Starring:
Date: September 19, 2016
Summary:
Hanami disappeared without much of a trace, so a team of KRD Agents go out to figure out what happened.
Poster's note: foul language filtered in obvious places.
"Tracking Hanami"
Land of Lightning
There was a goat attack … Of all things, there was a goat attack. Michiko had done her best to recover some of the documents that were eaten, forcing people who had filed something within the past 24 hours to redo their paperwork and otherwise trying to reorganize everything. There were also repairs that needed to be done, but the administration hall was still standing. For now. Of course, the paperwork getting eaten meant that things had gone missing. Namely: Hanami's request for leave to investigate one of the nearby 'villages' that was recently scorched to the ground.
It was noted by several that Hanami didn't show up to her assigned patrols, which was fairly unusual. Especially after a few days of no word. Because of this, several KRD Agents were sent out to track the girl down and figure this situation out. It was the KRD Commander herself on this task, Agent Fox keeping an eye on the two initiates. Agent Dolphin and Agent Owl were reaching the end of their training, though there were still a few more skills that had to be passed on. This 'mission' also served as an evaluation of their skills thus far.
Technically, Agent Fox was heading this mission, but she had deferred command to the other two. Owl and Dolphin were to work together as equals to track down Shinatobe Hanami, and they were to figure out why she left so suddenly. If she turned out to be a traitor, they had permission to kill. It was simple, but also not.
The investigation started in Hanami's home, and they were eventually led to the distant village by following the days-old track. At this point, Hanami should be within 5 miles of the small group. Hopefully they could find her. Agent Fox is standing off to the side as she waits for the other two to come to a conclusion of their own.
Hanami had arrived at the new location for the village of Doshi. Or what was left of it. It was still in the beginnings, many buildings were framed and being worked on while a small tent village was the home for most of the survivors. After Chitabe's attack the pillar of burning chakra he had unleashed in his still unknown scheme had eventually been sealed by the skilled shinobi of Kumo. But not before it had devasted the area. The original village was already in ruin anyway but the burning chakra had destroyed the land all around for miles; the weather patterns being thrown for a loop left the area in an intense drought which was why the Doshi survivors had moved to a new location to rebuild, more toward the northwest now.
It wasn't too much farther than the original village, but the going had been a little slower with the supplies. She had arrived in the morning the next day, waving to the crowd that gathered, having spotted her arrival. People were quick to come unload the wagon, a mix of building supplies but mostly food and things. She had Honi staying a little ways away from the village, just to be safe. Didn't want to spook anyone unnecessarily. She spoke to the village leaders a bit, then went about to see how things were going. As she did she had a small bag with her and passed out a couple homemade stuffed animals for the little kids. She couldn't help feel bad about how things had ended up, still beating herself up for it even though she knew the village was a goner by the time the team had arrived anyways.
As horrible as it was to think about, it was good they weren't at the original village spot. The suit of the ruined town would've made things worse. But it was still bad. She ended up spending the rest of the day helping where she could. Running supplies around, an extra pair of hands needed to get houses up, whatever was needed. And thus the day passed by with her passing out exhausted by the end of it, but feeling a little better, even if she was only able to help these people a little bit. At least they would have the chance to rebuild and start again.
Arashi was thinking over things for a moment. THis was an interesting mission that he would have to actually take on hi KRD name for. Outfit and all. So he of course got prepared rather quickly. Once he was ready as Agent Dolphin he showed up where the others were set to meet him at. The journey to the village obviously being a quiet one and one where they moved quickly to catch up with Hanami meant that he didn't take too much time to contemplate what they would actually do. More so he just figured they would find her first and just figure out what is going on. He hoped that she wasn't a traitor obviously. "Do I have permission to use the mists as we head into this village or are we to stay hidden completely?" He asked of Agent Fox. Then he turned to face Agent Owl as well before simply blinking a few times from under the mask. "And if not then do you have any simple ways to sense Hanami's location?" He asked. He wouldn't actually start doing anything yet. He had no need to use the mist if they had more hidden ways to spot their target.
