A Legacy of Hubris [ANBU Class/Civilian Protection]

[Kodoma Yoshihisa]

Regrets are the natural property of grey hairs. ~Charles Dickens

It was only when the first glorious beams of light illuminated the path in front of him that the hooded figure decided to make his silent entrance into one of the -even for those hew from solid rock- decrepit buildings, his presence only given away by an occasional creak of the rotting floorboards. The thick layers of dust and grime which had settled around him were the silent testament of the decline of Iwagakure decades ago, for even the academy, once the proud centre of education had eventually fallen prey to the preference of the people to move elsewhere, it too being abandoned in the progress. It must have been quite a lot to take in for the unknown visitor, for despite the fact that the scarlet robes draped around his figure not once gave away his appearance, let alone his features to be read he strode across hallways in utter silence while the air grew around him grew increasingly tense. Memories, those fond and those dripping with malaise alike were clinging to this building and flooded back to him as he strode on by.

Only now did it occur to him that the academy among others really managed to keep a somewhat pristine condition, despite the shelter it had provided to the frail and wounded even in the days where Iwagakure had been ravaged by the malevolent forces nature had cast upon them. Thrashed like they had in their wake, the cracks which had formed in the ceiling as a result had just now, literally, managed to shed light upon the shrouded figure, the stained ivory surface of a mask which had without a doubt seen better days becoming visible in the process: Yet even its old and worn state didn't manage to elude whom it had once presented as well as masked, the faded markings of a system long since proven obsolete still proudly on display. Those of the ANBU.

----- [Present Day] -----

His recuperation stage having passed and the wounds of his last ANBU training session just barely having closed, Yoshihisa already dashed across the schoolyard to be in time for his next appointment. The youth had been looking forward to the class for quite some time now, the ANBU instructors being more than capable to at least show up and guide someone through an entire class instead of having to cope with the inconsistent attitude present in the vast majority other classes, found in both teacher and student alike. Fact was that he would have to work hard in order to meet his quota before the start of the Genin exams, as more and more sessions were cut off early without ever serving any goal towards earned credit.

He didn't have very long to keep himself occupied with these thoughts however, for he found himself sooner rather than later in front of an imposing set of reinforced doors unlike many others in a building mostly fitted with plain sliding doors fashioned from either paper or wood. No, these, despite being meant to be part of a classroom for mere rookies looked like they wouldn't give way to even the strongest of blows before the walls around them would. Struck with awe at first, Yoshihisa soon decided to lean in and give the door a couple of knocks, hoping that the easily muffled sound could be heard over whatever was going on inside the room and whomever it was who was waiting there for him.

[MFT]

[PS: Naturally, the introduction is meant to be rather vague and could only represent what -might- happen in the future, not actual lore by any means.]

 

[Okada Kaji]

Int. Hall of the Faceless Guardian - Morning

The sound of strong-willed knocks became meek taps through doors reinforced by locally-harvested petrified wood. It seemed as if every aspect of the village seemed to possess a sturdy quality; even the furniture. As the pupil arrived to the setting of today’s lesson, we found little resistance from the door, which creaked loudly in response to his rabble.

“Come in,” an articulate male voice called Yoshihisa, barely defeating the sound resistant quality of the doorway. Upon entering, Yoshi discovered one the academy’s oldest classrooms. It was a large dojo constructed from polished oak, covered in vintage scrolls, hanging weapons passed down generations, and books galore. Rather than being decorated with a chalkboard and rows of seating, the room came with waxed floors and large candles illuminating a golden statue of the faceless Guardian. Hardwood blinds let the early-morning sun peak into the training room, revealed the source of the voice who called the pupil in.

A slim man with a pale skin, donned in mostly shades of black and grey sat in waiting at the feet of the faceless altar at the front of the room. He seemed like the sulking sort, and sat along five steps as he watched Yoshihisa as enter the room with a disinterested glance. He double-checked the time on his stopwatch. If the boy had come even a minute late, this man would have locked the door and gone home. Once Yoshihisa got his fill of soaking in the atmosphere, the instructor arose to his feet, towering over his student, and started a dialogue. “You must be Yoshihisa Kodama” he said with a flat, uninspired tone. “My name is Kaji, and I’ll be looking after you today.” He then exhaled a soft yawn and a slight, customary bow. “I commend you for prioritizing this course… What was it again? Civilian Protection. That’s it. It says something about you, speaks for your character- though I get a lot different answers whenever I ask students: what do you think this course is about?” As Kaji asked his first probing question of the day, he stepped down from the altar and crossed the room to where a peculiar sword sat on the rack, seemingly awaiting him. Every step the instructor took seemed like the continuance of a single motion, as if he glided to his tool of choice. The sword he chose was as pitch black as his clothing style and personality, and seemed to disappear into nothing as he weaved the scabbard through his belt loops.
[spoilername="ANBU Civilian Protection Class"]Welcome to the Civilian Protection Course.
I shall be your moderator and instructor, premiering as Kaji Okada, NPC ANBU badass.
Feel free to grab any kind of weapon you desire from the vaguely described collection in the room. Dojo it if you want it for keeps.

