Jumping Off The Edge

Mission Info:

Even during the holidays, it was one mission after another for the albino medic. It wasn’t like he had anything else to be doing, really, but it was still exhausting nonetheless. Maybe he could take a day or two off of the missions after this was all over? He’d have to see. Regardless, he’d received a summons for a new mission, and duty called. The same group from Christmas had been summoned for a new mission regarding New Year’s, and this time it seemed more up their alley than the last had been. This time, baby new year had been kidnapped, and it was their job to fight through the kidnapped and retrieve the baby. Luckily, speed wasn’t quite of the same importance as teamwork and strategy would be, here.

Perhaps the most surprising part of the envelope, though, was just who had been named team leader. He’d expected Kota, or Musu, or even their random 4th man, but this time it seemed like it was his turn to take the lead. Perhaps this was for the best, since they were dealing with a hostage situation, but Asuka was still nervous nonetheless. Their meeting place had been set on the next street over from where the baby had been kidnapped, and as he made his way to the spot, he made a point of taking deep breaths. He would need to be calm here, and he would do his best to speak up, this time.

He wouldn’t be able to formulate a plan until they could investigate the crime scene and track the perpetrators, but he was still going through emergency measures in his head nonetheless. At least it helped that he knew at least a little of two of his team member’s abilities… The moment he arrived at the meeting spot, the young man stood as straight and tall as he could manage at his height and waited for the rest of their little team. He was by far the shortest person of the group, but he wouldn’t let that stop him from making sure he looked serious enough. It was important to maintain professionalism here, no matter how much some of the team members seemed to think otherwise.

WC: 370
TWC: 370

After saving the Winter Equinox and the doing the job of the one they called Santa, Musu thought that he was done being the hero of the winter wonderland. Sure, it seemed like everywhere Musu went there was trouble afoot, but there was so way that it would continue to be so... dramatic here.

The inn where the Jounin of the Sands of staying at was quaint, delightful, and warm. Oh it was so warm and Musu cared only to stay there instead of outside in the snow. After almost a month of traveling to and from the winter wonderland and back to the hidden sand, the Uzumaki had learned much about himself, and the one thing he knew for sure was that he hated the cold. The wind chilled his bones and it felt like death was coming through him, he even felt like he could have gotten a cold at some point or another, but at least he was getting paid to be there.

The place was nothing short of a large Money bag, the uzumaki had never been in real danger and had been rewards tens of thousands of ryo for doing little. Sure, the adventures that they had on the reindeer were difficult and saving that man from the blizzard was... chilling, but he hadn't yet had to do any real ninja work. Regardless, Musu was happy to finally be in a position to do some real good here even though the whole thing was a bit extreme.

Apparently a child is what rings in the new year, a baby, and it has been kidnapped. Musu wasn't the most skilled tracker, his sensory abilities allowed him some power but most of it was through his sand which had limited range, however when he heard that Kota was going, Musu knew that it was going to be a an exciting time. The rescue party also included Katsuragi, or so he was told, which meant that anything was possible.

Musu arrived at the meeting spot a few minutes after Asuka did, the entrance to some gated building for some important person, but that didn't really matter. Musu was robed in his crimson red threads that would be glittered with some falling snow as he walked towards the meeting spot.

"Oh, hello Asuka, good to see you."

[388]

The archer was trying to rest peacefully in his area. Get up! I wanna go out. You are so bored when you spend time sleeping like this. At least bring me some melon seeds. That or maybe some seasonal one. Like the ones from the chestnuts or holy? Kota was starting to get annoyed by the mental siege that was being caused by his own bird. Del was practically betraying him. Kota could understand that the constant barrage about boredom and seeds, was a red herring to disguise what she really wanted. Del had constantly been getting close to Musu. At some points it was getting harder for the archer to know whose bird Del was.

“Relax. I will get up and we can head out in a minute. There is no need to barrage and rush me. Not like we are guaranteed to run into him again. Being realistic about it, Musu is probably busy.” Kota got up and changed into his gear while he replied to the bird audibly. He could have spoken to her through their mental connection but Kota preferred treating her like a person. It would also be a surprise for others when Kota used their bond to pull off some sick moves.

Kota moved out and went to pick up a mission. The rewards for work here were always very fair. The archer could even start to afford some deluxe materials for his bow if he wanted to forge it like he did his armor. The mission Kota chose was an okay one. It was about rescuing a baby. It was already chosen by others. Being his usual ding-a-ling of a self. Kota had to rush to the meet up location in question.

