Starring:
Akane, Honosuke, Itami, Rikuto
Date: September 30, 2015
Summary:
A small unit of individuals were organized within the village or rescue the remaining people trapped within the sunken administration dome and then to force the building back tot he surface.
"Raising the Roof in Suna"
Sunagakure, Land of Wind
Ordinarily, a celebration of summer's approach would be held at this time, but all focus has been invested in the recovery of people who suffered damages from the attack launched against the village. Despite the losses incurred, spirits have slowly been elevated and lifted and a new sense of community has been fostered within the villagers, all of them inspired to provide in whatever way they can to others who are in the same position. Even those that haven't been affected are doing what they can to support the greater whole and assist in rebuilding. Most are grateful, largely that their lives have not been turned upside down like their homes and businesses.
Now, they have one major goal to focus on. The Administration Dome has been buried since the initial attack and now it was time to raise it. People were still trapped in there, some officials, others ordinary citizens, some alive and some dead. Efforts to rescue some ended in success and failure both, but determination was strong for the relief teams and the trapped souls. Finally, today, their hopes should be lifted along with the building they've been sunk with.
Itami, though she wasn't in much of a condition to help, was available to see through the raising of the structure and securing the lives inside. All who would help were already present, some looking down into the massive hole left behind by the Dome, ready to take part and participate to see its lift through. She rolled her way through in a wheelchair, looking a bit worse for wear, but doing well enough. "Is everyone ready?" She inquired of some jounin who were assigned to this mission. "Just about. We're waiting for a few more to gather before starting. We've already got the plan in place and will be ready to act as soon as all have gathered."
Akane stepped through the town, travel cloak wrapped about her in light tans, her face covered by wrappings over her mask to help keep sand out of her lungs. She removed her mask long enough for Suna Jounin to verify her identity and affiliation before she returned it. She slipped out of the cloak, revealing a slightly sand-weathered pair of pants. They were of material rather tan leather, but her bustier was as usual, leather and prominent. Her hair was done up in an elaborate but slightly toned down way, held in place by tassel hair-sticks of hers, now hanging with Dragon scales, gifted to her by Itami herself.
Suna had taken quite a beating. Akane observed the work going on as she walked through the streets. Finally a suna-nin directed her to the operation at the admin dome and the Medic made her way in tht direction. Luckily she had her mask on because seeing Itami in her wheelchair had an effect that would have bee readable on her face. She bowed her head to Itami in respect. Presenting herself to the Kazekage. "Kirigakure has sent me to aid you in your time of trouble, Kazekage-dono. I can search for those trapped or were on the wounded, please feel free to direct me."
A red-haired young man stands among the jounin present who were waiting for the dome to be raised. The hooded dark cloak he wears obscures most of his features, barring small bits of his crimson locks that can be seen, his eyes covered by goggles and his mouth and nose covered by some sort of mechanical re-breather, which exhales puffs of cooled water vapor into the air. He waits for people to arrive as well, giving a nod to the Kazekage as she appears. "Amegakure sends its regards once again. My superiors feel that since I was successful in assisting with the rescue parties that went down before, that I should assist in whatever way I can in raising the dome."
Draped in sun-bleached garbs, the young Miira stood with a number of others waiting for orders. Rikuto stood closer to the middle of the grouping, a fair distance away from those who appeared to be trained with earth shaping. Lifting a gloved hand up to his face, he dips his head and begins to ruffle at his hidden hair before grumbling faintly but over all staying rather silent for the time being. When Itami speaks up, he lifts his head and focuses onto the woman before shifting his attention to the side, looking towards the Jounin that had been gathered.
Turning to one side, he watches as a few people walk over towards the resting Kazekage and offer their services. Furling his brow, Rikuto lowers his hands in front of himself, weaving them together into the seal for 'Bird' and closes his eyes. "One.. two.. The shadow shaper and.. that medic from last year?" is asked softly, likely only heard by those standing close to the young man. Lowering his hands, he waits to see exactly what plans were being formed.
"Good. There are still some down there that will likely need some help in getting out," Itami replied to Akane. "I apologize for the lack of pleasantry in my actions, but my focus so far is invested in this effort here," she described to her. "The same stands for you as well. Amegakure and Kiri's regards have been noted. Given your assistance, I wouldn't attempt to reject you now. There are more important things at hand."
She proceeded to wheel herself forward and closer to the hole. "I won't be going down to assist you all with the dome, but I will be keeping watch over you all here." She states. "You all will be part of different teams. There aren't many, but the key teams for now are those who will be lifting the dome and those who will be aiding the lives within. Others here have already been assigned. You can choose which one you wish to be in. Consider your skills and how they can be applied here."
