A Hard Day's Work

Missions:

There was a knock on Kirigo’s door that woke him abruptly. He activated his Ketsuryugan, something that had become second nature to him in the past few weeks, scanning around quickly. It was only his mom standing outside the door. He’d asked her to wake him up early today to begin his mission. With his chakra vision he was able to see her begging to raise her arm to knock again, and quickly yelled an acknowledgement to her before she could start assaulting his door again. She reminded him of the busy day he had ahead and warned him not to fall back asleep before returning to her room. Kirigo stretched before slowly rising from his bed and stumbling over to his closed window. He pushed the thick curtains aside but there was no light to be found on the other side. He opened the window, the old frame squeaking as it went, and the cool breeze that blew in caused a chill to run down his spine. He leaned out the window looking around for any signs of life on the village streets at this ungodly hour of the morning. Even with his chakra vision he couldn't see more than the occasional bird flitting about, their songs the only thing that let him know it was even close to sunrise. Pulling himself back into his room he turned and walked across to the lightswitch by his door, grabbing the hem of his sweat and blood soaked shirt and pulling it over his head before tossing it into a pile on the floor. He’d gotten used to it by now, the blood, the sweat, the visions that woke him and hasn't let him sleep right since he’d awakened the Ketsuryugan. It seemed like the more he used it the more vivid the visions became but, he couldn't help himself. He’d always felt so ordinary, surrounded by other kids that had such amazing abilities that had been passed down in their families for centuries, especially since joining the academy. And now he had one of his very own to use. His dad has cautioned him against making his ability well known, after the persecution his clan had faced in the past, so he had only been training it in secret. Soon though he planned to become strong enough that he could use his ability in public without having to fear anyone. As he flipped the light on he let his Ketsuryugan deactivate.
His room was a mess, he’d given up trying to keep his clothes and bedding clean since the visions started, instead just opting to where his bloodstained shirts through the fall season since it seemed on theme anyways.He’d taken all the sheets off of his bed and just put a plastic waterproof covering on it, hoping to at least prevent any further damage to the already stained mattress. The drawers on his dresser hung open, mostly empty, except a few pairs of socks and briefs. He grabbed a fresh pair of briefs then made his way out of his room and across the hall to the bathroom. He finished undressing and turned on the water, looking at himself in the mirror as he waited for it to heat up. He had bags under his eyes, and a stream of dried blood ran from both, trailing off the sides of his face into his hair. His eyes, which were originally a shimmering green-blue color, like the waves of an ocean in the shallows, had started to shift into a darker shade. It could've been his tired mind playing tricks on him but it seemed like with every use the Ketsuryugan left something like a stain on his eyes. His pupils seemed almost a mute gray color now instead of the normal black. The color changed radiating from the center where a small white dot seemed to be appearing and spreading to the edges where there seemed to be just the slightest hint of the black that was there before. The irises of his eyes seemed to have a sort of purple tine, which he figured came from the original blue and the bright pink from his Ketsuryugan. Now, as he looked at himself, the reflection becoming obscured by the fog from the shower, he could even see that the whites of his eyes had begun to take on the bright pink hue. This wasn't a secret he’d be keeping for long. People would definitely notice anyone walking around with bright pink eyes. He was gonna have to pick up on his training if he was gonna stay ahead of any threats.
When the mirror completely fogged up Kirigo turned and climbed into the shower. He leaned his head forward into the stream of steaming water. The water that flowed down the drain stained a bright pink as it ran down the drain at Kirigo’s, feet washing the sticky layer off of him. He ran his fingers through his hair, gently massaging the tangled mess until he’d managed to remove all the caked in blood, then scrubbed his face with palms to remove the mess there. Grabbing his washcloth from the shower rod he began to wash the rest of his body. Making sure to get everything that hasn't been washed off by the water alone. With the way he seemed to be soaked every night he thought he must be literally sweating blood when he had his visions. It was the only explanation as to how he could seem to soak his entire body in sweat in such a uniform way. Hopefully it would stop after a while, just a side effect of his first awakening. When he’d finished his shower he stepped out and dried himself with the towel he’d left on the rod. Then pulled the fresh pair of briefs on and went back into his room.
