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* * *
11,300 / 18,000 Until level 8.
A surprisingly good side-effect of Danzo's armed insurrection being so pathetic was that the lock down didn't last very long.
Lock downs were used in case of attack by enemy shinobi. If you couldn't get to a designated civilian shelter, you stuck in your homes. If you were a Genin, it was your duty to fortify your home so that any enemies that came by would lose numbers; an enemy army that swept in would slowly be grated like cheese through the endless sea of traps and hidden attacks.
Once lock down was lifted, you had to report to a Jounin in charge of taking inventory of the damages of your block or district. They weren't going to come find you, because the village would be a minefield. Once that was done, you could return to your every day life.
Since the lock down lifted, we had a surge of D-Rank missions, mostly centered around reconstruction. There were as good a source of EXP as ever, but I was hoping to be level 8 by now. At 1 to 2k a pop, they aren't going to scale well when it takes 50,000 exp to level up.
To my annoyance, though, we weren't even doing a mission today. Instead, we were training.
Or going to train. Kakashi was late, as usual.
We were told to meet at the posts of training ground. Hisako was leaning against one of the wooden posts in the ground, idly twirling her kunai on her fingers out of boredom. Nichiren had the right idea, though, and had used his ninja wire to string up a hammock in between a pair of pine trees. Standing beneath the shade of one of those trees was Anko, who kept watch for threats.
I don't think she's going to be on the payroll for much longer, honestly. S-rank missions are expensive and she's being consistently paid to do nothing.
For me, I was sitting on the ground, going through my little notebook and trying to optimize my late game since I've got my early levels on lock. It occurred to me that I haven't really hit up any civilian bookstores. Sure, I seriously doubted they'd have anything on Chakra Control or Ninjutsu, but Medicine, Survival, Barter? Speech?
I need those skills too.
"Hey, he's here," Nichiren said, pointing across the way from his hammock.
As he got busy disassembling his improvised spiderweb, Hisako and I stood up. Kakashi-sensei at least had the decency to look sheepish. "Hey, sorry everyone. There was a long line at the grocery store and their sale was going to end at noon today."
Hisako growled in annoyance.
"You know, that is actually the most plausible excuse he's given us yet," I said, standing up.
"These dumb excuses," Hisako grit through her teeth. "Should at least send us a clone. If he cares at all!"
Charisma Check Success: 7 / 7.
She's been planning this.
"I don't need to send you a clone," Kakashi replied with an eye-smile. "Thanks to Daisuke, you all know I'm going to be late anyway."
Hey now...
Hisako looked apoplectic, red faced and I could easily picture steam coming out of her ears in frustration. She began sputtering her spicy rebuke. "Us knowing about it, that doesn't make it okay!"
"That one didn't have a kigo," Anko replied with a smirk.
"She says you don't need a third line for it to count," I supplied, impressed that she caught on to Hisako's character tic.
"Ah." Anko nodded.
"Might as well be late," Hisako sarcastically continued, her eye twitching. "Manners are draconian! No harm, no foul, right?"
"Precisely," Kakashi replied, still eye smiling. "But seriously, we should get started before we waste any more time."
Hisako spun on her heels in a huff and walked to join Nichiren and I in our trio.
"Now, this time we're doing something special," Kakashi said, completely unconcerned by Hisako's outburst.
Charisma Check Success: 7 / 7.
Call it a hunch, but he's going to talk it out with her later.
"Now, Nichiren, if you'll demonstrate what you've been working on on your own time?" Kakashi-sensei instructed.
"Sure!" Nichiren said, bringing his hands together in a Ram Seal. Then...he walked up the post.
"Nice!" I said with a grin. "Good job! Where did you learn that?"
"The Genin level of the library had a scroll on it," Nichiren replied, scratching the back of his head with a proud yet bashful smile on his face. "I've been working on it since that fiasco with the house."
"That's awesome!" Hisako said, giving him a thumbs up. "Great job!"
"And that brings us to today's training," Kakashi said with an eye-smile. "Water-walking."
Wait, what?
"Ooh!" Hisako brought her hands together, puppy dog eyes shining brightly.
"That's going to be cool," Nichiren said, eyes also shining.
Water walking.
As in, walking on...lakes?
Lakes with imperceptible depths that might have things living in them?
Large things that can swallow a man whole?
