Ken couldn't believe the beauty of the scene that lay before him. The gleaming sun hung proudly in the sky, casting a warming glow across everything in sight. Behind him stood the majestic walls of Soon's Sanctuary, a monolithic creation that stood as a testament to the power of human ingenuity. Before him spread out a colorful and vibrant city, teeming with joyous activity. Unlike the bustling streets of the Grand Palais back home, this city seemed so diverse and happy. The light wasn't artificial, and there weren't ominous shadows being cast in every alleyway. Soon's Haven was quite the sight to behold, but even beyond that was something Ken didn't think he'd ever get a chance to see. On the other end of the city were the glistening crystal waves of the sea. As soon as Ken realized he could see the massive expanse of water, all thoughts of his mission were dumped from his head. He could do nothing else but sprint as quickly as his little legs could carry him. As he approached the harbor, he began to hear the sloshing of waves and the rowdy sounds of nautical life fading into his perception. The salty smell of fish and brine kissed his nose, growing stronger and stronger as he ran. When the boy finally arrived at Soon's Harbor, his heart was pounding with excitement and hard work, his breathing was heavy and his shirt had developed a large patch of sweat on its back. It was well worth it, however, because as far as his eyes could see was the glittering expanse of clear blue water, gently rippling and reflecting the prismatic light of the sun. Ken's hands trembled, and he had to sit down to avoid falling over in awe. He just couldn't believe it. It was a dream come true to finally see the sea, and to see it now only reaffirmed his goals. He would sail the seas one day and explore new lands. That was a promise he made to himself. After a few hours of wandering along the harbor, Ken finally tore himself away from the scene. As much as he hated to admit it, he came here with a job to do. He would have to go do it, and then he would have to say goodbye to Soon's Haven. Smiling wistfully he waved his farewells to the deep blue, and the ocean of course waved back.
Personal errands fulfilled, Ken made his way to the bazaar. Reports accused his target, "Ama Yuki," of extorting shopkeepers under the guise of a Sunan shinobi. Ken decided that it would probably be wise not to let people know that he himself was acting under the authority of Sunagakure, or else they may mistrust him because of this thief's actions. Instead he asked around at the shops in the middle class sections of the bazaar, inquiring about a "young, red-haired shinobi girl." Most of the shopkeepers recognized the description, though it was difficult to pin down a pattern that could help Ken find the girl. Eventually, however, he had a stroke of luck. A shop he visited claimed to have just been shaken down by the ruffian. The shopkeeper told Ken that the girl threatened to destroy their livelihoods if they didn't giver her what was in the register, and helpfully pointed out the direction she disappeared too afterward. Thanking the shopkeeper, Ken rushed off in pursuit. It wasn't too difficult to find the girl with the shopkeeper's directions, Ken glimpsed her mane of bright red hair as she slipped into a shop a few buildings down the street. Rather than enter the shop immediately, Ken sidled up to it and listened intently, trying to hear what was going on inside. "...can be a very dangerous place, sir." It was a female's voice, light and almost friendly, but there was a very sinister edge to it.
"Lady, please, I don't want any trouble..." a man's voice pleaded in response. That must have been the shopkeeper. This was sounding an awful lot like a shakedown, but Ken continued to listen. He didn't want to jump in prematurely. The scared voice continued, "Here, please take it. This is all I can spare, business is slow, and -"
The voice was interrupted by the girl's. "Ssssshhhhh... Now, now. You know that isn't good enough. Don't you want to be on Sunagakure's good side? How can I guarantee your safety if you can't even pony up what I ask?" Ken had heard enough. The boy entered the building and surveyed the scene. The shopkeeper behind the counter looked up wide-eyed at the newcomer, but what Ken was interested in was the girl. She was an inch or two taller thank Ken, and she leaned on the counter with a posture that almost suggested she was bored. She hardly payed attention to Ken's arrival, merely glancing at him and then speaking to him in a dismissive tone. "Shops closed down for... renovations." she said with a devious grin. This was Ken's target alright. She fit the profile, and she was certainly robbing this shop. That was all Ken needed, now would come the fun part.
"Ama Yuki." Ken stated evenly, a confident smile on his face. It wasn't a question, he already knew who she was. It was an acknowledgment that would hopefully remove any thoughts this girl had of talking her way out of the situation. Ken was here to arrest her, and she would either come quietly or by force. "Would you please come with me?"
The girl's grin didn't falter. If anything it grew wider. "Oh no," she cooed innocently, "Am I under arrest?" Behind her the shopkeeper shook his head furiously at Ken, as if warning him to back off.
Ken stood his ground. "I'm just going to have to take you back to Sunagakure to answer some questions." This seemed to faze the girl. The smile melted from her face and she grew pensive.
"Suna..." The girl whispered to herself, and for a moment Ken wondered if she really would come quietly. His hopes were dashed when Yuki met his eyes with a glare. "Sorry, shinobi, but I'm quite fond of where I am at the moment." She clapped her hands together, and the distraught shopkeeper cried out in anguish and threw himself to the floor. Ken only had a moment to wonder what exactly was happening before his entire world flipped into a colorful maelstrom of pain.
A shattering explosion rocked the shop, filling Ken's ears with a deafening thunder and tossing him out into the street. It took a few seconds for the boy to return to his senses, but when he did his vision was hazy and there was an intense ringing in his ears that drowned out the muffled sounds around him. He could barely form a coherent sentence in his head, but as he saw a flash of red flutter passed his vision he realized that he had to pursue his target. Stumbling to his feet, Ken took off after the girl, following the path of knocked over shoppers and complaining voices she left in her wake. For a moment he was worried he lost her, but then in the corner of his eyes he saw the red flash of her hair as she scrambled onto a roof. With a set of leaps, Ken made his own way onto the rooftops. He was still quite unsteady from the explosion, so upon reaching the roof he stumbled and fell to a knee. Lucky for him at that moment Yuki had decided to send another present his way. A small clay squirrel hopped over his head, passing through the area his face had been just a second prior. The clay creature fell through the air for a few seconds, before distorting the air around it with an explosion. Unharmed, Ken looked ahead to see his target, Ama Yuki, molding another creature out of clay.
The last thing Ken wanted was to be on the receiving end of another explosion, so he rushed forward and began gathering non-elemental chakra. He was preparing for a body switch technique. The girl released her clay creation, a fluttering dove, and the creature headed straight for Ken. Just as the bird struck Ken activated the jutsu, and in his place stood a log of wood. The explosion sent splinters and sawdust flying, and in the confusion Ken chose this moment to strike. He leaped forward with a kick to the unsuspecting girl's gut, knocking the wind out of her and following up with a spinning back kick aimed to her head. She was able to recover in time to avoid the second blow, and clapped her hands together to begin generating chakra. Rather than activate a jutsu, however, the girl's hands began to fill with a lump of explosive clay. She was creating the bombs herself. Not wanting to give the girl time mold this bomb, Ken went back on the offensive. Yuki continued to drop back, staying out of range of Ken's strikes as she refined her clay into another creature. As she reared back to throw her finished creation, Ken finally caught her with sweeping kick to her legs. She tripped over, thrown bomb sailing over her target and exploding harmlessly a few yards away.
The girl tried to scramble back to her feet, but Ken pitched forward and tackled her back to the ground. After a few seconds of violent scuffling he had her prone with her hands wrenched behind her back. The two children were breathing heavily, Ken leaning heavily on the girl's arms in an attempt to restrain her while still getting some rest. He bound Yuki's wrists together, being sure to keep her hands in a position that made forming handseals or molding clay impossible. As he did so he noticed the strange mouths present on each of her hands. Not wanting to take any chances, he gagged the mouths with cloth and tape, hoping that would be enough to keep things safe. With that, he hiked the girl up to her feet and led her, fuming, off the roof to the city's exit. Ken gave one final look to Soon's Haven as the pair left its majestic walls, promising that he would one day be back.
[topic left]
Personal errands fulfilled, Ken made his way to the bazaar. Reports accused his target, "Ama Yuki," of extorting shopkeepers under the guise of a Sunan shinobi. Ken decided that it would probably be wise not to let people know that he himself was acting under the authority of Sunagakure, or else they may mistrust him because of this thief's actions. Instead he asked around at the shops in the middle class sections of the bazaar, inquiring about a "young, red-haired shinobi girl." Most of the shopkeepers recognized the description, though it was difficult to pin down a pattern that could help Ken find the girl. Eventually, however, he had a stroke of luck. A shop he visited claimed to have just been shaken down by the ruffian. The shopkeeper told Ken that the girl threatened to destroy their livelihoods if they didn't giver her what was in the register, and helpfully pointed out the direction she disappeared too afterward. Thanking the shopkeeper, Ken rushed off in pursuit. It wasn't too difficult to find the girl with the shopkeeper's directions, Ken glimpsed her mane of bright red hair as she slipped into a shop a few buildings down the street. Rather than enter the shop immediately, Ken sidled up to it and listened intently, trying to hear what was going on inside. "...can be a very dangerous place, sir." It was a female's voice, light and almost friendly, but there was a very sinister edge to it.
"Lady, please, I don't want any trouble..." a man's voice pleaded in response. That must have been the shopkeeper. This was sounding an awful lot like a shakedown, but Ken continued to listen. He didn't want to jump in prematurely. The scared voice continued, "Here, please take it. This is all I can spare, business is slow, and -"
The voice was interrupted by the girl's. "Ssssshhhhh... Now, now. You know that isn't good enough. Don't you want to be on Sunagakure's good side? How can I guarantee your safety if you can't even pony up what I ask?" Ken had heard enough. The boy entered the building and surveyed the scene. The shopkeeper behind the counter looked up wide-eyed at the newcomer, but what Ken was interested in was the girl. She was an inch or two taller thank Ken, and she leaned on the counter with a posture that almost suggested she was bored. She hardly payed attention to Ken's arrival, merely glancing at him and then speaking to him in a dismissive tone. "Shops closed down for... renovations." she said with a devious grin. This was Ken's target alright. She fit the profile, and she was certainly robbing this shop. That was all Ken needed, now would come the fun part.
"Ama Yuki." Ken stated evenly, a confident smile on his face. It wasn't a question, he already knew who she was. It was an acknowledgment that would hopefully remove any thoughts this girl had of talking her way out of the situation. Ken was here to arrest her, and she would either come quietly or by force. "Would you please come with me?"
The girl's grin didn't falter. If anything it grew wider. "Oh no," she cooed innocently, "Am I under arrest?" Behind her the shopkeeper shook his head furiously at Ken, as if warning him to back off.
Ken stood his ground. "I'm just going to have to take you back to Sunagakure to answer some questions." This seemed to faze the girl. The smile melted from her face and she grew pensive.
"Suna..." The girl whispered to herself, and for a moment Ken wondered if she really would come quietly. His hopes were dashed when Yuki met his eyes with a glare. "Sorry, shinobi, but I'm quite fond of where I am at the moment." She clapped her hands together, and the distraught shopkeeper cried out in anguish and threw himself to the floor. Ken only had a moment to wonder what exactly was happening before his entire world flipped into a colorful maelstrom of pain.
A shattering explosion rocked the shop, filling Ken's ears with a deafening thunder and tossing him out into the street. It took a few seconds for the boy to return to his senses, but when he did his vision was hazy and there was an intense ringing in his ears that drowned out the muffled sounds around him. He could barely form a coherent sentence in his head, but as he saw a flash of red flutter passed his vision he realized that he had to pursue his target. Stumbling to his feet, Ken took off after the girl, following the path of knocked over shoppers and complaining voices she left in her wake. For a moment he was worried he lost her, but then in the corner of his eyes he saw the red flash of her hair as she scrambled onto a roof. With a set of leaps, Ken made his own way onto the rooftops. He was still quite unsteady from the explosion, so upon reaching the roof he stumbled and fell to a knee. Lucky for him at that moment Yuki had decided to send another present his way. A small clay squirrel hopped over his head, passing through the area his face had been just a second prior. The clay creature fell through the air for a few seconds, before distorting the air around it with an explosion. Unharmed, Ken looked ahead to see his target, Ama Yuki, molding another creature out of clay.
The last thing Ken wanted was to be on the receiving end of another explosion, so he rushed forward and began gathering non-elemental chakra. He was preparing for a body switch technique. The girl released her clay creation, a fluttering dove, and the creature headed straight for Ken. Just as the bird struck Ken activated the jutsu, and in his place stood a log of wood. The explosion sent splinters and sawdust flying, and in the confusion Ken chose this moment to strike. He leaped forward with a kick to the unsuspecting girl's gut, knocking the wind out of her and following up with a spinning back kick aimed to her head. She was able to recover in time to avoid the second blow, and clapped her hands together to begin generating chakra. Rather than activate a jutsu, however, the girl's hands began to fill with a lump of explosive clay. She was creating the bombs herself. Not wanting to give the girl time mold this bomb, Ken went back on the offensive. Yuki continued to drop back, staying out of range of Ken's strikes as she refined her clay into another creature. As she reared back to throw her finished creation, Ken finally caught her with sweeping kick to her legs. She tripped over, thrown bomb sailing over her target and exploding harmlessly a few yards away.
The girl tried to scramble back to her feet, but Ken pitched forward and tackled her back to the ground. After a few seconds of violent scuffling he had her prone with her hands wrenched behind her back. The two children were breathing heavily, Ken leaning heavily on the girl's arms in an attempt to restrain her while still getting some rest. He bound Yuki's wrists together, being sure to keep her hands in a position that made forming handseals or molding clay impossible. As he did so he noticed the strange mouths present on each of her hands. Not wanting to take any chances, he gagged the mouths with cloth and tape, hoping that would be enough to keep things safe. With that, he hiked the girl up to her feet and led her, fuming, off the roof to the city's exit. Ken gave one final look to Soon's Haven as the pair left its majestic walls, promising that he would one day be back.
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