Naruto: Contract for Outcasts IC

As the kunoichi sparked up ablaze, Asuna's itching began to get worse. The tension was always on opposites and god knew how much Asuna had to striking anyone, bloodlust grinding her teeth together. On exterior, she kept calm and composed, keeping most of her upper face and eyes hidden behind her hat. The thought crept in her mind if anyone would act calmer knowing that a Kaguya was in the room. Said thought was quickly dismissed as others showed off their hot-headed personalities. If anything were to erupt, she wouldn't have many chances at getting out. Her incapacitating abilities could prove useful if anyone got too heated. And by that her mind skimmed across images of seeing people covered in more needles than a porcupine, making her smile a little once more. The Kaguya was no idiot nonetheless, and began molding her chakra within her bones, hardening legs, arms and skull. The preparation of her senbon was underway under her skin, as her filled rib cage began to expand and take the characteristics of a senbon. The weapons, however, remained under he skin and would only be fetched from her sides if any quick movements were to be done in her way. None were done, no actions were taken.


Asuna rose to her feet as nin began to assemble upon the stage, walked towards the center row and jumped unto the stage gracefully. She took a few steps before turning around to also face the audience under her straw hat. The urge to flip the hat off came to her mind, however opted to keep her clan identity branded on her forehead hidden.
 
Kirino glared at the smartasses that commented on her jutsu. She wanted to incinerate the lot of them, but then some jackhole came up to her and was asking her to stop while holding back their comrade. The Kusagakure native looked around at the folks in the room and, as expected, the tension in the room was so thick she could almost taste it. "Alright you pansies..." the flames that whirled around Kirino's body flickered weakly, the intense wind slowed, and finally both died down altogether. "There. Now get outta my face, we got shit to do." Of course, while the unknown shinobi were this close, the ever-cautious Kirino sized the trio up. There were no major identifying features that she could see, however. These guys were likely former ANBU in whatever country they hailed from.


"Fucking finally." grumbled Kirino as Mikoto mentioned moving on. As instructed, the Tempest walked over to the stage and stepped towad the back of it. She wanted to survey her competition and potential teammates. Currently, she knew of two she might want to be teamed with. One was the boy with the explosive tags. Most underestimated the use of tags as weapons, plus they could be detonated with chakra or with fire. And fire was something she had a lot of. The other was a toss-up between the Uzumaki kid and the hesitant woman from Sakuragakure. The Uzumaki were well-known as talented shinobi, but if she was paired with the Sakuragakure woman, well... she would have someone to talk to who didn't want to flip her ass over tits and hammer her like a bent nail.


"Alright. Let's do this thing." said Kirino from the back of the stage platform.
 
His attention was drawn to two of the three hooded ninja who had deemed them all worthy of knowing their identities and did Hogo know them. Yogan Taka with his red tipped hair, Hogo hadn't ever met the man personally and he had hoped not to. The woman he recognised as Jinsoka Gorudo, this woman's speed was said to be almost godly. Once again he utilised his Bingo book and flipped through several pages, these two had barely half a page each with rewards that most likely belied their skills. Hogo shook his head warily, these three would cause him the most grief. The last ninja remained cloaked and put Hogo on edge.


Hogo sat in his chair fiddling about with the strings of his shamisen, idly he cast an eye to the bickering Kurage Genzai and the Uzumaki nin. The two were quite tenacious and if they put their egos aside they would probably make the most explosive pairing he'd ever seen. Their rivalry aside, Hogo looked at the fire encompassed kunoichi and shook his head "Show-off, two techniques you've shown us now." he thought. He strapped his shamisen in place, stood up and stretched, all this posturing was boring and he wished to be out of the imposing room sooner or later, preferably sooner.


The kunoichi referred to as Sumire finally signed the contract and the deal was struck. With that Mikoto made a few final statements and the disappeared in one of the least dramatic ways possible. Hogo sighed and shook his head again "Why bother with the theatrics at all?" He smiled and proceeded to make his way atop the stage as he was instructed. He yawned tiredly and the sleep from his eyes, he would have to wait before taking another nap but waited for whoever else was left to get aboard the stage.
 
Genzai, Uzumaki and the three nin from earlier started up at once, drowning out Ikari's own quip, and locking him out of the grid. His smile twitching in annoyance, the thief straightened up and adjusted his shoulder-guard, somehow staying his cheerful expression and disposition. He gave a withdrawn sigh as the voices clashed around him all at once, everything happening at one time. The explosive tag in his fingers quivered slightly as Ikari honestly considered setting an explosion to knock the foundations of the tower to the ground and burying everyone underneath for the hell of it. He kept his own fuse intact, however, and decided to lean back slightly and scratch his head in acceptance of his almost-absent existence among these people. At least Takeda calmed down...as much as "calmed down" meant anyway. The flames dissipated as Mikoto barked an order, silencing the entire cohort, and the unidentified client started off towards the stage. In an act that made Ikari raise his eyebrows, the wo/man vanished as the curtains drew in and out.


What? That was completely bull. The floor was supposed to be solid. Maybe he didn't check the stage thoroughly. The walls? Behind the stage? Mikoto can't vanish like that. A clone perhaps? The last theory settled in nicely with his previous suspicions. Then again, it might be an act of Genjutsu that he didn't expect. In that case, Ikari couldn't trust everything he saw. Ikari's thoughts wandered a bit, leaving the others to make their way to their stage. He caught snippets of conversations as he pondered, but pushed them aside for a bit. Finally, after a time, Ikari shrugged and shook his head. All this thinking about Genjutsu and reality made him quite distressed. He should discard the theory for later.