"Now, if you'll all follow me to the shore," Kakashi said, beckoning all of us...to the lake.
Yeah, that lake.
Sure, it's waters gleamed and shined with the light of the sun above, providing a tranquil, picturesque scene that betrayed how terrible the things that might lurk beneath the surface are.
I mentally sighed.
Yes, I knew that neither Cthulhu or his cousin, The Kraken lived in the depths of the lake of Training Ground 3. Intellectually. But I couldn't see to the bottom and that means that the voice that piped up in the back of my head made sure that I was perfectly aware that I couldn't confirm it with my own two eyes.
Plus, I'm a video game character. Might not be true for my game but our kind has a long, storied and exasperatedly stupid history of dying in water. Super drowning skills, they called it in my old world.
So we got to the shore and Hisako hurriedly shed her jacket and shirt, leaving only a black sports bra on her chest and conflicted feelings in me. Shedding her pants and tabi sandals left a pair of sport panties. Nichiren stripped to his boxers and I left my clothes on, thank you very much. I was not getting wet.
"Water surface walking is more difficult than tree walking," Kakashi started, making a Ram Seal with his fingers. "Just because water is a liquid, it makes for a more delicate balance to walk across than a tree. You must maintain a constant repelling force to remain above the surface of the water. If you give too little chakra, you'll sink. If you give too much, you'll sink. Any questions?"
We all shook our heads.
"Begin!"
I mentally sighed, and looked into the depths of the gross water filled with fish droppings, fish and who knows what swimming along the bottom waiting to devour my soul. Hisako and Nichiren took off at a run, channeling chakra and making it all of two steps into the water before sinking below the surface.
Couldn't chicken out, Anko and Hisako were watching. If I did, they'd worry about me and that idea was multiple shades of uncomfortable.
So, I took a breath. Rolling my shoulders, I sent chakra to my feet and did my best to appear nonchalant as I walked across the surface of the water.
Charisma Check Failure: 7 / 8.
Shut up, game.
Chakra Control Check Success: 80 / 25.
Only a twenty five? Really? Well, I guess if Genin are supposed to be able to do this, that makes sense. Figured it'd be higher to prevent a specialist like me from unlocking all the cool toys.
"Hey, Daisuke's already got it!" Nichiren said, stopping his swim to shore to point at me.
"Of course he does!" Hisako said with a grin that made me think that this wasn't really too bad. "He's Daisuke!"
"Well," I began, scratching the back of my head. "I try."
"Nice work, Daisuke-kun!" Kakashi-sensei called from the shore. "Try doing some Taijutsu Kata since you're already out there!"
Man, really? "Yes, Sensei!"
Charisma Check Failure: 7 / 8.
I went through a basic rotation. Hisako and Nichiren charged forward again and found themselves plunging beneath the surface. With a glance, I made sure neither Hisako or Nichiren thought it'd be a good idea to try to pull me beneath the surface to join them. Thankfully, they were both completely professional and swam back to shore to try again.
Need to bring towels, if there's a next time.
When I was finished with my rotation, I called across the shore. "Kakashi-sensei, can I come to shore now?"
Kakashi blinked. "Yes."
I body flickered to shore, causing a massive riptide of water to shoot out like a geyser behind me. Safely back on dry land once again, I sat down with my legs crossed.
Much better.
"Is there a problem, Daisuke-kun?" Kakashi asked, looking down at the lake. I could see Hisako and Nichiren looking at me with confusion.
Well, nothing for it I suppose. "I just...don't like large bodies of water. Can't see the bottom, so anything could be swimming down there, you know?"
Kakashi hummed. "We're going to have to work on that."
I blinked. "I can operate on the water just fine. Apparently. I'd just rather not."
"But if you get a mission to the Land of Water," Kakashi pointed out. "A fear of water would be...problematic, wouldn't you agree?"
I grunted and turned back to the lake, where Hisako and Nichiren were going for another pass. Wasn't sure they'd get water walking today, but Nichiren's already surprised me with tree walking so who knows?
* * *
Bum-bum-bum-Bum!
Level 8!
About time.
I put all 17 points into Fuinjutsu, bringing it up to 65. Then Fuinjutsu Enthusiast for the perk, like I planned. Nice!
Level 9 will bring my seals up to 80 and then that's two points that'll go toward Medicine, bringing it to 29. The sooner I can get to genetic tampering and thus, permanent stat boosts, the better.
