Miyuki could feel a stress headache coming on, just in preparation for what Takao and Kaito were going to tell her. But she painted a neutral expression on her face and accepted the scroll from Thresher. "Of course," she said, feeling comforted by Thresher's kiss despite the impropriety of PDA in the office. She always intended to talk to Thresher about it, but somehow forgot whenever the two were alone.
With Thresher and Seiichi out of the room, Miyuki turned to the two remainders: Takao and Kaito. She organized her desk to leave as the two took turns talking, though it was evident that both of them had just found out the other knew something at this moment. Takao was talking about a gang and some guy named Akito and the infiltration of two villages. Meanwhile, Kaito blurted out some of the things he had witnessed, and even namedropped the known vigilante Avalanche. It seemed there was a huge mess in the APD, one that'd been brewing since Toso had taken power - or perhaps earlier still - but there wasn't much Miyuki could do about it immediately.
"I get it," she said quietly when they had both shared all they knew. "The more people I involve in this, the more dangerous it becomes. I will have to leave you two to lead the operations to solve this problem; and I trust you will solve it. We will clean house here, since Konoha has already been alerted via your teammate Kiku." She inclined her head to Takao before continuing. "Choose whoever you can trust. I think brand new shinobi may be your best bet but... I trust your judgement. I have to. I am going to the summit and you two will need to handle this without my oversight."
The atmosphere was heavy as she grabbed the last of her things from her desk that she would need. Takao and Kaito assured her that they would not rest until they had made significant moves to uproot the corruption inside the village. It was the best she could get because of her time constraints, so she wished them luck and finally took her leave for the summit, slapping a seal on her secretary as she left.
[exit]
pyrategross
Novasse
Posted: Sat Jul 24, 2021 10:58 am
Seiichi would smile at the words from the Arashikage. She seemed like a nice enough person all around, and the samurai was eager to try and help out however he could. Thresher and Akari would give their little information dump about what they had found in Zaishin before came the timely interference of another person, a man who spoke with the kage about something or other. Miyuki would part the two off but not before thresher would land a kiss upon her. Seiichi had wondered why such a thing was needed, failing to connect the strings that linked the two together. Maybe it was a sign of how Arashi ninja showed thanks or some other way of showing mutual respect? He looked up at the mountain of a towering shark lady and gave a confident nod of his head as she told him they were to depart. "Right behind you. Where will we go first?" he asked before a loud growl came from his stomach. The trip here had been a bit short in terms of a good, proper meal and Seiichi clearly had been in the mood for just that. "Pre...ferably somewhere with food."
ghostfinch
Quote:
Brooy
pyrategross
Novasse
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Skawly
Monster
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Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2021 5:46 pm
🗲I'M A HIGH OCTANE HURRICANE !LET'S GET IT ON //////////////// //////////////// //////////////// MOOD NEUTRAL COMPANY ALONE
It had certainly been an eventful couple of days. At no point had he really ever seen himself being a part of the APD or any relating branch. Having been on the receiving end of their endeavors had kind of put him off to it at first, but then again, he knew that that he had probably done something to warrant their action in the past. Even with that hindsight as an adult, Kohaku couldn't help but still feel a little put off by them. Would that make him a hypocrite for joining? Was he becoming... the man?
The Spire wasn't a place Kohaku frequented, at least when he absolutely didn't have to. Something about the way it just loomed made him a little queasy looking at it. Though, once he was inside, the fact that he was inside a large, floating thing in the sky was no longer on the forefront of his mind. The casino was also a nice touch.
After ascending the many floors of The Spire, Kohaku finally made his way to the tenth. Glancing down at the letter of recommendation gingerly held in his hands, he made his way across the waiting room and to the door of the Arashikage's office. As politely as he could, he gave the door two knocks with the knuckle of his index finger.
Kohaku cleared his throat. “Uh. Hello? Lady Arashikage?”
PASSIVE EFFECTS ■ Passive Electrolocation ■ Electrical Resistance Training
MISSION INFO ■
MOVES LEARNED ■
Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2021 6:05 pm
Miyuki's shadow clone sat in the office to perform remedial tasks, not left with the energy and instruction it needed to do much else. However, she perked up at the sound of knocking. "Enter." She watched as Kohaku entered and immediately recognized the ornate envelopment in his hands, a letter of recommendation specific to the APD events of late. She leaned back and appraised him, but her decision was already made. "Kohaku. I am pleased that you have come in relation of your commendation. If you are ready for the responsibility of a higher rank, I am ready to grant it. I do, however, need to ask about your desired direction in this village before I offer your flak jacket. Where do you see yourself focusing your attention in this village? What is your path?"
skawly
ghostfinch
Seeker
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Skawly
Monster
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Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2021 7:24 pm
🗲I'M A HIGH OCTANE HURRICANE !LET'S GET IT ON //////////////// //////////////// //////////////// MOOD NEUTRAL COMPANY MIYUKI
Kohaku paused, briefly glancing down at his letter before returning his gaze to Miyuki. He had been mulling over his next course of action the entire time it took him to arrive, but now, he felt his mind race to form his thoughts into words. Polite, well-placed words, on top of that.
“So...” he began, stepping further into the office, “I was thinking about becoming an Anbu, especially after that last mission. I want to help keep the people of this village safe. I've seen what can become of the less fortunate folks here, and want to become the person I never had growing up, but I don't wanna let that status go to my head, right? It seemed the best option for me outta the others."
PASSIVE EFFECTS ■ Passive Electrolocation ■ Electrical Resistance Training
MISSION INFO ■
MOVES LEARNED ■
Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2021 8:15 pm
Miyuki listened as Kohaku explained himself. She thought it was interesting that he immediately jumped to his path in the spec ops, and not a more abstract vision for his goals as a shinobi. "Kohaku, I approve of your ANBU goals. You are welcome to pursue that as far as you want. But... do consider the rest of your place in the village. You are not limited to these operations. The academy and hospital could always use additional hands. Your value as a shinobi is not just your ability to end threats." She liked the level-headedness of his consideration. She knew ANBU wasn't a spur of the moment choice for the ninja in front of her.
"If you have any need while you pursue this path, please reach out. I know you are not yet ready for the responsibilities of, say, an advisor, but I want to tell you that you have earned a great deal of trust from me because of your work against the corruption within the APD. Walk whatever path you want, but do reach out if you need guidance or help." She gestured behind him, where a flak jacket would be held out by a masked guard.
skawly
My ANBU captain isn't active in RP so if you were able to progress IC to a point where you could take that role, you're welcome to it. But do consider other careers and such, and do let me know if your character needs a specific kind of development I can help with or something like a contract/curse mark/etc.
ghostfinch
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Sleepy Senpai
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Posted: Sat Oct 23, 2021 10:15 pm
A little old lady ascended the many stairways of the Arashikage's building with the help of her trusty walking stick. Lady Yoko was in no rush to get anywhere, so she traveled at a leisurely pace, one that caused anyone that walked behind her to move to the other side of the stairway to pass her by. Everyone seemed to be in a hurry nowadays. Yoko had been around long enough to see the needless sense of urgency develop, even for the most mundane tasks. People wanted things 'right now'. Tasks done 'as soon as possible'. Running in the fast lane all the time didn't really give one just a moment to stop and enjoy what was around them.
A few floors later, and the sudden change in atmosphere had caught the elderly woman's interest. "Mm. Mhmm." Her walking stick tapped excitedly on the floor before her, as she walked out of the stairway into a large room full of slot machines and other gambling games. "Has Yoko's luck finally run out? Yoko will have to see, mm-hmm!" She chuckled, scurrying over to the first slot machine she could find. The noisy atmosphere of the casino didn't seem to bother her, nor did the bright, flashing lights from the slot machine she approached. Unfortunately for her, she couldn't reach the lever due to her height, "Ah. Oh..." After a short look around, she spotted an unoccupied chair she could use. Yoko took her time dragging the chair over, while humming a cheerful tune. Meanwhile, one of the members that maintained the casino watched the woman with extreme curiosity from the background.
"Ohoho! Yoko will get lucky today. For sure! Mm-mhmm!" The chair was placed in front of the slot machine, and Yoko climbed up to get a better look at the game she'd be playing. It looked like all she needed to do was pull the lever, and get three matching symbols. When she attempted to pull the lever, she couldn't get it to budge. "What is this?" Yoko attempted to pull the lever again with a little more force, but it still wouldn't give.
"Excuse me, ma'am." A silky smooth voice from a male called out to her from behind. A man well dressed in a solid black tuxedo with a bright red tie had approached. Lady Yoko was still fixated on trying to move the lever.
The gentleman cleared his throat and spoke a little louder, "Ma'am."
But Yoko appeared to not have heard him still, and was practically on top of the slot machine trying to move the lever. "Ahaha. This game will not make a fool out of Yoko. No way! Mm-mhmm!"
"You have to pay!" The male exclaimed, refraining from physically removing the woman off of the machine out of respect, but stepped closer out of concern for the future condition of the machine should Yoko continue applying force to the lever. It was enough to get Lady Yoko to stop, her head whipping around to look at the well-dressed young man. "Whatchasay, youngin'?"
"You... you have to pay in order to play the game. With ryo. That's the only way the lever will move, ma'am."
"Ah. Ah. Ryo, you say. Yoko can pay. Yoko has ryo, mm-mhmm! ...Ah?" Her hands reached into her back pocket to find that they were empty, "Oh, oh my. Yoko's ryo is... not here?" She hastily searched the rest of her pockets, but there was no ryo to be found. "Hmm... Yoko could have lost ryo during the cannon ride..." She scratched her chin thoughtfully, while the male looked at her in disbelief. "Um, c-cannon ride...?" He wasn't sure if he'd regret inquiring on the situation, but given that Lady Yoko was more than willing to explain the longwinded story, he'd soon realize that he would.
Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2021 12:53 pm
🗲I'M A HIGH OCTANE HURRICANE !LET'S GET IT ON //////////////// //////////////// //////////////// MOOD EXCITED COMPANY MIYUKI
Kohaku returned the Arashikage's words with a solemn nod. For someone who swore to become a less violent person, he sure did choose violence as his first option more often than not. It was more easily said than done to not default to brute force when it came to helping those around him. He still had a way to go when it came to that part of himself, but he still couldn't dismiss the small pieces of progress he had made throughout the years.
Kohaku then gave a thin, sincere smile. “I still got my mom's bakery to help with when I can. It ain't much, but it makes folks happy.”
He was both surprised and flattered by the Arashikage's words of affirmation; he may have even blushed a little. Though he wasn't the sort that liked to ask for help, Kohaku nodded. “Of course, Lady Arashikage," he said, then turned to find a masked guard holding out a flak jacket to him. “Oh, thanks." Kohaku took the jacket into his arms, turning back to give Miyuki a wave goodbye before exiting her office.
[exit]
ghostfinch
Ooo. 👀 I'm definitely interested if/when it comes to that! I also do have an idea in mind for Kohaku plot-wise.
As the red haired male entered the Spire, he paused a moment to look around. He noticed what appeared to be some sort of transport system, and shortly after, he located the stairs. Kojino pondered a moment whether he should try the chakra-based elevator or if the old-fashioned method was the better way to go. It wasn't as if he would be bothered either way. It was more a question of if he wanted to experience something new at the time. Koji removed a hand from his pocket and scratched the back of his head. "Nah," he said decidedly. It had been quite some time since he had been in the village. The trip up the stairs would provide him some much needed nostalgia.
He drove his hand deep into his pocket once more and began the ascent, hopping as he went to skip several stairs. The memories of this place flooded his mind, bringing a smile to his face. With each floor he passed, a quick glance into them showed him that there was a few differences from what he remembered, but all in all it was roughly the same. Once he reached the tenth floor, and stepped into the waiting room, Koji paused. 'Deep breath, this is it. Time to make it official,' his mental pep talk was mostly his way of setting his thoughts at ease. Part of him wasn't ready to be back. Though, he wasn't sure if that urge would ever be quelled.
He had spent so long out in the world, away from his home. There was so much he had gotten to experience, and yet still so much to see. The sense of adventure called to him, begged him to turn and leave, but Kojino had made up his mind. This was home, this was where he wanted to be now. His feet carried him to the doors of the office. Would Lord Arashikage even recognize him? After all, he looked so different now. His skin was covered in tattoos, he was taller, his body had been simultaneously slimmed down and toned over the time he spent away, his hair was shorter than it had ever been. Even so, he had faith that the leader of Arashigakure would be able to remember him. He stood at the doors for a moment, then raised one of his arms and delivered a knock.
Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2021 4:57 pm
Miyuki looked up from her paperwork at the sound of knocking. She gave herself a moment to collect herself, taking a breath and forcing her shoulders to lower. The stress of this upkeep was something she had to keep secret from the shinobi; otherwise, they might suspect she was succumbing to the same mind-numbing stress as the kage before her. "Enter," she said.
The man before her, however, was not one she recognized. Her secretary had been unable to ping her the necessary paperwork in the time from his trip down the hall to his presence at the door. It was unusual, but not impossible. There were many visitors in and outside of Arashigakure, and many shinobi within to keep track of. But it was unbecoming to ask who he was outright. "How can I help you?"
As the invite beckoned from the other side of the door, Kojino cracked them open and peeked his head inside. A curious look crossed his face after seeing who was waiting at the desk. He opened the door wider and stepped inside. Rather than closing it behind him, he left it open, and began approaching the desk, doing a slow twirl as he went. A soft whistle escaped his lips as he admired the room. He wasn’t sure if the decor had changed since his last visit, or if he just misremembered the way it looked before. He paused at the desk and stood for a few moments. He wasn’t quite looking at Miyuki, his gaze passing just over her head. He kept this position a bit longer before lifting a foot and bouncing his toes off of the ground.
He cleared his throat and shifted his gaze elsewhere. Almost as if he was looking anywhere but the woman sitting at the desk. Eventually he would speak. ”So, any idea when Lord Arashikage is gonna be back?” His question was genuine. He had no idea that there had been a change in leadership during his absence, let alone what the cause for the change had been. For all he knew, this woman was an assistant. Koji was determined to speak with the man who had given him permission to make his pilgrimage in the first place. He had started his journey of growth with a conversation, and wanted to declare it over to the one wi made it possible.
Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2021 8:24 pm
The man showed many visual signs that he was a shinobi, but he didn't stand at attention like many did at her office. He looked a little out of place, but also like he personally felt out of place, too. She wasn't entirely sure what to make of it, though she had already determined he was neither a threat nor a distraction for one. She sensed no malice from him as a human sage. His question came like a slap in the face.
"Excuse me?"
She arched a brow at him and held still for a long moment. A righteous anger had threatened to bubble up, but she swallowed it down and thought about this rationally. He didn't speak with the distaste that one would expect from a misogynist, so it seemed more like pure ignorance. In his defense, the announcement of her rise to power had not reached all of the lands. She let out a sigh. She hated explaining this because it was still rather raw that the Arashikage she had known had stepped down from the stress and insanity of it all.
"I am Lady Arashikage, Miyuki Ukyo. You must be referring to Tosokurui Hojo. He is..." The shadow clone hesitated. He was missing, officially. She knew that Toso was actually at the Pale Citadel with her actual form, but that wasn't information she could share. No, she had to keep that close to the vest. She still had no idea what to make of his late arrival to the political charades. "He is missing in action. So, who are you? I imagine you must have been on a mission if you have been gone from the village for so long that you have missed the last month worth of events."
Kojino arched an eyebrow to match the woman at the desk’s. In his mind, his question seemed reasonable, but she seemed to be offended by the query. If he wasn’t quite so dense, he perhaps would have picked up on all of the obvious signs in front of his face. However, his perception of subtle clues was about as efficient as using a cinderblock for a floatation device. The pause before she spoke again left a deafening silence in the room. When the information was revealed that she was, in fact, the Arashikage, Koji simply started shaking his head. He assumed this was a prank. He surely would have heard of such a change, even while he was away.
Slowly, the weight of her words seemed to force a begrudged acceptance upon him. This acceptance widened his eyes in a mix of surprise and panic, and left his jaw on the floor a moment. ”What?! What happened? How did he go missing? What are we doing to find him?” The flurry of questions were filled with a tone of frustration. Koji threw his hands in the air dramatically, turning away from Miyuki’s desk and stepping away a couple of paces. One hand rested on his hip, the other stroked his forehead. He calmed the blood boiling in his veins and turned back to face her. He had a look that read reluctance. ”Uh… Kojino Futonabe. I guess technically I’m a Genin. I just got back from a… religious journey,” he bagan, twirling his hand through the air, during the pause, as he searched for the words. ”Lord Toso signed off on it, I was hoping to tell him I was back. I was supposed to use the time I was gone as a ‘betterment of self’ exercise, Lady Arashikage.”
Posted: Fri Nov 05, 2021 10:05 pm
Miyuki felt a twinge of guilt over his worry, but she couldn't put it above the importance of her knowledge. "It is being worked on," she said with her best attempt to remove any tiredness from her voice. Toso had left a mess for her as Arashikage, but she wasn't sure it was right to hold it against him. "Futonabe..." She pressed a fingertip to her desk, creating a fuuin array that summoned his file to her. She was sympathetic to his religious journey, as she had taken a long journey to find medicine for her late sister.
"I see it was signed off on. You have missed a very impressive month. Jashinists raided our village - every village - in a coordinated attack to corrupt every jinchuuriki. As we speak, world leaders are fighting them back. It is what it is." Her eyes scanned his file, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. "You are welcome to jump right back into your studies. There are some survivors from human trafficking rings that have recently been recovered, if you want to help with that endeavor. Otherwise, I urge you to train. There are dark times ahead of us. She closed his file and de-summoned it.
"I hope you found some inner peace on your journey, Kojino. You will need it in the coming days."
Etherious Virgil
hmu on discord if you need some direction n things
Kojino listened to Miyuki's response, informing him that the search for Toso was in the works. Whether that meant it was underway, or if there was a snag they were working on resolving, he couldn't be sure. Regardless her words sounded like she was forcing a control to her tone. Most likely to appear less tired than she was. Kage, after all, was a very consuming position. As a fuuin inscription spread across her desk to produce a file, his face painted itself impressed. "Efficient," he muttered, mostly to himself, but also loud enough for Miyuki to hear. As she read the file, he looked around the room. His brow furrowed as he inspected the paintings hanging on the walls. Once she continued, his head snapped back to focus on the Arashikage.
"Jashinists.... Gross." Koji looked annoyed as the words left his mouth. While he had not personally encountered any of that wicked god's followers, he knew of their practices. The fact that they had coordinated an attack on all of the villages at once was concerning. That piece of information brought a somber, if not a calm flash of anger, to his face. Just as quick as it had come, it was gone again. "Survivor's huh? Jeez, I couldn't imagine going through something like that. Yeah, I'll jump in on it. Sound's good," Koji agreed to the proposal. However, he did not respond to her last comment. Instead, as he turned to leave, he threw up a peace-sign. Before his lackadaisical stroll had taken him too far from the desk, the one called Kojino paused. "Oh, hey. Before I forget.. Were all these weird pictures on the wall before?"