Ikari started towards the stage himself, letting his eavesdropped conversations flow back into his mind.


Sexy-beautiful-busty-babe....maintain some big babies...


Th-thank you.


Save killing each other for...meeting at least.


Fucking finally.


...bother with such theatrics?


Ikari frowned for a split second, before recovering his smile that battled the sun in bright idealism. Genzai, a crude bastard, being able to win the heart of such a lady with such words? Hmph! And he, Dai Tozoku, who spoke in polite words, was completely ignored in his own right? Double hmph! No matter! His pride will not fall now. Ikari mounted the stage, attempting to join the rest of his companions on the stage. When he lifted himself up with one foot, however, his shoe slipped on the edge of the stage, flinging him face first onto the stage floor. The impact rebounded him backwards, sending him sprawling onto the bottom of the stage. Groaning in pain, Ikari stumbled to his feet, grasping the side of the stage to balance himself. Averting his eyes from the rest present, he wiped the blood away his nose along with whatever remained of his dignity and pride. He cast a withering look at the place where he slipped from and took the steps by the side of the stage to avoid yet another skull fracture, keeping his smile on, which seemed less of 'cheerful' now and more towards a miserable one, which would not have looked out of place on a snail crawling through salt.


Damn it. His luck was blown out again. Giving another dejected sigh, he kept his head low and brushed past the rest to take his place at the back of the stage. Fate was simply throwing all her cards at him and taunting him.
 
Slowly the ninja moved down, under the floor, and through a slanting path which seemed to spiral down. The first minute was annoyingly slow, the next thirty seconds saw some speed increase, and throughout the next two minutes the stage was moving as fast as a car and required actual skill to maintain balance while standing aboard it. Moe feigned difficulty maintaining balance, leaning heavily on his staff and looking quite uncomfortable and unsteady. It was an act, of course, and he maintained it, though he did not go so far as to actually fall over, which could be telling to someone paying attention.


The three ninja, Yogan, Jinsoka, and the mysteries third, maintained their balance easily, and did not feign any weakness or lack of skill. Yogan continued to play his air guitar, rocking his head to the music as they slid further and further down. The ride made it clear that they were going far beneath the building, and the turning slant made it hard to tell if they were even still under the same building they had entered. Finally, a light began to shine at the end of the tunnel and the ride straightened and slowed down.


They entered a room then, a large cavernous one, with a high ceiling, intricately decorated walls, and hard floor covered in swaths of colorful carpet. Notably, the high, vaulted ceiling, the majestically crafted pillars which descended down to the floor, the carpeted floor and the walls were all carved from white, smooth stone. The place they were currently in resembled a strange fusion of a large lobby and a temple entrance chamber. Many stone doors lined the walls, and like the walls, they too were carved with intricate symbols and patterns. Around the strange, white/gray room, they were furnishings which seemed somewhat out of place.


The carpets were colorful and had the same square and diamond patterns as the hallway which led to the meeting chamber. Some potted plants were placed in t he corners, and comfortable green furniture had been moved in to give the room a more homey feeling. When they entered they would instantly know that they were not alone. A woman stood waiting for them near the edge of their platform. She had pale blonde hair which she wore in a long ponytail, and her eyes were ice blue, and had a hardness too them that would make any experienced ninja know she was dangerous. She a thin scar crossing her right eye vertically, but aside from that her face was free of mar or blemish. She wore armor on her arms and shoulders, though none on her hands, which were left free to presumably form hand signs. The plated armor only covered her arms and shoulders only, and over her chest she wore nothing more than a ninja gi, though around her waist the garment was tied with a sash, a sash that bore a forehead protector. The symbol was that of Konoha (And no, there is no damage or scratch on the symbol).


When the stage became still and halted right before her, she took her time inspecting each of the ninja with her eyes, blue spheres darting from one person to the next. Her expression was sour, but otherwise unreadable. She finally sighed and straightened a little bit before proceeding to say,


"Alright you half clan misfits, its time to prove your dedication to the contract! I am Senryaka Yamanaka, and I will be your mission coordinator from this day onward. I will be the one briefing you on your missions, I will be the one who decides who gets to go on missions, and with who, and how many. I am your eye in the sky, the whisper in your ear. I pull the strings and you react accordingly, got that my puppets? Good. Now follow me." She would turn without waiting for a response before adding, "And remember, I pay your contract, and I decided if a mission is complete or not."


She walk to the other end of the room where a projector was set up. She activated it, and revealed a map of the area surrounding Amegakure, as well as revealing the position of three somethings, one marked A, another marked B, and the last marked C. Senryaka whipped out a pointer rod and pointed at A.


"This marks the predicted location of a caravan traveling through this land on the way to the land of Fire. The caravan is a large one, made up of eight wagons, all traveling together. The wagons are owned and steered by peasant villagers, and the cargo being transported is rice. Or so these villagers would have you believe.


They are, in fact, carrying weapons for the Hokage, and are on their way to delivering them, traveling through Amegakure to pick up their final shipment and then move it back to Konoha. Though we know for a fact that at least many of the people traveling with the caravan are villagers, we are sure that Konoha has some insurance saved up just in case the caravan is discovered. Keep that in mind." She then pointed to B with her indicator.


"This is a group of a hidden ninja traveling from Hoshigakure to Takigakure, with the intent of finalizing and alliance that will bring both villages much power and stability. With this alliance, it is predicted that both villages will be able to enter the war more fully than before, and employ more devastating teams of ninja. There are three ninja in the team, all fully trained Star Ninja, some of the Hoshikage elite." She moved on to Ce after she finished, pointing to it.