Actions
Equipped Slashing Weapon Unagihada (Eel Skin) sheathed.

EDIT: Sorry, but I had to make a quick grammatical edit to the dialogue.[/spoilername]

 

[Kodoma Yoshihisa]

Not exactly taken aback by the towering figure in front of him but on the other hand still rather suspicious of the somewhat scarecrow-like physique, Yoshihisa in the end decided to settle with a light customary bow of his own, yet not for a single moment would his gaze linger elsewhere. It wasn't in his nature to resort to behavior considered rude by his elders, but the indifference he found in every of the ANBU -excluding one- often stirred rather troublesome thoughts within the hooded youth, deep down inside wishing he would never fall so low in their position one day. To mask his demeanor, the boy momentarily gazed down at the maws settled on the palm of his hands before speaking up to answer the question, all the while ignoring the gleefully low chirping sound they produced.

"One would assume it would include any teachings when it comes to protecting those of value to the village as well as the villagers themselves in a time of crisis, during an evacuation and so on. Basically guarding duties, so to speak."

His words faintly echoed through the dojo, leaving the rambled textbook explanation to the wind soon enough. It wasn't exactly how he had wanted to make himself heard, but the lack of empathy suited the scenario down to the very letter, so Yoshihisa decided it would have to make do for now. In his hopes to avoid facing the rather awkward silence that followed, he retorted to running his hands through his hair ever so slowly, at this point having more than enough experience to not leave whatever he touched in a clay stained mess. Still trapped within the slavering jaws, the chunks of explosive material were randomly turned into different tiny sculptures only to have their short existance literally crushed to pave way for another one's glimpse of glory. While vastly different from the sword the instructor now wielded, Yoshihisa's weapon of choice was without question one with as many purposes as the wielder's imagination stretched, making up for a scenario where his lack of experience might prove the end of his short lifespan.

 

[Okada Kaji]

As the student answered, his instructor lent him an ear while making a quick inspection on his Iwa-Steel Katana. Light shimmer from end to end, and the blade seemed sharp enough to split hairs; good enough for the activities he had planned today. Observing Yoshihisa as he experimented with his clay Hijutsu, Kaji left his place by the weapon rack and casually crossed the dojo floor. “That’s about the jist of it- at least on the surface I’d say so. The usual fair consists of a lecture, some book-work and a tactics exercise, but I believe actual field experience is the best method for revealing the real lesson of this course.” As he elaborated on his intentions, the instructor approached the wooden blinds and flipped a simple lever lock. His slender fingers gripped the wooden paneling, and a slight tug was all it took for the blinds to slide aside on a rolling track.

The tattered sky-line of the Hidden Stone was revealed, hardly resembling the village it was before the Basilisk incident. Much of the horizon consisted of buildings on the verge of crumbling to pieces, and more already turned to rubble. The monster’s corpse still remained at the front of Titan’s Keep, now turned to bones from large efforts to destroy the creatures remains. The smell of charred meat still smothered the village air, for days on end now. Kaji presented his student a village that needed some protection. “The real situation is that village security has been short-staffed since the Basilisk. Every able-bodied ninja is expected to do their part, presenting the opportunity to take you along on patrol in a real environment.”

Itching to hit the field, Kaji hinted at his interest and willed himself to step out onto a red ledge separating the third and fourth levels of the academy. A brisk morning breeze offered another taste of the village’s reeking atmosphere, and the taste of burned flesh gathered on the tongue. The narrow instructor became alerted such a familiar sensation, and waved for his pupil to come along. “Come, we have a schedule to follow and Aventurine Street is going unwatched while we idle here.”

 

[Yaku]

The girl pushed the door open looking at the two just standing opposite the doorway. She listened to the man finish saying something about a schedule to follow, as she entered. Sara spoke softly from behind the boy, dressed in broken down robes. "Excuse me, is this the Ansa" She looked down at the paper one last time. She would get it this time, having practiced it before. Sara was speaking slowly as she read the words from it,"Ansat..su Senjutsu Tok..Tokushu Butai, civilian protection course?" It was a mouth full, to say the least. Sara looked at the two in the room. She being complete opposites of the others could plainly be seen. Giants in stature, dark drab clothing, and a lack of energy to be observed. She, the exact opposite, small, dressed in brights of white, yellow and bright green, fluid and open. Even just from a physical look she was different from the one man she could see plainly. But that could be expected, after all, he was seasoned, and she was not: he was dark, and she light.

The tiny girl pushed in further trying to get a look at the man's face whom she was behind. Inspecting the one in black, noticing he was already armed with a weapon, as she made her way. She thought to herself, 'Just as I thought. A combat course.' She looked up at both of them, a smile plainly seen, now getting into view of the second man. "Greetings, my name is Yaku." She gave a slight bow to the one holding the sword first then the next. She would wait for the next few words to be spoken.

