Downtime and Recovery

[Takahashi Aki]

Follow up/aftermath to this mission thread

It had been two days since the blow up in the desert. Another slave trade raid, and another cut in the death of a thousand cuts aimed to dismantle the Daimyo's empire. Unfortunately in contrast to Sousuke's prior attacks, this one he could not clean up properly. He wasn't in a position to do so because what the Daimyo had delivering to Sora was something that took considerable resources of his own to best his foe. Sousuke wondered if the Daimyo was fully aware of what he was dealing with and the problems it was to bring. Was the Daimyo running low on Ancients? Was he starting to tap into more dangerous forces to empower his soldiers? Difficult to tell as Sousuke lacked data.

Sousuke awoke in the hospital. It wasn't his favourite plate to wake up in, but he was certainly not in the best of health. Unlike other times he woke in the hospital he was not strapped down to the bed to locked up. He blinked several times when his eyes adjusted to the light. He remembered entering the hospital and the bloody mess he was in. His body had a way of telling him enough was enough. This was one of them. What time was it anyway? His eyes looked about for something to tell the time. Whoever had put him in this room had done so with an intent. Perhaps it was his grandmother's doing? Removing the clock from the room? Sousuke would sigh he thought about it more and more.

 

[Tomomi]

It was another wonderful day in the Hidden Sand Village as the sun was already high in the air and the children were out playing. I already had made my way to the Hospital however and the nurses and medical trainees had ran up to tell me that Sousuke, our Kazekage, had been admitted yesterday in a bloody mess to put it mildly. Apparently, the Kazekage had been in the Desert Expanse and had been carried in yesterday by a mysterious individual or group of individuals who nobody in the Hospital managed to catch their names nor really see. They had apparently been almost like shadows or ghosts as a stray medic or two had saw them but didn't think to ask who they were or why they had an unconscious body with them. Thankfully though, someone had moved him to a room and managed to connect him to the necessary machines for him to remain alive, but he was beyond battered and bruised.

As I walked into Sousuke's room, I was holding his detached arm in my one hand before placing it on a table beside his bed and putting my hands on my hips. It was then that I began to speak to him and it truthfully sounded like scorning, but Sousuke knew better than to get himself into a dangerous situation like this. The exact words that I said were something along the lines of this: "Lord Kazekage, what did you get yourself into this time? We have a nice pleasant meal in my home and you pay me back by getting yourself injured. I mean you're bloodied and your metallic arm seems like it was torn from your body. Thankfully, someone brought you in yesterday and knew basic medical procedures to keep you alive, but I am going to have to do further exams and evaluations on you."

It was then that I realized that Sousuke likely was looking at me crazy considering I looked nothing like I did the prior two times that we managed to end up in the same location. It was at this point that my hands would leave my hips as one went to my forehead and I shook my head before emitting a small, little laugh before looking back at him. When my little laughing moment resided, I would speak once more: "Oh, that's right. I forgot that you probably don't know who I am due to my appearance. Sousuke, I am Byakko Kyuji and due to circumstances that I am not entirely sure about, I am a woman now. See, I got myself into a sticky situation in the Red Light District and had to fight the current Toraono Clan head which ended badly for me. I was knocked out and bloodied pretty badly like yourself, but after that, I have no idea what happened until I woke up in my estate in this new body."

After I spoke, I would to hear what Lord Kazekage had to say in return. This time, however, he was in my area of expertise and where I felt the most comfortable excluding my estate. There was likely a lot that we would be discussing between ourselves.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke stared at the ceiling. He wondered if his legs were badly damaged. He pulled on the bed sheets and looked down to seeing his feet. Yes. They were there, but there was a large hole in his foot. Thankfully the area beneath his knees were mechanical now. Sousuke had an easier time fixing his legs than his actual flesh and blood body. He looked over to his left and noticed severe lacerations on his body. Most of them were stitched up or bandaged heavily. He wondered exactly how did the body negotiate the damage done by a combined being of himself, his companion Ken, and his blades. Ken would patch up easily enough in the land of the summons, but summoning contracts had a very different rule set to abide by compared to what humans had to contend with. An individual would enter the room, and he could not identify them. It was frustrating, considering Sousuke knew everyone in the village. He knew everyone as it was his job to know his people. The person spoke to him in a manner that seemed confusing. This lady knew him, but he did not know her. Did he hit his own head? Possible. Entirely possible. He blinked several times. His eyes shifted over to the ceiling once more as he considered it. The person had a noble mannerism about them and seemingly a motherly quality? Lady Azame? No. impossible. Sousuke would again blink and look over to the woman once more. It would seem his confusion was evident as the woman would go to explain that this was Kyuji. Sousuke's eyes would widen for a moment. Okay. People changing genders... or bodies. He wasn't sure what it was but he listened more. Okay. He fought a Toraono clan member. Lost. He then woke up in his household with a new body. His? Her? Which was it.