An approaching jounin greeted the Kazekage and said, "On your orders, we will begin. Everyone is in place and ready to do their part." She nodded saying. "Good. In that case, you can give the signal and return to your team." Nodding, the jounin flashed out of sight and returned to its team where a red signal flare was released to indicate their movement. These were the Aid team, using their combined abilities to seek out and help those in need. Other teams would remain standing by.
Behind her mask, Akane's green eyes flicked toward Honosuke when he spoke of Amegakure. There was little to show her interest that was view-able externally, but she filed that information away for later. For the moment she wold be aware of her surroundings. And aware of what was being done in those surroundings.
Rikuto's presence was noted, though only in passing of the moment. Akane was more focused on the clearly injured Itami. Few knew the extent to which her healing abilities went but she would show the Kazekage if allowed. Hopefully she could help and further strengthen the Kiri-Suna friendship in the process.
Akane shook her head. "No apologies needed. We can deal with pleasantries later." She lowered her voice . "And perhaps I can help you personally once this is done." She the took a breath and stepped forward, speaking to a Jounin. "I am a high ranking medical shinobi from Kirigakure but I am also quite strong. I can help pull people from the rubble, lift the ruble and see to them medically as well as locate them within."
Her hands formed very distinctive seals then, and behind the mask which kept her secrets, her eyes changed. She focused and any sensors would sense a burst of energy pulsing out away from the medic and out over the rubble before returning to Akane with the locations and statuses of the injured below.
"I sense three who are in dire need. Two to the north, one almost directly below us here." She shook her head. "The one below us here is the worst off but the hardest to reach right now." And with that she bent, beginning to help remove the rubble bit by bit, though she would obey if someone asked her to go elsewhere.
The Kiri-nin was one that was unknown, at least to Honosuke. She would be watched idly, of course. It always paid to learn about your peers, after all. The Nara noted the presence of Rikuto, to whom he offers a small nod before he turns and peers down into the pit, considering. "I believe my limited skills would be most useful at this point in lifting the dome.
A few weaved hand signs and a deep inhalation of breath before the Nara vomits forth what most residents of Suna would consider a tide of chakra-infused water, which slowly gathers and turns into copies of the chuunin, ready to assist as they can. "I will be able to best coordinate the efforts of my clones from up here. They can provide physical labor as necessary or enter the building to find survivors. My other jutsu can be used to stop fallen rubble as well as stabilize the building."
Watching as the chakra began to spike within masked woman, Rikuto quickly arches a brow when she began to simply look at the ground below her and was able to pick out the even fainter nodes of life that he hardly noticed. Pressing his lips thin, he doesn't speak but looks away from her and towards the other man only to swallow harshly at the sight of gallon after gallon of water being vomited up almost unendingly only to then shape into several clones one after another. Lifting a hand up, the young Miira uses his fingers to lightly press against his own throat, massaging it lightly and rather uncomfortably. "Just what goes on in these other nations?" is asked somewhat out loud.
Even though they speak clearly of their offered help, the young man remains quiet among the crowd, though those who could see his free hand resting at his side could see that it was balled into a tight fist. After an extended moment of silence, Rikuto would softly say "Excuse me.." as he began to make his way away from the grouping of attentive genin and chuunin awaiting orders. Separating himself from the others, he would stand a few meters from the others along a low brick wall. Moving a hand from his throat to his shoulder, a click of a unfastening clasp could be heard before a large and long items behind him but within his cloak began to shift. Moving his hand within the cloak, the young man lowers down until he can sit along the wall, exposing his clothed lap to the air until a long piece of lacquered ebony wood rests across it.
Taking his time, he would remove his gloves one by one, unbinding their cords and exposing heavily burn scarred arms and fingers to the air. Wiggling his fingers for a moment, one hand disappear into a pouch only to return with his finger tips clasped in metal caps with short claws extending from each. "Focus.. focus.. we can see each one, but now.. they will too," is softly said as the first cord was struck.
Those with the ability to sense chakra would be able to note that not only the young man was becoming chakra dense, so were the cords he plucked, acting as a catalyst for a illusion washing over much of the gathered body. Almost nothing was different, save for crimson mist trails that twinkled gold like the sun's rays leading towards several sites. Some of the sites that Akane had pointed out where now marked by the mist while others were not, though the mist also connecting deeper into the ground towards other spots where no one had motions towards.
