Squad 7 IC

[Ganryu]

For all shenanigans for posts interaction of Squad 7.

Jonin - Mugen Ai
Chunin - Kurēn Kinoko
Chunin -Tsukiashi "Ashi" Inuzuka
Chunin - Hotaru Hagano

 

[InsaneAsylum]

Squad 7
~Substitute Teacher~​

Standing silently next to the Konoha Memorial stood man with short shiny grey hair. He wore a black and white cloak that completely concealed his hands. The man’s eyes were closed as he displayed a broad narrow lipped grin. Hopefully his new minions would show up soon. He had sent them each an anonymous letter ordering them to gather by the memorial.

Kuren walked relatively slow-paced, not really bothering to get to the memorial anytime soon. Recent he been looking after the children of his clan or spending time in the medical area so it was a surprise when he got a letter to meet at the memorial. He had no idea who sent it and he didn’t even know why he decided to follow the order. Either way he curiousity got the better of him so here he was only a couple meters away from the memorial. He spot what he assumed was a man standing next to the memorial. “Hmmm, i wonder who that is?”

“I’m thinking that would be our new sensei,” said Hotaru from right behind Kuren, offering a cheeky smile when he turned around. She hadn’t exactly been trying to sneak up on him but she certainly hadn’t announced her presence either. “I’m guessing you got a letter as well, which means this is most likely squad business rather than personal, it’s been three weeks since we were last in action and there’s still been no word about Makorama Sensei. So I suspect that, temporarily at least, this gentleman will be taking over for him,”

Hotaru was in a fairly good mood. Her moth population had recovered well and she’d even been able to successfully incorporate Ago’s gift after a little bit of experimentation. With all her preparations in place now would be the perfect time to collect some data out in the field.

Ashi jumped forward, landing down by her two squad mates on all fours. The girl’s eyes glanced up as she seemed a bit… ragged. Her clothing was a bit scuffed up, having a few rips and tears. Her arms appeared to share the shame condition, a few small cuts and scrapes resting over her hands with a notable cut along her cheek. She stood up, breathing a little bit heavily as she seemed to be catching her breath. Her eyes fixated over at Kuren and Hotaru, looking a bit confused.

“Alright, what is it we were given a dumb letter to meet up here for? Didn’t even say anythin’ bout what this meet up was for. Seems like a waste of time!” She spoke as she stood up straight, crossing her arms and pouting putting on her tough act. Ever since the invasion Ashi had been acting a bit ‘stranger’ than usual, keeping more of a distance from everyone and focusing upon training. It was only natural Ashi being Ashi that she kept her own feelings to herself and kept up the tough facade.

With his gaze still fixed on the memorial, the man spoke to the trio. “Ah, so you all came after all! This coulda been an ambush, ya know?!” His head turned to look at the genin. “As Glasses guessed, I’m your new Sensei.”

He grinned menacingly, glaring down at the three genin as he slowly approached them.

“Oh, and before I forget, my name is Mugen.”

“Hmmph! If it was an ambush I’d just punch you in the face! Besides why should we care about you?” Ashi spoke out defiantly, keeping her arms crossed being combative with her words. It wasn’t that unexpected for anyone who knew Ashi, she tended to have ‘issues’ when it came to dealing with new authority figures. It was made worst that he seemed to be attempting to take Mako’s spot. As much as she might completely deny it, she did care about Mako despite how much lip she might give him.

Mugen remained unfazed in the face of Ashi’s defiance. It was only natural that young ninja wouldn’t accept a new authority figure easily. Mugen continued grinning. “This is the part where introduce yourselves! Especially you, Inuzuka girl.” Mugen turned his head towards Ashi, grinning. It was hard to tell if he was looking at her or not. His eyes were practically closed!

Kuren kept a strong gaze at Mugen as he addressed the group. He understood how Ashi felt about this situation but at this point they could really do anything about it. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Mugen. I’m sure as you already know my name is Kuren.” The fact is the team need someone to lead so they couldn’t pass judgement until, they saw Mugen in action. He look at the other two and had a look in his eye that said let’s try to give him a chance.

“You probably already know our names,” Hotaru said, with a tolerant smile. “Or at least… you probably should already know our names.. Isn’t there anything more interesting you want to know,’ If Kuren was going to go out of his way to be be diplomatic and Ashi was being her usual feisty self Hotaru by comparison was going to take a middle road between those two paths. She didn’t really have anything against his new guy, he was even giving her that same ‘so weird he must be pretty good to be allowed to be a jonin’ sort of vibe she had gotten off Mako when they first met. Maybe this guy would be interesting too? Hotaru was going to find out one way or the other.

“You’re right. I do know your names already.” Mugen pauses for an agonizingly long moment as he shifted his gaze over each of his new students another time. “However, I do think it’s only natural that you introduce yourselves when you first meet someone. Is that too much to ask?” Mugen’s grin broadened.

“But it’s alright, I understand. I’m just some weird man replacing your beloved Sensei for the time being. I’d ask to see your skills and abilities, but of course, I already know them. However, I don’t know how well you three work together. You can demonstrate that by working together to remove this seal that the Mist left on the Konoha memorial before they left.”

Mugen turned to face the memorial. The huge rectangular slab of stone was about as tall as Mugen. It had the names of many fallen ninja listed on it. Plastered right on the front of the Stone, covering up the names of many ninja was the seal. If looked at closely, it seemed to partially resemble the mouth of some sort of demonic feline.

“Hmmm?” Hotaru walked over to inspect the seal, leaning over it until the tip of her nose was only centimetres away. Hotaru couldn’t say she was any kind of expert in fuuinjutsu and she was fairly certain the same could be said for her teammates, she had certainly never seen a seal like this before, although she had heard of seals that required multiple people to simultaneously perform actions in order to defuse them, if their new Sensei’s comment about teamwork was to be be taken literally something like that might be the case here.

Hotaru studied the design of the seal, looking for any elements that jumped out at her and then took out a senbon from her bag. Cautiously she tapped the seal with it and tried to work the ip in underneath it. Hotaru even tried channeling a small amount of chakra through the needle into the seal. It was likely going to take more than this to actually remove the seal, at this stage Hotaru was just probing to learn what she could about the task in front of her.

Ashi kept up her defiant show not even turning her head back at the asking of her name. Hmmph, trying to replace our sensei… its not like i ever liked him or care about him! He was dumb… and annoying… and a jerk… She thought seeming to show a some signs of being upset by it as her mind attempted to bat away the idea Mako’s disappearance affected her and the feeling as if this new guy was attempting to replace him. Her attempt to escape from such thoughts lingered over to Hotaru attempting to remove the seal.

“That’s a stupid test! How does that even have anything to do with being a team! Your dumb… as dumb as Mako!” She spoke out, seeming more frantic with mentioning of Mako in her poor attempt to hide her unease about him not being around. She scampered forward towards the seal, shifting her stance using her four legged technique. Her fingernails grew in both length and sharpness, as she took her more feral side. Ashi suddenly started clawing at the seal, attempting to rip it off in a much more brute force style compared to Hotaru despite it being quite obvious that wasn’t going to work.