She would eventually turn her backs on them, inspecting the room wholly quickly. It was in quite a pristine condition, dojo style room. Finished with gloss, weapons, and scrolls everywhere. She breathed in deeply, than went over to the wall to inspect and maybe grab one of the collection of odd weapons she had never seen, hanging on the walls. One was a three pointed weapon, short, the size of her arm. Another a scythe attached to a rope. Both weapons looked slightly formidable, though the scythe and rope thing. That just seemed to have to many weaknesses. She turned back around and and headed towards the other two, her hands behind her back, seeming to skip with every other step she made.

---

Edit: Sorry about that
[Training]
WC: 392

 

[Kodoma Yoshihisa]

The thought a mere patrol was to be their assignment was somewhat sobering to the youth at first, alas Yoshihisa knew well enough that he wasn't exactly in a position to argue and didn't need this to be explicitly stated by Kaij in order to be reminded of it. Short and thorough was his preparation to set out for their destination, considering the molded chunks were more or less the sole instrument he required: Before following behind the instructor a tiny sculpture was dropped to the ground, soon to be followed by a large plume of smoke initiated by a half Tiger Seal, only to find the sculpture had easily grown beyond their size and was now the living embodiment of art, in this case it being a rather grotesque dragonfly. Its length now surpassed that of its creator, yet it still was narrow enough with folded back wings to get through the hallways if they would be deciding to settle with that route over any others.

The improvised summoning of his mount of choice left Yoshihisa oblivious to the entrance of the other student. When she decided to speak up and thus making her presence known to him, the boy nearly bit his tongue in the process, causing him to turn around to make sure he wasn't being delusional -hard as it might be with his enhanced senses- only to spot a lone girl. Another customary bow, now addressed at her followed by the uttering of his name and his attention was once more fixed upon the task at hand, silently taking into account an additional person tagging along with them while doing so.

"Kaij-sensei, if you would excuse my curiosity, but what are we setting out to do there at the Adventurine Street if anything at all will be our set goal?"

Momentarily his gaze rested upon the motionless construct before him, all of the sudden rather caught in whether or not he might have taking things too far only to be instantly reminded of the class he was partaking in: Thus far the ANBU had not allowed for him to lower his guard even once, so an expected foresight could only be similar if anything.

 

[Okada Kaji]

Just as the instructor was ready to depart with his pupil, he heard a presence pushing at the doors of the dojo hall, and recognized the meager child known as Sara Yaku as she entered. Kaji was slow to answer Yoshihisa’s latest inquiry as his attention began to teeter over to the new child seeking his guidance. Of course Kaji was aware that a second student was assigned to him today, he just didn’t expect her to make the first cut. Before even responding to Sara he formed a scowl and reached into his coat-pocket. He checked his small silver watch once again, and with a sigh, put it back in place. “Twenty more seconds and I would have sent you back from home, miss Yaku... Tardiness is unacceptable in my class” he lectured. “As I was just telling mister Kodama, you are in the right class, and today we will be taking on the Aventurine Street Patrol Route. In this state of emergency, we all have to do our part to protect the village- even you students. And I assume you’re both here because you believe this is something you are cut out for, so this should prove to be an enlightening experience for you both.”

Waiting for his latest student to select her weapons, Kaji finally fulfilled Yoshihisa’s request and elaborated on his expectations for the patrol. “Since the Basilisk attack crime has been on the rise throughout the village. People are becoming desperate and believe that our council of elders has failed to lead the village. The unrest has begun to fester like an infected wound in the market district. Gangs are sprouting up and trying to claim turf: constant surveillance and potentially lethal enforcement is the only way to temper the problem.”

With both of his students ready to depart, Kaji ushered them out of the window with him, and pointed at his chosen path. Their village had quite the unique design, and as potential ANBU, Kaji would show them some of the keys to succeeding as covert protectors. From the ledge where Kaji stood, other tall buildings and elevated surfaces were few in number, and the drop to the school yard was too long for most ninja to stick a landing. However, steel cables were suspended from the edges of the building and ran to other rooftops. They were heartily designed, and barely wobbled during a strong breeze. Locals may have hung clan banners and laundry from them, but these wires connected virtually all of the village like a nervous system. With chakra pulsing through his body, Kaji jumped onto the highwire and darted across it to the next stable surface. Without giving instructions the master led the race to Aventurine Street, and expected his pupils to keep up or be left behind. Without looking back he offered more knowledge; “The hidden stone was constructed by genius architects. Your village is covered in concealed passages and routes that allow our ninja to travel quickly and covertly, as well as communicate efficiently when the radio tower is down.”

As he said so, Kaji ran with with haste, leapt and swung himself with elevated free-running skill. The path he took his students down was one of several veins that delivered the ANBU through the village with greater speed than running through the streets could ever offer. Most ranked ninja would never find these passageways, yet Kaji was teaching the secret to mere students. While he expected Yoshihisa to succeed with ease on his flying steed, he had to be mindful of Sara and didn’t over-do it with the exercise. Within moments the master and students had abandoned the academy, and the building was no longer in view, hidden away by more towering structures.

