Assemble! Kurisu Leads a Squad

Following the day Ari learned Evening Elephant and posted a public scroll up for participants to join her on a mission, she headed to the notice board to check who signed on for today. The sky was cloudy and it was likely to rain in a few hours, possibly during their mission. At least this would provide water for anybody that may have joined them with an affinity for Suiton. Ari had taken the appearance she normally assumed before exiting the house. She wasn't sure how the team would react to her, if they would have any reaction whatsoever. There were stranger things to see in Konoha. More concerning than this was whether or not everybody who signed their name on the scroll was serious; it wasn't uncommon for pranksters to sign their names to the public notice board and not show up.
 
Merely turning up at the meeting place, which was a small ice cream bar near the gates, would alleviate these concerns soon enough. Not much activity was happening in the village, an event had taken place yesterday that left everybody on guard; there was no telling how this might impact their mission. Ari arrived at the meeting place first, having left her house while the sun was still rising. The bar wasn't open but that wasn't the reason for it being their meeting location. Being so close to the gate meant they could leave shortly after meeting; the ice cream bar was the only one of its kind in this area making it hard to miss. The mission had already been smoothed over with the Hokage; Ari had permission for the team she assembled to leave whenever they were ready.
 
Not knowing anything about the people joining her apart from the names they signed on with, she wasn't sure whether their names were all sincere or if any had used aliases. Only assumptions could be made at this point until they showed up and introduced themselves. For each one that appeared Ari would introduce herself by her first name only, with the simple gesture of a smile. Bodily contact wasn't required in the form of handshakes or hugs, but; if either was offered she wouldn't refuse them. There weren't any chairs to sit on, merely wall surfaces to lean on. The ice cream bar had a sign reading "Do Not Lean." It would seem they knew seating was an issue and perhaps customers leaning on the walls provided a bad image for their business.
 
As such, Ari respected their wishes and stood one meter away from the ice cream bar from the moment she arrived; she wouldn't move any closer while the other participants showed up. One thing of note was that Kurisu signed on as team leader. Ari knew a team leader wasn't required to carry on with their mission; whether or not he showed up wouldn't be an issue. However they did need three Genin in total before leaving. If one of the Genin didn't show up they'd have to ask passing residents if they had any interest; not the most efficient method, but there weren't many approaches they could take. Shouting it from the roof tops would likely result in being followed by unwanted scum.
 
If nobody turned up at the meeting place before the ice cream bar opened, Ari would grab one bar with 'Mint Choco' written on the wrapper. This action would still take place if everybody hadn't turned up by the same time, however; she would offer everybody that turned up so far an ice cream while buying hers. Rain would begin to fall one hour after the ice cream bar opened whether or not they had left the village by then. After everyone assembled in front of the ice cream bar, the Jounin they were tasked to protect would emerge from it. This was the secret reason for their meeting at the bar, as nobody would expect the Jounin to be hiding inside.
 
Ari tipped the owner with one hundred Ryo for assisting them and prepared to leave. The Jounin would follow their team leader's example; assuming Kurisu showed up, he would be leading them. Otherwise it would be up to one of the Genin to pick up the slack. From there, they would set out for the Daimyo. It was a fair distance away and Ari had a bad feeling about this mission going smoothly. Hoping to get on with it so they might go unabated, she patted the Jounin's shoulder and gave him a thumbs-up with her right hand. Smiling as a child would, even though her maturity far out weighed that of a Genin.
 
Some comfort was taken by Ari in the knowledge that Kurisu could interfere if something happened; though she hoped he'd give them a chance before doing anything rash. This was a test after all, if Ari couldn't rely on her abilities and those of her team, she wasn't fit to be a Chuunin. Even with the exceptional progress she'd made over the past few days, she wasn't certain of herself in a dangerous situation. Ari was most proficient when facing adversity, exercising her ability for strategy had shown another side of herself during the match against Kurisu's clone. Taking comfort in the achievements she'd made, Ari switched her focus back to the mission and specifically the Jounin.
 
Most Genin weren't capable of detecting very stealthy attacks; their abilities weren't honed for such things. However, the Jounin himself had reached a goal they all hoped to accomplish someday. If someone attacked he would most likely be the first to notice. Relying on their escort target's abilities as a shinobi that had been promoted to a level far beyond them was crucial. Ari kept her senses sharp, but she made sure to pay attention for anything the Jounin had to say. It would only take an hour for them to go beyond Konoha's reach, where they would have to depend entirely upon their own abilities.
 