Even with the open window the smell of Iron assaulted Kirigo’s nose as he opened his door and went back into his room. He quickly closed the door behind him to trap the putrid stench in with him so his parents didn't have to suffer. He was fairly sure his mom had already been sneaking into hir room and trying to clean up some when he wouldn't notice but he didnt wanna burden them with his issues. He decided he’d do laundry when he got home today, even if it was futile. He grabbed a shirt he’d thrown over his headboard a couple days ago, a dark gray shirt with a large picture of a black cat on the cat, the bloodstains giving it random patches of dark red and brown. He pulled the shirt over his head after the gray long sleeved thermal he’d grabbed off the dirty pile on the floor when he’d come in. Then grabbed a pair of dark green camo pattern cargo pants before grabbing a pair of socks and his shoes, slipping them on and heading out the door.
As Kirigo made his way out the front door and into the streets of the village the first rays of light were beginning to peak over the distant horizon,streaking the dark sky with bands of color. There was a light rain beginning to fall from the few scattered clouds above, adding to the already chilly morning air. His footsteps seemed to echo off the buildings as he walked in solitude. Kirigo was already regretting taking this mission, getting up before the break of dawn to help out in the fields. This didn't seem like it’d be as much fun as picking out pumpkins and costumes to collect candy but ll in a day's work.
Passing through the center of the village Kirigo was just beginning to see the first signs of life in the village. There were a few other early risers moving about the streets and he could smell food and coffee in the air coming from the nearby houses and businesses. A few merchants were beginning to set up tents around the large fountain that marked the village center. They didn't seem very happy though, their normally cheerful demeanors turned sour by the dreary weather. Kirigo didnt let it bother him continuing on his way through the streets nodding his head and waving at passerby as he went.
When he had finally reached the village gates the sun was high in the sky. The clouds and rain had cleared and there was only a thin fog left. Kirigo rolled up the sleeves on his undershirt to just above his elbows and ran the back of his hand across his forehead, clearing the beads of sweat that were beginning to form. He hadn't even started working yet and he was already ready to go home. The helpful spirit he’d been feeling after helping the young boy with his Halloween antics had all worn off between the early alarm and the humidity. The fields were visible from the top steps of the village gates and there were already several people hard at work.
As Kirigo approached one of the fields a large man with a pipe hanging out of his mouth yelled to him from between two rows of vegetables telling him to hurry. The man pointed to a table where they had supplies laid out motioning for him to get a move on. Kirigo hurried over to the flimsy white folding table, buried in piles of overalls, gloves and large sacks that swung over your shoulder, with some kind of buckle mechanism at the bottom, and a bucket on either side one full of knives the otherfull of boots. Sorting through the piles he found a pair of gloves and overalls in his size and pulled them on quickly before doing the same with a pair of boots. Kirigo then went over to the bucket of knives and grabbed one of the hooked blades from the bucket and hurried over to the man that had yelled for him before. As the man admonished him for being late and taking his time Kirigo watched him work, his hands never stopping despite tearing into Kirigo verbally. As the man continued to complain Kirigo began to copy what the man was doing as he worked. He’d reach out and grab one of the long, round yellow squash and twist it slightly, cut the stem just above the base, then sit it gently in the large sack that was swung over his shoulder.
After what felt like ages they reached the end of the row they were working on. The man hadn't stopped complaining the entire time and Kirigo was wondering if he'd ever be quiet. Just as he’d had the thought the man looked over and seemed to notice Kirigo for the first time. They looked at each other from head to toe. They're matching overalls and boots covered in the dirt from the work they'd done. A small smile broke across both their faces and they gave a small nod before turning down the next row and continuing their work. They stopped every now and then to empty their large stacks into the giant bins that were spotted around the fields, the farmer showing Kirigo how to work the buckle on the bottom of his bag that allowed him to quickly and easily release the vegetables from their storage and into the bin. After the squash they moved onto picking cherry tomatoes. They were small but a vibrant red that reflected the sunlight giving them a shine. As they picked them the farmer explained to Kirigo how to spot the different flaws on the various products around the farm and how to tell their ripeness. After a fair bit the farmer told Kirigo to split off and go his own way so they could get done faster, expressing that he trusted Kirigo to work without supervision.
