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Mizuiro looked to Batsu, who had some to say something to him, and he listened. He nodded. He walked away and went to his designated quarters until the end of the boat ride, and had a good rest, even though he wasn't physically tired from the fight with the octopus, amazingly, he was quite sure he could have kept going and going until the octopus killed him. But now that it was dead, he just didn't care. Strangely, he wasn't hungry either. He just waited for the real mission to begin.

After two days of travelling, slowly, the ship is pulled closer to the dock by the dock workers. The voyage to the Land of Honey had been a relatively short one, yet it had had its fair share of emotions. Now, the time for the actual mission had begun, and the team's sensei wanted to make sure that the squad knew how to properly go about doing missions as common as escorts. Also, this particular sensei had rules that were somewhat different from those of more traditional shinobis, well, one rule in particular...

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As soon as the ship docked, Hiru took one step on the ground and stretched his arms out wide with a large smile on his face."Alright guys, we're here! I've always hoped I'd come here one day! Taking one giant sniff of the air, he let out a sigh of happiness as he couldn't contain his enthusiasm at the idea of being in this country: "Can you smell it in the air? They say that the Land of Honey makes the greatest sweets, and the best Mizuame in the world! (interesting note, Hiru is a mizuame jutsu specialist)

Returning to a more serious tone for a few seconds, he turned to his team to explain basic information about how the mission would work, and to make sure everyone was on the same page about the dos and donts of these his missions. "Alright guys listen up, I'm a pretty laid back squad leader about, well, pretty much anything. BUT, you have to know that there are two rules that, I insist, must never be broken:"

Raising his index finger, he carried he firmly addressed the group. "First: on my team, no one kills enemies. Period. I find out that an assassination occured on my squad and I can guarantee you, you'll find yourself strapped to a turtle's back and shipped back to your village to find someone else to teach you.". As he stated this part of the rules, Hiru deliberately let his eyes linger a bit longer on Jinich, just to make sure the message sunk in. "We are not everyday thugs for hire, you'll very quickly see enough of these on your missions. We're here to protect people: our village, our fellow shinobis..." he lowered his voice for this last part "and, in this situation, even ungrateful grumpy old men..."

"Second, you die on my team, you'll be in trouble.", he explained, as though this was the most logical thing in the world. "What can be the consequence of this you may ask? Well all I can say is: YOU DO NOT WANT TO KNOW." This was certainly a threat he would be unable to carry through... wouldn't it?



The merchant jumped when he heard the explanations given by the Swordsman. "What do you mean no killing?? What sort of a useless escort did I pay for if you just let anyone who attacks us get off with nothing more than a spanking!", he almost yelled, irate at Hiru for yet another reason... "You're seriously telling me that this gigantic creepy thing you're carrying aroundon your back is there just for show?!", he added with anger.

"If you're just here to make sure my escort will do a half assed job, you may just as well go back to your "precious village" right now! I'll even pay for the trip back!", he added, very seriously.




Using all of his diplomacy (and he was luckily fairly versed in that art), Hiru answered the client with professionalism, all the while letting his message through. "Don't worry sir, I won't get in the way. The rules apply to you too, despite your best efforts to make us want to amend, them.", he replied with a visibly forced smile.

Just as he was finishing his sentence, Hiru was interrupted by a voice shouting from the water, pretty far off the dock.





"Yo, Hiru!", shouted the voice. "Never thought I'd find you here!", it added.





"Hey Kuurukame! Is that you?! Hiru shouted back to what looked from afar like some sort of turtle."Don't try to tell me you came here to do actual work, I won't believe a word of it!"

Quickly turning back to his squad, he very quickly told them: "I'll be right back, you guys just start unloading without me!"

Before anyone could say anything, he dove in the water and swam away with surprising speed, pretty much leaving the team to itself.


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NOTE: You may interact a bit at the harbor, mission will start tomorrow!

Batsu eventually made his way off the ship and stretched out a bit before meeting up with those of the team that already was off the boat. On his way there, however, he began to listen to Hiru's instructions. Damn near immediately, Hiru dropped a bombshell. He didn't want any killing on his mission and anyone doing so would get a trip back to the village. Batsu was absolutely stunned. He damn near dropped his medical bag on the ground as he stopped mid-stride. The guy's chin dropped and he just stared at Hiru dumbfounded. Then as he and the merchant went at it, so much as it was, Batsu regained his composure and walked a bit further towards the group until he heard an unfamiliar voice.

Batsu glanced back towards the water where the sound was coming from and was shocked to see a giant tortoise. In the midst of that, he heard Hiru respond to the creature and as he turned back to face him Hiru whizzed past him, hopped in the water, and him and the tortoise was gone! Batsu watched this and suddenly he felt his eye twitch.



Batsu eventually let out a low growl and didn't care who saw or heard him at this point. Here the group was... in a new land, and the leader of this troupe was out gallivanting with an overgrown lizard! Not only that, there was no debriefing of what to expect. At least he was courteous enough to give everyone a couple of rules... don't kill anyone and don't get killed... which made him get all the more annoyed. The male's hands clench for a second and he closed his eyes enough for him to calm down.