Just more D-ranks and more training. Literally nothing of note happened. In a way, I was surprised that Kakashi hadn't pressed me on my fear of water; then again, I think he might have put that on the back burner to focus on Hisako and Nichiren.
Anko was my ever present shadow, something that I realized grated on Hisako's nerves, but she eventually grew tolerant. I realized that her issue is that she has a crush on me and Anko might have been a threat to her romantic interest.
...I'm going to have to think about that issue later. One problem at a time.
Speaking of genetic tampering, I wish I could've asked Anko about it. I'm not going to because I'm mostly sure that Orochimaru and her past with him is probably a sore topic and not something I can ask about without throwing up a bunch of red flags and getting hauled back off to the Hokage's office.
I narrowly escaped death the last time, I'm not going to test my luck twice.
...that means that I'm going to have to actually perform my tampering away from Anko. Either late at night, or outside of the village entirely. Better to ask for forgiveness than permission, eh?
At least, I hope.
"Hey, Anko?" I started, turning from my little black book to face her. "You said you had a few books on Jutsu?"
"I did," Anko said, snapping her fingers and pointing at me. "Actually, it's almost time for lunch, you want to come over to my apartment and I can fix you something? We can pick them up over there."
"That'd be great," I replied with a grin. "Once we're done there, we'll head to the book store."
"Which one?" Anko asked with a light smirk. "Behind you."
I turned in place and circled around a lamppost before turning back to face her. "Thanks. And...actually, I don't know. I want to see if there's some books on Medicine I can buy."
"What, like Medical Jutsu?" Anko asked with an arched eyebrow.
"Nah, just Medicine in general," I said with a shrug. "I need more skills than just Jutsu, you know."
"That is true," Anko replied with a nod.
"Besides, when I'm done with them, I can give them to Nichiren since he wants to be a Field Medic," I said, turning forward to avoid almost running into something.
"I'm on the left," Anko directed.
Anko's apartment was on the second story of a complex, up a set of stairs and directly to the right. Once we got there, Anko flashed a set of silver keys and let us in. She rather insistently gestured for me to go inside first and I obliged.
After all, bodyguard, even if I did want to let the lady in first.
The apartment was small. It let in to a small great room with a kitchen table and mats right off the stove and counter space. Her sitting room had a table with kneeling mats around it, as well as a couch leaning against the right-most wall. Next to it was a three-shelve high book case. Halfway from the entrance was a hallway going left, where I assumed the bathroom bedroom would be placed.
"Welcome to my humble abode," Anko said cheerily, walking past me into the kitchen. "Go ahead and have a seat wherever, I'll have lunch ready shortly. Books are on the shelf, help yourself!"
"Thanks," I said with a grin, making sure to remove my sandals before stepping onto the carpet once I saw that she had removed hers. Over to the book case, I noted that not only were the books inside filling the shelves to the brim, there were books stacked on top of rows because no more room otherwise.
Finer Points: Chakra Control for the Discerning Shinobi.
The Five Elements and You: A Guide to Elemental Chakra Control.
Wait, hold it. These are Chakra control manuals that I haven't read.
I've been sitting at 92 Chakra Control since I graduated, so I am totally borrowing these! I'll have 100 in that skill and then I'm going to throw a party!
Or something.
Look, the point is that I'm going to be perfect at this one thing. As good as I can possibly be. It's definitely worth celebrating.
I was distracted from my ramblings when I heard the stove turn on in the kitchen. That's when I realized that Anko was going to straight up make something. For me.
...huh.
That's really cool of her.
Uh...well...wow.
I blinked owlishly, and stood up, walking over to the kitchen. She was grilling some beef cuts in a pan, as well as cooking some rice on another burner. "May I help at all?"
Charisma Check Success: 7 / 7.
Anko turned to me and blinked owlishly. I noticed that she had shed her coat and was cooking in just her...transparent mesh armor. Wow. "Uh, sure. You can set the table for me. We're just using rice bowls, though."
"Alright," I said, looking around for the bowls.
"That cupboard," Anko helpfully pointed with a small smile. "You don't need to grab the trays if you don't want too."
I opened the cupboard and grabbed the trays anyway. If either of us spilled (by us, I mean me), it'd make the ensuing mess easier to clean up. Fast and efficient.