"This last one, C, is a contingent of Chunin and genin from Yugakure who are heading home after a successful raid. Yugakure has been doing poorly in the war, and cherishes each victory it manages to achieve. There are six chunin, and over eight genin in this group." She halted, pulling her arm away from the board and letting the information sink in for a second before suddenly, lines extended out from both A, B, and C, showing their respective paths. The lines became thicker and covered more area where the route was uncertain, but they showed relatively clear paths.


"In Approximately three hours, these three group will be within five square miles of each other. Pay attention, because this is where we come in. I will divide you all into four teams, three teams of three, and one team of four. The Teams are Meiyo, Shinzo, Yuki, and Domo. Meiyo Squad will intercept the caravan, and by whatever means they deem necessary, bring them to halt at the appointed time, in the appointed place. They are to stall the caravan in that location until the next part of the plan can come into play. Shinzo and Yuki Squads will move to attack the ninja from Yugakure, drawing them into an ambush, and killing up to, but not exceeding, three of their ninja. You are to make a good show of your battle, but only enough to draw them into further combat, not enough to scare them away or scatter them. At the same time, Domo Squad will encounter the Hoshigakure ninja and draw them into a similar battle, making a good show of the fight but not actually engaging with the intention to win.


"When I give the signal, all squads will fall back to Meiyo Squad, drawing their targets in with them. Once all targets have been drawn to the same area, squad objectives will change. Meiyo Squad will be in charge of destroying the weapons caravan, after which you are to retreat, shake any pursuit, and return to base for debrief. It will also be an objective to insure that at least one of the villagers following the caravan survives the attack.


"Shinzo and Yuki squad will be charged with killing all Chunin in the Yugakure ninja contingent, leaving at least one of the Genin alive and capable of escape, before retreating, shaking pursuit, and returning to base for Debrief. Domo Squad will be in charge of killing all the Hoshigakure ninja, being sure to leave their bodies at the sight of the battle. Once that is complete, retreat, and return for debrief." As she spoke, the projection on the wall changed to match the plan, displaying the intended movement of forces, and the places and times when the squads were to strike, and then pull back. After she finished speaking, the projector switched from the map of the area, to a list displaying the team names and who was on each respective team.


Meiyo


Kurage Genzai


Ikari Hanayoshi


Sumire Nishimura


Shinzo


Yuki Aburame


Yogan Taka


Asuna Kaguya


Yuki


Hogo Fukujin


Jinsoka Gorudo


Ryuzoji Takadori


Domo


Kirino Takeda


Kirato Uzumaki


Tah'Moe Deel Amigiri


Absolith


"We will begin moving immediately after the briefing, moving teams into position in preparation for an attack. If you have any questions ask them now, and I swear they better not waste my time." Senryaka said as she closed her indicator, and then took a soldiers stance, waiting for questions from the assembled ninja. She would move on quickly if no questions were asked.
 
Kirato let out a low moan as he read the names for his team. "You have got to be shitting me." placing his hands on his hips he shook his head in protest as he eye'd the fire hazard near him. Team Domo was tasked with what seemed to be the hardest of all the tasks. Especially since his teammate was the raging b$&%^ from hell. Kirato slowly surveyed the room as he did this he put each person in each group gauging the success rate of each. His eye's suddenly widened as he placed Sumire in Meiyo.... tsch... this is bad. why would they put her in the group that handles the villagers.... make sure one survives does that mean, they want the rest dead. They are just people of their village trying to help out in any way they can, to the best of their ability. Do we condemn the weak for trying to be strong... to want to defend their home.





DAMNIT!


Kirato's hands moved from the crossed position over his chest to his sides as he clenched his fists together tightly as he shifted his body uncomfortably. His gaze fell to the floor as he thought of the current roster. The woman Sumire almost left due to killing of innocence are they this stupid. Domo's task is the most dangerous of the whole operation fighting these elites... Mikoto would not be foolish enough to send fodder to fight them. But why did he disregard her wishes? Were these teams predetermined before the signing?... dammit what should I do? These people are nothing to me my mission is my own and I will do what I need to do....Lifting his head he moved his sharp stare towards to the woman who was tasked with managing their missions.....


"Senryaka." Kirato did not care for formalities as to how to address this new woman. "I have two things... One how would you like us to dispose of our fallen?" His head slowly moved to look at Sumire as he let out a sigh his shoulders slightly drooping in tandem. "I would like to be switched with Sumire Nishimura..." His voice dropped to a low mumble as his head shifted back to Senryaka. "It would be most beneficial to us if we didn't have to worry about her failing to do her part." She probably thinks I am making fun of her, I guess I am prepared to be yelled at again why not 3rd times the charm... His voice returned back to normal as he continued on. "For the cohesion of the group and success of the mission this seems like a sound option, as after Meiyo finishes their task I will move to assist Domo." Kirato kept his gaze on the woman never wavering his eye's as his arms moved back to the crossed position on his chest.
 
Senryaka's eyes flashed to Kirato, and she said nothing as he made his query, and his request. She then slowly raised an eyebrow.


"I will brief you on how death disposal will be handled when we reach the equipment assignment part of the briefing. As for your request, it is denied. I know about Sumire's protests very well, and chose her for this mission specifically. I never required that Meiyo squad kill any of the villagers carrying the weapons, nor did I say that they must take any forceful action with them asides from the destruction of the wagons. I purposefully stated that it was left to the squad's discretion, and that we do not care by what means they accomplish their goals so long as it does not compromise the other missions or their own mission.