This was going to be a very interesting day for Kurisu, once a Raikage who had not dealt with a mission in years. He had agreed to lead a team on a simple escort mission and maybe even catch up on some sleep at the same time. He wasn't sure which was more surprising, the fact that even without a true rank in Konohagakure no Sato yet he was still able to lead this mission or the fact that he was even leading the team in the first place. Of course the main reason he'd even entertained this idea was because of Ari being on the team doing the mission, the last thing he needed was to lose someone else. 

He arrived at the meeting spot just as everyone was getting ready to head out, taking notice of the Jounin, the other genin, and then Ari. With that they left to embark on the greatest and easiest adventure of all time, at least that's what Kurisu kept telling himself to stay moderately interested. They had traveled for a little while without any conversations or words, though he could tell they were being stalked by some other people and ten of them were so weak he had to keep from laughing. Aside from the tiny people there were three who had some more chakra to them, but the one he actually acknowledged to a degree was the leader of whoever it was that was stalking them. Kurisu could have said something but he decided to just wait and see what would happen to make things interesting.

Before long the Jounin they were holding hostage, or something like that, noticed the weak people but seemed concerned. 'Boring.' was all he could think at the thought of getting involved, especially when he saw eight midgets with swords come into vision, at least it might be fun to watch. The genin who's name he never asked for seemed to be coherent enough to deal with the four weakling midgets that attacked even if they were immensely stupid, the other half of the midget weaklings seemed to turn the attention on the rest of the group. He took a step back and let Ari handle the rest on her own, obviously if anyone ended up in trouble he'd step in but it didn't seem like that would be a concern this early in the amazing journey they had started to find the home of the Jounin, or maybe they were taking him to some new lands, no that's right it was just a boring escort mission. It had been a while since he had drank, pulling out a bottle of Jack Daniels he began to drink from it and watch the show.

The four midgets that had come to Ari attempted to surround her and being that they were incredibly stupid and weak they just swung their swords almost aimlessly at Ari from the front and sides but not behind. Even if it was counterproductive and weak, swords are swords and can still do damage if allowed. Not long after this began, the other genin seemed to take out one more midget with another rushing at Ari from her left side and of course planned to use its sword at the attack.

Assuming all of the idiots were dealt with, three more slightly taller midgets blocked the path that the strongest team of all time had been walking down. The three seemed more coordinated than the smaller ones but nonetheless Kurisu was completely unimpressed, especially when they started pulling out kunai and throwing them, resulting in ten kunai flying at the unknown genin who had dealt with some of the earlier midgets, ten kunai flying at Ari, and finally ten flew at the Jounin. The kunai would not all be traveling at the same time, obviously being thrown one after another. Kurisu wondered if he was invisible, his Raijin armor being summoned onto his body as he stood in front of the Jounin and casually tanked the kunai, each one harmlessly bouncing off his armor without leaving a single mark. If either Ari or the other genin have trouble with the kunai then obviously Kurisu steps in to help, otherwise he'd just continue to watch things happen and relax. 

[3177/8000]

Being confronted by the enemy where they stood wasn't surprising; the setting they'd walked into was perfect for an ambush. At first a sizable group of eight stepped out although none looked too imposing. Ari believed she was strong enough to deal with them but they split up to attack anyway, taking note that four aimed for the other Genin while the other half approached her. Kurisu seemed to be taking a seat back which was fine since it allowed Ari to prove herself. For some reason the four assaulting her seemed to have far less coordinated attacks; aimlessly swinging at her from four directions.
 
This was of course a plot as the center pair suddenly jumped over Ari, the other two continued with horizontal swings while the top pair swung in a vertical line aiming to cut off all chances of escaping. Dropping to her knees and rolling to the right provided the escape she needed, as the blades barely skimmed her clothing. Even though they had some coordination, these four seemed to be little more than brutes. Ari figured there had to be someone behind the shadows and decided it would be best to keep her talents hidden. Pouncing onto the thug she'd decided to roll beside by moving right, she slid her left arm around his neck and wrapped her right over his shoulder before pinning his right arm.
 
The position strained his arm and caused him to immediately drop his blade, with his body blocking Ari from further attacks by the other three. Without wasting a moment she pressed her right leg into his lower back and knocked him forwards into the other three. The two at the front braced their companion's impact while Ari charged in and shoulder barged the same one. All three ended up falling together on the ground, while she held back some strength to keep them alive. Whether or not they were important there would be questions and they might have had family. The last thug standing behind his briefly incapacitated allies attempted one last swing.
 
Ari slid her feet along the ground and pressed her back into his chest, bracing his right arm that swung the blade with both of her hands before raising his body and slamming him down back first. Due to the position, he ended up crashing into his three companions. The impact of Ari's throw was powerful enough to incapacitate them more than just briefly as they lost consciousness. At the last moment one more approached from the side which was met with excessive force; Ari threw her body into an aerial spin horizontally before slamming her right palm into his face, plummeting him head first into the dirt where he would remain for a few hours.
 
