Best Laid Plans [FB]

Inaba folded the letter and slipped it back into his breast pocket. His fingers traced the square impression it made in his white dress shirt, an act to reassure himself he wasn’t going crazy. The little slip of paper had burdened him since it arrived. S. Matahara? Zaled Uchiha? Anonymous Benefactor? Inaba rubbed his temples in hopes of it bringing some clarity. The letter had been written by a feminine hand; he could discern that at least: The soft, gentle brush strokes–the fine lines of Kanji. Strange portents– Portents? Where did that come from? That wasn’t a word he used. In fact, it wasn’t one of his words at all. Odd.

He rose from his desk and walked over to the window, undid the latch, and opened the window. Inaba eyed the umbrellas on the sidewalk below as he lit a Kumo Sizzler. Whatever the future brought, he decided, the letter was worth more than gold. It was a job: Work, Money, Ryo. After immigrating to Ame and setting up shop here, Inaba hadn’t had one job. He watched over the past months as his bank balance dwindled. Flinging the butt of his cigarette out the cracked window, he plopped his rump back into the chair.

He resumed rubbing his temples. Portents, huh?

WC: 213

Inaba wrote:Dear S. Matahara, unfortunately, I have to refuse your offer. My skill set is better served by spying on cheating housewives, which may be beyond what I'm capable of. I am formally trained in cat-catching and washing the Raikage’s underwear. I apologize for turning down your generous offer. I can refer you to another independent agency, who’d be more than willing to assist you with your problem. I'll attach a list for you—best of luck in your future endeavors.

Sincerely, Kurohane Inaba

President Of Kurohane Corp.

Inaba reread his reply with a self-satisfied smirk, lifting the page between thumb and forefinger into the light for a moment, then crumbled it into a ball and flung it in the trash bin. He took another swig from his beer and leaned back in his chair, left foot knocking over an empty can off the desk as he rested heels on the desktop. It's hardly worth my trouble. Not to mention–

A knock came at the door.

If it’s that courier boy again. Inaba side-eyed the door as he took another gulp of beer.

“You’re not going to get my letter tonight. Return to your employer; I’m too shitfaced to reply.”

Another knock.

Inaba was up on his feet instantly, and rushed the door, flinging it open with exaggerated annoyance.

“I said–”

The woman who stood in his doorway seemed out of place in the dingy office.

“I am Matahara Suika,” She said, holding her hands out to him as though to an old friend, “Magistrate Of Laws for the Autarch Of Ame.”

Inaba was impressed, he had to admit. Not even the slightest flinch at the state of the office: Empty beer cans littered around the room, paperwork strewn about the desk, and the trash bin overflowing with his witty drafts. Not to mention the haze of smoke. She wore a long dress in the style of Ame: Purple satin, laced with gold brocade, it shimmered around her in the incandescent light. A green sapphire hung from around her neck in the shape of a three-pronged flame. Inaba detected a strange scent as she came closer. It reminded of him of the spice gardens in Kumo. The effect was far from wasted on him.

“Shall we discuss my proposal? I can always come back,” She said with a wry grin,” if you’re too shifaced.”

“No, now is a good time,” He lied.

“Perfect,” She said, smiling easily.

A spill of dark hair whipped against his cheek as she pushed past Inaba to the desk. Something had caught her eye there. She picked up a sheet of parchment and flipped it over to read both sides. She turned to look back at him with a smirk and narrowed gray eyes.

Inaba’s throat felt tight.

“Excuse the mess,” He said, tucking his white shirt into his beltline.

“No need to apologize,” She batted away his words with the flat of a hand, “I grew up with three older brothers, Mr. Kurohane, I’m well aware of what men are like.”

“Please feel free to sit. Can I get you a drink?”

“I’ll have one of your beers,”

WC: 522
TWC: 735

Inaba retrieved two cans from the cooler, sloshing around the ice water and shaking away their moisture coating. He handed one to Suika, sitting at the desk on the opposite side of her. He paused momentarily before cracking his beer, stealing glances of her. He watched as her gray eyes shifted between him and the window. A sliver of setting sun peaked between two Skyscrapers behind them. Painted nails traced the rim of her beer. She pursed her lips as they locked eyes, raising a coquettish brow.

“Give me the spiel then,” He said, pushing a dangling forelock out of his view.

“Right,” She rummaged through her bag, retrieving a creme folder, and displayed it before him, “This is him.” She pointed at a page cut from a bingo book.

Inaba extended an arm, sliding the page across the desk, letting it rest before him.

“Uchiha Zaled, the Breaker,” He tilted his head, “B-Ranked Missing-Ninja from Kazan–no, Hoshigakure.”

“You read it correctly, twice absconded.”

“And what would the Autarch of Amegakure want with this Breaker?” He took a sip of beer.

“Straight to the point. Well, we’re remarkably low on manpower currently. You can understand that being a former Shinobi yourself, can’t you?”

Inaba closed his eyes, recalling a scene he saw on the street just the other day. Footmen with sigils of a Golden Heron emblazoned on their tunics battering rowdy citizens whose speech displeased them. Pushing his beer aside, he interlaced fingers together and hunched over to rest his chin on them.

“I understand needing soldiers, but this is a waste of time,” He admitted, “I’ve seen whom the Autarch has hired to keep his peace. His taste in Sellswords is less than agreeable.”

“That may be so, Mr Kurohane, but what we need now are warm bodies to fill positions. The Autarch cares little where these bodies come from. You can play philosopher some other time; I don’t need a lesson in ethics from a Mercenary.”

The lines of her face hardened in annoyance as she huffed audibly. Suika tucked loose hanging strands behind her ear. She made a move to stand, but Inaba got up first.

