Starring:
Date: December 19, 2012
Summary:
Goh retreats back to Itami's place of residence in Kirigakure after being badly hurt.
"Recovery with Itami"
Kirigakure
Late night in the Village of Kirigakure, and it's certainly not ideal. Hard, heavy rain falls down through the sky, rapidly filling the road with puddles of water. Extremely high speed winds add to the terrible weather, sweeping through streets and down the roads. Doors and window shutters not secured open and close, slamming eerily. Safe to say, it was not a good time to be out and about. In fact, there was hardly anyone around. People sitting in their homes and reading a book by the fire, or perhaps tucked into bed.
This is a situation that Goh believes Itami to be in, the blonde pickler gritting his teeth as he swiftly makes his way across rooftops. Knowing where his good friend had stayed, Goh makes his way to the inn, struggles inside, before quite literally falling in through the front door of her room. Not even knocking, not even looking. Just hoping that she would be there.
Slamming the door shut behind him and staggering into Itami's rented room, the pickler falls onto his knee and leans against the wall. Safe to say, he looked exhausted. With water dripping from every part of his body, a puddle begins to form where he crouches. But… the puddle begins to darken. And that's when it becomes known. Despite a piece of cloth being held tightly to his torso, he leaks a heavy amount of blood. He shows the sign of fatigue and injury, showing that he's just been through the ringer. He coughs loudly, catching his breath, before crouching a little lower.
Who knows how much blood he's already lost? "Itami?" He croaks, looking around — vision blurred with a combination of water falling over his eyes, and tiredness creeping over him.
This rain. Something that didn't occur in the desert often. Itami would love it, but it was too heavy and at some points, caused flooding. She couldn't enjoy that and so opted to stay inside, warm by a fire and trying to think over what she's been doing in Kirigakure so far. She was on a mission, hopefully to gather information, but that looks like it isn't going well, so now she has to think about one of those she left behind in Sunagakure. That also opened up the flood gates to have her thoughts running around about her mother and subsequently her family. She was told that her family missed her and she hasn't tried to do anything about it, but…
"…Hm?" She came out of her thoughts to see Goh was soaking wet. "You need a towel…or a comforter. Here…" She went over to her bed and reached for the comforter, snatching it off the bed to offer to him to dry off. She intended to hand him a dry blanket to keep warm in front of the fire. "Are you—What happened to you?!" She called quietly so as not to disturb the other occupants. She took to helping him inside and thought to rip up the seet so he could have better control over his wound. "Sit in front of the fire. I'll see what I can do about this wound. What happened?" She asked again, shaken up by the sight.
"P-Poison. Giant snakes. Something weird. Bounty hunters." Goh stammers, helped closer to the fire by Itami. Falling down in a heap, he releases the piece of cloth that he was holding so firmly to his torso. It reveals a large gaping wound, though doesn't look to be a clean kunai cut. More of a rough scratch, by some sort of creature. Heaving a breath, he then lays down.
"Ambushed by Akuu bounty hunters." He breathes out, trying to calm his breathing as much as possible. "Drove them away… they came back though, in bigger numbers. Looking for Risu too." They had after all, seen what she was capable of. "They… summoned a giant snake. Had to fight it. Got me good." He winces again, growling out in pain. "Some sort of poison it got me with. Can't feel much." Judging by the way Goh was breathing, the poison was already starting to spread through his system. Of course, the pickler had only known one person to go to. Itami. She was his best hope, simply because she might have a knowledge of poison antidotes. Being near the desert and all!
As he winces again, the large wound causes some more blood to erupt — falling down across his body.
Itami proceeded to wrap up Goh with the torn piece of sheet to keep his wound from bleeding out much more. Dealing with a giant snake and bounty hunters? She had no clue of what was going on, but she'll think more on that later. "How much do you think has gotten to you? Considering your wounds, it is amazing that you are still breathing and talking!" She continued whispering with some force. "You need to be put in a hospital. I am not sure I can tend to a wound of this nature," she stated. "The poison, on the other hand…If I knew what kind of snake it was or what kind of nature, I may be able to work out a cure. Are you having trouble breathing? I know you mentioned being numb, but I hope this is only in your muscles."