Kuren kept his gaze at their new sensei trying to get a read on him and what he was thinking. “Mugen, i am a bit confused as to why we were given this assignment. None of us have any skill in seal removal or placement. Are you trying to set us up for failure?” he then turned his attention to his two teammates. He rushed over to ashi and pulled her away from the seal. “Ashi stop! Don't forget this is a memorial, the last thing we want to do is damage it.” he then turned to hotaru “i would also warn you hotaru. If you put too much chakra into the seal, you might accidentally activate it.” kuren sighed removing a seal was a complex process and he didn't have any idea where to start. “Mugen, you’re also apart of this team now. Shouldn’t you be helping us?”

“It won’t be on accident,” Hotaru said patiently. “If we don’t activate it, it’s going to be difficult to figure out how it works,”

Mugen didn’t answer Kuren, grinning as the seal came to life. It seemed Ashi’s clawing was enough to do the trick. The seal took on an ominous dark purple glow, before disappearing in a puff of smoke. Once the smoke cleared, a large dark cat crouched atop the Konoha Monument. A panther stared down at the three young ninja before it, before gazing at Mugen as well. It bent down, and it’s muscles flexed as it leapt from the memorial down towards Ashi. Its claws and fangs were sharp and ready to tear the girl apart.

“Ah, so this is what the Mist left for us… how thoughtful of them!”

loyalwolf AtlannianSpy Hanarei

 

[Hanarei]

​

Ashi could hear Kuren's protest as she tore at the seal trying to get it off from the monument. She growled a bit turning her head away not paying much attention to it in response. It was almost like a growl she gave off in response to it as she looked at him keeping up with her rather fierce demeanor. "Hmmph! I wasn't going to damage it! I know what I'm doing!" She spoke out, it being pretty obvious she didn't know what she was doing at all. It wasn't as if she was trying to cause any damage as much as her being reckless. She wasn't going to admit she did anything brash, specially around this new supposed 'leader'. .She had a tendency to act up around people who tried to take charge over her.

Her sudden biting response back had left her completely unaware as the seal activated. She stood with her head turned keeping up her defiant front. It was only by sheer luck her sensitive nose picked up a rather unpleasant scent. Her nose twitched in response in distaste. It was the smell of a feline. The dog like girl seemed a bit puzzled as her senses suddenly sprang back to life. It was at that moment when the panther pounced towards Ashi that she managed to turn her head to see it coming down towards her. It was almost like instinct as Ashi suddenly fell forward, suddenly falling to the ground and rolling to the side. She evaded the creatures claws.

The young shinobi rolled over springing back onto her hands and knees standing up in her trademark stance. Her teeth showed as if she was growling seeing her natural enemy of a cat right where she had been moments ago having narrowly evaded it. "Dumb stupid cat! Get it!" She shouted out like some excited dog having caught sight of a sneaking feline making its way through. She sprang forward attempting to swipe at it herself not seeming to think things through too much working off her natural dog like instincts to go straight for the fierce feline not seeming to consider the possible danger, whether it was to show off or just out of some sort of dog-like careless desire it was hard to tell.

loyalwolf AtlannianSpy InsaneAsylum

 

[loyalwolf]

Kuren face wavered when he saw the grin on Mugen’s face and turned to see the seal coming to life. Kuren couldn’t help but feel their new sensei saw his students as play things and this was just a giant game to him. Either way, they would deal with that later. Currently the team had to deal with a large dark cat, that seemed ready to hunt and kill them. Before he could even react, the cat seemed to have targeted Ashi and went in for an attack. Luckily Ashi had the best speed and reaction time out of the three of them so she avoided any damage. “Looks like we have no choice but to deal with it. Also keep it away from heavily populated areas.”

kuren wasn’t pleased they had to deal with another summoning, since the last one didn’t turn out the best for him. Weaving his hand signs kuren preformed his Fungal Clone Technique. All of a sudden two clone rapidly grew and branched off from either side of him. The two clones began to charge at the cat. Testing its strengthen and allowing them to come up with a plan of attack. "alright guys...what are plan to deal with this?" InsaneAsylum AtlannianSpy Hanarei

 

[AtlannianSpy]

Hotaru Hagano
​

"Circle around to the left and keep your distance, we'll try to keep it between the three of us" Hotaru suggested calmly, as a stream of moths fluttered out from her bag and up to circle above the panther, many of them carrying larvae. "If you can restrain it for a moment with those cIones I can plant some larvae on its back, then we just need to keep it contained until it runs out of chakra, if it works like a normal summon it'll disappear at that point,"

With that Hotaru took out three of her senbon launchers and fired at the creature's flank. The needle like projectiles wouldn't do much damage but they would hopefully distract the creature from its current target, if it turned around to come after her Hotaru was prepared to escape under ground with Subterranean Voyage.

"Ashi! We'll let you set the pace, try not let it get to close in case it explodes or does something else weird," Hotaru called after her other teammate, mostly just to keep Ashi from feeling left out, getting into a huff and doing something stupid.

This method might be time consuming but it would probably be the safest if something unexpected happened. After the results of their last engagement Hotaru wasn't in much of a mood for unnecessary risks.

 

[InsaneAsylum]

Mugen

The panther glared at Kuren’s approaching clones, bending down and tensing its muscles. It didn’t notice as larvae was dropped onto its back, but it didn’t matter. The panther let out a roar, and at the same time, emitted several streaks of lighting out in many directions, killing not only the larvae on its back, but likely any nearby moths as well. The panther then turned its focus back to Ashi, who it seemed to detest the most for some reason. It leapt at the Inuzuka girl once again, paying little attention to its own well being.

Mugen watched from a safe distance, grinning. His new students were doing relatively well so far, considering that this was an unknown opponent. He wished he could intervene, but this was a perfect opportunity to see the abilities of his students! Hopefully they didn’t get torn apart in the process.

 

[loyalwolf]

Kuren couldn’t help but notice the Panther strange behavior when it came to Ashi. In instinct, it seemed to have already decided to target her first, even though both Hotaru and himself began attacking. Either way the lighting it emitted didn’t help their situation. This puts both many of his and Hotaru chakra natures at a disadvantage. Either way, it seemed as if the panther would target Ashi and preferred close-range attacks.


Kuren reached into his tool pouch and grab himself a smoke bomb. He though it in-between both Ashi and the panther effectively trying to cover Ashi’s next movements. As the smokescreen began to set in he began to weave a few hand signs. “Ninja art fungal release: giant toadstool. Ashi going up!” next thing I know Ashi is being lifted off the ground effectively clearing her out of the panther’s attack but also giving her height for her next attack. Once he was sure Ashi was out the way kuren began to spread his spore around the area, focusing the cluster of them within the smokescreen area. Now he hopefully had better control of the area. He looked over at hotaru, “I don’t think are original plan is going to work so hopefully you got a plan B.” AtlannianSpy Hanarei InsaneAsylum

 

[Hanarei]

​

Ashi growled a bit as Hotaru spoke up. While she didn't catch onto his attempt to try and keep her from being reckless thinking she wasn't involved, it didn't change the fact she could tell she was being used more as a distraction rather then any sort of fighting force. Dangerous or not in close range, she still wanted to do something more then just dodge around. No matter how much of a lesson she learned about being less brute force, there was only so much a fiesty girl like Ashi could take of being left out from acting before she couldn't take it anymore.