Their destination was an apartment complex with a rooftop garden, where a mysterious figure cloaked in red stood, silently waiting. Arriving first, Kaji brought his small team to the rendezvous point, and exchanged a few inaudible words with the operative. She wore a typical ANBU mask, was the operative they relieved, and passed Kaji a small scroll before disappearing in a plume of smoke. When Sara and Yoshihisa caught up to their master, he was revealed reading the small parchment scroll, which contained direct orders:

Quell the rebellion.​

Kaji tucked the scroll away within the darkness of his attire emitted an uncommon energy as he watched his students approach.
“It looks like we are in luck” he admitted. “We’re in for an eventful patrol.”

 

[Yaku]

A creature appeared in the center of the room, and both of the others didn't react. She looked at it for explicitly, making sure it wasn't dangerous, and walking around it enough to make face contact with the other two just before introducing herself to them both. The man in the tattered clothing introduced himself politely, though the instructor just went for something in his pocket. The unknown man spoke to her in a manner that she didn't appreciate, telling her she was almost to late to the meeting. She frowned at the words, and opened her mouth to argue with him, but didn't say anything. It would be pointless to complain about the conditions of the village making it a little harder to get from point A to point B. But that was besides the point anyways. Everyone had to deal with the problems, and complaining about them, or him doing his job wasn't going to make the situation any easier on her. In the past, or the future, she, and everyone else, would just have to learn to deal with it in their own ways. She looked back at him, her face more plain and she bowed her head, showing she understood and then looked off around the room. Yoshihisa than asked what the duties of the class would entail. She was thankful that he broke the silence, the tension that was slightly up within the room. He then responded to what she had originally asked, and what Yoshihisa asked. She had guessed right, the stranger she didn't know was the instructor for this class. While he spoke, she walked off to the wall of the dojo during that time.

He spoke about what the plan was. A patrol of the Aventurine Street. Something she had never done before, though had seen from afar several times. It was a duty normally given to higher ranked shinobi, or of course, ANBU members. The reasons obvious, if you ran into trouble during the patrol, and action was needed to be taken, it could become dangerous. This would be her inaugural address of such a chance. She felt a little scared, or perhaps it was hesitation. She had fought other students in the academy, but that was a controlled environment. And, the students didn't tend to want to bite your head off. Plus, she leaned more towards being a healer, not a fighter. She would rather be in the hospital, helping heal people that were injured, but anyone that was minorly injured now was already back in the field, doing there parts. And not being skilled enough to help with the more critically wounded, she was only going to take up much needed space. She could help for an hour or so here and there, helping those after surgery heal faster, but there were plenty that could do such. For her, someone saw other potential usefulness, and she didn't fight the need to do whatever was needed at this hour of need. It was a class, one she wouldn't have chosen, but of just as much importance.

The man then started to speak of duty and the need to protect the village in this time of emergency. She understood the idea, thus why she didn't complain much. As she looked over the weapons, he continued. Kaji spoke about how things were being made worse by certain groups of people that saw the degradation of the village and those protecting it, as a good time as any to take advantage for their own needs. He spoke about such, and she understood and saw the worst happening all the time. She turned back around as he stopped speaking, and ran towards her partner for this class, following behind Kaji who was making his way to the opening that lead outside. He seemed to have very little patience or tact, though perhaps that was something she was suffering from as well. As they got to the ledge, he pointed, most likely the path they were to go towards, and he leaped out onto a wire and was racing off. She looked at the other guy as he would start to move as well, though using a different method then she could possibly utilize.

Sara joined the teacher on the wire, running across it easily as, given her size, the wire easily spanned just longer then the length of her foot. Though she made extra sure she wouldn't slip, by using the same method the teacher used, having chakra pour into feet to increase sure footing. She was slowly losing him as he artfully sped from wire, to building then wire again. She, playing a game of chase. Though the further he got, the easier it was for her to follow. She then started to exert herself to her just about her maximum, now keeping pace with the man. He started to speak about the villages construction, and secret pathways that only a certain group would know about and methods of communication if things got sour. She had wanted to say something, but putting all of her attention on trying to keep up was all she could mustard. Hearing him was becoming much harder as he increased speed again, leaving both of his students slightly behind. Ahead she could see a figure in red standing on a field of green, atop a building. The figure stood out plainly, and noticed that was the direction they kept zigzagging towards. She continued following the same path as he, but slowing her pace back down to what she was at before. Though she was now getting a hang of movements making it a little easier, but not enough to keep his pace.

The teacher managed to get there first, and was talking with the person as she would join the group last. She was slightly out of breath, from the time she had pushed herself as hard as possible, breathing with a moderate increase. She was slightly better then before, having caught some of her breath back when she slowed down. The instructor was reading a piece of paper as the other person, a female vanished from sight. She looked towards him as he finished and put the scroll away into his cloak. Than he spoke, words that she half expected would end up being the outcome of this class in the end. The man seemed enthralled that the class was going to be something eventful. She smiled and put her thumb up, signalling she was good with the idea, though didn't say anything as she got prepared for another race, wiping her hair back along with a small bead of sweat.

