Deep Undercover

Mission:

Sugimotos appearance:

Oda had to admit, he was initially surprised to receive this next mission, and so soon after his last one. But, he was eager to prove himself as someone who could be relied on no matter what. He was also tired after the numerous training and the events of the floods the day before, and was ready for something a little less extreme. If only he knew.

The mission was a covert one, requiring Oda to go undercover at the Red Moon Resort as an attendant. His goal was to collect as much information as possible about a potential illegal organ market. Oda was initially confused, wasn't it legal in Tsukigakure? That's when his confusion turned to rage as he realized they were forcibly taking organs from people. This Oda could not accept, and he endeavored to destroy this organization completely, from the lowest grunt to the highest boss.His usual energetic and cheery self was reduced to a much more calm and serious demeanor. He spent an entire week simply staking the resort out and getting an extensive feel for the suspects habits.

In preparation for the job, Oda dyed his hair a stark black and made sure to wear contacts that would alter his distinct flamelike eye color to a more subdued hazel. He briefly considered cutting his hair before instead deciding to leave it in a ponytail. Additionally, He knew the investigation could go on for quite a while, so he rented a small room near the Red Resort to lower any risk of his real identity being discovered.

Along with a new look Oda crafted a new identity. His name would be Sugimoto Masihara, a polite but reserved man with less than stellar morals. His willingness to look the other way would be his way to get on a talking basis with whomever was behind this. During his time he was staking out the resort, he would practice his altered voice and mannerism until they felt like second-nature. He would take on a more airy and flowing voice, speaking slowly and deliberately. He would also make sure to stay still and reserved in his movements, always maintaining a slight smile in the way only customer service workers can.

Sugimoto’s transformation was profound, and what scared him was his enjoyment in taking on a new identity, to be required to forget who he was for the good of the mission. It was a feeling he wasn’t expecting to enjoy.

Sugimoto’s first day on the job was an uneventful one. The suspect appeared that day. The man was a towering 6ft 5 with broad shoulders and a black kimono. His hair was blonde and slicked back along his head, he carried himself nobly and kept a stoic and stone faced visage at all times.

Sugimoto made sure to keep tabs on him, but nothing of note happened and they seemed to enjoy the resort normally like all the other guests. He knew this would be a gradual process, and he simply spent his shift tracking where the man was within the resort at all times. He used the cover of making and bringing drinks to people, and as a chance to focus more on being an effective bartender at the Red Resort. He found himself enjoying the process of creating various cocktails.  He had one interaction with the suspect as they bought a drink.

“One shot of sake” The man said with a deep and gravelly voice.

“Coming right up sir” Sugimoto replied politely as he nodded his head. He poured the glass with ease and placed it in front of the man.

The man took the glass wordlessly, staring analytical daggers into the bartender as he brought the drink to his lips and drank it in one fluid motion. The man put the glass down with a hard thud and continued to look at Sugimoto silently.

Sugimoto knew he was being tested, he just needed to remain calm. He motioned to the glass “Would you like another?” He said, sake bottle in hand.

“So you are new here then?” The man asked, ignoring Sugimoto's question.

Sugimoto grabbed the glass and moved it to an area where the dirty shot glasses were kept, setting the bottle down he smiled and cocked his head slightly “Yes sir, I just moved to Tsukigakure a week ago and was lucky enough to land this job.”

“Mmm” The man responded, he stared at Sugimoto for another brief moment before walking away.

“Enjoy your stay at Red Moon Resort Sir” Sugimoto said as the man left the bar.


The rest of the week passed without too much more happening, Sugimoto got the sense that his presence spooked the man, if only briefly. He didn’t notice the man meet with anyone for the first week. Not wanting to arouse any suspicion he simply fell deeper into his persona and focused on bartending. He couldn’t risk trying to get close to the man or trying to eavesdrop on him, that would blow his cover. On top of that, Sugimoto was being followed every night he went home, luckily he was able to hide the fact that he knew of their surveillance. No doubt these were men who worked for the mysterious Suspect. He wondered at just how big this organization was.

His temporary home he was renting while on the mission was also broken into, the small studio apartment was in disarray and only a few small valuables were taken. Someone clearly broke in here trying to see if Sugimoto was a spy, the valuables were simply to cover their tracks. He made sure to drop that he thought he was simply burglarized while the suspect was around to make sure no suspicions arose.

Gradually the trap began to form, and he could tell the suspect was getting more and more comfortable with him. He even got a name out of him one night, Shimoda Akihiro. It took everything for Sugimoto to not revert to Oda at that moment and give a big grin.

Sugimoto’s true chance occurred about 3 weeks into the assignment, when he was randomly pulled off of bartending duty to be in charge of checking in guests. He didn’t think anything of it, until a man in a black kimono with a large scar across his face appeared in front of his section of the counter. He had a scowl on his face and a serious demeanor. He asked to be escorted to Shimoda’s room.