Owl was admittedly surprised once he'd heard their mission. Hanami was not one to go rogue, at least not in his mind, so it's certainly something else that happened, right? One could only hope she was okay. Well, they needed to find her first and go from there. Once they were on her trail and close he would pause with the others to look around carefully. "I have no abilities to specifically see a certain person," he says from behind the mask, eyes flicker about to get a read on the surrounding area.
"My suggestion is not to cause much of a stir. We don't know her status currently with the exception of 'absent without leave'. It could be she decided to take a vacation or she took on a mission that wasn't properly filed after the goat attack," Fox would reply. "We're on the right track so far, so just look around for clues that indicate where she might be." Given that they've been following rather clear tracks that indicated Hanami had some supplies with her, Michiko was feeling less worried about the meeting to come. "Use your best judgment, though, Dolphin-an. And Owl-san, merely keeping a good eye out for the target can suffice. We're in a fairly barren land right now."
Hanami woke in the morning, feeling a little tired but fairly rested. But now it was time to go. Part of her wanted to just stay and help them rebuild, maybe it'd help her feel better. But…her was still out there. Somewhere. And she wanted to find the footprint. So now on to her plan. She grabbed a little bite, then went out and talked to the leaders; letting them know she had to move on, another mission to handle. She wasn't going to tell them what of course, just said her goodbyes and with her pack on she took off. Meeting up with Honi outside the village, not where she came in. She had left them the wagon, wouldn't need it and be more a bother anyways. So she headed off west for a couple hours, get some distance then turned south, riding Honi since he had the greater endurance and speed of the two.
This would be the pain in the butt part. Time to track her down some bandits. While she hadn't been able to find out much on Chitabe's whereabouts before, she had uncovered something useful. He was recruit from the bandit scum in Kumo. Her time in Fuuma Alley a ways back hadn't been a total loss, she had had a rough idea where to find out info. And that info would lead her to a group she could hopefully use. If she could find them. Only having a general idea of where they might be didn't help, but the best she could do without pushing. She wasn't too worried though, her sensor abilities should pick up a group of bandits easily enough. So on she went, casting her senses out periodically until she caught wind of them. Then the fun the part.
Arashi looked over the other two with a slight frown. Of course not seen. "Well most of the clues are seemingly visibly. It isn't like she tried to hide anything about coming here." He shook his head some and just started to follow the clues. "Owl. I say we split up. She seemed to go just along the path here. You go alone on side and I take the other. Just to be on opposite sides of the path. BOth follow the trail and be able to see things on either side if there is something to see." He frowned again and just started to walk along. He was on the left side of the path leaving the right for Owl. He still wasn't using the mist of course. Just his eyes. He should look into studying with a sensor. That way he can at least tell the difference between people in a crowd. That sorta thing.
Owl looks to the Fox and nods slightly, his eyes scanning again before they finally turn on Dolphin. "I agree, she's not attempting to hide her presence. That points to her not being so much a missing nin, but she's still not reported in and needs to be checked on." When Dolphin says to split up her nods his agreement and starts making his way around the other side. He keeps his eyes open, but he moves quickly and naturally sticks to shadows.
The trail itself, apparently, was easy to track down, so Michiko would follow the two initiates along the path until they reached the village of Doshi. Once there, the KRD Commander would seem to disappear, leaving Agent Dolphin and Agent Owl to their own devices. In all likelihood, she was just hiding underground or something, but the girl was nowhere to be seen so that she could see how they handle 'interrogating' the villagers. Really, this was a lot nicer of a mission than it could have been. Hanami would have a few hours' head start from the shinobi tracking her down at this point, but once they had more information, it shouldn't take long to at least 'catch' her and talk to her.
The team, when arriving to the rebuilding village of Doshi, would find a welcoming crowd. And the villagers would be more than happy to answer any questions the team might have. As for Hanami, she was still scouring the area, looking for signs of this group of bandits. Hopefully this wasn't a wild goose chase or she'd just be wandering around aimlessly looking for Chitabe. And to go back having failed just…rankled. So while the team was at Doshi she was on the road searching. And finally, it seemed like her search might've paid off.