"An idle leader does not command the respect of his people."<i></i> He stated first and foremost. "The Daimyo was transporting slaves and something more nefarious. Better to deal with it now rather than later. Slavery has reared its ugly head in this country and has become a disease. I fear it may have become malignant."<i></i> Few people knew of this, considering it was a very dirty thing. "In the land of Inferno everything burns, and that included the concept of logic. Even the devil sometimes must do battle with another devil."<i></i> Curiously Sousuke seemed to be talking philophically which was a very rare thing considering he was a man of cold hard logic. Sousuke carefully would move his flesh arm out to look at it. The flesh was knitted back together and looked as if something in the past had been jammed in or something had in fact come out of his forearm. His eyes played a trick on him, and for a flickering moment he saw the wrist blade that crackled with plasma chakra. His flesh was not his own, it was that of the entity he dubbed Kensuke. "In the land of Inferno everything burns. Including me. The land is cursed. The very air you breath is a poisonous fume."<i></i> He repeated again this time adding more to the phrase. It also seemed as if a poetic quality was present in his words. The area known as 'Inferno' was a place deep in the Desert Expanse. It was the hottest place of the desert and was home to creatures of ill repute, demons for the most part. Sousuke blinked again. He shook his head. "Thank-you for clarifying your situation. For a moment I had considered that I had suffered head trauma. I wouldn't be surprised if I did."<i></i>

 

[Tomomi]

As I stood there waiting for a response, I gave a smile to our former Kazekage as he lied in his bed and began to go on a tangent about the land of Inferno. Of course, I had no idea what he was talking about and I thought initially that he was hallucinating or under some strong substance, but upon further examining he seemed to be his "normal" self. He would go on about the Daimyo as he did before when we had our dinner together and I believe that he mentioned the issue of slavery in our country which was still quite alarming, but something that we unfortunately had to deal with on a daily basis while we had the Daimyo in his position and allowed him to have his army building in Sora or so that was what we thought for the longest time. In all honesty, it was partially my fault that the issues in our country, and Sora in particular, had been building up more and more as I never could reach an agreement with Brother Kuro nor Cousin Akkuma in the past. It was also unlikely that anything would happen right now with our respective families due to events that occurred in the past that seemed unjust and simply made my life a true living Hell as long as Toraono Kuro and Miroku Akkuma lived. But, there was a time and place for everything and letting my anger and frustrations out on our former Kazekage and my patient would not make me look good as the highest ranking official in the Medical Branch at this time. If the subject matter would shift to a more personal aspect, then maybe I would bother him with it, but neither him or I needed to deal with it right now.

Instead, I would take a seat placing my hand on his shoulder as I closed my eyes and emitted a small, but gentle hum. It had no true intention behind it, but it allowed both of us a moment to gather our thoughts and keep our emotions in check before we did something that we would likely forget. After it concluded, I would look at Sousuke and simply address him sternly in the following way: "Lord Kazekage, I understand that you are concerned about slavery in our country. Your concern is the same as me when someone asks me about the corruption of the Daimyo or merely the garbage that is occurring in the Red Light District. However, you have to give me a more detailed and straightforward explanation as I was not out there with you. What is this about the Devil and the Inferno?" It was honestly not asking for too much from our former Kazekage as he had a tendency to think of things analytically which had caused its own issues in the past, but this more philosophical side of him was even more baffling than the original man that I knew. It was quite possible that he had received a hard reality check or even seen life flash before his very eyes like I had seen numerous times over my life span thus far. But, those were only assumptions that I felt were possible and the truth would hopefully be revealed by the end of our nice, pleasant conversation.

