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 Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2008 9:17 pm
Maya stopped at the Clinic on her way back to the grounds, poking her head inside and not caring about the drops of blood that fell onto the ground. Spying Tenko, she motioned her over and muttered quietly and quickly, knowing that the loud-mouthed man-izer that was around would probably snitch out the students. "Tenko-san, there's an emergency at the Grounds...it would be appreciated, and highly suggested, that you keep it to yourself and come help me." Quickly turning, Maya snatched a roll of bandage before heading out of the door and jetting towards the ground. The woman might be able to help Orika and Karite, but she wasn't touching Kore unless absolutely necessary.
[Continue to Grounds]
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 12:57 pm
Tenko drew back at the sight of Maya rushing with a wounded lion cub that dripped blood all over the floor? "What happened to him?" she asked, worried, but Maya was in a rush and ignored her question. The nurse nodded, feeling the panic rush to squeeze her throat when the girl mentioned an emergency down at the grounds. Immediately the worst case scenario came to Tenko's mind. Did Dhan or Shinichi snap and finally injure one of the students bad enough? She could see Shinichi killing off a lion club, but he felt no shame and would not keep things a secret. Tenko slipped on a coat over her nurse uniform and followed Maya, her head swirling from the rapid change from tranquility to an emergency. She grabbed a med kit on the way out.
[Exit to Tategami Grounds]
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 1:47 pm
Maya arrived with her 'packages' in tow, and waited for Tenko to arrive. She was tired, though she was more angry than anything else. Angry with all FOUR of the academy pupils with fighting the way they were, and angry the most with Karite and Kore for fighting as two separate entities and not the one partnership that was so important to her and Baki. But then... "Not everyone is cut out to be Tategami," she muttered, shaking her head and eying Karite with great pity. Kore would have to get a new partner - or Karite would have to be trained harshly. Either way, they both had to recover and be healthy before anything happened with them...and that was if they survived after ( if? ) Shinichi found out.
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 1:58 pm
The nurse rushed into the clinic and immediately laid the knocked out lion cub on the nearest bed. She unwrapped his bandages and took out some surgical stitches and a needle, then got to work on closing the wound. Somebody hit him good because she couldn't find any other wound around the cub's body. When Tenko finished the stitches and applied new bandages to the cub's throat, lo and behold, Maya brought in the other two injured persons. "Why would they do this to each other?" she fearfully thought aloud, taking Karite from Baki's back, her shaking fingers working rapidly to untie Maya's knots. Tenko laid the worse of the two onto a bed, then took Orika from Maya's arms and put her on an adjacent bed. Her keen eyes surveyed the damage. Orika's had a broken leg and massive gashes that if not treated would bleed out. Karite, on the other hand, had a few shuriken marks on his arms, but his two biggest wounds were a kunai stab in the back and side. She applied pressure to stop the blood loss and got to work on closing and dressing his wounds. After Tenko was sure Karite would live to see tomorrow, she hurried over to Orika and stitched up her legs. It seemed Karite and his lion both attacked this poor girl. Finished, Tenko stood back and sighed, wiping the sweat that had accumulated on her brow from the emergency medicine. She turned to Maya and soothingly said with a bow, "Thank you so much for stopping them before they killed each other, Maya. They're alive because of-" Suddenly the woman gave a shrill scream and pointed to the figure behind Maya.
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 2:07 pm
Shinichi was speechless as he stared open-mouthed at three injured bodies, then at Tenko's bloody hands and the bloody sheets and bloody smell and bloody hell, what the ******** was going on?! His mind immediately jumped to the only logical conclusion, that they had been attached. Shinichi sprinted to the door and saw the trail of blood and footprints in the snow leading to the clinic. They came from the east... Did their attackers intend to destroy the farms? "Maya! Status report!" Shinichi barked, "What happened? Is anyone else hurt? Where are the assailants?" He fired off the questions fast and with a staccato tone that warned everyone that this was not the time to fool around. With an aura of authority, Shinichi strode to the students' side and felt their pulses. Weak, but alive. When he looked at their bodies, his worst fears were confirmed because only a shinobi weapon could make those wounds! He looked up and stared right into Maya's eyes, pressuring her to speak now and speak accurately or she would join Orika, Karite, and his lion.