"This could mean that they decided to kill all the villagers, so we specify that at least one must be left alive, though it could also mean that none of the villagers are killed, it is up to the squad. Given this situation, I thought that Sumire would insist on being in the squad which decides the fates of the only "Innocent" elements involved in the mission. This is also her chance to show us that she can practice her ideals while at the same time demonstrating that she can still accomplish her tasks. As you can see, I have no reason to switch her with you, particularly when your squad already has a medical ninja." Senryaka then turned and offered a curt nod towards Moe, who faked a blush and rubbed his hand behind his head.


"I-I'll do my best." The old man said sheepishly, still heavily leaning on his iron staff.


Senryaka did not respond or acknowledge that she had heard, simply turning back to Kirato. "Destabilizing the squads with a switch like this would weaken our chances of success more than if Sumire chose to do nothing at all. The stalling and destruction of the wagons is a task that we think even one ninja should be able to handle, but we are not underestimating Konoha, and are sending three. Even if one chooses not to work, two ninja is still twice as many as it takes to accomplish the basic tasks. I will hear no more about this." She stated sharply before turning back to the rest. "Any other pertinent questions?"
 
Ryuzoji was content with whatever assignment that was thrown into his face. He was slightly disappointed he had to mess with the genin and chunin because he was accustomed to S-Rank and Jounin Rank enemies, but a mission was a mission and he wouldn't show no restrain on whoever it may be. There also could be a chance that a jounin level ninja hid among them. He couldn't leave anything to chance.


He looked at all the teams. Jinsoka was on his team and so was this man known as Hogo and team Shinzo would be working with them as well. He knew of Jinsoka ability, but knew nothing else of her and the same was with his other teammates. He thought we should all go over that before heading off into the mission.


He was about to ask what was the goal of this mission, but the Uzamaki man known as Kirato shouted out his question and request. It seemed as if he was doubting Mikotos reasoning. If he hadn't notice up until this point, the man known as Mikoto isn't some fool who didn't have a plan. His set up to this point has been brilliant and well thought out. He chose us based upon our abilities and character no less. He knew who we are and where we hid. He tracked us down and watched us from a far. There is no accidents in what he does.


He was going to respond to his request, but the Kunoichi beat him to it. He agreed with everything she had to say about it his request, but he still felt that he needed to to say something.


"So are you looking down upon our fellow comrade Kirato?" Ryuzoji asked him," Mikoto is no fool and you should never think his actions are an accident."


He quickly glanced at Sumire before returning to Kirato.


"He is testing her resolve. What if they were guarded by Jounin or they pulled out a crossbow and shot her because they wanted to protect themselves. We may be skilled ninja, but an arrow to the heart is instant death. Her hesitation to kill that villager could be the spark that causes the entire mission to fail. We are only as weak as our weakest link. If she lacks resolve then she will slow us down and eventually get one of us killed and I'm sure you don't want to die just yet."


He looked back at the Senrayaka and asked his question to her.


"What is the ultimate goal of this mission or is that confidential?"
 
Kurage and Ikari? Alright then...


Sumire nodded as she read off the names of her teammates to herself. The pairing had been satisfactory. The mission itself did not bother her in the least. She took full understanding to what was expected of Team Meiyo, and the fact that all innocents involved need not be harmed was a plus for the kunoichi. Assuming there would be no surprises, things would go quite smoothly.


Sumire took a single step forward and began to fix her lips to speak. Before a single word could get out, the one known as Kirato made his presence known with a question, and then a second question in the form of a request. Upon hearing him speak the request, Sumire would only shake her head ever so slightly. Obviously, this one did not understand the full details of Team Meiyo's part in all of this. Their mission coordinator, Senryaka, would go on to answer his concerns, and Ryuzoji would be all too eager to follow afterwards. Sighing to herself, she put on a faint smile, glancing to both Ryuzoji and Kirato before uttering a single word. "Men..."


The Sakuragakure native would bow her head, lift a single hand, and then brush her fingertips across her bangs before continuing on, crossing her arms about her chest. "I'm more than capable of stopping the caravan in its tracks. Should my teammates agree to leaving that part solely up to me, I can promise you all that no one will be harmed..." With that, the ninja woman took a step backward and said nothing more, offering the floor to the next individual.
 
Kirino had seen enough. She was satisfied that this was not a trap, and was even moderately pleased with her team assignments. "Alright then. Since we're about to head out, I figure I should make this known. Senryaka, I'm a cautious person when facing the unknown, and I'm also a Shadow Clone. My real body is at an undisclosed location near the entrance to this place. And before people ask, No... I don't know where exactly." The Inferno-Style user looked around, unsure of the others were impressed, disappointed, appalled, or otherwise reactive to the revelation.


"So now that the cat's out of the bag, what do we do from here. You poof me, then the real me loses chakra and learns everything. I release the jutsu myself, the real me gets the chakra back and can meet the team at full strength before the mission. Really all that needs known now is where my real body will meet the team." The shadow clone looked around once more before speaking again. "Yeah. Bet you all didn't expect that curveball, huh? The hot one has a brain to back up her looks."
 
Senryaka would wait as several of the Ninja made remarks and asked questions. She did not address anything that was not a question, looking up at Ryuzoji and saying,


"That information may be revealed to you after the mission is complete, depending on whether Mikoto-sama trusts you to know, but as of right now I can not disclose it." She then listened as Kirino made her revelation.


"Undo the jutsu and enter through the tower door, just like everyone else did. After that we will have you meet us down here." Senryaka ordered simply, and if Kirino did as instructed, it wouldnt be six minutes before the Real Kirino was lowered into the secret base from the stage upstairs.
 
