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Flonne gave a nod, before casting a glare at Kikyo. "So long as the girl doesn't talk to me."



Kikyo merely looked exasperated at the girl rolling her eyes behind her mask. "As if I'd even want to..." she muttered out of the side of her mouth.

Flonne puffed up her face slightly. She had a pretty good feel for good and bad people...and even if she didn't generally trust other girl's that she wasn't friends with on principle, this girl was bad news. She could tell. She turned her attention to the boy's instead. "So...um...you two...who are you supposed to be again? And how did you wind up in our basement...? The guy who's really the leader said we were like, super remote and in the middle of NOWHERE." she emphasized nowhere.


((One more traveling post...?))

The girl's eyes narrowed slightly. "Oto...Oto...why does that sound familiar..." she snapped her fingers. "Oh! I remember! That's that one place!" she looked suddenly troubled. "Huh...it's connected to our basement...I don't know if that's good or bad..." she pointed to the three of them. "so you guys are all from Oto then...okay." she nodded to herself looking back ahead of them. "Oh! Here it is!"


((To your surprise, contrary to what was on the map, there is a very large hole in the side of the tunnel that shouldn't be there. rather, it seems as though someone dug clear into the tunnel. Beyond the hole appears to be...well, for the life of you, somebodies basement. With a storage pot for water and all. The basement is very old certainly, and swamped with cobwebs as though it's been abandoned for even longer than he cultist's base, but it does indeed appear to be a basement...))

Flonne walked through the hole in the wall into the basement, gesturing for them to follow her. "This way if you want to get out, that other way's caved in...I kinda blew it up when I was killing those pesky lizardma-whoozits."



Kikyo was frowning now, clenching her fists at her side. This was bad... this smelled like a trap to her...but the girl was too stupid...unless...it was an act. But no, this fit with her profile... it was entirely possible that this was what it seemed to be....but even if it was. She looked back down into the darkness of the tunnel. They weren't mean to leave the tunnel this early... they were supposed to wind up at the southern end of the valley, where this tunnel came out, so she could reunite with Iyou... where would they end up if they left so soon...? She would have to be on her guard... it seemed as though the basement was devoid of any ambushes...but as Flonne ascended the stairs, she prepared herself...this was enemy territory now... she had to be ready...


((You may choose to make any checks you wish, and whether to ascend the stairs, or head back into the tunnel...))

> Ascend the stairs

> Retreat into the tunnel, and continue on...

Aki
(Reaction: Not only do you not think this girl means you harm, you're fairly certain that she's probably never had a intentionally malicious thought in her head her entire life...in fact you guess she's hardly even had a REGULAR thought in her head her entire life. If there is danger above, it won't come from her...))


Jiro
((Reaction: You can't read this girl...whether she's suspicious or not is hard to say.))

Jiro Soma
LV. 2
Experience: 5/150
Hp: 16
Cp: 24
MHp: 14

Jiro was about to say something to the "leader" but, Aki shushed him. Aki knew his brother would probably say something to get them all killed. Kikyo wasn't talking either so he knew that once again the next few words out of his mouth could get them killed or could keep them alive. He thought over his choices of what he could say and after a couple minutes of silence he spoke to the girl. "We sort of just fell in. There was a not so solid part of the tunnel and we fell in. That's it. We were just looking for a way out. We walked down the tunnel and we saw her. She then led us here." Oh god did he hope that telling the truth wouldn't get them killed. He didn't mention how they ran into Kikyo because he figured it didn't really matter. They were all trying to get out of this cave. So, he looked back up at the leader after looking at Jiro and Kikyo. "That's really it." He managed to pull a soft smile even though he was scared of the next few minutes.

Aki Soma
LV. 2
Experience: 9/150
Hp: 16
Cp: 22
MHp:14

Jiro Soma
LV. 2
Experience: 5/150
Hp: 16
Cp: 24
MHp: 14

Jiro seemed more then happy to go with these people. It seemed they weren't lying and that they didn't mean any harm. "We'll go with you of course. We don't really have a choice considering both ways appear to be blocked off." Aki smiled a little and Jiro started to walk then in a quick moment Jiro grabbed Kikyo's hand for some reason. Aki saw this and didn't really care but, Jiro seemed to enjoy it. He didn't say anything to Kikyo but, he gave a protective squeeze of her hand. Jiro and Aki then followed the "Leader". Aki was actually kind of happy that they'd get back to the village faster. He wanted to get back and he figured some people would be worried about them. Though they'd be home soon so if anyone was worrying they wouldn't have to anymore.

