori finishes her turn.
COMBAT: It is now Katama's turn.
COMBAT: Yuuto attacks you with INK-VICE and rolls a 71. Action?
COMBAT: Katama defends against INK-VICE(71) attack from Yuuto with a TENSE…12
COMBAT: You lose your stamina for 1 round(s) starting on your NEXT turn.
COMBAT: Katama loses the roll and sustains 694 damage.
COMBAT: There are no more attacks for you to defend against.
+ Minori's world is spinning, around and around and around… and then someone tries to club her like a baby seal. That was not good! However, she is saved by Yuuto, the strange stranger that she had… really not even met yet. She'd have to… to thank him, or something. "Its not real… its not real… its not real itsnotrealitsnotrealitsnotreal…" Minori rolls over and curls up, huddled against the wall of the shack. "I don't like this… I have a headache…"
Katama would not have been able to defend against the attack aimed for her in time, but Yuuto managed to stop both attacks, aimed for the girls and drags them underground into a kind of bunker. Minori starts chanting that it wasnt real it wasn't real and Katama pulls up against the wall of the bunker protectively, not sure what she was seeing now that it was pitch black.. Still there were images and she bit her lip until it bled to keep silent. As the visions increase she clamps her hands over her ears and lowers her head, pressing closer to Minori instinctively searching for a warm body, something 'real'.
Back up top Yuuto will find that two of the goons were taken down by his ink vice. They lay squirming on the ground, trying to break free of the bindings. The other two either fled or were taken out of commission, either way they can no longer be sensed.
+et
COMBAT: Katama finishes her turn.
COMBAT: It is now Yuuto's turn.
With the goons down, Yuuto lands on the ground and steps over to them. "So, it looks like some of his men are out and about. I thought most of you were dead," he says as he looks down at them. One of the lions steps back as he walks over, grabbing the foot of one of them and picking it up. "So here's the deal… The slower you talk, the slower you die. What's going on? Who's he in contact with out here that's organized something like this? I want to know everything you know." With that, he'd spin his foot violently, going to snap his ankle in a single stroke before grabbing a kunai from his belt. "If you don't think I'm serious, I can carve into you just how serious I am." Meanwhile, the ground would open up to allow Katama and Minori to breathe with the threat now neutralized.
+ Minori is busy falling apart, however, as Katama sort of snuggles up to her for some unknown reason, the Tenjin digs into a hidden pocket, pulling forth a stoppered vial that contains strangely colored pills. Without hesitation, she plops one into her mouth and swallows it before wrapping an arm comfortingly around Katama. It was just a matter of time… time until her system purged itself… she suddenly found herself praising herself for her time spent with herbs.
As soon as Yuuto opened up their little bunker, Minori climbs out, crawling away from it before flopping down on her belly, panting and sweating profusely. "Oh good grief… what did I get myself into now…?"
The man lets out a sharp cry as his ankle's torqued past physical limits, the bone snapping sharply and he watches Yuuto with large eyes, struggling even harder against the snakes binding him. "Know? Wedon'tknowanyoneoutherewejustfollowedyouandthelittlefirebrand!" Well, he was talking fast.. did that mean he got to die fast? The man looks like he might start to panic then suddenly laughs at Yuuto. "Did you really think it would be that easy you little maggot? You have no idea what you're dealing with. May you rot in Hell." And with that the man bites down on something in his mouth and swallows. Within a moment the man goes into convulsions, foaming at the mouth… and seconds later he's dead…. The second man watches this with a stern expression on his face.
Below, Katama looks up as moonlight filters in through the shaft for air and she seems to take comfort in that small amount of light, She blinks as Minori wraps an arm around her. The girl finds it oddly comforting and seems to calm just a touch…. Then it's gone and Katama can only hear the words Yuuto had said to them: stay put. And so she does, covering her ears with her hands again and closing her eyes tightly.
Yuuto watches as the man spews words out then kills himself by pill. "Oh, look, just another coward," he scoffs, kicking the man in the face as he walks by to look down at the second one. "Let's try this," he says before he spinkicks him in the back of the head hard enough to hopefully make him spit out any suicide pills he might have. "Scarecrow may think he's dealing with the boy he captured all those years ago… but he's dealing with a monster, a demon of his own creation… And I'm going to bring his world down around him… Maybe your screams will let your buddies know what's going to happen to them if they ever try to lay a hand on her again."
