Tales of Swordsman, Boneman, and Snakegirl 15-21

SESSION 15

[GM]
You are brought lavish meal, coming from who knows where. For having mostly withdrawn from the world, these tigers are pretty rich. If all of these tigers eat meat, someone has to hunt it. They are basically maintaining  a small standing army in these caves in the middle of nowhere.
Hopefully, this will make more sense once you are able to study the scrolls. Thus far, the tigers are dandy folk who fight hard and party elegantly.
Keisuke catches a few glances coming his way, but the tigers know to keep their business for the most part.
Observing this open area, the tiger society is pretty transparent. When you are able to talk to the King, anyone will be able to overhead the conversation if they really want to. Honestly, the insistence on copying human society is the truly out of place part.
Eventually, though, just as the cavern is starting to become boring, the King is happy to recieve you.

。。。

Upon a closer look, there is a slight curiosity about him: It's not just the fur shining gold and inky blackness of his stripes that absorbs the dim light: His forehead is very particular.
It is sometimes said that the Tiger is the king of animals, because his forehead bears the 王 kanji, standing for the same. In the case of the king, his forehead looks as if someone painted it with a brush.
Maybe they did.
The king gestures for you to sit beneath his throne, while laying a scroll in front of Keisuke, and unfurling it.
There is quill and ink nearby. Not all contracts have to be written in blood, but looking at that forehead, this ink might well be magical.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke sits where indicated, adopting a practiced formality as he does so.

[GM]
"It would be an insult to doubt your journey," the king starts, "but we cannot help but be curious."
"The contract is prepared, but how did you come to seek it?"

[Keisuke]
"Enemy forces have been targeting summoners from the major hidden villages, ours being no exception. We were tasked with establishing new contracts with members of the western pantheon. Once the contract is complete I ask that you listen to our findings regarding the reason and request your insight into these dire matters."

[GM]
The king nods slowly. "I see, I see."
His paw points out the part of the scroll that is to be signed.

[Keisuke]
Following the prompting Keisuke does his due dilligence and quickly scans the contract and prepareds to signs it.
"You do not need blood to establish the connection?"

[GM]
"It is elegant, but we consider blood to be profane. It has not always been that way, there was a time when we thought it sacred."
"It is not necessary to establish a contract, and not every contract needs to be a blood pack. To tell the truth, we don’t have the best experience with summoners."
"That’s why the trials take so long, and our contract, as you could read, has a few back doors."
This is true. In particular, the end of the scroll states that the contract is broken if you wilfully kill another summoner of Tigers.
There are other clauses, including killing one of the locals outside of a duel while inside the mountain, but the one about other summoners seems like something that could come up.
Although, the Butler did say that Tiger contractees were very sparse.

[Keisuke]
"I do have a question on this final clause," he points out "as we've experienced something that required conflict between to summoners with the same contract." He pauses momentarily, "The forces we find ourselves in conflict with have a way to turn summoners into their puppets, and I do not belive it is reversable. Can an exception be made for such circumstances?"

[Eiha]
Eiha, whom had been silent up to this point out of trying to show respect for the local traditions she'd no idea of, clears her throat slightly and interject. "Well to be precise, the summoner we had to stop was technically already dead and being reanimated through some sort of unknown technique, so I don't think it would count as 'killing'."

[GM]
The king considers it.
"To tell the truth, these adjustments to the contracts were mostly made due to a particular summoner who was trying to rig the system. Some of us still have to serve him, and hate him for it."
"Considering his contract is much older and does not have such an exception, so he could come into conflict with you, perhaps introducing an exception for him would be wise."
The tiger rolls the scroll back a bit, opening a bit of empty space. That must be for notes.
He dips the tip of one of his claws in the ink, and quickly scribes a few sentences, before wiping the finger in a handkerchief.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke checks them out.

[GM]
As advertised, they refer to an exception in case of breach of contract. There is no issue coming into conflict with or killing one Samida Jizou of Hidden Sand Village.
"Everyone else who has the contract by now will not be allowed to harm you either, so all should be well." the king concludes. "You may keep the scroll."

[Keisuke]
Keisuke nods and signs the scroll. Rolling it up and storing it properly after the ink has finished drying.

[GM]
"Now, then, I believe you had something more you intended to talk about. Though you are at the end of your journey, you seem restless."

。。。

A long-winded explanation later 。。。
"Materia and Pneuma? Those are some archaic terms. I don't believe even the dragon uses them anymore."
"Not that we speak often. Hmm." he scratches his presumably very sensitive, feline beard.
"I understand that change is coming over the world, and we should face it, even if we are not interested in being a part of it. Thanks to your visit, it seems things will start moving again in here."
"There are neighbors to talk to, if we are to attend this year. I do not believe any other summoner has asked to, yet."
"In regards to the ancestral pelts, however, that's out of question. They are not here exactly because their voices have grown grating. I do not need to hear how to govern by old men who think they know better!" he shakes his head. "Just by being reminded of them, I am getting a migraine again."
"I will be attending in person."

[Keisuke]
"Oh. I can see how that would get annoying, I suppose they're much more amieable when you're asking them a bunch of questions and are thus distracted. Well so long as and expert is present," he accepts the deciscion without objection "in regards to change since things have shifted enough now that even goats can be summoned in these lands are there likely to be any other newcomers in the future?"

[GM]
He considers his answer for a while, again. "It is hard to say."
"If it was simply the entire pantheon moving closer to the east, then we may start seeing boars in Rock Country, which is quite close, and a part of your Shinobi world. Similarly snakes would be closer to Mist than before. But it isn't so easy."
"Right now, roosters and hares are the furthest from you. If they turn up in River Country, or Wind, I woud see reason to be worried. But it is one thing to be summonable in a place, and entirely another to be native."
"For example, divine Primates, Monkeys, reside in Lightning Country, but they are not native. They are a moving group. If the leylines in there were affected, they may have to leave the country altogether."
"Explaining why and how would delve a little too deep into the secrets of Kuchiyose we are not comfortable revealing. Monkeys do have a place of residence, but it is nowhere near here. Their contract might be yet different from ours."

[Keisuke]
"I see. So once this task is done, any chance I could learn some things from here? Lore, techniques what have you?"
"And could you clairfy the whole hunting thing for me? Like how do you hunt someones aspirations or ambitions?"

[GM]
"We have things to share, of course. In particular in regards to hunting. I would imagine the younglings will take you out into the hills a few times, before it all sticks."
"After those basics, it depends on whoever agrees to bind themselves to you."
"A human might understand the hunt as a metaphor, but is it really, if it’s a way of existence? The hunt is a path of satisfying your needs."
"With hunger, with mating, with a cozy cave, those needs only begin."
"Unlike humans, predators are split between asura and deva - the starving tiger is weak but cunning, the fat tiger is slow but wise."
"It is the path of satiating your needs one by one, until you reach nirvana."

[Eiha]
With the more work-related matter settled and her earlier intervention ignored, Eiha sees no need to speak up again, preferring to listen instead. Knowledge is power, after all, and even if it weren't, this is an interesting philosophy anyway.

[GM]
"You showed aptitude for hunting in that fight. It remains to be seen whether it will hold in the spritiual realm. Whether you can hunt your hopes and dreams, and drain the blood of wisdom from knowledge’s neck."

[Keisuke]
"Huh. I didn't expect that learning to impersonate a monk would have some relation to matters involving a summon clan. So a part of it is also about rejecting falsehoods in order to understand what you should hunt I take it?"

[GM]
"Very good!" the king seems a little excited. "In the end, the journey is yours."
"But no hunter is a true loner."

[Keisuke]
"I look forward to learning how to be a proper hunter," he says bowing respectfully, mind aleady occupied with thoughts relating to what he should be pursuing and how he should be pursuing it in his life.

[GM]
The king nods, all is in order.
"Be ready to be summoned here, at some point, to establish your bonds properly. Though you seem to be going somewhere yet."
"When would be a good time?"

[Keisuke]
He gives it some thought. "Maybe a month from now, in case things don't go smoothly."

[GM]
"Very well. I will tell the ones responsible."
"Safe journey, and good hunt."
He stretches, apparently getting ready to fall asleep.
Obviously, though, cats only take naps, and this seems like a court where he has to watch his back.

。。。

Up above, the stairway leads to something that wasn't there before - instead of a hole with light coming up above, there is a stop in the stairs, with the light coming from the side.
It makes sense in a flash, that the rubble has been piled back on by somebody, and the corridor leads out of it.
It seemed unstable before, and falls onto itself with a crash, right as you come out, like an engineered demolition. The circles are empty.
Sun is rising, reminding you that you haven't slept in quite a while, but not without reason. Two contracts are down, one left to go.
If the Jounin's coordinates had been rather uncertain, leading you to where tigers technically were but not quite where you needed to come, the Lightning Country will be true hell. Not much water, the Raisenki canyon looks massive on the map, and what the Yellow Tiger King just said about the monkeys is concerning.
Since your mission has, strictly speaking, been to obtain a contract, any contract, there is the option of not bothering, and just returning home.

[GM]
Since it's the only S-ranked mission you might ever get, though, you might as well drive it for all it's worth. Worst case, either Keisuke or Eiha have to make it home now.

。。。

The climate has gotten colder, and trees more sparse. About midway through the journey, Eiha vanishes from her bedroll at night, waking up in a familiar cavern.
The girl who would weave cloth in here doing the trials is now playing a koto for the many snakes of the cave. The aforementioned colorful cloth seems to be found lying under you, completed, so that you would not be summoned onto the rocky floor.
She rolls up a scroll on her side, hanging it onto her obi. "It took me a while to finish, I am sorry." she says softly.

[Eiha]
While the experience was one she'd no prior experience with, and although it had been a while, Eiha had kept the notion in the back of her mind through the trip so far, and when the familiar, if darkened and damp, sight came up, she had a pretty good idea of what might have happened. This was only confirmed by the welcome committee and she gave a grin in response. "Ah, it's good timing, actually, we just got done with some other tasks.~"

[GM]
"Good. You can consider this a test of the connection. The Sage is not here at the moment, though she arranged something."
"The door behind me is not the only room in this cavern. Take this young one, it will lead you to the guest room." she raises her hand, a small, white snake hanging from it. "Someone in here wished to speak to you."
"Oh, and she left you a message also." she produces another tiny scroll.
"I am here all night, so you can leave her a message through me, later."

[Eiha]
At first, Eiha tilted her head slightly, somewhat surprised to hear this as she seemed to recall one such meeting being the purpose for the reverse summoning.. but she didn't let it show too much, expression still friendly. "Test successful then.~" She rose her arm as well to allow the Small One to come over, finding it quite cute. She quirked a brow next, going from one surprise to another. Given the only Shinobi she knew with a connection to the snake was a Him, then Her suggested one of the locals, possibly one she'd met prior. "Is that so? They I shouldn't keep them waiting too much~"

[GM]
The item and the being passed over, the snake girl returns to her instrument.
"We can test what you have learned before you leave."
"You might be ready to work the techniques already."

[Eiha]
Eiha holds the Smol in her left hand, leaving it free to wander if it so desires, while checking the letter with her right hand. "I see no reason not to, though one thing at a time."

[GM]
The message is not short, but not too long either.
[ These caverns are not the only residence of snakes in the world. I am visiting our other abodes to make sure none of them are involved in this mess.
The technique we witnessed, upon some research of the body and the seal, bears striking resemblance to the Edo Tensei - a most forbidden technique developed by Hashirama Senju, capable of enslaving a soul from the pure land. Due to the phrasing, it seems the culprit had access to at least an incomplete version. Revealing any more of the specifics to you could result in disaster, so I will leave the explaining to someone who can actually perform the technique.
Feel free to wander the caverns before leaving - perhaps someone will be bored enough to sign your scroll. ]
That last bit of the second paragraph is a little worrying.
The small snake crawls over and under you, eventually settling on your hand. It points its head in a certain direction.
"Guessstss... That way."

[Eiha]
Eiha quirked a brow at the message. She wasn't surprised by the mention of other residences, nor about the part about wandering, but she was quite skeptical at the notion that telling her these things could have 'disastrous consequences'. It wasn't like she was some sort of kid that would try to copy the technique... Now, as for the idea that something so vile and reprehensible was initially designed by the all-smiles, merry-go-lucky Senju... well it certainly put Konoha in perspective, and that made her grin take on a more predatory glint with amusement. "Alright theeen, let's see~" She let out playfully as she went in the indicated path.

[GM]
All those local slitherers are now getting out of your way, and so you can reach the sliding door you are led to without stepping onto anybody.
Beyond it is a sizeable cave with a lake, with some sort of a luminous fungus at the top. There are a few low tables, including an unfinished game of Shogi on one of the tables. It is, clearly, a guest room.
Currently, the only guest residing in here is Orochimaru. You caught the mascara-wearing Hokage conversing with a serpent that partially sticks out of the lake.
"I don’t believe he would." the man considers. Their conversation was not very loud, and the room is spacious, making it impossible for you to overhear anything from behind the door.
"Well, enough about him. He will be found eventually, with or without you."
As you enter, the snake takes notice, swallowing whatever sentence it was going to follow up with.
A bit of silence later, it is the one who speaks: "That is the new contract from Mist who she told us to have you meet."

[Eiha]
Eiha does take particular attention not to step on any wayward snakes, it's not because they're getting out of the way that she has to be careless. On her way there, she pays close attention to her surroundings, finding the somewhat exotic and novel environment rather intriguing and interesting. She had the same reaction in the Tigers' cave, but since this wasn't her gig, she kept it at the back of her mind at the time. As she takes in the guest room, though, she pauses for just a second, somewhat surprised to see her earlier assessment turned on its head. WELL THEN, HOW FURTHER INTRIGUING. Eiha politely awaits for the clearly private discussion to end before resuming her steps. "Well, well, what allows me the honor?~"

[GM]
"I know her." Orochimaru gestures. "You can go."
Though the snake does not like to oppose him, it does: "I have to stay here and make sure you don’t kill her. Or tell on you if you do, anyway."
"So be it. The honor, Eiha Sakurai, is due to my own dishonor. I am here, simply put, to make excuses for Konoha."
"If the information spreads that the terrorist’s technique is based on the Edo Tensei, it will put us all into very bad light. I felt it would be better if I instead cleared any misunderstandings away."
The snakes chortles. "By that he means it already looked like he killed Hashirama before, and now the despoiler is using a technique only Hashirama, and his confidants, could know."

[Eiha]
The raven-haired kunoichi's smile drops ever so slightly at the interjection, not that she would be able to fight a kage if that were the intent, but she quickly forces herself to keep her composure, only for the answer to be rather formal. As would be expected in the circumstances. "I see." She wipes away the playful smile, understanding this is a serious matter and not one to joke with. "I doubt information on a technique that is already highly secret..." So secret she'd never heard of it until now anyway "..would spread too much, but I see no reason not to provide assistance if I can."

[GM]
"The assistance you can provide is that you listen to what I have to say, and keep it in mind, if you are investigating this terrorist." He leisurely walks over to one of the tables, and sits down.
"For whatever fading loyalty to Konoha you may have left is worth, I will also have you know that I considered possible ways to assassinate Hashirama before, poison being a very readily available one. The reason why most of the Research Institute stands behind me at this moment is that they know I could not have done it."
"If I used to want to, those are yesterday’s worries."
"Now, Chakra Bane Venom is expensive, but obviously what I would have gone for. Senju are resistant, but not immune. Hashirama's manner of departure is far too extravagant."

[Eiha]
Eiha remains composed as she moves over to the table as well. None of what's been said so far seems out of the ordinary, nor outrageous in any capacity. She can readily believe it and this kind of rivalries and ambitions.... while not exactly common to the Leaf... is certainly far more common in the Mist. "Usually, extravagant deaths are when someone wants to make a point or leave a message of sorts." She allows a small bit of input. "It's the opposite of subtle."

[GM]
"Yes. You could call it a ritual murder. Like proof that you have managed to twist a vital part of the culture to your will. In case of leaf, what better subject to use than the patriarch of the Senju, the tree’s very trunk?"
"It bears resemblance to many incidents which are obviously not related to me. For example, in Hidden Stone, there is a clan which uses metallic Fuuinjutsu. They put iron wires beneath their skin, using them as records of ancestral memory, and what not. They are not numerous, but you could consider them a clan that well represents metal."
"Metal is not traditionally seen as an element in our world, but apparently it is in the west, where Lightning is not seen as such."
"In the finals of their Chuunin exams three years ago, their prodigal son has suddenly lost in the finals. It has been revealed that the wires constituing their seals have spontaneously rusted."
"They died in a manner similar to Hashirama weeks later, spewing black ichor. That seemed interesting to me."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "It would be the perfect target for someone who either has a grudge against the Leaf, or seeks to destabilize it yes." She first noted in agreement, falling quiet at the mention of the Metal-wielders of the Stone. Metal being an element in the West seemed like quite the glaring and clear cut clue to some sort of connexion with the events tied to the West that seemed increasingly common wherever they went, but how much could she afford to say about that? What was considered classified or wasn't? What did he already know? Probably a whole lot, given the resources available. "There is quite the obvious common factor, yes."