Setting a table in the Elemental Nations meant trays, which would then house a wide variety of bowls and plates which would contain toppings of various kinds. Such as a plate for that meat that Anko was grilling. "We want plates for the beef?"
She blinked. "You know what, yes. That'd be a great idea. I'm thinking of grilling up some onions with them too, now that I think about it."
"They in the fridge?" I asked, pointing to the white refrigerator against the kitchen wall.
"In the bottom drawer, I think," Anko answered, turning her attention back to the grill.
I opened the fridge and checked the bottom vegetable drawer and, like she said, I found some small, white onions. Nice. I grabbed two and closed the fridge. Placing them on the counter next to the stove, I moved over to the kitchen table, noting that Anko's coat was lying folded next to one of the seats. I placed a mat there, and…
Charisma Check Success: 7 / 6.
A mat right across from her seat so we could look at each other while we talked. It's the little things.
Next came the bowls, then the trays, one in the eleven o'clock position for the beef, the next at twelve o'clock for the onions. Finally, the sets of chopsticks before each bowl.
See, I paid attention in my beginner's infiltration class. High Society is easy to meander with once you know the rules and can tolerate the sheer elitism emanating from the smug, punch-able carcass they call a face.
"Anything else?" I asked with a smile.
Anko blinked and gave an appreciative smile. "No, actually, I think it's almost done. You can have a seat or something and lunch will be ready soon. Thank you so much!"
"You're very welcome," I said with a grin, moving over to the seat.
I could kneel around a table. I didn't prefer it thanks to the Westerner in me growing up, the first time, with chairs. But I could do it. Wasn't even uncomfortable, since I've done it for so long.
After a few minutes of waiting, Anko served lunch. A bowl of rice with beef slices and grilled onions on the side. After a blessing, we started to eat.
"So you graduated from the academy three years early?" Anko asked.
I swallowed the mouthful of rice and beef I had eaten. "That's right. Wasn't put on a team until this year, though. How about you?"
"I graduated after four years like everyone else," Anko replied with a small smile. "I got promoted to Chunin in the same exams as your Sensei, actually."
"No kidding." I gave an intrigued expression, softly nodding. "What was the stunt that got you the promotion? I know they don't just hand it out to anyone."
"Oh, third phase," Anko started, looking wistful. "I was fighting this guy from Grass. He turned the entire arena into a grassy jungle. Blades taller than I am now and they were sharp. It was like a forest of knives."
I hummed in thought, leaning forward while she told her story.
"I could not fight this guy from Grass in the forest of knives, so I tunneled underground and set an army of venomous snakes loose in the arena," Anko replied with a grin. "At the end, he had bite marks all over him and everything was swelling. He looked like a living grapevine."
"You're so smart," I replied with a beaming smile. "Did he die?"
"Nah," Anko shook her head with a grin. "But he sure wanted to!"
We laughed. Anko closed her eyes and stretched her arms out over her head and I...started looking. The way her mesh was transparent around her navel and arms yet became infuriatingly opaque around her sensitive areas was a mystery I demanded to solve. She was athletic, her body flawlessly toned and shapely. She opened her eyes, caught my looking and turned her head with a small smile on her face.
Charisma Check Success: 7 / 7.
With that unspoken permission, my eyes just drank in her body. Her amazing chest, the gap in between her thighs. I could feel my pulse quicken as I thought of what it'd be like to be with her in more intimate circumstances. What it'd be like to have her. Eventually, she turned back toward me and I immediately made eye contact.
"You know you're gorgeous, right?" I asked flatly.
"Well, thank you," Anko said with a wide, toothy grin. "You aren't so bad yourself. Little young, I guess, but you'll grow out of that."
"I'd better," I replied flatly. "If I'm stuck at twelve forever for some reason, I'll go insane."
She chortled. "So, if I could ask..."
"Shoot," I said.
"I read a little bit about your mission inside that mansion," Anko started, looking down at the plate, then at me. "And I was wondering if you'd, well, tell me about it? How you got through it all?"
Leaning forward, I clasped my hands together in front of my mouth. "Well."
I told the story, starting from when I got the text prompt for the named quest. She sputtered in disbelief when Nichiren asked The Forbidden Question and her eyes got wide when I explained the bodies in the attic. She got very quiet as I told about the shifting mansion, the cells and music room. The lab, the tapes. Anko laughed at the name I gave the wallies and then grunted in surprise at the Werecrow being locked in the lab.
