Where the Road Takes Us

Taishi would slowly wake, his eyes opening slowly as to let the light slowly enter and allow his eyes time to adjust. Surprisingly, it was still rather early (or late, depending on how you look at it) and the sun hadn’t yet risen up over the horizon. Taishi would don his cloak to avoid catching a chill and head out into the nearby woods to find some breakfast to warm his belly. Taishi didn’t want to bother Ryal, as it was still rather early and he wasn’t accustomed to the sleeping schedule of his new ally.
 
The winds were blowing in the direction that Taishi was headed, which was fortunate. If they had been blowing against him, not only would the trek be more difficult to walk but the cold winds would also sting his eyes making sight difficult. Counting his blessings, he would look for any signs of wild game in the area. Perhaps there were tracks to be found, or damaged bark that signify wild game is in the area. Taishi would scour the area, being as quiet as possible while looking for these signs. It was still fairly dark, so it would be very difficult to get a good set of eyes on the area, but his determination to eat this morning had not wavered in the least. It wouldn’t be too long before the sun lifted itself over the horizon and its rays pierced through the treetop canopy. Almost as if it were a sign from something beyond, a light ray struck a nearby tree, illuminating it and allowing Taishi to see it clearly. The bark of the tree was damaged, torn from some local animal scraping it off as a sign to others of their species.
 
Despite his brutish demeanor and size, he was quiet adept at stealth when he needed to be, which honestly wasn’t as often as you may imagine for a criminal shinobi. Slowly creeping along, he would avoid stepping on anything, using only the clearest of spots to step to avoid a snapped twig or the crunching of leaves or snow to give away his position to anything that may be in the woods with him. It wouldn’t take too much longer before Taishi caught a glimpse of his prey, hopping through the woods behind a tree. The large man couldn’t see the target right now, but he had a good idea of where it was at. Silently he would funnel his chakra into the ground beneath his feet, churning it into a fine sand that he could glide through with Hiding like a Mole. The man would soon be completely underneath the surface, no part of him visible to the naked eye. He was only 2 meters under the ground, but he could sense what was happening around him on the surface above him. Shifting through the earth, he would detect his prey. It seemed to be some sort of deer like animal, which was good since it would provide plenty of food for the traveling duo, so much so that they could likely eat all day from it.
 
Taishi would wait for his opportunity, creeping slowly towards the unsuspecting prey. It might have been in tune with the surroundings, but it likely hadn’t encountered someone that could attack it from below the earth itself. Taishi was now in position, following it as it grazed. He would likely only have one shot at this, so he would have to make it count else the beast may flee and get away. In what would feel like an instant, Taishi would draw a kunai and launch upwards at the creature, stabbing for its heart. It was frightened, but that brief instant where it was figuring out what had been happening was all the warrior needed to bring it down. The blade plunged into the animal, ending its life quickly and with minimal suffering. He would immediately begin to gut and clean the deer out here, leaving the bloody innards on the ground, steaming in the bitter cold of the day. Taishi would then grab the animal by its back legs and drag it back to where the pair had set up camp, collecting any sticks and other useful wood that could be used as fuel for the fire. They were going to need it if they planned on eating.
Taishi would arrive, though he didn’t pay too much attention to whether or not Ryal was up yet. They each had their own area to sleep, so not being sure wasn’t entirely out of place. Immediately he would begin to skin the animal and cut it down into more reasonable bits for cooking. Once that was done he would start the fire and begin his work on making some breakfast for the two of them.

WC:802

Upon waking in the middle of a cold morning Ryal longed for the creaky spring cot of the inn they'd staying not that long ago. It wasn't shit but it beat sleeping on the ground. It also had heat and although he had the warmth of a few random animals that came to snuggle it wasn't enough. So Ryal set out to find a stream to wash up in, after that he would gather some sticks and twigs to make a fire. When he returned he noticed that his partner was also back, him being gone hadn't bothered Ryal in the slightest and even if he hadn't come back at all the male would still be ok. However, seeing that the grey-ish male had made hunt, gutted, cleaned and was now preparing to cook their meal Ryal felt inadequate. He could've brought back something to eat if he hadn't tended to his hygiene and the way animals cling to him there wouldn't have been a struggle. Oh well, that just meant that he would have to secure their food for the next day as this deer was more than enough for the two to eat for this day.

