Starring:
Amiko (emitter), Yuzuna, Fudo, Naota, Hinotori
Date: March 4, 2013
Summary:
None given.
Poster's note: foul language filtered in obvious places.
"The Rescue of Uzumaki Amiko pt. 1"
Land of Fire
Several shinobi within Konoha have been called together to form a team. As they arrive in
one of Konoha's briefing rooms a Jounin stands near the front of the room, nodding to each as they
enter. When at last the whole team has arrived, the Jounin says, "You've been called together for a
mission of high-importance. As you know, Uzumaki Amiko, a shinobi in residence here in Konohagakure
and a close ally of our village, went Missing In Action some weeks ago. We have believed since then
that she remains a captive of a small group of dangerous shinobi, however her whereabouts are still
unknown. More recently we launched a mission to capture one of the Missing-nin believed to be
holding Amiko. This man's name is Cruncher." And with that, the man places a picture of an
enormous, heavy-set man on the wall. "Unfortunately, Cruncher overpowered the team that was sent to
capture him. But, he has resurfaced, and we need to make another attempt to capture the man.
Cruncher is believed to be the 2IC of the rogue ninja outfit holding Uzumaki Amiko, and learning
her location is the primary objective of this mission. Capturing Cruncher is a secondary objective,
however you can locate Uzumaki Amiko, Cruncher can be captured or terminated at your discretion,"
he explains further, and then places up a bio sheet and a map on the wall next to Cruncher's mug
shot. "Cruncher is known to use powerful Taijutsu techniques and Earth Elemental Ninjutsu. He was
spotted earlier today in a town about an hour's run outside of Konohagakure. You will head to the
town, locate Cruncher and either capture him or follow him until he leads you to the hideout where
Uzumaki Amiko is being held," he finishes, and then nods to Hinotori, passing over the mantle of
leadership for the mission.
Upon entering the room, Hinotori had only joined the mission due to his last one being
cancelled. It seems that this was teh reason why, he was hoping he wasn't being asked to lead, but
as the briefing begins, he begins to collect the information and storing it away in his head.
Looking to each member of the team, one he's worked with the others he's not, so figuring out their
plan of how to handle this will be something that will need to be discussed. As the Jounin finishes
and hands off the mantle to him he shakes his head a little. He didn't like leading, but walking up
and sitting on the desk as he looks to everyone.
"Hi." he smiles. "Most of you know me, I'm Uchiha Hinotori. I didn't know I was going to be leading
this mission, but thats fine. Some of you I've worked with the others I've not. We will be moving
pretty fast so if your able please keep up." he states. Looking to the mug shot then at the map of
the area they will be going to look for Cruncher, Hinotori looks to the others. "Take the time to
burn the images in your minds eye, if your skilled with drawging draw a map. Stealth is going to
play a key role, seeing as Cruncher beat the team that last came after him, I figure stealth will
be our primary plan of attack and track him back to the hideout. Now if we aren't lead to the
hideout, we attack, going for joints or possiby using genjutsu if any of you are skilled in those
fields. I'm a taijutsuist primarily." he explains. Taking a breath, "Any questions before we
leave?" he asks.
Called in for this mission, Naota was silent as he'd watch the explination. Curious about
the whole thing, Hinotori was studied for a moment, before a nod was given in response. One of
those scrolls pulled from a knee pocket, he'd unroll it to pluck a pen from another pocket and with
a few looks, he was very quickly able to replicate the map as requested. That set aside, another
page pulled out and he would replicate the image of the mug shot as well. Both allowed to dry for a
moment, a smile would be given to Hinotori then. "Rankoro Naota. I realize I am not one of the ones
you have worked with, Uchiha-san. While I am not the best at stealth, I shall do what I can to
assist with capture, if the time comes for such."
Leaning quietly against one of the walls of the meeting, the Hyuuga kunoichi listens in
silence with her long sleeves loosely crossed against her chest, her pale opal eyes blinking slowly
at the Jounin that explains the details of the mission. For a shinobi to be missing in action, it
was a very serious matter indeed. Who knows what kind of secrets Amiko can be holding of the
village, but much more than that she's a comrade. Leaf shinobi don't leave their comrades in
battle. Her delicate brow furrows gently as she listens for several moments, her pale eyes quick to
glance at the picture that was set on the wall. This man named Crusher. "So this is an intelligence
retrieval mission?" Yuzuna murmurs lightly to herself. Before the secondary objective.