Finally, I got to the part where I blew it to pieces. "That was amazing."
"Thank you," I replied with a grin. "Honestly, I was just glad I was able to pull it off. If I hadn't, who knows what would've happened to my teammates."
"I noticed that Hisako likes you," Anko said directly. "Like, really likes you."
Charisma Check Success: 7 / 6.
"She's great, but I'm not really interested in a relationship with her," I immediately stated, hoping to avoid a misunderstanding. "Not right now."
One at a time.
Anko hummed. "Yeah, teammate relationships tend to go down in flames. If you do pursue something there, I'd wait until you're no longer on a team together."
"I'm surprised you aren't trying to dissuade me entirely," I replied with an arched eyebrow.
"Well, you've got a strong new bloodline," Anko pointed out with a shrug. "I assumed you were going to have a harem."
"Ah."
Anko's eyes narrowed with concern. "What's wrong?"
"I haven't quite decided how I feel about that just yet," I answered truthfully.
Look, you don't live in the Elemental Nations long without getting an understanding of harems. Due to the constant Shinobi wars, women outnumbered men four to one, so supply and demand dictated a form of polygyny. A harem works like this; you get your first wife, whose place is assured no matter what and then the rest have to maintain their place by maintaining the Husband and First Wife's good graces. Depending on the Husband and First wife, the Concubines would either be treated as well as the first couple or treated like a stable of harlots.
"Really?" Anko blinked. "What are you conflicted about?"
"Well, I'm not sure I'd be able to keep the girls happy," I replied. "Putting aside all the feelings of envy and jealousy, maintaining a happy relationship takes time. Then you add in the envy and jealousy, political intrigue and it's a recipe for disaster. That's even if you treat them well."
Anko looked taken aback. "Oh."
"I don't know why you wouldn't treat them well, they might as well be members of the family at that point," I said, shrugging. "But then I've read stories about how Concubines poisoned the Husband because of how poorly he treated them."
She hummed in thought.
"So I'm still...thinking about it," I finished lamely. In truth, I wasn't thinking about it at all, because I've got 1 Charisma and being intimate is usually accomplished while naked – meaning I've got no gear on. So at the start I'd be looking like Fabio, she'd close her eyes for a second and then bam! A Weeping Angel's lying on top of her.
It's a funny problem, but a problem nonetheless. "Besides, I got to get my wife first."
"Well," Anko started, looking down. She looked like she was biting her tongue. "I know you'll figure it out. I believe in that large brain of yours."
I felt really warm inside. "Thanks, Anko."
She smiled, happily with her eyes closed.
"Now if I can ask you a question," I asked.
"Yeah, sure." Anko nodded.
"I don't think that body guarding me is the only part of your mission," I began, placing some beef and onions in the rice and using them to stick a clump together. "Otherwise I think your mission would've ended; S-class pay is expensive. So, what else are you supposed to be doing?"
"You're very perceptive, you know that?" Anko rhetorically asked, rubbing her eyes for a brief moment before answering my question. "You're right, guarding you isn't my only mission, I'm supposed to track down and either capture or kill the person who brought you to the village and whoever this 'Man In Green' is."
"And I'm your only lead, so you're sticking to me like glue," I said with a slow nod. "That makes sense."
"I am supposed to keep you safe, though," Anko added quickly, looking worried that she might have offended me in some way. "I'm not lying about that part of my mission. Not that I'd stop guarding you anyway."
Charisma Check Success: 7 / 4.
She's being honest. And I appreciate that.
"Well, if either of them show up, you'd better not think I'm going to stay behind you," I said with a smirk. "We'll take them on together, because I don't want you hurt either."
Anko let out a breath. "I don't think I could stop you, could I?"
"Nope!" I replied with a grin of my own.
She smiled lightly, looking at me with eyes that almost seemed to sparkle. "So...if you aren't thinking about Hisako, is there...I mean, are you seeing anyone right now?"
"You," I replied cheekily.
Charisma Check Success: 7 / 7.
Anko raised her finger to protest, then she got quiet. And pink. "Yeah, I guess we're dating, aren't we?"
"You're absolutely right."