“Certainly sir.” Sugimoto said, moving to lead him to the corner room that Shimoda often rented. As he walked with the man he gently inquired “And who do I say is here to see him?”

The mysterious visitor gave him a sharp glance “Just say a guest is here”. He had to hand it to these guys, they were cautious. “Certainly sir.” He knocked on the door of Shimoda’s room.

“Who is it?” A voice replied back

“It is Sugimoto with a guest saying he’s here to see you.” Sugimota replied simply.

The door opened to the room and Sugimoto used the split second he had to scan the inside of the room. He couldn’t see much, a turning face of a man with stark white hair and a gold earring on his left ear. And,Shimoda himself, who looked at Sugimoto with a stern look.

The mysterious visitor entered the room, and Shimoda stepped back to reveal a table with a brown paper bag and some sort of logo on it that Sugimoto could barely make out in the split second he saw it. As Shimoda stepped back he held up a hand holding some ryo, as Sugimoto went to grab it Shimoda pulled his hand back, staring at him. He put some more money in the pile, putting out further “For your silence.”

Now was the moment he could really convince Shimoda. He wanted the man to believe this person he had created -Sugimoto- was greedy and corrupt. So it wouldn’t serve him to try to deny the tip or act relaxed. Now was the moment for Sugimoto to really convince Shimoda that he was nothing more than a greedy and corrupt individual, a known quantity.

Sugimoto feigned a lustful look at the extra money and didn’t hesitate to grab it and pocket it. He nodded curtly and returned to his usual calm and stone faced demeanor. “If you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask Sir.” Shimoda gave a snort and a slight nod.

After that day, the man insisted on asking Sugimoto to do things and nobody else. Gradually over the course of another week he learned of 2 other men who frequently visited Shimoda. The first regular was the scowling man in the black kimono, who Sugimoto learned was named Tano, no last name used. The second was the man that Sugimoto saw for a split second in Shimoda’s room. His name was Goro, also no last name used. They were both equally paranoid and equally serious men, and dangerous. Despite their paranoia Sugimoto was able to catch snippets of a conversation one night during a particularly long and late meeting of theirs.
“...3rd shipment this week”

“It’s the Ryuus, I just know it…”

“...Another close call with the extraction team yesterday”

He made sure to take mental note of each of these snippets of information, writing them in a small notebook he had begun using to record information. He made sure to follow up on the mention of ‘Ryuu’s men’ later that night after his shift. Eventually he found one of these men that were a part of Amari Ryuus gang. They wore all black clothes with a signature symbol of a dragon in a square. He made a mental note of that and continued with his espionage for the remainder of the month.

Sugimoto’s second break came in the form of pure dumb luck. A month and a half into this mission and He had picked up the habit of smoking as a mannerism for his persona. He often spent his breaks outside on the side of the Red Moon Resort out of sight from customers. It was on one of those breaks that he saw a man leaving Shimoda’s room and then exit the resort. The man messed up however, and dropped a brown bag with the same logo that Sugimoto had seen earlier that week. Putting out his cigarette, Sugimoto quickly followed after, forming a plan in his head as he did so.

With the element of surprise it was an easy matter to knock the man out without him ever knowing who delivered the attack. He lurked in the shadows and waited for him to pass before kicking him hard in the temple and then grabbing his neck from behind and initiating a choke hold. Within seconds the man was knocked out cold, but he would regain consciousness soon. Sugimoto ran around the corner out of sight from the unconscious man, and now came the shitty part.

Sugimoto punched himself in the face hard making sure to draw blood from his lip, he then ran into the wall at full speed, he could feel one of his ribs crack slightly at the force. What the hell am I doing? He thought briefly before being snapped back to the mission, by his estimation the man would be waking up soon. He imitated noises of a fight briefly before making things go quiet. He then limped around the corner back to the man who at this point had begun to wake up. He helped him up and feigned being in more pain than he really was “Are you ok sir?”

The man was slightly panicked “What the hell was that?! Wait-” he patted his jacket frantically “Did he take it?!”

“Oh, you mean this?” Sugimoto held up the brown paper bag, upon closer inspection it was a logo of a snake in a spiral. And the paper was like butcher paper used for meat; it was tightly wrapped around…something. He shuddered internally at the thought of what he might be holding.

“Oh my god you’re a lifesaver.” The man said. He tried to snatch the package away from Sugimoto but the shinobi moved too quickly.

The undercover shinobi had a cold look on his face as he cocked his head and spoke with an unusual venom. “Take me to the boss. I’d like an audience with Shimoda.”