Agent Dolphin simply watched the crowd and would look for someone who seemed to be in a position of power for this village. He didn't want to waste time talking to every little person. Owl would be gestured to so they could talk as well though his only words to him would be suggesting someone continue on the trail while the other asks around. They didn't want to risk losing her if it is bad and if it isn't they would want to know that info for when they did find her. Both objectives were important. Anyways when he found the 'leaders' of this place he would approach them from the shadows. He was easily depicted as a KRD agent from Kumogakure so hopefully that was enough. "A Kumogakure kunoichi came through here. Do you know why? Don't worry either. She isn't in trouble and isn't dangerous any. Just have to be sure of some things." He said quietly to not attract any other attention if he could help it. Truthfully she likely wouldn't be in super trouble even if she was running away since that would've been all she did. Still at the worst she could be punished some.
After looking around the village for a few minutes Owl notices that Dolphin has found someone to speak to. A quick, hidden hand signal is given to indicate that he was going to continue on and would leave a small trail for Dolphin to follow. Something nice and unobtrusive. With that he vanishes in a burst of speed, searching around the village until he finds which way Hanami has gone before starting after he quickly.
The village leaders Dolphin found were still rather surprised by his appearance, but quickly recovered upon a second look and realizing it was one of the KRD. One of them spoke up, "Oh! Yes, miss Shinatobe. She's a sweet girl to make the trip up here. I mean we've been getting supplies, but to bring them herself was really nice. And the toys for the kids, really brightened them up." Another one piped in, "Yes, though she looked troubled. Clearly bothered, but who knows. It was like she took the destruction of our village personally. It was a horrible a thing, and we'll never forget it of course." They pause for a moment of silence before the first one speaks up again, "I hope that helps sir, though it isn't really much I guess. We've been using the wagon to help haul building supplies around, until of course someone comes to retrieve it. She said someone would likely be by soon, though didn't expect so soon after she left. I do hope she isn't in any trouble." The others nodded in agreement.
Hanami meanwhile had narrowed down on her target. Still a ways off she circled to a spot, then dug into her pack. She spent a little time getting her disguise. Hair cut short to about her shoulders, a little rough but would work. Then some dye, leaving her hair more of a brownish color and washing up in the stream she stopped at. Once down she changed into old, worn clothes, not something she'd normally wear but fitting her plan. She then pulled out the last piece of the disguise, holding it up to her face though not putting it on just yet. Honi growled low and she looked over, smiling a bit, "Hey, it's okay. Just a mask. It'll be fine, don't worry. Still me. Just being careful." She goes over and rubs behind his ears before hugging his big head and giving him a kiss, "That's my big silly wolf. Now get you gone. Circle around, keep nearby but don't get spotted. I'll be fine, but I'll be better knowing you're near in case I get in a bit of trouble." She joins her instructions with gestures and signals. Hopefully there wouldn't be trouble. A little infiltration, get the information she needed about Chitabe, then high tail it back. Once that was done hopefully they could get a team to go take him down. Easy. So with that Honi took off, disappearing silently into the woods.
Arashi nods slowly as they spoke. "Yes it does sound enough like her. And you say she took the destruction personally?" He asked with a hidden frown. "Great." He looked around. "No it was enough. Her trail is easy enough to follow. I don't think she was trying to hide from us so we just have to go make sure she checks in is all. Thanks for the help. I will personally gurantee a little bit of extra support. Even by her hands if you would like." And then he started to head off quickly. He didn't care for the cart really. He had more imporant matters. Making sure she didn't do something that would get herself hurt. His movements were quick to catch up to Owl. Especially since he lead an easy enough trail to follow if he paid attention. He felt like he was moving slower than him even now though. Either way his efforts would be to catch up with Owl and together go find Hanami.
And Owl continues following Hanami's trail, moving at a good pace though making sure he doesn't lose the trail at the same time. When Dolphin catches up he of course asks for details on what was found out but he doesn't slow down in his search.
