Mysterious Errands msn (Yuuma)

mission details:

His first mission! Logs was pumped. His body hurt from a recent beating due to his family, but it was alright. He scrambled out of bed, feeling unusually refreshed. He put on a light shirt, pants, boots, and ninja headband. He made sure to carefully apply the black contact lenses, before zipping out the door.

It was a nice day outside. At least, it would be in an hour or so - the sun was barely rising as he trotted down the street. The city was waking up gently as shopkeepers rushed to open their doors and present their wares in the streets.

The information and receiving center wasn’t very busy. That was good. It would be easy to find his partners for this mission. This was especially important because he didn’t know who they were yet. Logs began reading through the mission listing, looking for people likely to be his comrades on this outing. If they didn't seem to know the mission at hand, he would attempt to explain it to them. It was pretty simple so there couldn't be too much misunderstanding.

(sorry for the short post)

When Yuuma had first received word that he was specifically requested by the mission center to attend a particular mission, he had been excited. Ecstatic, even, at the opportunity to do some work he had been called upon for. His enthusiasm had lessened slightly when he learned that he was to accompany a genin who was fresh out of the academy. By all means, it was still a task that Yuuma was ready and willing to accept, though a sobering reminder that he was still lumped in with the other fresh Genin. And after his experience with the lazy student, he wondered just how many other genin had already made a fool of themselves. Still, this was a D ranked mission, a step higher than anything he had done so far, and even seemed to come with a hint of importance. Or at least secrecy. A mysterious package left by an unnamed messenger, then a trip down the city streets to deliver whatever it was without so much as a hiccup. The premise of the job was not without suspicion to the older genin. It almost felt like a prank. The sort of thing an older classman- or in this case, his former self- would ask of someone who didn't know any better only to be humiliated in some unforeseen way. Then again, maybe people like that didn't exist here. So he let himself believe for a moment before his hand touched at a former gash on his brow where he had received a knuckle sandwich. And it had tasted terrible.

A lack of a morning shift meant that Yuuma was able to attend the meeting location for his partner early, and take up an unassuming position within the local area to simply survey who was coming and going from the spot. Watching for recognizable faces that seemed to be appearing more than they should. But as the morning progressed, he was met with no such fascination, signaling to the youth that the job was most likely one to be done normally. Eventually, he would catch sight of the one who must have been the former student. The first dead give away was the continuous looking about for seemingly someone.  Evidently, he was here to meet someone. Even had the other man met the gaze of Yuuma, Yuuma would have simply offered the man a nod, and nothing further, preferring to pretend he was also waiting for someone else. The other part, much simpler than the first, was there was only a handful of students that had been Yuuma's age. This man, whoever he was, was one of them.  Of course, Yuuma had never met him before, but there was only one student academy for the shinobi. Everyone has at least seen everyone else, generally. Although, Yuuma could recall a few children in his village had been schooled at their own home by their own parents. Perhaps this guy was some young noble kid, blessed with a unique power to help him with his work as he had seen done before. A kekkei genkai, he had read it being called.

In his time of deception, Yuuma used the opportunity to observe the man he would assume to be his partner for the mission. Average dress. Good enough sense to wear some boots. Enough scruff to compare to most young men, though with a sense to it. It was clear he cared about his appearance, but only just enough to maintain social standards. Yuuma could respect that. Although Yuuma wasn't close enough to tell for sure, he would have wagered in this observation that the man smelled like nothing. A stray thought that was closed outside of his thoughts like a fly that had gone out the window. Still, Yuuma had observed enough. By the time Yuuma approached him, Logos had been present for nearing ten minutes before a dulled voice behind him would speak up. "Hey." Yuuma would greet, waiting for the man to turn around to face him.

