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Keishi nodded a bit slowly as Hariko explained his plan in full. It was a good, solid plan, and if she were more aware of herself, she would certainly approve of it. Instead, she barely had the wherewithal to follow along as he pulled her by the hand. Shouts and bellows could be heard from the tavern's main room, where the 'rat' was leading the others on a merry chase. The sound of chairs and tables being forcefully moved in the pursuit sounded regularly, screeching of heavy wood across a planked floor. Whatever the 'rat' was doing to evade capture, it seemed to be working. Of course, there was just as likely a chance that the clones of Hariko and Keishi were intentionally making the process more difficult, while never making it seem so. Fumbling at the last moment, or tripping into the tavern's owner just before he would have scored a hit. It was a dangerous game, if they got caught it would render the whole affair suspect.

Nonetheless, while the chaos ensued, it created an opportunity for the real Hariko and Keishi to make their way into the cellar. Hariko had taken the lead, pulling her along as they moved behind the counter. Nobody looked in their direction, too focused on the sudden mischief of a rodent. He was able to pull up the heavy wooden trapdoor, revealing a dark expanse underneath. Hariko clambered down, forced to let go of Keishi's hand by that point. Luckily, she was at least alert enough to follow him, although by the simple expedient of dropping headlong behind him, just barely missing him in her tumble. She landed with a solid crunch, lurching up after a moment, one arm hanging loosely at her side where it had popped free of its socket. Beyond that, she seemed mostly unharmed, or at least oblivious to any injuries she had incurred.

An instant later, her head snapped to look deeper into the cellar. It was dark, lit only by the light coming in from above. An unlit candle in a holder was perched on a nearby shelf, but she made no move toward it. Instead she was fixated on the small lifepulses she could sense deeper into the shadows. Past the numerous stacks of boxes and crates, beyond the assorted barrels and jugs, she could sense dozens of rats, a veritable warren. "life..." Her voice was flat and devoid of emotion, even as she began to move toward the other end of the cellar. She seemed oblivious to anything else, not Hariko, or the cellar's door being open yet, or trying to move around the various objects between her and the rats. As such, she tripped over a box and fell face-first onto the floor. As she fell, a hand darted out, with her non-dislocated arm. A faint squeaking could be heard, but it was impossible to tell if she had actually caught a rat or just sent them scurrying.

--------------

The group was traveling through what had become a raging blizzard. Heavy flakes of snow fell diagonally, blown awry by ferociously cold winds. The globe of warmth that they were surrounded by made walking rather unpleasant, as the pack ice underfoot would begin melting into slippery slush. They could avoid it by judicious use of the Water Walking technique, but that could well call attention to themselves. It was already a calculated risk, just using the technique to keep the cold at bay. If they used too much more, it might be enough to let others know that they were there. They were supposed to track down the duo delivering the swords, and retrieve one of them. If they spooked the two, and sent them rushing off again, it would only take that much longer. That was worth a little discomfort. That did little for their combined moods, however, making them all more than a little irritable.

They remained together as they continued looking for a tavern or inn. If the duo hadn't remained at the sculptor's home, they would have had to seek shelter elsewhere. While Hidden Snow was a decent sized village, it likely only had one or two inns. It didn't receive too many visitors at any given time, so there wouldn't be need for more than that. If they could only find it, then they might finally catch up to the two couriers! They were all eager to see some blood spilled, and they all wanted to see the couriers resist. They'd have no choice but to kill them then.
[760 x 2 = 1520 + 24,455 = 25,975 out of ??? ]

Once Keishi had stumbled, she had put almost the last of her energy into a rapid grab at a nearby rat. That had happened even while she had fallen forward, leaving the result lost for a moment of confusion. As it turned out, she had actually succeeded, just barely. The rat's tail was held tight between two of her fingers, even as it squeaked and bit at her, trying to make her let go. Her movement jerky, she pulled her hand closer to her, the rat's squeaking growing louder. All else considered, rats had as good of senses as any other animal. And it could smell she was dead, yet moved. That was enough to put it into a panic. The squeaking grew shrill when she brought it close to her mouth, before suddenly cutting off abruptly. She fed by bringing the animal close to her mouth, though that wasn't strictly necessary. She could potentially absorb life from anywhere on her body, it was just easier to emulate the act of eating and use her mouth. As well, the life energy being funneled into her closer to her center made it easier to absorb it.