 

[Kodoma Yoshihisa]

The scolding of his fellow academy goer didn't exactly surprise Yoshihisa in the slightest, actually feeling the relief wash over him that the ANBU kept true to at least certain primary standards and wouldn't shy away from berating those failing to meet their expectations. They were at trial to be part of the insightful and profound when they signed up for this class, striving to be part of Iwagakure's elite so to say where indeed such tardiness could cost lives out in the field. Thus the boy Shinobi silently nodded in agreement, sternly reminding himself that by doing so his move could have been decisive and had made a himself potentially unlikeable. And while something as shallow as that could be of grave impact at such an age, Yoshihisa soon enough found himself focused on the explanation of their mission and what the crushing weight of the assault had done to the status of the hidden Shinobi village: Plently of material for a young mind such as his to ponder over. But time was not on his side to be engorged by his foolish habit, quite on the contrary even for both students soon enough found themselves unable to even see their instructor anymore through their position at the window.

Thus he too had leapt out in order for him to keep up, in midair intercepted by his aerial companion to have himself dug all the way down to his heels into the clay for the stability he needed -being shaped from such volatile chakra meant for it to be an actual hazard as well, making the most traditional methods to hang on for the creator a potential trigger instead-. As he soared through the sky, the youngster already had come up with a few of the basics and once more his hands would vanish into the satchels hanging from the belt across his chest, all the while attempting to make some solid observations of the area currently laid out below him. Hands once more at the ready, there was only a short intermission as he didn't want to hold the others up for too long, soon enough resulting in a hailstorm of smaller prop-like explosives ranging from pebbles to tin cans towards the streets down below. After its completely and having make made sure of it that virtually every corner was now rigged, Yoshihisa turned around in order to meet up with his fellow group members all the while making sure to fly low enough to be discovered by few if any of the looters.

"We have the advantage for a potential first strike now with only minor consequences, for I made sure the explosives wouldn't do any explicit damage to any of the surrounding buildings still capable of properly housing civilians. So, on your mark it will no doubt take out those lacking the training of Shinobi if we can narrowly time it."

In any other situations these downright lacking regards for the lives of his fellow people would have without a doubt made his blood run cold, for despite progressing faster than he had predicted and his interest in being an ANBU he still had never taken a life before, neither did he want to if it involved the people in the first place he had set out to protect. But on the other hand it had long since been clear to him that those taking advantage of the situation and the crippled position of others had to be eliminated for the better of the cause, whether he would long for another solution or not. It was something he prepared himself to die for at such a young age, as many had before him and not being the last of this lineage either. And thus Yoshihisa crouched, running his nimble finger over the rugged pair of slacks now only inches away from his face, ready at any time to set off a series of explosions the likes of which would bring pride to the Toujigikou in the process.

[MFT]

 

[Okada Kaji]

The students had done a decent job keeping up with the pace set by their instructor. As a reward, he paused their operation long enough for them to catch their breaths, and speculate about the next tasks at hand. Kaji watched his students closely, observing their affinities for this kind of work. Much of today would be about testing their resolve. While Yoshihisa had his explosive creation to thank for his transportation, Sara had to copy the maneuvers of her instructor in order to navigate the course, and gained valuable knowledge in the process. It would surely come in handy for her some day. But for now, Kaji was observing the warning signs of potential trouble from his students today. He sought their weaknesses, and his attention locked onto Yoshihisa’s eagerness to create more bombs. The boy was being reckless… without ample training, he was as much a risk to the public as he was to the threat at hand, which he had yet to reveal. It seemed as if Yoshihisa had a future in the Bakuha Butai (Blast Corps), if anywhere at all. But for now, Kaji recognized that Yoshihisa’s special ability could prove detrimental to the assignment.

“Call them back” Kaji hissed, showing his first real emotion all day: a stern rendition of anger. “Our task today is the observation of rogue targets- street scum responsible for provoking civil disobedience in the last few weeks since the Basilisk attack. If one of those bombs go off and harm a civilian… You are going to create a lot more trouble for us than we can handle.”

By the time the instructor issued Yoshihisa a stern warning, the small explosives were already falling into the streets, and nesting themselves wherever their pointed legs could latch onto. Unsuspecting merchants were peddling wares with the small creatures crawling atop their tents, and the streets were full of commuters traveling to and fro, barely avoiding the bombs as they marched. Burdened by his concern, Kaji stepped onto the roof’s edge and peered over the streets below. “Let’s get to work” he commanded. “Yaku, you’re with me. Kodama, I want you overhead on your flying worm again; and render your jutsu inert before they cause a casualty.”

Boom.

As the man in black and his pupils sprang into action, a commotion was developing in front of a sushi restaurant levels below. But it wasn’t the explosion Kaji expected: it was a riot taking shape. Taking the leap first, Kaji plunged himself into the shadows of an alley leading onto Aventurine street, and colliding with the earth squarely below. A ring of dust swirled around him as chakra padding his landing and covered the earth. He awaited briefly for Sara’s landing, while keeping a keen eye on Yoshihisa, whom he ordered to collect his bombs at once. Once the girl in white was by his side, Kaji led them out onto the street, where they blended in smoothly among the gathering masses. The people were driven out of their businesses and cobblestone homes to witness a fight breaking out between a small group of instigators, tearing apart the establishment. A common ninja was thrown through the entrance, and rolled out onto the street, and laid unconscious with a red lantern stuck to his head. The fight was just picking up, and the situation was too wild for academy types to charge in. This was a job for younger one of Kaji’s two pupils, and Kaji called her into action. “Yaku” he sought her attention, “you have inherited the byakugan, haven’t you?” he observed. “Do a sweep of the restaurant and give me a count of the uncommon chakra forms inside, along with all of the suspicious chakra forms around us out here.”