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 2:31 pm
Maya bit back the urge to snarl at the evil man, and settled on glaring. "Your assailants, Shinichi-san, are laying right before you. Karite and Kore attacked Orika and Shisei. Orika attacked Kore and put him in his current condition, and between her and Shisei they attacked Karite. Check their weapons - the blood should still be fresh." She snapped at him, her hands curling into fists as her face flushed. She'd probably be the one getting in trouble... "They used their own weapons, and not the training wooden ones. What happened, Shinichi, did you want them to kill each other before graduation? Maybe I shouldn't have broken them up, is that it?" Maya loathed the man in front of her - either he was blaming her for being a traitor, or he doubted to whom she was loyal, or he was just plain mean to her. Always her fault, just because she actually kind of liked some people. God forbid she do even that! Glowering, she turned her back on him, uncaring. "I may not be your precious Aya, but it ain't my fault these idiots don't know how to train right." Maya eyed Kore wistfully, and bowed towards Tenko. "I'll come back later to check on him. I should hunt some small things to make for his dinner, Tenko-san. If anything arises, please let me know." Bowing again, she headed towards the door, though her stiff posture was obvious to read: she was nervous and annoyed, and she knew she was going to get blamed.
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 2:55 pm
"Stop right there, Maya," Shinichi snarled, his voice sharp and clear, "Why do you jump to the conclusion that I blame you for their stupid mistake? Do you want me to hate you?" He was getting angry at her insolent attitude, but Shinichi forced himself to remain calm. "Whether you like it or not, I lead this village now and you will show your leader respect. I will not have you acting like a little girl anymore, clan leader. If you have a score to settle with me, stop running away and do it already. Do you have the courage to act like a real shinobi?" If she tried to run, the ANBU would knock her to the ground and force the girl to face her fears. She obviously couldn't focus if she stored all that hate inside, never letting it go. One question lingered in the back of his head while sparks flew between the ANBU and genin. How did Maya know who attacked who? Unless... she was there during the fight and was worried he would blame her for not stopping the fight. Shinichi glanced at the knocked out three and snarled again. Their sheer stupidity! It wasn't Maya's fault so he focused on dealing with her other problem. The kids were out and he could hunt down Shisei for their punishment later. Right then and there he had to deal with the wild girl.
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 3:05 pm
Maya whirled and bared her teeth, though not in anger - in fear. "All hail the new kage, willing to train by letting his students jump into rivers filled with poisonous animals. Willing to let them fight a monster wildcat in a jungle. You questioned me because I felt you were blaming Seshiro-onii-chan unfairly. And now either you go after me, or you go after Shisei, who, by the way, just stood there half the time like an idiot. I don't care if you lead the village, I don't care who leads it. It needs a leader, and if you're the best we got, then fine!" Maya's chest heaved, her lower lip trembling. She didn't give a rat's a** about Orika, who would heal, or Karite, who had let Kore fight alone, or Shisei, who was the new village black sheep. But Kore was a part of the Tategami pride, and she had allowed him to be hurt by letting Karite fight with him without even knowing what it took to be true partners. Maya ran her hands through her shabby hair, and took a few deep breaths. "How old are you, Shinichi-sama, and how old am I? I may be clan leader, but I'm not smart enough to do it yet. How much training did it take you to be so strong, and be able to get your way no matter how many bodies it took? Cause I don't wanna measure my power in bodies, Shinichi-sama..." Maya closed her eyes, standing straight for the first time in god knows how long, and let her tawny eyes meet the ANBU's. "You're about the only thing I'm scared of, Shinichi-sama, so no, I don't have the courage to face you," she said quietly, but firmly. Baki stood right behind her, his own ears pinned to his head, refusing to look at the ANBU.
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 3:05 pm
“It was not her fault. If you want to blame someone then you can blame me.” Shisei stated entering the clinic. It was true. His eyes were closed over as if the two suns in his eyes were being eclipsed. It made it seem that there were only black wholes in his face, but the snake child could see. His walk over was slower because of his breathing. It seems the jo had done more damage to the snake child than he recognized. Being in midst battle allowed his frame to ignore the pain, but with his blood cool the pain was hot. Still it was nothing that some sleep would cure. In his palms were the two kunai that his peers almost killed each other with. Both holding blood on them as if someone was planning on changing the color of the weapons from black to red. He placed the weapons on table for Ero-sensei to investigate them. His head pivoted slightly searching woman whose house he had procured. “Where is Ms. Yuki?” the snake child question allowing his head to turn slightly to the side.
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 3:30 pm
Shinichi nodded, silent for a moment. He could see the leech's marks on Maya's back as clear as day. He could hear her scream and remembered that fury in her eyes as she and Baki frantically tore the leeches off her back. "I'm sorry." The words slipped out of his mouth like a geyser from underneath the ground, a simple column of water loaded with heat and force. Shinichi shook his head and started to turn away from the intense situation, but he kept his eyes fixed on Maya. The ANBU froze for another few seconds, then dipped his head towards Maya, "I apologize for treating you so brutally. Violence doesn't teach anything; It only instills this kind of distracting want for revenge." His voice was soft and steady, different from anything he ever said before. "Maya, I don't want to be Kage either, but it was Ichi's wish. I have to step up to the job, just as you have to be clan leader. No one else is better qualified," he complimented, still holding her eyes, then switching to look at Baki. "You're right. I have been measuring my strength by who I can defeat, but that's not what true strength is. Real power comes from our ability to face the things we don't want to. I didn't want to leave my past behind, but I have to. Maturity comes from doing the right things that we don't want to and it's time we both grew up."
Ah, who now? Shinichi narrowed his eyes as Shisei walked into the room and growled. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see the other two waking up. Perfect time to deliver a sermon, to show Maya he was capable of being Kage. A leader needed the confidence of his people. "You are all at fault," Shinichi declared, taking hold of the two kunai and stepping over to confiscate the other two's weaponry. He held out his hand for Shisei's weapon pack. "I don't know what kind of hatred you guys felt for each other that made you want to kill each other, but that's unacceptable. Our ranks are already low and we cannot afford dissension within the village. You can train without killing each other and you can settle your differences with words. So, until you three receive a mission, you are forbidden to keep weapons. Any weapons training must be done with an adult. Also..." And here was the kicker, "You three will live with each other in the same dorm room from now on. You will eat together, train together, and are restricted from going anywhere without the other two. Maya may do with Kore what she likes. I will inform every villager about this edict. Ignore the order and I will have your skin. We do not need disobedient shinobi." The punishment delivered, Shinichi's stern face softened as he went on to answer Shisei's question, "Tenmoki-san is grieving over her husband and has requested not to be bothered. She's in a horrid state. This is what the death of a close one does to people."
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 3:50 pm
Shisei was a little confused. Hate? Well if Karite and Orika hated him that was to be expected. After all he was part of the race that murdered the village leader, but the other way around. “I don’t hate them… I just wanted to win.” His mouth would have said more but then Shinichi continued on. The boy’s expression did not change, but the fact that the elder confiscated his weapons hit a chord. How the hell was he supposed to train? The child unstrapped the holster and slowly handed it over. Even if his face discerned no emotion one could tell he did not want to hand it over. For an instant an image of Seshiro popped into the boy’s mind. His brain wondered just what the elder snake would have thought if he was here now…. Shisei shook way the thought. The next rule is what made the invigorated the snake child. “What???” his voice said louder than he wanted. Like a commander that just gotten terrible news from a battlefield. The dark wholes in his eyes dissipated as the amber suns returned to world bright as noon. His tongue quickly flickered across his lower lip and his mouth contorted into an expression of wonder. Why would the man do that? If they just tried to kill each other that would make things worse. Without weapons they’d just beat each other to death. This would aggravate the Orochi wanderer to no end. He was a maverick. Is a maverick. He trained alone in the comforts of the early morning or late in the night where solitude was most present. This ruling was complete against his nature! Now his blood was boiling at the two teens. “Those idiots! Why couldn’t they have been more careful.” There had to be a way around it somehow some loop hole he could use. Before he could think of something the man explained to him the reasons of the Tenmoki’s absence. She had lost her husband. Shisei could somehow sympathize. He then wondered if his mother had felt the same way, but also quickly brushed this thought aside. More importantly was the ruling. “Doesn’t that rule seem a little extreme to you sir…” the serpent youth was planning to be as polite as possible now in this situation. “I mean. Orika already has her family at the farm house, and Karite is rooming with Shinoku or however you say his name. Why disrupt that order?” Maybe he could somehow reason with this man’s calm side.
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 4:03 pm
Maya, hesitant but sure all at once, stepped towards Shinichi and bowed deeply, her messy hair barely covering her eyes. When she rose again, she stood next to the ANBU and looked over the students, not really seeing them. Her eyes landed on Kore, and she sighed. Karite would be devastated...
"Kore will stay at the Tategami Grounds until he has recovered. Karite will train with him every day to learn the real meaning of a partnership. Shisei and Orika can work with Ruha, to better understand teamwork...and why you can't fight for yourself when you have a partner that relies on you." Maya turned her head towards Shinichi, looking up at him as if for approval. She bit her lower lip, the habit never seeming to die. Baki at her side growled, his tail swinging gently - he liked the idea. He would have time to train the cub too, if he spent more time at the grounds. Slightly more open than Maya, Baki stood on Shinichi's other side, leaning his head against the man's leg, ears still slightly pinned, but more open to scratching and the likes. Sudden inspiration struck Maya. A small smile tugged at the edge of her lips...
"They can stay at the Grounds, Shinichi.."
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 5:08 pm
Oh god oh god oh god, get it off, get it off, GET IT OFF! Shinichi's inner prepubescent girl was screaming at the spider that just landed on her kimono. Or, rather, the lion that landed on his leg. He shook his leg furiously to get the dirty beast off him, which made for a rather silly sight since the dancing man was trying to scold Shisei at the same time. "Shinobi never... damn it... fight without a purpose," he reasoned, still thrashing out with his leg, "We're not mindless barbarians fighting because we're bored. That'll only get you killed!" Finally freed of the pest, Shinichi scooted away from Baki and rubbed his leg vigorously to get the hairs off it. Ew, ew, ew! "Extreme? What's extreme is the two near dead children lying on those beds. And I see you've got blood on your shuriken, meaning that you participated in the fighting. I'm not taking you guys away from your friends and family; We're all still on the same island. Orika can visit Mai-san and Karite can still see Shin so long as you and Orika follow him. This will be a valuable opportunity for you especially to reach out to people. My decision's final." Then, Maya started to prove that she had what it took to be clan leader. Shinichi let a small smile show through his tough features, "Yes, you will all live at the Tategami grounds under Maya's rules. Let's see how tough you guys really are."
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 5:31 pm
Maya bit back a devilish smile - she would work them like dogs, and train them even harder. She cleared her face though, and nodded. "I'll go and set up your living quarters. Report to the grounds once Karite is conscious and Orika can walk. Which means, Shisei, you will help Tenko tend to them." Maya wondered if she was overstepping, but according to Shinichi they had to stay together...so Shisei might as well make himself useful. With a slight tilt of her head, Maya said her goodbye to Tenko, then bowed towards Shinichi, a small smile in her eyes. There was nothing to fear but fear itself, no...?
Baki snorted and looked at Shinichi with a curious look in his eyes. Weird...but Baki would swear that the ANBU was grossed out by his fur. Strange...but whatever. Baki nuzzled Maya's leg, rewarded with a scratch between his ears and a gentle rubbing of his nose. Now -that- was what he was looking for....yummmm....
[Exit Maya and Baki to Tategami Grounds]
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Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 7:11 pm
Karite began to move jostled. Whatever had transpired had caused images in his mind to paint his past a new. The simple words came out from his mouth "...Wave...Country...Home..." Karite was back in the School yard surrounded by all the class mates he hated and at the steel gate stood his mother, father, and Uncle. looking around all his classmates he wanted nothing then for the night to come. And it did come. The night Karite left he had snuck out his window and landed on the cobble streets below. Landing on all fours his long vibrant green hair lose and flowing he made his way after a carriage. Moving fast jumping over crates and running along walls as if gravity were nothing more then a figment of the imagination. His feet were silent as he moved so fast the red colored of the now lit street lamps followed him like blurs. In this carriage were two of the richest people in the wave country. Advisers to the king and his parents. Along with them his Uncle. They were on their way to see the king he remembered. Which meant he had to get on the carriage soon. the red and gold colored carriage was nothing new in the rich parts of town it was late a night like this they were never seen in the slums. Running by drunken sailors through the port Karite saw his chance. Running up a new shipment of blades he jumped and landed on top of the carriage with a thump. "Darling did you hear that?" his mother always first to speak. "Probably just another drunk tossing his bottles." and his uncle finding some excuse. They were nearing the castle and at last Karite would be there. The biggest and greatest bust for any thief. He would make a killing and finally get off this island....
~Later that night~
"What! that is an outrage! How dare you send me to a desk! I am one of your best generals!" Ragie was in an outrage about this. It seemed the kind wanted him behind a desk. Times were changing in the world soldiers were no longer needed. Diplomats were however and that is why his mother and father were there. They would be moving into the castle to become the kings first council of foreign affairs. The king was putting much faith in them, but one question lie on his mothers tongue. "What of our son, Rufio kusgaku?" To be sent away to boarding school. That was the straw that broke the camels back. It was time he went to Shimagakure. The traders in the port had spoke of a land where warriors reigned supreme and that was the land he needed to be in. Running through the shadows of the castle Karite had found the princesses chambers. While she sleep the young thief looked for his prize. A jewel the size of his fist. It would be his bargaining chip. Looking around he looked for more just encase he needed some cash. But the princess was a light sleeper. Not taking any chances he ran through the hall dodging guard for guard till he made his way to the stables. Taking a horse he rode through the back gate down to the port to a old fisherman who was making his way their with supplies. That night Rufio Kusgaku became Karite the Reaper. Leaving the smell of sea and the sting salt mist behind.
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