+ Minori takes a moment to roll over and heave a sigh, her head was swirling, her vision was blurred, and she was pretty sure she had managed to sweat basically all the non-essential fluids in her body out and then some. Either way, she was having one torch of a night… that ended in her falling asleep rather suddenly. Toasty drugs!
The final man remains int he ink vice, immobile. The kick to the backof his head knocked the suicide pill from his mouth easily and he groans softly. Yuuto's words seem to have little impact on the man who listens quietly, unaffected. "Our mission was nearly complete and As I'm sure you remember, that particular drug will wear off soon enough. She was an experiment and we concluded it. The only thing we failed at was watching her writhe under it's effects. The armored girl has to have a weakness. He'll find it some day. Don't blame the messengers." He scoffs.
Meanwhile Katama seems to have gotten a hold on the fact that there was something in the wine she'd accepted and thus Yuuto's directive that it wasn't real seemed logical. She held onto that like a life raft… but she was still adrift at sea and no matter how much she covered her ears or closed her eyes,the images kept comming. But they changed from indistinct shadows to demons to something far more real to her. The scene playing about her, behind her closed eyes brought on more sweat, and trembling. She could only take so much of it before she let out a short strangled sound and collapsed into a protective ball. The unshakeable kuroyari did have a weakness, luckily she was in the bunker where Scarecrows men could not see or determine what it was….
"Oh, a talker," Yuuto says with a smirk as he looks down at the man. His eyes narrow as he mentions Katama being used as an experiment. "The years in prison haven't changed him at all, I see," he says with a sigh as he places a foot on the back of the man's head to press his face into the ground. "Has he escaped prison, or is he sending messages to someone outside?" As he hears Katama's strangled sound, his fist clenches around the kunai before swinging it down to stab it into the back of the man's knee. "I think messenger might be a kind term. You're pawns, experimental toys to him, just like us. He wanted to see what I'd do to you if you tried to harm her as much as he wanted to know her weakness."
The man grunts as his face is shoved into the dirt, gritting his teeth. "I'm well aware we're all just toys to him. I don't care.How often does one get to play with a Kuroyari?" He chuckled until her felt the kunai go into the back of his knee. To his credit, he managed not to scream. And when Yuuto states that Scarecrow was just as interested in Yuuto's reaction to the attack as Katama's weaknesses he sets his jaw and remains silent. He wasn't going to be as much of a push over as the last man, though the suicide option had been removed from him, he wasn't as weak as the others, suggesting of course that he was in fact the one in charge of this little 'experiment'.
"Oh, so you like to play, huh?" Yuuto asks, rage flaring up in those glowing crimson eyes as he grinds his foot into the back of the man's head. "But you've stirred up a demon, and I like to play too." With that, he withdraws the kunai from the man's leg and then drags it down his back, enough to cause pain without doing any damage that would actually kill him. The snakes would then turn him over for Yuuto to look him dead in the eyes. "Fear," he commands before going to stab the kunai directly through the man's kneecap, intent on breaking it in half.
The man grits his teeth tightly as the cut is opened down his back, pain but nothing lethal. He takes it rather well. When the snakes flip him over he glowers back at Yuuto as though he had no fear, though his breathing is labored from the pain he's feeling, dirt grinding into his newest wound. Considering Yuuto's next action, the man's courage strikes an ironic nerve. "She's cute when she's scared… isn't that a dishonor for her kind?" He laughs in Yuuto's face. But the bravado robbed him of his control and when the kunai severs his knee right through the kneecap he can't help but scream.
Katama had heard the exchange above her and it drew her from her visions just a little, grounding her in reality. She could recognise that the growls, cries…. they weren't Yuuto's voice. And then she heard Yuuto inform his opponent that he had woken a demon and Katama forces herself to move, comming out of the bunker the same ay she'd seen Minori do earlier. She emerges just in time to see Yuuto cut the man's back… then destroy his knee.