As the elevator jerked and started moving exponentially faster, Ikari stumbled about, colliding into some of the other nin. He bumped into them as he teetered around the moving elevator and would have fallen flat on his face again if his flailing arms did not aid him in his recovery. With a relieved 'phew', Ikari braced himself, only to find himself knocked out of his equilibrium every few seconds when the elevator hurtled downwards in a spiral. By the time the ride had ended, Ikari was crouched down and clutching his hands over his head, praying for it to be over. When he finally opened his eyes, Ikari was greeted by a luxurious interior of a room. If it were in a mansion, the furnishings, the carpets, everything would not be out of place. Ikari's only complaint was that it wasn't in a mansion. From what he could gather, it seemed more like a temple than anything else. His fingers twitched as his eyes passed over items of worth in the room,aas he made his way off the elevator.


He was greeted by a Konoha kunoichi, who addressed herself as Senryaka. What a mouthful, Ikari thought, taking note of her appearance. That scar made her oh-so-fierce and fiery, just like Takeda, and she wasn't that bad looking either. Mikotk had offered that Ikari direct his original question to her, and Ikari happily consented with the idea. "Hey, Senry-"


He was ignored and instead, cut across by the mission briefing, a lengthy one. Ikari decided to let this one slide and listened incto the briefing. When all was said and done, Ikari took the paper bearing the assignments and ran his finger along the names. Meiyo, huh? The team made to halt a caravan. In his mind, the cogs began whirring, formulating a simple plan to stall for time. Of course, one genius plan that appeared was to blow the thing sky-high, or at least the wheels from under it. The problem was his team-mates. Sumire and Genzai. His blood boiled for the latter and the grudge he held for the former had not dissipated. His annoyance shot up higher when this Sumire lady attempted to claim the mission for herself and that the other two were unnecessary. Unable to control himself, Ikari's smile turned into a smirk and he spoke, "Yeah, I and fatty here will just chill by the sakura trees and have tea, huh? C'mon, I didn't come here to watch girls put themselves in harm's way. This barrel of lard here," Ikari nudged Genzai's stomach, "probably wouldn't want that as well, right, tubby?"


Okay, those insults were definitely overkill.
 
Asuna spoke up for the first time in the group. " Why leave survivors? To add a fear factor? I always thought that being unexpected and never revealed was always a better alternative. Sure, it'll look like a bunch of missing nin gathered up and ransacked them, yet I fail to see the advantage of leaving survivors." Her tone of voice had hues of blood lust and arrogance. Given the list revealed her name, she began to feel like the straw hat was beginning to lose it's purpose but remembered that not everyone knew of the Kaguya's ferocity in battle. And so the hat remained on her head. She observed the 2 other nin she had been partnered in to form team Shinzo, Aburame and Taka.


She didn't care much for her team mates. It was a reason why she was here in the first place. Team mates meant meat shields if they proved themselves more useful in that way. The idea of going to stomp out the Yugakure ninjas was a job that Asuna already enjoyed imagining. The cries in pain, the blood on her hands and the pleasing feeling that she had someone's life in her hands excited the twisted Kaguya. She smiled innocently as she ran her mind through the different people who she had the chance to see their lives fade before her and how they bled. The girl was more like a rabid, bloodthirsty demon than the calm and innocent kunoichi who stood in the room. Not doubting others were possibly as easily frenzied by the smell of blood, she only hoped inside she would get to battle alongside someone who would understand the pleasures she felt as she spilled blood of her enemies with a smile.
 
Kirato shifted slightly onto his left hip as he held one hand up with his finger pointing to the ceiling about to count off what was going through his mind.


"First off, lets get something straight you are not hot." He said in protest of her lies.


His middle finger ascended next "Second, I would not call it doubting her. And what is your name? sorry I only remember important people."


Followed by his ring finger "Third, don't call him fat that is my thing, you can come up with something else." As he said this he wondered why he did this... standing up for his puffy companion.


His pinkie moved up next "Forth, we are leaving survivors so they can tell weave a story that we falsely created. No doubt we will be in disguise." This was all just a guess to him although seemed highly likely.


His thumb was the last to join in "Fifth Kirino, You are like a 5 tops" Kirato was baffled by her claim and ignorance.


He then moved the hand that had once counted his five points and resting it on his hip while shaking his head slowly. Kirato had decided after the second time Kirino had gotten angry with him, to be the one person hated most in the group so that the rest could bond against him. It is a fast method to bring strangers together to unify them under a common disgust for another person in a group setting. Though no matter how quick the bond was it could not supplement for team training for this mission.


Kirato let out a low moan of displeasure as he eye'd the shadow clone of Kirino. She is going to be the idiot that tries to be the leader of the group isn't she. She is overly opinionated filled with anger... she is a walking estrogen bomb of destruction. If she thinks I'm going to listen to her loud mouth she has got another thing coming. Kirato moved his hand from the resting place on his hip and reached under the cloak to his belt moving it inside one of the packs he rifled through it till he found what he was looking for. His hand returned holding a ruby red lollipop. As he unwrapped it he quickly placed it in his mouth to give off a slight smile of delight as he embraced the sweet sweet taste of delicious cherry.
 
"Easy Kirato. We aren't here to start fights." Senryaka said, and edge in her voice, "And anyone who does," She continued. "Will have to answer to me." She gave a quick glare to the crowd of ninja, discouraging objections or arguments, and then continued.


