Snobby Robbers

Mission Link

Mission Details:

Senshi woke up early that morning, he was excited since today was the day that he would get to conduct his first ever mission with his team. His training with Max-Sempai the day prior had been incredibly beneficial and he felt more than ready to take on whatever task they would be given. He had completed several E and D rank missions not to mention two B rank missions already. He suspected that they would be given a  C Rank mission, considering it would be three relatively experienced Genin, and a Jounin on the mission. At least he hoped that was the case, he hadn’t been able to complete any C rank missions yet.
 
He quickly got dressed, before leaving his house heading to the entrance of the village in order to meet his team. He checked the sun noting that he was rather early for the report time, his excitement having gotten the better of him. The tall, broad shouldered twelve year old landed at the village gates moving off to the side so that he wasn’t in the way of any passer bys. There were very few people out in the area so he stuck out pretty plainly in his black, teal, and orange threaded vest. He had Bastuodosodo on his back, his Danto Suru Danga Tantos clearly visible on his hips. His two weapons pouches blended into his thighs full with not only weapons but also some basic medical materials.
 

Senshi looked like a dangerous weapons specialist with his muscles tensed as he waited for his team to arrive. He was extremely curious as to the mission that they would be going on and he hoped that none of his teammates were late to meeting their Jounin commander. He also hoped that their Jounin didn’t keep them waiting. Senshi was especially interested in asking the man about killing opponent, since he had killed on one of his D ranks and Akihana-Sama had seemed disappointed that he had done so. He wondered what a Jounin of his village would think about it. He pulled his two Tanto’s from their sheaths practicing on switching grips with them. He would occasionally unleash a small pulse of chakra checking the area so that none of his teammates would be able to sneak up on him.

TWC: 384

Reizo quietly got up early in the morning and showered. Today he was supposed to be embarking on his first mission with his team. He hadn't really given it much thought, but it had been a while since he last saw Max or Itami-sensei. He wondered how much stronger Max had gotten- he had already seen that Senshi had improved a ton, and was much stronger than himself. Reizo wanted to better himself too, but he wasn't sure how to go about it. There was so much to learn, but he wanted to take the most efficient path. Sometimes, he wondered, if it would be best to just go out and learn and stop worrying about all the semantics.

Reizo got out of the shower and dried off. He slipped into his new black uniform, which he appropriately paired with his tanto. He hadn't gotten around to getting darker sandals, so he was stuck with his old blue ones for the time being. Reizo tied his headband around his forehead as usual, and packed his bag with water, some leftover sushi, medical bandages, and his two books: The Tale of Naruto Uzumaki, and The Legendary Sannin. He was almost finished with the Sannin book, and was looking to start the other story later today while they were passing the time. There was only so much conversation to be had after all, and he recalled Itami-sensei was not the talkative type.

Reizo strapped his two weapons pouches around his waist and headed out with his backpack. It was still early for the group to get together for the mission, but Reizo knew that Senshi would be there already. It seemed that no matter how early Reizo was, Senshi was always just a bit earlier. Sure enough, as Reizo approached the village gates, he saw the familiar silhouette of the weapons specialist. Reizo didn't make any attempt to hide his presence from his teammate, and casually strolled over to where he was standing. "Good morning, Senshi-kun. Are you all set for the mission? I hear it's supposed to be a C-rank, which means we'll actually be doing some fun stuff," he would say, looking over at Senshi's new toys. "You seem well-equipped. It's pretty cool that you're able to use all of those weapons effectively. I wonder when the others will get here," Reizo pondered, turning and glancing around to see if he could catch sight of either Max or Itami-sensei. Itami seemed to be very prompt, but Max wasn't sure about Max. Maybe the last time he was late was just a fluke.

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Max would find the message at the doorstep of his shack saying where he should meet up with the others for the mission they were supposed to be doing today. It didn’t seem to have any information on what exactly they would be doing, so Max would just place it in his pocket before heading inside and packing up his pals. “I’m going to bring you, and you Stein. Well, that’s it.” Max would say, clearly egging on Napa. The puppet would give the child a fierce glare, clearly annoyed that Max would even consider something like that. “You know as well as I do that you can’t leave me hear. Now quit playing around, we have to meet the others for the mission. And hurry up would you, we don’t have all day!” Napa seemed to be a bit on edge today, though Max wouldn’t know exactly why. Still he would bring the puppet along and try not to intentionally upset him anymore.
 
It was getting a bit chilly out, so Max was glad that he had his jacket to bundle up with. Casually walking through the town he would make his way towards a nearby food stand. Max would keep Napa as far away from the man and his stand as possible, but he still received a funny look. Nevertheless, since he and Lady Akihana had walked around the town together, the people seemed more willing to give him a chance and not shoo him away like a stray dog. “I would like…. Uh… three of those pretzel things, and three of those chocolate candy bars. You want anything, Napa?” The puppet would shake its head and Max would just shrug, “Oh well, better not ask me for any of mine later.” He would reply with a slight chuckle. Handing over a handful of his Ryo to the shop keeper to pay for the treats that would be his breakfast, Max would gather the food in two separate bags and make his way to the meeting place for the team.
 
Seeing his friends meeting up over by the village gates, Max would make his way to the group and wave, letting them know he was there. Realistically, he knew that Senshi had probably already sensed him coming, but that wouldn’t stop him from being friendly with his comrades. The boy would be seen with a big smile on his face. Max and Napa would make their way over to the team, his other puppets wrapped up mummy style on his back. “Hey guys! You ready for our first mission together? I don’t know if you folks have eaten any breakfast yet, but I brought pretzels and chocolate if you would like some.” It was a rather odd breakfast, but Max didn’t seem to realize nor care how strange it must seem.
 

“So, did either of you folks get any details on the mission that we are to do? I just got a note saying that this was where we were supposed to meet up. Nothing mentioned exactly what we would be doing though.” Max would say looking around as he spoke, finishing his thoughts with, “And where is Mr. Itami? I figured he would have been the first one here. Oh well, I’m sure he won’t be long. So what have you been up to, Reizo. Get any good training in? Senshi and I got a good bit of training in the other day. He actually taught me a good deal of stuff. He’s better than he seems and lets on. Don’t let him fool you.” Max would say remembering how many advanced techniques his teammate had already had under his belt this early in his shinobi career. Max seemed to have opened up a good bit to these two, seeming much less reserved than he had been in their first encounters.

As Itami was heading towards the meet up point with his chakra suppressed. He made sure he had all his stuff ready. Even though it was a simple C-rank mission. He was always the type to come prepared at all time. Its been a while since he has seen his team, so hopefully they have done some type of training since the first time they met. He would use his chakra sensory skill to detect any shinobi at the meeting point. As he focused his sensory on that specific area, he sensed three chakra signatures standing close to each other. So he assumed that they were all there. But one chakra signature definitely stood more than the other two. Itami would then make the ram hand seal and body flick towards the three at a speed of 170. Moving fast enough as if he had just teleported right in front of them.

Look slowly at the three of them. And once being in front of the three, it was clear kobayashi was the one with the strong chakra signature. And he also looked a lot more muscular than he did before. The other two seemed quite the same, but he assumes that they got in some type of training since their last meeting together. 

"I assume you all have done some type of training since out last meet.." Itami would say to the three. He was now about to explain the mission details to his squad. This was their first mission together as a team. So this will be a test to see how they all work together. And it will also see what exactly they need to work on.

"Here are the details for our mission. In the mountains of Kumo, there lies a temple with tombs. And there are robber s who are stealing all type of items from the graves of those who passed away. Our job is simple.. find the robbers, capture them, and bring them back here for questioning. If any of the robbers have any guards with them to protect them... kill them." Itami would say to the team. The goal was simple, capture the robbers and bring them in. Anyone who gets in our way dies. 

If the team had any questions, Itami would answer them and begin to head out. And if they didn't have any questions, then Itami would just proceed to move out. Assuming that his team would follow him.

(Words: 411)
(Mission TWC: 1965/4000)

Senshi couldn’t help t that he was chronically early for everything, he found that he experienced severe anxiety if he even thought he was going to be late. Hazards of his upbringing. Senshi wasn’t alone at the gates for long, his hands constantly shifting his tanto’s to different grips. As his Chakra sensory skill reported a presence he knew quite well back to him, he looked up. His hands still twirling the blades so that they were slowly becoming a blur with how fast he was switching their positioning. Senshi cocked his head to the side as Reizo spoke to him, as he responded back to the blonde boy his eyes would move away from him looking towards the village. He could feel Max approaching and as he spoke the other boy’s sillohoutte approaching. “Good Morning Reizo-Sempai, I believe that I have everything I’ll need for a C rank. My experience with the D rank missions has taught me a lot about what one might need.”
 
He stopped speaking as he watched Max approach, a small smile coming over his face. He recalled the training the two of them had done, and how Max had agreed to his request. Giving a nod to Max as he finally came within speaking distance he would wait until after the boy had spoken offering them an odd assortment of food. “Good Morning Max-Sempai, Napa-Sempai, I hope you’re doing well after the training we did. Did you have time to make that list of supplies you need?” Senshi paused for a second wondering if it would be rude to refuse the food, before he shrugged. “I had breakfast earlier but I will save it for lunch.” If Max gave him the food he would use the Storage Displacement technique to store the items for later, not wanting to get his pockets or weapons pouches dirty.
 
As Max too asked about the mission Senshi simply shrugged, he wasn’t too concerned about the details. Both Max and Reizo had proven to be solid individuals of exceptional worth. Plus with a Jounin at their side, Senshi was prone to thinking a simple C rank would be nothing that they couldn’t handle. He blushed lightly at the younger Genin’s words inclining his head slightly to hide it. “I am merely average, thank you for the compliment though Max-sempai.” Stiffening suddenly Senshi felt the displacement of air as Itami appeared next to them. His hands had already been moving the tanto’s held in a reverse grip to stab the man when he jerked his hands up stopping them (Speed 80). He was horribly surprised by the man’s appearance, he had thought he would sense anyone approaching.
 

The Tanto’s were several inches away from the Jounin, but the act of moving to stab his superior was clear. He quickly sheathed them, before offering the man a crisp salute standing at a rigid attention as he briefed them on the mission. “What is our order of movement Itami-Taichou?” The boy would wait for the response and for his fellow genin to ask any further questions before moving out, following the man in whatever order he had proscribed. As soon as they left the village gates he would let loose a pulse of chakra sensory before immediately working to suppress his own chakra since he could feel nothing from his Captain he assumed the man was doing the same and he would work to emulate him as best as possible. 

Words this post: 578
TWC: 972

Max would be the next person to show up, leaving Itami to be the final arrival. Max had brought a few snacks with him, which Reizo was thrilled about. Reizo's stomach grumbled when Max pulled out his pretzels and chocolate, and Reizo absentmindedly put his hand to it. "Thanks, Max. You're the best! I totally skipped breakfast today, you're my savior," the Genin would thank his teammate for his kind offer, accepting the gifts of food. Reizo nibbled on the hot pretzel and stuffed the chocolate bar into his weapons pouch for later. "Training? Yea I've done some training, of course. I've mostly been working on my Taijutsu, but still, Senshi's way stronger than me now," he would say, taking another bite of his pretzel.

Reizo would listen to Senshi talk about his own abilities, but he was being too humble for Reizo's liking. Reizo would intervene, pocketing the food in his mouth to make it a little easier to speak and so the food would be less visible when he opened his mouth. "Well that's not true at all, Senshi. You're not average. We can see how much work you put in to get in shape. It's clear you're way-" Reizo would be cut off as Itami suddenly appeared, a gust of wind being the only herald of his arrival. The Genin instinctively reached for a kunai in his weapons pouch at the sudden intrusion, but ended up pulling out his now crushed chocolate bar, still in its wrapper, aiming it at Itami in dismay. "Oops," was all Reizo would say, realizing he had practically ruined his snack for later. He would still try to salvage it, but it would be a messy endeavor to try to eat it now. Reizo put it back into a different pocket this time so that this wouldn't happen again on the mission. He had notices Senshi had nearly struck Itami with his own tanto, which Reizo selfishly hoped would've at least distracted a little bit from his own accident.

"This mission sounds like it'll be fun. I think we're all about ready to go," he would say, shortly after Itami had asked about any questions they had. Reizo hadn't even noticed that they had been suppressing their own chakra as he barely had any sense for it of his own. Nonetheless, Reizo wouldn't even wait for Itami-sensei to answer Senshi's question before casually walking ahead, not even knowing where he was going yet. He would turn around after a few seconds to face the group, and begrudgingly had to ask Itami, "Umm, Sensei? Where exactly are we going?"

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Max would be glad to have been able to share with his team. Handing it out, each of them would do separate things with it. Senshi would perform some sort of Jutsu, and the food would vanish with a *poof*. Max would immediately see the use of something that could be used to “store” objects for later. That would make his daily walks a lot easier on his back and legs since he wouldn’t need to carry all of his puppets on his back. He would make a mental note to look into something like that later.

Reizo would eagerly start to eat, and so Max would also nibble on his pretzel while they waited. He had a list of things in mind for what he had needed, and some of it had been written down on a piece of paper Max had somewhere in his pockets. He would search around, looking in each before he finally found the small list. Handing it over to Senshi, it would list several things, most of which seemed like they would be used as metal plating for something…. Big.
 
“Glad to hear you got some decent training in. I’m sure that it’ll come in handy for this upcoming mission.” Max would say as he nibbled away. It wouldn’t be long before Itami would appear, almost from nowhere. Max would be startled, from the sudden appearance of their Jounin commander, but he would seemingly not react in any way. Napa on the other hand had a blade in hand, ready to fight if needed. Upon realizing that they were in minimal danger, Napa would place his Kunai back into the pouch.
 
“Yes, we all got a good bit of training in. So what is the mission?” He would ask, right before the Jounin continued on with their briefing. They were to capture people who had been robbing…. Tombs. Max suddenly took a big gulp, realizing just what this mission might mean for him and his craft. “So these robbers are taking valuables and items from the tomb, and that is why we are going after them?” Max would question, a bit of worry clearly heard in his voice. The boy had regularly raided graves for parts for his Undead Puppets, and if that were a punishable offense he would have to start to hide his dealings a bit better than he currently had.
 
It had also occurred to him that these people had also been… competition. If they were clearing out the crypts then that would be less that Max himself would be able to gain from such. People tend to bury folks with all sorts of neat trinkets and sometimes things of great value. For someone who lives off of the salvaging of things that others don’t want or need, such items provided much needed things that weren’t so easily salvaged.

                               “If any of the robbers have any guards with them to protect them... kill them."
 
Max had never killed another person before. He didn’t think that he would have any issues with it, for it was what had been expected of him as a shinobi. Still, it was strange to hear such a command out loud. “Are you sure that killing them outright is the correct path to go? Hired guards are just that- hired guards. If the robbing is a part of a grander scheme, they would be less likely to sacrifice themselves ‘for the cause’ than the robbers would. While it is true that they might not know everything, it would likely prove much easier to gather what information they do know.” Max would say, not in a combative tone but rather an inquisitive one. “Once they have given us anything they know, they would no longer prove useful to use and therefore we would have no reason to need them alive. After that their lives hold little importance, and they would be dealt with as any criminal who violates the rules and edicts of our Lord Raikage. That would likely mean they would die, but they don’t necessarily know that, and will likely offer up anything in hopes that they get to keep their lives.” Max would offer a slight bow to Itami, hoping that he did not step over any boundaries, “Of course, the final decision is up to you, commander.”



Max’s tone during this would be different, even from the one he had just had moments before with the team. Any who looked over at Napa would see that the puppet would be staring directly at Max the entire time that he spoke, a smile almost visible on the puppets face. Information was power, a lesson Napa had taught the boy from a young age.