When they had finished going up and down the rows of various crops, picking anything that was ripe and adding them to the large containers Kirigo and the farmer made their way into a small warehouse at the far end of the fields. Kirigo could see that some of the larger bins they had filled up over the day were already stacked to one side of the building, being dumped onto converter belts that led to the inside of the building.
When they got inside the warehouse Kirigo could see where the vegetables were coming in. There were falling off of the conveyor belts onto what looked to Kirigo like a bunch of rolling pins, with a set of water nozzles at various points to wash the products. The farmer explained to him that this machine sorted the different products that came through it by size, the pins spreading as they got farther from the entrance and releasing the products onto another series of pins beneath and so on until finally the discard fell into bins at the very bottom beneath the large contraption. The sorter took up most of the floor of the warehouse, with the belts that had the largest vegetables stretching towards the entrance they were standing at and others splitting off to their right. From their viewpoint they could see large machines running upstairs and the farmer explained to Kirigo that they were box machines and showed him where the boxes that were made slid down chutes to rest at the end of each leg of the sorter, catching the products until they reached a specific weight before being pushed further down the line where they were sealed shut by a taping machine.
As they walked around and the farmer explained the various equipment to Kirigo they moved briskly between the four arms of the sorter. At each point they would stop and quickly stack boxes of vegetables onto pallets. While most of the equipment was automated the farmer told Kirigo that the final stacking had to be done by hand. After a bit they split up again, Kirigo taking the first two branches of the sorter with the larger products while the farmer took the other two. They continued to work like that until they had finished packaging all of the products they had picked that day. When they were done the farmer told Kirigo that he had stacked a couple crates of veggies against the wall for him to take when he left and to go ahead and take a break
They met back at the table where the equipment was laying. Kirigo took a look around and couldn't help but notice that there were only a few people around the farm working. He and the farmer had been the only ones picking or stacking boxes. And he had only seen a few others operate the machines to move the containers and make the boxes. When he asked about the lack of workers the farmer explained that most of his men had been run off by a weird murder of crows that had been plaguing the farm recently. The farmer told Kirigo that they had been destroying the scarecrows they kept around the farm and bothering the workers who had tried to scare them off. They’d never run into crows that were not only not scared of the scarecrows but would completely vandalize them.
Kirigo decided to look into the problem a little further and let the farmer know he would be back by on his way home for the boxes. The farmer also warned him to be careful as he’d heard rumors of a giant crow nesting nearby that could be the leader of the group. As he went to leave the farmer brought out a scarecrow costume telling him some of the other workers had come up with the idea to dress up and try to run the birds off that way. Kirigo thanked him taking the costume and got changed into it before heading back out of the warehouse and into the fields
As he walked out into the fields Kirigo activated his Ketsuryugan and scanned the fields looking for the group of birds. He’d noticed a few hanging around earlier when he'd been picking the vegetables,along with  the tattered remains of the scarecrow. He hadn't noticed anything strange about them then though and wondered if the farmer and his workers were just being paranoid and superstitious. With his Ketsuryugan active and the chakra vision he could, there was a small group of birds a few rows down eating some of the veggies that had fallen on the ground. Kirigo made his way through the rows towards the crows, watching them eat as he went.
Kirigo was so focused on the ones he was watching he didn't notice as three more crows began to circle overhead, making a couple of loops before all 3 turned swooping down at him. The only thing that gave away the birds’ attack was their shadows being cast by the sun which was just beginning to descend from the sky. He quickly dropped to the ground landing on his stomach the group of birds sailing close over him. He jumped back to his feet brandishing the harvesting knife he was still carrying from earlier. Turning he could see that the birds in the distance doing a large loop over the fields cawing loudly as they went before coming back towards them. He watched as other birds flew up out of the fields to join the original attackers, the small group growing into a large murder of about 20 crows. When they had all gathered they began circling directly above him before they all dove straight down at once. Kirigo formed the hand seals for his Water Release: Bouncy Wall jutsu molding the chakra in his stomach and holding it until the murder of crows was within range before spitting the thick water out of his mouth in a large half dome. The  dome would flare out with the apex forming directly in front of him forming a bowl that would catch the group of birds as they flew down at him. Thewtaer would become like jello just before the first birds hit the surface causing them to be bounced back before the rest of the group came slamming into them from behind. Kirigo could hear the sick church of bones snapping as the birds piled up on the other side of his shield, being crushed by the ones following from behind. He could see the bodies of some of the creatures broken and twitching through the gelatinous wall and a small pool of blood had begun to form at the bottom of the dome. Kirigo deactivated the jutsu letting the water, mixed with the blood and bodies of the crows come raining down around him. As the bloody water poured over him he was actually happy to be covered in blood that wasn't his own, a feeling he never thought he would have.