 

[Yaku]

Sara managed to catch her breath, as Kaji was allowing it, though giving commands to Yoshihisa to call back the little white things he was dropping before. She didn't mind the time to be taken, as she needed the momentary rest. She peered over the edge of the building to see what Kaji was talking about. She peered over and could see the white things moving on there own. 'So, they guy was able to', then she heard the word bombs. "Bombs?" She kind of muttered, "Wow." It was surprising to her. Yoshihisa was able to make animated, what seemed to be bombs, figures from that stuff he had on him. He was much more dangerous then she could figure. And they could move on there own. That had plenty of uses for sure. She wanted to eventually get a closer look at these animated bombs, having seen little animal like white figures moving below wasn't much of a site to her.

Sara then heard her name. She looked back at Kaji and jumped towards him. Her job was to stick with him, and Kodama was to keep site above, and disarm his creations. She was a little confused on the reasoning, they seemed like they would be useful in keeping the situation in control. 'How big of a bomb were those things?', she thought.

Yelling sprang up from below, a short distance away and Kaji moved into action quickly. She looked around to see if she could make out what was happening, then remembered her orders given, and lept to the same place as her instructor. She walked slightly behind him as he made his way out onto the street amongst the people. She looked towards him, trying to figure out what he was looking for, or how she should act. He seemed calm so she tried to stay the same way, and continued to look forward, she trying to emulate him, though looking back up at him every so often. Sara was closer to the ground, the spectators around blocking all view of what was happening, except the few instances where people moved to the side just enough to allow a momentary glimpse. She heard her name and looked up at the instructor, him telling her to use her byakugan to observe the situation. The skill where she could use her eyes to better see, well everything. She had rather recently learned the name of this skill, though hadn't gotten much information about how she got it. Why she was able to use such a skill was unknown it seemed, at least to her, though it seemed to hold some importance to those higher up. Even leading her to be in this class.

She listened to the rest of the command given to her by Kaji and activated her special eye technique. She pushed slightly ahead of him, so she could actually see what was happening ahead of her, now only a small amount of people blocking her vision. Within the building, someone with a decent amount of a developed chakra system was inside, swinging what appeared to be a chair around, smashing it into a few others with, how she came to see it, yokels. This is a word her mother used to talk about those from Iwagakure, confirmed when she asked her mother about such. These yokels were trying to take on someone that seemed much more capable of fighting, not even getting close enough to lay a finger on him. "There are 15 people inside, all trying to take on one man. The only man that isn't a yokel." Sara finished just as the man inside tossed the chair out of the building towards where they stood, causing the crowd to separate a little more to allow better sight. The man within was of decent build, though he didn't seem to be using his true skills against the people, except for the occasional charge if several tried to attack him, probably to increase his strength and speed for a momentary attack. During her gaze at this man, she looked to feel if anyone around her, besides the two she traveled with were of any interest. She now got the feeling of the man ahead of her on the ground, his chakra was better built then any others around her. She could see the white figures that the other compatriot used, feeling his chakra within them that gave them life.

Sara wanted to push through the last few people to get to the man on the ground, seeming to be weakening as his chakra grew fainter and blood from the object projected through his skull being spilt. The look of slight anger and just plan disturbed gaze, and the fidgeting hopping she was doing with her legs and foot, portrayed her great need to help the guy. But, she stayed back though as what she was ordered to do was to shadow Kaji, even though now she was in front of him. Though if something didn't happen soon to help the guy, she was going to burst ahead one way or another. "No one else is of any concern, except that guy..on the ground...Dieing!" Her voice raised a little, showing even more alarm, this time verbally. It wasn't loud enough to be heard by the yelling crowd, but the distress in her voice would be plain to her instructor.

[Training]
WC:879

 

[Kodoma Yoshihisa]

Yet this pride had at times proven to be nothing more than a mere target for personal assaults. And despite his usual calm and collected personality Yoshihisa felt like there couldn't have been a more hurtful insult to be flung at his head now that the instructor seemed to think he had no control whatsoever at this crucial point over live explosives nonetheless. His convertion of jutsu into the signature animated bombs of the Kekkei Genkai had provided him with enough mastery to take the reins at any given time as it was mandatory: All the while mumbling out the combination to follow, Yoshihisa slowly sat down whilst forming a few hand seals, not even sure whether to dignify any of it with a response.

"Saru, U, Mi, Tatsu.. Ninpō: Hyōi!"