Though he had half a mind to go steal some eggs he decided against it. The meat wouldn't be seasoned so there was no need to add on, meat alone would be enough to fill the bellies of these adult men. Sitting down, along with the extra firewood, Ryal would ask, "So what's the plan for today?"

WC: 255

Taishi would begin to heat up a large, flat rock over the fire. That would be what he used to cook the meat for their breakfast, though they didn't have much in the way of plates or utensils. Perhaps he could do something about that when the time was right.

Ryal came over with some extra firewood, which would be useful in cooking all of this meat and keeping the duo warm on this chilly day. Even without direction, the golden eyed man was useful to have around it seemed. Taishi was glad to have another person to have his back.

When asked what the plan was, Taishi would shrug. "I hadn't thought too much into it. We can still head towards Tornado Country if you'd like. That should prove interesting to see. Plus, who knows what we will encounter on the way. Maybe we will find a nice target to remove the excess ryo from." The brutish man would slap down a couple of steaks on the now heated stone range.

"So how do you want your meat cooked?" Taishi would ask. In reality, this wouldn't be a particularly well made meal as it lacked many of the spices and sides to really bolster and accentuate the flavor of the meat, but he still wanted to make sure it was made as well as it could be for Ryal. Taishi didn't know how accustomed to living off of the wilderness the man had been.

"It might not be the best breakfast you've ever had, but it'll fill out bellies and warm us up." The grey-ish man would say keeping the tone light.


WC: 273

Like clockwork, the sound of a crashing wagon filled the air and a few moments after that the sound of a body falling from a tree about twenty-five meters away was heard. Taishi had just mentioned receiving a donation from a passerby and luckily for them, the person was too far away to hear anything they said. If the being wished to approach them having lost the element of surprise Ryal would simply respond to Taishi's question by saying, "Well done please." Though if his partner wished to investigate Ryal would drop the deer into his dimensional tear so that the intruder wouldn't be able to steal it. The fire was to be left burning as it might provide them with the upper hand should this meeting turn into a confrontation. And Ryal would activate quiet footsteps before they walked over to the person. Even if they had somehow managed to hear the duo across that distance only hearing one set of footsteps might lead them to believe that it was only one person talking to themselves. Also during their walk, Ryal would find some woodland creature to send ahead as a scout to point them in the right direction and track the person should they try anything. This action would also be done if they pair stayed put that way they would know to be on guard before the newcomer reached the ten meter mark needed to be sensed with chakra sensory.

Depending on how Taishi reacts Ryal will either give him a look that says "Wanna check that out?" or speak the aforementioned words. Ryal's hands would be hidden while walking, if they went to investigate, ready to pull out a kunai or more. Hopefully, all goes well and they can possibly add a new member to their little group.

WC: 302

Taishi would hear the crashing of the wagon, and shortly after the crashing through the trees. Branches cracking was a distinctive sound, as was the *THUD* of something heavy hitting the ground. It wasn’t incredibly close, but it was close enough to be a concern especially considering the timing of the two loud noises. The steaks would be on the stone now, but Taishi’s mind was far from cooking. He would give Ryal a look that would speak the words he wouldn’t mutter, a look that says that they should see what that was. It would seem as though Ryal had the same idea, and so the brutish man would get up, the blade used to prepare the deer still in hand in case it became necessary. This could easily be a predator, looking for easy food after smelling the blood of the kill. Then again, it could also be an enemy trying to get the jump on the duo. Only their investigation would tell for certain, but better to be cautious.