"N…no." Goh gets out, gripping at Itami's hand if it's in range. "No… I can't go to the hospital." He breathes out, exhaling slowly after a sharp inhale. "Spies… hunters … everywhere. Can't trust anyone. Hospital… busy. Danger." He tries to think as clearly as he can, though the shock to his system is making it difficult. "Need to stay here. Can't risk getting out. Might give chase. Think I'm dead. Maybe." He's not making a whole lot of sense, that's for sure!
"Snake a special breed, a special summon. Bigger than Wanryo. Very fast, big fangs. Caught me in the gut." It seems that the fang of this giant creature had caught Goh in the torso, which is what caused the wound and what poisoned him in the same hit. Obviously a decent creature to overpower and injury Goh to such a degree.
"H…Hard to breathe. Body panicking. Numb in torso. Can move legs. Some fingers… gone. No feeling. Need rest." He heaves a breath.
"Do you know how to clean a wound? Some sort of fluid to rid of bacteria. Then… bandage tightly."
Itami could feel the cold of Goh's hand, but it was more than that. Not just from the weather, but the lack of blood circulating in his system. She needed to act fast, but needed to be calm about it. At this point, her mind was frantic. She inhaled deeply and sighed her breath back out a few times, making sure to do so away from Goh so she wouldn't breathe anything into his wounds.
"I..I understand. I'll do what I can, but I'm no medic…" She sighed, her tone clearly sounding helpless. "This sheet should keep you from bleeding out too much and contain you. I know of some things that can help…" She sighed. She can't poor hot water on those wounds. That might as well be trying to kill him.
"There's…a technique that is used by my clan. It involves steaming…I'll need a bowl, sterilized and some water to steam. It'll hurt…somewhat, but it should be able to clean your wounds."
She made handseals, using her newfound abilities with glass jutsu to generate said bowl and place it over his wound. She'd do the same thing over to create a sterile beaker of sorts with tubing to be able to connect to the bowl. In it, boiled water would be placed into the beaker where the steam would proceed to be filtered into the tube and toward the bowl covering his wound. The steam should be hot enough to kill bacteria. "Stick with me, Goh. This is going to be a process…"
Goh felt himself starting to calm down, though that was largely because the poison was spreading through his system more and more. As Itami began to talk, he managed to keep an ear out for what she was saying. But as he looked up and into her eyes, the room began to grow fuzzy. Her words slowed to a dull, deep tone that became slow. His hand will loosen around her grip, and he'll lose consciousness. His head will sort of roll backwards and onto the ground, his heart beat slowing.
He wasn't dead, though it seems that through a collection of everything built up, his body had opted to shut itself down. At the very least, it will prevent the pickler from squirming or getting himself worked up! Thus spreading the poison faster.
It's a wild few hours for Itami. After Goh had passed into unconsciousness, his body had slowed a little bit. Though ever now and then as the poison took hold of his nerves, his body would convulse violently, his muscles reacting to the sheer toxicity of what's running through his veins. Standard poison effects, really. Some frothing at the mouth, nerve problems, numbess. And perhaps most oddly for Goh, he was freezing to touch. Nearly the polar opposite of his usual 'hot' self.
The large wound on his stomach wouldn't pose much of a threat once it's been cleaned, dressed and sealed. It's just the poison which poses a problem. While there were a few nervous hours as the storm battered against the inn, the pickler, eventually, started to pull through the worst of it. Itami had won her little fight with the toxic poisons, saving Goh's life in the process. Make no mistake, had Goh arrived any later, as much as thirty minutes even, he would likely be dead.
With the storm passing just as dawn begins to arrive, Goh's eyes open from his slumber. He squints a bit, the somewhat brighter light a bit of a shock to the system. Instinctively he moves to sit up, though finds himself laying down in reaction to a sharp stab of pain that stikes him from the stomach. Peeking down, he finds his torso bandaged tightly. It takes him a few seconds to realize where he is, before he exhales slowly. Laying down, staring up at the ceiling.
Itami was resting in the corner of the room, resting in a chair with a blanket over her body. She barely managed to get it over her as she flopped down and immediately went to sleep. So it was a bit awkward, hanging off to the side of the seat. She'd begin to stir, though, as it was about time for her to wake up and check things out.