“Just wait,” He said, “Let’s continue.”

The Magistrate Of Law relaxed her posture, resuming her easy smile, bidding him continue with a nod…


One hand cupped over his mouth; fingers pinched around a cigarette, Inaba stood in his empty office, left with her lingering scent. He turned to a parcel stuffed with a Ryo advance, then to the door, which had been left ajar. She was trying to manipulate me. Of that he was certain, but for what deeper purpose? Idiot, idiot, idiot. Ensha was right: You’ve always been a sucker for pretty faces. Even from the grave, that old bastard's lessons stayed with him. He tongued at a gap in his molars where a tooth should have been. ‘First the fighting, the money, then the fucking. Have you learned the order? Or do you want another lesson in etiquette?’ His mentor’s voice echoed. Sorry, old boy, I never learn. Picking up his overcoat and sliding a haphazard arm through the leather sleeve, Inaba exited, slamming the door behind him. She had something to hide. Inaba was willing to stake his life on it. Nothing is as it seems in this business.

Watch her. Follow her. Track her. A nagging voice egged him on. Taking the stairs one flight at a time, Inaba grunted from over-exertion. Not as spry as you once were, huh? A side door swung open against the force of his palm. Inaba leaped onto a rainy side street, chakra-laced feet kicked up water spray. She couldn’t have gone far. The Capitol building must be her destination. Loose sopping hair fell over lilac eyes, only revealing their peaking glow as he darted past other pedestrians. Halting before a hotdog stand, Inaba pushed the hair from his face. Where? He scanned the street for purple dresses. There. The Magistrate's back was to him, umbrella tilted to cover her head and torso. He would never forget that walk. She was rounding a corner, passing by a theater, letting out patrons. Dashing across the street, his legs were pinwheeling as he closed the gap.

Inaba slowed himself as he rounded the corner. Calm your breathing and regain composure, or you’ll be spotted for sure. Fingers clasped the collar of his overcoat, turning it up to shield against the weather. She couldn’t have been more than twenty or thirty meters away now, he gauged, stopping to light a cigarette underneath an awning. Laborious breath was waning. The rise and fall of his chest became less noticeable, as well his heart pounding in his ears. Taking a length of drawstring, Inaba cinched the lapels of his jacket together. Hands formed seals. The outline of his face became hazy with chakra, his features distorted into a simulacrum of a he once knew. He continued on in the rain.

They walked together for some time, Inaba trailing behind just far enough it wouldn’t seem suspicious. They passed residential districts with dimly lit windows, past empty dinners, past nightclubs teaming with life, and into the red-light district. Was this the way to the Capitol building? A cracked door caught his attention, its soft orange glow pulsating. He turned to it. Almost as if being pulled to the light, Inaba took one step towards it. A hand from inside the light pulled the door aside, revealing a tall woman in a pleated skirt. She stepped forth with a smile. It had been a long time but now was not the time.

“I gotta go,” He announced awkwardly.

A bemused look touched her face.

Pushing on, Inaba raised a palm to shield against the rain. It was falling heavily now; the world was a muddled curtain of dark. The Magistrate’s trail was nearly nonexistent. He could only make out the faint purple outline of Suika’s dress and the lightest twinkle of gold as neon reflected off brocade patterns. Quickening his pace, Inaba strode through puddles that looked like quicksilver. He was close now, near ten meters off. Something caught his attention ahead of them: something looming in the rain, something dark and heavy. It was the capitol building with its large flags and monstrous gargoyles. Had she tried to throw him off? He had yet to learn Amegakure's layout, but her path seemed...

From an adjacent street corner, Inaba watched Suika pass two Golden Heron pikemen, tilting her umbrella down to greet them as she walked through the Capitol’s gate. He watched her ascend the stone steps, watched her shake off her umbrella, and watched her enter. Well, I won’t get so lucky with an entrance–not at night. Inaba stalked ahead just past where the Pikemen could see and jumped over the iron barbed fence. Ascending the outer brick wall, blue chakra-laced loafers attached him to the building's face. Inaba spotted an open window on the third floor as he climbed higher.

Hunched inside the window seal, his every pore dripped water. His breath caught in his throat as tiny droplets pitter-pattered onto the hardwood floor. Flinging his overcoat off and draping it over the window, Inaba stooped to unlace his loafers and set them aside. He made for the door, turning the knob. It gave a slight creak as he cracked it. A lilac eye spied into a slit of incandescent light. He could hear two voices in conversation, but they were too far off to discern correctly.

Inaba opened the door further, poking his head out to check the hallway, except it wasn’t a hallway at all, but a multistoried banister with a Great hall in perfect view below. Hunkering low, he crept towards the edge of the handrail.

“Well, he doesn’t seem like a total lost cause,” Suika said,

“We’ll use him to recruit and keep him on retainer.”

WC: 1283
TWC: 2018

[End Flashback]

Missions Rewards:
4000 Ryo & 20 AP

Claims:
2000 WC & 60 AP [40 from WC, 20 from Rewards]
4k Ryo

-750 wc [25% Max Stat] to Master Summoning Technique
Mastery Option: 1. Mastery in order to allow summons of up to five characters at once, with each additional summon costing 20AP each.

-750 WC [25% Max Stat] to Learn Healing Hands C-Rank

-374 WC  [25% Max Stat] to Learn and Master Genjutsu Release Sealess [Was listed on my Stat page but never payed for]

Discarding the rest of my WC.

That is an interesting approach to character development and flashback topics. However, it will be worked in the Guidebook missions that are impossible during flashbacks, at least not until we make a proper framework for this overlap. Considering this topic predates, it will be fine, so you are fine.

Approved