His eyes fell shut without another word or even a movement to speak of, for he had entered the trance the jutsu had called for, all with a more than obvious result. Down below the animated sculptures had stopped in their tracks, most not even having undergone any reason in particular to even move from their spot to begin with, yet the renewed connection with their creator told him enough that some had been put in a rather unfortunate situation: Clenched between the jaws of a stray dog, one of them had thus far suited it well as a makeshift chewing toy, the ignorance of the animal had caused it to only be moments away from being considered hostile, a rather unnerving thought for the boy. The situation had called for a more remote controlled operation after all, despite his efforts to make sure that his creations wouldn't be standing out too much to set of explosions as a last resort. Now firmly within Yoshihisa's grasp and being robbed of his liberty to detonate on his own, the tormented bomb started hissing loudly in the process of disabling itself with the hopes of either scaring the stray away from it and be cautious of any others it would happen to come across. That or keeping it occupied for long enough to remove at least another harmful factor from the soon-to-be battlefield.

The ruckus down below, while only vaguely aware of it in his trance allowed Yoshihisa to pinpoint the attention for his clay drones and it wouldn't be long before they were set into motion, their gathering forces spearheaded by what appeared to be an unusually disguised tin can insectoid tasked with lugging around the gleaming orb it held up tightly clenched between its miniscule front arms. Even with the loss of one of their brethren their numbers were still considerable enough to be capable of making a difference inside the building: In the worst case scenario where they weren't capable of containing this riot in time for it to spread outside as well, he had still preserved enough chakra to drag himself through another wave to come. The fact was that they probably weren't going to be capable of much more than an easily containable explosion as they hadn't been charged to actually wreck havoc throughout the area, making them excellent for the task of crowd controlling as he saw fit. Or at least to some extend.

It wouldn't be long until the wide array of sculptures had managed to catch up to his instructor and team mate, with the course of action at least calling for him to make clear that he was remotely controlling them, Yoshihisa gathered them up in a rather crude kanji notification for Kaji to be aware of it. And despite its simplicity the command had pushed him into dismissing his earlier creation, not even having to be watching to know that another screen of smoke soon would rob it of its animated form, thus leaving only a motionless figurine in its wake. As a result, the somewhat sluggish moments of the remaining clay creations got admittedly soother, their forms almost appeared to be rejoiced of what was to come despite their lack of sentience. Either that or Yoshihisa too wasn't always capable of keeping the strangling hold of the nerves at bay while in the process letting his true feelings shine through through their actions. One look one almost certainly point out towards the latter.

[MFT]

 

[Okada Kaji]

The ruckus within the sushi shack finally boiled over when a wall came tumbling down. The people strolling and shopping on Aventurine street came to a sudden pause as mere men broke through the entrance of the building. A mighty, statuesque man clad in black ran through the layers of wooden beams, hardly breaking a stress as he did so with two sous chefs falling off of his shoulders. The kitchen staff had picked the wrong day to start a fight with the likes of pure blooded greatness. As the smoke cleared and the rubble settled, the obsidian man was presented to the trio of Stone ninja. He was trimmed in gold-embroidered robes made from ebony silk, and armed to the teeth with jagged obsidian plating, tight to his skin. His mere presence drew a crowd, and he came with a Maruishian Butler wearing a pompadour. The Butler came with a loud speaker.

“Come one and all, the arrive of his majesty, Lord Tetsuo of the Royal Sonegawa dynasty.” As the butler proudly took on an announcer role from what was left of the restaurant, the stone-chiseled man he presented presented his own marker for signing autographs and official decrees. The family seal of the Senegawa family was plainly visible on his garments like a badge of freedom. The chakra circulating through him was just about the only thing that seemed so royal. When the public failed to flock towards the bulky champion and his hypeman, the duo quickly lost their appreciation for the hidden stone crowd.

“Hit ‘em Ali!” The royal son shouted across the quickly dwindling crowd. His voice was loud and filled to the brink with energy. The older Butler then sprang into action with his wobbly pompadour waving in the air, and adjusted a setting on his loudspeaker. He proceeded to beatbox for the public. The proclaimed Prince became still before breaking out into a groove and opening his mouth. “Unh, unh, check it, yo!” The metal-clad warrior of sorts began to freestyle an awful rap to the public, leaving the stone ninja enough time to assess the situation beyond the obvious: they were dealing with a couple of nut cases.

Just as Sara predicted, the trouble brewing within the meager restaurant had developed into a potential disaster. Between songs, the man in black armor had crippled several bystanders out in front of the place. “I got the style and grace to rock ya face--” he said with utter excitement to a Mother pushing her baby in a precious stroller. She panicked from his raw energy, and embarrassed his lordship. “Haters don’t wanna see me succeed; that was a really ugly baby, she should have swallowed the seeeeed.” He insulted the poor girl to tears. The stone ninja needed to intervene before this fool beat the entire village to a pulp on a whim.

“Miss Yaku” Kaji confidently chose Sara first, and looked to her once he saw the challenge set for his team. The opportunity she had been preparing herself for all this time was presenting itself, and victims of the Royal Flow were being laid at her feat. “Sara” Kaji called through the incessant music penetrating his focus, “I’m counting on you to look after the injured civilians, and prevent more casualties… can you handle that?” So far, one waiter was in need of critical assistance, and two more chefs were crumpled up after being driven through walls.