"You must leave survivors because that is part of your mission. No other reason need be given, though in this case, Kirato has proven to be astute. You all will be disguised as you engage your targets. I will explain more about that once we reach the equipment part of the briefing."
 
So it was confidential after all. He figured it would be the case. Trust is everything he thought as he looked around the room to observe the people assigned to task C, which were Team Yuki and Team Shinzo.


Yogan was considerably quiet despite his demeanor that he showed while in the theater. He remembered that Yogan at quietly through out the whole meeting until the last bit. Ryuzoji noted the fact that he shouldn't compare him to the hot-headed Kunoichi, Kirino. Jinsoka stood their still, without any questions or comments as well. The quiet Asuna stood in the back with her straw hat on her head, with a slight tilt that made sure to cover her face. Based upon the team list, she seemed to be of the brutal Kaguya clan. He hadn't met one in person out of his travels, but the stories was enough. If she truly was of the famed Kaguya clan, then she should be quite the demon he thought. He also thought how he would fair in a fight against their animosity.


Yuki Aburame also sat in the back taking notes and talking to himself. His hood hid his face away, but every so often you could see a Kikaichu walk along the spot where the light shined on his face.


He finally finished with Hogo Fukujin. He didn't know anything about him at all. He hardly made any comments, so Ryuzoji wasn't able to make a proper character analysis. He wondered what he could do.

Ineffectivd said:
"Yeah, I and fatty here will just chill by the sakura trees and have tea, huh? C'mon, I didn't come here to watch girls put themselves in harm's way. This barrel of lard here," Ikari nudged Genzai's stomach, "probably wouldn't want that as well, right, tubby?"
Click to expand...
He looked over at Ikari, who responded to Sumire's comment about not needing neiter Ikari nor Kurage to complete her task. He wasn't keen on the idea of letting her do all the work, while they say idly by. Ryuzoji wondered if the comment he made to Kurage was to get him upset as well at Sumire's comment. It was a double edge so it might put Ikari and Kurage in an unfavorable relationship.

[QUOTE="Sweet Revenge]Asuna spoke up for the first time in the group. " Why leave survivors? To add a fear factor? I always thought that being unexpected and never revealed was always a better alternative. Sure, it'll look like a bunch of missing nin gathered up and ransacked them, yet I fail to see the advantage of leaving survivors."

[/QUOTE]
Asuna finally spoke out for the first time. Her words, voice, and tone reflected the rumors. I will need to study her thoroughly.

Humor said:
His middle finger ascended next "Second, I would not call it doubting her. And what is your name? sorry I only remember important people."
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He stared at Kirato who made the snarky comment towards him. Ryuzoji took it as a compliment however. He lived up to his name if no one knew of him. The White Ghost didn't have a face and he preferred it to stay that way. He appeared in the Bingo countless times with different faces and was known as deceased in each instance. He would always frame others for his crimes, then they would be executed as the White Ghost. After this repeated cycle, they stopped putting pictures in the slot of the white ghost and put a description of a white hair and yellow eyes. Because it didn't have a face, it didn't stand out to others, but he was more dangerous than a lot of people on the list. If only the foolish Uzamaki knew he thought.
 
Asuna rose her eyebrows under her hat and shrugged. "Answers my question. It'd be nice not to have too many surprises. I'd like to be able to trust you guys. " She simply commented. Some of us have rather unique abilities. I'm guessing we'll need to refrain using them as much as we can, not to give ourselves up. She thought to herself as she twisted her mouth to the side for a second. This was more of a case where she would need to wait to find out more, apparently. The Kaguya didn't enjoy the idea that they weren't being told the whole story at the breifing. She wasn't the kind to enjoy surprises and plan changes. And she hated it more when things didn't go according to plan.
 
Ineffectivd said:
"Yeah, I and fatty here will just chill by the sakura trees and have tea, huh? C'mon, I didn't come here to watch girls put themselves in harm's way. This barrel of lard here," Ikari nudged Genzai's stomach, "probably wouldn't want that as well, right, tubby?"
Click to expand...
"Girl?" Ikari's words would cause Sumire to squint her eyes, turning her head ever so slightly to shoot him a rather piercing gaze. There was a look of utter annoyance about her face. Her next words would be as harsh as they were thought provoking. "You know, Ikari, had we met under different circumstances,..that mindset right there,...would more than likely get you killed.." She'd flash the thief a pretty smile. Her voice would go on to take a flirtatious undertone.


"Did it ever cross your mind as to why I'm not in the bingo book, yet I'm standing right here along with the rest of you dangerous and bloodthirsty fellows?" She'd stop smiling now, relaxing her muscles to don a faint smirk instead. "What's more likely? Me being absolutely harmless...or...being very,...very good at what I do?"


The fact that no one here knew anything about Sumire would play to her advantage. She could do as much bluffing as she wanted, make herself seem as dangerous as she was tantalizing. Sumire would drop her flirtatious demeanor and proceed about the conversation in a more serious tone of voice. "I'm no girl, Ikari. You stand before a woman, and it would do you well to realize that. I also never once mentioned that I wanted either you or Kurage out of the picture completely. I merely offered to take the caravan out. Should it be guarded by armed and dangerous men like yourself, then I'll be more than happy to leave all of the tough guy stuff to you two. Choice is yours, of course" With that last bit, Sumire faded to black once more, satisfied.
 