[GM]
"In order to perfectly clear the suspicion of me being the murderer, I believe there is something else I can do for you."
"It's kind of insulting that I would perform such botched Edo Tensei, and so I can show you the real thing. I bring back the soul of the summoner you fought, and he can tell you who killed him."
"It's not a very nice thing to do, bringing someone back from the Pure Land. But then I am not a very nice person."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "That would certainly be extremely useful, yes." She leaned forward slightly, unable to hide a little glimmer of curiosity and interest at the back of her eyes. "Still quite a lot more tame to bring them back for a few questions, than to use as a slave, though." She then noted, acting in a somewhat dismissive manner towards the taboo of the act. As she did, she pondered a bit further. Nothing was free of course, and she expected there to be a catch besides simply asking to help clear his name, so she considered offering something back as good will... but it was best not to be too hasty in business.

[GM]
"He will not like it, to say the least, but I doubt it’s as bad as the soul-binding tag."
The lake snake hums. "I don’t like it either. Not sure if I can agree to that being used in here."
"Did you not notice the coffin in the back?" Orochimaru asks. "It’s been prepared for us for a reason."
"Bring it over."
It sighs, leaning back, to a darkened corner of the room that seems to be filled with various junk. It does, indeed, have a coffin. That casket is seized by the serpent's jaws, but it needs to brace itself against the lake floor to actually move it over.

[GM]
"Now, if you'll excuse me." the Hokage stands up, making sure you only see his back. He opens the cakset, revealing a Jizou statue.
"Pretty heavy." the snake comments, while Orochimaru shuts the coffin again.
"Let's see." he starts making seals.
It seems as if he is doing that forever. This technique seems incredibly complex.

[Eiha]
Eiha glances over to the lake, curious to see if its fungi illuminated surface might catch a reflection or two.

[GM]
"Edo Tensei!"
While you learned roughly what seals go into it, some of which you have never even seen, likely belonging to the realm of Fuuinjutsu, the order is incomphrehensible.
The shut coffin stands up cartoonishly, revealing the shinobi's body. Inexplicably, he is wielding the spiked chain, despite you having passed it to Chisai just the other day.
"Just when I thought the pain would stop." he grunts.
"Don't worry, this is just a little seance." Orochimaru assures him. "If you would be so kind, just take a seat, and try to recall how you had died."
The body moves immediatelly against the owner's will, taking it as an order.
"People think I have killed you, so just tell this lady from your village the truth." Orochimaru explains. "I don't really care about the secret details of your particular mission or what have you, unless they are relevant to who killed you."

[Eiha]
Eiha is satisfied with what she found. It's not like she was hoping to be able to reproduce it with ulterior motive so much as general curiosity. For the time being, she remains quiet, and hopefully out of the way. This is far beyond her field of expertise.

[GM]
Sasori starts talking, then. "I have been killed by a man who turned into black sludge, covered my body, and suffocated me. I have not seen his face, because he was wearing a mask."
"That is to say, we were working as hunter-nin. I have never seen this guy before, but I can give you his physical description - I saw how he fought. It seemed weird someone that skilled would not be a right and proper Jounin."
"I believe that after I died, he returned to his disguise, and returned to the squad, so whatever danger there was to Mist with his presence might still be there."

[Eiha]
Once again, a small glimmer at the back of her eyes was noticeable. This was even more valuable information than she'd expected, and something she would need to get back to the village as soon as possible. The semi-recent deaths of the Spider summoners meant that the threat was very much so still lurking around, just as the Departed suspected, and to impersonate the Hunter-Nin required in-depth knowledge of its inner workings and protocols...

[GM]
Orochimaru strikes up a question: "So, it looked like Hydrofication, correct? If you have ever seen it."
Sasori responds: "It looked like what I thought Hydrofication looked like, at least. But now that you mention it, I guess the entire mission might tie into it."
"Our squad was in Lightning Country, looking for a girl named Hozuki Pako, who was seen there operating with a bunch of other rogues. We saw a bunch of Shinobi with a girl matching her description - short, stocky, missing front teeth, blue stripes on her face."
"We split up for the ambush, he suggested the two of us take a side, and then right before we went in, he turned to sludge."
"Chain didn't hurt him, Fire release seemed to at least scare him into hiding. I wondered if I should shout at the others, but didn't - mission first. Then I summoned a snake, but that was my mistake. I should have ran."
"That's about it. Any question, or can I sod off?"
"Interesting that fire would be effective against what is basically hydrofication." Orochimaru notes.

[Eiha]
Eiha: "Was there anything about his voice or his appearance that might have seemed out of place? Like he could have had ties or himself be a foreigner of some sort?"

[GM]
"He was a wide guy, and not very tall. I suppose you could say, bearish? His mask was a bear."
"He sounded like an old man."
"I think he smoked- had a hole in the fabric under his mask just so that he could."
"Anyway, he was assigned to our squad right at the start. We work in fours most of the time, and lost one person on the mission before. If he killed and replaced somebody, I could not tell you, I only know him as Bear."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "Fair enough then."

[GM]
"Hope you can get him for me, kid."
"But he seemed tough."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "It would be my pleasure~"

[GM]
"I believe that will be all." Orochimaru gives him the signal. "Thank you."
Sasori shudders. "Just, never ever do this again. Please."
Without waiting, the figure starts dissolving into dust, though it's not instant.

[Eiha]
Eiha leaned back as the technique was brought to an end, straightening up. There was something she wanted to bring up in response to a comment from earlier, but she awaited for this to be over first. "As far as I understand, the reason why Fire is effective against it is that although it outwardly look like Hydrofication, it's not water at all. All the signs around it tie to some sort of diseased Filth in liquid form. Like an oozing mass of toxin."

[GM]
"It's something to keep in mind if either of us encounter it." the snake-man agrees,reaching into the pile of dust on the chair. From within it, he retrieves the Jizou statue, and places it comfortably back into the coffin.
Once it is closed, the lake serpent moves in to take it back.
"We have one of the terrorists in question in prison, a rat summoner. I seem to remember you having been give that particular mission, actually." Orochimaru begins.
"There is a person she calls 'master', but does not know their name. This might be the same person we are talking about - Houzuki Andaro, of course."
"The motive seems a bit weak, but I look forward to fireworks that are about to happen in Mist now."
"The way that this man came to know any of Edo Tensei, however, is beyond me. There is a handful of people beside me who know it, and they are all trustworthy men and women of Hidden Leaf."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "I was yes, it seems the rodents are never quite far away from a lot of unpleasant events taking place lately. Interesting, isn't it? I seem to remember you saying they were almost extinct here until recently." She mirrored the reflection, though while still keeping a mostly polite demeanor.

[GM]
"It is the truth."
"Well, I will be taking my leave, to ask some very pointed questions in my village. I hope yours can be put in order as well."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "I am sure there will be quite a lot to take care of with the Hunter-Nin very shortly yes."

[GM]
"So long." he raises his palm in the most half-hearted farewell ever.
Then, he poofs.
"Weird guy, eh." the lake snake comments.

[Eiha]
"Weird can be interesting, though."

[GM]
"Before you ask, no, I won't let you summon me, pipsqueak."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "I wasn't asking."

[GM]
"Well, I'm already seeing somebody, you see. But this is the general place you come to rest and practice our arts while in here."
"The night's young, so get some connections while you're in here."
"Name's Migarashi, by the way. Think of me as the local groundskeeper, or gardener, or something."
As he said, so it is. The night's young, and the sage as well had recommended you to practice your art.

。。。

(You all gain 30XP, and 1 Downtime! Unless you beeline to mist, then no downtime)





SESSION 16

[GM]

。。。

Your target is a canyon in Lightning Country, allegedly inhabited by monkeys and men alike.
It's getting a little cold up here through the night, and trees are sparse. Perhaps another disguise may be necessary.
According to maps and hearsay, the locals make a living by mining into the canyon for magnetite, a strange, local ore, which sticks to metal.
Sounds like something that a ninja would have a field day with, but to get a proper magnet, it needs to be refined first. Therefore, something strong and ragged would make for a good disguise.
Many people in here are also quite tan.
As a final note about the region, it is on the outskirts of Lightning Country, and the locals are a bit less nationalist towards it than they would usually be - being more of an asset than vassals.
Considering what Eiha told you she heard in the Ryuji cave, you would like to locate the monkey's place of residence fast, despite their reputation of being elusive pranksters.
The canyon is large enough to be noted down on the map, having four different mining villages along its length, and a city further back on each side. In order to cross it, one must descend down, and only in the depths between the villages did the locals manage to lay out a bridge.
It also scretches deep below sea level, though it's separated from it by a very hefty and wide chunk of soil. But, the shore is relatively near by, should you need to flee.

[Bansen]
"Well, then... How shall we lure out the monkeys?"

[Eiha]
"If I know anything about monkeys - and I don't - it's that they love to watch or make others into the proverbial butt of a joke."

[Keisuke]
"Best I can think of is an area with lots of trees, fruits and easy access to people to prank."

[GM]
The area is a bit barren up towards the top, but more greenery starts to show down below.
It seems that the plants that grow in there don't need much sunlight anyway, with the canyon being covered by the native mist most of the time. The clouds seem to have no trouble descending down from the mountains.

[Eiha]
Eiha glances around at the fog and relaxes somewhat, though not lowering her guard in the least. "Well this might make things a lot easier for the time being."

[Bansen]
"Let's scout the area."

[GM]
It's quite a bit of ground to cover.
The two cities, are named Umiyama, to the south, and Yamayama, to the north. Unsurprisingly, Umiyama is a port, after a fashion.
Yamayama, then stands at the foot of Lightning Country's mountains, despite being about the least mountainous city in there. It might be a rare source of wood in this land, as the sparse trees start turning into proper woods around it, which then clear again as the elevation rises.
Umiyama also has a wide, stone-set road going from it to he east, which is its connection to the rest of the country. Presumably, it leads to other cities on the coast.
By the custom of naming mining villages, the four in here have mostly profane names. Going from west to east are Black Cush, Glory Hole, Yamakizu, and Emotional Support.
Yamakizu seems to be the only one fancying itself a real village, and not just a place for the people to rest. It's also the one with the bridge, covering both sides of the canyon.
While exploring the depths, which have some rabbit roads - or would they be goat roads? - that make the sides passable, Bansen encounters an odd thing.
Specifically, a female hanging by her neck from below, suspended by what looks like chain. She looks very dead, but appears to be wearing Shinobi clothes.
Thanks to the ability to walk on walls, you can take a proper look, at the risk of perhaps exposing yourself a little.

[Bansen]
Bansen first inspects his surroundings and the body from afar, and then approaches for a closer inspection.

[GM]
The chain is crude and cheap, perhaps of local making. It is haphazardly tied to the root of a bush up above, but it seems to be enough to hold the body.

[Eiha]
Eiha focuses on any distinctive markings first, to see if it was a foreign shinobi, possibly killed for accusations of spying or trespassing, or a local one that had been punished for some other transgression

[GM]
Dressed in fishnets, and no armor even under her armor, the girl with long and dark hair has a forehead protector on her body. It is fairly scratched, as if she never polished it, but you can somewhat make out the sign of Mist on it.
She looks to be 17 or so. There are no distinctive markings on her body, and also no signs of wounds aside of the neck.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke keeps watch careful to detect any suspicious movements.

[GM]
The surroundings appear to be clear. The body has been dead to about a day, from what Bansen can tell.

[Bansen]
"She's one of ours, so we need to take her off this. One of you should do it."

[Eiha]
"It would be for the best yes, though we should make sure it doesn't jeopardize our presence."

[Keisuke]
"You recognize them?"

[Bansen]
"No. But bodies contain our village's secrets."
"A particularly crafty foe could, for example, reverse engineer my capsules from my corpse."

[Eiha]
"Assuming one has that kind of secrets to begin with, but good point."

[Keisuke]
Keisuke raises an eyebrow at Eiha's comment before moving towards the corpse.

[Bansen]
"Careful. It's likely booby trapped."

[Keisuke]
"Hmm probably. There's a chance it could alert someone nearby once its removed too."

[Eiha]
"What? I know you do, but I don't. They wouldn't learn dick from me if they managed to kill me." She notes with an odd dismissiveness - almost callously so - at Keisuke's look before shifting her eyes to Bansen. "Yes, most likely, there could also be witnesses."

[Bansen]
"You, too, carry the village's secrets in yourself. Your diet, your training regiment, any supplements you've taken - it's all vital information that exposes our village."

[Keisuke]
Keisuke moves his thoughts from banter to the task at hand.
As Keisuke turns to comment on how he plans to go about getting the corpse down he notices Eiha's absence from her previous position, presumably already heading to fulfill that task. He gives out a mild huff at her so readily proving his point as he continues to scan the surroundings with his tremorsense.

[GM]
While the corpse is being retrieved, some branches rustle up above, on the other side of the canyon.
Unfortunately, crossing it would be pretty difficult, but you still see a spooked man hop up from the bushes, and start making his way up above. On his shoulder hangs a bow.
They are dressed plainly, in just some camo clothes and a cape.
They don't seem intent on attacking, and rather turn around to face you instead.
"JUST PASSING BY, SORRY!" the man shouts over the canyon. "I'M JUST HUNTING HERE!"
He rapidly climbs up, clearly using the tree walking technique, but trying not to make it too apparent.

[Eiha]
Hearing the suspiciously specific and unsubtle denial being shouted across the ridge as she proverbially moonwalks the gallows, Eiha's toughest challenge yet appears to be successfully managing to Not Laugh. Clever Cloud dog, cleeeeveeer....

[GM]
The corpse is retrieved, and the man leaves in a hurry.
With the body now up above, Bansen notices another strange thing: The woman is very thin, but not starved.
Her torso seems to indicate that her stomach and guts were completely empty at the time of hanging, but the body does not seem to be suffering from malnutrion.
Now, what to do with it?

[Keisuke]
Keisuke carefully calculates his odds of running the witness down but isn't confident he would be able to cross the gap.
"We've apparently grown overly lax. So what will we do with the corpse before Cloud ninja show up?"

[Bansen]
"We need to inspect it and then get rid of it."

[Keisuke]
"We should probably relocate wtih it then since we don't have ANBU's handy dandy body disposal scrolls."

[Bansen]
Bansen nods.

[Eiha]
"But do we have handy dandy hungry animal friends?"

[Keisuke]
"I won't for a while yet. You have one big enough to dispose of it?"

[Eiha]
"Possibly, but I don't know if he's hungry."

[Eiha]
"I suppose we'll just have to ask." The raven-haired kunoichi muses with a detached shrug before reaching for the large scroll on her back, with her right hand, flicking her tanto up a few centimeters from its scabbard with the left to harvest a few drops of blood to complete the technique. When the smoke clears, a large snake with dark purple, almost black scales and red eyes stand poised. "Hoy, Isamu. I'm sorry for bringing you out here for a trite reason but... would you happen to be hungry right now?"

The snake gives the best approximation its non-human face can give to a deadpan stare as it leans closer.. closer. "Maybe." He states as he looks straight at her, with unspoken implications that would likely spook a lesser Shinobi.

[Bansen]
"I'll perform a quick autopsy. Maybe it'll give us a clue."

[Keisuke]
Leaving the others to their work Keisuke finds a suitable vantage point to hide and act as lookout. Actively scanning for threats as well as using his extra sense.

[GM]
The autopsy reveals mostly what the initial impression did. The body is clean and empty.
Every single tooth in the girl's mouth is perfectly white. None of her organs seem to bear damage, parasites, or wear. Nothing is hidden inside her body besides liquids that the body itself produces.
While no secrets are hidden within, Bansen has never seen a body like this.

[Eiha]
Meanwhile, Isamu takes in the scene, gathering the circumstances from what he can observe.  His rubicon eyes stare blinklessly. "Hah, you people seem to walk in on little surprises a lot." Isamu's grave and deep voice notes with some obvious amusement, presumably having been told about the party's previous misadventures.

[Bansen]
"Well, this is quite unusual..."
"You'd only see something this clean in a textbook."
Bansen stops squatting over the body and takes a step back. "I've learned all I can for now. Eiha's pet can take it from here."

[Eiha]
Isamu leans closer, tongue slithering out. "It certainly smells off. Whoever touched this body before you, they used something aggressive on it. You might be too la-- Watch your tongue. It isn't because you're bigger than other humans that I couldn't swallow you up too."
Eiha: "Please -do- try not to antagonize my scaley friends literally within -2 minutes- of encountering them by calling them such diminutive things." She adds with notable exasperation, striking her palm against her forehead.