Her keen eyes flick to the bio sheet and map when it's placed on the wall, next to the
picture of Crusher. "Earth elemental… seems we need Fire ninjutsu to counter against Earth
ninjutsu. Its a good thing we have an Uchiha with us." Her dark lashes lower over her pale gaze as
she shifts her attention from Hinotori to Naota, her expression softening subtly when introductions
are made. After, she exhales a small breath and lifts her chin. "If we are making introductions, I
am Hyuuga Yuzuna. I have trained with Juuken and Juuho Taijutsu, and Water ninjutsu, but I
specialize with the Byakugan."
Uchiha Narusegawa would have been the one to inform Fudo of a mission opportunity. She was
a little worried considering he had only been in the village itself for about a week now, but she
also was eager to ensure that he gained experience swiftly. Fudo still wasn't exactly certain as to
why that was, but he would not hesitate to learn and improve, so when he was informed, and all
assurance was made to make sure that he was not just rushing head long in to things, he would have
accepted the mission and gathered with the rest at the briefing room.
After listening to the briefing as well as the follow up from the team leader, Fudo would
consider everything said as well as the target himself. Torture wasn't going to work in anything
resembling a timely manner for someone like that, and eliminating the target prior to getting
information would have been wasted effort and put the primary objective at risk. It seemed there
was really only two options available: Get the information prior through subtle means, or follow
him.
"Do we have any intelligence on the mannerisms of the target? Is he a braggart? A
drunkard? Does he have a soft spot for kids or pets? Is there anything we can use to gain the
advantage without direct conflict? If the objective is to secure Uzumaki Amiko's location, if not
her herself, then I see only the options of espionage or tracking. Killing the secondary target
without information may eliminate any chance of using him to find the primary target, and capturing
him may not provide results in a timely manner." Fudo would offer his opinion on the matter. "Given
the fact that we also have people capable of long range survailence as well as chakra detection,
and the fact that the last time Cruncher was drawn in to battle he over powered the team, caution
seems more like the route to take until Uzumaki Amiko is secured."
The briefing-nin nods to Fudo and says, "While the determination of Amiko's location is of
primary importance, Cruncher has shown a lack of defenses against Genjutsu techniques. This leads
us to believe that if he is captured alive we will be able to extract her location quickly from his
mind. We have interrogaters prepped for this possibility already. As far as other intel, he is a
brute. Overwhelming opponents with strength and speed appears to be his only combat style. He is
merciless, and likes to… uhh… eat the bones of the people he kills." The man frowns as he looks
at the page in his hand. "Eww, ok, that's apparently where his name comes from," he adds, then
shakes his head disgustedly, before saying, "The last team noted that he ran out of chakra during
his engagement with them, but their team was too injured to safely continue the battle and was
forced to withdraw."
Nodding his head in turn to each person who's voiced concerns and introductions, Hinotori
allowed himself to keep quiet as questions to the Briefing-Nin is asked. He does have a few
questions as well, but as the briefing-nin continues and explains that Cruncher is weak against
genjutsu, that doesn't give him any comfort due to him possibly having defenses against fire, but
that remains to be seen for now. When it's indicated that Cruncher eats his victims basically in
whole, bones to, Hinotori only shakes his head, he's seen a few vile things during his time as a
shinobi and can only assumes it gets worse from there. "I see. Now where he is located as of now,
how long do we have before he moves again and is he currently being accompanied by anyone else or
being watched by members he's with?"
Paperwork put away after Naota finished drying them off, a small nod was given and the
scrolls were put away. That done, he'd check all of his stuff, the pen put away as well, preparing
for the trip. He'd give a small nod to his own stuff, before looking to the others. It was an
interesting mix of what they had here. But it seems they weren't going to be in luck for a genjutsu
user? Each person looked at for a long moment, Naota finally would ask, "Is there anyone here that
can do genjutsu? Or are we going regular moves to deal with this.. beast?"