Upon his arrival Kota would freeze, checking out the other people. The smugness that was radiating from his companion was suffocating. It seemed like his destiny was constantly drawing him to the ever so lovely Musu. Asuka was easy on the eyes as well. It was just the difference in style and opinion that was a turn off. Kota believed if the guy was less squeamish it would be better. He did not dislike the guy, if not he would just avoid anything he already saw him working on. Kota did not even take Asuka for a bad person. Del was pretty ambient if not stand offish towards him, that was not even a behavior a few seeds could not fix.

“Wow. I guess it is a small world to be running into all of you again. Good to see the two of you like always.” A small and simple greeting was enough from him. It would be better for him to get to the mission at hand. He would wait for the other two to speak and exchange their pleasantries before getting into it. “So. Am I on time or did anyone start looking for clues?” Kota slung the bow of his shoulders and started making handseals. The archer would avoid them usually but some jutsu required them, not to mention doing it with two hands was easier on his body. The handseals was to perform gauge. He was getting used to the technique and thought use it to check out the crime scene.

WC: 544

-53 AP to use Gauge with 25% reduction.

The Madkat arrived at the scene with no delay; his payout from the previous mission prompted him to be on his best behavior. He knew that Santa and all that other stuff didn't exist, but the money he got was as real as it got. He figured another payout like last time wouldn't hurt, shinobi or not, Katsuragi had bills to pay. He continues to saunter over to the familiar figures, same group same shit. He wasn't mad though, in fact, doing a job with the same people actually put him more at ease. As long as shit got done and he got paid, who was he to fuss?

Katsuragi's attire consisted of a Yakuta black leather jacket, which underneath he wears a Hanley blood red hoodie. His belt is black leather, designer's choice, with an overlapping LV emblem as a buckle. The pants he wears is a fresh pair of black stretch jeans with ankle zippers located on the lower inside section of the pants. His boots on his feet also being solid black of a leather material with an emblem labeled "EU", it's made of metal stitched to the tongue of the boots. His hair, still vivid, was a solid dark purple. His hair in contrast with his pale skin, however, his arms torso and hands bore a mural of mostly assorted prison tattoos, all black ink in color. He himself stood at a height of 6'2 feet with a thin frame. His tools and such were all assorted evenly along his attire, given no hint to their whereabouts yet allowed him easy access with a little bit of technique.

"The gang's all here huh...", he blurted out. He scans the group once more before speaking more on the subject. "So I hear a baby got kidnapped. Now we gotta get the thing back. Oh, annnnd the people who did it are rolling deep. And they must be savage mofos too", he looks off to the distance to his right for only a moment. He looked a bit nervous, but not out of fear for the group of kidnappers. "I've done some things..., allegedly. But this baby must have a serious bank account if a group of bandits kidnapped it. Hell, if we play our cards right, we might be able to crank out a bonus...", his evil devious mind was hard at work. Btu he remained true to his thoughts. The baby had to be connected to some type of wealth, not some father time happy new bullshit.

"So what yall think? We could look for some clues and shit, or secure that real money"
---
wc/438

As the team began arriving, Asuka stood up straighter, attempting to look more commanding than his usual soft look. The uniform helped, but even the boots only added another inch or two onto his shirt height. The rest of the group practically towered over him. Still, he didn’t let that stop him from greeting them as they arrived. First was Musu, the jounin who’d already joined him for two missions now. Next was Kota, the archer launching into what Asuka could only assume was a sensory jutsu mere seconds after arrival. However, his arrival also seemed to bring some tension, which had Asuka avoiding looking at the much taller man. He wasn’t even sure what kind of tension it was, but he could definitely see something between Kota and Musu, especially with the flirting in their last mission.

It was only after Katsuragi arrived and Asuka had given the man a simple greeting that he clapped his hands together, attempting to draw attention to himself. “Good! It seems we’ve all made it. I know you’ve all been given the mission info, so I will state that the original scroll has listed me as the team leader. I more than likely remain the weakest fighter in here, but my abilities are definitely meant for this kind of situation. Kota, have you picked up a trail already? I know you’re probably the best tracker of the group. If you have, we can get moving. Once we’ve found where they’re holding the baby, we’ll go over strategy, okay?” he said, hoping the other shinobi would listen. He wasn’t so sure they would follow directions from the weakest among them, but he had to at least try.