It was then that Kodama presented a scenario free of miscued explosions, just in time to receive more orders from his pushy instructor. “Get ready to heep this guy away from our civilians, Kodama. Looks like all those bombs are going to come in handy after all.”

 

[Yaku]

The young girl looked up as the man clad in black armor stepped into the crowd, revealing an even more interesting character behind. “Come one and all, the arrival..." Sara was still examining everyone with her Byakugan. The man was of no importance. At least in a general sense. Though as she only stood a few feet from him, and the loudspeaker blaring, he was a producer of quite a jarring consequence, as she shirked from the noise. A voice rang out from nearby, that then caused the man with the speakerphone to change settings, now producing music, and the man, ?Ali?, to start singing. She kept an eye on the kid whom spoke, an easy task to maintain.

His words, harsh, weren't all that bad, at least to the girl. She had heard worse before, yet was considered to be great music. It could have been considered fun If only he had continued with his music. As he jumped from one set of rhymes to another, he proceeded to abuse bystanders to gain more attention. Sara clenched her fist, ready to jump in and stop the man. Even more so as he started to insult a small baby and woman. The giant man towards the woman, scarring her just with his presence, let alone his words. She wanted to act, but Kaji intervened, now issuing his orders. His voice was hard to hear through the beats being thrown, but she could just make out his words. Her job was to help the injured, and prevention of further injuries to the public.

The young girl thought about his words, thinking that perhaps a straight approach of incapacitating the man causing the injuries would be best. But she fought that thought away, releasing her clinched fists as she again looked at the man on the ground still bleeding, then the others strewn about. She looked up at Kaji and spoke, "Yes, understood sir." A very uncharacterly response, but she was trying to stay on his good side. As the next set of commands to Kodama were about to be given, she was already going into action. She thought to herself, 'It would be best to avoid contact with the man in black. If possible, a diversion to draw his attention away would be helpful.' The thought came fast, and she went into action. She fell back into the crowd to hide her hand movements as Kaji spoke. As she finished the last hand seal, she released her jutsu. Her target was not the main attraction, but rather his friend with the funky do. As the man danced to the music, and saw the blood from one of the victims his master had caused, he would start to feel a pain in his arms and chest, then he would see a red liquid trickle down his arms and stain his clothing. She was targeting his will with a genjutsu at a master level, called Tourniquet. It wasn't a particularly nasty jutsu, but it had some nice effects. Especially on a civilian with no chakra abilities at all, it would certainly take him by surprise. What would come about from this was unknown to her, but hopefully it would involve taking the attention away from the people around the man in black, give her allies time to get their plans started, and her time to help those injured.

[Training]
WC: 559

 

[Kodoma Yoshihisa]

Managing a faint nod in his meditative state, the academy student decided that in order to preserve both their strategic interests as well as his chakra reserves the bombs were to be stored for later usage. With the exception of the orb bearing sculpture who had secured a hiding spot under one of the last remaining, if not badly thrashed porches, all others had already broken free from their formation on order to scatter all around the scene of the fight where they started digging as fast as their pin-sized legs would allow. Within seconds, all of them were perfectly hidden from sight, the operator behind their actions shutting off his connection with them for the time being after positive they were dormant, and thus not a threat towards the bystanders if they didn't have to be.

"Bakuton: Nendo Bunshin."

No seals were woven this time, despite the complexity behind the technique Yoshihisa had called upon: In front of him stood a copy of the boy crafted in the perfect image of the boy, and one familiar with the inner workings would know well enough that it had certain advantages. The clone didn't waste as much as a second before it jumped into the fray from the rooftop, aiming to stealthily descent behind the man going by the name of Tetsuo during the rampage he had demanded from his servant. It didn't take much from it to make sure the attention was fixated on someone else during this stage of the plan, and before the man clad in cumbersome armor had even a chance to dodge Yoshihisa's split image it had already turned itself upon him. What followed was a rather odd process, not as much as the creation from someone capable of letting his imagination flow freely but mostly in terms of Bunshin techniques altogether. Mashed up against the man's body was a hump of clay that in the slightest still resembled its original humanoid shape, but now had been drained from its color which kept the illusion alive that to most it would have appeared to be human.

"Sonegawa Tetsuo, was it? It is truly an honor to meet you, but I'm afraid that even someone of your magnitude can manage to over stay their welcome if they start a riot like this, so if you value your life I would like to ask you kindly to cease these activities.."

What might have been more frightening than the twisted appearance the clone had been left with was its ability to speak, or for that matter that soon enough a smaller chunk of its form broke free in the form of a perfectly shaped dove. The latest sculpture's life was short-lived however, for once it had reached the height where no direct harm could be done it was swallowed whole by a thundering explosion, managing to both literally and figuratively make people shake in their boots had it been closer to the ground. Down below the clay mass encasing the Lord of the Sonegawa family shifted in order to expand its hold as well as restrict any further movements before it spoke once more, this time loud enough to be heard by the crowd as well.

"There is no need to panic! The situation is under control!"

Or at least so he hoped.

[MFT]