Then we just fell to small talk. Not talking much about anything, but Anko's smile and sparkling eyes told me all I needed to know. As we both finished our bowls, something clicked in her head and she gasped. "I almost forgot! Don't go anywhere, I had something I wanted to give you."
Then she Body Flickered her way down the hall to her room. From the sound of ruffling, she was looking for something. "Now where did I put that thing?"
...you know, while she's doing that, I think I'm going to wash the dishes. Just because she just finished cooking this wonderful meal and I think she'd really appreciate it.
Chakra: 60 / 85.
Chakra strings stacked the dishes, silently, on top of each other and carried them over to the sink. I started the water and grabbed some soap.
Chakra Control Check Success: 92 / 65.
Interesting that my rigid chakra construct took so much control. It was just a dull, spiky chakra glove that could hold onto soap and smear it all over a dirty dish, pulling the leftover food off to wash it down the drain.
Aside from the dishes from our meal, there wasn't any, so my job was over quickly. I placed the last bowl in the drying rack and sent a wave of chakra to push the water from my hands to instantly dry them.
Right as I was unrolling my sleeves, Anko showed up with a book. She looked at the table, then at the dishes in the drying rack, then at me. "Did you just do the dishes?"
"Yup!" I said with a grin. "Figured you'd appreciate it."
"I," She started, blinking rapidly in surprise. "I do appreciate it. Thank you so much! You didn't need to...I mean, thank you. Really."
"You're welcome!" I beamed.
Anko's attention turned to the book in her arms. "This book...was a gift to me from my Sensei. I figured, since you're so interested in learning Fuinjutsu, you might like it. So here. You can have it."
Charisma Check Success: 7 / 7.
This had to have brought up a bunch of bad memories. So I wonder if her giving this to me was also about putting the past behind her? That's fine.
Gingerly, Anko handed me the book. Seals and Tenketsu: A practical look into Chakra-based augmentation.
This book is beyond perfect. I carefully opened it and saw that the margins had been filled with kanji. "You've written all over it."
"Yeah, sorry," Anko said, rubbing the back of her head in embarrassment. "I used to keep all my notes and stuff in the margins so I wouldn't forget."
"What? No, don't be sorry," I told her, looking up with a massive grin. "Marked up books are the best! They've got all sorts of useful anecdotes and clarifications that make the book that much more useful. You are awesome for this and I'll cherish this book."
Anko smiled wide...and leaned forward to kiss me on the cheek.
My face immediately went beet red, I could tell.
* * *
"So, today, I thought my cute little Genin would be ready for a surprise," Kakashi-sensei explained with an eye-smile.
If this is the part where he addresses my aquaphobia in detail, I'm going to be upset.
We were standing in the hallway outside the mission desk room. We were the sole occupants of this hallway, save Anko who was leaning against the wall with her hands in her pockets, watching the four of us.
Hisako leaned forward in anticipation. Nichiren adjusted his glasses out of habit.
"We're doing our first C-rank mission," Kakashi announced, producing a mission scroll, helpfully marked with the symbol for C-Rank mission...which was the English letter for C.
...oh, right. English already existed in Naruto. I forgot.
"Ooh!" Hisako bounced up to her feet in excitement.
"Awesome!" Nichiren replied with a grin.
If there ever was a time for something to go horribly wrong in this insane, screwed up world, a Team's first C-Rank is it.
Kakashi's unfurled the scroll and began reading. "Requesting one team of Ninja to escort a wagon for the Soma Shipping Industries. Civilian Supplies will be distributed and gathered at three towns along the way. There will also be a shipment of Kunai and Shuriken that Hidden Grass has purchased from Konoha. We will be guarding the small caravan to the border checkpoint to Hidden Grass, were escort will be taken over by Grass Shinobi. Any questions?"
"How long will we be gone?" Nichiren asked.
"A week, maybe two," Kakashi replied.
"How much survival supplies should we each carry?" Hisako asked. "In case the worst happens?"
"General rule of thumb is three days worth of supplies," Kakashi answered. "You can do more than that, but only carry what you can spare to lose. I've seen Shinobi lose hundreds of thousands of Ryo worth of supplies because their storage scroll got destroyed during a fight or they lost them in a river."
Hisako nodded.
"Any other questions?" Kakashi asked.
I was waiting for the quest notification, so I shook my head.
"Excellent, we'll take the mission," Kakashi said.