However before he could even respond to me, I would allow myself a moment to breath and calm myself as I had likely come off as rude when I initially responded to him which was not my intention at all. So, I would continue mere moments later and it was more relaxed, calm, and showed my true caring nature that many had not been seeing in recent times due to everything that had transpired in my life. I would speak the following: "I am honestly glad that you survived whatever happened out there and your heart is truly in the right place. But as your Medical Chief, I am ordering you for the foreseeable future to rest and regain your strength. You must take it easy and allow your body to naturally heal as there is only so much that the medical arts can do and I am not about to put your life into dangerous by doing some procedures. Please allow our new Kazekage to handle matters for now until you are cleared for physical activities again by me as he knows what he is doing or you wouldn't have resigned to allow him to take the position in the first place."

I wanted to say more to him before he responded, but unfortunately a nurse would bang on his door asking for me. Of course, I couldn't say no to someone who worked in the Hospital and directly reported to me. I would nod at her to acknowledge that I heard her before turning back to my patient and saying: "One moment please, Sousuke." It was then that I rose from my position and closed his door on my way out as the nurse summoned me to their nurses' station where others were standing and waiting on me. They would give me the detailed rundown of exactly what happened from when Sousuke came into the Hospital to moments before I walked into his room and began talking to him. The subject matter left nothing to the imagination as the nurses took turns explaining what the other medics had done thus far to keep him stabilized and alive along with offering suggestions on what to do moving forward. All their ideas, suggestions, and comments were heard and taken into strong consideration, but I would tell them all that I needed to think about it considering he was not in critical condition and that allowed us more options than if he was.

As soon as our "meeting" reached its conclusion, I would return immediately back into the former Kazekage's room and sit down beside him again after closing the door behind me. It was then that I simply spoke with a warm, welcoming smile on my face: "Sorry about that, the nurses were informing me what they did since you arrived last night to give me a better idea of what we can and should do to have you back to one hundred percent before too long. But, it isn't anything that needs to be done immediately so we can talk some more."

[MFT: 1068]

 

[Takahashi Aki]

"It's hard trying to fix things inside while the outside wastes away. We need to deal with both. Slavery was something abolished after the war with the Ancients, the notion that it has returned in a deep and rotting disease in this country."<i></i> He paused for a moment. He was trying to think of the best way to explain this to someone who prayed to Byakko. "Inferno is a place in Wind country, deep deep in the interior and it is known to be one of the hottest of areas. It is spoken of in whispers and children's stories, but I assure you it exists as I have been there multiple times."<i></i> Sousuke approached the subject of Inferno broadly. "Fire will burn there constantly without proper logical reason or fact. The sands are stained black and some areas it is purest glass. Nothing grows there that is wholesome. It is the home of demons, fiend or monsters. Take your pick of what word to use, both are equally correct. Sometimes I will call for a communication blackout or travel blackout in the area when I work there. Travelers avoid the area because they know what dwells there, and sometimes areas are marked with the skulls of monsters to signal it is a place of danger. Totems are ... yes totems are markers out there because the common language is not absolute."<i></i> Sousuke was fluent in common, Runic Terran, but he also knew sign language, braille, and primal markings. "Many tales of antiquity take place in Inferno, most children stories used to teach morals."<i></i> Now came the hard part. Explaining who the devil was. The nature of the devil was something outside of logic. Why Sousuke's mind locked onto the word devil? He did not know. "To be honest, my brain right now is locked onto this word devil. I am most certain that I did not fight a devil, however, I will explain it as best I can."<i></i> Sousuke opened his mouth so as to describe this creature he fought, but words did not come out. It was odd. He knew what he saw and was trying to figure out how to explain it, but the words would not come out.