Upon receiving confirmation from Kota, the young man would begin following the trail, just behind the much taller man. He wanted to be near the front of the group when they arrived at their destination, so he could observe defenses and form a proper strategy. He already had a semblance of an idea what they were facing, but confirmation would be needed before he could truly be certain in his planning. He didn’t want to mess this up, after all, there was potentially a life at stake here! He just hoped he wasn’t going to have to kill any of the group that took the baby. Taking them into custody would be ideal, especially since it would also give the authorities insight into why and how this was all happening.

The trail would eventually take them to what appeared to be a large warehouse, armed guards posted on every entrance. Hastily launching into a series of hand seals, Ram -> Monkey -> Ox -> Clap, the young man stopped on a nearby rooftop and would signal for his companions to stop there. The seal he created would suppress their chakra, making detection harder while they planned. Now was the moment for observation and planning, the gears in his head beginning to turn as he sized up the guards and their locations. “I think I have a plan here. Katsuragi, you’ll be with me. We’re going to cause a commotion, try and draw as many goons to us as possible. Make it flashy, make it loud. Try not to destroy the warehouse, but otherwise go crazy. Kota, you’re the fastest, so I want you to try and retrieve the baby. Avoid killing any guards guarding the baby if possible, capturing them is ideal. We need to know who was behind the incident, after all. Musu, you should go with him, watch his back. Is this acceptable to you all?”

WC: 601
TWC: 971
-30 AP seal of suppression

The Sand Jounin of the Uzumaki would scoff a little at Asuka not responding to his greeting. Sure, it wasn't the most formal greeting or welcome, but it was a bit insulting to be ignored. The goal of the mission was a delicate one though and the security of this child was most important. For now, Musu would continue to stand close to the well dress genin, his clothes making him almost blend in with the snow. Perhaps Musu could develop a seal that allowed him to stay warm in places like this, even when it was this cold, but that was a thought for another time.

For now, the jounin would be delighted at the arrival of Del, Kota, and Katsuragi. They hadn't really had the chance to meet up since they all saved santa's job, considering the reindeer they had all moved at different paces, or perhaps the four ninja all just did the job at a different place.


"Well, well, well, if it isn't the coolest man in town, and that's saying something."
Musu would first turn his eyes toward Katsuragi who came more chipper and slightly more dignified than the last time they met. The Sand jounin knew the Medkat was in it for the money, so perhaps the prospect of another hefty paycheck was a turn on here. Still, Musu wondered if he ever would get as cool as the Kat standing before him. Maybe it was all the leather....

Next Musu would turn his eyes toward Del and Kota. He decided to pay attention towards Del, the bird had definitely taken a liking to him, and Musu was growing fond of the bird as well.

"I knew I'd run into you two, here Del I found something for you." The Uzumaki would take a small pouch out of his robes and open the string holding it together. "I was told this was some seed from a distant land, it's yours if you want it." Musu would say with a smile, looking towards kota as well, softening the smile as he did, letting his eyes signal the affection the Uzumaki couldn't deny. The months of constant flirting, gifts, and kindness had certainly worn Musu down.

Before things got too out of hand, Musu turned his attention to Asuka, raising an eyebrow learning that the genin was going to be the mission leader. Musu was intrigued to learn the ninja was given the responsibility here, considering the lack of experience that the ninja had in doing search and rescue mission, but also understanding why maybe Asuka was nervous before.

Listening the whole of direction, Musu found no major flaw in the plan, and nodded with approval once the uzumaki was given direction.

"My skills are yours to get this job done. I will protect my comrades and make sure nobody responsible for this outrage gets away. Lead the way."

[TWC: 871]

“Yeah, as long as those fat northpole payments keep coming, ill be the coolest mothafucka you‘ll ever meet”, he said while glancing over towards Musa. The money was the only reason he was here. In fact, he already knew how he was going to spend it. New gear and clothes were a must. He always enjoyed getting new clothes. It was mostly die to his up bringing in Tanzaku Town. It was a very superfical town, due to the many businesses that resided in the town. Big or small, each had their own influences in all parts. The more he thought about it, the more he couldn’t wait to leave. He just needed to leave this winter wonderland.