Immediately, my team turned to me.
Quest Added: The Eyes Have It!
Rendezvous with the wagon driver.
Optional: Recruit a second Genin Team to provide backup.
I blinked.
"Well?" Kakashi-sensei started, looking at me expectantly.
"It's got a name," I reported, giving them the best translation I could think of for that turn of phrase.
Kakashi repeated the name to himself, then turned to me. "Any objectives?"
"There's meeting with the wagon driver," I continued, going from memory as the quest notification disappeared from my sight. "And an optional objective to recruit a second Genin Team for backup."
"Optional objective?" Nichiren asked, frowning in surprise. "Those are a thing?"
"Those are indeed a thing," I answered.
"Who would be a second Genin team?" Hisako asked rhetorically.
"KAKASHI!"
Speak of the Green Devil, and he shall appear.
Gai-sensei ran up to Kakashi-sensei from down the hall. "Fancy meeting you here, Kakashi!"
"Gai," Kakashi repeated. "It's...nice to see you. I actually need to go talk to the Hokage, so if you could watch my cute little Genin for me, that'd be great."
"Yosh!" Gai gave Kakashi a sparkling thumbs up which still don't understand how it works-
Perception Check Failed: 7 / 8.
Shut up, Game!
...and Kakashi bolted down the hallway.
Gai was slowly followed by his trio of Genin. The first was Tenten, who politely bowed. "Hello, Team 13."
Neji saw me and froze solid for a hot second before bowing himself.
Lee was enthusiastic. "Hello, it is great to see you all! I hope we can have another Tai Jutsu tournament soon to see how we've all improved."
We all returned the bows.
"Yeah, the tournament was fun," I said with a shrug. "Well, fun for me. I don't think Neji appreciated it too much."
Neji froze again, his face going dark.
"Well, I hope that you'll consider training with me," Lee said brightly, giving a thumbs up. "Because the spring time of your youth is the perfect time to hone your edge and be the best that you can be and I know that I can learn a lot from you!"
I blinked and smirked. "As long as we spar without training weights, I'm game."
Lee paused. "W-well, you see, I'm not supposed too…"
Kakashi returned. "Gai, Hokage wants to talk with you too."
Gai looked confused, and his trademark cheer was dampened severely. "Okay. What's this about, Kakashi?"
"I'll explain on the way."
Perception Check Failed: 7 / 10.
The two men pretty much vanished, leaving only a breeze down the hall.
"What is going on?" Neji asked.
"Our first C-rank," Hisako said dourly. "And there's extenuating circumstances that mean it's going to be a problem."
"And you're probably joining us for it," Nichiren replied.
"That would be most youthful!" Lee said with a grin. "But I don't think Gai-sensei believes we're ready for a C-rank just yet."
"We're not even competing in the Chunin exams," Tenten elaborated with a huff. "It's kind of annoying."
"Gai-sensei just wants to make sure he can teach us everything he can before we move on," Lee pointed out with a stern expression. "There is little point to being promoted to Chunin if we're going to compromise a mission because of ignorance."
"I know," Tenten muttered, looking to the side. "I'm just being impatient, I guess."
"It's irrelevant," Neji sniffed. "We will go into the exams when our Sensei says, and not a moment before."
"Of course, Neji-kun," Tenten replied. "You're right."
I shrugged. "A bit of impatience is natural."
"Where are the exams being held this time?" Hisako asked with narrowed eyes.
"Suna," Tenten answered. "Off to compete for clients in the desert heat...maybe it's a good thing we're being held back."
The desert?
Now I've got The Good, The Bad and The Ugly running through my head. Haven't heard that tune in so long.
"Do you think Kakashi-sensei is going to place you three in the exams?" Lee asked brightly.
"Probably," Nichiren said. "He's kind of anxious to be rid of us."
"Well that's rude," Tenten rebuked, placing her hands on her hips.
"No, it makes sense," I added. "Kakashi-sensei's had a full plate since we passed the bell test."
Then Kakashi and Gai reappeared.
"Alright, everyone!" Gai said loudly and brightly. "I've got a surprise for you! Our First C-Rank mission!"
Lee gasped in excitement. "Gai-sensei!"
"Now let's go to Training Ground 3 so we can give you the details," Gai-sensei ordered with great enthusiasm.
…
With the nine of us, Kakashi, Gai, Anko, Hisako, Nichiren, Neji, Lee, Tenten and myself, Training Ground Three felt crowded.
"So! Shimoda-kun here gets premonitions about his missions," Gai said, pointing at me. "Little explanations about what his missions entail. Usually, these missions have boring names. D-Rank, Pull Weeds. C-Rank, Escort Convoy. Etcetera. But today! Today, this C-Rank mission got a special name!"
He recited my translation of the mission name, The Eyes Have It.
"The last time a mission got a name, Team 13 got themselves trapped in a haunted mansion that spit monsters out of the walls," Gai continued, rubbing his chin with his fingers. "So, in the spirit of support, the Hokage has permitted us to share the C-rank!"
Lee was ecstatic.
Hisako fist pumped. "Yes! This is going to be awesome."
"I know!" Tenten replied with a giant grin of her own.
Nichiren adjusted his glasses. Neji simply sat there, emotionless.
"Our goal is simple," Gai continued. "Find out why this mission warranted such a colorful epithet and put a stop to whatever foul machinations would dare trample on the Springtime of our Youth! Any questions!"
Intelligence Check Success: 10 / 6.
I raised my hand.
"Shimoda-kun!" Gai called on me.
"We're stretched too thin to get a proper shinobi team on this, aren't we?" I asked flatly.
Gai immediately looked downcast. "Yes. Yes we are."
"How are we going to explain to the client two Genin teams?" Nichiren piped up. "He only paid for one, didn't he?"
Gai turned to Kakashi.
"We're going to say that the extra protection is courtesy of Konoha," Kakashi explained. "The weapon shipment has to get to where it needs to go and there's been increased bandit traffic on the route. If you can't lie, let the liars talk. Understood?"
Everyone nodded.
"Anyone else?"
No one had any other questions.
"Then that's it," Kakashi said. "Meet us at Konoha's front gate at 0600. Bring three days of traveling supplies, a bedroll and tent. Meeting adjourned.
Quest Updated: The Eyes Have It!
Completed: Optional: Recruit a second Genin Team to provide backup.
Nice.
As the team went off, Anko walked up to me. "Looks like I have the next week or two off."
"Looks like it," I said with a grin. "What're you going to do with all that time?"
"Thinking of purchasing a new tea set," Anko replied. "My old one's starting to break. Maybe when you get back, I can...host a tea ceremony for you?"
"I'd love that," I said, looking into her eyes.
"I'm going to miss you, Daisuke-kun," Anko said with a sad smile.
"I'm going to miss you too," I replied. "Now come on, I gotta go grab some supplies or Kakashi will kill me."
Perception Check Success: 7 / 5.
Hisako had stayed behind to listen, and she was now running back to Konoha at top speed.
...uh oh.
Well, I think I'm going to have to deal with her crush on this mission, aren't I?
* * *
Author's Note: In the previous draft of the story, this quest was called 'The Organ Trail' as I hadn't quite figured out what the main conflict or McGuffin of the quest was supposed to be until the second chapter of that quest. Here, since I know ahead of time what's going on, I can give it a more appropriate name, The Eye's Have It.
Also in the previous draft, I only wrote Lee and Gai once or twice. Writing them here, again, I realized why: I have such a hard time getting Lee and Gai's voice right. They're so eccentric that I have to twist my brain in an uncomfortable fashion just to fathom them. Lee and Gai are difficult for me to write so if they ever come across as OOC, I apologize. I'm trying to avoid turning them into caricatures even though that seems like that's all they are. Sincere caricatures, but caricatures.
Finally, there's the Anko shipping. I realize that Daisuke and Anko are moving somewhat fast. I'm trying to have their relationship grow organically, and I think it would be fairly quick because I feel that Daisuke and Anko have exactly what the other is looking for in a romantic partner. Daisuke is non-judgmental and is willing to hear her. Daisuke needs someone he can bounce ideas off of without being made to feel like he's crazy for having them.
If you're getting sick of the shipping, I plan for her to appear in the next chapter only briefly during the beginning before we have the next few chapters dedicated to Team 13 and Team 9's dynamic.
Thank you all for being so welcoming as I returned to writing. I admit that I was a little nervous people would be throwing my hesitance to write back in my face, but that wasn't the case. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.
Until the next time!
~Fulcon