As soon as Itami body flicked towards the three chakra signatures, which were his team. He quickly saw a knife coming at him at a speed of 80. Itami could easily react to the attack and dodge it as well. But he didn't flinch as he watched it come towards him just to see if the shinobi would keep going or stop it in time. He was impressed with how he moved and was ready to attack just by instinct. He could tell he was been training hard lately.

"Way to be on your toes at all times..." Itami said as he looked over towards Reizo as he brought out a chocolate bar instead of a weapon. "... At least most of the time..", seeing as he wasn't quite prepared when Itami suddenly showed up. It was a okay effort he guessed. But anyway, Itami then explained the mission to the three shinobi. After explaining the mission details to them, everyone seemed to be ready to go except one of them. It seemed Max was a bit skeptical when Itami mentioned killing any hired guards. Itami see's his thinking as being a bit naive, but since they are just kids. He didn't expect them to be a blood thirsty killing machine like Itami on the first day. Besides, Itami was only this way because of what he has been through. Not everyone has seen what the young Jounin has seen. After hearing him out and showing no signs of disagreement in his face. He would simply reply.

"I understand your thinking Max and it isn't wrong. But just know these guards are out to kill you. Not capture you or hold you for hostage. Though it is a C-Rank mission, you could die on this mission today if your not on your toes. Sometimes capturing can take a little more time than just killing them off, Which gives the robber time to escape. Killing the guards quick and easy doesn't just give us a lot more time to catch the robbers. But it also puts fear in their hearts. Fear is a powerful feeling that could even freeze the strongest opponents. Once seeing their guards die so quickly, they'll just give themselves up hopefully and cause us less trouble." Itami would say in respond to Max. 

"With that being said, the mission will continue just as planned." Itami says to the three shinobi. he noticed Reizo then began to start walking, which later on it was obvious he didn't know where he was going. He was heading the complete opposite direction.

"Wrong way Reizo, follow me towards the mountains..", Itami would assume that the three of them were not as fast as him. So he would walk towards each of them and put his hand on each of their shoulders. Of course they would most likely be confused to what he was doing. But they would feel it after he is done. Using his lightweight rock technique. Granting each of them a +50 speed but a -10 strength, so they could keep up with him. 

"Follow me...", Itami said as he ran at a speed of 50 towards the mountains. Assuming that his team were now able to keep up and follow him. And after many minutes went by, unless they had any questions or comments about the mission. They would go straight to the mountains.

(And Max, I know your strength will drop to 0 after I use my lightweight tech on you. I think that makes you unable to move. But for the missions sake and complications. Just pretend your strength is 1 and that you just feel extremely extremely light.) 

(My TWC: 977)
(Mission TWC: 4350/4000)

Senshi watched as his two teammates ate wondering how Reizo at least had not remembered to eat breakfast before coming to the gates. Not to mention the food they were eating was completely unhealthy and not a good balanced diet for a shinobi. He refrained from mentioning any of this to the two other Genin. Their diet was their choice afterall. Senshi accepted the list giving a quick glance before also storing it into his own little personal pocket dimension. He didn’t want it to get ruined during the course of the mission after all. Senshi rose a slight eyebrow at Reizo declaring that he was stronger than he was but before he could finish his next sentence their Jounin commander had arrived.
 
Senshi was surprised to see Max had not reacted to the presence of their Jounin or the way he had just surprised them at all. Maybe he had sensed the man coming when Senshi had not, he would need to resolve to continue training harder in order to make sure people couldn’t sneak up on him like that. He noted Nappa’s kunai, even as he quickly put it away and was briefly surprised to see Reizo with a…. chocolate bar. As Max asked his questions, and Senshi’s own one was ignored he stared at Reizo with an odd look on his face. He was trying to figure out exactly what the other Genin had been intending to do with a chocolate bar of all things.
 