"Strange."<i></i> He spoke as he turned to his bedside. He was looking for a pen. "I can't speak of it, but let's try writing about it, or drawing it. Drawing it would be best."<i></i> Sousuke would conjure a sheet of paper and acquire a pen. He would draw a monstrous humanoid shape which had maws upon maws. Sousuke was speed drawing and what he drew seemed to be something from a child's nightmare. Maws upon maws and words of doubt and angst coming out of those mouths. Sousuke drew multiple arms and claws, and fangs. When he was done he handed it to Kyuji. "The Daimyo was transporting a large cube with an armed escort. I took out the guards and the cube broke apart. There were three cubes, two smaller ones which housed children ... who were human and some were bestial in nature. The larger box housed this devil, and it awoke and began to drain the souls of those I had bested."<i></i> What he was describing was sounding like an Ancient, but the appearance Sousuke drew was that of a monster. "I had to put some distance between it and the captured slaves, so I drove it into Inferno. In Inferno I became ... one with a summoning contract and my weaponry."<i></i> He began to draw the picture of that. What Kyuji would see was a metallic entity that was insect like, with antlers, and wrist. The wrist blades corresponded with one of Sousuke's injuries as it looked like something had come out of his arms.

Next Sousuke was berated by Kyuji about how he needed rest and he had to recover. Sousuke's head rolled back onto the pillow. "Lord Katuso will have enough on his plate. He needs people to take the fight to the Daimyo. It's not only that but ... I have to prove Michi wrong. I ... have to prove her wrong and that the information we've been provided is not being wasted. I have to prove Kaito wrong, and that ... Sungakure is doing the right thing and that..."<i></i> Sousuke would stop suddenly as his hands would carefully form fists. Kyuji would perhaps know Kaito as being the leader of the Cabal, and he was a dying man in the hospital who was seeing his final days. Whether or not Kyuji was familiar with his reasons for attacking sand, or anything of that sort was not common knowledge for Sousuke. It seemed like Sousuke was bitter and had something to prove in all of this. Sousuke in between had realized that Kyuji had left him alone for a moment, which is why he stopped before he/she(?) had returned. Sousuke nodded at the apology. "My grandmother has a record for being banned from the hospital. What was her timing this time?"<i></i>

[MFT 800+]

 

[Tomomi]

After I had returned to the bedside of our psuedo-Kazekage, and someone who I believed was a friend, he would ask me about the timing of his grandmother this time. Apparently, she was well-known around this part of the village as she had a record according to her grandson who was sitting in front of me. Now obviously, I could not know every single little thing that occurred in the Hospital since our structure was so vast and had so many different wings that I had to visit on a daily basis. However, I would try to think back to the conversation mere moments prior to returning and tried to remember if anyone mentioned anything in particular about her, but there was nothing that was coming to mind. In the grand scheme of things however, it was not the biggest deal in the world if I didn't have the answer as I shrugged my shoulders at Sousuke and merely said: "I would love to give you an answer to your question about your grandma, but I have no recollection of it as the nurses and other medics that I spoke to were more concerned about you honestly. The only information that I could gather from them was an elder woman brought you into the Hospital and then left without saying any words to them likely due to you being well known in the village. Of course, they did give me many medical reports and evaluations that they performed on you since you were admitted. Everything so far appears to be non-threatening and aside from a body limb being torn off here or there, you only have minor bruises and scrapes on your body. However, you do need to allow them to recover before you decide to get back out there to handle the Inferno and the Devil." It was after speaking this little bit that I would motion to him to give me a second to gather my thoughts and I would also promptly tell him: "Give me a moment to gather my thoughts as there were some things that I would like to say in response to your explanation of Inferno and the Devil."

After I requested a moment or two, my thoughts would begin to wander inside of my mind as I tried to pierce everything together that our psuedo-Kazekage had spoken about and how it related to one another in the grand scheme of this chaos in our country. It was true that this entity that he was proclaiming "the Devil" seemed like one of those Ancient creatures that enjoyed devouring on other human beings, but my knowledge about these interesting oddities was limited since the Oracle's Library was scarce and there was still much about Wind Country that I truthfully did not know even after being here for years. Researching Ancients and possibly seeking the assistance of Brother Kuro about the topic would be likely be my next focus when things simmered down enough for me to dig into them; our research in the Oracle's Library had been neglected in recent times due to me being absent and Brother Kuro dealing with some personal matters as well which I did not know completely. In any case, my mind would go back to his visual representation of the "Devil" that he had saw and it was quite strange to put it mildly, but being in Wind Country, I wasn't entirely surprised at all about it. Though, it truly was disturbing if someone was roaming around and had become loose from its captivity.
What was also interesting was his description of the Inferno which sounded an awful lot like Hell or Damnation, but it was in our country and not below us as the religious texts had mentioned before. Again, it was truly disturbing if this place actually existed. But, I did believe Sousuke as he was not one to lie about things nor sugarcoat them in any way to protect anyone; these were likely all true facts and it was his own first hand account so I had to believe it.

As I left these thoughts linger in my head, I would give a slight bow to the Kazekage before returning my green vixen-like eyes to his face as I spoke: "Right, I am ready to speak once more. Sousuke, I know that my primary function in this village is being the head of the medical branch unless we appoint someone else or elect to have a Sennin for the branch in particular. I also know that it is partially my fault that things have gotten to where they are and I am sorry for that. However, I want to offer my services to you as your teammate and ally against this evil that you are calling the Devil and handle the Inferno. You see you speak of a place through my old faith that we called Hell or Damnation while under the guidance and worship of Lord Byakko, we do not have such a name for a place like that. However, I have dealt with evils like Barynx along with a hybrid creature that took on the form of a carnasaur before. I know true evil as I have also been impacted personally with damned creatures..."

My voice would trail off after that word of creatures as my mind was racing with past events that occurred against our village and also in my old home of Iwagakure. We had dealt with Barynx, zombies, carnasaurs, and the filth of the Red Light District. We had seen many causalities throughout the years through these evils that plagued our land and most of them were simply relics of our past now. However, they all had an impact on everyone that was involved with them as nobody was exactly the same after dealing with them. Personally, I had developed a cold, merciless spree of executions in the Red Light District staining my hands with the very life essence that I would be trying to save in the Hospital or Infirmary. I knew that I wasn't the only one either as Sousuke's demeanor was more cautious and on-edge with each encounter that we had with one enough and he was walking himself right into a grave at this rate if he continued to try to play hero by himself. As for others in the village well there were simply quite a lot of us who had been impacted by these events and they all would leave us broken shells of our former selves in some ways. All of this reflecting did not make me sad or mournful as I thought about it. No, it actually filled me with anger and aggravation that this had been going on for so long and yet, it never truly ended almost like a vicious cycle that did not have the capability of being stopped by pulling the lever.

Unfortunately, my anger would get the better of me as I slammed my fists into my lap as I bite my lower lip and shook my head. If there would have been a table or something right in front of me, it would have been destroyed in my anger. Poor Sousuke had to deal with all of this though as he was stuck in bed as I turned back to him with a cold look in my eyes as I spoke once more. My words were direct and there was nothing happy that one could mention about it. Hell if I was Kazuki, the room likely would've been frozen over from how angry I was. My words that did escape my lips were as followed: ...our village, no, our country has been plagued with these evils for far too long and it is time for people to step up and sacrifice it all for the future of this village. I have died already numerous times since becoming a Sunan shinobi and I am willing to risk my life once again if I know my family, my friends, and the future generations of this village are going to be saved by this cloud of corruption, greed and darkness that continually elope us from above. So, please don't hesitate to ask for my assistance if you need it and I truly do not want anything in return for any assistance that I give. The fact that our home is safe in the end is more than enough for me honestly."

[MFT: 1411 Words]

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Curiously somehow his grandmother did not make a big fuss of the matter. The Steward blinked not once but twice as he turned his head to look at Kyuji again. The medical report sounded about right. At least he was not poisoned or anything of the like. A few scrapes, cuts, and with a little time he could heal up from that. "Loss of limb is nothing new. A sandworm ate my arm the first time. Barnyx ate the same arm a second time. I had my legs crushed when I jumped into the mouth of a sea monster in Soon's and fought that thing to the death."<i></i> He spoke lightly of the matters as if they were nothing much for him. "I think I should count myself lucky, which is an absurd notion, that I did not get burnt to a crisp. That occurred years ago and I had to re grow hair once and was bald for a while. That confused a lot of people and had most of them confused that I was a taller version of my father."<i></i> Sousuke quietly kept to himself as he allowed Kyuji to gather his/her thoughts about the situation that was Inferno and the likes to which the accursed land contained.