[Bansen]
"It could be some kind of technique... or perhaps it was being preserved somehow...? Ah, no point in guessing."

[Eiha]
Isamu's tongue sways and flickers in the air, no doubt sensing something more. "Definitely, I can already tell it would taste like crap. You might want to keep it around to analyze in your village or something. I can bringing it back to the caves for now, but I'm not sure how long it'll last after they stop whatever it is they did to it." The large snake's fangs pierce skin exploratively, and he nearly immediately recoils, spitting. "There's something weird inside the blood itself. I don't know what but it's gross."

[GM]
The blood looks perfectly normal, but you might be able to do a proper analysis - in a lab. There might be such equipment in one of the nearby cities.

[Bansen]
"A second opinion could be interesting. Keep it around if it's not to your taste. It doesn't really matter so long as it stays out of enemy hands."
Bansen draws some of the woman's blood into an empty capsule.

[Eiha]
Eiha: "To be fair, learning the exact methods the Cloud shinobi use to analyze bodies could help the village learn how to develop countermeasures for it, but that's beyond both our capabilities and the scope of our mission." She shifts her attention from Bansen to Isamu. "I'm sorry for the taste, do try to keep it around for as long as you can. Next time I call you I'm sure you'll get to have a good hunt."

"I better."

[Bansen]
"Hmph. I'm not looking forward to having to kowtow to animals like you guys."
"It's frustrating enough to use some tools without them taking audible offense at it."

[Keisuke]
"Good thing about Tigers is if they give you shit you give it back. I don't plan to deal with many of them if I don't have to."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "To be fair, I actually -like- snakes, so I'm trying to go out of my way to not be too much of a bitch."

[GM]
The body is taken, and you are free to explore some more - but nothing quite as exciting happens.
You do notice interesting things, though. In one area similar to the first, bits and pieces of metal ore are scattered here and there, with no sign of the cliff being breached. Someone must have spread it all over the place, into neat piles.
But there is no road that a cart can pass.
Upon a bit of investigation, a possible source is found, deeper to the bottom:  a gaping hole in the canyon, where an ore vein was popping out. Tree trunks are smashed and petered with pieces of it.
There must have been quite the explosion, but even that would not be able to carry the ore all the way to the other side. More than anything, it seems as if someone commanded the ore to move. For example, with a shinobi technique, to attack someone.
There is also a pool of water up here, in an unnatural place. A proper pool is on the bottom of the canyon, but there is no way that much water would accumulate here on its own. Grass can still be felt in the pool. Perhaps someone brought it up here with Ninjutsu as well.
As for Shinobi themselves, there are none that you could find, and nor are there monkeys.

[Bansen]
"I wonder what's the purpose of all this?"

[Eiha]
"Reminding us to be on guard by showing recent signs of hostile shinobi activity." Eiha noted a bit sarcastically. "As much as I also wouldn't mind rubbing my nose into the Lightning village's dirty secrets, we should be careful not to get caught up in something. Again."

[GM]
There are also the settlements. Presumably, the locals might know something. After all, anybody could have come across that body.

[Keisuke]
"Though from the sounds of it, getting caught up in stuff last time was significantly less troublesome than going about things normally."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "Hah, good point!."

[Keisuke]
"Either way, I'm fine letting Bansen plot our course, since that's seems to always be a part of the test anyway."

[GM]
Upon closer investiation, the hole does not stop, leading a bit further in.
More specifically, it connects to a dark cave behind it, which is a bit more orderly. perhaps it is a very far, or abandoned mineshaft.
Something rumbles, deep down. Something stirs.
A shinobi would conceal their presence. A human would bring light.
This has to be something else.

。。。






SESSION 17


[GM]
The abandoned shaft smells like air before a storm. Upon closer inspection, some of  the walls and floor bear black marks, as if someone spilled a bucket of charcoal all over the place.
Just about when you run out of light, careless movement can be heard from down below. There has to be a drop at some point.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke takes a moment to place his hand to the ground and concentrate on his tremorsense to see if he can get a better idea of what they're walking in to and if they'd be too vulnerable to proceed without light.
"It sounds potentially dangerous down there," he offers to the other two, "it's as if there's an endless avalanch rumbling down below. No rhyme or reason to the impacts as far as I can dicern. How do you want to proceed?"

[Bansen]
"Let's investigate." Says Bansen, setting a hand on his blade.

[Keisuke]
"You have a light? Or do you want me to guide you?"

[Bansen]
"Whatever is down there must be comfortable in the darkness. That would put us at a disadvantage without a light source."

[GM]
You obtain a makeshift torch outside, from some of the canyon's natural wood.
Someone will have to hold it, of course.

[Eiha]
Eiha finds herself ever so slightly frustrated... though to no fault of the others. There are ways for snakes to 'see' through total darkness, but that is not something that she's been able to replicate so far, far from it. More training will be required. For now though, she remains outwardly chipper. "That doesn't look like the kind of environment where I would expect monkeys. Are we tracking down moles or bats now?"

[GM]
Once you reenter the cave, the drop occurs not far from where you stopped your steps before. The cave in there expands to a slightly larger area with wooden supports, with your light illuminating details of an environment that must have had previously been a common living area. Walls are lined with boxes of supplies, and various tools, from ropes and chains to picks and drills lie around.
Now, the place is deserted, and for good reason. About half of it is covered in puddles of water, hopefully no deeper than your knees. Something has made holes in the floor here and there, and it's still around.
You can identify three distinct swirls of metallic material.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke shrugs his shoulders in response to Eiha's question. Sometimes monkey's live in caves right? Maybe? Eh, we'll figure it out.

[GM]
Two of them seem to be clashing into each other, and you can tell from a distance that one has Senbon sticking out of it, about halfway through. Its form isn't too rigid, but such an attack wasn't enough to distort it.
The third seems to be repelled by them, keeping to the room's walls. Less of the iron dust lines its body, but it produces some light of its own, from the sparks and small tendrils of electricity running back and forth through it.
From time to time, the third passes through some of the puddles, and the tendrils extend to the water - but it does not ground its energy at all. Seems messy.

[GM]
The bodies seem to consist mostly of the local ore, many of their particles being cubic, or square-shaped bits of metal. The swirl not covered in senbon additionally gleams with something else, but you would have to take a closer look.
There seems to be no end to the clashing and bouncing of the two masses, seemingly violating the conservation of energy.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke looks expectantly to Bansen and gestures in a "feel free to begin the investigation" sort of way.

[GM]
As far as size goes, they're a little taller than a human, but much wider, and presumably heavier.

[Eiha]
"I thought we dealt with the guy that was making those already, so either these are old, or there was someone else with Westerner Guy and his merry band of goats.."

[GM]
In one of the puddles, far from your side of the room, floats a body.

[Keisuke]
"Oh. Wonder if that's a normal corpse or if its similiar to the one Sakurai collected." he ponders.
"May as well investigate..." he eyes the orementals for a moment and looks for a route that would be relatively safe to secure or at least inspect the body.

[Eiha]
"...I'm not calling Isamu again for delivery services."

[GM]
It's unlikely that you will be intercepted if you shunshin back and forth, unless the masses can suddenly move much faster than they are now.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke decides to do just that.

[GM]
The two fighting things are too busy to notice you, but the third reacts to Keisuke's fast movement, like lightning strikes the man running in a storm.
The bolt catches him with a sizzle. At least the mass does not seem intent of going after you - that had to be its maximum range.
An arc of lightning actually whirls around the other two before striking. This might be a bit too complicated a setup for humans to defend against properly.

[Bansen]
Bansen approaches the body in stealth, avoiding detection from the strange things. He picks it up and heads on deeper down to find a safer spot to perform a more thorough inspection of the corpse.

[GM]
There is an awkard sense of familiarity on touch. You've handled the same body before.
The exact same body, in fact. When you distance yourself from the trio, the torchlight illuminates the face of the same girl you found hanged in the canyon.

[Bansen]
"Looks like she had a twin sister, eh?"

[GM]
The things don't pursue you down the shaft. Now you know that the next time you pass, you shouldn't move too harshly.

[Eiha]
"That's not how clones are usually supposed to work."

[GM]
Notably, her clothes are different, but the physique is the exact same, down to the white teeth.
This version's legs seem to have been perforated by metallic shrapnel in the shape of small, iron, spherical marbles. Maybe that's the glean you saw on the elemental not riddled with senbon.
Her skin is also a bit scorched. Pehaps she had been electrified, and the puddle washed away the usual symptoms.
The shaft seems to be empty, but it had to have been used by regular miners before. The corridor is lined with support arcs, and a lamp is hanging nearby, albeit extenguished.
Looking more closely, the body has no expensive objects on it again, from weapons to protective clothing. The sole exception is Mist's forehead protector, scratched in the exact same pattern.

[Bansen]
"The headband too?"

[Eiha]
"I don't know for you, but this is starting to smell of 'you weren't supposed to learn about that' to me."

[Bansen]
"I do wonder if it's really ours..."
Bansen performs another autopsy to make certain that the bodies are the same.

[Eiha]
"Only one way to know for sure, but that's a long way from here."

[GM]
Aside of the injuries, they are identical. It should be noted that the previous one had bones in her neck snapped, which was the apparent cause of death, by the chain.
This one seems to have died of infection, or bled out.

[Keisuke]
"So? You planning on tracking down the original? Help out a comrade in arms?" he asks disinterested.

[Bansen]
"Doesn't seem like any of our business, but it's still interesting."
"Let's get a move on."

[GM]
Thanks to Keisuke's tremorsense, navigation down here is easy. The shaft ties to a few others, allowing you to comfortably take a tour of the now abandoned mines, and take a better account of the situation.
The area can't be in this state for longer than a week or two. The food stocks here are sometimes moldy and rotten, but only with usual Tuesday kitchen rot, rather than terrible black moss, or something. The tools are in good shape, and clearly abandoned in a hurry.
After a while, you can hear the regular sound of picks smashing stone, many corridors over.

[GM]
You also pass an 'OFF LIMITS' sign, and the lamps lining the walls start being lit. If you are going to continue, you might run into the local workers.

[Eiha]
"Not as abandoned as it first looked, evidently."

[GM]
You have traveled quite a ways. It would not be weird if you were already near one of the villages.
In this case, it would be Black Cush.
From what Keisuke can tell, however, the room with the three elementals constituted the end of these mines. There is one corridor going from the room that you did not explore, but seeing it had no supports, it was presumably new.
In regards to leaving, you have the option of donning a disguise, or trying to sneak out unseen... or otherwise improvising, perhaps.

[Eiha]
Eiha finds herself somewhat surprised by this new development, having either failed to noticed, or to register, that the network of tunnels was linked to an extensive degree. She couldn't help but wonder what they were doing here at this point. At least they don't have to try to sneak a body all the way past that.

[GM]
You manage to slip out, unnoticed. The settlement outside is motionless, save for the overalls drying on laundry poles in the evening sun.
Now that you manage to get a close look at one of these settlements, though, you notice something at its gate - before a small rope bridge, which leads out into the ascent.
A printed-out poster is stuck here.
[SHINOBI HELP WANTED IN THE MINES: 8000 RYO]

That is not how you hire a Shinobi.
If you did not see with your own eyes that the mines indeed do need the help of shinobi brave enough to bother with this issue, it would certainly look like a honeypot of Cloud's, to catch rogues.
Its desperate caligraphy does not help the poster any.

[Bansen]
"8000 to deal with living rocks?"

[Keisuke]
"That shoot lightning."

[GM]
The poster further tells to report to mr. Kabano in Umiyama in case of interest.

[Eiha]
"I suppose you could call that a lead, though unfortunately it's a lead to a mission we haven't actually been given yet."
"Shame it's too late to ask Pointy Hat."

[GM]
Kabano is the security chief of mining operations, apparently, which would normally mean making sure people's heads don't get hit by rocks. He never expected the rocks to complicate his job so.

[Bansen]
"You think he knows something about the monkeys?"

[Eiha]
"You know of a way of asking him that won't be immediately suspicious?"

[Bansen]
"We can just blame them for his misfortunes."

[GM]

。。。

Umiyama is a city split between dirt and sterile cleanliness, smelling of iron and salt both. It boasts mineral water springs, which is a bit weird.
As it quickly turns out, the canyon is under purview of three different mining companies, of which Kabano's is the biggest. So is their office building.
The same poster can be seen on their front door, which is honestly just smelling of illegality. Perhaps it being saloon door, open to air, makes it less visible to the street, as patrons come and go.
Where most companies would have a lobby and a reception, this one has a bar, occuppied by thirsty miners. There is also a large board detailing the rooms up above, which are certainly sounding as what you would expect in an office.
The bartender seems to be what passes as a receptionist in here. He's engaged in conversation with several workers at the moment, but it's getting dark, and people are leaving one by one, to sleep off their fatigue.
Though a blood test may be possible in this city, this company certainly does not give blood tests, because all of its workers would fail.

[Keisuke]
"I'll keep watch outside I guess. I don't think a monk would work so great here."

[GM]
Entering as a pair of Cloud Shinobi, the patrons don't recognize you, but the bartender noticeably fidgets.
"Finally." he gives Eiha and Bansen an appraising glance. "Will you have something, or is it straight to business?"

[Bansen]
"Got no time to mess around, man. Take us to the boss."

[GM]
"That's me."
The man gestures at the few miners, to move on to tables instead, the time for jokes being over.
"I know what this looks like, but apparently this is the only way to get your attention in this corner of the country." he sighs.
"I tried to go the official route, but the cashier keeps saying it costs too much." he quickly rises his palms in defense.

[Eiha]
Eiha initially remains quiet as Bansen seems to have taken the lead, but she's not idle. She takes this opportunity to try to learn as much about the current situation of and with the Cloud, partially to better her guise.

[GM]
"Saruko, darling, Shun's in his office." the man shouts at his waitress. "Can you call him down here?"
The girl embarks up the stairs quickly.

[Bansen]
"Yeah, well, guess it's your lucky day, cause we're here to solve trouble,  not cause it, my man."

[GM]
"W-wow, really." he blinks. "Well, I had an idea for going about the contract. We can't pay you what you ask for the job up front, but maybe over a year. As long as you get it done, anyway."
"We're filed in your village, it just didn't go through, and now it's an emergency."

[Bansen]
"I know nothing about that. Lay it on me. We can keep it, how do you say, off the books if it sounds nice enough."

[GM]
"Alright. I don't know if you've asked around it or not, but some magical crap went down."
"For starters, there are monkeys living down in the canyon, who like stealing our firecrackers, and worse than firecrackers. It's been that way for two years or so, and it really wasn't too bad."
"A few weeks ago, though, there was a big boom, and since then, the ore we gathered started moving on its own. We're guessing the monkeys did it, they like messing with us."
"But we put a lot of money into that shaft, and now we're using dry veins because we can't expand. I called our pyrotechnician, since he knows about the monkeys."
As he says it, a young man comes down the stairs, with a case over his back. Since he did not have the case the last time, you can assume it contains his bow.
It is the man who spotted you messing with the body. As soon as he sees the two of you, he stares at you like a deer in the headlights.
It's hard to tell whether he actually recognizes you, though.
"Shun here's a retired ninja! He cooks us dinner sometimes." the tavern owner announces proudly.
"I asked him to resolve the situation with his ninja powers, but apparently that's illegal. Kind of a waste, if you ask me."
Shun straightens up a little. "I would be rusty, anyway. Hunting is a loophole, anyone can do it."
"You're dealing with a big mess here, I hope you guys are strong. It's... not the only concern I have, but we'll talk about that later."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "Technically, the part that's illegal is for accepting money outside of official mission payments. Just as hunting is a loophole, there's technically nothing illegal about doing a, eh, favor per say. Now, the trickier part is finding out something that would be of equally interesting value besides money, and it would be technically legal."

[GM]
Shun blinks.
"While we are still here, I also have to tell them about the other guys, Kaban. We'd look terrible if I didn't get it out of the way first."
"Basically, you're not the first to come take up the job. There's four other Shinobi trying to get it done, maybe they already did, but then I think they'd have already come back for their pay."
"Thing is one of them has a Hidden Stone protector, another girl is from Mist, and two don't have protectors at all. I said, listen Kaban, you can't hire these guys, they're criminals, but here we are."
"It'd be better business if you were sportsmanlike about it, but I don't know, man." Shun scratches his head, while the bartender laughs boldly.
"Then again if they were big bounties, I guess they would get it done."
"Haven't seen them for a few days."
"Well, I've seen one of them, a few times... but I guess we'll get through that on the way."
"And she seemed to have hunters on her ass, so maybe the problem will solve itself."

[Bansen]
"So you sent four other guys in there already, and they didn't come back? Sounds dangerous, man."

[Eiha]
"Sounds more like fun to me~"

[Bansen]
"Maybe we should talk about raising the pay, huh?"

[GM]
Kaban backs off a bit, keeping a cheerful grin. "Ten thousand is as far as we can go, I think. There's two of you, and five thousand seems like hell of a lot of money for an evening. But maybe what I pay the miners gives me a skewed sense of value! Bwahaha!"
Shun tries to note something: "I don't think they're dead or anything..."
"That girl especially."

[Bansen]
"Ten thousand... Okay. Okay?" Bansen looks at Eiha.

[Eiha]
Eiha shifted to the side with a thoughtful expression to make it look like she was considering it. In truth she had been trying to work around this little problem with loopholes and make them look a bit more benevolent in the process, so as to try to garner trust from the locals, but Bansen seem to have his own angle. They really should have tried to coordinate their stories and plans before walking in there.

[GM]
"Then it's settled!" Kaban does not wait long for the answer. "Shun, show them around!"
The archer bears the order with a pained expression.
As you leave, he draws closer, whispering.
"I think this is a lot more complicated mess than he's making it look. That girl has a fucked up Kekkei Genkai, and the Hidden Stone guy controls metal."
"And just as they show up, metal goes crazy. They aren't just any rogues."
"But, well, if you're up for the job, then that's that. If it happens again, you'll just have that much more work later."

[Bansen]
"Your boss thinks it's the monkeys that are doing it. Tell us about them some."

[Eiha]
"Yeah that seemed like an important bit."

"Ah, those damn monkeys." he pinches the bridge of his nose. "Those come in a lot of varieties."
"The only time I've actually used my skills is when those guys were after me. Self-defense is all fine, you know."
"Bastards kept throwing rocks at me from the top, and spooking my prey."
"Spooking it by throwing firecrackers. My firecrackers!"
"Who knows where they even got the fire to light them. Aren't monkeys not supposed to have fire?!"
"I think they live somewhere in the west... and the whole metal mess is in the westmost quarry."
"So it could be related. I guess. Maybe they don't want us to dig into their living room."
"I had to meet the leader of the monkeys, and ask him to make them stop harrasing me. Guy's named Enma, he's pretty reasonable."
"But finding him, though... Pure luck."
Hopefully, you can do better than that.

。。。





SESSION 18

[GM]
The bowman guides you through Umiyama, with the apparent intent of leading you to the cave. Of course, you were already in there.
"I hope you guys have something more explosive than normal." he warns you. "I'm not sure stabbing them with a kunai will work."

[Bansen]
"Listen, this isn't gonna work for me. We need to speak to the monkeys first. We'll ask 'em to stop this prank."

[GM]
"That's probably a good idea, but they sort of find you most of the time, and take a piss." Shun seems mad about something all of the sudden.
"They are generally sort of around the canyon, I guess. If you're loud and bright enough they'll see you."
"Not really a shinobi approach though, eh."

[Bansen]
"Alright brother. We'll try it for a few days and then come back and do it the hard way. You still gonna be at that bar?"

[GM]
"Yeah. Man, I was scared I'd have to follow you to the monkeys."
"Though I guess self-defense isn't illegal. I was supposed to go home now anyway, screw this. Thanks."
Shun is more than happy to leave you.

[Bansen]
Bansen drops the transformation jutsu when their guide leaves them behind. "So?" He asks his colleagues.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke ensures the guide is well and truly gone before joining the group.

[Eiha]
For her part, Eiha retains her guise. Partially because why not, tans look good. "On one hand, not getting to smash those things is a bit disappointing, but on the other hand, we've been at this mission for a while, so avoiding unnecessary distractions is the smarter thing to do."

[Bansen]
"That's not what I meant. How was my Cloud Nin impression?"

[Keisuke]
"Hmm, it seemed alright. No outstanding quirks to latch on too but not bland enough to be suspicous either."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "Both of us probably could have used more xenophobia though."

[Bansen]
"I've never dealt with Cloud Nins before."

[Keisuke]
Keisuke shrugs in regards to the xenophobia.

[Eiha]
Eiha: "They tend to be assholes to everyone not one of them, if I recall right."

[Keisuke]
"Probably better to leave it as an assumed trait than overplay your hand."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "I wonder if they look down on their civvies too though, or just outsider."

[Bansen]
"I wonder how they gained that kind of reputation. Killing foreign ninjas on sight is standard M.O. for most people that make it far in this business. So it must be a fierce hatred indeed."

[Keisuke]
"Probably because they're loud while doing it."
"So where too from here? Do we bother with the Rogue or leave that whole mess alone? What are the odds Cloud sends a real team down to investigate while we're here?"

[Bansen]
"We're here for the contract. Our next concern is finding the monkeys... or luring them out."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "That depends, if the real Cloud was willing to come here, the locals wouldn't need to desperately try hiring rogues, remember they said they already tried hiring what, 3 or 4 others before? So this must have been going on unresolved for a while."
Eiha: "It'll probably stay unresolved unless the Cloud gets a pretty good reason to start caring."

[GM]
Admittedly, this is the utter tail end of the country, and sometimes contested territory.

[Bansen]
"The monkeys must have a hideout somewhere. But we know that they come out to prank the locals now and again. We can set ourselves up for it."
"So which one of you wants to serve as bait?"

[Keisuke]
"Not it."
"Though shouldn't you be the bait? It'll give you the best chance to directly interact with them."

[Bansen]
"I don't want to interact with them. I'll track them down to their hideout."
"Chatting with tricksters sounds like a waste of time."

[Keisuke]
"Maybe. You could always trick the trickster though. It could make the rest of the process easier. That said I guess we could always just janken for who gets to be bait."

[Bansen]
"...Fine."

[GM]
It is time to decide it as men, and sharkwomen.
A few swings of hands, and Keisuke loses against the both of you.

[Keisuke]
"Tsk"

[Bansen]
"So it's decided."

[Eiha]
"I don't think monkeys like snakes anyway."

[Bansen]
"We need to get some scouting done. Find a good place for it."

[Eiha]
"That works for me."

[GM]

。。。

Presumably, the monkeys don't actually live quite next to the mining villages, so that limits your options a bit.
There is a nice part of the canyon with a relatively wide piece of flat terrain, that should not make potential combat too confusing, and your bait more visible. As you appreciate it, there is a loud bang in the distance, coming from the opposite direction of where humans live.
It sounded as if it was on the surface, rather than quarry explosives within the rock.

[Keisuke]
"Oh. What was that noise? We Shold go and Investigate it Immediately!" Keisuke says with patently fake concern and alarm.

[Bansen]
Bansen dashes off to investigate the explosion.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke follows.

[Eiha]
For her part, Eiha remains concealed, having no difficulty keeping up with the high speeds in a soundless manner.

[GM]
A pair of monkeys can be seen on a tree, staring into the depths. One of them has what seems to be a lighter, and some firecrackers.
When it's properly lit, the monkey performs a few seals with its hands, and then throws it down the canyon.
The bang that follows is unnaturally loud, and deafening. It might have been actually dangerous to the monkeys, if they weren't throwing it straight down.
The monkeys, on closer inspection, wear a pair of bronze helmes, decorated with what seems to be small palms. The firecracker-thrower's helmet covers his ears, while the palms on the other cover its eyes.
The apparently blind monkey hanging high up in the air shakes its head in appreciation.
"Make sure you don't run out." it advises the thrower, and proceeds to cough into a laugh that knocks it off its branch. Just as it seems to fall, it catches itself by its tail, and somehow pulls itself back up. This situation hanging over the canyon seems pretty normal to them.
The other responds, smelling its next bomb. "I'm learning how to make these. Crawling through the tunnels to get gunpowder is too much work, though."
It seems that the deaf monkey has no issues hearing, at least.

[Bansen]
Bansen remains in hiding, observing.

[GM]
Keisuke notices additional monkeys using his powers, as well as another detail.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke silently motions to the other two to get their attention.

[GM]
A more dimunitive monkey is in the bushes, feasting on some fruit, while a more venerable and serious hominid sits on a branch nearby, overlooking what might be his students.
The serious monkey has an odd thing with it, wrapped in cloth, which might be a weapon.

[Keisuke]
After poiting out the other monkeys he motions to the monkey with the hands over its ears and writes the kanji for "Sound" in the air.
Then taps his ear, then points to the ground with the same finger and then points to the same monkey.

[Eiha]
Eiha gives a soundless nod, her instinct having cued her in to a presence in that location as well.

[GM]
It need not be said that the dimunitive monkey's helmet covers its mouth. It is presently lifted up, to let it eat.
The old monkey's helmet is similar, except the palms are opened outwards.
"Can't believe we went through all that trouble to give him a bridie, and he hates her." the blind monkey says.

[Bansen]
Bansen remains where he is, keeping a hand on his sword. His other hand goes through the gestures of rock paper scissors, then he points forward towards the monkeys.

[GM]
"Not just that, they're related! And he's a cripple." the soundmaster responds.
The firecracker carefully loaded with chakra, it brings its lighter up, to throw it.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke gives Bansen a deadpan look for a moment then sighs and begins to move forward.

[GM]
"Isn't he gonna grow back? It's not like he's, you know..."
"It's been that way for a month, man, he's not coming back. We should sell him to a circus."
The flame appears, and lights the fuse, which sparkles in the deaf monkey's hands for just a second, before being summarily thrown down.
Another explosion echoes, and some boulders roll down on the other side of the canyon.
"See, that was a good one, but I have no idea what I did differently that time."
"Same seals, same juice... I think."
The old monkey speaks. "Perhaps the bombs are not made equal."
"There is fine powder and leftover powder, and you can't tell which is made of which before using them."
The deaf one bites its lip. "Might be."

[Keisuke]
"It's the shape of the insturment." Keisuke offers as he seems to appear like a ghost nearby.

[GM]
It smells the next bomb.
"Eh?" it staggers a bit on the branch, but keeps balance.
The old monkey unwraps its weapon slowly, revealing a long, metal tube.
"What do you mean?" it has the presence of mind to ask.

[Keisuke]
"A fire cracker is a tube. It doesn't release sound as a perfect sphere. Thus the jutsu is affected by the angle of the firecracker at the time of explosion. Where it hits the canyon causes the difference in the shockwave's release."

[GM]
"...Huh." it takes a while to process that, while the tiny monkey in the bushes springs up.
"See, Kikizaru, that's what it takes! You stop doing your job for one moment, and this is what you get!"
"You could have gotten blasted right down the cliff, you know that!?"
It seems pretty vocal. The old one stands up, and sighs, while the blind one leaves the branch, turning towards you slowly. It cracks its huge knuckles.

[Keisuke]
"So. Hi. Came here due to all the racket and over heard your discussion. Name's Keisuke nice to meet you."

[GM]
The metal pipe that the old one holds has a wooden handle at the end, which is disturbingly familiar to Bansen. An antique weapon for a more civilized age, god knows how the beast got its hands on it.
An alchemical reaction at the end of the pipe launches a metal projectile from it at unbelievable speed. In the age of shinobi, it is seen as too cumbersome, especially since it needs to be loaded before every shot - but if it goes off, it can be extremely deadly.
"I am Iwazaru, the warden of this canyon." the old monkey introduces itself.
"There have been a lot of visitors these days, but this is the first time I have seen you. Sneaking past Kikizaru and Iwazaru is fairly impressive."

[Keisuke]
"Thank you for the compliment. I'm curious as to the reason for other visitors but my purpose here is actually rather straight forward. My village would like to form a contract with your clan, we're willing to undergo the trials to earn the right. I was wondering if you could be pursuaded to help?"

[GM]
"It'd be nice if everyone could be so straightforward." the old man laughs. "But I can't just let you pass like that."
"What village is that, anyway?" he squints his eyes at your headband.

[Keisuke]
"Mist."

[GM]
"Splendid." He claps, quickly returning his hands to his weapons. Its tail already coils about it. "We have been hoping to contact you for a while."

[Keisuke]
Keisuke can only imagine things are about to take a sour turn.

[GM]
"There is one of your village resting at our abode, who had been hoping for a way to send a message back, at least, maybe you can talk to him."
"But, well, we are still obliged not to let you pass, you see." he presents himself very politely. "I would have you fight me, and my students today."
"A formality."

[Keisuke]
"Well that's undertandable. It's all business after all."

[GM]
The monkeys crouch to pounce on you, or do whatever else they have in mind.

[Bansen]
Bansen flings a chemical grenade as the monkeys ready themselves to fight. As it explodes into poisonous shrapnel and toxic mist, the large man verbally interjects. "Perhaps the esteemed elder should reconsider his terms."

[GM]
Surprisingly, the beast was quick enough, and your capsule only melted an old boulder. He seems to be impressed by the technique, though.

[Bansen]
"What?! When did you...?!"

[GM]
"You pick up a few tricks monkeying around for a lifetime!"

[Keisuke]
"When business becomes Monkey Business things seem to get a little wild." he jokes.

[GM]
The rifle is raised, as the elder takes aim. Apparently, it's already loaded.

[Eiha]
As the banter was given and the first few actions of the fight were taken, a small trickle of water snaked away from the pond, almost imperceptible, steadily gathering up a bit uphil. Anyone who saw it directly might think it's simply a bit of water trickling down from the hills above

[GM]
The soundmaster, meanwhile, throws several firecrackers towards Keisuke.

[GM]
They explode all around him, catching him in the cacophony. Seeing the opportunity, Kikizaru throws one at Keisuke directly, in hopes of a clean shot.

[Keisuke]
Failing to dodge the first explosion Keisuke decides to test their jutsu against one another directly and releases his own Sound release technique creating a rumbling shockwave that bursts forth from him, causing the firecrackers to explode and be snuffed out by its force before hitting the deaf monkey with a wave of nauseating force.
As the smoke clears Keisuke rolls his shoulders shrugging off the damage done to him.
"Not to sound ominous or anything but I don't have to worry about killing you if I hit you too hard right? You'll just go back home?"

[Eiha]
For her part, Eiha is not very concerned by that notion, from the top of the hill, and through the obscuring smokescreen of the earlier smoke grenade, a quatuor of small, thin beams of water with a strange, slightly-off color hammer down upon the elder monkey.... or at least it should have "What the fuck... Oh now you are so going to get it."

[GM]
The small monkey seems to panic. "Come on, guys, pull yourselves together! Kikizaru, you almost had him there!"
It does not help much.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke surveys the battlefield and shifts his normal way of thinking. The battle can be won and their goals met more exactly if he chooses not to rely on brute force. He centers himself and courses chakra through his system and locks on to the old monkey's movements using tremorsense. He won't be able to pull his tricks so easily from now on.

[GM]
Kikizaru collects himself from the ground, ready to throw the next, but it's clear to everyone that the result will be the same.
"Alright, cut it out!" the elder hops up on a tree. "These aren't chumps like that magnet man."
"I hope you all learned something today."
The students relax, distancing themselves from you. Mizaru and Iwazaru are clearly mad about not getting to fight, but Keisuke's display was too much to handle.

[Keisuke]
"That firecracker caught me off guard there. It was a bit lacking in the power department but if you can fine tune it to disrupt your opponent's senses more it will be a very potent weapon." The young man offers while shaking the tension out of his body.

[GM]
"Ehh... I feel sick." Mizaru complains. "Is that what it feels like when you get hit by it?"

[Bansen]
"Hm, that was a surprisingly straightforward trial..." Says Bansen, sheathing his sword.

[GM]
"For us, more than you." the old man admits humbly. "You seem to be what more regular shinobi forces look like."

[Keisuke]
"That's a bit more advanced but it's a similiar principle. The trick is to disrupt the opponent's equilibrium usually via their inner ear. If you do it right they become overwhelmed with Nausea and require a medic or some other extra aid to recover quickly."

[GM]
The young monkey nods, hopefully remembering that. Not that it knows what an inner ear is.

[Eiha]
When the fight is called, Eiha was already getting in stance with her tanto parallel to the ground and the half-seal of the Dragon in off-hand. She gives a bit of a scowl, seeming quite annoyed with the turn of events, but she sheathes back the tanto, reluctantly, and hops back down closer.

[Keisuke]
"What was that about a Magnet user by the way?"

[GM]
"A group of rogues is hanging in these parts." the elder explains. "Led by a man from hidden stone, with metal wires under his skin."
"They are trying to find something. I guess it will all make more sense when we introduce you to that man."
"You can follow us, as soon as I'm sure these two don't tumble down the rocks."

[Keisuke]
Keisuke nods.

[Bansen]
"I'll patch them up."

[GM]
Mizaru and Kikizaru make sure not to approach the edge too much.
"That would be nice of you."

[Eiha]
Eiha reaches into one of the many pockets on the sides of her vest and fetches a small pill. She is also still in disguise, because she can and tans are nice, but there's no mistaking that domineering aura beneath the unassuming exterior.

[Bansen]
Bansen approaches the two monkeys to inspect them and apply treatment.

[GM]
It's mostly finer tissue that took damage. It will heal in time, but you can certainly help it.

[Eiha]
The raven-haired kunoichi proceeds to flick the pill into her mouth with a thumb gesture like it was a mere piece of candy, then looks over to the squad medic. "You good on Chakra? I think that technique uses up a bit."

[Bansen]
Bansen corrects their inner ear with a precise and brief application of chakra, patching up some superficial damage while he's at it. "The rest will heal in a few days."

[Keisuke]
"Do you have any mysterious drugs that will inexplicably fill your body with science chakra?"

[Eiha]
"...Wait what?"

[Keisuke]
"What?"

[GM]
The young monkeys appear grateful, and view you with more humility now.

[Bansen]
"...To answer your question, I'm doing just fine. You guys are the rare breed that does not get hurt often, so my job has been quite breezy thus far."

[Eiha]
Eiha first gives a small nod of acknowledgment to Bansen's answer before refocusing on Keisuke. "If you meant me I only have very mundane drugs that replenish chakra, and very esoteric healing drugs. No esoteric chakra salves, sorry to disappoint." She adds in a tone and manner that makes it sound like a bit of a joke, but it isn't

[Keisuke]
"Well it hasn't been much of a combat mission either." He pauses to think for a moment "But all the same it's reasurring to have a someone there in case things do go bad."
"No no, I meant Bansen, I was just under the impression that he had various mystery concoctions squirlled away." He shrugs good naturedly.

[Eiha]
"Figured, but I felt like saying that anyway."

[Bansen]
"Such things were invented long before my time."

[Keisuke]
"So? How was I as bait?"

[Bansen]
"I was wondering if you'd put on a disguise before going in to trick them into doing something to you."
"What were you doing out here anyway, esteemed elder?"

[Keisuke]
"This one used sound jutsu, I was worried he would detect me if I used a jutsu and thus sprang the ambush too early." he says motioning to the deaf monkey.

[GM]
"I would have, except..." Mizaru does not finish the sentence.
The elder responds instead. "Right now, training, because nobody wants to hear this loud nonsense down in our abode."
"But normally, as I said, we keep humans from wandering the cliffs too much. We've been at it for a few years, ever since we moved here."
"In time, we will move elsewhere, but this place is not bad."
"As I said, I am the warden."
"As far as notable shinobi go, I think only the bowman is native. Too many others have found their way to our home recently, and we're making sure there aren't many more."
"It might be time to move."
"Well, as I said, we would have normally refused you, but since you are Mist, there is something we require of you, so follow me."
He gestures for everyone to move, taking a goat road down into the canyon's humid depths.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke follows

[Eiha]
"Well that's interestingly specific."

[GM]
The road leads through a bit of a wet, dark jungle, and into a cave, which eventually opens up in a valley. Considering the rocky and sandy surface outside of the canyon, this crack in the earth is pretty well hidden, only illuminated by an opening in the ceiling of the massive cave.
Water drips through the opening, creating a waterfall, though the entire thing can't amount to more than a brook. How it hasn't filled up the canyon is  mystery, perhaps it does end in the ocean somehow.
There might also be a cave on the surface, beyond the canyon, that might serve as an entrance, but to use it, one would have to cross the long, rocky wall.
The abodes here mostly consist of wood and leaves haphazardly creating roofs, though all they provide is more shade than there already is. Monkeys hang here and there lazily, taking notice of your entrance.
The elder seems to be taking you somewhere through the impromptu city. Eventually, he stops by the trunk of a large tree, on which leans a human man.
His hair is faint, his legs are gone, and he's wearing mist's flak vest, as well as, more disturbingly, a mask.
He seems to grow quite excited upon seeing you.
"You have some guests." the elder tells him. "You're lucky to have gotten what you asked for."
The man blinks at you, to make sure you are real. Unlike yours, his eyes got used to the darkness through the clearly long time he has spent here.
"Oh, look, it's a miracle."
"Alright, well, let's see. Sit down somewhere, I guess."
There are some stumps, but that's about it.

[Eiha]
As they approach the monkey village and the prospect of what's to come next becomes clearer, Eiha, somewhat reluctantly, decides to undo her disguise before entering, returning to her usual self.... mostly usual self, if those vertical pupils are any indication. "Well, well, what kind of ~fun~ things have been going on here I wonder?~"

[GM]
The man folds his hands, leaning against the tree.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke finds a place to sit and settles in.

[GM]
"So, if you're anywhere near decent people, you have no idea who I am. That's how I wanted it, I guess."
"I'm Hozuki Kenji, and this is gonna be a long one."

。。。





SESSION 19

[GM]
He sighs, looking into the treetops, wondering how to start his story.
"This is technically all classified, since it concerns the ANBU, but I'm kind of going bonkers over here. And if you're hanging around this place, you should probably know."
"You're my first chance at getting out of this place, so I can't have you walking out and getting killed, you know? And if any of you get back to Mist without me, the Mizukage ought to learn this regardless."
"So, I was on a mission."
"Weird from the start. They assigned me to three other dudes I haven't worked with before. One of them I'm pretty sure was Hao Kochi, the Mizukage's son, so yeah."
"There was a guy with a snake mask I've seen around, and a guy with a bear mask I've never seen before. How he got there is beyond me."
"There was something strangely familiar about that guy. You know? A deja vu."
"Our mission was to come here, and kill or bring back Houzuki Pako, my sweet cousin. It's kind of fucked up they would put me up to it, but then I guess I'm about the only person around that understands her techniques."
He gives a little pause, and considers how to continue.

[Eiha]
As she listens to the story, the raven-haired kunoichi who'd been hanging back for the most part on the way to the village, seems to pay rather close attention, a little something glistening in the back of her eyes. "With a bear mask huh? I wouldn't be surprised if you weren't the only one who'd see him for the first time..." She noted with an outwardly detached tone, but a mischievous undertone as she rubbed her chin lightly. "As for the mission itself, it only makes sense, you'd be the best equipped to handle it." And it's hardly the most messed up thing the village has done, far, far from it, but she keeps that part to herself... for now anyway.

[GM]
"I knew that asshole was still around!" Hozuki Kenji seethes.

[Eiha]
Eiha assumes he was backstabbed by the bear-masked one as well, but does not state so out loud to avoid confirmation bias, expecting the continuation eagerly.

[GM]
"Well, anyway, in short, the plan was to get them in a pincer, and we went in pairs. Bear and Snake on one site, me and Frog - that's who I think Kochi was - on the next."
"We confirmed the presence of five Shinobi in here, including Pako. They seemed to be led by a rogue that Frog identified as Ono of Hidden Stone. Dangerous guy. We had to make sure we had no metal on us for the attack, since he's able to manipulate metal around him."
"Here's how it went: we were going all sneakily, with the whole pincer plan, and then all of sudden there was an explosion on the other side of the forest, where the other two were supposed to be."
"Marks got alarmed. They picked our side to run to, and one of them must have been a sensor. Fight broke out, the nasty kind."
"Turned out Ono knew Lightning Release, so using water got a bit dangerous. We took out one of the five, but I don't think he was a big deal."
"Since the plan was a bust, we legged it to reunite with the others. Frog got away, I am pretty sure, and I had the bright idea to jump into a brook. Problem is..."
"Well, you know how Hydrofication works? I am not going to explain it, but Pako's off-brand version works a little differently."
"Normally, simplifying it a lot, your chakra remains in the water, holding it together, and that's how you can pull yourself back even if you get splashed about."
"Pako just kinda doesn't stay in the water, and her chakra can walk out of it. Then she walks into a different body of water in that form, and woosh, creates a whole new body for herself out of reeds and stuff."
"The reason why that's important is that she can attack in that form. So while I was flowing into the pool, she used that, and 'cut me'."
"The brook led here. Well, not directly here, but this is the lowest point around, so that's where I ended up. When I reformed myself, my legs were missing, and they won't come back no matter how hard I try."
"Some big gorilla came around and took a look at me, and said that people with missing bodyparts get phantom pain because their chakra system is still there, but mine is just missing. But apparently this can be fixed."
"Though they're like three people alive that can do it. Not high chances, eh."
"Well, enough about me. I thought about it for a month now, and I think I've got the truth of it."
He scratches his stubbled chin, about to segue into something entirely different.
"You know how Hozuki are not really a proper clan anymore? That's because of Pako."
"She was stillborn, but not really. A few minutes after she was born the fetus just kinda died."
"Then it crawled over to the wet nurse's bucket and reformed itself an hour later, but it was too late by then."
" 'Cause her dad was in a difficult position, politically, and thought that since there was no medical reason why she would be stillborn, someone in the clan killed her so he wouldn't have an heir. Not likely he'd get another at that point."
"So he kinda went on a rampage on everybody in the family he was suspicious of, with no idea that nothing really happened. I don't know what went down after that, but ANBU picked me up from the house, and brought me up as a regular genin, outside of the clan."
"Pako was a genin too, she went rogue a lot later. There's a few others, but we're not supposed to talk to each other. That's the story."
He exhales, pressing his fingers against each other. "Man, I need a smoke. If you've got a job to do here, bring me some, will you?"
"What are you here for anyway? I know the monkeys just fucked with me and didn't actually send anyone over to the Mist."

[Keisuke]
Keisuke shrugs "Sure if I find any. "

[GM]
"Well, I think the truth of it is that it was a set-up, and somebody tried to kill off people who were problematic. I can see it with the Mizukage's son. Don't know what Snake guy's deal was."
"It seemed Pako got a memo beforehand, so I'd be someone who knows too much about her. Andaro is still around, so my idea is that he set it up."
"Maybe he even was the bear? He'd know enough about Mist to pull it off."

[Eiha]
"That would explain why your target 'conveniently' had a guy who not only had lightning techniques but also the ability to fuck with metal."
"That's kind of a bit too much to be a coincidence."

[GM]
"Hmm. Kochi used a lot of metallic projectiles like pebbles on water, and here he was down to water release and fists."
"But I've heard that the monkeys found some of Pako's bodies hanging around. Pretty fresh, too."
"I think they went downstream and are looking for me here. But haven't found the place yet."

[Keisuke]
"Yeah they're scattered about the place"
"We ran into some metal constructs while moving about too."

[GM]
"That magnet guy created one during the fight. Tons of metallic scrap lying about the place."

[Eiha]
"I had one.. 'stored away' for analysis but that simplifies things..."

[GM]
"I think he used a Fuuinjutsu tag to center it around."

[Eiha]
"And that explains our -other- interrogation."
"Weird that his creatures would fight one another though..."

[GM]
"He seemed to control it while it was around him, if that's worth anything. It was like a living jutsu sort of thing."

[Keisuke]
"Sounds a little like those western elementals."

[Eiha]
"But apparently it isn't."

[Keisuke]
"As for what we're doing here,  we're trying our luck at getting a contract. "

[GM]
"Really? Not exactly our turf."
"Though it's not like anyone will chase you out on the sea either."

[Eiha]
"It's a long story, and I'm sure your testimony might come in handy about... things that weren't related to our mission, but shoved themselves into our faces along the way either way and indicate to a really big mess."

[Keisuke]
Keisuke turns to the other two "And it looks like we've stumbled on more trouble than it seemed.  Truth be told I kind of want to get involved. Though before that..." he looks expectantly at Bansen.

[Bansen]
"Yes, let's finish what we came here for."

[Eiha]
"Not like we're equipped to be dealing with people who can defeat Anbus, trivialize metalic weapons, counter water release and create a bunch of giant golems anyway."

[GM]
"Hey, it was just two of us, and we had our cover blown." Kenji says to his defense.

[Eiha]
"I'm not making a jab at you, I'm saying the matchup is about as disadvantageous as it possibly could get."

[Keisuke]
"I actually feel quite confident that we counter their abilities to a significant degree." He offers.

[GM]
"Depending on how good you are. They weren't that tough." Kenji shrugs. "Ono is scrawny, Pako is scrawny, the other two are Chuunin at best."

[Bansen]
"Your target was only Hozuki Pako?"

[GM]
"Yeah. We tried to see if she would split off and go shopping or something in town or something, but of course she wouldn't. It being a set-up and all."
"If Andaro himself is around though, I really wouldn't recommend going for it."

[Bansen]
"So how do you kill someone with a jutsu like hers?"

[GM]
Your four guides went their separate ways, but some other monkeys are listening in now.
"From what I understand, a sealing tag would work."
"As far as distance she can cross while 'dead', and time she can spent in that form... I don't know. Maybe unlimited."
"It's not all-powerful though. I think she is blind while she's out of her body, so if you dodge the initial attack, she won't hit you anymore."
"Unless she returns to it, or makes a new one. And she moves about as fast in it as normally. I imagine someone who can see Chakra moving about would be a hard counter."

[Eiha]
"The 'bear' being unaccounted for is a major issue yeah. If I'm putting this together correctly then his partner was assassinated by him."

[GM]
"I wouldn't know."
"Chakra absorbing too. A Chakra-eating sword like one of ours would probably fuck her up."
"An area attack of chakra, like an elemental technique, will probably at least hamper her."

[Eiha]
"I have it on -very- reliable source that a mysterious Anbu wearing a bear mask killed a partner of his in circumstances that are so very similar to this that there's not much doubt left."

[GM]
"Hmm." he blinks a few times. "World's small, eh."

[Eiha]
"At first I thought this was a different incident, but now it's hard not to see the similarities."

[Keisuke]
"So you wouldn't happen to have any sealing tags that would work on her would you?"

[GM]
"We left our bags at a tavern in Yamayama. There is a prison sealing tag in there."
"But it's been a month. Who knows what happened to it."
"Well, there are other things in there that could help you. I don't think Kochi could have carried it all, even if he took his stuff. And as far as he knows, I'm alive, even though I didn't return to Mist."
"Got my protector and mask, though, so I'm good."

[GM]
"Well, if you are up to recovering it, I can tell you exactly where it is, but it seems to me you're still not working on quite enough information."
"Exactly where it last was anyway."

[Bansen]
"This plan is still half-baked. You'll have to do better than that if you expect us to pick up your slack."

[GM]
"Yeah, I said what I mainly had to say. Now you just need to not die. Getting me back to Mist would be nice, but presumably someone else will pick me up as long as you bring the message."
"Not like I'm any use in this state."
He fidgets as he slid from the tree, and hit a rock with his butt. It takes some effort to pull himself back up to the roots, which the monkeys find hilarious.

[Eiha]
"Personally I'm more interested in what's the deal with Bearman and who's the accomplice he uses to get away with all the shit he's done."

[GM]
"Gotta be someone pretty high up."

[Eiha]
"I don't think he should be able to just insert himself into Anbu teams like it's nothing without help from the inside."
"And that means we can't make any open moves against him without knowing who's on his side."

[GM]
"It pains me to say it, but my guess would be someone from a clan. Like maybe a Hoshigaki, or a Kaguya, who has it in for the Mizukage, and wants the clan system back."

[Eiha]
"That's a theory if nothing else."

[GM]
"You have to understand, people were pissed. What happened to us sucks, but it shouldn't have screwed other clans over."

[Keisuke]
"Let's just hope it isn't old eight eyes o guess."

[GM]
"It was kind of used as a stepping stone to saying that clans shouldn't have political power if they're this unstable - oh, damn."

[Keisuke]
"Believe me I know."

[Eiha]
"You think the Mizukage would have-- oh wow."

[GM]
"Well, he kind of minds his own business. But he definitely has it in for Lord Feng, as far as I remember."
"Feng has been good to me, so I don't mind him being in charge myself. Went to ANBU on my own, you know?"
"I guess you'll see when you get to mist. Someone had to get that mission cleared."

[Keisuke]
"And Andaro killed some of his clansmen. "
"Though that doesn't mean much I guess."

[GM]
"That's normal in this world of ours..." he makes a gesture again, of pulling on the cigarette he doesn't have yet.
"Well, I'll be here."

[Keisuke]
Keisuke looks at the motion,  "Just wondering have you asked any of the monkeys if they would lend you a cigarette?"

[GM]
"Well -" he stops for a bit. "No, actually."
"Figured that food is as good as it gets."
"I've been wasting time teaching some of them water release, since I felt grateful. Even though they keep clowning on me. Idea was that at some point they'd get me out."
"They say that I first need to climb trees on my hands like a monkey, which is a joke of course."

[Keisuke]
"They thought it was real important we meet you. So maybe it worked out. "

[GM]
"Hmm." he takes that in account. "Nice."
"Have you talked to Enma yet? It's up to him whether I even get to leave, I think."
"Big guy... with a Konoha headband."
"Not judgemental though."

[Eiha]
"Should probably get to that event-- well that's unusual."

[GM]
"I think he's the personal buddy of someone high up in there. Just business."

[Keisuke]
"Not yet. So how does that work? Is he a konoha shinobi offically?
"Ah"

[GM]
"Who knows. He also isn't technically the boss of this place, there are older monkeys that decide how things happen."
"But he gets them done, from what I understand."
"Point is it's not a conflict of interest. Until he gets summoned and then it is, but here I think we are fine."

[Eiha]
"Oh, that explains it. I thought it was weird one of the Chiefs would show any sort of official affiliation."

[GM]
"Yeah. He's the main cook, but doesn't own the restaurant."

[Keisuke]
"So got a plan on how to make a good impression yet?" He asks Bansen.

[Bansen]
"More or less. But it's not as though I can predict what goes through the mind of a monkey."

[Keisuke]
"Well introducing ourselves to someone important sounds like a good first step."

[GM]
One of the monkeys hollars from up above. "You want to see Enma already?"
"You're getting whipped! He'll make you do monkey things!"
"This guy has been learning to climb trees on his palms for a months, and he's not even draggin his legs behind him and he can't do it!"
Kenji shouts back: "The branches move, asshole!"
"It's a wonder my spine is still straight!"

[Keisuke]
"Oh my, that certainly does sound arduous." he says mirthfully looking at Bansen askance. "A poisonous memory game, a item repo service and now circus tricks."

[Bansen]
Bansen looks resigned to his fate.
"Let's get it over with."

[GM]
"I bet he has something else planned for him." another monkey wonders.
"The worst thing!" the next shouts.
They move up a bit through the treetops. "Well, follow us to Enma!"

[Keisuke]
Keisuke does so.

[GM]

。。。

As you pass through the shadowy jungle, you are greeted by intensifying sounds of battle. Wood on wood, and wood on flesh.
The bunny road leads to a clearing, where you see a peculiar sight. A long staff whirling through a crowd of monkeys, as they try to subdue it with their weight. From time to time, the staff hits one of the monkeys, and throws them into the bushes or beneath the trees, before the monkey stands up again, and rejoins the fray.
As you approach, you're taken notice of, and the staff spins wildly, throwing off all the combatants at once, before landing on one of its ends, standing straight.
Then it spins in a wild pattern, unfolding into a gigantic monkey with dark skin, white hair, and monumental sideburns. Unlike the other monkeys and summons, who don't mind being naked, Enma is dressed in proper shinobi clothes, if a bit extravagant for the fur.
"I guess that's enough fun for today." he tells the monkeys he was sparring with. "Better luck next time!"
"Leave us alone, now. This is an audience with the King, you know! We have to have some standards."
The monkeys he fought, as well as your guides, scurry away.

[Bansen]
Bansen approaches and gets down on one knee, his cloak covering his massive body. "My name is Bansen. I would like to seal a contract with your kind."

[GM]
"Ah."
He grabs a bit of fur on his fur, looking a bit confused. "I thought this was about that other guy from Mist we were feeding roots. But, well, that works."
Enma leans forward a bit rudely, measuring you from head to toe.
"You seem to be a swordsman."

[Bansen]
"I think that title does me injustice. I may use a sword, but my true talents lie in chemistry."

[GM]
"Ah. An alchemist then, or a doctor. That's perfect."
"I know just the thing to test you." he scratches his chin.
"Bring me the Kusanagi. It's a sword, if you don't know. That guy from Mist knows stuff about swords, so he might be able to help you out."
"If you get desperate, I can give you some hints, but I'd rather not."
"It's kind of one of those things that look impossible if you look at them logically, but they're pretty easy when you take it like a monkey. You should be able to figure it out."

[Bansen]
Bansen betrays no confusion. "Very well. Consider it done."

[GM]
"Alright."
"Aside of that, anything else? We have kind of a situation on our hands, I don't know if you're aware of it."

[Bansen]
"A situation, King Enma?"

[GM]
"Mhm. I have reasons to believe that someone is raising an army out there. Guards have been running into more and more of those metallic golems."

[Keisuke]
As much as he would like to see what the monkeys know Keisuke refrains from interrupting.

[GM]
"...And there have been some rats skulking around. Damn those bastards."
"We're either abandoning this place pretty soon, or trying to parley as soon as they appear. If we have to give them the Hozuki for them to leave us alone, that's no problem, but being found in here would be bad."
"Either way, the shafts are crawling with those metallic things. Big lumps of metal crawling around on their own. I don't think there's anything valuable in those cities or villages around here, so they're preparing to confront us with force."
"We're kind of mobilizing too, but we have plenty of kids over here. I guess you don't want to get caught in the middle of that, but since you're from Mist, I figured you could resolve it by taking him out of here."
"That might put the army on your toes though, if you're not ninja-like enough about it."

[Bansen]
"It would be in our interest as well to keep him out of their hands."

[GM]
"You're free to take him any time, but from what I understand you're just passing around."
"So you're here for something else, is that right?"

[Bansen]
"I'm here for the contract. That's all."

[GM]
"Well, that's good. Better get it done before there are no monkeys here to contract with, then."
"I'll tell the village guards to open the passage for you, if you leave. Though you might not need to."
"Ah, look at me, I've said to much. Onto your task, chop chop." Enma waves his hand.

[Bansen]
Bansen briefly bows his head in acknowledgement and stands up.
He then walks back to the crippled Hunter Nin, scratching his chin with a confused look on his face.

[GM]
"So? How'd it go?" Kenji asks.

[Bansen]
"He agreed to form a contract..."

[Eiha]
"All Princess of the Moon."

[Bansen]
"...In exchange for the Kusanagi."

[GM]
The ANBU barks in laughter. "Ha!"

[Keisuke]
"Just get him a scythe or something that cuts grass." He offers helpfully.

[GM]
"He'd probably like that, but I might be able to help you with what that actually means." the man's eyes light up.

[Bansen]
"I'm sure he'd appreciate the joke, but I doubt that would guarantee us a contract."

[GM]
"Hmm. So, there are a few swords called Kusanagi that are real swords. They're really magical, they can tear through damn near anything. That's because of what the sword represents."
"It's said that the Sword of Kusanagi was first found in the tail of a nine-headed serpent by the god Susano'o. I don't know how much truth there is to that, but we can kind of follow the symbolism."
"It's said to be able to control the wind, and it's explicitly called the 'snake sword'. Some descriptions call it a jian with the taijitu - yin and yang - on the handle."
"Know any people who are said to hold the Kusanagi?"
" 'cause there's something they have in common."

[Eiha]
"Possibly..."
"But go on."

[GM]
"All those people are medical nins, or scientists. They didn't go on a journey to take the sword out of a stone or something. One day they just sort of had it. They found it within themselves."
"Snake is the animal of medicine. The Kusanagi simply represents mastery over life and death. It's said to be found on the brink of death."

[Eiha]
"That's certainly convenient."

[GM]
"Sounds easy, right."
"Too bad about the having to die part."

[Eiha]
Not quite die

[GM]
"Of course, I don't know how to actually get it. It's supposed to be something really hard that you get from reading a lot of scrolls."

[Bansen]
"You said you know a holder, Eiha? Who is it?"

[Eiha]
The kunoichi gives a somewhat wry, crooked smirk at that, answering with a bit of a riddle, perhaps fittingly to the local monkey businesses. "Know anyone that fits the description of a connection to snakes and lots of scholarly knowledge?"

[Bansen]
Bansen remains unperturbed. "No."

[Eiha]
Eiha shook her head with a faux scolding look. "Well that's not good, you should at least keep up to date with the Kages of our neighboring nations..."

[GM]
"That guy, eh." Kenji seems to know what this is about.

[Bansen]
"Kage? In other words, it's not someone we can just take it from..."

[Eiha]
"Nooope~"

[GM]
"I don't think you have to go that far up but yeah. Most of those people are going to be stuck in research institutes and stuff, not going out into the field at all."
"The ones that can physically manifest it, anyway."
"That's a guess. it's a thing of legend."

[Eiha]
"Though it'd be entertaining to see someone try, if nothing else~" She adds, bringing one hand to her lips.

[Keisuke]
"It would certainly be fun trying! Maybe we could get lucky and maim him."

[Bansen]
"It's not like we have the time for that, anyway... The monkeys will be leaving this place soon."

[Eiha]
Eiha glances to the side, taking a mental note of the repeat indications to the Kaguya having potentially a death wish, and commits it to memory before setting her gaze back upon Bansen. "Pretty much yeah, this is certainly some kind of trick. Like I said earlier, I'm convinced he's not actually expecting us to get one."
"He did say that it would seem impossible if we tried to reason it logically after all."

[Keisuke]
"Unless we intervene or move mr Anbu here. Though if the rats are involved he may only be a secondary thing."

[GM]
Kenji thinks about it a bit more. "The controlling the wind part of the sword reminds me of something else: Senjutsu."
"You certainly don't have the time to learn THAT."

[Keisuke]
"Though... it seems odd an entire troupe of ninja monkeys would have to run due to magnet guys minions. "

[GM]
"But I ran into Senjutsu before, which is why it sounds familiar."

[Eiha]
"My guess would be that the 'having to find it within oneself' is one of our best bet but what do I know about monkeys right."

[GM]
"Sounds like a meditation kind of thing, yeah."

[Keisuke]
"Sage techniques? What do you sit in a cave pondering your navel for a decade then get super powers?"

[Eiha]
"He also said we might not even need to leave this place, wasn't it?"
"So there's definitely a trick."

[GM]
"What we are looking at right now is some sort of meditation... close to death. Sounds very zen."
"It might just be that there is something already in this cavern that would make it easier."

[Keisuke]
"Medically induced coma?"

[GM]
"Senjutsu is also meditation like that. You sort of absorb chakra from your surroundings, become one with the world."
"It's useless in combat, until you can do it well enough that it becomes ridiculous, and your Chakra supply infinite. Again, that is a thing of legend. If it was that easy, everyone would do it."
"These animals around us teach it, though. They're a part of the natural world themselves, after all."
"I'm just throwing 'em at wall to see what sticks. It's up to you to experiment."

[Eiha]
"That last part -does- sound like a very monkey thing." She smirks slightly once more. "Maybe they've been rubbing off on you."

[GM]
"That's what I was afraid of."
He laughs, uncomfortable.

[Bansen]
"Near-death experiences can be quite enlightening... but I've never heard of birthing a sword from one until now."

[GM]
"You could have someone bring you back from clinical death, but I'm guessing you're the medic and that's the point. You're supposed to bring yourself back."
"I'd reconsider it. Sounds dangerous diving headfirst into that."

[Bansen]
"I could make something to induce such a state in myself - hopefully temporarily - but it still feels like we're missing something."

[Eiha]
"I'd wager the thing we're missing is what's supposed to be learned from the experience in the first place."

[Keisuke]
"We could always ask the locals for clues on what is in the cavern that could help."

[Eiha]
"If all it took was a near-death experience, we'd have a ot more of those things running around."

[GM]
"At least one monkey here is a doctor, the white gorilla. Maybe that one can help you."

[Eiha]
"I know another myself, though that's probably missing the point if you get the answer from them."

[GM]
*Kenji lights up again, like the first time: "One thing I just remembered: The sake-cutting sword, Sakegari, or the Totsuka sword is said to be something like the Kusanagi."
"It's a sword with a wine gourd for a sheath that induces delirium on those it slashes. Don't know if it's real or just a metaphor or whatever, but it kinda clues you in, I guess."

[Eiha]
"Well it certainly sounds like a bundle of fun."

[GM]
"It's a sword of Genjutsu. Not many of those, which is why I remember it."
"But the scrolls are adamant it's a variant of the Kusanagi. If that's any help."

[Bansen]
"Let's speak to the monkey doctor. Maybe we'll find more clues."

[Keisuke]
"Sounds good to me. "

[GM]
No more guides are around. You're going to have to tumble around the valley on your own, asking for directions.
But, at least now you know roughly what you're getting yourself into.

[GM]

。。。

After a bit of wandering, you get a somewhat better account of the cavern's layout. The monkeys are first scared about the description of the doctor, but they eventually figure out you're looking for whom they call the Exorcist.
He can be found in a clearing of his own, apparently living in a provisionally constructed wooden shack. There are a few tables under the roof, but what does not seem to belong here is the large grindstone in front of it, and the rack filled with weapons.
When you approach, he seems to be clearing up a piece of wood with a sharp knife, as if to create a haft.
"Hello." It says, looking at you, and then back at its work.

[Bansen]
"Greetings."
"I'm looking for the Kusanagi."

[GM]
The gorilla shakes, looking at its rack, and then you. "Well, you won't find it here."
"My teacher could mainfest it in his time, I don't know how to do it."
"He would pop his head out in the middle of combat and than a hand with the sword would burst out of his neck and freak people out."
"And then at the end he could just reattach his head. That's way beyond me."
"...and I don't want to end like he did."

[Bansen]
"What happened to him?"

[GM]
The gorilla stops sharpening its spear. "Well..."

[Eiha]
"Let me guess, one time he tried to do the thing and then his head wouldn't just reattach?"

[GM]
"One time he did it... and a huge centipede burst out of his neck." the doctor shudders again. "It pains me just to remember it."
"Then he went wild, and never returned for his head, and would not return among us, even after we tried to summon him back."
"We hunted him for months, and put him down."

[Eiha]
"Close, but even more flamboyant." She notes, doing her level best to try to hide her amusement and lack of empathy at the otherwise gruesome description.
"That... doesn't sound like a thing that should have happened though, given what we know of the legend and all."

[GM]
"When that demonic centipede took over him, he appeared immortal. We had to incenerate every bit of its body so it would stop moving and not come back."
"I have it on good authority that his soul had departed into the Pure Land. It's just that... his body had been seized by something impure."
"I would imagine the technique has to do with spirit and material. His spirit would temporarily depart, resting in the sword. This time, it had just been displaced by another spirit."

[Eiha]
"That would make sense, but there's something off with this."

[GM]
"Do not seek the Kusanagi. It's not worth it. Life is beautiful. Look around at all the pretty leaves." he points with the haft.

[Eiha]
"From what we heard, the Kusanagi appeared from -near-death- experiences, but what you describe is completely different. It sounds like he was repeatedly killing himself and cheating his own death."

[GM]
"That's how I understand it." the ape called 'Exorcist' nods.
"There may be more than one path to reach it. Who knows."

[Bansen]
"I suppose it's down to trial and error then."
"I'll create a drug that forces me into a near death state and ponder on what we've learned so far."

[GM]
"I can watch over you if you insist."
"At least I can slay the demon that may wake up in your place." the ape nods to itself.

[Keisuke]
"Before that, is there anything around that might help?"

[Bansen]
Bansen doesn't seem phased. He also doesn't seem convinced. "I'd appreciate it if you could help me with concocting the drug. I'm not familiar with the locale."

[GM]
"There is a good waterfall to meditate under."
"You guys are from Mist, yes? It is a leyline of strong Water chakra. Should be healthy for you."
Putting down the haft, it stands up.
"I heard a bit about your arrival, but have to say, this is a surprise. Why the Kusanagi?"

[Bansen]
"Such are the demands of King Enma."

[GM]
"Ah."
"Old bastard wants another of those damn things on his beck and call. Well, we shall see if he gets it."

。。。




SESSION 20

[GM]
The Exorcist helps Bansen search the jungle for herbs. He seems surprisingly familiar with exactly what sort you are looking for, as if he has prepared such tinctures before.
You are eventually led to a lake under the local waterfal, through which Kenji also had to have fallen in. The Exorcist does not recommend actually meditating UNDER the waterfal, even though there are rocks that would enable such a thing. Bansen's body temperature will go low already.
The water's whisper tunes out all other noise, and could make it easy for one to fall asleep. Like ringing in one's ears, though, it also provides something to hold onto, and not lose one's consciousness while their body becomes relaxed.
Such techniques were taught to you during the basics of Chakra control. Starting from the toe tips, becoming aware of each part of one's body, every muscle therein, so that there remains no tension. Everyone has their ticks, and they have to go away before you can free yourself of the crude matter. The state of being aware of one's body simultaneously brings about a nebulous feeling of being in touch with the world.
That is, of course, an illusion, but it makes it easier to focus on more abstract things.
This time, Bansen manages to slip into this state almost quicker than he intended, as if the whole body is giving itself up to him. The Exorcist has recommended establishing something physical on your body to hold onto - a lasting sensation. A scar, a hairband, a pendant on one's chest can all become a meditation focus. If Bansen ever feels like his spirit is departing completely, he can try to focus on this sensation.
While you on the outside see the medic's breathing grow soft, something flashes in front of his eyes. A light separate from the cave's opening. The swirl of images that indicate a REM phase closing in. This moment is crucial.
...But it is just light. A whole lot of light. It's getting closer.

。。。

Something comes into your view. A branch of a dead tree. It comes closer. and you realize you are considerably far from the ground.
The light from up above seems to be drawing you in. Perhaps you should hold onto it - the ground is far below you.
The pull that seems to defy gravity is weak, but unrelenting.
You seem to be amidst an ashen landscape of death, trees, and rocks. The sky is blindingly bright, but it's not all there is - in the far distance are mountains, and walls of what appears a city, as well as a sprawling hole in the ground.
You seem to be able to look around fine, though you aren't actually moving anything. You're past bodily restrictions now.

[Bansen]
Bansen attempts to set himself towards the hole, seeking to take a glimpse inside.

[GM]
It seems quite close to the canyon in the real world, save for the fanciness of mist and greenery that the real world provides.
A few lights are hanging around here and there down in its depths, but you have to move quite the distance to take a proper look. Outside of those, and dead tree trunks, this world is pretty barren.
One of the lights is ascending, moveing up towards the burning sky slowly.
You're able to propel yourself around quite easily, actually. This must be what they call a lucid dream.
You're not breathing anything as far as you can tell. This may be what the surface of the moon looks like, if the sky was white.
As you approach the edge of the canyon, you cannot help but notice that your presence illuminates it.
All is eerily quiet.

[Bansen]
Bansen approaches the ascending light.

[GM]
It is truly tiny.
Down, deep below, a shape can be seen on the grey rocks. It appears to be a body of something.
A small animal. A cat, or a fox, or a rabbit. Something is sticking out of it, looking like an arrow.
Then, a presence can be felt within the canyon's walls. One part of the rock is lit up, as if a fire is burning inside.
It disappears in a few moments, but it was odd.
You don't seem to be able to touch the ascending light, even while moving into it.
Then, you notice something completely alien to this world: A human figure, standing at the canyon's walls.
They seem to be watching you, hand on their chin.
In front of them is a few dead branches. If this is a vision of the real world reinterpreted, they might really be standing behind a bush.
Then they sit down, in lotus position. Their form shimmers, and they leave behind a translucent body also, with the real body moving towards you as if levitating.
They appear to be by far the realest thing in here, and it's the body you have performed an autopsy on few hours ago.
"You're acting weird." the girl speaks. "Are you alright?"
"I don't think you're an animal... maybe a monkey."
"Can you hear me? Understand me?"

[Bansen]
"My name is Bansen."

[GM]
"Oh, shit. Are you a miner?"
"I think maybe you got really drunk, or fell of a cliff. Either way, we shouldn't be talking like this. You have a big problem."
"Any idea what happened to you before you appeared here?"

[Bansen]
"What is this place?"

[GM]
"We need to find your body."
The girl looks seriously concerned.

[Bansen]
"No... I seek something else."

[GM]
"It doesn't really have a name. Spirit world, maybe? Astral plane? I heard a few, but none sound right."
"Listen, the light up above leads into the Pure Land. You're dying."
"I'm the most interesting thing in hundreds of miles." she bumps her chest. "What are you looking for?"

[Bansen]
"The Kusanagi."

[GM]
"The... Kusanagi. That's a sword, isn't it." she scratches her face. "Unless you're just looking for your scythe or something."
"If it's a really important sword, it might have a presence in here. But this is pretty weird."
She thinks about it, floating in the air.
"I might be able to help you find it, but first you have to tell me who the hell you are."

[Bansen]
"I've already told you. I'm Bansen. A shinobi of the Hidden Mist."

[GM]
"Aaah. Fuck." she scratches her face now. "That complicates things a lot."
"Though I guess it explains why you're looking for a famous sword. But it's also a problem for me."
"Hmm. Maybe Kenji had it? I guess he wouldn't bring it." she thinks to herself.
"This place is really big, so do you have any leads? We might have a similar goal around here."

[Bansen]
"And who're you?"

[GM]
This person seems to have trouble not vocalizing her thoughts.
"I'm Hozuki Pako. Straight outta the bingo book."
"I can't hurt you in here, don't worry. This is all bizarre, though"
"...Well, the sooner you retrieve that sword, the sooner you leave to let me do my own job. Though I'm compromised now, so that's a problem."

[Bansen]
"What could you be possibly up to in the land of the dead, I wonder?"

[GM]
"I'm looking for monkeys."
"This is just how my Sensor nature manifests itself. I am on the lookout for big blobs of soul that monkeys are."
"Hey, maybe those guys took your sword."

[Bansen]
"They couldn't have taken it because I never had it in the first place."
"The Kusanagi can only be found within oneself. Or so they say. I brought myself here in an attempt to figure out its mystery."
"If you don't know anything, then I'm afraid there's not much else for us to discuss."

[GM]
"There is a yourself in this place, you know, your body should be lying around."
"Man, this is the most exciting thing that has happened in two weeks, so I'm not letting you get away that easily."
She levitates around you, still in thought.
"You need to get back to it anyway, if you don't want to die."

[Bansen]
"You think it could be within my body? I hadn't considered that." Bansen seems more inclined to continue the conversation now. "Very well then. Where do you think my body could be? Should I expect to find it where I last left it?"

[GM]
"Probably, yeah. If you can find that place."
"When people fall into delirium tremens or undergo physical death, their souls kind of leap out of their body, so chances are we are pretty far from where you did this to yourself."
"What you are right now is the real you, sort of split between life and death. You should have a similar pull to your body that you have to the light. That's how people normally survive visiting this place."
"It will get stronger when you get closer. Splitting what you are now from your body is not easy, the two are supposed to exist at once. There's an attraction."
"What I mean is you might not have time to search your own pockets."
Since you had overseen the canyon before, you can tell you're a few kilometers away from the entrance into the jungle cavity.
Worryingly, you have risen pretty far up above the canyon while talking. You might be on a clock here.

[Bansen]
"Then we'd better hurry."

[GM]
"Alright. I'll try to hold you down if you start ascending suddenly. That might mean issues with your body."
"Attraction gets weaker when the sensation is weaker. Dead bodies have no sensation, so..."

。。。

In the real world, Bansen's body rises like a board, the blanket falling off him.
It proceeds to start sleepwalking into the forest, now apparently in a trance.

。。。

The cave unfolds before you, filled with lights. Some of them are even bigger than the ones emitted by Pako and you.
The rogue is following you, apparently biting her finger at the sight.
As she noted, there is a certain attraction to a point in the cave now, but...
When you arrive to the lake, the body is not there.

Neither are any lights, as if everyone left.
Instead, you feel yourself strongly pulled into the jungle - also full of dead wood.

[Bansen]
"Have I been tricked...?"

[GM]
Among the branches stands your body, hunched over.
"This is pretty interesting." Pako says, before a spectacular, large light appears before you.
The light speaks.
"Seems to have attracted an evil spirit."

[Bansen]
"If it's interesting to you, then you must understand what's going on-..."
"Who's there?"

[GM]
The pull is nearly imposible to resist. Against all odds, your body seems to be moving without you guiding it.
"It's me, the doctor. Everything seems to be going well. Let me rid you of this thing."
"It is not welcome here."
Just before darkness flashes in front of your eyes, echoing the introductory flash of the Pure Land, you notice a circle spreading over the ground, rimmed with strange kanji.
The last thing you heard was the girl's scream, and then your apparently very tired eyes open.
Each of your hands is clutching a sword. One, your own, which you never stopped holding onto. The other is an odd Jian blade, which you must have been digging through the bushes for.
The latter blade appears to be fairly rusted.
The others are standing around, with the Exorcist recovering some fuuinjutsu tags from the nearby trees.
"Got away." the gorilla seethes. "But I think that was him coming back."
"Wonder what that other thing was."
He turns around, to check up on Bansen's state.

[Bansen]
Bansen groans as he returns to his senses. He raises the arm holding the new sword, inspecting the weapon.

[GM]
His body feels extremely cold, and appears to be covered in dirt and leaves, but his heart is getting its proper beat back.
Some of the concoction is still doing its work at supressing the vital signs.
The sword has a taijitu on its hilt. It seems old and used.
The Exorcist takes a look at it, sighing.
"Different from my master's. Is this the thing that the King was swinging around, months ago?"
"He said he stole it from the Hokage in a fight, or something."
"Here I thought he ordered you to have a spiritual exercise, but it was just retrieving his lost junk."

[Keisuke]
"That's impressive. What happened to it?"

[GM]
The gorilla's meaty fingers investigate Bansen's state.
"He probably dropped it here. He tends to get bored of things."
"Nomads don't hold onto treasure well. He must have missed playing with it."
It distances itself with a painted expression. "Some water's boiling by the lake. I figured you might appreciate hot tea when you wake up."
"You must have seen quite something on the other side, to get a prophetic trance of that sort!"
"Tell us all about it!"
Despite its master's apparent gruesome death doing the same, it seems very interested in Bansen's adventure.

[Bansen]
"Huh... It wasn't what I expected..."

[GM]
"It's not your Kusanagi."
"If you really wish to understand that power, you won't get it right on the first try. But this is already a sign of deep focus."
"I would give you better advice, if I knew anything."
"But, well, it is a Kusanagi. I really must wonder if this was what the King wanted."

[Bansen]
"It was closer to lucid dreaming than what I thought it'd be like..." Bansen sits himself up supporting himself with his swords.
"I can't say I've learned much. The King's request makes me feel like I've just participated in an elaborate prank."

[GM]
"Your mind probably came up with an interpretation of what was happening to you..."
"That's our community for you." it bumps its chest.
"Well, don't take whatever happened in that state too literally. Next time, if you want to delve into it, might be very different."

[Bansen]
"I suppose I shouldn't  feel too disappointed. I've achieved what I set out to do, after all."
"Let's bring this thing to the King and see what he thinks."

[GM]
"We'd better let you recover first."
"What was that thing that followed you here?"

[Bansen]
"Hrm..." Bansen grunts as he pushes himself into standing up to his feet. "It was Hozuki Pako."

[Keisuke]
"...what? Is she like a ghost now and was haunting you?"

[GM]
While approaching the lake, you cannot but notice it is dark outside. You must have been out for a few hours.

[Bansen]
"It appears to be yet another one of her abilities. She was looking for the monkeys."

[GM]
"A relative of the legless man? I really tried to help him."

[Keisuke]
"She's the reason he's legless if I remember right."

[GM]
"Then she found them."
"Whatever the hell she is, that circle should have given her at least a big shock. As your medical overseer, I cannot let you leave my guidance in this state."
It pours the kettle of warm water into a pot of some herbs.
It lays out a few cups. "I'll go inform the king to mobilize. You can join us when you are ready."
"But, really, at a regular human body temperature if that's possible."

[Bansen]
"We're on a tight schedule." Bansen remains standing, hunched over and unsteady. "If I couldn't even deal with this much, I'd be quite worthless."

[GM]
"Ah. Come with me, then."

。。。

The king appears where he was, this time clutching on a small keg of sake, marked with a 'do not roll' sign. He seems to be in high spirits, sipping it from an oversized bowl.
Seeing you, he brightens up further.

[Bansen]
Bansen approaches the king and quite clumsily falls to one knee. He extends the newfound sword towards the monkey. "I bring you the Kusanagi, King Enma."

[GM]
"Oh, you really found it!" he approaches you excitedly. "I thought it would tell you a few weeks of rumbling through the woods, after they told you I just lost one."
"Seems to have taken a lot out of you, but very fast delivery regardless... I ought to prepare you a scroll, then."
The Exorcist coughs.

[Bansen]
With his head bowed, Bansen cringes slightly as the king points out his weakened state.

[GM]
"Your Majesty Enma." the gorilla speaks. "Though I am impressed also, there is something you should know."
"It seems that this particular joke has revealed our position to the ones outside... at least one of them."
"Thus far the gate's protection has been enough to keep them off our doorstep, but now they know for sure. We can probably expect a siege soon."
Enma strokes his beard.
"They still can't get through it. We have time."
"But the humans around here have no idea how many of those things of their are stored in the dead end shafts of the mine. People could start dying now."
"It's too late to pack up and leave all of sudden, so let's start with sending an envoy to the humans, warning them off the battle..." he paces back and forth, despite the alcohol, he seems to be in his element.
"SHIZARU!" the king shouts into the woods.
Within a few moments, the old monkey with a rifle arrives, and is briefed on the situation.
"...Incidentally, did you write any scrolls of contracts, recently?" the King asks him in the end, having seemingly forgotten your presence.
The greybeard responds affirmatively. "We were keeping one in case the legless man cleared his trial."
"Too late for that now. Give it to... what was your name again?"
"Bansen."
Though a bit of a goof, the king isn't stupid.

[Keisuke]
"Hey he remembered your name, you must have made an impression." Keisuke encourages the worn for wear medic.

[GM]
While the king gives out commands to the various monkeys of the tribe, Shizaru departs, and returns with the scroll. Enma unfurls it matter-off-factishly, and bites his thumb, giving the end a signature.
"We don't really have a table here, so our knees will have to do!" he refrencess the awkardness of actually signing such a scroll without staining it with the moist earth.

[Bansen]
Bansen bites through his own thumb and signs the scroll.

[GM]
"Done and sealed." he nods to himself, content. "I look forward to seeing you around. The scroll has the basics, you will have to learn to more advanced bits from us in person."
"What will you do now?"

[Bansen]
"We have to depart."
"And we'll be taking the cripple with us... if you don't mind."

[GM]
"That's fine. Will you be taking the legless man?"

[Keisuke]
"That's who he meant by cripple I think?"

[GM]
"Of course. Since he is the goal of the siege, they should give up when they see he's not here."
"Convincing them will be the hard part. Now, go. They can't have gotten themselves ready yet."

[Keisuke]
"Hmm..." Keisuke gives Bansen a quizical look.
"Well, uh, King Enma since our village and your clan are allies of sorts through my comrade here there's some things I think we should share."

[GM]
Enma seems interested. "Go on."

[Keisuke]
"Firstly we would like to ask that you allow Bansen to accompany your representative to the conference of the Western Pantheon. Our village feels it is imparative that we be kept abreast of what goes due the dangerous events that have been going on throughought the year."

[GM]
"Ah, that stuff? We probably wouldn't have gone."
The elder, Shizaru, points something out: "We're contractually obligated to."
"It's in the scroll you just signed."
Enma appears to be in pain. "Well, one of you or the others go with him. I'm on bad terms with basically everyone there."

[Keisuke]
"It may be in your interest to attend this year, since it seems like the Rats and some allies are actively shifting the leylines which has already affected some human bloodlines."

[GM]
"Rats are around here, too. Not ones smart enough to inerrogate worth anything."
"Presumably we'll see stronger ones soon. When we summon Bansen here, we'll probably be in a completely different location, so we can tell you what we've seen there."
"I should ask you for proof, but I know rats."

[Keisuke]
"Well we also encountered the Goats which I was told shouldn't be possible if things were they way they were supposed to be."

[Eiha]
"The Rats have been active all over the place, frankly. Whatever they're up to, it's safe to assume it's probably part of some larger plan." The girl who'd remained quiet and somewhat withdrawn this entire time finally chimed in.

[GM]
"That's new." Enma nods slowly.

[Eiha]
"They have also been cooperating with the Goats, yes."

[GM]
"Ah, I just want to drink and fight!" he stomps like a baby. "All of this political stuff is so annoying. But now they're at our doorstep."

[Bansen]
Bansen chuckles to himself.

[Keisuke]
"Sorry to be the bearer of bad news."

[GM]
"Well, I just said I want to drink and fight."
"And I'm all out of sake."

[Eiha]
"Better a poison you know about than one you're oblivious about until it's too late."

[Keisuke]
"One final thing related to all this and why I felt the need to bring it up, one of our missing nin seems to be allied with the rats. The Houzuki man you've been sheltering thinks he may have been involved in his predicament. If so there's no telling what the hell he's up to. Just wanted to give a warning regarding that in case they try something even after we've taken their target."

[GM]
"There's no doubt someone powerful has been preparing this." Shizaru adds his few cents again. "We should also send and envoy to the retired hunter, to take a look."
"If we are lucky, Hidden Stone will come and break up the ruckus for us."
"But of course, you don't want them to see you either. I'll see you out."
He uses the gun as a cane, limping out of the clearing, and into the jungle.
"Until next time." Enma tells you, while the Exorcist just grunts.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke waves good bye and follows Shizaru.

[GM]

。。。

You pick up Kenji on the way. The outside is already rumbling, but no golems or shinobi are in sight.
They must still be being extracted from the shafts. Bansen, at least, is sure that he didn't show the figure the cave's main gate, through which you are being led out.

[GM]
The edge of the canyon is reached without issue, and you quickly get onto water. From there, even if they were on your tail, they shouldn't be able to catch up.
It's a few days of travel to Mist. Days where you should be able to take it easy, letting Bansen recover, and Kenji appreciate the beauty of the natural world.
But, you are so close. It has been a long journey. It was an S-rank mission for a clear reason, and it could have gone much worse. All you have to do now is not mess up the finish.
There is nothing such as an anticlimatic ending for shinobi. Your job is not an adventure, it is a job.
It goes doubly so than in the case of an adventure, that stumbling on the finish line would be unforgivable.