Fortunately (if you could call such a disruption of her squad mate's plans such a thing) the panther began to send lightning out from its body, taking care of her allies techniques. Ashi jumped back a bit, keeping out of reach not wanting to unintentionally get caught up in any of the lightning being emitted from its body. Her eyes kept locked forward clutching at the ground as she seemed to growl a bit again, standing at the ready only to have the panther come charging at her. She jumped back, her quick speed working to her benefit as she evaded yet another swipe. She kept a low profile to the ground preparing to charge in for her own attack after evading the panther's next one. Her train of thought was suddenly changed as a cloud of smoke suddenly enveloped around her leaving her a bit confused, her little plan suddenly being disrupted with a bit of confusion, having been so absorbed in her own world towards attacking the cat.

"Huh? Going up whaaaaaaaaah!" She spoke out, her voice picking up as she was taken completely by surprise nearly losing her own fotting as she was picked up into the air. She clutched at the fungus below her, glancing down towards the ground where the panther was. She shook her head out in an attempt to sort out herself out. Her position might of changed, but there was no reason she couldn't still attempt to do her attack, now from the new angle. She looked down, sniffing into the air as a way of picking up where the summoned creature was. She aimed towards it before she suddenly took off, starting her spin.

Passing Fang! She struck at the panther through the cloud of smoke, careful in her attack to strike but to also quickly kick off the ground after she would strike in order to dart away to avoid getting shocked. Two could play the game of pouncing, and she wasn't about to let some stupid kitty outdo her! She wasn't a fan of cats at all.

AtlannianSpy loyalwolf InsaneAsylum

 

[AtlannianSpy]

Hotaru Hagano
​

Oh interesting! Hotaru mused, watching the panther chase Ashi. I wonder if the lightning is a natural ability or the result of some modification? And is it locked onto Ashi because she's the one who disrupted the seal?

Despite finding the panther rather fascinating Hotaru realized she'd have to actually neutralize it before she could worry about studying it too much. The combination of lightning release and wild, animalistic strength was certainly a problem but Hotaru did have one idea that might work, it might be a little unpleasant however.

Hotaru smiled cheekily at Kuren. "There aren't enough letters in the alphabet for my plans, don't worry about."

Hotaru withdrew some kunai and wirestring rolls from her bag and wove some handseals to produce a moth clone, who poofed into existence and took the ends of the wire, disappearing underground with them to find something heavy to tie them to. Meanwhile Hotaru tied the other ends of the wire and had some of her moths land on her wrists. When the kunai were tied Hotaru took one and calmly slashed her now numb wrist, allowing her blood to spill out over the wire until it was covered. In the end Hotaru was left with a bola like configuration covered in her own blood, the soaked metal wire would be an extremely efficient conductor, leeching away the panther's lightning and sending it harmlessly into the ground.

Seeing that Ashi was launching another attack Hotaru instructed some of her larvae to bind her self inflicted wound with silk and dashed forwards, spinning her wires to build up speed. Hotaru would launch her attack a beat after Ashi's, taking advantage of the panther's preoccupation to entangle it with the wires.

 

[InsaneAsylum]

Completely taken aback by the sudden appearance of a giant mushroom, the panther was struck directly by Ashi’s strike. However, as the Panther was struck, it seemed to split in half! Nevertheless, Hotaru’s plot worked, and she managed to entangle a panther in her wire.

In the smoke however, another pair of yellow eyes emerged, and leapt at Hotaru with vengeance, seeing as its preferred target had bounced away after striking. The chuunin would quickly come to realize that there were now two panthers!

Mugen remained unfazed, despite his hunch being correct. The panther was in fact an advanced summoning technique, but to do that with a seal would take a massive amount of chakra. Those mist ninja were extraordinary! It’s too bad that they hadn’t attacked the Leaf again.

Besides the panther, Mugen found himself quite impressed by these kids’ skills. The boy had a better grasp on those fungi skills than he had presumed, and Glasses was one smart cookie! Ashi could probably make better decisions, but putting a person like her to use would be no problem.

Mugen reached into his large sleeve, and grasped one of his blades. If things went on for too much longer, he’d step in and put the panther down.

 

[loyalwolf]

Kuren felt like the team was slowly coming together again. He peeked over at Mugen and he seemed no bothered by what was going on in front of him. Either way, kuren didn’t have time to worry about their replacement sensei. Last time they face a summon with strange abilities, he became a hinders and dead weight. He made himself a promise that he wouldn’t drag anyone down again, especially his team.

Kuren was a bit taken aback by the Hotaru straight forward attack, but didn’t have time to dwell on the tactic. He need to give her back up right away. In the smoke, he couldn’t tell what was going on but luckily for him he didn’t have to see with the spore scattered mainly concerted where the panther was. “Ninja art fungal release: Fungal clone.” Kuren was placing the clone blind within the smoke. Luckily the sounds of Hotaru attack helped guide the clone where he needed to be. As he saw the outline of Hotaru and one panther, he quickly notices what appeared to be a second about to strike Hotaru. The fungal clone began to run in a sprint not bothering to hide his presence. He jumped up to try and intercept the panthers attack. It wasn’t the prettiest or best timed jutsu but it puts a body between Hotaru and the panther. Allowing for some kind of defense to the attack, but more importantly, it helped set up kurens next more if the panther tried to tear the clone apart physically.

Outside the smokescreen kuren still couldn’t make out what was going on inside. He looked around for ashi and when he spotted her, he shouted out “Ashi! What are the chances you can get rid of the smoke? I'm kind playing blind here and unlike you two, I’m not gifted with extraordinary senses.”

 

[AtlannianSpy]

Hotaru Hagano
​

Maybe you should have thought of that before you threw the smokebomb... Hotaru thought, although she decided to keep that thought to herself. More importantly they needed to somehow deal with the panther without damaging it enough to cause another split. Thinking about it logically there had to be a point at which the seal would run out of chakra with which to sustain so many summons but that point might be well after they had already been mauled or electrified to death. Hotaru didn't exactly want to repeat her last trick any more than she had to.

As Kuren's clone took her place Hotaru hopped backwards and ordered her clone, which was still swimming underground, to surface underneath the panther and try to pull its hindlegs into the earth, where its lighting would be safely grounded. meanwhile Hotaru dug into her bag to retrieve more of her larvae, instead of sneakily planting them with moths this time she just threw handfuls at the panthers, instructing the larvae to bury into their flesh and siphon off their chakra before they could muster the strength to break free.

​

 

[Hanarei]

​

Ashi stood low to the ground on all fours ready to pounce. Her nose sniffed in to the air as to try and keep tabs on the panther as it was in the smoke. Instead of easily finding it she could smell it not in one but two places. She looked a bit confused, her own impact having felt...strange to say the least. She was use to hitting things with passing fang, though it usually didn't interact n the way the summoned panther did, the smoke along with her quick speed making hard for her to really of seen what happened on impact. She growled a bit as she shifted her stand back as to prepare for another attack, just as Kuren spoke.