The first team, listening in to Akane's words would begin to head into the directions she indicated to assist with the people. Thankfully, this level wasn't too badly damaged, but may cause some problems as there's a severe incline created with the Dome's tilt in the hole. There are plenty of support beams ready to be used as stepping stones to get by, but some are cracked and having suffered some damage from few others that broke, they are prone to break themselves. Remnants of the broken beams are strewn about as well as papers and desks that have slid across the ground and found rest against either a wall or said beams. Thankfully, the sun is out and providing light through the exposed windows, creating a hazy contrast to those windows that are locked against the wall.
"If you believe your skills will help lift the dome, then stay out here. Your clones, provided what they're used for, can be used in the team currently within the Dome," Itami explained to Honosuke. "Best to send them in now to manage with rubble and relief," she offered.
All the shinobi and citizens gathered to help would be bathed in a genjutsu to help them see. Some shinobi responded with alarm, but once they found that the genjutsu was harmless, decided to use it to the best of their ability. With a crude path laid out for them, their efforts could be coordinated more effectively and provide faster service to the people in need. "Everybody here, listen up!" A jounin spoke out. "We have a rendezvous point set up within the Dome where the Aid team will gather with all the people collected. It's been marked as the safest and most secure area of the dome to be in at the time of the lift. Once we are certain we have gathered all the living, we will all leave to this section and wait there until the raise."
Akane watched (and sensed) the creation of those water clones and turned to glance at the stranger for a second. "Be aware of where that water goes. You don't want to drown anyone accidentally." Should a clone be crushed, the water would need to be diverted or collected. Rikuto's gathering of chakra was felt through her search technique and she glanced at him, her masked face turning just a little. The genjutsu was impressive, though Akane was pretty sure she could get out from under it. As he marked the places with red mist, and this was a genjutsu, she did not fight it. Yet. She was well aware of what was going on however.. just in case.
Meanwhile, as the jounin spoke, Akane sent another wave of that chakra over the rubble… Finding a small grouping of civilians within she bent forward. As she was rather small i size she could fit in places the heartier built shinobi could not. nd she was able to heal herself if needs be. So she reached back and dropped her sword belts, tossing them to a youth on the sidelines (probably waiting to see their relative). "Hold those. I'll be back for them. DO NOT touch te blades." The kid nodded. Akane produced a single fire clone. "If that clone disappears," She told Rikuto, "I means I need help quickly." She then bent and squirmed under a bit of the dome into a smaller chamber. From there it was short crawl (with a slither here and there) into a smallish chamber under the wreckage. She lit a small bit of fabric with her flames to provide light. "It's all going to be alright." Immediately she began administering healing.
A simple nod to the Kazekage and the clones are given their orders. Slowly, they make their way through the building where they can, guiding people out as best as they can given their limited strength. They also clear out some light rubble as necessary, careful not to get exploded back into water. It was slow going, especially with the state of the building and its foundations.
Topside, Honosuke was furiously working out a plan in his head to try and rescue as many as he could by helping lift up the dome. He wasn't proficient in any of the Earth style jutsu, but it was certainly dark down there…and darkness meant shadows…shadows he could manipulate with the jutsu passed down by his clan. He bites down on a finger and a bit of blood runs down it, pattering to the ground. "Kuchiyose: Gamatetsu!" His blood forms a seal on the ground and a surge of chakra is accompanied by a puff of smoke as a small orange and red toad appears, croaking lightly before hopping onto the Nara's head. "My friend, I need your help. Croak the mantra we practiced before? It helps me focus." A nod from the amphibian before he begins to croak out quietly in an odd tune.
The Ame-nin seems to almost relax at this before he performs a few hand-signs, sending out his shadow into the darkness below, melding into the shadow of the sunken dome.
Not once standing up or moving, the young man's metal capped fingers continue to pluck gently at the cords while his other hand laid to rest along the cords, shifting in length to limit or extend the vibration. The music from the pattern would be a serene melody, lacking any haste with his work, of the illusion. While he didn't seem to acknowledge Akane's comment at first, a white band would appear on her left arm. Trailing behind the band is a white tunnel of mist, that twinkles even within the shadows as she moves to treat others in the rubble.
Unseen to most, but those who where closest to a search party would begin to see their surroundings brighten and the smooth stone and slay surfaces around them become upraised in large symbols with a simple message, Patience. Kazekage sends Aid. The message wouldn't be sent to all victims at once, but a small group at a time, sadly there was a flaw in the illusion. The search team might soon notice the the illusions only showed the paths to those who were awake and trapped, those weak and dying were overlooked and unnoticed.
