Evacuate the Pope! (Yoshimi)

“I’m just looking to go meet a potential client. This is a business trip for me.” The man belted a quick laugh. Tsubaki was getting irritated at the stranger but couldn't dismiss this guy completely. She would have to keep her calm and remain in character. The man smiled ear to ear,"...Looks like we both seem to be heading in the same direction." She wondered if Yoshimi was also done with his guy's yapping. Tsu almost wanted to order Yoshimi too take off his head and hide the body 20 meters under.  There wasn't much to do to spot him, she also didn't know where the danger was because Yoshimi wasn't able to vocalize any intel yet. 

"So, what crops do you sell?" The stranger asked Yoshimi, which quickly deflected to Tsu, "I don't sell crops. She does." Thanks, Yoshimi, Tsu would think sarcastically to herself. "You aren't going to get much from us. We went bankrupt." She would look at the man, beyond irritated glare and a lemon squeezed face, which fit the character of a broke milkmaid. The lie about being broke would, with luck, drive any thieves away and the annoying stranger. "We went to Hoshi in hopes to find some emergency funds but they weren't able to supply anything because we haven't been able to produce enough revenue. This has been a rough journey for all of us, so we'd prefer not talking about it right now." She hoped that with that heartbreaking lie the man would stop bothering them. Both Yoshimi and Souta would have to improvise a story that would go with hers. Thankfully, the priest was silent since she snapped at him. 

WC: 279
TWC: 1882

The annoying man would hear out the young lady before shaking his head, “That really is too bad, I’m sorry to hear it. Well I don’t mean to bother you fine folks.” He would mention noting the tone and expression of Tsu. “Well I’ll stay quiet. We travel in the same direction so I see no benefit to splitting up.” He would add before quieting himself.
 
They would follow along the path silently, the grouping lacking any real interaction. Yoshimi would devise a plan to relay the information to Tsu. “Is that?” He would say aloud to himself before rushing over at what he imagined normal folks running speed would be. He would now be ahead of the group and kneeled down looking at something. Then he would then pick something up and run back to Tsu, his eyes still trained on the odd man following them. Once within close proximity, Yoshimi would put out his hand, revealing nothing but a simple common stone. He would whisper, “There is a large group of people ahead at the crossroads. They have been there for a while.” He was banking on their assumed poor status to mask why he was being so secretive. If he had found something of value, a group of bankrupt farmers may not desire anyone else to know. He wasn’t entirely sure of this plan, but it was something.
 
“I hope whatever you found helps you folks out of your tough situation,” the man following would say, keeping his distance from the trio. Once Tsu was properly informed, Yoshimi would pocket the rock. “Let us hope.” He would reply to the man.
 
The distance between the group and the ambush point was shrinking rapidly, and Yoshimi was waiting on the man behind them to reveal his true purpose. From this distance, he didn’t need his telescopic vision to spot the would be attackers. Then unexpectedly, one of them disappears into thin air.
 
“BEHIND US!” Yoshimi would shout as an assassin materializes from thin air behind the old soldier following them, piercing a dagger through his kidney. Blood trickles from his mouth before he falls to the ground, dead. “Their escape is blocked! Surround them!” The assassin would shout to his subordinates. The attacking men would dash out from the trees ahead of them, surrounding the group at a distance of a mere 5 meters at the farthest and 3 meters at the closest. Three remained behind, bows drawn on the escorting group.
 
The assassin in the back would speak, “You are outnumbered, three to one. And that is counting that sniveling worm you are escorting as a part of your forces. Hand him over, and we won’t kill you.” With that said, the man would wait to see what the group’s reaction would be.
 
Yoshimi would be at the ready, his hands only a moment’s distance away from his weapon pouch. There were a lot of them, not to mention the snipers. “They have men in the trees with weapons trained on us. Can you keep the client safe while fighting them off?”

WC:515
TWC: 3109

The man, noticing Tsu's irritation, would say “That is too bad, I’m sorry to hear it. Well, I don’t mean to bother you, fine folks." She sighed in relief, knowing that the man wouldn't be bothering them anymore. “Well, I’ll stay quiet. We travel in the same direction so I see no benefit to splitting up," the man would say quietly to himself. The Senju wouldn't respond further, hoping that he wouldn't become a liability if they were attacked or if he was an assassin after all. 

Out of nowhere, Yoshimi suddenly spoke, "is that?" Tsubaki looked ahead, concerned to see what it was. When she noticed nothing, she looked confused. Yoshimi would run out and grab a simple stone and bring it back to her. She would soon find out that he was using it as a way to communicate with her without arousing suspicion. “There is a large group of people ahead at the crossroads. They have been there for a while.” Tsu nodded. She grew concerned about this group, the likelihood that the band was bandits grew. Had this man been leading them into a trap, Tsu asked herself? She had taken a common root so there was no way that this was because of the priest. 

Suddenly, "BEHIND US!" Yoshimi alerted. Tsubaki spun around to find the stranger stabbed in the back from the kidney. The blood trickled off the blade onto the ground. The man spat out blood before collapsing. There was nothing Tsubaki could do, the attack was fatal. She felt guilty that she thought the man was part of the band, and now he had lost his life. But there was no time for regrets. 

The assassin spoke, “You are outnumbered, three to one. And that is counting that snivelling worm you are escorting as a part of your forces. Hand him over, and we won’t kill you.” Damn, Tsu thought, she thought that they wouldn't be discovered; her plan had failed. "Damn it, here I thought we wouldn't have to fight," Tsu sneered at the man that had stabbed the stranger mercilessly. There were 6 of them surrounding the trio, three of them on the ground and the other three were in the trees with bows trained on their position.  “They have men in the trees with weapons trained on us. Can you keep the client safe while fighting them off?” Tsubaki nodded. "With pleasure." 

Tsubaki quickly weaved two hand signs and held her tiger hand seal. The ground would quickly erupt around the priest. Trees quickly emerged from around the priest. Tsubaki was going to use her Nativity of the World of Trees make defensive and offensive attacks. The branches launched over her head and towards the archers in the trees, leaving the men on the ground to Yoshimi. The branches would spread out and target each of them with a sharp branch. The wood swiftly pierces the chest of the archers. She would show the same mercy that they gave to the innocent man. The priest, trapped in a fort of wood would whimper, "H-help me..." A lot had transpired, Tsu wasn't surprised he was terrified. 

WC: 526
TWC: 2408

Yoshimi would draw his blade, disappointed that he didn't have his true sword for this mission. A kunai would simply have to do. In a rapid dash the Hyuuga would fling a cluster of shuriken at two of the men on the ground while closing with the main assassin. The two weren't quick enough to dodge at such a close distance and so there were less to deal with. The assassin would also close in, brandishing a second razor sharp dagger that was as dangerous as it looked. 

As a Hyuuga, Yoshimi's visual prowess was nearly unmatched, yet the movements of this assassin were almost happening before he even knew himself what he was going to do. A fast slash, parried with ease. A lunge side-stepped and countered, the assassin able to slice into the flesh of the young soldiers arm. Despite wearing his chuunin vest, it simply didn't really cut it as far as armor goes. It barely only covered the torso, leaving all limbs unprotected. That would need to be remedied at some point here in the near future. 

The goggle wearing assassin would seem to best the Hoshi shinobi, the assassins movements almost too fast and too capable of predicting Yoshimi's own to land a solid hit. Luckily with Tsu handling the archers their attacking force was depleting. It would seem as though he may have met his match. The two would continue going back and forth like this, Yoshimi occasionally shifting his focus to killing those untrained thugs trying to flank him while the assassin held his attention. Most of the targets were dead, and with Tsu's focus now able to be directed towards the assassin he would leap backwards and disappear. "Next time you die." was all that could be heard before he was completely gone.

After a hearty battle between the Senju and Hyuuga vs the assassins, it seemed that the shinobi of Hoshi would claim victory as the rest of the band retreated. Tsubaki let down her arms and sighed to relax her nerves. "Great fighting, Yoshimi." She complimented the Hyuuga as she was helping the priest out of her defensive tree barrier. She was impressed that he was able to keep up with assassin, able to block his blows with only a kunai. His weapon abilities were surely not an understatement. 

Now that the band was gone, Tsubaki felt safer with delivering the priest. The two shinobi would continue to lead the man out of the village and into a neighbouring land that was separated by a bridge. The priest would turn to the two shinobi and bow politely at the edge of the bridge. "Thanks to you two, I was able to make it out of here alive." He smiled sincerely. "I wish I could stay in Hoshi longer but my calling is lying elsewhere. Besides, now we know that the rumours about my assassination attempts were true." He pats Yoshimi on the shoulder. "I wish you two the highest blessings. Hoshi will be safer with you two in it." Souto turns away from them and starts over the bridge and down the path out of the village borders. Tsubaki shook her head and smiled. "I kinda miss him already." She would turn to Yoshimi and then head down the path back to Hoshi. 

Once they arrived back from their mission, Tsubaki would confront Yoshimi one more time. "I hope I get to see you in the future. You've got some impressive skill. Let me know if you need anything." Tsubaki would blow a kiss before body flickering back to her home. 

WC: 300
TWC: 2708
EXIT
CLAIMING: 
612 WC towards Earth Release: Earth Wall (1500/1500)
2000 WC towards Chakra Suppression 
96 WC towards Water Release: Water Trumpet (96/1500)
54 Ap

While the Senju woman would praise him for his efforts, Yoshimi knew that he deserved no praise. At the rate he was going the assassin likely would have won if not for the tides shifting in the favor of the Hoshi shinobi. The Hyuuga alone might not have bested the assassin, but once Tsu was added into the mix they were odds that weren't worth gambling ones life on. Yoshimi would consider his wounds, but they weren't deep or in any dangerous areas. He was certain that they would heal just fine without any extra efforts from Tsu. 

Yoshimi would remain silent, allowing the mission leader to take the lead on seeing the priest off. He was also contemplating how he would rectify his 'loss' here today. He knew one thing for certain, his training was not as effective as he needed it to be. He would have to up the intensity to better hone his reflexes. 


---Exit---

WC: 157
TWC: TBD

Claims: TBD