Yuuma was dressed in his typical garb. Plain work pants and a sweater to fight the cold bundled his top. His headband, painfully polished and meticulously cared for, hung loosely around his neck. A headband wrapped around his forehead, pushing the bushy black hair from his face to reveal the typical set of blue eyes that had begun to see more shine in recent days. "I'm Yuuma Fujiwara. You here for the package run?" Despite his word usage, Yuuma was in no hurry to complete the task recklessly. Regardless of the answer to the question, a hand was put forward to shake from his sweater pockets, a glove wrapped over the large hand of the man, able to look his companion nearly in the eye. It was very strange coming to this city and finding so many people his size or bigger. A contrast that still managed to make Yuuma pause sometimes. "It is good to meet you." He spoke at the handshake, formal as ever.

WC - 835

(just FYI, he recently changed his name ic to "Logs" now, but people could easily remember him otherwise)

*****

At first the information center didn't seem particularly worthwhile. Even though Logs tried to psychoanalyze every person that walked through the door, nobody stood out in a big way. Most looked like they knew what they wanted to do, not being a newly minted genin. The rest appeared to be waiting for groups for missions.

A green haired boy with a large sword walked in and out, papers in hand.

Three girls, all giggling obnoxiously loud, huddled as they walked past him. One caught him blankly watching them and stifled a laugh before the group continued on their way. Well damn. Logs didn't think his hair was that bad.

A couple of younger kids in their early teens came in and waited near the entrance. Soon after, an older teen with a striking resemblance came by and handed in some bundles of papers. As he turned around, he was hit by a couple of mobile missiles that attempted to crawl all over him. Or was that a competitive attempt at hugging? Logos felt a slight twinge watching. He missed having people close by who cared. Oh well. Things happen for the best, they say.

A few others strolled in and out, with nothing interesting save for a jounin who was covered in wounds. Logs started towards him but a medic blew past him, almost bowling Logs over. The jounin was grabbed by the medic, but attempted to resist. From his outraged cries, they knew each other and the jounin thought he was perfectly fine. The medic disagreed, and added a bump on the head to the jounin's injuries, before swiftly strapping the jounin to a stretcher and marching him off with the help of a buddy.

After the jounin, things got a bit quiet. Logs had the tough decision of checking out the other people in the information center, or examining the floor for structural defects. Unlike his partner for the mission, Logs had no clue what to expect, that apparently came with some experience and a little seniority. His eyes glanced over a number of people. Clerks, which he had scanned a dozen times already. The security guard, who bore resemblance to a mall santa than a strongman. Some dude chilling with a super shiny headband and some sensible clothing. Probably meticulous Logos though. Some girl that had been waiting since before Logs showed up, who was clearly antsy. She kept checking her watch. A pair of twins who apparently could choose to be siamese. An older man with a checklist who-

"Hey."

A voice from behind startled him - a reaction he could only partially hide. Shiny Headband guy was missing from his spot, and was now basically behind Logs as he turned to face the speaker.

Yuuma turned out to be short on words. If anything he sounded a little tired. Logs wondered when he had a day off. Yuuma reminded Logs a little too much of the accountants chained to their desks.

Suddenly a hand was proffered in a handshake alongside the information that Yuuma was to be Logs buddy for this little excursion. Logs was still processing information though, and glanced back at the mission details.

Fuck.

There was a section that actually showed the team members. Somehow he had skipped over it.

He smacked his forehead. Literally and metaphorically.

Then his hand reached back swiftly to shake Yuuma's, assuming he hadn't withdrawn it over a few seconds.

"Sorry about that, haven't been through all this before. Name's Logs now. Long story. Have you been to the place before?"

As he finished speaking, he pointed to a spot that described the mission details, or at least the start.

If Yuuma was ready, they could walk out to the restaurant.

*****

(You might as well take the package in your post since you are up next?)

The observation of the man continued, even when Yuuma had satisfied his earlier curiosity over the new genin. Perseveration could be considered by many to be a boon, though, for Yuuma, the active mind was just another part of his daily function, even if the part that worked silently was stronger than the part that was willing to talk. Still, eventually he would reply, but if Logs was sharp, he would note that Yuuma didn't actually move his lips to talk, but his voice produced anyway. "Logs huh." He replied in the same dull tone. "Your parents must have had a sense of humor." A joke to Yuuma, but the flat tone only made it sound like a stray comment in regards to the other man's name. His hand was tucked back into his jacket pocket when there was no handshake to be had. All the better. Yuuma wasn't one for needless touching but had gotten into a near-autonomous habit of offering the handshake anyway. No harm, no foul. Although, Yuuma would notice when the other man started to reach to shake his hand, only to catch himself when he noted Yuuma had already withdrawn it. Amused, Yuuma remembered a time when he would do something similar with the purpose of teasing his juniors in the village. It was almost always a success because Yuuma was not the sort of person to play pranks. Which made these little moments all the more amusing to the young man.

"Yes, I have." He said, once more speaking without the need for mouth movement or even hand signals. "I have completed every generally offered E-rank mission. This is actually my first D-rank, however." He said, turning to look at all the slips on the mission wall. "I'm kind of a completionist." He added on. "So I plan to do every mission I possibly can. This is also my first time working on a mission with someone besides myself. I doubt we will run into much trouble. But if we do, I will be relying on you." He said with a nod. Despite Yuuma's cold exterior, he was not resistant to working in a team, nor did he harbor a loner complex that would begrudge working with a partner. Instead, this was just more opportunity to get to know someone else operating at his level. A test, perhaps, though not a competition. Just another mission to complete. "What about you? How many missions have you completed?" He asked as he turned to begin walking the two of them out of the mission headquarters and towards their destination. "Unless you meant the meeting spot, in which case yes, I have passed by the area plenty of times. Even went to the restaurant, but I have not lingered there long."

As the two of them walked, Yuuma would continue to offer small talk if Logs did as well, though it was typically short answers. A bit of practice socializing, though having the ability to talk without looking at the person made it easier for Yuuma, and perhaps a bit strange for Logs. Maybe. Alternatively, this could be the norm. Either way, Yuuma was not shy to talk about his experiences on other missions, even suggesting that Logs would find some worth in tackling the lower rank missions if he hadn't already. "They really help you get to know the city and it's people." He would add in amongst the conversation. Conversations would waver as well to other work around the city, Yuuma eager to bring up the hospital and it's need of staff, and now with the recent departure of one of the doctors, help was even more needed. "They offer free classes to anyone that can show up in the mornings, and do some volunteering afterward." He continued, allowing the travel to their destination to ease.

Once the duo had reached the designated pick-up spot, they wouldn't be greeted by an obvious site of a man standing near with a package. Minutes would pass by as Yuuma's brain went to work, trying to pick up any clue that they were missing something. "Excuse me!" Came a garbled voice. A scruffy looking homeless man had approached them on one side, rattling a cup. Yuuma looked the man over before digging a few coins out of his pocket to plink into the cup. So much for lunch. "Oii Oi! Thank you lad, really. Hey, you know the best place in town to get a drink?"

At first, Yuuma wanted to say the Galaxy Cafe, but a thought crossed his mind. "The Lavender Peacock?" Yuuma spoke out, and a moment later was bumped into alongside Logs by a group of people passing by. Once recovered from the shuffling, the pair of Shinobi would notice a rather plain looking small box resting between the two of them. When Yuuma's gaze turned back to the begger, he had moved along the harass the group of people now for coin as they walked. "What a strange transaction." Yuuma thought to himself as he leaned down to pick up the box, tucking it to his chest as he looked back to Logs. "Well." He started. "I would be surprised if this was the wrong package. Would you like to carry it, or shall I?" He asked, willing to give the responsibility to the younger man. No matter the choice, the two of them had secured what they needed, and all they had to do was to safely get it across town, and keep the password in mind.

WC - 925
TWC - 1,760

Little thought as given as to where the package came from. The point was, they said the line, and the package appeared. When logs offered to take the package, Yuuma didn't dispute the issue, handing over the package to the other man to transport. This would mean his hands would be free, and thus the responsibility on him for ensuring that the package, and it's courier, are not accosted en route to the destination. The same destination that would be read on the label on the side of the box. The words from Logs would be responded to with a simple nod, acknowledging that he was familiar with this location as well. His eyes turned down their most likely path to the rendezvous. His mind zigged a lazy map of the image he had in his mind. There was little point in him falling back now and pretending he wasn't part of the mission. He had arrived with Logs. Any sensible person would be observing the pickup point if they were so very interested in whatever the nondescript package held. Thus, Yuuma concluded it was best they walk together. An increased chance of an ambush, but less chance of being separated. Falling into step beside Logs, Yuuma decided it best to keep a wary guard on his ally, though he had significant doubt that there would be anyone willing to try and intercept them. This was only a D-rank mission after all.

The headband around his neck would display that he was a shinobi. As it always had been. It proved helpful in clearing small pathways when they were squished up against the masses, but luckily Logs seemed to have some insider knowledge on the city, tucking back a dark alleyway. Even here, the inhabitants lifted their heads to regard the youth before slowly lowering back to star at the ground numbly. Yuuma didn't care to linger on the thought of the kind of person you'd have to be to simply spend your days lounging in a back alley, oblivious and uncaring to the world around you. It reminded Yuuma of being dead. Having no say in the world, and no one knowing your name. Nor caring. Blue eyes lagged behind on the site of the fellows hunched in the alley before catching up with Logs, spotting the predicament ahead. A street fight had broken out. Apparently not the best part of town. Not surprising, considering he had little need to go to this part of town hardly ever. In that regard, he was thankful Logs seemed to know so many convenient paths to their travel, even if it did seem a little unscrupulous. In the village, most people hadn't mind travel between the houses, but people in the city seemed very particular about their plot of land. It seemed being boxed in the city made people somewhat guarded of their small slice of existence. It was a perplexing thought, but the full scope of why wouldn't occur to Yuuma just yet. Thankfully, skirting around the tussle in the alley proved to be an easy play, allowing the two to continue on their way uncontested. 

Yuuma struggled to not get lost in his thoughts, allowing himself to drift off on a whim that crossed his mind. Now was the time to focus and remain vigilant. Logs lead them into another few blocks of travel until his partner came to a stop suddenly. Yuuma's vision darted around, trying to pick out an unseen threat he had missed. "What?" He asked his tone even. When he realized the other person seemed to be arming themselves, he raised a brow. At first, Yuuma thought he might have been unburying some manner of a short cut, but when he came back with a sizable stick, Yuuma was bewildered. "What does he expect we will fight?" He thought to himself, looking back to Logs. When Logs looked from him to the other stick and back, Yuuma just lifted his coat pocket to display the weapons pouch he had strapped tightly to his thigh with a nylon button. That sucker was secure. Of course, shortly after this exchange, the neighboring area filled with rough types. It was only for a moment that Yuuma considered that the headband around his neck might have been ill-advised. Only for a moment. It seemed that despite Yuuma's best intentions, a fight was inevitable. "No killing or maiming." Was all he said to his companion as the toughs moved to violently greet them.

The fight was actually a simple matter. Despite their use of knives, none of them had any skill outside of their sheer brawn, and even that was small in the face of Yuuma. The training he hand endured showed off, his opponents move looking slowed like they were swinging through the water. His own swings had to be careful, as a punch with too much zest might permanently hospitalize one of them. Instead, it was serious of swift moves and openly handed claps to the sides of heads. A swift, silent series of strikes as the fight lasted no more than a dozen seconds. Thankfully, it seemed to only take a single clap to the jaw to fell the men who stood taller than he. And so it was. Quick, and cold. Once the last one had fallen, Yuuma was sure to stop before moving forward, calling pause even to Logs if he tried to leave. No one was quick to call the guard around here anyway. Checking over each of them, Yuuma performed minor healing jutsu needed over a few more serious looking gashes. Once he was certain they were all got no more than the beating they had requested, Yuuma nodded to Logs to move along, following quickly behind him.

The building they finally arrived at as a squat, squarish building that had boarded up windows, and seemingly only one door. A chair visible on the edge of the roof suggested that someone often sat up there, perhaps enjoying the view of the city. Yuuma accepted the packed back from Logs as he knocked on the door, holding it for a time, and brushing it off to clean it off the small scuffs it had gotten in the tussle. Eventually, a small slit opened midway up the door, a pair of bloodshot eyes looking from behind a thin mesh, offering no greeting. "The Lavender Peacock." He stated firmly, the phrase still whole in mind. The red shutter would instantly slam shut, and with a loud thud behind the wall beside them, a hatch would open, wide enough to accept a box size of the package or larger. Inside was a scroll furled by a red band.

"Take this, leave that." Came a voice beyond the hatch.

The request was promptly followed, and no sooner had the scrolled clear the doorway did the hatch slam shut with a crunch, reminding the two that slow fingers are not stopped for by the machine. Unfurling the scroll, the two of them would find a writ of job completion to be handed back to the headquarters to receive payment. Yuuma tapped the scroll in his hand, nodding to Logs. "Let's go get paid."


WC - 1,203
TWC - 2,963

Will add claims if we end it here.

Fortunately, none of the thugs were particularly threatening. Logs' arm hurt a little, but this was primarily from swinging a makeshift club around so much, less the result of the goons themselves. They were not organized enough to be specifically targeting the mission, though they probably saw the shiny Hoshigakure headbands. The package was fine though.

Onwards they went, coming to a stop by a short building that looked deserted. Fitting, for a place in the slums. Unlikely to stand out too. Yuuma was eager to continue apparently, as he knocked on the door and got checked out by some sleep deprived eyes on the other side.

After a brief conversation, a hatch opened in the wall, with a scroll within. The person on the other side of the wall was not feeling patient - and they were probably being watched secretly. The hatch slammed shut as their fingers cleared the hole. For a second Logs thought he might have to go home and get some pieces reattached.

Fortunately, there were to be no further trials, the scroll indicated a successful mission completion. Now he just wondered who that was on the other side. A member of a secret police, checking them out, perhaps?

It was then that Yuuma suggested turning in the scroll. Logs nodded his head in agreement. If there was nothing else to worry about, he would head back with Yuuma to the information center to hand the scroll in.

(potential exit)

(ttl wc, 1918
potentially claiming mission rewards (ryo + 3ap)
1000 towards http://naruto-role-play-rpg.forumotion.com/t31830-temporary-paralysis-technique#241712
918 towards http://naruto-role-play-rpg.forumotion.com/t22305-body-flicker )

With the mission complete, the two of them could make a peaceful treck back to their headquarters, able to turn in the scroll and get a nod as well as a mumbled "well done" from the clerk behind the desk, who accepted the writ of completion and would give them back their Ryo as a reward. A solid grand. It would pay his rent for months without him having to work, assuming he could stick to a strict budget. With the kind of money he was making, he might even be able to afford a house, but something told him that it wouldn't be in the cards for him any time soon. Instead, he would accept the Ryo and step back from the headquarters to join up with Logs again momentarily. "Hey." He called out once more, catching the fellow Genin as he was walking away. "If you ever need someone to tackle these missions with, come find me." He said with a nod. That was all the departure he cared to leave the man with. Turning around, Yuuma would enter the facility again, where they offered ninja supplies at a discount to active mission participants. 

[Exit]

Mission: Complete

WC - 196
TWC - 3,159

Claims:
Mission Rewards
Using 200 WC for 2 boxes of Makibishi Spikes
Using 500 WC for 2 Military Rations
Using 55 WC for 2 Stitching Needle w/ Thread
Using 100 WC for 2 Syringe w/ Needle
Using 75 WC for 1 Surgical Knife
Using 100 WC for 4 meters of Bandages
Using 25 WC for 1 Summoning Ring
Using 100 WC on 2 Pokeballs
Using 500 WC on 2 Proximity Paper Bombs
Using 636 WC on 1 Multi-weave mask - [636/3,750]
Putting 868 WC to complete Rock Clone Jutsu, previous progress here.

Also claiming 1 Explosive Tag for completing 1 D-rank mission from mission rewards.

Yuuma and Logs approved