Sousuke would look up for a moment and was doing calculations in his mind. He was already trying to configure a new armour, or perhaps upgrades to it. A small plasma structure would seemingly float in the air and he was constructing it with his mind. His eyes went wide and focused intently on the object he was working on. The antlers on the armour were twisting and turning as he was making the upgrades in his mind. The image swung around as Sousuke was adding new things to it, like a clawed forearm of sorts to it. The little image swirled about and then zoomed in as Sousuke was focusing on new weaponry he was adding. The image would soon enough phase out and perish when he was being spoken to once more. "It's not your fault."<i></i> Sousuke declared when Kyuji tried to take blame for things that was occurring. "Evil and ill intent these are a disease that must be purged and surgically sliced out before it becomes malignant. It is like the common cold in other ways, it will occur without warning and will wear an individual down for a time, and it will slip away. There is ... and always will be something that lurks at the fringes awaiting to creep in."<i></i> Sousuke spoke again oddly showing a strange affinity for metaphor. It was always said that humans did not use the full potential of their brain, perhaps Sousuke was somehow tapping into it? Perhaps not the full but something most people could not do.

Curiously Kyuji would offer his/her support as a comrade in arms to deal with the upcoming battles. Sousuke was not a person for speeches, but he could indeed show people the threat of things to come. Perhaps showing rather than telling was what was needed to get people into action to finally showing Michi/Fuu and Kaito that they were wrong about Sungakure. Sousuke could watch the person in question become overcome by emotion. Sousuke would stop staring at Kyuji as it was rude. He would look back to the ceiling once more. He swallowed hard. "I cannot say I have died or become a revenant. I have been told that things are not quite right with my spiritual self. I'm not sure if that counts as death, but I carry the soul of Lady Azame's stillborn child as my birth was ... complicated. I've never really worked out the full details of it. I've not really spoken about this to several people. It's made me wonder who I truly am."<i></i> He blinked slowly once again. He considered it for a long time. The help of another. All he needed to do was ask for it. "I'll take it into consideration ... "<i></i> He paused for a moment and his eyes narrowed. He considered it. "I will indeed ask for your assistance."<i></i> He spoke a second time, this time taking it fully in. This was not something one could say no to.

[mft 300+]

 

[Sand Council]

ATTENTION​

</B>

This thread has been selected as a Random Chance Encounter (RCE)​

What is a RCE? It is an event that happens based on random chance (literally every piece of it is rolled for based on a few different catagories). This event is meant to provide a fun and random opportunity for our players to explore at their discretion. The RCEs could incorporate scenarios that range from random beasts of the country to plotlines that incorporate aspects of the current village plot or future plots.

How does it work? You either accept or decline. If accepted, the moderator will post the start of this new side quest and it will be up to you, the participants involved, to either complete the assigned task or objective. These are not simple hack-slash events, you may be tasked with an objective(s) to complete to pass. You will need to meet the rank requirement of your RCE's solo/group modded mission equivalent.

What do I get? This can serve as mission level rewards and will work in the capacity of your "Event Thread". Aside from the points/yen, you gain the opportunity to incorporate quest items and/or expanded knowledge to your characters story. Again, these RCEs could include your involvement with people, places or things related to the current village plot (in this case The Sovereign Arc) while not necessarily having you interact with a primary member of the story. Again, this is similar to a side quest in the video/PC game world.
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The Event: Hunted - Player is Hunted
Rank: S Rank
Requirements: Player randomly selected in the thread will be hunted by Event NPC(s). In order to succeed the player must "evade" capture through a series of rolled checks, that factor in players dodge, stealth, awareness and a special secondary known as "luck" and meet the S Rank mission word requirement. Additional Players in the thread can assist by distracting and the hunted player can use various means to increase their evasiveness (be creative). The object of the game is for the hunted player to not directly fight the target, it is to "evade" or essentially "run out the clock".
NPC Post Count: 3-6 posts, and then they will transition out of the post or be defeated. This is not intended to be a long term event and should resolve quickly.

<B>

Do you accept? Please provide a yes or no to me via PM within the next 72 hours!​

 

[Tomomi]

Takahashi Sousuke, the Ninth Kazekage of the Hidden Sand and my friend, was certainly a peculiar individual in his actions and words. The man typically never could understand the human emotions or quite grasp what people were stating due to his possible upbringing or simple because he had been knocked in the head one few many times. However, it also appeared that his common sense and logical, rational thinking were also lacking as he spoke to me like losing limbs was not something out of the ordinary for humanity at all especially the same limb multiple times. But if anything, this gave me an idea of why he was becoming more and more robotic in his body's motions since he continually was losing his given limbs and trading them for new prosthetic ones that were probably far superior in every aspect; I should know since one was made for my right arm when I was still in my male body, but I elected to barely wear it for various reasons that did not need to be disclosed for now. His discussion on his limbs would be entertained by me with a simple smile and nod as he addressed them, but it was a topic that we could address at a later date and his lack of being cautious and risking his life like it meant nothing even if he wasn't the official leader of our village anymore.

Our meeting would continue nonetheless after our glorious Kazekage had to take a moment to play with himself in his bed by using some of his chakra, I assume, in designing something that appeared to be a helmet of sorts that had antlers included in it. It truly felt like it was a little excessive to me, but I would allow this since he was a special individual and he knew how much his body could handle versus what the medics did since he was still alive today likely through a miracle considering his legs were crushed and he had his arm ripped off twice. His durable was certainly through the roof and he was entertaining my words and would stop only when I also stopped to simple try to calm me down by stating that it wasn't my fault and that evil and ill intent were like a cold which was an interesting metaphor to use for it. It was not necessarily the best one, but I understand where he was trying to come from which I would acknowledge with a simple nod as he seemed to be ready to continue to address me.

And as I expected, he would continue stating that he never died or became a revenant, but did carry the soul of Lady Azame's stillborn child inside of him which wasn't exactly the same thing as having your soul taken from your body and put into another more feminine one or being killed numerous times from one particular person in this village who you trained and loved. But, it was close enough for them to be on the same page at the very least. Then, the big decision came which was Sousuke taking my proposed assistance to him into consider as our lands continued to be plagued with corruption, death, and chaos. Surprisingly to me, he would get back to me only a few short moments later with his response and he absolutely accepted it with really no second thought about it which made me so happy as I smiled at him and bowed in my seat beside him simply saying: "Thank you, Sousuke. I promise that I won't let you down in your decision."

It would be after a few moments that I would bring myself back upright looking at him still with a smile on my face as I was so happy that Sousuke accepted my assistance. I certainly did not know what this would bring forth in the coming weeks, months, or years, but I would be ready and die by my sword if I needed to. At the very least if I did die and could not come back, I know that I was doing what was best for my village and my family which was protecting them with my lives. Yes, this was good for me and everyone in the village, but I needed to say some more to dearest Sousuke about it before he rested (if he had to do that) or the nurses and other medics intervened for various reasons.

And so I would speak directly to him looking him in his eyes if he cared to look: "When all is said and done, you are free to come to my estate again and have another wonderful dinner with me. You can even bring your pet again if you want to as she was a good girl last time and you are both always welcomed to visit us if you need something or just simple want to chat. But for now, we need to focus on a game plan for the future since our diseases that plague our lands will not be going away anytime soon. It will be better to handle them swiftly and carefully before we can kick back and enjoy the simple things in life like socials, dinners, love and so forth. So, I ask you, Sousuke...who else has pledged their allegiance to you and the Hidden Sand out loud?"

---

OOC:

• MFT: 902 Words

 

[Takahashi Aki]

(I'm going to assume the RCE is a no go, so we'll go along here)

The Steward remained his usually calm and cool collected self in all of this. Takahashi Sousuke was a man who knew extremes all too well. He did not know the concept of anything being just right or in the middle. It was very difficult to say the least. Did Kyuji know what he/she was truly getting into when it came to dealing with the truly radical and bizarre world that Sousuke lived and contended with? There would always be some secrets that would remain with Sousuke. This was a man who had for the better part of his entire life had been dealt a horrible hand. Born with a fragmented soul, and in part given a Toraono one. Sousuke had been challenged his entire life with social illnesses and mental disabilities. The notion of a genius was something Sousuke abhorred. A genius was an individual who was extraordinarily talented in one ability but found themselves severely lacking in others. This was one of the many complications Sousuke had to contend with. Curiously Sousuke for all his mental and scientific prowess, the man was oddly enough a faithful in the church of Mother Suna. He kept to himself and a few others that the true fact was that their founding myth being that Mother Suna was a benevolent and kind being was not so. She saw humans as cattle, and instead of empowering the Sunahoshi she was trying to curse them with mysticism. Perhaps more disturbing was the notion was Sousuke's uncle was a soulless puppet at the back and call of Mother Suna. Katuso had told him to put whatever problems or conflicts in the past with her, and so he did. There was a lingering concern on the edge of the Steward's mind that Mother Suna would someday succeed in her goal to revive her deplorable brothers Fuujin and Homura. The city state of Sungakure would be crushed and lack faith to go on, or so Sousuke theorized. This was not something he could not have happen.