The man was taken aback, Sugimoto was a person that had become known around the Red Moon Resort as a respectful and even shy person, this was not the person that was talking now. “Sugi?-”

“Listen, the fact is I just saved your ass. So take me to Shimoda for an audience with him. I’d say I’ve earned it. Or maybe I can just go to him myself and let him know you lost his little…’illicit package’ ” He said, giving a cocky smirk.

The man looked at him surprised but with a little more understanding, they were both criminals, and the criminal world had its own set of rules. He nodded. “I’ll take you to him. Listen man don't mess with these guys, they steal peoples organs for christs sake.” Excellent, confirmation. Sugimoto thought It was a quick 20 minute walk back to Shimoda’s room. As the man knocked on the door Sugimoto pushed him to the side and stood in front of him authoritatively. Shimoda answered the door, with clear surprise on his face.

Sugimota gave a polite smile, noticing some guests walk by and he returned to his usual calm and polite demeanor. “Hello sir, there has been a situation of a…private matter” He briefly glanced at the people as they walked by. “It would really be best to discuss it in privacy.” He briefly flashed the package from within his kimono and Shimoda simply nodded, not skipping a beat.

As the group walked into Shimoda’s room Sugimoto dropped the politeness. “I was wondering when I would get a chance to prove myself.” He turned and faced the two men, Shimoda with a stern and deadly look on his face, and the lackey looking to be in a sorry state.
The lackey began to speak up “Sir I didn’t have any choice, I mean he did help with saving the pac-” Shimoda cut him off with a simple hand in the air.

“You may leave Hoshi.” He said coldly.

Hoshi. Sugimoto made sure to remember that name as well.

The lackey gulped, bowed, and quickly left. Shimoda moved to pour himself a drink and waited briefly, sipping on it before turning to Sugimoto. “Explain.”

Sugimoto would proceed to explain his version of events. “I noticed a man following your lackey there, he looked to be a man with ill intent. So I followed him.” Shimoda interrupted him abruptly at that

“What did he look like?”

Sugimoto thought back to the Ryuu gang and proceeded to describe their appearance. Shimoda cursed and motioned for the attendant to continue speaking.  Now came the risky part, admitting he was a liar. It could be an effective way to prove himself but could backfire. “You see, I don’t really have any interest in working at the resort.” Shimoda shifted uneasily.

Sugimota gave a smirk “I’ve known about you for about a month now, ever since I moved here. I hear you were the man for people looking to get into certain…underground professions.” He pulled a cigarette out and cockily began to smoke.

Shimoda was clearly uncomfortable and caught off guard but to his credit was a cunning man. This was the moment of truth, the moment where he would either convince Shimoda and gain his trust or not and 2 months of work would be out the window.  Sugimoto made sure to look at him calmly, and gauge his reaction as the crime boss processed this information.

The crime boss stared at him for a minute in silence, it dragged on for what felt like eternity. Finally he gave a slight smile, Hook Line Sinker Sugimoto thought.

“That takes moxy son, you got potential.” He took another sip. “Come by tomorrow morning before you start your shift and we’ll talk.” With that he motioned for Sugimoto to leave, the shinobi left, making sure to place the brown package back on the table.

From there things moved relatively quickly compared to the last 2 months, and Sugimoto found himself involved in the various activities of the organization that he would learn was called the Syndicate. It took him another month of working for the Syndicate for him to obtain all the information he thought was needed. He collected every address to every drop zone they operated, he gradually collected the names of everyone involved from lowest lackey to the top bosses. The organization was run by three men, who Sugimoto had run into before at the Red Moon Resort. They were cruel and ruthless men, and it took everything in his power to not attack them, multiple times. His time undercover was beginning to be a strain on his psyche and he struggled to not completely fall into the persona of Sugimoto. Eventually, at the end of the month, he would arrange a meeting with his handler. A higher up Jounin of tsukigakure.

“Oda? ….Oda!” The jounin would snap Oda out of his blank state, Oda was still getting used to being called by a name other than Sugimoto again. “Uh.. Yeah, yeah sorry whatsup bossman?” He said shakily.

“I was saying good job shinobi, you got an enormous amount of information for us. These guys will be taken down in a matter of hours. You did a good job, but no one will know of your involvement.”

Oda nodded, “of course, that was never in question.” He pulled a pack of cigarettes out and put one in his mouth. Deftly lighting it. The jounin looked at him and took on a soft tone.

“You know, sometimes shinobi who go undercover, they take some time to adjust to normal life again… the village has people you can talk to if you ever need to.” Oda nodded quickly and flashed a smile

“Thanks for the concern but nah I should be good, honestly not much is sticking, I’m already forgetting about that persona, it's in the past now!” He said giving a half hearted smile, he took a puff on his cigarette.

[EXIT]

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WC: 3070

Claims:

Approved