He snaps his head towards kota after listening to Asuka bring the reins in. Normally he wouldnt follow orders, but due to the fat northpole payments he was kept in hush mode for now. Once the information was given out by the tracker, he would set off to the warehouse to deal with this so called badass gang. “Let’s waste this candy ass gang, I’m going for bodies…”, he yelled as he set off.

Along the trail, leading it, he arrives to the scene. With the help of Asuka, the presence was masked. The whole gang was hidden from detection, and it was a good thing too; Katsuragi’s eyes widen up looking outwards towards the mob of Yakuza.

“The Yakuza? Really? Gawd damn, these people mean business. We need to come correct. I heard about this one guy who stole from them. They let him live, but taught him three wise lessons. Speak no evil, hear no evil, and see no evil. Tongue, ears, and eyes… they took em all. Maaaaan, that baby is probably dead already. How? I’ll give yall a hint, taxidermy.”, he stops his monologue to listen to Asuka’s plan.

After hearing, he had no choice but to agree. Yes, there were a few sharp glances and raised eye brows, but compared to the roles ge was far away from getting cut off from escaping if things got too real. While Asuka was planning out the attack, Katsuragi was planning out his back up plan. Taking in the form amd features that was Asuka, he noticed that Asuka didn’t look that physically strong. So, being the guy that he was, he planned own literally yeeting Asuka to the wolves if he needed to run. He didnt know or owe these people. Fuck them, either way Katsuragi was gonna get outta here alive.

After Asuka was done, he glances over to Asuka with a devilish smile that would impress the cheshire cat himself. “Oh yeah, im ready…are you?”, his eyes gazed towards Asuka like a hawk watching it’s prey.

Kota was not fully surprised about the last member to show up. He thought the guy was weird but he kept running into the same people. That was the only reason he refrained from thinking the guy was following him, the Katsudon fellow or something. It was an odd name but Kota was not one to be judgy about it. It also helped that Katsudon was a pretty decent meal on a budget. Thinking about it he started to get hungry and his mind started to wander. He quickly got back to focusing.

Looking around to see what he could find he was pretty disappointed. Gauge showed him some things but was not the best for tracking. The shinobi threw up some handseals at high speed. Completing them the field of his vision, as well as his other senses enhanced. He was using senses beyond to allow him a better chance of finding what he needed. It took him thirty seconds for his enhanced chakra sensory abilities to pick up on something.

“Yeah. I found something. I am ready to go whenever you are then.” He gave a reply and started leading the way. On the way Kota did think it a bit weird that the archer was leading the way. In common wars archers would be more of a rear support but that was just in his opinion. The hunter was more secured with his ability to protect himself if anything.

Kota started to pay more attention to Asuka when he spoke. The archer was not thrilled at trying to keep an enemy alive. He felt like doing so would just give the enemy a chance to stab them in the back. The rest of his plan was sound. It was not Kota’s fault he thought the man would not live a long life running missions with that attitude. It would be better for the guy to teach at the S.R.A.C or something. “I can easily do that. I can warp me and Musu inside, under stealth. He can throw out his chakra chains to tie up the evil doers. We can grab the baby and warp back out. Unless you are going to try and capture everyone alive instead. Then we can simply stay and capture.”

The archer would not give much thought into the rest of the plan. It would be easier to get in position and go from there. He would move out with Musu to find a decent point to execute the strategy. “Would you mind if I princess carried you for a moment? It would be easier for me to get us in there without being noticed if I do. Not sure if I can manage to get you under my arm. Then again I can give you a piggyback ride. Your choice.” It was true that Kota needed to have contact with Musu to warp, and to go into stealth. He simply did not mention that it was fine as long as they were touching. Holding hands or just having Musu put a finger on him would work.

When the man decided how he would do it. Kota would be ready for the signal to be given. His armor started putting out the chameleon armament. Since he did not need the hand signs it was easy for him to do. The two of them were put in their own little bubble. He had asked Delphi to fly around the place, as to be the lookout. He did not want something to happen to her and she was not fully trained. When the signal was given in whatever form it would take Kota would take a step teleporting with himself in Musu into the warehouse with relative ease. They popped up three and a half meters away from a group of guards that only glanced at the distraction outside. Kota had chosen the place since he felt all their chakra signatures surrounding another with his enhanced senses. The archer would wait for Musu to make his move. Any moves Kota would make would be too lethal.