With the five thugs that attacked her unconscious on the ground she could focus on the new events occurring. Three, somewhat more experienced thugs prepared a ranged assault. Unaware of their abilities and without a plan in mind to deal with them, Ari's head turned to face the other Genin briefly. The three new arrivals seemed to target him first with ten kunai sent his way. Using this small window of opportunity, Ari performed the Taijutsu Style: Shunshin. Moving at a speed of 152, to the naked eye of these Chuunin it would appear as if she vanished and materialized beside them.
 
There was a chance for a combination attack here, assuming the other Genin avoided their kunai assault. Instead of outright attacking the three Ari chose to perform the Leaf Gale. A technique which had her right foot sweeping beneath all three that chose to stand together on this slender path. With a movement speed of 100 the three would barely have enough time to react with 10 RT above, although it was very unlikely to save them. This maneuver was Ari's first choice in order to temporarily distract and throw off their balance, opening the door for Ita to attack and go unabated.
 
If the Leaf Gale didn't seem like her best option she'd have to switch tactics very quickly; it was quite likely their ankles would be sprained if she hit all of them, but given the options it was more likely they'd jump and make themselves vulnerable. Assuming that was their course of action, Ari would immediately roll aside and plan her next move alongside the actions Ita had chosen to take. However, if Leaf Gale hit its target and had one or more of them falling over, she would grab the nearest one by the neck of their jacket and using her strength, begin spinning their whole body above her head from it with one arm.

If one of the other thugs attempted to attack her during this process, she would toss the one she held into them head first and aimed at their chest. Without interference, Ari would merely release the held thug and allow his body to collide with a nearby tree. Either way the one she grabbed in this scenario of events wouldn’t be waking up for a few days at most. If required she would move out of Ita's way after using Leaf Gale and keep an eye on him encase she had to step in. Seeing the destructive force of his Jutsu was enough to know she didn't want to impede their path.

Even though killing men such as these wasn't worthwhile and they likely had families to feed, Ari just wanted to get the mission over with to ensure their escort client's safety. Minimal effort had been required thus far, leading her to assume a false sense of security momentarily. While concerns that these three before them still didn't seem like the type to lead a group kept her sharp. At this point, confirmation of the Chuunin level thugs' downfall wasn't certain and events still had to play out before Ari's next move. The Jounin was directly under Kurisu's protection last she checked, meaning his safety could not be questioned.

Ari to this point had successfully minimized the amount of techniques she used, possibly leaving the opportunity for her to take the Jounin off guard whenever he showed up. She wasn't aware of his existence while fighting the Genin and Chuunin level thugs, but still felt like a leader was yet to reveal themselves.

(Going to be gone a few days bc im visiting my girlfriend in south carolina till monday ill post tomorrow night sorry for the inconvenience )

Ita assumed his position in front of his comrades standing just about 2 meters in front of Ari and a few more meters away from their squad leader, along with the shinobi they were escorting. While walking away from the lifeless bodies he had produced, the boy thought he may have over done it. It had been sometime since Ita had actually engaged in contact with an enemy and he had gotten ahead of himself. After peering over at the results of Ari’s interaction with them, Ita concluded that they were mostly just knocked out and not dead, or at least he thought so. Was this a sign of weakness or did it say something more about Ita than anything? He wondered how his comrades would perceive him after dealing with such weaklings in a horrific manner, relieving them of their worthless lives. In conclusion, Ita figured he was doing them a favor; considering their circumstances and why they actually died, they basically were asking for it. Ita figured next time he would do it in a more clean manner, even if he had to kill them, he would go about it in a more swift, elegant manner; unlike the savagery he had just committed.
 