"Wacha think I am the big bad wolf? I can 't go huffing and puffing away the smoke!" She responded quite fiercely her teeth looking like fangs taking it more as some sort of insult rather then a serious question. Just what did he think she could do to blow away the smoke? It wasn't as if she had any fancy air blowing jutsu or anything! Passing fang involved her twirling but it wouldn't be moving the smoke around that much to clear the air. She perked up a bit as if returning to her thoughts as she was able to focus back to the fight.

"It's bad enough the panther has another dumb cat friend that came out of nowhere! Cats are so stupid and dumb and annoying!" She spoke out almost whining in her tone before turning back towards going for an offensive. She sniffed in the air, focusing her attention on the panther going towards Hotaru. She blinked smelling as what she assumed was a clone seemed to lift out from the ground its smell reaching her nose quickly. Perhaps part of Hotaru's trick in order to disable the panther? She didn't bother wasting time a she took off, starting her spin into another passing fang, lifting herself in the air a bit this time as she entered the smoke.She came flying at Hotaru's target, aiming directly at the panther's back striking in diagonally down from the air, her feet ready to swiftly push her off and to jump away as soon as her attacked hit in what she saw as her best way to avoid the lightning and still attack.

loyalwolf AtlannianSpy InsaneAsylum

 

[InsaneAsylum]

The larvae were probably delighted at the excessive amount of chakra inside of the panthers. The panthers had no intention of giving up yet, as they flailed and struggled with all their might. One of the panthers was hit by another direct attack of Ashi’s, causing it to split once again. Now there were three panthers. Two of which were free and with less larvae on them than the third. The cats bent down, ready to pounce.

Mugen tapped his chin, wishing that the smoke bomb hadn’t been thrown. Now it’d be harder for him to help them! By the sound of things, there were multiple panthers now, and they’d probably continue to increase. That’d only heighten to risk that one would run off somewhere into the village. It was time to end things here.

Mugen reached into his sleeves and grasped two of his blades. He shadow stepped into the smoke, which was starting to clear up a bit now with all of the Inuzuka girl’s spinning. The two blades pointed at the two panthers, and in an instant, the blades extended forward, piercing through two of the panthers, who once again split. The two swords were already back at their normal length. The swords extended again, retracted, and extended once again. Now their were eight panthers! Mugen didn’t cease, he simply kept up his barrage. It seemed that the eight panthers were the maximum, because the panthers no long split when struck. They just got skewered instead, until they dissipated into a light mist.

Mugen released a satisfied sigh, snd turned the the last panther Hotaru had tied up. It was probably almost as low on chakra as he was now. The panther’s struggles were weakening, and it resorted to trying to chew on the wire tying it up.

“You kids aren’t too shabby! Once this panther runs out of chakra, the mission is complete!”

Mugen didn’t acknowledge his own intervention. He was too busy thinking about what a dangerous present the Mist had left them. If some fool had just accidently actibated the seal, the village would’ve been in real trouble. It was a good thing Glasses made an effort to trap them instead of butcher them.

They would all be good minions.

 

[AtlannianSpy]

Hotaru Hagano
​

"Well that could have gone better," Hotaru sighed, brushing herself off and keeping a wary eye on the remaining panther as it's steadily weakened. "What a fascinating creature, I'd read about amplification summoning but seeing it in person it's clear how troublesome a technique it can be,"

Well the real problem is that our coordination is still sloppy, Hotaru added silently, as she locked eyes with the panther, accepting the seething animosity in its gaze with placid curiosity. Numbers didn't really help you much in the end either. Is this really the best way to keep moving forwards?

 

[InsaneAsylum]

-Stranger Danger-
Mugen Ai​

Mugen was at a dilemma one night. The hokage had told him and the other jounin earlier that day that he’d have to warn his students about some strangers wanting to kidnap them. He didn’t want to just tell them outright. That’s what a boring normal sensei would do.

Instead, he decided put a note on the front door of each of their homes. It’d contain the warning, and be the same for each of them. Mugen didn’t like writing stuff out, almost as much as he disliked bitter candy.

“That old man really thinks I’ll let those crazy guys out there snatch my students? His age must be catching up to him! No one will lay a hand on those weirdos except for me, but I would loge for them to try...” Mugen said, mumbling to himself as she gazed out over a peaceful moonlit village.

And so, Mugen set off in the moonlight to deliver three letters.

 

[InsaneAsylum]

Mugen Ai​

“And here I thought fungus boy would be the one to get snatched... but I do admit those bugs are quite captivating,” Mugen said to himself, as he stood next to the Konoha memorial. Just a year ago, this whole area was covered in corpses. It was also where Mugen first saw his squad in action.

The smirking jonin had personally gone to both Kuren and Ashi’s homes, and told them to meet him here. If they followed directions, then they’d surely arrive soon. If not, then maybe they got snatched up on the way here. It’s not like he’d miss them, but he needed to make sure they were aware of the kidnappings, and how wuickly and easily it was pulled off.

When the two chuunin finally arrived, Mugen chuckled quietly. “You know, I really thought bug girl was the least likely to get captured out of you three. Well, except for you Inuzuka. I wouldn’t want to kidnap you,” he spike, but paused, looking them both over for a moment.

“You know, Hotaru is probably dead right now. Or, she’s being tortured. How does that make you feel?” Mugen asked. The teo might feel his gaze boring a hole in them, but his eyes weren’t open enough to tell if he really was.

Hanarei loyalwolf

 

[Hanarei]

​

Tsukiashi arrived on time, not at all seeming to throw a fit or anything of that nature. With Hotaru kidnapped she had been a bit 'off' from her normal self. While she kept up he rough demeanor, she started to grow a bit more disconnected from things. No matter what she seemed to try to do it felt as if she wasn't going anywhere. It felt like failure after failure. No matter the successes in between, it didn't feel like anything compared to what was lost. It left her frustrated, not with the world but with herself.

Ashi looked on seemingly a bit surprised by the comment. She was the one who typically tended to start off with the biting remarks, something her scattered thoughts helped to in some part forget about until Mugen said such a thing. She looked on, almost showing as if she was upset before quickly suppressing such a remark. His comment about Hotaru only made her clutch her hands into tighter fists as a spark of anger errupted from her.

"I don't care who you wouldn't bother to kidnap and Hotaru isn't dead! She isn't some weakling like you she is strong and she is managing on her own! She is strong and will make it until we rescue her!" She spoke out harshly looking on at Mugen as she didn't seem to take the idea of Hotaru being dead or suffering as any possible option. She wouldn't allow that to be an option in her mind. Her eyes focused on Mugen like razors not at all flinching as she stood in her place.

InsaneAsylum loyalwolf

 

[Ganryu]

Sitting ontop of the village gate, Umichi listed a wine bowl to her lips. Pity it was just water, she'd quit years ago.

"Heh. Tempting to start again. I hide, I run out of the village, Hokage still manages to make me a sensei again. It's just not fair, he knows I can't say no... Tch."