Aki Soma
LV. 2
Experience: 9/150
Hp: 16
Cp: 22
MHp:14

Sense motive: 8-3=5 (Aki)
Sense motive: 7-3=4 (Jiro)

The girl gave a laugh. "Heh, sorry about that. But it'd be a pain if people from Oto could just walk right into our resident airheads basement. I suppose you could have continued on and seen if you could dig your way out, but, don't worry, it's not trouble. I don't think he says it out loud, but Maboroshi likes company."


The home that they emerged up into was a dusty place, with the look of a place that, though preserved, also seemed to have been neglected for some time before recent reuse. It was a warm humble little woodland cottage however, and as the girl led the trio outside, they found themselves a sunny forest with tall oak trees that seemed to extend up unto the sky. The canopy above let through beams of fresh sunlight, and looking around they seemed to be in a village, for all intents in purposes...but with one unsettling difference. There were no people here... there were no people in the entire village, save the opposing trio of the "leader", Flonne, and a young man with long black hair one could assume was "Kai".




"Hey." Kai greeted with a friendly wave, leaning against the outside of Flonne's chosen house looking rather relaxed. "So you kids are...?"

The Leader looked back over her shoulder as she continued walking off towards the vast forest that seemed to cradling the nearly empty village. "Just go introduce them to Maboroshi. He'll be able to figure out whether or not we need to knock them out first before we let them go." she then seemed to recall. "Oh! And don't try and run away either," she said, more as a friendly warning and less of a threat. "Now that you've seen this place we can't let you figure out where it is, Mu'se's on orders to kill anyone to tries to escape the area that isn't one of us."



Kikyo wasn't even paying attention to Jiro's hand, but she squeezed it tightly at the mention of this name. The Nightmare of Oto's Strongest Serpent... She wouldn't even be much more than a fly buzzing around it's head... but...she'd mentioned letting them go...? Was she serious...? Just like that...? Just a pat on the head, a blind fold so they couldn't reveal the location of this and a fond fare well...? There was no one in the Shinobi world that forgiving...this had to be a trick of some kind...it HAD to be...


Kai leaned off the wall and gave a gentle laugh at Kikyo's reaction. "Hey, relax huh? We're the good guys alright? We'll have you guys set and on your way back home before ya know it." he held out a hand to the two brothers to shake. "Let's start off on the right foot huh? Name's Kai." he pointed to Flonne. "The Space cadet over there is Flonne...who may or may not be mentally inhibited...we're not really sure."

"GRAVY!"

Kai changed the finger pointed over to the Leader. "The lovely young titan of Fire and Steel there is Kimiko Momoe." he rubbed the back of his neck with a casual shrug. "I guess if you're from Oto then you'd probably know her better as The Blazing Requiem, Leader of the Missing Nin Organization 4."

Kimiko gave another friendly wave. "Hey there." taking claim to her name.

Kai seemed to have to think about it. "Us? Not long, but the Boss and Xen have been here longer." he waved to Kimiko as she headed off into the woods, apparently being followed by Flonne. "This village was abandoned...well..." he gave another shrug. "Not really abandoned as such, everyone in it was killed over night. Slaughtered, you know the drill. And it turns out it used to be Xen's home town. Until the whole slaughtering thing. Apparently right after he was forced out of the village cause of his clan abilities, everyone in it got up and vaporized...long story." he shrugged. "Pretty sure it wasn't actually HIM that did it though. He's the kind of guy that would own up to it if he had, and anyway he would've been like, 8. Xen's a tough guy, no doubt, but killing an entire village without any Ninja trainings a bit much even for him, ya know?"



Kikyo narrowed her eyes behind her mask. "Xenon Maboroshi...the Nightmare of Oto. He's here then?" Xenon Maboroshi's home town? That wasn't on file...a village where everyone was wiped out? That could anywhere along the border with the mad fire Daimyo's War... typical... there was nothing there to help her figure out where they might be...

"Yep." Kai said, rather carelessly. "That's right. He's in the house just up ahead." he pointed towards a more secluded cottage at the back of the village, which seemed far more preserved and up kept then all the others, as though it was the only one that hadn't been abandoned. "apparently that's actually his old house, even."


Kikyo was frowning. She might be to overpower just THIS young man...but then she would have to get passed the Giant Snake... damn it...


Kai looked back "Oh, and whatever you do, don't make fun of the baby. He'll seriously break your mind like a cheap toothpick. No foolin. He's...touchy." he continued to smile cheerfully. "But enough about us. You guys came out of Flonne's basement, and I heard the Boss mention a tunnel from Oto? THAT must've been fun...I mean, you guys run into any trouble...?"