The Fox would follow after the Owl once she heard some of the villagers speaking, using chakra primarily to speed herself and let her catch up. She would appear up ahead of both the two KRD Initiates, looking a bit like she was waiting for them. In actuality, she was checking the earth for any signs of Hanami. She wasn't too used to the sensations of the earth, which is why she decided to move on ahead and search for the Shinatobe. "Find anything useful?" the girl asks as she glances in Owl and Dolphin's direction. "It feels as though she's in range if we continue with this pace."
Hanami probably wasn't real far away, at the pace the team was going. And right now she was pretty stationary. Not far from the bandit's encampment she was hidden, watching. Waiting. She wasn't sure for what exactly, an opportunity? Maybe she was just worried, second thoughts. Probably not the best idea, but it was all she got. She ran through things in her head over and over. It had to work. Sure, it was BS but all it took was guts. She grabbed the half mask and put it on, covering the right side of her face and her tattoos. Not too bad of work really, looked quite like one of Konoha's Anbu masks. Broken in half, all part of the get up. With the mask in place she flips up the hood and shoulders her pack. Time to get moving, get this over with. The sooner she got in the fast she could get out, probably.
The team would probably be able to track Hanami, or if they figured it out, they'd actually be tracking Honi. With his larger than normal wolf prints it shouldn't be hard. Following the track would probably lead them around a bit, as Hanami had roamed some in her hunt for the bandit camp. Eventually they'd likely find the spot where she stopped to don her disguise. From there though it'd likely be harder as both Honi and Hanami began moving with more stealth and care.
COMBAT: Hanami attacks target 1 with STILL-AIR with a roll of: 38
RPCOMBAT: Michiko defends against with a MASTERED-EARTHEN-SENSE…58
Arashi was able to catch up to the others easily enough now. It wasn't too much difficulty in doing that much at least. And once he got to the others he would just nod to each of them. "I see. So you believe she is in range?" He said before looking around himself and he tried to find her. He gestured which was he was heading and expected to split up again. The major thing is that… Well he had to make sure they found them and it wuld be easier to cover the most ground this way. His own senses weren't too great on their own, but he would try to look around the area. Hopefully he was on point today.
RPCOMBAT: Arashi defends against with a PERCEPTION…29
RPCOMBAT: Yori defends against with a PERCEPTION-III…43
Owl was able to keep up on the tracks despite the attempts to move more stealthily. He does pause where the two split and crouches down to study the tracks briefly before he motions for Dolphin to follow him. He takes off after Hanami's tracks, leaving her large mutated wolf to it's own devices for the time being. With Fox underground he's not paying too much attention to her, instead focusing on following the trail he has and finding Hanami as soon as they can.
"Hai," Fox says simply, the KRD commander considering some of the information offered by both her own senses as well as her teammates' senses. It was through sensing the earth, which thankfully didn't need the wind moving to work, that she could detect Hanami. If neither Dolphin nor Owl were able to spot the now-disguised Shinatobe (which they may not be able to given that they were a mile or so away), she would point them in the correct direction.
Hanami deadens the air around her as she makes her way to the camp, silencing her approach. Sure, she wasn't there to attack them but it'd make more of an entrance if she was able to just sneak into the camp without any sentries noticing. She could pick up a couple around, not too far from the camp though. Somewhat organized perhaps, but not too much it seems. Works for her, they were just bandits after all.
Dolphin walked along after Yori. Well likely ran after him. But the tracks would be followed closely. He wanted to use the mists but he didn't think he should risk it too much. He stretched a bit before looking around with his own eyes and calling quietly over to Owl. "Do you see the target? I see their is… Bandits up ahead. I have to wonder if this is where they were heading and if these are the ones that caused trouble at that village."
Logfile for Michiko on Naruto MUSH
Started at 2016-10-01 23:14:30 +0000
start log 2016-09-19 Investigating Hanami
RPCOMBAT: Michiko defends against with a BODY-FLICKER-TECHNIQUE…34
COMBAT: Michiko attacks target 1 with MUSCLE-RELAXATION-TECHNIQUE with a roll of: 47
Agent Fox notices that Hanami is making her way to the bandits. And then she decides that if Hanami reaches the bandits, that would be bad. She gestures slightly for Owl to keep an eye on the bandits, moving in from behind them, and she would disappear in a brief flicker and try to 'grab' Hanami by tapping a few spots that would make her muscles weak. A hand would be clapped over the disguised girl's mouth. "Hanami-san, please do not resist," she says simply, her voice lower than usual since bandits are kinda nearby. Hopefully she's successful in this movement.