Brandishing his blade, the brutish man would spread out a bit from Ryal, hoping to make it more difficult to catch them both in the same thing. Plus, Ryal had unusually light footsteps, so if Taishi could provide distraction it may prove to be advantageous. If needed he could also disappear beneath the ground where he had the advantage over most. Taishi would spread out a bit, moving 4 meters away from Ryal and stepping from tree to tree to use as cover. He didn’t want to get caught out in the open and attacked without any cover.

The warrior would move to a position roughly 13 meters away and try to spot what caused the crashing thud. He would see what looked like a small boy, but again, such looks could be deceiving. That Ryu kid was but a child and he was quite capable to hold his own. Taishi wouldn’t make the mistake of taking him lightly. Taishi didn’t want to kill the kid, but he had some explaining to do. “HEY! KID! Who are you and what the hell are you doing out here?” Taishi had his hand close to his weapon pouch, as if this turned ugly he didn’t want to be caught off guard. The kid looked to be stunned, likely from falling out of the tree and hitting hard. The greyish man would give the boy a moment to collect himself, but any sign of aggression would be met with swift retaliation.


WC: 420 dude

It was still early morning, the sun barely risen above the horizon. If not for the warmth of her cloak, and the protection of her face mask and eye patch, Alice might be bothered by the sting of frozen air against her body. She was supposed to move on Kumogakure soon with her partner and friend, Ryu, but had asked that he wait a week before leaving so that she could obtain money and supplies. Although partially true, what Alice truly wanted was to see the village her parents had grown up in one last time. She knew it would be an arduous journey, and an even tougher battle to come. The chances of their survival were unknown, and Alice would have no regrets should she feel the cold of death's embrace from this quest.

The forest was dark, shadows everywhere you looked distorted the layout of the floor. Patches of white still lingered here and there from the last snowfall. To keep her promise, Alice would hunt both for wild game and easy prey for valuables and food. She kept to the tree tops, the easiest way to hunt without being detected. She made sure to stay downwind as she moved; it would not be good if her prey caught her scent before she could make her move. She kept her presence concealed as she moved from tree to tree high above the ground, her eyes peeled for any sign of wild game or ignorant travelers. Fortunately for her, it didn't take long to find both. The scent of fresh blood filled the air, a sign of food or battle she wasn't yet sure. Either way, there could still be something worthwhile left behind for her.

Quickly, but carefully, she made her way toward the smell. Upon arriving, she would find the innards of some poor animal laid out on the snow, a trail of blood leading north, northeast. Before she could examine the scene closely, an approaching chakra signature caught her attention and caused her to hide herself and watch. The girl soon saw a young boy appear and examine the bloody mess on the forest floor. No doubt they'd had the same idea. He was just a child, an easy target. Before she could make her move though, Alice needed to be sure there were no others in the area that might afford her prey any backup. Making sure to keep herself hidden from the boy beneath her, the girl focused on her sensory and extended it as far as possible. In the direction of the blood trail, she could sense two more chakra signatures. Both were so inconsequential that she never would have even noticed them had she not been searching for possible threats.

By the time she took her attention away from her new potential targets, the boy had already ascended into the trees and began his own hunt, unaware that he too was being stalked. Alice let the boy move a short distance away before following him. As an experienced assassin, she knew better than to stalk her prey too close. Once she was sure he was far enough way not to hear her, but still close enough to track, she would make a single hand sign and three clones were summoned. Each one was crouched low on its own branch, looking to the original for orders. With a few short gestures, two of the clones were sent in opposite directions, intending to circle widely around to each side of their targets. The third clone would follow the first boy with the original Alice, taking the point position a few meters ahead in case of any traps. All of them continued to conceal their presences as they moved, focusing mainly on sensory to get a general idea of their targets' whereabouts.

