Catching the Scent [Ban]

Murata has been doing some digging.

Xyxer Gyojin never made it back from Sunagakure, but he departed with Kirigakure's forces. Murata cannot get in touch with a single active duty shinobi who was present for that battle. The case file is sealed, accessible to only ANBU ranks and above. His brother has similarly disappeared off the face of the earth. It is unlikely that he would be assassinated so quietly, with nothing of his surfacing. Surely, if it had been done by a member of the delegation, those with the most opportunity to take his life quietly, at the very least that curious sword Samehada should have surfaced by now. There had been no record of any other shinobi vanishing or defecting on the return journey.

Where did he go?

In absence of further leads, the only thing Murata can think of is to turn her attention towards his clan.

So, Murata shows up at the home of Ban Hozuki, rapping with her knuckle against the door. Her new, still slightly stiff and uncomfortable Chunin flak vest stands out, as does the small bundle of scrolls, notes, and books held under one arm. One of those books Ban will immediately recognize - Murata's own copy of The God of Shinobi, the volume she had gifted Ban a few short weeks prior. If Ban answers the door, Murata will greet her with a chipper grin and a little wave.

"Ban! I need your help."

---

242

It was a groggy morning for Ban. She had stayed up late the night before on a guard mission, leaving her exhausted waking up the next day. She slowly went through the motions of the morning; breakfast, clean face, morning work out, and then wash her body. She hadn't even changed out of her pajamas; a gray tank tip with some extremely loose sweat pants.  After washing her body and hair, she would put some water on the stove to boil. She figured some tea would help wake her up. 

As Ban was taking her first sip of tea, a knock came on the door. It was a rarity to hear a knock at the door because she never really got guests. Ban placed down her cup of tea and peeked out the peek hole in her door. It was her friend, Murata! She was dressed in a chuunin flak and was carrying the book "The God of Shinobi."  She didn't hesitate the open the door for her. "Murata? I wasn't expecting you?" Ban's hair was still wet from the morning and still dressed in her PJs. 

Murata sounded excited when she asked for Ban's help. "My help?" She looked behind her into her small home. It was extremely well kept as Ban made sure to clean it every day despite never having any guests. There wasn't much in it, however. The house was gray and boring inside. She quickly turned back to Mur. "Of course. C-come inside!" She would invite her in. She had a small table that fit her and one other guest.  On the table were the teapot and her teacup. Ironically, it was honeydew tea, the same type of tea Ban didn't accept from Murata the day she met. It turned out, she actually really like the sweet taste of the honeydew tea. "Tea?" Ban offered to Murata, pouring her some if she accepted. 

After the pleasantries, Ban sat down and waited for Mur's business talk. She did not realize that she might be questioned about her idol, Xyxer Grojin. "So, what is it that I can help you with?" Her low voice was sounding a lot more cheery than normal. 

WC: 365

Murata feels as though she is walking into some strange world of monochrome. The village is washed out itself by the usual blanket of fog outside, so it isn't a terribly drastic shift, but the lifelessness of Ban's home still strikes her. It is remarkably clean, sterile, and minimal. Of course, as a living, breathing person, Ban cannot strip herself of life so totally. The effect of empty perfectionism is quite severely tempered by Ban's obvious unpreparedness for a guest.

"Thank you," Murata says as she sits down, the sweet fruity smell of the tea offering some reprieve from the oppressive atmosphere. She feels as though she shouldn't be touching anything, and her eyes dart back to her path inside. She hopes she didn't track in any mud...

"...do you notice anything different about me?" Murata says, puffing her chest proudly to show off her cool new vest. Her promotion is not the important topic, however, so she does not linger on showing off. Instead, she assembles her collection of books, scrolls, and notes on to the table, keeping them as orderly as she can manage. "I have been doing some digging." Murata rests her elbows on the table and leans forward, chin on her overlapping hands, a look of mischief on her face. "Where do you think Xyxer Gyojin went?"

---

221
TWC: 463

As Ban let Murata into her home, she realized that she was still wearing her PJs. After Murata took a seat, she quickly excused herself to be bedroom to change into normal attire. She would come out wearing black leggings and a different black tank top that was more open and breathable. 

Murata soon tried to get Ban to notice her attire, in which she was wearing a chunin flak. Ban totally glossed over it before because she was so stunned at Murata showing up at her place. "Oh! you're a chunin now?" Ban was excited for her friend. Her tone showed her emotion, something that doesn't happen for Ban all that often. "Congratulations! I knew there was something new." Ban would take her tea and seat at the table with Murata. She looked at the chunin flak, seeing it to be a pretty amazing design. Very tactical. 

Now it was down to business. Murata brought out all her scrolls and books that she had with her on Ban's table. She then told her that she has been doing some research, evident by all the scrolls and books. Murata then asked something that took Ban away for a moment. "Where do you think Xyxer Gyojin went?"...

Ban had to think for a moment, something she didn't do a lot. Ban was strictly a realistic person; she didn't ask many questions. After Ban learned about Xy's disappearance, she just assumed that the leader had fallen in battle on a secret mission or something. She never asked herself or anyone else about anything else. "Well, I assumed he fell in battle facing something secretly. I have no clue where." Ban wondered what Murata was getting to. Was there something that Murata found out? Was Xy actually not dead? Ban took a sip of her sweet tea in contemplation.

WC: 306
TWC: 671

Murata allows herself to momentarily bask in congratulations, but quickly moves on, responding to Ban's speculation with a thoughtful hum. Perhaps Ban won't have any information that is directly relevant. Still, it will be helpful to have somebody motivated and sharp with her on this.

She slides the three critical pieces of information forward on the table for Ban to read. The first is the news clipping of the departure of Kirigakure's fleet to Wind Country the year prior, the second is news of the fleet's return, and the third is the note that had gone out to the village's senior forces convening an emergency meeting to discuss governance of the village and noting the disappearance of their leader.