Being a samurai she had not been privvy to torture as a child, but the shinobi had made certain to show her the fine art of pain as it was then a part of her reality. She'd learned something about her past that day. But now, though she saw the advantages of what Yuuto's doing in the search for information, she feels like she's been punched int he chest as she sees the look in his eye. So before she realizes what she's doing she comes up behind him, wrapping her arms around him tightly. "S..stop. let it go… Come back!" Despite the strength in her voice, calling to Yuuto's calmer self, her body betrays the fact that she is still under the effects of the drug. She's shaking, sweating, barely able to control her breathing, and yet she's still trying to pull Yuuto back from the edge of darkness.
The man's words only make Yuuto angrier, causing him to twist the kunai around inside the broken kneecap. "Try to act like a big man if you must, but you're weak," he growls out, those crimson eyes glaring as if burrowing through the man's soul. He seems to be about to do a lot more damage until he feels a pair of arms wrapped around him. This causes him to pause for a long moment, feeling Katama's shaking as she tries to call him back from the darkness he's allowed to take over.
Finally, Yuuto's countenance would change, and he'd draw back a fist to deliver it directly to the man's temporal lobe to try to knock him unconscious. "Katama…" Turning around, he would wrap his arms around her and pull her up to help support her body. Those drugs can do quite a number. "… Are you alright?" he asks, arms holding her tight for a moment. "I'm sorry. I didn't know he would be able to come after you."
The man lets out another scream as the kunai is twisted in the wound and then he blinks as he sees the very girl he'd drugged try to stop the man protecting her… Strange woman this samurai…. He'd out cold after the blow to his head. Leaving Katama and Yuuto. It took a bit of maneuering for Yuuto to turn in the woman's iron grip but as he turns and returns the embrace she loses a bit of her strength, knees buckling, leaving her leaning against Yuuto more heavily than she had been. She looked relieved that he'd turned his attention away from the man on the ground. She nods instantly when asked if she was alright, only a small lie as she was mostly okay. "I've been through worse." His appology makes her blink up at him curiously. "I should have thought it through. Of course he would try to find something he could use against you. This wasn't your fault… I should not have accepted … anything from a stranger." She sinks to the ground, a mighty headache comming over her. "I.. I'm… it's more like ghosts now.. maybe it's wearing off…" She smiles faintly, a hand going to her forehead. "Kill him and be done with it. I would but I don't think I can handle a blade right now." She scowls at her shaking hands, her discarded blade still lies on the stones by the shack.
Looking down at the woman as she leans against him, Yuuto nods and lets out a sigh. "I suppose we all have lessons we must learn," he says before looking down at the man she's asked him to get doe killing. While he maybe should bring him in for questioning, the real threat is behind bars in the jail still and available to be questioned… hopefully. "Alright," he says before he would move to place one under under Katama's legs, the other remaining under her back to lift her up evenly. "Let's move then." While one of the other lions shifts into a clone of Yuuto and begins to gather their dropped belongings, the one that tackled the unconscious man would move to literally bite his head off.
Katama blinks as she's scooped up like a damsel in distress — certainly not what she'd ever have thought of herself as — and the clone gathers her armor, satchel and weapon along with whatever it was that Yuuto himself had dropped. The drug is not entirely out of her system so when she sees the ink lion bite the man's head off she shudders, looking revolted and elated at the same time. Quickly she turns her face away and presses her forehead into his shoulder, eyes closed. She was exhausted. Rather than continue to fight and thus to see her Brother's various deeds, she sighs softly, drifting off to sleep in Yuuto's arms. The action is quite out of character for the Kuroyari as she had always been careful not to show a weakness, to sleep in another's presence is to ask for a dagger int he back, yet she does so now. She would be out for a few hours.
With Katama's head pressed against his shoulder, Yuuto would glance down, only to look back up and continue walking. Once done killing the peon, the lion would shift into another clone to help clean up the mess. A few hours later, whenever Katama would wake up, she would find herself on a small cot in the shack with Yuuto sitting in a chair nearby. Their things that had been discarded have been cleaned and set down in a semi-organized fashion. Yuuto himself appears to have decided to take a nap as well, eyes closed as he relaxes in his chair.