Kirino's shadow clone chuckled at everyone's squabbles just before poofing into a small cloud of smoke. Not far away, the original body regained a large amount of chakra and the knowledge of the situation. "Hmm... I could totally fuck these guys over right now. They know it was a shadow clone, and they know that my original body was nowhere nearby." She tossed several ideas around in her head. One, she could split and sell what she knew to another village. It would net her a tidy sum, sure. And probably placement in their army for the war. Most would think that pretty cushy compared to a life of running. But to hell with being just another face in the crowd. That wasn't Kirino's style. "I guess I should head down there..."


And so, the woman jumped from her high perch on one of Amegakure's many buildings. Her landing was accompanied only by a near-silent tap of her sandals on the damp pavement, and then she was off like a shot to the meeting point. After a short ordeal with the men outside, who swore up and down they had already let her in, she re-did the entrance routine and was allowed inside. The span of time from jutsu dissipation to her re-arrival on the scene was not even five minutes, and once back Kirino smiled cheerfully.


"So. When do we get to the violence?"
 
Hogo watched curiously as the stage descended deeper and deeper into the earth and a quote came to mind. "In another moment down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she was to get out again." He chuckled to himself, what had he stepped onto? What lay at the end of this path? He didn't particularly know but he was curious to see the end of it all. "What will I do?" The rush of air picked up his clothes and his shamisen lifted an inch or so from the speed of their descent.


As the stage came to a halt in a somewhat ornate cavern passage, he smiled mirthlessly "Secrets upon secrets." He thought as the group met up with a kunoichi, her face was unfamiliar to him but the head band she wrapped around her waste was a bitter reminder, what was most intriguing was that it remained unmarred by a mark that denoted a rogue nin. Another smile as he regarded this strange ninja.


She issued their orders and revealed a board that bore a map detailed the teams and their members. A quick glance told him all he needed to know and his gaze wandered through the crowd to make out the one known as Ryuzoji Takadori and then on to the kunoichi Jinsoka Gorudo. He observed each in turn and wondered if either of them would assert dominance over the group and assume leadership. He chuckled again, that was an issue to be dealt with for later, it was at that moment time to study and observe.


Hogo returned his sight to the board and then looked at the roster for team Domo, his eyes lit upon the name 'Absolith' "Quite a unique name." He whispered suspiciously as he associated the name with the still hooded ninja in their midst. He noticed the disappearance of one of the Kunoichi and then saw her arrive barely five minutes later with a smug look on her face.


"So. When do we get to the violence?"


"I concur." He laughed.
 
Ikari bit his lip and turned away as Sumire jabbed him in the sides with her words and her tone. Bloody hell, this was awful. He was supposed to be on the flirting gig, not the receiving end of it. And she made a point. She didn't exactly say that both he and tubby were going to be removed entirely from the plan. Having lost the debate, Ikari snapped out another explosive tag, seemingly out of nowhere and made his way to Senryaka instead, dismissing his aloof state with his fanning as he did. When he spoke now, he made his point with complete seriousness.


"Senryaka-san, I need details on what the caravan is carrying. Is there anything good in it? Is there anything bad in it? Explosives, swords, knives, Ryo, pillows, tables, whatever. I need everything I can get." He flexed his fingers on his free hand. "I haven't as much as plucked a single Ryo from these dudes, yet. I need to work my kleptomania a bit."


No matter what her reply was, Ikari punched his fist into an open palm and his smile twisted to one not unlikely to be seen on a man intent on setting fire to orphanages. "Alright, let's hit 'em hard and fast. These guys won't even see it coming. If Sumire-san's ready, then Team Meiyo is almost all accounted for, Senryaka-san!"
 
Kurage would have taken a short bow before Sumire, allowing her to take the first steps towards their next destination. As they descended the structure, the Man-o-War admired all of the arrays of colors throughout, puckering his lips a tad and forming a small bit of drool on his lip.


"Mikoto's a bit flamboyant..."


-Kurage uttered. As the group met their destination, Kurage made a glance at what was revealed as their coordinator, Senryaka. Kurage had heard loose stories about the Yamanaka Clan as relationships with Konoha and Uzushio shinobi had been on a rise. He had not recalled the extent of their abilities, just that they had interesting power over command.


Kurage oddly enough was quiet for most of the introduction, not even commenting on the attractiveness of the new kunoichi before them. The slow decline to a darker area made him a tad sleepy, and while most may had not realized it Kurage's advantage in having the squinty eyes was that no one could tell when or if he was nodding off, which he did for a moment until Ikari nudged him in the stomach. Under the sound of his awakening gasps, he didn't hear Ikari's comment. He did however hear Sumire's response, along with the usual wasteful wanton act that Kirino seemed to exert. After everyone had made their chatters, including the mutterings of the disturbing Kaguya girl and the even more ominous Hogo, Kurage chimed in upon the return of the kunoichi.


"You try so hard..."


-Kurage mentioned as he glanced at Kirino.


"The more you seek to impress us, the more I question your stability."


He then looked over at Ikari and attempted to flick his forehead. Whether or not Ikari took it, Kurage would look to Kirato and roll into saying-


"Cherry-Bastard... try not to die at the hands of your mentally unstable team mate while I sit back and let my lady do her thing."


-he said as he waved a hand nonchalantly. He then turned to Senryaka and asked;


"What are the specifications for handling counter shinobi? Taking into consideration Mikoto has a smart adversary, there may be other nin to pop-along and make things difficult. And when we stop our caravan, are you leaving it up to us on how to handle wandering eyes or passerbys?"


Kurage looked around at the others before speaking again.


"And if Shinzo, Yuki or Domo fail, does Meiyo respond or return?"


Kurage cracked his neck a bit before blowing a kiss to Sumire.
 