"Nobody in the village knows what happened," she says, eyes lingering on the note. The ineffectual council had likely never even really formed, their impact only this small piece of evidence providing the last time anybody in Kirigakure's higher-ranked forces had seen him. "Judging by the dates, Xyxer Gyojin retreated from Sunagakure with the rest of our forces... joined the fleet to return home... but he never made it back."

Murata's tone is slightly cautious, unsure if Ban will become defensive in some fashion.

"Either his life was taken silently at some point during the trip, and his body and equipment entirely dispensed of with nobody noticing," she says, "Or he left in the night, and not a soul in the village knew why or where... if they did, they were very keen on keeping that secret, even as the village stumbled headless." Murata rests her cheek on a palm, looking slightly stumped. "Of course, I never knew him. I have reached the point of only having conjecture. If he left of his own volition, I have no idea where we would begin to look."

---

304
TWC: 767

Murata was quick to show why she was asking Ban about the Mizukage. She explained that on a note Xyxer left Sunagakure during their siege there, left with the Mizukage forces, and then disappeared on the journey back. Ban seemed confused, this was all new information to her. Why would the Mizukage not return to their home? For Ban, Xy abandoning the village of his own free will was off the table. Xyxer was one of the people that inspired her to be extremely loyal to Kirigakure.

Murata didn't seem to have the answer to what happened or where the Mizukage went. Ban pitched in her own thoughts while lightly sipping on the tea. "Well, if he did join back up with the fleet, there must've been someone that saw him. If they could provide some clues on where the Mizukage could've left the fleet we'd know where to start." Ban took another sip. Ban didn't realize it, but she was starting to invest in this investigation on where the Mizukage went. 

Ban looked at Murata curiously and asked in her familiar deep voice. "Why do you want to find the Mizukage?" Murata explained that she wasn't from around here originally and she really didn't even know the Mizukage. Why was she so invested in trying to locate him?

WC: 219

"If there are witnesses that could narrow down our time frame, they are proving to be very elusive." The long lull of leaderlessness and the unsure early days of Terumi's reign had caused something of a shuffle in the active-duty forces. The first Mizukage's trusted loyalists have retreated into obscurity.

Murata straightens up slightly at Ban's question of motive, seeming just as excited to discuss their own personal stakes as she is to dig into the mystery.

"You cannot see where you are going without knowing where you have been," she says. "Our fates are bound to this village's trajectory. The process of history is an inexorable flow. Still, the names of individuals prevail in hearts and minds, granted undue importance for being the right people at the right time." She sips her tea. "I believe this mystery is one that desires to be uncovered. If nobody else shall accomplish this, why not us?"

Murata sets her tea down, and winks. "It would also look very good on my record. I would quite like to have a cushy retirement fund, you know."

---

182
TWC: 949

When Ban asked Murata what her motive was to find the Mizukage, of course, she gave an elaborate answer. She cited such wise words as "You cannot see where you are going without knowing where you have been." Ban chuckled lightly and folded her arms. Murata using such large words as an explanation was adorable. Ban understood what the chunin was saying but she would've paraphrased it as "because she and the village were curious and needed to know where their late leader parished." But Murata also explains that it was good on her record and might give her a cushy retirement.

Ban couldn't even fathom retirement. She turned 20 not that long ago, she still had her whole life in front of her. She planned to be working as a shinobi for many many more years to come. "Wow, you just became chunin and already planning for your retirement," Ban teased Murata. The thought of retirement made her think of another thought she had just the day before about the village. Her eyes grew curious and showed her thinking. 

"Where do you think this village is going? Like, what's our end goal anyway?" Ban took another sip of her tea. "I mean, with Kiri liberating Konogakure, do you think that's our goal? To liberate?" Ban didn't really know the reason behind the Konoha take over, she was always told that it was to liberate Konoha and make them stronger. She wasn't the philosophical type. She was more the type to just follow orders and get things done. She sees things as they were, not as they could be. One can imagine how hard it was for Ban to start questioning the village's goals. Not to mention when the goals of the village weren't clear. 

WC: 295
TWC: 1085

"...is that funny?" Murata asks lightheartedly, clearly having little self awareness as to how she comes off when she mimics her elders in the Wolf Temple. This is one of those moments where it is obvious that, as much as she carries herself as an old soul, she is still very young. Both inexperience and time spent among people unfamiliar with her on a personal level have ossified her into a degree of self seriousness, as casual as her tone often is.

Ban's next words are... interesting. Murata is unsure of how to engage with them for a moment.

"What is the purpose of any shinobi village?" she asks, delving to a deeper philosophical thread. They could discuss the specifics of what Kiri has or has not done all day and likely never get anywhere. "What do you think they bring to the world?"

---

144
TWC: 1093

Ban was not prepared for Murata to reverse the question onto her. What was the village's purpose? "I suppose it's supposed to be a protection for those who belong to it. " Ban sipped her tea in contemplation. "But there's got to be more of purpose than that? Why expand then? Or have goals?" Ban realized shortly after that she had randomly changed the topic. "Sorry, the whole Kage discussion got me thinking about the purpose of a village." It was a question she felt was still not getting a full answer. Did Xyxer or even the current Mizukage know the answer to the question. 

After finishing her tea, Ban suddenly rose from her chair. "You know what? We are getting answers. Come on, you and I will get these answers to where the Mizukage went and I will get to know what the purpose of the village is." Ban had a certain flare in her eyes. She was fully prepared to take whatever they had in front of them head-on. She would urge Murata out of her seat and out the door with her. Their stop, if not interrupted, would be the Kage's office. They would be able to get some answers there. 

WC: 203
TWC: 1288

Potential exit