The people could hear the shinobi and civilians moving through, each of them combining their efforts to make their way through the dome and rescue them. They began to make noise in the hopes that they would be found just in case they couldn't be seen. They wanted to direct as much attention as possible to them so maximize their potential of getting helped. The family that Akane found herself working with were just visitors here hoping to address the officials about assistance for a neighborhood thief, but they didn't expect the attack that would come upon the dome. Needless to say, they were thrilled to see a real, living body here to help them, especially since they were surrounded by non-living corpses who had done their best to protect them from any wreckage.
With the water clones rushing through the building, some would come upon voices that were calling out from rooms and that were blocked off by rubble they couldn't push past. For the most part, the people inside only suffered minor injuries, save for those who had the misfortune of having bookshelves and cabinets topple over on them. The shadow wouldn't have much difficulty making contact with the dome given its size and coverage. Along with the hole it created, it should provide ample shadow to work with.
Calm would soon descend upon the people who were calling out to make their condition known. The message provided by Rikuto provides them with enough peace to know that they were recognized and would be found and helped soon.
Outside the Dome, Itami as well as the rest of the teams wait patiently for the Aid team to complete their work. She turns to a chuunin nearby and inquires of their progress. "They've found the people within the first and bottom floors and are working on extracting them as we speak. It won't be long before they are all at the rendezvous point." She nodded calmly in response, but her heart betrayed her to some degree. She was hopeful, but fearful all the same. "Tell the raising teams to prepare for their work," she spoke to another chuunin nearby to send off the message.
Akane nodded as she spotted recognition in Rikuto's face before she delved deep into the rubble. But once down there and working on various patients, she finally spotted that light misty tail. There was a child and a couple of smaller people in her cavern which she figured could move out of the space easily enough. She sent them forward as she turned to work on the worst injured of them. She couldn't help freaking out the youngest a little with her mask but she couldn't take it off. She did manage to soothe them with some light chakra and pressure points.
The eldest male was too large to escape through the tunnel but he was keeping a strong face in the crisis for his family's sake. "We'll get you out too. let me follow them out to be sure they reach the rendezvous safely and I will be back for you. Yea?" He nodded, insisting she rescue the kids ad his wife first. Akane patted him on the shoulder and handed him an unpoisoned kunai. "If anything happens yell and tap. I don't think anything will."
She then turned and crawled after the smaller people ahead of her. "Keep going, it'll be fine. You can do it." It took quite a bit of time to get the kids out and to the rendezvous point, but they made it. To a Jounin she spoke quickly and precisely. "The father is still back there. The tunnel is too small for him. But I believe the void is stable enough for the moment. It should survive lifting the dome. I'm going to go back to be sure though." And unless stopped, she would return to the man's location to keep him safe with little regard for her own safety should debris fall on her.
After the water clones had discovered individuals, they would rendezvous with others so that they could point out where the trapped people were and hopefully get them extricated. At least as water, they had some substance, and would move what they could. Eventually though, their chakra reserves would run lower and lower and they were forced into more scouting roles, which they had little issue with.
Up above, Honosuke maintained control over his shadow as the toad continued to croak away in its strange cadence, the Nara he sat upon still maintaining the shadow jutsu. Once it was time for the raising teams to begin their work, any sensor types in the area would note a surge of chakra rushing through him and his shadow, rapidly expanding it and having it squeeze tightly over the dome. Not enough for damage, of course, but enough to at least /try/ to keep it steady. His shadow control isn't nearly strong enough for the brute force task of lifting the massive structure, but he could handle finer details of the lift.
Not once moving form his spot, the young man continued to play his melody though the tune began to change, causing the tones and visions to ripple suddenly before becoming stable once again. Additional colors would begin to lay along the ground, gold lined with purple paved the way towards the rendezvous point. As the time began to draw closed, Rikuto would become still, focusing for a moment, trying to sense if he could pick out additional chakra signals, focusing on the fainter signals and trying to ignore the Chuunin and Jounin now within the rubble or the ninjutsu being used to move the rubble.
Using the old colors crimson laced with gold to make arrows within the sky, pointing downwards over each of the remaining victims. Speaking up, Rikuto doesn't move but makes the message verbally this time as well. "Tell the victims to follow the purple and white trail. The rescue team should follow the purple and gold, there are several still trapped within but.. deeper, more awkward spots."