She tossed the dead rat to the side even as she sat up. The rat hadn't had a lot of energy, but the life that it had held was fresh and sweet. Feeding, even a little, was enough to snap her mostly out of her drained state. She took in her dark surroundings carefully, putting together what she could recall of her drifting moments. She realized her arm was dislocated, and grabbed the upper arm with her other hand. Positioning her arm against the floor of the cellar, she pushed even as she shoved against it. with an audible pop, it was put back into place. With that done, she got to her feet. Hariko had thrown senbon at several rats, she could see their lifepulses pinned in place and tinged with their injuries. She rushed toward them and claimed them, one after another. Upon finishing the last rat that they'd caught to that point, she actually felt more like she was supposed to. There were still more rats, but first she needed to say something. Turning to Hariko, she waited until he noticed her. "Thanks for helping, that could have been... problematic..." Once she'd thanked him, she would return to trying to catch a few more rats. She had taken the edge of her hunger, but without something more, she'd only get weak again soon enough.

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Once the quartet stepped inside, they instantly began looking for anyone who might be the couriers. They didn't have precise information on the duo, so they mostly looked for anyone who didn't seem to fit in. Likely in the same way that they themselves didn't. They probably wouldn't be wearing heavy furs, the normal garb for a location like this. Even indoors, some kept them on, or at least left them hung over the back of their chair. It was just common sense. With the regularity of the door opening and closing as guests or regulars showed up, there would be every chance of catching a cold just from that. But they couldn't see anyone who seemed out of place, just a few nondescript patrons and the tavern's owner.

Hikou was about to step forward and demand an answer from the bartender, potentially at knife point, when one of the others stopped him. A shorter man, he had a nasty scar running down from his scalp down past the corner of his mouth, leaving it twisted in a permanent half-grimace. He put a hand on Hikou's shoulder, saying he'd try first.

He put on his best road-weary face, before shuffling up to the bar. He set himself down on a stool before finally sighing. He gestured to the bartender for a drink, and when it was delivered, set a few coins on the bar's surface. "Say, we're supposed to meet our friends here, have they arrived yet? Two of them, from out of town?" He didn't mention their gender or what they looked like, but otherwise his question seemed normal enough.
[694 x 2 = 1388 + 25,975 = 27,363 out of ??? ]

Thinking it over for a moment, Keishi tried to estimate how long the lifepulses she had consumed would last. Hunger was a curious thing, it was prone to changing in an instant, with no obvious signs of what it was about to do. That didn't happen often, but it could. As such, and since there was still the very real threat of a fight finding them before they reached Nano, she wanted to be a bit more sure of her hunger not getting the best of her. If it did, there were two possible results, both of which severely bad. The first, was the same one that Hariko had considered. If she got hungry enough, instead of just lethargy, she would lose control over herself, and be like the monsters that people thought of when they heard 'zombie'. Even if she wasn't a zombie, she would act like one. The other result would be safer for everyone except herself. She would be so hungry that she would simply be unable to move, and eventually be sent back to the Afterlife. Being starved to afterdeath was even worse than being starved to death, for those final moments would take much longer than any living being's struggles. As well, what would make it truly unbearable, in some twisted survival instinct, with the loss of any mobility, her awareness would return in full force. Being trapped in a frozen shell until it finally gave out, unable to move at all, that was truly a hell on earth.

But she had avoided that now, and had no intention of risking it again. So she finally decided to hedge her bets a little, and search out another rat or two. Saying so, she turned back to the other end of the cellar, and zeroed in on a few of the closer lifepulses. Many of them were dug into the ground, the rats must have actually created a real nest dug into the cellar's walls. She wouldn't be able to reach those, not without tearing down the wall and making a lot of noise. But there were still a few that were venturing outside, to gnaw at the boxes containing preserved fruit or grain. Moving more cautiously this time, she was able to sneak up on the rats better. As she was dead, there was no scent of life to make them aware of her presence, only visual cues. And even though the room was dark, the rats would still be able to see any blatant moves. The boxes aided her in avoiding being spotted, and reaching around one, she was able to snatch one up. This was repeated a moment later, and the two rats were drained and tossed aside. The tavern owner would eventually notice the small pile of dead rats, unless they were cannibalized before that. Standing up once more, she returned to the space under the cellar door. "I'm ready. I doubt the distraction is still going, should we just use Substitution to return to our rooms directly?"