Strength and speed, it seems rather straightforward for the most part. The bit about
Cruncher eating the bones of his fallen targets… that's enough to churn anyone's stomach. And it
certainly makes Yuzuna a bit unsettled. Her soft lips part with a small breath. "Ran out of charka,
hm. That sounds promising. I rather we subdue him with genjutsu if that is possible though. That
would make things easier in the long run." But she's just saying what everyone else is thinking.
Fudo would nod. So he has a lack of mental discipline and he has no restraint. A rather
simple target in more than one way. "Thank you." Fudo would say to the briefing-nin. Unfortunately,
beyond asking questions, Fudo was not sure how he would best participate in this mission. A few
days hadn't been long enough for him to truly grasp mastery over any particular skill. Wits were
about the only thing he'd have access to and he'd have to hope they were up to par. "I am not able
to utilize genjutsu yet…" Fudo would admitt as he considered his options still. Things would be
far simpler other wise.
The Briefing-nin sighs as he looks at Hinotori and says, "Our intel in that is limited. His
known associates are scattered at the moment, so its possible he's alone, but we've been surprised
before." His lips tighten a little and he adds, "As of two hours ago he was here, at the inn in
Kuwagasai," he explains and points to a building on the edge of the town, "But that's the most up-
to-date information we have. The locals say that he spends several hours there every night though."
Since that's the end of the questions, the Briefing-nin gestures towards the door, sending the team
on their way.
It only takes an hour for the whole team to reach the outskirts of Kuwagasai. The town is
surrounded by forest, with only about 20 metres (65 feet) between the treeline and the first
houses. The inn is brightly lit, with several lanterns on the outside of the building and a bright
light coming from its windows. Boisterous laughter and loud conversation can be heard even from the
treeline. There doesn't appear to be anyone out on the streets though, with twilight having well
and truly fallen. A man opens the back door of the inn and walks out briskly, an apron wrapped
around his waist. He walks over to one of the kegs being stored at the back of the building and
begins to hoist it, getting ready to take it inside. Looks like he's the innkeeper.
Well with the information being given, Hinotori leads the team out. Moving as fast as thier
slowest members not wanting to allow them to get too far behind. Having given instructions to keep
silent unless something of importance need to be said, Hinotori didn't want to give any allowance
for them being possibly tailed. Due to training and well paranoia from his predesuser who has
passed, Hinotori feels as if he has some pretty large shoes to fill right now.
Upon getting to Kuwagasai, he signals for the others to group to halt. Looking to Yuzuna,
he signals for her to look around the area, with teh use of Byakugan she shouldn't have much
trouble doing so, he then activates his sharingan in hopes to pick up Crunchers chakra, seeing as
there being a difference in chakra from a trained shinobi and that of a villager possibly. For Fudo
and Noata, he instructs them to keep an eye out for anyone or thing that may be creeping in teh
shadows just in case he and Yuzuna miss something. With all the loudness coming from the inn,
Hinotori looks towards it, he didn't want them going in at all due to spooking their target and
causing a problem, but then again there is always henge. Noticing the inn keeper, he waits for
reports from the others before issuing orders.
Naota would try to not be the slowest of the group, no telling for sure if he was or not.
Either way, they would get there after the hour passed and he wasn't even winded. Always a good
sign. Quietly as he could, he'd keep with the group, the order to scope out the sides given a nod
and he'd dutifully look about. It wasn't quite poking into stuff, especially with the two people
here who had the dojutsus, but he'd still keep alert and ready, that pen of his pulled from where
it was to be slowly twirled in his fingers. Fortunately, it wasn't a click pen, or the absentminded
motion might of given his position away.
The travel to the town in the middle of forest was swift, and Yuzuna was silent the whole
while as she stares ahead of them, stretching her keen senses around the team with caution if only
to make sure that they weren't caught off guard. When they catch sigh of Kuwagasai, the Hyuuga
kunoichi slows her pace to come to an eventual stop when signalled. Her pale eyes look up at
Hinotori and she lowers her chin with a quick nod of acknowledgement. With a quick breath, Yuzuna
releases her chakra and it surges through her temples, the smooth skin suddenly bulging with veins
lacing from the corner of her eyes and spreading over her temples like spiderwebs.
Holding position and looking around for a few moments, Fudo would follow the orders given,
but he also knew that if the Byakugan was going to be used, that his sight wasn't going to make any
real difference. So instead of focusing entirely on searching for the possibility of a flank, he
would begin to mold and build chakra up. He had a feeling henge may be necessary for this, and he
wanted to be prepared incase their cover was blown. Luckily, Fudo was well aware of people like
this from his life in Fuuma Alley, so he was prepared for that eventuality.
Having focused more of his attention towards the inn, he notices quite a few chakra
signatures within the inn and as he focuses onto it, he smirks a little. Granted he can't tell who
it belongs to but doesn't want to assume. He looks to the others, sensing the flickering of chakra,
he turns and looks to Fudo, looks like the others is coming to that same conclusion but he waits to
hear from Yuzuna before acting, "I see one very large chakra signature, but don't want to assume
just yet. What do you see." he says in a very low voice as he looks to Yuzuna.
Yuzuna stares pointedly at the Inn, as if she could see through the walls (which she can)
at the large concentration of chakra inside. "There is a sizable mass of chakra inside the
building. It is safe to assume that it is the same chakra signature you sense, and that we found
our target." she murmurs lightly, just enough to be heard. "What are our orders team leader?"
The secondary target was in the proper location as expected. It seems intell and their
swift departure synergized. Not bad at all. So now it was time to take the initiative. He would
wait to see what Hinotori decided was the best way to approach this situation.
Hinotori nods his head at Yuzuna, "Alright, we both seem to confirmed the same thing." he
looks to the team, "We will wait for him to come out, no need to give up our advantage at this
time. ONce he leaves, we will follow him, if he doesn't after an hour, Fudo-san I would like for
you to henge and just move in to go to the rest room. Look around casually and just head to the
rest room, don't draw any attention to yourself. ONce you come back report back what you've seen."
The hour passes quite uneventfully, however just as the clock is about to tick over the
front door of the inn opens up, and one horrendously huge man walks out. He's wearing a red
overcoat with nothing underneath and black pants. On his feet are standard shinobi sandals. The man
stretches casually, then looks around to see if he's being watched. This is clearly Cruncher.
The enormous man, after a quick visual sweep of the area, shrugs and starts to walk off
down the streets of the town. After twisting and turning amid several alleys, he stops and looks up
to the rooftops, then around several corners. What's he doing? He's making sure he's not being
followed. Clearly stealth isn't his strong suit. After all of this he continues on his way, finally
stepping inside a rather innocent, small looking building near the centre of the town.
You paged Hinotori with 'Using your Byakugan, you can see that the building is empty, except for a
small hole that connects to a natural tunnel which leads leads down into a network of similar
tunnels beneath the town. The tunnels are quite extensive and deep, too deep for you to perceive
the bottom of them.'
It's not hard keeping up with Cruncher, but he looks to Naota and Fudo to make sure that
the two are able to keep up as well as follow his instruction which helps with them keeping their
distance and hiding behind structures, but keeping just enough of a visual to track Cruncher until
they are able to follow him to a small building. He holds up a hand and points to Yuzuna to see if
she can follow him further with her eyes, as he is doing with the Sharingan to keep his chakra
signature in sight.
Naota would do his best to keep out of sight, nodding in agreement with the leader, he'd
stay back, probably not even keeping in sight of Cruncher, just to make sure he didn't give away
that the man was being followed. Once at the building, an empty scroll would be taken out, that pen
put to use while the rest of them prepared for the next part of the mission. Him? He was drawing,
quickly copying down with a fairly decent accuracy considering the monocrome nature, that building
that the man had walked into.
It was more than extremely easy to follow Cruncher as he staggers out of the inn and makes
his way through the streets, though he isn't foolish enough not to risk glancing back for anyone
that may be tailing him. He was cautious, but not cautious enough. The only question Yuzuna can ask
herself as the team does follow is if he was leading them on purpose? If so, that would mean that
they would be walking into a trap. However, she doesn't allow herself to continue that train of
thinking for very long. Paranoia would only jeopardize their mission.
As their target approaches the building Yuzuna comes to a quick stop when Hinotori holds up
a hand, her pale gaze sharp as Cruncher disappears inside the building and continues to follow his
movements through the walls. After several moments of silence, her delicate brow begins to knit
together with intense focus and thought, "Wait… he, he appears to be going down." Yuzuna
whispers. "A long ways down. And there are more chakra signatures down there. It is difficult to
say how many right now."
Fudo would shift his gaze towards Hinotori and nod silently, but still, he was surprised.
It was a risky move, but a calculated one. Fudo, even with his focused chakra, would not be a
noticable blip on anyones radar in a crowd like that. On top of that, if something was to occur,
the target is more likely to flee or attack than find a way to slip away. Thus they would have the
ability to catch him off guard if he focused on just Fudo. Now… fudo surviving that situation is
quite unlikely, but at least he would have served a purpose. A pawn being taken out to ensure the
greatest possibility of a check mate.
However, all of this is foiled by the brute leaving the inn just a moment too early. Fudo
was already on the ground about to prepare his Henge when the massive man began to look around.
Fudo would do his best to slowly slip down and crouch his way near the closest cover he could find
as Cruncher would… completely miss any of them. After a few moments of half baked "searching" he
apparently moved on to the center of the town. Fudo furrowed his brow slightly as he looked towards
the rest. This was either increadibly fortunate, or entirely dangerous.
Looking to the others as Yuzuna gives information, but as Cruncher dissapears into the
small building, he glances to the others. "We know where they are." he says in a low whisper. "Lets
see hwo far that tunnel leads and give Naota directions of the underground tunnel so that he can
draw it." he says remembering how quickly and detailed Naota drew both the map and the mug shot of
Cruncher. "Move, quickly and quietly if possible lets get inside, quietly." he tells them. He then
leaps down to the ground and starts moving towards the door, checking skillfully to see if it's
unlocked.
The path to the front door is completely clear, and all seems to be going well until
Hinotori touches the door. The doorknob glows, a seal appearing on it, the black ink turning red
and draining Hinotori's chakra before exploding powerfully. No one but Yuzuna can see through the
thick cloud of smoke that is kicked up by the explosion, however from inside the clanging of a gong
rings out. Clearly, that's an intruder alarm that's just been tripped. Around the street people are
poking their heads out of their doors and windows to see what all the commotion is about.
As Hinotori approaches the door, he notices a tiny amount of chakra just behind the
doorknob. The chakra is highly focused and centralised, but obscured from vission and incredibly
difficult to perceive.
Stopping from touching the doorknob as he notices the tiny bit of chakra thats just behind
the doorknob. Backing away from the door, he moves over to Yuzuna and Fudo, "Anyone know how to
discharge chakra without the trap sprining?" he asks quietly. He then moves to the side of hte
house to see if there is a window or something else still scanning to check for traps like the one
he's just found.
Yuzuna lowers her chin with a small nod, but her focus is on the building still, or rather
the concentrated chakra of Cruncher as he moves deeper underground. Hinotori was the first to move
forward, testing the doorknob of first for any possible traps before backing away from the door
cautiously. "No, however there are two other windows, and no other traps that I can detect. We can
try those first and then disable the trap on the front door from inside, that way when we leave we
do not set it off in our rush."
Fudo would consider the question for a moment, closing his eyes lightly. "Not knowing what
the trap is… options are limited. However, something like a seal or the ability to project chakra
outside of the body may have an effect. However, if we are just focusing on the door knob, is it
possible to just remove the door itself if we cannot find another way in?" Fudo would suggest,
though getting intell from Yuzuna seemed to indicate that they had two toher options to explore
first and he would certainly nod to that.
You paged Yuzuna with 'No, it didn't look like he did anything special.'
Hinotori grins to Yuzuna, "Alright. Window it is." he says as he looks to to her then Fudo.
"I don't know what it does, but I don't want to risk taking the door off the hinges due to possibly
still triggering it." he says still in a whispered voice. Gesturing to the windows, he begins
moving towards the window, his sharingan focusing on the windows as he nears them to check to see
if they are also trapped like the front door is.