"I'll trust your judgement. Do what you can. If you don't return in time, stay where you are and wait things out until the dome is lifted," the jounin spoke to Akane and gave her a mild salute in acknowledgement of her words. He then set off to follow up with others who were still in the process of getting the relieved to the rendezvous point. With the combined efforts of the shinobi here, they freed up the vast majority and began their march to the safe area to wait out the lift of the Dome.
"The Aid team has completed their task. There is a strong chakra signature coming from the area designated for safety." Itami was pleased with this statement and was about to announce the lifting team to begin their work. "But we have only a minor issue. There are still some people that are trapped deeper in, but given the way the Dome was built, they should be able to last a little longer to see the lift through so they can also be extracted." Itami hummed. "We should continue with our work, then. Prepare the next team. I imagine that they'll do well enough to try and keep the structure stable enough so that it will minimize risk." The shinobi nodded and went off to inform the next team to begin to act.
Another signal flare was sent into the air, this time with a blue smoke trail, telling the lift team to begin. The initial stages of the lift would be rough as the earth manipulators set to work utilizing jutsu to set in place to begin the first stages. The building rumbled, causing some rubble and objects to displace themselves, but nothing too severe at the moment.
Akane returned to the man and nodded. "They are safe. I'm gong to stay her with you while they lift the dome. I will do my best to protect you but if something happens just remember I am a very good healer." The man nodded nervously. "my.. my name is Sumi." Akane inclined her head. "Akane. It will be fine. Come over here. This side seems more stable." He nodded and joined her, surprised that she would have him sit while she stood. She really was intent on protecting him. Bits of rubble bounced around them at the first shift, but she patted his shoulder. "Just a little longer, Sumi." She waited….
There wasn't much more the Ame chuunin could do other than try to stabilize the building as best as he could with his shadow manipulation. It was exceedingly difficult, especially with something that was so incredibly massive. A person was easy, two people was easy…a five story tall building was causing every muscle in his body to burn with the amount of focus and energy he had to put into the jutsu to even maintain the slightest bit of stability. At least the toad was there.
As the teams shift into place and other signal fires lit, the melody that had continued for the last while falls silent. Rikuto lays his hands down across the cords, silencing the strings and removing the medium the genjutsu has been channeled through. Exhaling slowly, the young man opens his eyes and lifts his head, looking around himself for the first time in a while. Glancing towards where the dome once was, he also in turn was waiting, watching the Kazekage but also the different teams of earth manipulators as they work to rise sections of the building at a time.
Once the earth manipulators had set their jutsu in place, they began their collective efforts to lift the Dome. Slowly, the building made its ascent, shuddering and rumbling as the jutsu ground up from the earth and against the foundation. The reinforcement teams then began their efforts to apply the jutsu they had to provide extra strength to lift and to take the majority of the weight off the earth jutsuists to give them ample chakra to work with. They couldn't do this alone, but with help, they could push the building back into place.
Wind users added in their jutsu to provide a cushion for the Dome while others tried to shift the sand beneath it around so that it could be leveled off once the building was set into place. Beams of earth lift up from beneath the dome to give it a support base in order to protect it from the weaknesses of sand, stronger and more durable than the former foundation. Itami sat and watched while everyone gave their all to cause the structure to rise from the ground, almost as if being raised from the dead. Any sand within it and dirt was finding exits to spill from, mostly windows and a haze was beginning to build in the air around them. Yet, the lifting teams and reinforcement teams persevered until the Dome was finally back in place, rising up to cover the Village Center as it once did before. It was not quite a perfect fit, but it was sufficient given the circumstances.
When it settled into place, a final burst of dust rose into the air as it creaked into position and a quiet was over the people. Wind that had been building throughout the day helped to clear the visibility enough for the teams to call an all clear. A cheer rose up from the crowd and echoed against the walls that surrounded the village as their greatest work had finally been completed. Itami smiled and released a breath she hadn't even realized she was holding. She nearly shed some tears in response to what took place here, but she wiped her eyes before they could find their way down. She was quite proud of her people.
Akane remained standing over Sumi as the building rose around them. she leaned over, shielding his head with her upper body. Luckily for both of them, nothing went wrong. It was only a mater of time before she could lead him to safety — and to his family. She bowed politely, released her sharingan and removed her mask looking weary. But it was all good. She made her way over to the child that had her swords to retrieve them before she stepped up beside Itami. "I'll go t your medical center to continue the work. Perhaps tomorrow once we have both had some rest we can see if I can help you." She spoke softly enough so that Itami would not be embarrassed or dishonored, but she wanted the woman to have a hint that Shuuren wasn't the only one capable of heavy healing.