"The mission will commence soon." Senryaka assured the Shinobi and she decided to move on to the next stage of the briefing after she answered the last two questions. First she turned to Ikari.


"We do not have anymore specifics on what weapons are being carried aside from the fact that they are weapons which may be vital to Konoha. You may steal some if you wish, but note that most will have to be destroyed by the end of the mission, so choose which weapons you steal wisely." She then turned her ice blue eyes towards Kurage.


"Mission objectives may be altered as the mission requires, so I can not say with certainty that Meiyo will be sticking strictly to the plan the entire time, but ideally all squads would accomplish their tasks and pull back, requiring no aid from any unassociated squad. But to answer your question, yes, it is possible that if one of the other squads proves to be insufficient, Meiyo could see some additional action. Now, if that makes up all the questions, I think we will move on to your equipment for this mission." She made a hand sign, and in response, the projector shut off, and she walked forward and pulled a trunk out from behind one of the couches. She placed it on the sleek green couch facing them, and opened it for them all to see.


Inside were several folded, black and white cloaks, each bearing a large envelope attached to the cloth. Senryaka pulled one of the cloaks out and took the envelope off. She opened it and withdrew two items, a plain white, full face mask, with no openings cut into its smooth pallid surface, and a red wax seal of some sort.


"These are the first two items, your Sosa Mask, and your release seal. Your Sosa mask will increase your vision slightly, and is entirely transparent from the inside. It will automatically match any prescription you might need, so you will not need to wear any eye wear under the mask. More importantly, it will allow you to communicate with us and the members of your squad instantaneously and clearly. Merely pour a small amount of chakra into the mask, and it will connect you to the others, and over time you may become skilled enough in its use to send person specific messages. The masks have a range of up to one kilometer, and become unable to communicate after too much distance has been reached. The mask is a scientific marvel, and it will do all these things as well as hide your identities, which will be crucial to the plan.


"The release seal is placed on the side of the neck, like this," The coordinator then took the paper off the back of the red seal, and placed it firmly against the side of her neck.


"These will activate in the event that you should be killed in action. The Seal measures your heart rate and chakra circulation, and upon death it will detect that you have died, and will begin to heat up. This is a warning for you, in case you are not dead and feel it heating up for whatever reason. Twenty seconds after heating up, it will incinerate the body it is attached to, leaving little to nothing behind, and certainly making identification of the corpse impossible. It is called a release seal because in your contract it states that you are responsible for the disposal of your body, should you be released from the contract. Thus if you die and you have this on, consider yourself released from the contract."


She then tore the seal off her neck, with did not look very difficult, and moved on, pulling out one of the cloaks. She unfolded it and held it out for the others to sea. It was loose and mostly white, clearly meant to be worn over important gear and other clothing. It had a sort of Ying Yang theme to it, the black lining and black designs on the mask contrasting against the white of the rest of the cloak. On The back, where the white and black met, was the Kanji symbol 和, meaning Harmony.


"These are a personal gift from Mikoto to you. These cloaks are water proof, shock resistant, fire resistant, and help to muffle your chakra signature, and will also help to hide your identity. They bare the symbol of Mikoto's operation, and he has expressed interest in seeing you wear them, at least for your more public missions. The choice on whether to wear them or not is up to you, and yes, we have all of your sizes...roughly. Come and take one of each."
 
Nice to know that, if I do die, no one will have to waste time on a decent burial...


Sumire nodded as Senryaka began to explain the release seal and its use. Much thought had gone into all of this. When the briefing was over, she'd step forward and retrieve not only her equipment, but the equipment of those belonging to her team. First, she'd bring Kurage his gear, a faint smile present on her face as he accepted it. Then, she'd move over to Ikari. As she handed him his equipment, she leaned over a bit and whispered something in his ear.


"I do apologize for scolding you, earlier. Also, do know that, although it went ignored at the time, I appreciated you standing up for me back in the theater, and I am looking forward to working with you..."


She'd place a light kiss on Ikari's cheek, her way of showing thanks and gratefulness for his chivalrous act. Sumire stepped back and proceeded to take her spot in the middle of her two teammates.


"Mission Coordinator, Senryaka..." Sumire looked to both Kurage and Ikari once more before continuing on, "...if that is all, then I do believe that Team Meiyo is ready to move out. I think you would agree that, the more time we have to arrive on site and prepare, the more likely it is for our mission to be carried out with the utmost success and grace" The kunoichi would bow her head in respect to the woman before her.
 
Kirino heard mention of a seal, and some warning about it screwing up and activating at the wrong time. That set her off. She clapped her hands together to get the coordinator's attention, then rested them behind her head with her fingers intertwined so that she could not make any aggressive handseals despite her temptation to do so. "No. That shit don't fly with me. Ain't no seal going on me that could go haywire and fry my ass. The mask thing? Cool. I can work with it. But to hell with that seal thing." she turned her body very slowly in a circle as she spoke, as if to say the words to everyone present. The flowing of her clothes with the rotation was almost elegant when compared to her temper.


"And all of you are stupid if you let them put that shit on you. I'd sooner turn myself in back in Kusagakure and take my chances with that than get a seal on me that could mess up randomly and barbeque my ass. I'm hot enough as it is. I don't seed something cooking me alive. The air around Kirino was starting to shimmer once more, and anyone paying attention earlier would remember this as a clear sign that she was agitated. "I'm more than willing to fry my OWN ass if things go that far down shit creek. I have many ways of doing so, thanks to my unique gift. But as for it happening on its own? No."


She knew what would happen if someone moved to force anything on her... and it would be unpleasant for anyone who came close. That much was assured.
 
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