Opening the files she started to go over them.

"Tsukiashi Inuzuka, a real firecracker. One of Mako's brats. If I recall, she was one of the idiots with Kiyoshi who made a scene at the chunnin exams. Never seen a profile given 'high marks for chaos'. Going to have to remember that, seems to have worked in the Coliseum.

Sei Teshima, a bit of a contrast to Tsukiashi, seems a fair bit calm. Lives with an overly protective Grandma... good. Maybe she won't do anything stupid, maybe one student I don't have to worry about. And her style seems similiar enough to mine.

And lastly, our pet project with the sand, Kizuno. Shit. I gotta keep him alive at all cost, village's face depends on it. Seems like a bit of a freak, but not reckless like Ashi is. Curious how he performs on the field. Got to admit, always found puppeteers annoying to fight again, what I lost against in the chunnin exam. Eh, at least they are on our side.

Damnit, old man."

Umichi imagined the water was sake for a minute. Each had received a note earlier in the day.

Hey, this is your new Sensei, Umichi. We have a mission today, and probably a good opportunity to meet you. I have to admit, I'm a little skeptical of the mission, but it'll be a good team building exercise. According to the mission, some thugs stole a pair of artifacts relating back to the sage's era. We're just supposed to beat them up, take back the artifacts, and leave. I'd say do it stealthily, but I've read Ashi's profile. Either way, meet me at 9:00 AM in front of the village gate and we'll head out. We're heading half a day south to the village of Edo. We can do introductions and such on the way.

 

[Kimiwriter]

Sei Teshima & Ashi

Sei wasn’t really sure what to expect at the training grounds. She’d expected the letter about being reassigned and then sent her own letter asking her new teammate to meet so they could learn each others fighting styles. Despite it being her own idea, she felt nervous. What would happen if her new team didn’t work out?

Pushing the thought from her mind, she scanned the open grounds for someone with a dog.

Ashi’s eyes kept peeled to the ground, almost looking lost as she wandered alone towards the training grounds. How was it every time she thought she was comfortable in a team it seemed to only fall apart. While she had found herself in some company on her missions, it wasn’t quite the same as having a squad to come back to. The problem wasn’t just one person was missing… it was much more than that. She was all alone…. Just an outcast as she had been her entire childhood.

Her head perked up looking over noticing Sei. She stared at her as she wasn’t quite sure if it was the person she was suppose to be paired with. While Ashi was a Inuzuka in appears with her wild hair and her markings, the absence of a dog was perhaps a bit strange for most to see. She shook her head, putting on a tough scowl attempting to hide any ounce of her being upset. She wasn’t going to show weakness.

“Hmmph… .are you supposed to be it? You don’t seem like much.” She spoke trying to act fierce though turning her head looking a bit uneasy after her own words. At the very least she was a bit less vicious then she use to be. She mellowed out over time… though perhaps it was less out of being more calm and collective and much more a sense of mental defeat she felt that she didn’t want to admit.

“Not that anything is wrong with you, not that I feel bad or anything if you think I was meaning that and… hmmph! I’m Ashi, what should I call you… not cause I care but cause it makes it easier knowing your name… and stuff...” She spoke as she seemed to lack any desire to gloat and even her attempt to be a bit crude seemed a bit half assed with her ‘playing it tough’ act.

Surprised, it took a moment for Sei to realize the shinobi was trying to greet her and a moment more for her to respond. “I’m Sei Teshima. It’s nice to meet you.”

She remembered the girl. A bit wild in classes, but she’d seemed fun.

Sei glanced around but didn’t ask about Ashi’s dog. Better not to anger her new teammate right away.

“And you’re right. I’m afraid I’m not much of a fighter but . . . I understand that’s your clan’s specialty?” Sei shifted. “I was kind of hoping . . . since we’ll be working together . . . you would help me improve. I wouldn’t be much of a teammate if you always had to rescue me.”

Ashi looked at the girl tilting her head as if uncertain what she was talking about when she mentioned her clan’s specialty. It made her immediately think about her lack of a dog though as she continued speaking she simply dismissed it. She looked at her tilting her head the other way, resting her arms on her hips having eased up a bit more from her slump.

“Wacha asking exactly about anyways?” She spoke looking on a little puzzled at her asking to help her improve. “Wacha mean… like a spar?” She asked blinking at the girl. She couldn’t help but wonder if it was just some kind of trick looking suspiciously at her. She wasn’t the type to really expect compliments or to be looked up towards so being treated as if she could teach anyone anything came off as strange to her from someone she didn’t know that much about.

“Yeah, something like that. . .” Sei hesitated. Maybe she should have waited until their new sensei introduced them. But she needed to be proactive if this new team was going to work. “I mean . . . if that’s alright. We’ll be able to see each others’ strengths and weaknesses. But if you’d rather wait until our new sensei, I understand.”

Ashi looked on suddenly lifting her hand up balling one into a fist and leaving the other open. She punched lightly at her open hand with a wide grin on her face. “If it’s a fight yah want then ya got it! Just don’t go crying if you get hurt now from how awesome I can be.” She spoke sounding much more like her usual self. Her eyes focusing on Sei looking at the girl more than ready to fight. It was one way she could at the very least keep her mind off of things.

Nodding, Sei shifted into a fighting stance. This was her idea after all; she needed to improve and see what her new teammate could do. “I won’t. No hard feelings, no matter the outcome?” Which likely ended with her getting her butt kicked and then a lecture from Kuro but she pushed the thought away.

Focus on her movements. Her hand signs. Find an opening and strike quickly.

“Stop when one of us yields or can’t keep going sound fair?”

Ashi looked forward, nodding giving a thumbs up. “Alright! Get ready to call uncle!” She spoke finding an escape from her worries in a sparring match. She suddenly slipped down getting down onto all fours, stretching a little bit looking forward. Her eyes fixating at Sei. They hadn’t really set up a moment when they would start yet.

“Ooo! When the kunai hits the ground we go?” She spoke flipping a kunai in one hand. She tossed it up, aiming it roughly in the middle of the two. She stood ready remaining alert as it flew in the air. As it finally came down striking into the ground, Ashi was immediately sent spinning and flying towards Sei in a passing fang. Her body twisted as she was carried forward at incredible speeds to what was meant to be her new body aiming directly for her. While it wasn’t her strongest technique it was perhaps much more of a direct first attack then what most would expect of a shinobi.

Sei knew Inuzuka were fast but she wasn’t expecting. . . Dodging to the side, she struggled to stay out of Ashi’s reach. Too fast. Any hope of using her taijutsu was gone. Grabbing a smoke bomb, she threw it at her feet, and raced for the cover of the forest. Maybe the trees would slow Ashi down enough that Sei could fight back.

As the smoke cleared, Sei ducked behind a tree, a kunai in her hand.

Ashi flew through the smoke bomb, quickly piecing through it. She flipped around quickly griping the ground to skid to a stop. She blinked, sniffing at the air attempting to quickly pick up a trace of Sei. Her eyes darted over towards the trees picking her up in that direction through the use of her nose. She darted forward, heading quickly through into the trees.