Eventually the chuunin calmed down enough for him to think clearly. Out of the six people here, only one of them possibly had enough intel about the area... the merchant. So Batsu slowly walked up to him and began asking. "Is there anything you could tell us about this area that we should be aware of?"

D: 45 | F: 10 | R: 23 |W: 21

As the group is actively working on unloading what few personal effects they had brought on board for this mission, a small squad of men in uniform, their village hidden by straw masks, approaches the boat's landing zone. After looking around a bit, as though they were trying to get a better understanding of what was going on, they walk towards the amassed group as though to address the lot of you, looking for certain information.






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"You there!", demands the man with authority. "Do you have an unboarding permit to dock here?", he asks. "I'm certain that the lot of you are not without knowing that the Land of Honey has a special tax for travellers who dock in our harbors and try to unload without a permit..."



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Choice 1

You guys don't have a dime, and the only wallet this team has just ran off to goof around with a turtle. There has to be a way to make these guards understand that this is all some misunderstanding.

Diplomacy DC: 15

Success: The squad lets you guys go and moves along.
Failure: Have you ever spent a few days in a jail cell?

Reward: 30 XP


Choice 2

Sometimes flexing muscle can work, maybe there's a way the patrol could be "convinced" that it would be in their best interest not to bug you too much about some stupid "unboarding permit"...

Intimidate DC: 20

Success: The squad gets the hell out of here.
Failure: Threatening authority figures in public is never a good idea, especially when they have swords and there are a bunch of concerned citizens around to hear you do it...

Reward: 40 XP


Choice 3

You're kids, trying o use big googly eyes and looking lost might just do the trick.

Seduction DC: 10 (+3 if attempted by Sakurayuki since she's the only cute one here)

Success: The squad's eyes get wet and they leave you alone.
Failure: Even if the guards' hearts are made of stone, it doesn't mean that the same goes for the people around you...

Reward: 20 XP



Optional


Option 1

Sometimes, a person's body language and certain inflexions in tone can reveal a lot, if you could read it you might just get information that could prove useful to resolve this matter.

Sense Motive DC: 15

Reward: 30 XP


Option 2

Paying attention to your surroundings and to certain details in a situation might reveal alot, look for certain clues that might be of help.

Awareness DC: 18

Reward: 36 XP

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NOTES: All can attempt optional objectives but only one may attempt a response to the guards, determine the best candidate carefully. Various strategies or jutsus may influence the DCs and experience gained from succeeding this step, be creative. Other options and choices may be suggested by party members that are not listed here, simply write a post of your character either suggesting/thinking about it and GM will answer with potential DCs or impact on the situation.

Batsu was shocked to see these three men come up from out of nowhere and mentioned something along the lines of a boarding pass. DJ had some money on him but he damn sure didn't want to part with it. If he had to he would but Hiru would definitely have to pay him back for it... maybe even double for leaving him and the squad in the manner he did. Instinctively, Batsu stood behind the merchant and kept a watch over his surroundings. With Hiru gone, Batsu was in charge and the last thing he wanted was for something bad to happen on his watch.

But either way, something wasn't sitting right. Batsu didn't know much about the area but he knew something was amiss and he started looking around the area in hopes of finding out what it was.




Sense Motive: 1d20 (4) + Sense Motive (13) = 17 vs.15 (pass)
Awareness: 1d20 (80 + Awareness (41) = 49 vs.18 (pass)

D: 45 | F: 10 | R: 23 |W: 21

As you read the man's body language, you can smell that there is something fishy going on. He is somewhat hesitant when he tries to give details about that permit and his tone seems to fluctuate when he tried to elborate on the matter. Desciphering his true intent isn't easy because you cannot see his face; but all signs seem to indicate that he is making something up as he is talking with you, making you doubt that this permit is actually required, if it even exists at all...



Sense Motive DC: 15

Mizuiro's Attempt: d20 [02] + Sense Motive [00] + Wis Mod [03] = 5

Batsu's Attempt: d20 [04] + Sense Motive [00] + Wis Mod [13] = 17

Success!

Effect: +10 to Diplomacy check

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Taking a few moments to look at the three men with more attention, you quickly realize that something about them is off. First of all, for government officials, they do not have any symbol or badge that would identify them as such. Their "uniforms", although being identical, look like standard (although very well maintained) classical vestments. You can't know for sure, but you can't help but wonder if these guys are actually working for Daimyo or for their own personal benefit...






Awareness DC: 18

Batsu's Attempt: d20 [08] + Awareness [28] + Wis Mod [13] = 49

Success!

Effect: +10 to Intimidation check

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NOTES: Only add exp when officially calculated. You may still suggest strategies to further influence difficulty checks.

Batsu rolled his eyes as he walked from behind the ever-whining merchant. As he proceeded walking past him he gave the man the side-eye en route to Mizuiro. The male continued walking and eventually stopped in front of Mizuiro and looked down at the ground. "I doubt these guys require a pass of any sort." Batsu then looked up at Mizuiro and sighed. "Go and stand near the merchant in case these guys try anything. If they do, attack. Got it?"

D: 45 | F: 10 | R: 23 |W: 21