The Art of Substitution was a unique jutsu, in that it enabled someone to cover a great distance in an instant. Nominally, it was limited in that the user needed to see where they were transporting to. But that was usually in the thick of battle. Not limited by such constraints, there was a solid chance they could manage it now, and make the tavern owner none the wiser that the clones hadn't actually been them. It would take some effort, though. Maybe Hariko had a different idea for their return.

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The shorter man, Rico, grinned as he turned back to the others. The grin was not pleasant to look at. Making no effort to be quiet -after all, the tavern owner had spoken loud enough for them to hear, too- he called to them. "Wonderful news, brothers, they're here already! Should we scold them for being early and not waiting for us?" Of course, they weren't brothers, most of them didn't even like each other. But putting on a performance meant being thorough, and if they could avoid any major suspicion until after they had encountered their targets, then so much the better. This was supposed to be a smash and grab, after all, and if they could avoid any local attention, then that could only help them.

They made their way further into the tavern, toward the hallway that led to the rooms. The tavern owner told them the room number as they did, he didn't want them disturbing his other guests. Admittedly, there was only one other group staying in a room, but still. He still didn't trust them, but more than just a vague feeling there was nothing overt to give him reason to make anything of it. So he simply watched through slightly narrowed eyes as they turned down the hallway before stopping in front of the door he'd indicated.
[822 + 27,363 = 28,185 out of ??? ]

Hariko Yuki, The Cold Demon

Hariko would disappear from the spot he stood, leaving from the place into a future time. In time, he would return to the first to live out the adventure that awaited back here. (exit)
Chakra total: 64252
Spendable Cp: 0
Words: 33
reserved Cp: 2605

Itsukaku Hakuegei (One Horned White Whale) 1000/1000
Rouga Nadare no Jutsu (Wolf Fang Avalanche Technique) 1250/1250
Baisuu Aisu Se (Multiple Ice Torrents) 1000/1000
Tsumetai Hashira no Jutsu (Freezing Pillar Technique) 1000/1000
Souryuu Boufuusetsu (Twin Black Dragon Blizzard) 1200/1200

"You know we met so long ago, you were only a child back then. Your sister such a sweet heart, she did all she could to get you here. She could of stayed instead of running into the terrible weather that can happen outside this house. However, your sister did have to help your parents with the civil war that happened ages ago. We may have heard rumors about your sister--- though we did find something." Aoki's adopted parents give Aoki a letter, and to Aoki's shock it has the Oda clan seal on the letter. "Your father and mother sent a messenger here while you were still a child and told us to not present this to you until you are old enough to go to the village on your own. They knew you would have questions about family and pertaining to your sister Ayuzawa Yuka." Aoki would then go through the letter, she uses a letter cutter to open it as the Oda family made sure the seal was nice and secured. Aoki reads the letter, her fingers would begin to shake not with fear but excitement as the rumors are wrong. The one that had written the letter is no one else but Ayuzawa Yuka herself. The letter states and reads to Aoki which are written in these words."Dear Aoki my dear sister, the civil war is over, i am alive and well as i should let you know. Over the years after i have departed from you, there was many conflicts, some losses and wins. We won the civil war and peace has prospered in our home. Aoki, Hidden Blood Village is officially safe for you to come home and ill be here with open arms. Father and Mother were very excited as i written this letter because they knew i was addressing this directly to you. Please come home as soon as you can my dear sister, i have missed you very much and i believe you must of grown beautifully as our father and mother envisioned." The letter ends there with Aoki crying tears of happiness as she takes her right arm wiping her eyes on her sleeve. Aoki looks up to her adopted mother as she smiles warmly at Aoki knowing she is crying due to happiness about the letter. "All fear about my sister is cleared, she is safe and sound. My sister Ayu is waiting for me however i want to stay here a little bit longer." Aoki holds the letter close to her as she decides to get some rest with a smile across her face cuddling up on the couch.

441 words + 263 words= 704 words