Ashi glancing around as she moved using her nose to direct her. While her sense of smell was incredible, it didn’t have the direct precision that sight offered her. Sei’s sent was far to faint for her to be able to pick her up as well in a more precise way, something more…. ‘Unique’ techniques the Inuzuka clan used with the use of their dogs. It wasn’t as if she would of had a chance to use it anyways even if she had a dog anyways.

Ashi’s head turned glancing towards the direction of the tree Sei had ducked behind, the scent much stronger meaning she was close. She jumped forward, aiming roughly 10 feet away from the tree holding a Kunai in her hand looking in the direction she had detected Sei’s smell keeping her eyes focused ready to toss her Kunai as soon as she might see Sei keeping alert if she might be up higher in the tree.

Crouching behind the tree, Sei listened as Ashi approached. If she wanted to stand a chance, she needed to keep Ashi from gaining speed. Immobilize and then strike. Nice and simple. But how to do it?

Sei raised her kunai. Maybe she could tire Ashi out first. Stepping out of cover, she threw her kunai. Substitution jutsu. A quick flash of smoke and she was up in another tree, hidden in the foliage and another kunai in her hand. Couple substitutions, maybe even some clones, just to throw her off, then get close and finish the fight quickly.

Ashi’s Kunai flew as soon as she saw Sei as the smoke suddenly rose up. She sniffed the air quickly able to tell Sei had moved turning her head to take in the smell tracking the general direction in which she had moved. It was clear she was trying to avoid direct combat. The girl pouted though she shook her head out, pushing back any bit of frustration. She had to not let her impatience get the best of her. She had to think tactically.

Tsukiashi propped herself up back onto her legs. If she wanted to get stronger without having a pup to rely on, it meant she had to try and find more ways then just her clan’s Taijutsu techniques to take out her foes. She began to move her hands in quick succession, the practice in Ninjutsu showing as she did the handsigns quickly. Tiger, Ox, Dog, Rabbit, and Snake.

Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!

A gust of wind shot out from Ashi violently blowing through the trees directed towards the direction Sei was meant to whip at her in an attempt to knock her out of the tree or to at the very least expose her forcing her to take cover for safety behind the tree ideally what Ashi might hope for. She quickly fell down onto all fours once more, taking off as if Passing fang though this time enhancing it with wind causing it to whip violently as she flew even faster then last time directly towards the tree aiming to rip straight through the tree and strike Sei before she might get a chance to react.

The wind hit with more force than Sei had expected, tearing her from her hiding place and sending her flying back against the tree trunk, knocking the wind out of her.

Sei saw the girl coming toward her and she suddenly flashed back to the arena. The wind blasts. The spear coming toward her with no way to stop it. She raised her hand, her mind blank as she wove handsigns, unsure if she’d finish in time.

Ashi flew quickly towards Sei noticing vaguely as she was moving that Sei didn’t seem to be budging. Ashi eased back, the wind around her lessening a bit though having no good way of slowing it down more without completely disrupting her attack. She pushed forward striking into Sei directly with her attack.

Sei gasped. Ashi wasn’t kidding around. Sei did her final handsign.

Hidden Shadow Snake Hands

Snakes appeared from her sleeve, twisting and writhing around Ashi’s arms and legs. They hissed angrily at her as they constricted. “Not too tight you guys.” Sei struggled to catch her breath. “What’s it going to be Ashi?”

Ashi blinked as she was caught off guard as snakes came twisting around her arms and legs. She blinked seeming almost puzzled by it. She struck the ground skidding against it with new strange snake ‘companions’ on her arms. She hadn’t the slightest clue how to really deal with such a thing. It wasn’t exactly as if she actively dealt with serpents after all.

Fang Rotating Fang

Ashi suddenly pushed off the ground using her momentum in hopes of hopefully both striking and freeing off the snakes from her limbs as her body went spinning now this time in a buzzsaw matter. She directed herself quickly towards Sei planning on striking her hopefully not too hard while hoping it might be enough to pull off the snakes as she dug into the ground a bit with her rapid buzzsaw like spin.

Releasing her jutsu, Sei jumped back, feeling the wind around Ashi tearing at her clothes. Too close! She threw up her arms in defense and steeled herself for the impact.

It knocked her to the side, throwing her against another tree trunk. Her sleeves fell away in shreds and her arms stung. The scratches stung. Sei gasped for breath. She hadn’t wanted to use more powerful jutsu but she also didn’t want to quit.

Tsukiashi stopped her spin, landing on all fours glancing at her arms and legs shaking them out still a bit weirded out by the snakes that had been on her arms. It was clear it was a Jutsu granted it didn’t really make it any less weird of a feeling to have. She shook her head out focuing at Sei. She could see her sleeves had been torn away and she was breathing heavily. It caused her to pause a bit hesitating on continuing her attack. Until she was told to stop by Sei she figured she didn’t want to quit yet.

“You better get ready for my ultimate attack!” She spoke out as if to threaten her though in some part meaning to encourage her even if she wouldn’t admit it. Ashi jumped forward lifting her fist up menacingly in a rather telegraphed manor, although her quick movement speed made it look much faster.

“Ashi ultimate move! Super serious punch!” She spoke out aiming to strike Sei right in the stomach as she was pushed against the tree. It wasn’t really much of a technique as much as a normal punch just adding her momentum into it jumping forward into it. In a way it was her holding back a bit seeing how scuffed up Sei was though it wouldn’t change the fact it was still a punch that would likely wind her if she struck head on with it.

The next attack was slower, completely telegraphed. She’s feeling sorry for me? Sei’s pride flared into anger and she lunged forward, dodging the obvious punch and sending her own kick at Ashi’s gut. It hit. Sei jumped and spun, kicking with her back leg while forming more handsigns. Her foot connected with Ashi’s shoulder and Sei flipped back out of range. She wasn’t as fast as Ashi, but she was glad her kicks were solid.

“So you don’t like my snakes, huh?” A smoke bomb laced with a mild sedative exploded at Ashi’s feet. Sei held her breath, just in case; the idea was to slow her opponent down, not make herself groggy. She released her chakra and cast a basic genjutsu. If it worked, the smoke with appear to form into a giant cobra, hood spread and fangs at the ready. If it didn’t . . . Sei jumped back a few more paces. She wasn’t sure what her next move would be.

Ashi wasn’t at all expecting the kick as she was struck directly in the gut winding her a bit. Ashi stumbled back gasping out as she fell back on all fours, shaking herself out. She blinked hearing Sei’s voice looking a bit questioningly at her suddenly watching the smoke bomb drop. Her nose naturally sniffed the air only causing her to take in a dose of the sedatives, quickly picking it up as she stopped breathing jumping back not intaking anymore though having still having some of its effects.

Ashi looked ahead a bit puzzled as a cobra appeared before her. While it didn’t scare her like Sei thought (Ashi being more bothered by the feeling of her arms and legs being entangled in a weird way over it being a snake) it didn’t change the fact she saw it as a potential threat not at all registering it as a possible Genjutsu. With its fangs facing her there was only one option… to take it out quickly!

Ashi backed up. She took off again, this time seeming to hold back less as the wind whipped around her enhancing her passing fang. She saw the snake as a foe not at all holding back at all against it.

Violent Passing Fang!

The wind whipped through the air as she flew at the genjutsu snake, the actually illusion only being smoke causing it to swiftly break apart as the wind swirled around her as she didn’t strike it but instead flew straight through it having expected to of hit a solid object sending her flying far past the illusion snake towards Sei’s direction.

Sei’s heart dropped as Ashi tore towards her. Had she really dispelled the genjutsu so quickly? And the sedative hadn’t done anything to slow her down. Ashi crossed the distance in only a few seconds. Sei dodged to the side, but not fast enough.

Wind sent her off balance and then Ashi struck. Sei went flying, landing on the ground with a hard thump, the wind rushing from her lungs. For a moment, Sei couldn’t breathe, her ribs ached and panic rose in her chest. Move! She tried to rise and scramble away but couldn’t. Damnit. Finally air rushed back into her lungs and she smacked the ground twice with her palm. “Tap out.”

It wasn’t the result she wanted but it left plenty of room for improvement. Sei settled back on the ground, trying to relax while she caught her breath.

Ashi had been caught by surprise when she managed to nearly strike Sei with a direct blow. The current of winds instead worked on ripping at her while she flew past. Ashi skidding to a stop as Sei called it quits. She looked a bit confused. She stood up tall as to gloat a little bit despite being a bit scuffed up herself, still aching from where she had been punched in the gut.

“Ha! Well you fought well, I mean you were going against me after all! Still you were pretty good! I wasn’t expecting you to summon a giant snake I was suprised how easy I took it down I thought it would of tool m….” She spoke as a loud yawn escaped her lips as it became a little more apparent the sedative had worked as the fight ended leaving her sense of adrenaline fueling her all but drained away. Ashi rubs her eyes a bit sleepily, blinking her eyes as she stretched.

“Your… okay right? Mind if I take… a lit…” She stopped only to yawn a bit more. “A little nap?” She asked resting back against a tree. While she had managed to avoid inhaling too much of the sedative the amount she had taken in was enough to affect her, and given her penchant for naps it only made her want to take one right then.

Sei nodded, choosing to ignore the mistake about her genjutsu. She could explain that later. “I’m fine. Just winded.” Slowly sitting up, she massaged where her ribs still hurt. “What about you? I have an antidote if the sedative was too strong for you. Or it’ll wear off on its own in a few hours.” She eyed her dozing teammate. Maybe all that speed and power came with a price? She’d have to stock up on energy enhancers.

Deciding to let her be, Sei got to her feet and brushed off the dirt. “Maybe we can go again sometime? I won’t hold back on my genjutsu next time.”

Ashi looked up nuzzling against the tree seeming to half pay attention to Sei. “Nnnnnn…. I don’t wan… anything to eat. I’m good…” She muttered in response to Sei questioning her about an antidote seeming to half confuse what she was saying. She was far too gone in her desire to take a little nap aided by the effects of the sedative helping to instigate her into it. Her natural tenacity could fend off its mild effects easily before, but if she wanted to nap she was more then willing to submit to it.

“Okay…. Sure ma… I’ll do it after… gunna…. Sleep… bit…” She muttered as Ashi seemed to curl up a bit more as the faint sound of snoring could be heard as she fell asleep against the tree rather carefree, evident she had been lost in her own little dream world as if back at home before she gave into her closing her eyes fully.

Sei smiled and sat next to Ashi. It was a nice afternoon and she didn't have anywhere else to be.

Hanarei

 

[Kimiwriter]

Sei Teshima

Sei rose early, still a little woozy from her last poison immunization session with her grandmother, and gathered the last of her things for the mission. Ashi seemed cool as a teammate, though a little wild compared to her last team, but what would her new sensei be like?

Leaving her room, she grabbed an apple from the kitchen before slipping out of the house and sprinted towards the village gate. If she got there first, maybe she would have some time to practice her taijutsu. She had to improve before they got back, she wasn't about to let Ashi's win stand for very long.

Once at the gate, Sei set her pack down and stretched.

"I'm glad to ssee you taking thiss sso sserioussly," Kuro slithered out of the shade and curled around her bag. "How wass your match with the dog-girl?"

"I lost. There's no way I can match her speed and wind techniques make smoke and poison use tricky."

"It's best to be preemptive with people like her."

"Next time I'll be better prepared."

Nodding, Kuro raised his head and flicked out his tongue. "How are you doing? You haven't mentioned the arena since we got back."

Sei fell silent and focused on her kicks. She'd need to be faster if she wanted to beat Ashi.

Kuro settled back against her pack and silently waited.

 

[Hanarei]

​

Tsukiashi had slipped her way out from home a bit early. She had never been the super punctual type, the only exceptions being when she tried to get the leg up on someone. Sure she was still competitive but the notion of 'ambushing' someone wasn't at all in her interest anymore. She was beyond testing and being doubtful of anyone who might attempt to lead her. In truth... she had a rather haunting indifference to it. It felt as if it was all just something temporary and fleeting. She longed to have a connection with people but it felt like every time that happened it so quickly fell apart and she was left alone. She didn't mind Sei at all... but she couldn't help but have the lingering feeling she would end up eventually disappearing as well. It was far worst of a feeling then any sense of being an outcast of her clan. The fact she built a bond with others only to have it torn apart was a much more terrible feeling.

Ashi adjusted her bag on her back loaded with the various supplies for the trip. She was a bit more prepared then she might usually be though she still tended to lean on taking as little as she could with her. The less bulky the load she carried the easier it was for her to move around. Given her tendency for being able to quickly scout things out, she wanted to be able to do so as unhindered as possible. As brash as she was, she had at the very least learned to be a bit more resourceful over time and to think things out. It didn't change the fact her plans tended to be on the more reckless side but at the very least they had some thought to them!

The Inuzuka girl arrived at the gate walking at a rather leisurely pace. It wasn't uncommon for her to have some excitement for a mission but right now she just felt... uncertain. She liked the notion of doing a job but having it be with two people she didn't know and a third she had only really began to get an idea about, it made her feel a bit awkward about it. She felt far more worried about the new team over any bit of the mission. Her eyes lingered over spotting Sei. She shook her head out, suppressing her worry about her team as to put on her typical demeanor.

"The jerk who gave us the letter isn't here yet? Hmmph, what did it mean by 'I'd try stealthy but Ashi' comment? Are they look'in to get pummeled in the face trying to mock me or some'in?" She spoke out crossing her arms as she stood still glancing about haphazardly, not really bothering to try looking around for anyone else.

"Just who is this person we are suppose to do the mission with anyways? It seems so dumb we wouldn't of gotten to see him before the mission or anything." She spoke glancing away as she tried to make a bit of idle conversation still not really sure what to say around Sei. She had tried to be a bit less feisty sounding in her words though even with that she couldn't help but feel how she spoke did come off a bit coarser then she intended. Her negative thoughts were perhaps effecting her more then she thought.

"...and... um.... how are... uh... you doing today?" She spoke in an attempt to sound nicer as she blushed a bit putting on a more sour face feeling even more awkward unable to help but feel like what she tried to say to sound nicer sounded just awkward and off. She wasn't very good at the 'nice talk' thing.

"N... not that I care or anything you know just idle conversation stuff... you get what I mean, ya don't gotta answer if you don't wanna or anything." She spoke as if to try and repair her awkward way of speaking only to perhaps come off a bit more awkward in the process. She kept her head turned to hide a bit of her embarrassment.

 

[AllHailDago]

Moku Ozaki​

A year and then some had gone by since Moku last had a mission outside the village. It was just before the invasion that his squad returned from their last mission together. For Moku the time since then had been both an eternity and an instant. He ran a hand through his hair with a sigh. Staring at himself in his bedroom mirror as he buttoned his shirt over the scars on his chest and abdomen.

They were a constant reminder of the attack that killed his senseI and squadmate, possibly squadmates. His first month or so after the attack was healing up from his injuries. Then he began dealing with the internal strife and realization he didn't feel ready to go out on missions with a new squad. He wasn't ready to move on. However, he did need to keep moving for himself and his squad. So he instead stayed in the village, helping the efforts to rebuild.

At times when his help wasn't needed he would be found training copiously. His harshness with himself extreme. He pushed for more at every opportunity, whether it was his Taijutsu or his Ninjutsu or just his overall health and strength. Between his training, the physical demands of rebuilding and manual labor, and the start of his growth spurt he looked very different from the round faced, scrawny Genin from before. The doctor said this was just the start of his growth too! Which was good news as small as Moku had been.

He strapped his weapons belt on and looked himself up and down in the mirror. He nodded at his reflection with approval. He grabbed the pair of letters off his desk and stuffed them in his pocket. One was from his new sense I in squad 7, informing him to be ready at the village gate today for his first mission as a squad. The second was from one of his new squadmates asking to meet and spar before so they could get to know each other's fighting style. Unfortunately he'd been out at the time it arrived, and by the time he received it and etched the meeting location the battle had ended d they had left. He was admittedly bummed he didn't get to flex his justu muscles in a sparring match, but figured he'd get the chance again during the mission.

He quickly made the handsigns for his Shatter Clone technique and with a glimmer a look alike appeared before him. "Alright clone me! You go downstairs and tell mom and sis goodbye for me. I'm hopping out the window and heading for the gate quick as possible!" His clone nodded in assent and headed downstairs. Meanwhile, Moku opened his window and hopped to the ground floor with a huff of expelled breath upon landing. He dusted himself off out if habit, and saw several eager dogs waiting for him. He smirked and beckoned for them to follow him as he headed for the gate.

The dogs trailed happily beside him, tails wagging anticipatorily. He dug into his deep pockets and pulled out some wrapped jerky. Opening it he began tearing the pieces and tossing the dogs bits of it one at a time. He stopped to throw the wrapping away when he ran out. The dogs nudged against him, coaxing a few pets from him before they went on their way as he reached the gate.

Looking around, he spotted a familiar face. If he remembered correctly it was Tsukiashi. He remembered the Inuzuka girl from the Academy. They'd butted heads a time or two due to their brash natures, but that was the full extent of their interaction. The other girl, Sei he assumed, he couldn't quite place. Perhaps she was more the shy type and they hadn't asked because of it.

He walked over with his exuberant energy barely contained. In fact, it became impossible to contain it all upon realizing that he now had a couple inches over Ashi, whereas he was several inches shorter in school. He let out some of the exuberance in his greeting. "Good morning! Name's Moku Ozaki!" He gave a lopsided grin to the girls as he introduced himself. With the bandages and bruises it might have looked more intimidating than he intended. It may have taken him some time to be ready to go out again, but boy was he ready now!

 

[Ganryu]

Umichi still laid across the village gate watching her team, raising an eyebrow. She hadn't moved the entire time. She might have dozed off once or twice, but she had been there. Then again, she was the one with her students' files, not the other way around, so forgivable if they didn't notice. It was entertaining to watch, though Ashi made her flinch. It was Kiyoshi all over again.

"The jerk who gave us the letter isn't here yet? Hmmph, what did it mean by 'I'd try stealthy but Ashi' comment? Are they look'in to get pummeled in the face trying to mock me or some'in?"

With a sigh, Umichi then formed a mischevious smile. Deja vu. With a series of handsigns, water would start to form under Ashi, then fire upwards like a cannon with a geyser spraying the other two.

Water Release: Great Geyser

Without even getting up, Umichi waved at Ashi at the height of her ride.

"Face is up here, pretty, if you want to 'pummel' it. If your an Inuzuka, try to remember the smell. Well, tell gravity hi for me."

However Ashi wanted to get out of it was up to her. Umichi supposed Ashi was likely skilled enough to get out of it unlike her last student. With a yawn, Umichi fanned herself with a fan, then snapped it shut pointing it at the rest of her team.

"Well, hello there. I'm Umichi, your sensei. Heads up, I'm a horrible sensei. I killed my entire previous team. That said, the Hokage asked me to, and he was my sensei. Whatever help you want, I'll be around for. Anyways, let's get a move on."

With a jump down, Umichi landed by her team.

She looked across those she had. Ashi, wild as her description said. Sei seemed in line. The last one, Moku was covered in bandages. Umichi sighed and turned to him.

"Either you have an odd sense of fashion, or your training the wrong way. Heads up, every new bandage I see you with, I'm going to add to. I don't like my students getting hurt."

She then walked forward motioning for the rest of them to follow.

"Well, why don't you tell me a bit about yourselves while we move. We got half a day's walk, might as well talk. As far as me, I'm a water specialist, specifically with blood seals. Looking at your profiles, I'm closest to Sei in fighting it looks like. My sensei was the Hokage, not that it too much matters. I don't have any teammates after that idiot Senju died in the Mist attack. I'm not part of a clan if you ask, my parents run a shrine. You could say I'm fairly religious I suppose."

 

[Kimiwriter]

Sei Teshima

Sei smiled as Ashi stumbled over her words. At least she wasn't the only one who felt awkward speaking to others. "I'm doing well. How about you? I hope the sedative wasn't too strong."

When Moku arrived and introduced himself, Sei gave a slight bow. Some of her grandmother's strict habits were hard to break.

Suddenly water lifted Ashi from the ground and a new voice interrupted their introductions. Sei grabbed a kunai and prepared for a fight . . . only to blink in surprise as Umichi identified herself as their sensei. And she thought Koma was an odd sensei. No, that's not fair. Koma is odder. Letting herself relax, Sei grabbed her pack and bent to pick up Kuro.

"You could've told me she was there," she hissed.

"I'm not your babyssitter." The snake wound himself up her arm and lay across her shoulders. He was getting bigger and heavier.

Rolling her eyes at him, Sei fell in step with the others as they followed Umichi from the gate.

"I'm Sei and this is Kuro." Might as well start things off and get it over with. "I'm from the Teshima clan; we create medicines for the hospital, but I prefer poisons to medicine." She sounded cruel when she said it that way. "I'm also decent at genjutsu. Koma was my sensei until . . . the arena."