She didn't know Goh was awake as she looked over in his direction in the bed. She saw him breathing, so that meant he was okay. Rising up from her bed, she stretched and her bones popped as she trudged over to make sure he was doing alright.
Slowly yet surely, Goh managed to sit himself up. He goes very carefully, ensuring that none of his wounds re-tear, or that he starts bleeding again. With a slow exhale, he just sits there, propped. Shoulders hunched, hands in his lap. He appears to just sit there for a while, thinking, before his head turns to look at Itami rise up from her slumber. Stretching like a cat, he lifts a hand meekly in order to wave.
"Hey." He says simply, not entirely sure how long he's been out for. "Um," He starts again, lifting a hand to rub his hair a bit. "Sorry for the mess and trouble. Just… you were the only one I could think of to turn to." He smiles then, then rubbing the small bristly facial hair along his cheekbones. "Looks like you patched me up alright, hey? Are you alright?"
"Hello…" Itami greeted Goh as she drew closer and observed him. "Sorry for the mess and trouble…I suppose I can accept your apology," she smirked weakly, mostly due to her tiredness. "I did the best I could with the knowledge I have. Hopefully, it's enough to get you by," she made some room on a small table and sat on it so she could be closer to the bedside. "I'm doing alright. Just a little worn out, is all," she began to roll her arms and shuffle her legs a bit. "I was stressing the whole time, but I'm glad I managed to get through it. I had enough clarify in order to get you stabilized. I almost thought it wouldn't happen. Guess…what I learned from my sister was worth it."
"Yeah." Goh replies simply, looking up to the ceiling. He tries to remember what happened as best he can, though only flashes come back to him. Panic, worry, pain. "I think so. I don't feel like I'm dying, so you must have done a pretty ultimate job." Though now sitting up, he doesn't dare make the move to stand yet. He was feeling a few tingles at the ends of his feet and fingers, as if the nerves were starting to switch back on.
"So. I guess I owe you big time, huh? You know — there are plenty of people who want me buried six feet under. If you had let me perish, it probably could have set you up for life. Coin wise, anyway. Not to mention rid a few people of worries." He shrugs.
Itami chuckles. "I don't know how you find time to joke in serious situations," she grins. "As long as I've known you, I still can't figure it out," she sighed softly. "But it's a wonderful thing. I couldn't have you die to set me up for selfish reasons. I made enough from my various missions and working as a council member. I imagine I can sink some money into a home away from home," she grins. "The only person that'd be the most worried would be me. Anyone else that has worries, I imagine they're not the kind of worries that I have, I'm sure."
"Hmmm." Goh replies, smiling at the female sitting near him. "Thanks. I mean, I said it already, but… thanks. Really." Clearing his throat, he feels the bandages very lightly across his torso. "Alright. Expalining time, I guess?" He muses. "I was out near Fuuma. On my way back, actually." He waves a hand. "Nothing important. Looking for a new member for Jump. She seemed… Er, less than impressed. But I can talk to you about that later." He heaves a breath.
"On the way back I was ambushed by Akuu bounty hunters. People looking for the rest of my clan. There were leagues of them… hundreds. Looking for not only me, but Risu too." He shrugs. "They weren't too difficult in the end, and I brought them all down. However, they managed to summon some sort of special snake. Dozens of them all performed the technique at once, and it rampaged. Killed the rest of the bounty hunters and then turned it's attention to me." Rubbing his nose, he sighs a bit. "No matter what I did, it kept regenerating. Like some sort of mythical creature. The battle was long and intense, and I managed to end it in the end by a giant, one-all assault with the help of Wanryo. But it hit me once during the process, which is all it needed." He looks down at his wound again.
"So I booked it back here. I knew I couldn't go to the hospital, since the bounty hunters could still be after me. Not to mention Risu, who for all I know could be in the hospital herself."
Begs the question on why the Akuu bounty hunters are after the young child? It could be that they have learned of her 'unique' gifts.
"It's no problem…" Itami offered. "I only did what I thought was necessary for you to feel better," she rubbed her neck then. "But yes, explaining time. I'd like to hear how you got yourself into this one…" She quieted down while listening to Goh's story. Fuuma Alley? All the way over there looking for a member for Jump. She can understand wanting people to join this guild, but she figures it'd help more to meet people in passing. Not that this particular kind of situation would happen all the time, but she is worried nonethless.
"I'm glad you managed to fend them off, but this is sending a clear message. They have numbers and probably intend to use on you and now Risu a lot more often. This is troubling for me…"
"It's troubling for a few people." Goh says, frowning. "I don't know how many of these 'bounty hunters' there are, but they're pretty identifable. They all wear skeleton outfits." He exhales slowly once more. "To be honest, they've been very quiet over the past year or so. But then all of a sudden … bang! Two attempted hits inside a week. It's just wild. Maybe they have some new direction? Who knows. I'm not too worried about myself. I can handle myself and those guys, no problem. Numbers don't really mean a whole lot to me. And they won't do something stupid and bust out something they cannot control again. But they now know about the lass who can make stuff appear out of no-where." Leaning back against the wall, he sighs dramatically. "It's a bit of a mess right now. Perhaps we need to just go after the hunters and end it once and for all?"
"I wouldn't see it any other way. If they're a threat, not only to you, but also her, we need to do something about it," Itami offers. "I can't stand by and allow these people to act in this manner. It's…frustrating to me and makes my blood boil. I've found since leaving that I have more anger toward these people now than ever. It's probably because I know I have the freedom to pursue them, without the ties of lands and villages in my way," she states with some force in her tone.
Goh grins. Itami had become a fierce person since leaving, no doubt about that. "Good. Well, once I'm healed, we'll hit the road." He nods a little. "Maybe we can get someone else involved." A devlish smile comes across his face, as he rubs his chin with some thought.
"I was in Fuuma mainly to scout out and see how much of a grip the mafia had. While I was there, I heard stories about this… girl. A wanderer like us, who could cut things with her tonfa. As clean as a sword. Just … fwoosh! So I went up to her and asked her if she wanted to join Jump. I mean, we're always looking out for talented people and stuff. Unfortunately, she's already part of a merc group. Very militaristic. Orders, ranks, the whole thing. I… uh, may or may not have insulted the group." He coughs a bit, though winces at the pain. "I certainly didn't mean to. When I was explaining the rent system to them, they scoffed even more at the idea. I think they thought I was some sort of King who sits on a throne at the guild, taking money off the poor suckers that do missions." Goh rubs his face a bit.
"Anyway, her name is Aimi. I think we should ask her to help us out, so she can see what we're all about. If she still refuses, that's fine. But I'd wager she could know something about the hunters, having stayed in Fuuma for quite a while. What do you think?"
"Once you're healed. That might take a while," Itami offered. "I wouldn't be bouncing around just yet," she chuckles. "So, you found a girl that can cut things with her tonfa," she paused. "Wait…she can cut things with her tonfa? What?" She found herself unable to understand that well. "Okay, I don't think I'll question that much more. I'm just going to…let that slide. Now, she's militant, orders, ranks all that like you said. I see…" She nodded. "I'm familiar with that kind of work. I came from that background back home," she folded her arms in an idle gesture. "
"I don't imagine you intended to. It's nothing you could have done about that not being familiar with that sort of thing… Well, not on her level, at least," she chuckles. "We'll get to cross that bridge later. Aimi, you said her name was?" She lofted her brow. "I'll try and remember that. She'll probably come to understand later if we're able to better explain what it is we do."
"Yeah, it's pretty weird. There's no ninjutsu even involved. Just some ultimate taijutsu, or so the rumors say. Cut things clear with her round tonfa." He nods a bit. "Yeah. Healing is a pretty good idea. And I just suck at explaining things. I had to try twice, ideally without offending them the second time." Laying back down on the bed, he suddenly opens his mouth to yawn. "I…think I might sleep a bit now." He says quietly, almost murmuring.
"I should be fine from now on, Tam. I'd hate to throw your day-to-day activities even further out of whack just because of me. I should be fine."
And with this, before Itami will even have a chance to react, he's sleeping. Exhausted.