COMBAT: It's not your turn.
RPCOMBAT: Hanami defends against with a WIND-DASH…42
Hanami was moving in, trying to keep a low profile so basically keeping hidden. As she drew nearer to the camp there was a rustling in the grass, skittering of rocks alerting her to someone's presence. The change in the air had her moving in a blur, sliding and spinning around keeping low. She blinked to see Michiko, seconds from releasing her own attack but instead she paused, keeping her voice to a low hiss, "What are you doing here?" She was clearly confused, and surprised. Not really the look of someone who was on the run, especially since she didn't just continue her attack.
Hanami was moving in, trying to keep a low profile so basically keeping hidden. As she drew nearer to the camp there was a rustling in the grass, skittering of rocks alerting her to someone's presence. The change in the air had her moving in a blur, sliding and spinning around keeping low. She blinked to seeing a masked KRD agent, seconds from releasing her own attack but instead she paused, keeping her voice to a low hiss, "What are you doing here?" She was clearly confused, and surprised. A hint of annoyance actually. Not really the look of someone who was on the run, especially since she didn't just continue her attack.
Agent Dolphin watched Agent Fox take off and would try to keep up and follow her lead. He would keep an eye out for the bandits themselves from this side while Owl went off to the other side. Fox would be allowed to handle Hanami. Though when she spoke up and acted like they were a surprising thing being here he frowned a bit. What was that reaction for… Well anyways he would wait for orders. One thing he knew he had to do was keep his mouth shut and wait for orders.
Fox would breathe out softly, glancing at the bandit camp. No reaction. Good. "We need to clarify some things, Hanami-san. If you sent us a report prior to your leaving, then I deeply apologize. The Administration Hall probably lost it from a recent attack that wrecked a good amount of the records. Now, can you please explain why you are here and what you plan to do?" Normally Fox would have let Dolphin and Owl do this, but judging by Hanami's reaction, doing this quickly so the girl could return to business might be best.
Hanami pauses, frowning, "An attack destroyed records?" She shakes her head, "Yeah, I filed paperwork for my excursion. Bringing supplies to Doshi, then heading off to track down whatever I could about Chitabe. Shoot, so you were sent to hunt me down cause…"she sighs, "My goal is to infiltrate the bandits. They're working for Chitabe, the only real info I was able to gather before. From there…"she shrugs, "Hoping to learn his location or at least something useful to deal him before he burns down another village or whatever it is he's planning."
Fox nods almost imperceptibly to Hanami's echo of the question. "Sou… I apologize for the misunderstanding. When we couldn't contact you, though, it was worrisome… It is always best to be safe than sorry, after all. Especially when some people might have been swayed by the Storm Brigade." Not that Fox actually thinks that. But the risk was there, and you don't last long in the world if risks that could have been prevented were not. "Did you want any assistance, or do you feel that you can do this yourself?" Fox would then ask. "Try to send reports back to the Administration when you can," she adds. "In the meantime, we can get this cleared away with the higherups."
Hanami nods, glancing back at the bandit camp. Still good. She looks back to the Fox, "Yeah, no I get it. No, I think I'm fine. Better with just me anyways, and no doubt you guys are needed in more important things than this. I'll be fine. Uh…"she pauses, "Well nevermind, nothing really. No, it'll be good. And I'll try to send reports when I can, however I can."
Fox nods lightly and gestures to Dolphin. One that Hanami would recognize as Kumo's gesture to move out. She didn't feel like using KRD signals, apparently… Alternatively, it's kind of stupid to give an order that everyone here would see the meaning of in mere seconds. >.>; On that note, Fox would disappear to tap Owl on the should and draw him back towards the village of Doshi. They could help that village out a bit on the way back or something, or maybe they'd go right back to Kumogakure. Either way, their tracking Hanami was done.