By the time the boy had fallen out of his tree, the two clones meant to circle had already located their intended targets, keeping themselves hidden and their chakra suppressed while closing the distance from behind. Alice and the remaining clone kept themselves hidden among the tree tops, keeping a good vantage point to see the entire area. The two new targets also seemed to be easy prey, though appearances could be deceiving. Through her experience alone Alice decided it was better to wait before making her move instead of simply announcing her presence. She still didn't know what any of their abilities were, though the boy she had been following initially seemed very amateurish. Her clone would make initial contact, she decided, allowing the original to watch from a safe distance. She still had her other two stalking the newcomers from their blind spots as well, in case they were necessary.

Quickly unsheathing her sword, the clone acting as point descended quickly from her perch and landed on the ground near the foolish, dazed boy. The tip of her sword would be pressed against the boy's throat, a single drop of blood beginning to appear where metal met skin. "Don't move. Don't speak." The words were said with obvious authority, her tone letting the trio know she was not playing games. To punctuate her orders, a crimson figure began to form behind the girl. It was ten feet tall, with several crows flying around her head. The figure was obviously female, though her hood covered her face. In it's right hand was a small lantern which she held through the loop at its top. In her left was an enormous scythe, cradled gently around the clone's legs in a protective manner. The only thing visible under the hood were two glowing, red eyes. The stench of death emanated from it, its power undoubtedly great.

"If you do anything I don't tell you to, I won't hesitate to kill you where you stand." Her face was covered, but it was still obvious the clone was smiling as she said this. She didn't want to kill these three, but she would not hesitate to do so if they disobeyed her. Her aura permeated the area with her killing intent, no doubt sending visions of their deaths to each one of her targets where they stood. If everything went as is described above, the clone would speak once more. "Good. Now, slowly empty your pockets and place the contents on the ground in front of you." Hopefully, blood would not have to be shed today.

-75ap for clones
clones have 156ap each. Original has 157ap.
skills used: chakra suppression, chakra sensory, display of power

While walking Ryal ducked in and out of the trees same as his partner, hands still hidden and ready to pull out weapons. As Taishi was the first to address the boy Ryal would remain silent for now letting him lead. His tone wasn't particularly threatening but the sound of his voice was enough to cause shock. Fortunately or unfortunately the boy was unable to reply as someone else had interjected. Ryal's eyes would immediately turn red upon seeing the girl when she jumped down between him, Taishi, and the boy. Well, that kid's dead meat. Ryal thought to himself when he heard what the random little girl said to the boy. He then turned to his partner giving him a look that said, "Really n*gga?" To let him know that he wasn't about to comply with this chick's demands regardless of the crimson figure she created behind her back that was turned to them. It was just like training with that idiot blond. Although this time there was a vision of how he could die, yet he still remained unbothered.

He was currently dying without her help not to mention he was here for a good time not a long time. Having the hampster-chipmunk sized woodland creature he'd sent ahead as a scout return, climbing up his body like he was a tree and squeaking in his ear, Ryal tried his best to interpret what the thing was telling him. Obviously, he couldn't speak animal and it couldn't speak human but if the coast was clear it wouldn't be making this much noise. He would be facing forward before casually looking up into the trees for any others this one might have recruited to help or the threats it had alerted him to, Ryal saw the other clones and the original Alice. Of course, his chakra vision wasn't as precise as that of the Byakugan so he didn't know which one was the real her. Though he was more concerned with figuring out how to alert his partner without tipping the girl off. Hopefully, the squeaking was enough to do so. Although it was possible she already knew, if the person in front of them was a clone or the clones watching had been made before she jumped they would've seen his eyes change and know something was up, or at least to be on guard. Yet there was a small possibility that the transition happened so fast and with him turning away that they missed it but that wasn't very likely given their numbers.