He shook his head tuning back in as Itami-Taichou explained the reasoning on why they needed to kill the guards. Giving a shrug with one shoulder he wondered what Akihana-sama would think of this order. Maybe because this was a C rank and the danger was more real than a D rank, that would be why it was okay to kill now. She had seemed to not like killing overall, but Itami-Taichou’s orders were absolute in the boys mind. The fact that he had also taken the time to explain why he was giving such an order brought a certain level of gratitude into the twelve year old. He looked up as Itami Taichou moved to tap all of them with whatever jutsu had performed. He flinched as the man neared him and took a half stepback hands moving to his weapons before he forced himself to stop.
 
This was his commander and if the man wanted to do something that was his right. As Reizo took off down the road without their commander, or any directions at all Senshi again stared at him oddly looking between Itami and the elder of the two blonde boys. When not much was said about it, Sneshi immediately took off after his Jounin, completely missing how light he now was he took off far faster than he should have (Speed 60). As soon as he pulled level with Itami and passed him he realized that he was moving far too fast and started to mediate his speed until he was running a full pace and to the left shoulder of his Jounin. He could see the other boys following and his mind whirred. Maybe not answering his question had been some kind of test for the Genin.
 

If Itami was going to run at the very front then he was expecting a certain level of danger to come from that way. He was the strongest of them all after all. It wouldn’t make sense for Max to be in the front or the very back as his skill with puppetry and his generally frail build made it so that he was much better to be in the middle. Capable of responding to either the lead or the trail position if they needed help. In Senshi’s mind Reizo would be the better person to be in the back but he was their only close range specialist as such he also needed to be able to respond to whomever was leading or whomever took the trail position. With a sigh the boy slowed his speed allowing the other two Genin to pass him as he took up the last position in their little gaggle of shinobi. His eyes darting around as he released chakra pulses searching out for any signs of someone looking to sneak up on them. His hands resting on the hilts of his tanto’s as they ran ready to react at a moment’s notice. 


Words this post: 740
TWC: 1712

Reizo acknowledged his sensei's words, and heeded his warning about the guards. Reizo certainly hoped that someone wouldn't have guards to do something as simple and relatively innocuous as grave robbing, but it was a very punishable offense to disgrace the dead, as Reizo recalled. Reizo had his own moral stances against disrespecting the dead, but he would not make those aspersions known. He was fairly certain Max had such tendencies, but Reizo didn't want to judge him too harshly. Max was still only a child, despite the two of them being seen as equals in the eyes of the village.

Reizo would accept the jutsu that Itami placed on him, recognizing and trusting that whatever his sensei was doing would be necessary and helpful for completing the mission. Shortly after Itami used his Light Weight Jutsu on Reizo and Max, Itami would dash off in the direction opposite where Reizo was headed. This meant that Reizo would be lagging behind from the start. Reizo would take off after them immediately and be in the back of the gaggle (Speed 50), while still keeping somewhat close and keeping his team in sight. "Hey, wait up!" Reizo would cry out, darting after them.

The rest of the team seemed to have gotten a bit of a kick out of watching Reizo goof around, first with the chocolate bar and now with heading off in the wrong direction. Reizo didn't mind them having fun at his expense, but he hoped it didn't become his reputation. He did think it was a bit odd that his Sensei was leading the group, even if he was the only one that knew where they were going. Perhaps Itami could just sense that they were all following him, but he wasn't sure how they would properly respond to an attack. Itami certainly didn't look like someone that would excel in Taijutsu, but looks could prove to be deceiving. Senshi would fall back behind to be with Reizo in the rear. He wondered if Itami had ordered that or if Senshi had done that of his own volition. Either way, they now had their strongest ninja on the outside and Reizo and Max on the inside, who were still quite formidable, but not as powerful.

It seemed they were heading toward the mountains... another oddity. The mission was to check out a grave site- were there really graves out in the mountains? Reizo brushed it off as Itami intending to mean that the graveyard was in the general direction of the mountains, and not in the mountains themselves. Then again, maybe there was some information that Itami wasn't letting out just yet. Reizo would just have to wait and see.

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