。。。

Therefore, you feel somewhat uncomfortable when someone bars your way.
About two hours travel from the mist itself, in a lush woods, a figure standing on a branch hails you.
It is a white-haired man wearing glasses, bearing similar facial markings to Keisuke, though he is not nearly as strong-looking, and even nearly appears emaciated.
Bansen has seen this man before. He is a researcher of some sort in mist, usually seen with a lab coat.
Keisuke has definitely seen this man before. The Kaguya has three men qualifying as Jonin, and the clan chief's wife, who is not a member of the mist, but is said to be as strong as her husband.
Keisuke's uncle, who also mostly keeps to the clan grounds, is the second Jonin after the chieftain. This is the third: Kaguya Sabisuke.
He is said to be more comfortable in Mist, mostly because of his wimpy behavior, for being a Kaguya. He is known for being smart, but not respected for it - not by his clan. His rank, however, does get him some begrudging respect.

[GM]
"Hello, Keisuke!" he hollars positively. "You turned into quite the guy!"

[Keisuke]
Keisuke's guard goes up but he's thrown off by the jovial welcome.
"...What are you doing out here?"

[Bansen]
Bansen squats down, his cloak concealing his enormous body. Although he maintains a neutral expression, he is nevertheless quite obviously on guard.

[GM]
"I just figured I'd take a look to see how you shaped up. One day they are babies, and the next they complete S-rank missions. Time flies."
"It's a shame I wasn't around to see you grow. Your genes are downright atavistic!"

[Keisuke]
"Oh everybody was sure to give me all the "care" and "guidance" they could to make sure I didn't let my gifts go to waste," Keisuke offers back his hackles rising. "I was under the impression you didn't want much to do with the family since you seldom get along."

[GM]
"Hey. I might not look like it, but I'm fond of our clan. For example, in case we were to duel, I can't take you guys out with a cheap shot." the veiled threats start.
"Asking your companions would be pointless, since they don't know what it feels like, but how do YOU feel about the clans in Hidden Mist?"

[Eiha]
Eiha: "Well isn't your kin being presumptuous. Making all these assumptions like that."

[GM]
"I seem to recall you being the exchange student in Konoha, girl. You must have seen what a village united in blood looks like, there. Bad parts aside."

[Keisuke]
"It feels like a lot of old fucks fucked around and screwed things up for the rest of us. Internal factions with their own superweapons and their own political agendas each maneuvering to be on top or get the next best thing and then suddenly, they're all on the outs scrambling for relevance and security. If I wasn't related to them I wouldn't particularly feel sorry for them but I am so I want something better than what we got."

[GM]
"We're called Bloody Mist, but our blood is about as thick as water." he sums it up.
"I study blood, so I know there can be something better."

[Eiha]
Eiha: "I have, yeah, for better or worse. You're clearly having some kind of personal business with him, though, since my opinion is irrelevant, so perhaps I should leave you two to it?"

[GM]
"I have personal business with the man you're dragging along."
"Personal political business. When the personal becomes political, the country is a mess. That's why we're a village and not a country."
He sighs deeply. "You're a smart lad, so I think we can come to an understanding. I have a job here, though."
"But I do hate being reduced to this. Cleaning up Andaro's shit. No way I can crap on that S-rank mision."
His hand rises, and thin strings glimmer in the tree shade, leading behind various branches.
What comes crawling out are not puppets, but bodies. Fresh corpses, in various states of being mangled. Bone portrusions explode from their forearms, shoulders, faces and guts.
"Defend yourselves."
"Gotta at least make a token effort."

。。。







SESSION 21

[GM]
As far as Keisuke remembers, the reason why Sabisuke is this way goes something like this:
When he was a Genin, his brother was dying, because his Pulse was too powerful. Nothing could be done, and Sabisuke left for his Chuunin Exams, to join the games in Suna.
In there, he met some sort of a puppeteer, who immortalized his friends in puppets, and it gave him an idea. Upon returning, he was a changed man.
Precisely what he studied wouldn't be known to Chuunin, but his lethal injection technique is legendary. It may even use his brother's DNA.
That must also be what these bodies are, though seeing them move beyond death is quite creepy. Some of them bear peasant clothing, some of them are former Shinobi. Their movements slow, and rigid. They must have been taken straight out of a freezer.
Who knows how many are spread around the woods, but you didn't notice the ones that just appeared. Perhaps looking for where the rest is would be wise.
A coat of false bark falls from one of them, its masquerade broken. One thing is for sure - it won't hide itself again.
Sabisuke seems content waiting in the distance for you to get surrounded, but a pair of proper puppets has already appeared, one on each side of him.
One seems like a very long-fingered metallic skeleton with spindly limbs, but a hard shell of a chest that might be holding a nasty surprise.
The other is a massive metal lizard, with long blades on its forearms.

[GM]
The three corpses that get to you first seem to mainly have bone spikes growing out of their heads and shoulders. Leaning forward, they reel back, and shoot a hail of spikes at you from the North.
One flies straight through your ward, who does not seem bothered. The point of impact briefly turned to water, and he is fine.
"I'm a lot harder to kill than that." he hisses. "But don't you fucking leave me here!"

[Keisuke]
With a casual hand seal Keisuke sends a pulse of chakra out in front of him causing the spinning shrapnel spinning towards him to lose its momentum and fall harmlessly to the ground.
"Didn't even consider it."

[GM]
"Pretty good!" Sabisuke claps in the distance. "People usually fold to that one straight up."

[Keisuke]
Continuing from his previous seal Keisuke completes four more and a ear splitting note pierces the air sending a violent shockwave into the nearby puppets while leaving the close clustered group of his allies unharmed.
"I found the tecnniques of my fathers people counter our own abilities quite well and were thus worth learning."

[GM]
The bodies shake, and fall over just like that. Sabisuke's hand twitches, as if a bee stung it.
The Dragon takes  amore defensive stance in front of him, while he, no doubt, is getting the next wave ready.

[Keisuke]
Eyeing the dragon warily then taking stock of the team around him Keisuke restrains himself and brings up his hands in the seal for the hidden mist technique.

[GM]
The mist spreads out. From now on, you will be harder for him to pinpoint with such ranged attacks.

[Eiha]
As the fight begins in earnest, Eiha falls quiet. With the earlier provocations, she's quite uninclined to just let this go or run away, and rather intent on trying to punish the man before them. Still, she understands that this is a veteran Jonin, and one who uses these obnoxious puppets at that, so she can't under-estimate him. She will need to use her best tricks to take him out, as mercilessly and brutally as possible. For this purpose, as soon as the mist arises, she flicks her tanto slighly in its sheet to draw a small sliver of blood. The dense fog covers up the iconic dust that would normally herald a summonin jutsu being used, and a snake with golden eyes and pristine white scales appears upon her shoulders.

[GM]
The medicine kicking in, Bansen spots the dragon coming to meet him - though Sabisuke isn't aware of your exact presence yet.
The drowner is whirring, like an engine starting up. Sabisuke is staying close to that one.
Several more dead move in, looking for you. Rather than cutting off your escape route, Sabisuke is betting that you will confront him.

[Eiha]
The expectation seems accurate, as Eiha moves to flank up the Pupetteer from above, while she can faintly notice Bansen doing the same from below. Both of them seem to be taking their time though, presumably because he's just aware as she is that they can't mess this up.

[GM]
At this point, the mist covers the entire battlefield. It must be visible from far away that Mist Shinobi got into a fight here.
Sabisuke is clearly onto you at this point. The whirring inside the long-fingered metal skeleton reaches crescendo, and Eiha notices a circle forming up in the underbush.
Surely, though, he can't be aware of your position.
A vortex of water rises up, in a flash, and it gains intensity. The puppet must have been storing a jutsu. Since he could not find you within the time he thought he had, this is what he falls back on.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke lets out a sigh as the mist settles and the battle becomes more intense. He takes precious moments to study the Dragon puppet, remembering the diciplined training he had long ignored for the thrill of the battle. With a whisper he's gone from his former spot, the disturbance of the mist near the dragon the only indicator of his presence as he cleaves it in two with a greatsword length blade of bone.

[GM]
A shocked shout comes out from within the watery vortex.
"H-how!?"

[Keisuke]
"Everything has a weakpoint. Even if I can't see it, I can hear it." comes the response from the mist.

[Eiha]
As the bemused shout rose up, another cause for alarm shortly followed as another, different type of Mist quickly filled up the inside of the grand water shield, this one with a very noticeable purple-ish tinge to it. From the very first breathes, it would become very quickly obvious that the air had become noxious.
"You're going to regret looking down on us like that." Eiha's voice came in through the thick purple fog, her silhouette disappearing soon afterwards back into it.
A few seconds afterwards, the unwary puppeteer could see something strange starting to happen. Something uncannily familiar to him, actually. His very flesh and bone appeared to begin to shift and pulse, blot and twist, as if the very flesh of his body was distentdng and expanding in random, uncontrolled ways that messed with his articulations and joints, making him start to feel sluggy and clumsy. Was this the effect of this strange fog?

[GM]
"Oh no." he exhales. It seems you hit a nerve.

[Eiha]
Among the fog, the only thing that could be seen were two glowing golden eyes with vertical slits. The eyes of a snake, very close.

[GM]
"I can't use that." the puppeteer's breathing grows heavy.
Whatever the white snake did really got to him. The barrier of water collapses, and he sprints out of the circle at breakneck speed, leaving his remaining properly constructed puppet behind.
But, he did not escape the technique.
Just then, something blows out a part of the mist in the opposite direction.
And closer.
"What the hell is going on over there!?" an angry voice shouts. "This close to the village!"
A sizeable group of chuunin seem to be approaching, having noticed the mist's unnatural nature.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke drops his portion of the technique allowing it to disipate as the mist is inclined to.
"Shoulda ran away sooner uncle." he mutters to himself.

[GM]
When it does, you notice a well-known Jonin, apparently in charge of the security detail.
Worryingly, a few hunter-nin are in the crowd.

[Eiha]
Eiha also dispells her own mist to avoid poisoning her allies and quickly moves in pursuit.

[Bansen]
"How are we going to explain this, I wonder..." Mutters Bansen just before erupting into a brief pained groan.

[Keisuke]
"We were attacked! Ask the ANBU there!" he offers before following Eiha.

[Eiha]
"Well we -were- ambushed."

[GM]
"Yeah, I'm here too, you bastards!" Kenji shouts behind you. Alas, he is home.
The hypnotized puppeteer is soon found, keeling over a fallen tree trunk, foaming at the mouth.
"Not again, not again, they're growing again..." he is mumbling.
A few of the arriving ANBU catch up with you there.

[Keisuke]
"Gods damnit all the more reason not to help that dumb ass Andaro. You want that sort of shit to happen to all the next generation?" Keisuke curses to himself in a increasingly foul mood upon seeing the Jonin's state.

[GM]
"Could have sworn he was under investigation." one of them says off-handedly. "Who are you guys?"
It seems that Sabisuke is in his own world.

[Keisuke]
"Chunin Kaguya returning from mission. My teammate managed to subdue our apparent ambusher, Jonin Kaguya." he offers.

[GM]
They seem to be slowly figuring the situation out.

[Eiha]
Eiha slows down as she reaches the group, not even bothering to unsheathe her tanto. Seems like she hasn't this entire time. The white snake coiled around her shoulder, though, inches forward curiously.
Kiyou: "Again? Well that'sss fasscinating~" She hisses with great amusement
Eiha: "It's as he says." She thumbs over to Kenji to second his words.

[GM]
The man stands up on his hands. "Yo."
"I have an important message for the Mizukage. Put that idiot behind the bars and let us in."
"Report to make, also."

[Eiha]
With that said, Eiha shifts her focus from the security detail to the fallen Jonin. He expression shifts to an amused, very satisfied smirk, practically drinking in the man's terror in retaliation for having dismissed and looked down condescendingly upon her earlier.

[GM]
The butchered bodies, slowly growing into pin-cushions, are quite a lot to take in even for shinobi of the Mist. It is clear to everyone that you were the ones attacked here.
Sometimes they expel more projectiles, but harmlessly, since no one is making them aim anymore.

[Keisuke]
Keisuke very methodically goes through and shreds the remaining puppets. Whether to clean up after his clansmans mess, or simply to left off some steam isn't immediately clear.

[GM]
"H-hey, I know that guy." one of the Chuunin points to one of the corpses. "Didn't he get killed in Stone?"
"Yeah." Another says. "They'd better look through the whole mortuary for who else is missing. They say shinobi have no honor, but nobody deserves to get treated that way, man."

[Eiha]
Eventually - though not after a fair moment of suffering - Eiha has Kiyou release her Genjutsu upon the puppeteer, figuring that an entire security detail plus missing nin hunters can handle him.

[GM]
The man is exhausted, and seems to barely register being carried away.

[Keisuke]
"... looks like you finally got the hang of it. Maybe the monkey's will give you a contract after all." he offers to Kenji to lighten his tension.

[GM]
The ANBU also seem to make a point of salvaging the puppets made of metal, and ordering the chuunin to bury the rest. Though they're going to need some big graves.
"I was kind of hoping he'd go for me at the end." Kenji admits. "I had a trick for him ready."
"If we're lucky, you'll see me strolling around in no time."

[Eiha]
"I was planning to take him down while he was freaking out, but he freaked -away- a bit more quickly than I thought he would."

[GM]
"Yeah, what was that? Did the dragon getting busted up get to him that much?"

[Keisuke]
"Guess I'll get to see how the new Mizukage does things when it comes to situations like this. I don't get where my Uncle was coming from on this. Especially with his history. He should be trying to... argh. Stupid state secrets and stupid clandestine bullshit." he laments.

[GM]
"It's best not to get involved with politics, man." a random Chuunin guard agrees.
"With that ability he could have been a doctor all his life, but no."
An ANBU comes, and picks up Kenji.
"Oh, hey, you." Kenji hums, apparently knowing that one.

[Eiha]
Eiha: "Actually, I'm not -entirely sure of the details, so I'll let the artist explain for me~" She muses with great amusement, and the snake coiled upon her shifts over towards Kenji.

Kiyou: "I'm able to heal people through making their ssssystem recover much fassster than is natural. I made his ssssee the other ssssside of that coin. To him, it looked like hisss body wasss mutating into a big blob of formlesssss flesh." She explains as if it wasn't creepy at all.

[GM]
"That's hella scary." the Chuunin giving you attention notes. "Oh, you are contracted, huh."

[Keisuke]
"Basically what the kids being born to my clan have to look forward to if things don't change soon." he says in regards to the snake's explanation.

[GM]
The ANBU speaks up. "About exactly that."
"I see... well, about those contracts."
"I hope you have your reports ready."
"And wallets. You know you're getting paid a lot for this, right?"

[Keisuke]
"We have to make it to the Kage's office to give them."
"Well there's a silver lining at last!" he jokes.

[Bansen]
"Are we sure that no one else knows about our mission? I hope this is the last unexpected welcome we'll be receiving today."

[GM]
"Mhm." the hunter-nin seems troubled for some reason.
"I did... but there's a reason for that."
"And he did." he points to the soon to be prisoner. "When he really shouldn't have."

[Keisuke]
"We sent two "just in case" reports on some of our findings. Did both make it back without incident?

[Eiha]
"Well, there's a reason for that, but I can't say any more just yet."

[Keisuke]
"He also had direct contact with someone at least related to a missing nin."

[Eiha]
"...Or you can just say it I suppose."

[GM]
"I think Chisai brought something...?" he tries to remember. "Oh, right, that guy with the full beard."
"I know it's connected, but not how."
"Enough spilling secrets. I just wanted to congratulate you on a job well done."

[Keisuke]
"Eh. Saying the guy they're bringing in is connected to a big name missing nin seems better to do than not to me. Family or no."
"Well thanks. It's been a trip."

[GM]
"You've earned that rest, but I suppose you made some powerful enemies. As you've just seen."

[Eiha]
"I meant something else, nevermind." Eiha first noted to Keisuke before shifting her focus. "As expected of course~"

[Keisuke]
"...Sorry. It's been a bit of a trip is all. Didn't mean to get snipy."  he appologize to Eiha.

[Eiha]
The raven-haired kunoichi raises a brow, seemingly genuinely surprised by the apology. She's blindsided by it really. What unexpected politeness. "Huh?  I didn't even realize you were." She answers, apparently, if he thought he'd upset her, it really wasn't the case.

[GM]
That particular knowledgeable Frog-masked ANBU seems to stick to you, believing you are going straight for the Mizukage's office.
Come to think of it, there was something about a frog-masked ANBU...