Ita was now standing in front of the group. In their way now stood 3 more thugs who appeared to be dressed slightly difference and appeared to be a bit stronger. Ita now took some caution as he was still a boy and would want to refrain from damaging his body. He still had a lot to learn, but instead of turning from the challenge, Ita fully embraced it. Ita’s keen eye sight picked up on the firsts movement of one of the thugs to the left of them reaching for his weapon pouch. Instantly, Ita felt Ari’s disappearance and the first thug produced a kunai towards the group. Ari had now disappeared and reappeared in front of the three thugs and a kunai was flying through the air towards Ita and the rest the remaining squad. Assuming their squad leader would simply divert the direction of the kunai or effortlessly deal with it, giving Ita time to create an attack to follow up on the opening Ari had created, Ita shunshined, disappearing in a blur of speed of 150 and reappearing behind the three thugs. Ari sweep kick had made contact with two of the three grunts knocking them off balance. The one that had thrown the first kunai was able to secure another kunai prior to him jumping and dodging Ari’s first kick, barely, but he was not safe yet. Unaware of Ita’s presence, Ita moved at full speed, thrusting his fist towards the right wrist of the grunt who’s hand was tightly griping the kunai. Ita figured he would disarm the grunt before he hurt himself or someone else. Upon making contact with the side of the man’s wrist, his hand released his grip on the kunai and it began to fall to the ground. Directly after Ita made connection with the wrist of the grunt, he used his left hand to grip the cloth of the back of whatever shirt he was wearing and began to pull him back towards the ground, out of the air.  In the same motion, Ita would have grabbed the falling kunai with his right hand, snatching it out of the air. The boy then quickly, in one whole motion, brought his right hand now bearing the kunai which was clenched in his fist in a downward position, around the grunts body and allowed it to impale the right side of his chest. The position Ita had allowed the kunai to enter the grunts body was below the heart and between the rib cage, avoiding any vital spots and giving the grunt a second chance at life if he so had the will to continue to live, although for the time being, Ita wanted to make sure he wasn’t going to interfere any longer with their affairs so he allowed raition to cover the kunai once more, driving the kunai deeper in the wound and paralyzing the man’s body. Ita released his grip with his left hand and allowed for the grunts body to fall promptly to the floor, making a ‘thud’ sound as it made contact. As he fell, Ita also retracted the kunai which was now flowing with raition from the man’s chest and was getting ready to deal with the next grunt.


Assuming Ari had taking care of at least of of the three grunts or was getting to it, to his surprise, Ari was able to assess the situation and saw Ita had already taken care of one of them and had now sent one flying in his direction, falling backwards towards him due to whatever force of nature Ari had presented upon him, whether it was her simply throwing him around, striking him, or knocking the other into him, this poor fellow was now hurdling towards a ninja who was not having such a great day and was ready to take full advantage of this opportunity. Up until now Ita had not worked in unison with someone else and Ari and him were doing just fine. The boy simply stood straight and allowed for the stumbling idiot to fall back first into his kunai which was laced with raition chakra. The increased sharpness of the kunai allowed for it to penetrate the thugs skin in the middle of his back without any effort from Ita, he simply stood and allowed it to pierce him making Ita look someone cool, calm, and collective as though he knew that was going to be the outcome. Ita allowed his chakra to flow through the grunt and numb his body before pulling the kunai out. Blood splattered and got a little on his sleeve which irritated Ita. As he pulled the kunai from his body, the grunt fell forwards towards Ari, giving her the option to either finish him off or let him fall face down unconscious. Ita assumed that after her previous actions concerning the weaker grunts, she would not act and probably hoped to spare this one’s life. As he landed, Ita merely dropped the grunts kunai towards his body, not in an attempt to wound him, but just to return it.


Assuming that Ari had taken care of the last grunt and that Ita had taken care of these two and that the shinobi which they were escorting, along with their team leader were quiet alright; Ita couldn’t help but feel as though their fun was not over, Ita looked down as the grunt whom Ita had impaled his chest and he seemed to be breathing still. Ita made eye contact with him and asked in a stern, yet childish voice, “Is there anyone else.” Upon inquiring, the grunt simply coughed blood and refused to answer. His refusal was enough for Ita and he refrained from harming him anymore. Most likely there was at least one more due to his refusal to respond. Also, if there was no one else to come; Ita figured the grunt would simply play dead and wait for the konoha shinobi to leave before trying to save his life and his fallen comrades or at least accept his own death. Regardless, Ita did not let his guard down but instead turned to Ari and spoke once more, “Ari, I have reason to believe there could be one more, don’t let your guard down.”
 

While Ari and Ita seemed to be taking care of the three tall midgets with relative ease, Kurisu was growing more and more uninterested in the entire situation. Looking around, while the Jounin they were escorting stared at the fighting shocked, Kurisu would see a small beat up book partly covered by dirt on the ground. 'The Art of Peace' was the title he could see, maybe it'd help him pass some time without being completely bored. Opening it up he'd began to start reading unaware of the life changing effect that the words in the book would have on him. With that he'd focus on reading, waiting for the stronger power to show up.

[Request for the da NPC; Not sure on WC will count and edit in later xD Sorry for the shitty bad lazy post.]

(ooc: making sure I am still permitted to post here because I was originally suposed to be part of this mission but I had some serious issues concerning my family members come up and I had to take care of them. Since Kurisu is an admin I know it is his decision. Now I have typed up a 600 word post but I want to make sure I am allowed before I post.)

(You can join since you were in the participants at the start. I would say however that since you are later you have to do your post where you are late to fit the setting. I will be posting me NPCing the Jounin in a bit :DD)

Okay I will make some edits and post it tomorrow, 2 of my kids just woke up sick or I would do it now.