WC: 685
TWC: 1,229

Chakra used to upkeep gauge - 53AP

Chameleon Armament - 38 AP

Roc Flight - 100 plus 50 to move Musu

Senses Beyond - 40 AP

Total: 281 + 53 (last round) = 334 916 /1,250 AP Left

Listening to Kota, Asuka was quick to form a simple response. “We don’t need all of them alive. But at minimum keep one guard alive, and the leader if you see them. We need the info. I’ll be trying to avoid killing if I can help it, but depending on how much ruckus we cause I may have to start killing too.” he answered, looking truly depressed at the thought of potentially having to kill someome. He’d vowed not to kill unless he could help it, and he hoped this situation wouldn’t require it of him. With that out of the way, the young man now turned to Katsuragi, who was already primed to go.

It seemed the man didn’t think much of him, based on the looks he was giving Asuka, and that almost made him want to compete. He wouldn’t win, of course, but he was stronger than most people perceived. Pretty did not equal delicate, not even in the case of a medic who didn’t like to kill. Nodding, he wouldn’t speak a single word to Katsuragi, instead simply jumping off the roof as he activated his chakra-enhanced strength. Due to the jutsu, not only did he fly much further, but the fall of about 10m was shaken off like it was nothing as he landed with a resounding crash right next to a group of guards.

They recovered from the shock quickly, reaching for weapons and preparing handsigns, but the genin spun on his heel, bringing his fists up to hit two in the face and hopefully take them down long enough to get their companions down. The crunch of bone was very clear and very loud up close, and anybody nearby would be able to hear the rather loud sounds of the young man fighting. It stung his hands, doing this, but he decided to be smart about it and quickly launched into a series of handsigns that finally gave a small visual as to just what he was doing. Hands lighting up the green of mystical palm, he would now be able to paralyze the next two guards with well-aimed blows in vital spots, hitting hard enough that they’d no doubt be feeling the pain for days assuming Katsuragi didn’t kill them.The genin didn’t bother looking to see where his own temporary partner had gone, lunging as the next group of yakuza thugs came sprinting around the corner, much bigger than the group of 4 Asuka had initially engaged. From there, he hardly had time to think, too busy moving into a flurry of dodges and loud hits that were certain to catch and hold the attention of any thugs in the area, especially given his already eye-catching appearance.

He actively made as much noise as possible throughout the ordeal, though his slight inexperience in fighting groups had resulted in several minor injuries and cuts that he attempted to heal with with one hand, albeit with not much success due to the paralyzing quality I’d had taken as it flowed through his clenched fists. He’d just have to heal the worst of it once he was done, he reflected, though he really hoped Katsuragi wouldn’t need healing after he was done with his group, because he felt this was going to take a lot of chakra to pull off. Eventually, Asuka’s group diminished to the point where he was able to knock the last two men he’d been fighting down, breathing heavily and bleeding from a few shallow cuts that had happened when the young man got sloppy in his dodges.

He observed the area with wary silver eyes, relaxing subtly when he saw no more threats, and instead turned to make his way back to the roof, where he would hopefully meet up with Katsuragi and the others. Using surface walking to get back up faster, he alighted on the roof, where the others were hopefully waiting for him. If they were, he would congratulate all of them on a successful mission, ready to return to the rendezvous point with Father Time so they could return the baby to where it belonged.

WC: 601
TWC: 1,572
Claims: 12,000 Ryō / 60 AP / 2,500 Winter Equinox Tickets / 1x Blank Dice (d4)
521 words towards learning Mercury, for a total of 2,000/2,000
Putting the remaining 1,051 towards trading extra AP via Strength of a Hundred for a total of 10 AP. (2 per 100 words)
[Exit]

Asuka Shimizu wrote:
WC: 601
TWC: 1,572
Claims: 12,000 Ryō / 60 AP / 2,500 Winter Equinox Tickets / 1x Blank Dice (d4)
521 words towards learning Mercury, for a total of 2,000/2,000
Putting the remaining 1,051 towards trading extra AP via Strength of a Hundred for a total of 10 AP. (2 per 100 words)
[Exit]

Approved.

Previous Mercury WC allocation can be found - https://www.narutoroleplaygame.com/t48912p40-asuka-shimizu-stats#411182

For clarity 1051 WC would equate to 20AP according to the 2 per 100 words calculation. ((1000 / 100) * 2) = 20.