Inside the building is completely bare. There's no furniture or decorations, the flooring
is just straight concrete. The ceiling isn't any better, looking like it hasn't been cleaned in a
century. In the middle of the building is a hole with a ladder leading downwards into sheer
darkness. Distant, muffled sounds can be heard coming from the hole, although anyone down there is
at least a couple of minutes ahead of the group.
Window it is. Yzuuna is careful to keep an eye on their surroundings as they come to the
window on the other side of the building. With the Byakguan, there appears to be no trap at the
window, unlike the front door. Lifting her hands, she pushes the window open and pushes herself up
through it with seamless grace, disappearing completely without a hint of a trap being set off.
"Hurry." her voice whispers, signaling that it was safe to move through. When Hinotori and Fudo
enter, they find Yuzuna standing near the hole of the floor. "I can see the chakra signatures
through this way."
Fudo follows them both through the window as Naota stays outside to keep watch incase they
have to retreat. After slipping in, he would nod to Yuzuna and move towards the hole, ready to go
in after them.
Hinotori watches as Yuzuna enters into the window, he would quickly follow in after Fudo
who moves in after Yuzuna. Taking one last quick check around, he then follows suit. He turns
around and closes the window quickly behind him but making sure that he doesn't make any sound.
Moving quietly as he can to where Yuzuna is, Hinotori looks to Fudo and sees that he is doing well
so far and is a bit impressed with him. He then looks to Yuzuna and nods his head, "See what you
can." he tells her in a low whisper. He checks around from where he is to see if there are any
other chakra traps.
The Hyuuga girl is silent as the other two near the hole in the floor as well, pausing for
a moment before bending to kneel beside the hole. "I think Amiko-san is down there, and… there
are five other chakra signatures. One is Cruncher for certain, another appears to be the power
level of a jounin, and the remaining three are about chuunin."
Continuing on down the hole, Fudo does realize something about all of this. "Yuzuna-san,
are you able to see if there is anyone in the interior that is being held against their will or
isolated? And if there is… especially if there is only one, we should probably withdraw for now.
While we won't be able to confirm the identity of the captive directly unless Yuzuna can see them
clearly, it is obvious that Cruncher has back up here, knows the terrain better than we do, and
possibly has counter measures beyond this point. Judging by the chakra based trap on the other side
of the door, there may be someone talented in other skills we are not aware of with him. Our
primary objective is to locate Uzumaki Amiko, and the chances of a successful rescue attempt are
starting to get slimmer the more we learn about all of this. Should we fail at a rescue attempt,
she will be moved and we will lose track of her as well as the element of surprise. But it is your
decision, Uchiha Hinotori." It was a lot of information, but fudo said it as quietly as he could.
It seemed that where they are was a relatively safe place to have a final briefing on whether to
move forward or go back.
Continuing on down the hole, Fudo does realize something about all of this. "If it is
Amiko… especially if there arefour others with her, we should probably withdraw for now. It is
obvious that Cruncher has back up here, he knows the terrain better than we do, and possibly has
counter measures beyond this point. Judging by the chakra based trap on the other side of the door,
there may be someone talented in other skills we are not aware of with him. Our primary objective
is to locate Uzumaki Amiko, and the chances of a successful rescue attempt are starting to get
slimmer the more we learn about all of this. Should we fail at a rescue attempt, she will be moved
and we will lose track of her as well as the element of surprise. But it is your decision, Uchiha
Hinotori." It was a lot of information, but Fudo said it as quietly as he could. It seemed that
where they are was a relatively safe place to have a final briefing on whether to move forward or
go back.
Thinking for a moment with the information given to them by Yuzuna, this is a dangerous
situation. Amiko is possibly down there and they now know where the kidnappers are. But not
possibly knowing for how long, and Fudo has raised a good point about them going down and not
possibly making it back or getting into a fight when this is a rescue/recon mission. Focusing on
listening for now, Hinotori feels that this is something they may have to chance, keeping stealthy
has been helping them, it's gotten them this far. The mission perameters was to track Cruncher and
possibly rescue and not engage. "Scope out enough of the layout as we can. If we find her we go
with the rescue, if not we know where to come to look for her again. I don't want to take too much
time because we don't know how long they will be here." he whispers very quietly. "Lets go, and
becareful." he says.