There also existed the possibility that these two were also working together and once the girl had collected the boy's money she'd pretend to knock him out that way if he and Taishi engaged her in battle the boy could get a sneak attack in. Ryal said a silent prayer that his partner was thinking in the same manner as he and/or that he'd been formulating a plan of attack, regardless if he did or didn't get Ryal's facial hint or notice the animal's chattering. So far it seemed that he was good at understanding Ryal's nonverbal communication. Now while the blue haired male wasn't one to kill, in this situation he wouldn't hold back. Gender nor age would cause hesitation, even if either of these newcomers turned out to be members of his clan. The tall male made mental a note to figure out how to give Yuumei an illusory form and/or incorporate it into Display of power. "Quite the predicament..." The golden eyed god's mellifluous voice trailed off. Like the boy, there was nothing for him to remove from his pockets so he didn't budge. The spotlight was now on his partner and he seemed to be a talker so hopefully, him questioning the girl wouldn't cause her agitation that would lead to immediate battle. Unless of course, that's what he was counting on, either way, Ryal would be extremely vigilant for the slightest of hints.

WC: 666

Well wasn’t this turning out to be a really busy day? How many other strange people were they going to come across? Would it be one, maybe two more? Perhaps they will encounter…gasp… a whole band of new people seeking nothing more than to rob those that looked unable to defend themselves? Weren’t there other -likely wealthier- targets for this bandit to rob? This person seemed to have an interesting way of picking their targets to rob. The pair (Taishi and Ryal) haven’t any fancy clothes nor armor, nor do they look to be particularly well off. Well Taishi was dirty looking, hidden under a ratty old cloak that he wore everywhere. It was washed, but it clearly showed signs of wear. This bandit must have some sort of incredibly interesting way to pick out targets. Perhaps she likes stealing tattered clothes and scraps of food? Who knows?
 
She would project some sort of illusory being behind her, one that seemed violent and showed Taishi varying ways that he could die. It was a tad unnerving, but he was a wandering warrior and he could be killed at any given moment. The idea of death now wasn’t one that appealed to him (because let’s be honest, few desire death) but at the same time he was invigorated. Such a capable adversary brought a smile to the face of the grey man, as if he died here it would surely be a glorious battle. Was he outmatched? Probably. Did he care? Not at all. One does not achieve greatness without reaching beyond their current position. There was a bit of chittering in the direction of Ryal, though Taishi didn’t understand what it was doing. Perhaps a warning, as he was supposed to stealthily move around for the flank if such was needed. Was he already spotted? If so, that removes any possibility of a surprise attack. “Well this sucks,” the man would think to himself, not allowing his displeasure to escape his lips and flow to the ears of this new enemy.
 
Don’t move and don’t speak, but he was to empty his pockets? How else was he supposed to tell this person of the folly of their endeavor? He had no money or valuables to give the person. He would have to use the power of nonverbal ques in order to get his message across. Taishi would use his hands to pat where his pockets would be on his cloak, though his face would show signs of confusion, almost as if he misplaced something. He would look around on the ground, looking to see if it may have fallen out of his pockets on the walk over here. His face would then light up, clearly showing that he had a revelation. He would stick his hand into his cloak, reaching for what could only be assumed to be his money. He would then pull out nothing but his hand, showing a distinct hand seal that most can recognize and understand without any words.

Visual Aid for Hand Seal:

 
“I have no money to give you. Based on my ragged appearance I figured that such would be obvious by sight alone, but clearly that isn’t the case.” Taishi’s tone was clear to anyone hearing him. He wasn’t being particularly pleasant, “I was wondering actually, how exactly did you come by choosing us as your prey? If you were stalking us for any amount of time, you would have seen that we don’t even have a pan to cook with. I’m cooking steaks on a f*cking hot rock right now. I have nothing to give, and even if I did I probably wouldn’t give it to you anyhow. Now, if you’d please go back to wherever the hell you came from that would be wonderful. Thanks.”
 
The boy might have simply been a ploy to gather their attention, though judging by his defeated demeanor that may not be the case. Of course, he could just be a good actor. Taishi didn’t trust the boy, but his focus wouldn’t shift from the one that was clearly doing the threatening. He wonders how they will react.

WC:687