The bloody water formed a small pool at his feet and he started scanning along the skies again to see if there were any more crows around. While he had been dealing with the initial group of crows clouds had began to form in the sky, obscuring any shadows that would have tipped him off to incoming attackers. With his Ketsuryugan still active he could see the chakra signatures from another group of birds that were beginning to form in the distance. This group was a little over twice the size of the first group and as they flew they seemed to be coordinating themselves to form a shape. Kirigo made the Ram hand seal, activating his clone technique and making four copies of himself. Kirigo and all four of his clones began to run through the rows of vegetables until they had made it clear of the crops, stopping in a small clearing in the back of the fields.
As the murder of crows flew closer to Kirigo and his clones they seemed to blur together their outlines becoming hazy until they seemed to form one giant bird in front of him, indiscernible even to his chakra vision. Thunder shook overhead and a slight rain began to fall as the large bird stopped in front of Kirigo. The cacophony of the birds cries seemed to meld together as their bodies did, seeming to form words in a sharp grating voice that hurt Kirigo’s ears. The crows' cries warned him to leave the farm at once, claiming that the birds were tired of the humans taking the land and planting crops that they were willing to share with them. The will of the birds had come together to become one malevolent force bent on retaking the  and the crop that grew there. Kirigo spoke back and forth with the large crow as puddles of rain formed around them ,hoping to come to some resolution. The bird was unwilling to listen to reason only telling Kirigo that the land was theirs now and if he wouldnt leave willingly they would run him off like they had the others.
Kirigo could see that the crow was growing irritated with the back and forth. Seeing no way to resolve the dispute peacefully he began forming hand seals. He nodded and the four clones rushed at the large bird catching it off guard as they brandished their harvesting knives. The hand seals ,Monkey-> Rat-> Tiger, as the clones reached the bird swinging their knives but passing through it harmlessly. The bird flapped its wings and clawed at the clones in surprise. The distracted bird didn't notice as the water on the ground in front of Kirigo began to rise,collecting the falling rain with it until it had formed a large spiraling pillar that rushed forwards towards the bird taking the form of a giant snake's head 3m across. As soon as he had finished the hand seal and the snake was on the move Kirigo slashed the knife he had across his hand letting the blood drip down his palm. He immediately began the hand seals for his next technique Blood Dragon: Ascension. As the snake engulfed the crow, swallowing it and carrying it across the clearing until it  dissipated, dropping the bird on the ground, the blood that was dripping from Kirigos hand began to gather around him. The blood spiraled around him before lifting him into the air as it formed a large dragons head beneath him.When the dragon had reached its full height with Kirigo perched on top of it he began to gather chakra in the dragon's mouth waiting for the crow to come to rest on the ground before releasing a large beam of blood chakra directly at the crows chest. The beam hit the large crow, caving the brittle bones of the bird's chest and pushing through until there was a large hole left in its torso.
As the large bird lay motionless the rain and clouds began to clear from the sky. Kirigo walked over to assess the damage to the creature but as the rain cleared his vision seemed to clear with it and the Large bird seemed to almost crumble apart until it was just a bloody pile of regular sized birds. Kirigo rubbed his eyes not believing what he had seen for a moment before shrugging his shoulders and making his way back across the fields to the warehouse, deactivating his Ketsuryugan  and clones as he went. He met the farmer inside the warehouse and explained the whole big bird fiasco before retrieving the vegetables the farmer had set to the side for him and heading back home for the night.

[EXIT]

Claims: