Charolle's Web
Jomei's first mission!
"The client was entirely unreasonable", or so Jomei was warned as he received his task for the day. It was still nine in the morning, and Jomei didn't have a class to occupy his schedule, prompting a chore- a mission to fall into his lap. The client was a sommelier (wine lover) who owned a popular winery in the village; one of two. His name was Kinuye Modegi, and he dressed the part of an uptight aristocrat.
Modegi stood outside of his shop until Jomei arrived around ten. It was a maroon business shaped like a large box that ran two stories tall, and two floors underground. Modegi awaited Jomei with an awkward grin and quickly ushered the boy into his clutches. "Come boy" he ordered, addressing Jomei like the hired worker he was. This was hardly the service for a ninja, but Jomei was used to the abuse. The sommelier walked into his factory with a swanky step and Jomei followed obediently.
The interior of the winery presented a high-shelf persona that was rare around the village. The owner was prudish and his business had a boutique feel with tavern quality beverages and moldy cheese. The shelves were barely stocked. Modegi became nervous as he guided Jomei to the root of his problem, and a thumping sound grew louder with every step.
"What's that noise?" Jomei asked with a lump in his throat. The spiders he was briefed on had weaved a nest right inside of the cellar's entrance, making entry way too dangerous. Modegi reluctantly grabbed a crowbar and dipped the hook over the handle to the cellar doors. In a flash he pulled one door open, revealing a nightmarish den of silvery strands that went on into a candle-lit maze. Jomei trembled, nearly paralyzed by the sight until a gray figure budged in the dusk. In his years of wisdom Modegi hurried to shut the door and snapped Jomei back to reality.
"I'm afraid my prize winning company is going under because of those damn spiders", the somellier spoke with a venomous tone.
Modegi tossed his hook aside and turned his attention to a spray backpack usually worn by ghostbusters and exterminators. He tossed it like a sack of potatoes and continued a rant about how his business was being ruined. Jomei didn't care whether his client was set up or not, or if he actually deserved the infestation for that matter. In fact, Jomei was more or less concerned with the poison he was given and the terrifying spiders he was up against. Modegi continued to rant through the shop about his competitor, leaving Jomei time to inspect his spray tank and a map of the cellar on the wall. The map revealed that a narrow exit was built beneath the winery for the owner to escape in the event that he was trapped or in danger within the cellar. Modegi was sure that the entry would still be safe for Jomei, so he agreed to take on the task. A chime was let out when a customer came into the winery, grabbing the owner's attention as he strolled over with a bottle of white wine in his hands. Ready to get the nonsense over with, Jomei climbed the counter and unpinned the map from it's thumbtacks while the owner was distracted. He took a red pen and circled the access point.
He dropped down a hatch built from mortar and steel, and sported a glow stick which hung around his neck. The air was stale if not rotten, and stunned Jomei until he could adapt to the stench. What an awful first mission, at least he wasn't in a sewer system- but how much better was a spider-infested catacomb?
Every step Jomei took was followed by a swish from the jug of neon green poison on his back. He did worry about the strength and toxicity of the poison, but the label said he'd be safe if he used it properly. The scene was quickly turning into Luigi's Mansion as Jomei stepped lightly through the tunnel, moving stealthily to soften his steps and avoid unwanted attention. Three grenade-like bug bombs were placed in his pouch to destroy the nest, while the spray gun was his defensive measure. In fact, Jomei had yet to take any combat classes, so he wouldn't fare well outside of using the weapons at his disposal.
"Why did I do this?" Jomei fretted, "I hate spiders. I hate a lot of things, but spiders top the list."
Almost around a key bend in the tunnel's path, Jomei heard a distinct squealing noise. It wasn't like the squeal of a pig, it was more like something between a pigs squeal and a bird's squawk. He knew it had to be the spiders. Leaning onto the corner, his face peeked past the edge, revealing a single spider sitting still upon the ground. It was the size of a stray dog, and looked twice as vicious. With his best shinobi pose Jomei leaped out of the shadows and sprayed down the nuisance until it shriveled up like a prune and died. The creature gave a final shriek as the breath left its lung one final time, and Jomei stood there, satisfied with his work. It took too long to kill the spider with his spray gun to take down more than a couple at a time. He'd have to avoid contact until his bombs were planted- if he wanted to get out alive.
The three bombs were given designated spots that guaranteed success; he'd just have to drop them and set the timers for a delayed release so he could return to the surface in time. Even for a ninja in training, this mission was not proving to be an incredibly difficult task. Jomei had planted two of the bombs without a hitch, and left a trail of crumpled up spiders in his wake. His mission was proving to be a cake walk, all until another, more familiar sound entered his ear holes. It was surely the whispers of a man, or so Jomei was sure of.
"No kidding," Jomei whispered; aware that he had stumbled upon a decrepit old man who had taken a residence in the cellar's catacombs. Though he didn't need a name for this tale, the geezer had quite an unforgettable identity and odor- he was a "Spider Man". He was covered with webbing like garments and poured wine onto the floor for the spiders to sip quite strangely. Apparently, the old codger was breeding his own Spider Army so he could eventually overtake the hidden stone village... Listening to the banter from the man's high-pitched voice caused Jomei to let out a regrettable chuckle, which he couldn't cease fast enough! With blistering rage the old man shouted "What? I know I just heard something!"
He instantly riled a searching party and picked up his cane, coming to seek out the intruder. He had never met a visitor since forming his little base, and new the shop owner was too much of a coward to come down himself. "Is that yoooou, Sommelier Modegi?"
Out with the old man came countless arachnid followers, forming the arachnid army he dreamed of. In force, they began to march on Jomei, hunting him down in the darkness. "I know you're there, I can smell you. I can smell your poison."
The old man began to hobble through the catacombs, finding the trail of spider corpses while Jomei hastily ran for his life. The hunt was on and Jomei felt the impending doom that would come if he didn't head for the exit. The little stealth training he received urged Jomei to seek out the shadows and move downwind of the air stream that passed through the tunnels, as minor as it was. The Cave Spiders were proving to be sorry hunters against human prey, and depended upon movement to targets in low-light. Containing his fear, Jomei froze for dear life as countless spiders came and went around him. It would take him longer, but Jomei could plant that bomb if he could get past the old man.
Most shinobi were given dossiers. Jomei was not given a dossier by the academy, but he took an extra one from his father, and took notes in it regularly. In a moment of seclusion from the dangers in the midsts, Jomei found a profile matching the old man he saw previously. Shiko Saigo was a ninja of the village who went insane and supposedly went homeless and died, but of course here he was. He went on the run after selling the few secrets he had been exposed to, and was known for hiding in holes like this, and making plans like his. The whole dead thing must've been someone confusing another bum laying face down in a ditch for Shiko; not that bad of a mix up, really. According to the few notes in his dossier on Shiko Saigo, he never achieved much rank, so in his old age he too was not much of a threat. Approaching him boldly with the last bug bomb held over his shoulder like a baseball before the big pitch, Jomei slung it like a major league pitcher! The bomb whizzed through the catacombs like a home run hit and collided with Shiko's face. The old man collapsed onto his back and light green gas began to fizzle out from the bomb.
"I am not sommelier Modegi" Jomei chimed.
The old man wiggled on the cold hard ground, wheezing as the gas billowed around him. "Then who are you?" he screamed in reply.
"I am Keno Jomei... shinobi of the Hidden Stone." Jomei gave his first big opening announcement, employing kabuki beats and a dramatic camera snap zoom, anime style. "Remember my name!"
The old vagabond squirmed on the ground, scapping up dust that had been settled for ages as he fumbled the ticking bomb in his hands, quite foolishly. The spiders were coming in droves, but ran to their master first, giving Jomei time to make a dash for the main exit; in fact the exit to Modegi's shop was in sight.
"Ohgaaaaaah" The old man screamed as Jomei made his great escape. "Ohgaaaaaaaaaaah my pace maker! This won't be the last you see of me, Jomeiooo!"
With his shoulder leading the charge, young Jomei bursted through the cellar doors and skid across the floor to safety. Sommelier Modegi could still hear the vagabond screaming from within the catacombs, and wasted no time in barring the doors back shut before his only customer heard the ruckus. Three explosive booms were let off that very moment, and whiffs of the green gas spouted up through those barely shut doors.
"My heavens boy, who was that voice coming from? Was there a person in my cellar?" The client was distraught, so say the least.
"That-" a huff, "was-" a puff and a huff, "a spider king building an army in your cellar", Jomei explained.
Once Jomei replied, a bottle of wine smashed to the floor in the distance, and Modegi's customer fainted from fright. A baby spider was clung onto Jomei's leg, still the size of a beach ball. He effortlessly gunned it in the face with a shot of the gas and looked up to Modegi. "Consider your spider problem, exterminated."
And so, that was the conclusion of our tale. The bug bombs had gone off without a hitch, and the next of arachnids was killed in its entirety. Come to find out, the poison wasn't exactly lethal to humans, which Jomei discovered in advance once he read the instructions to using the spray. With his nest destroyed, the vagabond inhabiting the cellar was captured by the shinobi police and thrown behind bars. Technically Jomei wasn't given credit for the arrest as he was just a student and ineligible for the reward, but sommelier Modegi let him go home with a bottle of his finest wine as a token of appreciation.
WC 2015
Mission Complete: Success
Jomei's first mission!
"The client was entirely unreasonable", or so Jomei was warned as he received his task for the day. It was still nine in the morning, and Jomei didn't have a class to occupy his schedule, prompting a chore- a mission to fall into his lap. The client was a sommelier (wine lover) who owned a popular winery in the village; one of two. His name was Kinuye Modegi, and he dressed the part of an uptight aristocrat.
Modegi stood outside of his shop until Jomei arrived around ten. It was a maroon business shaped like a large box that ran two stories tall, and two floors underground. Modegi awaited Jomei with an awkward grin and quickly ushered the boy into his clutches. "Come boy" he ordered, addressing Jomei like the hired worker he was. This was hardly the service for a ninja, but Jomei was used to the abuse. The sommelier walked into his factory with a swanky step and Jomei followed obediently.
The interior of the winery presented a high-shelf persona that was rare around the village. The owner was prudish and his business had a boutique feel with tavern quality beverages and moldy cheese. The shelves were barely stocked. Modegi became nervous as he guided Jomei to the root of his problem, and a thumping sound grew louder with every step.
"What's that noise?" Jomei asked with a lump in his throat. The spiders he was briefed on had weaved a nest right inside of the cellar's entrance, making entry way too dangerous. Modegi reluctantly grabbed a crowbar and dipped the hook over the handle to the cellar doors. In a flash he pulled one door open, revealing a nightmarish den of silvery strands that went on into a candle-lit maze. Jomei trembled, nearly paralyzed by the sight until a gray figure budged in the dusk. In his years of wisdom Modegi hurried to shut the door and snapped Jomei back to reality.
"I'm afraid my prize winning company is going under because of those damn spiders", the somellier spoke with a venomous tone.
Modegi tossed his hook aside and turned his attention to a spray backpack usually worn by ghostbusters and exterminators. He tossed it like a sack of potatoes and continued a rant about how his business was being ruined. Jomei didn't care whether his client was set up or not, or if he actually deserved the infestation for that matter. In fact, Jomei was more or less concerned with the poison he was given and the terrifying spiders he was up against. Modegi continued to rant through the shop about his competitor, leaving Jomei time to inspect his spray tank and a map of the cellar on the wall. The map revealed that a narrow exit was built beneath the winery for the owner to escape in the event that he was trapped or in danger within the cellar. Modegi was sure that the entry would still be safe for Jomei, so he agreed to take on the task. A chime was let out when a customer came into the winery, grabbing the owner's attention as he strolled over with a bottle of white wine in his hands. Ready to get the nonsense over with, Jomei climbed the counter and unpinned the map from it's thumbtacks while the owner was distracted. He took a red pen and circled the access point.
He dropped down a hatch built from mortar and steel, and sported a glow stick which hung around his neck. The air was stale if not rotten, and stunned Jomei until he could adapt to the stench. What an awful first mission, at least he wasn't in a sewer system- but how much better was a spider-infested catacomb?
Every step Jomei took was followed by a swish from the jug of neon green poison on his back. He did worry about the strength and toxicity of the poison, but the label said he'd be safe if he used it properly. The scene was quickly turning into Luigi's Mansion as Jomei stepped lightly through the tunnel, moving stealthily to soften his steps and avoid unwanted attention. Three grenade-like bug bombs were placed in his pouch to destroy the nest, while the spray gun was his defensive measure. In fact, Jomei had yet to take any combat classes, so he wouldn't fare well outside of using the weapons at his disposal.
"Why did I do this?" Jomei fretted, "I hate spiders. I hate a lot of things, but spiders top the list."
Almost around a key bend in the tunnel's path, Jomei heard a distinct squealing noise. It wasn't like the squeal of a pig, it was more like something between a pigs squeal and a bird's squawk. He knew it had to be the spiders. Leaning onto the corner, his face peeked past the edge, revealing a single spider sitting still upon the ground. It was the size of a stray dog, and looked twice as vicious. With his best shinobi pose Jomei leaped out of the shadows and sprayed down the nuisance until it shriveled up like a prune and died. The creature gave a final shriek as the breath left its lung one final time, and Jomei stood there, satisfied with his work. It took too long to kill the spider with his spray gun to take down more than a couple at a time. He'd have to avoid contact until his bombs were planted- if he wanted to get out alive.
The three bombs were given designated spots that guaranteed success; he'd just have to drop them and set the timers for a delayed release so he could return to the surface in time. Even for a ninja in training, this mission was not proving to be an incredibly difficult task. Jomei had planted two of the bombs without a hitch, and left a trail of crumpled up spiders in his wake. His mission was proving to be a cake walk, all until another, more familiar sound entered his ear holes. It was surely the whispers of a man, or so Jomei was sure of.
"No kidding," Jomei whispered; aware that he had stumbled upon a decrepit old man who had taken a residence in the cellar's catacombs. Though he didn't need a name for this tale, the geezer had quite an unforgettable identity and odor- he was a "Spider Man". He was covered with webbing like garments and poured wine onto the floor for the spiders to sip quite strangely. Apparently, the old codger was breeding his own Spider Army so he could eventually overtake the hidden stone village... Listening to the banter from the man's high-pitched voice caused Jomei to let out a regrettable chuckle, which he couldn't cease fast enough! With blistering rage the old man shouted "What? I know I just heard something!"
He instantly riled a searching party and picked up his cane, coming to seek out the intruder. He had never met a visitor since forming his little base, and new the shop owner was too much of a coward to come down himself. "Is that yoooou, Sommelier Modegi?"
Out with the old man came countless arachnid followers, forming the arachnid army he dreamed of. In force, they began to march on Jomei, hunting him down in the darkness. "I know you're there, I can smell you. I can smell your poison."
The old man began to hobble through the catacombs, finding the trail of spider corpses while Jomei hastily ran for his life. The hunt was on and Jomei felt the impending doom that would come if he didn't head for the exit. The little stealth training he received urged Jomei to seek out the shadows and move downwind of the air stream that passed through the tunnels, as minor as it was. The Cave Spiders were proving to be sorry hunters against human prey, and depended upon movement to targets in low-light. Containing his fear, Jomei froze for dear life as countless spiders came and went around him. It would take him longer, but Jomei could plant that bomb if he could get past the old man.
Most shinobi were given dossiers. Jomei was not given a dossier by the academy, but he took an extra one from his father, and took notes in it regularly. In a moment of seclusion from the dangers in the midsts, Jomei found a profile matching the old man he saw previously. Shiko Saigo was a ninja of the village who went insane and supposedly went homeless and died, but of course here he was. He went on the run after selling the few secrets he had been exposed to, and was known for hiding in holes like this, and making plans like his. The whole dead thing must've been someone confusing another bum laying face down in a ditch for Shiko; not that bad of a mix up, really. According to the few notes in his dossier on Shiko Saigo, he never achieved much rank, so in his old age he too was not much of a threat. Approaching him boldly with the last bug bomb held over his shoulder like a baseball before the big pitch, Jomei slung it like a major league pitcher! The bomb whizzed through the catacombs like a home run hit and collided with Shiko's face. The old man collapsed onto his back and light green gas began to fizzle out from the bomb.
"I am not sommelier Modegi" Jomei chimed.
The old man wiggled on the cold hard ground, wheezing as the gas billowed around him. "Then who are you?" he screamed in reply.
"I am Keno Jomei... shinobi of the Hidden Stone." Jomei gave his first big opening announcement, employing kabuki beats and a dramatic camera snap zoom, anime style. "Remember my name!"
The old vagabond squirmed on the ground, scapping up dust that had been settled for ages as he fumbled the ticking bomb in his hands, quite foolishly. The spiders were coming in droves, but ran to their master first, giving Jomei time to make a dash for the main exit; in fact the exit to Modegi's shop was in sight.
"Ohgaaaaaah" The old man screamed as Jomei made his great escape. "Ohgaaaaaaaaaaah my pace maker! This won't be the last you see of me, Jomeiooo!"
With his shoulder leading the charge, young Jomei bursted through the cellar doors and skid across the floor to safety. Sommelier Modegi could still hear the vagabond screaming from within the catacombs, and wasted no time in barring the doors back shut before his only customer heard the ruckus. Three explosive booms were let off that very moment, and whiffs of the green gas spouted up through those barely shut doors.
"My heavens boy, who was that voice coming from? Was there a person in my cellar?" The client was distraught, so say the least.
"That-" a huff, "was-" a puff and a huff, "a spider king building an army in your cellar", Jomei explained.
Once Jomei replied, a bottle of wine smashed to the floor in the distance, and Modegi's customer fainted from fright. A baby spider was clung onto Jomei's leg, still the size of a beach ball. He effortlessly gunned it in the face with a shot of the gas and looked up to Modegi. "Consider your spider problem, exterminated."
And so, that was the conclusion of our tale. The bug bombs had gone off without a hitch, and the next of arachnids was killed in its entirety. Come to find out, the poison wasn't exactly lethal to humans, which Jomei discovered in advance once he read the instructions to using the spray. With his nest destroyed, the vagabond inhabiting the cellar was captured by the shinobi police and thrown behind bars. Technically Jomei wasn't given credit for the arrest as he was just a student and ineligible for the reward, but sommelier Modegi let him go home with a bottle of his finest wine as a token of appreciation.
WC 2015
Mission Complete: Success