Kyuji would curiously next ask Sousuke who had declared his allegiance to him personally. It was a different sort of question. "Most noble families in Wind Country declared their allegiances to myself. That being said ... spoken words by some individuals seem to lack a particular depth. I suppose though out of all the oaths of allegiance ... yours and Lord Akamichi Nobu have been the most heartfelt? There was a particular resonance to it. "<i></i> Sousuke spoke remembering the way how the large lord had spoken to him. There was something truly inspiring in the way the giant spoke to Sousuke that day. The Steward had become an adult at the time, and lack little experience when it came to dealing with the greater aspects of being the first Steward-Kazekage. Nobu assured him he would be there with him every step of the way.

 

[Tomomi]

As we continued to sit in this room, there would be a general silence for only a few moments between us before the Ninth Kazekage would speak up once again to me. In his response, he would explain to me that numerous noble families had declared their allegiances to him, but only Akimichi Nobu and myself really seemed to speak volumes in a sense when we pledged ours. It was not completely surprising that the noble families would do this since they had a lot to gain and lose depending on the outcome including fame, wealth, and loved ones. Unfortunately, I felt the majority of the noble families were focusing on fame and wealth to throw their hat into the ring, but any support at all had to be appreciated from Sousuke especially since he was so unpredictable in what he was likely going to do.

Regardless as soon as dearest Sousuke would finish speaking, I would allow him a moment before I would speak once more to him. "Akimichi Nobu, you say? That name sounds familiar to me like I was in his estate at one point in the past, but I can't entirely wrap my fingers around it. But, he is an excellent choice if you chose him, Sousuke. As for allegiances, I do not have the official say for the Byakko Clan as the head of the clan is my wife, Byakko Yanashi, but I am positive that she will pledge our clan's allegiance as well to you. That doesn't mean that the rest of the Toraono Clan will do the same, but I see no reason for any of the branches to deny their allegiance to the Ninth Kazekage of the Hidden Sand" I would speak while thinking about the current situation with the Toraono Clan and Brother Kuro who allegedly stepped down from a position of power to allow some new blood to enter and lead the clan even if that individual was not birthed or married into the clan. The specific details had not been finalized to the rest of the clan, but the rumors that were spreading were a certain kitsune ex-priestess had taken over as the head of the clan which was not going to end well if it was absolutely true. Nevertheless, that was an issue that would have to be taken care of down the line if the rumors were true.

In any case, I would pause for a moment before trying to take the conversation down another path while my friend was bedridden. When it was time, I would speak once more: "According to the records that I saw earlier, you will likely be released in the next day or so from here as your injuries are nothing out of the ordinary for yourself to sustain. However, I would still advise resting a little as a weakened commander cannot lead his army effectively if he himself is not taking care of himself. But to plan ahead for us, what will be our first order of business after you are released from this bed, Sousuke?" It was time to see how far ahead the Ninth Kazekage had planned this mission of his and knowing him quite well, he probably already had the next five to ten steps already pre-planned and ready to be executed as soon as he was officially released from the Hospital. Still, I was curious to see what he was cooking up in that mind of his.

---

MFT: 580.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke was given some good news in all of this, that he was going to be released sooner rather than later. His head hit the pillow as he seemed to take that news quite well. At least he would be able to get back on his feet and continue this fight against the damnable industry called slavery. Sousuke hated it, he hated this cancer that permeated the country. Kyuji would ask him what their first order of business would be. He closed his eyes and considered it. There were a number of things. "The Daimyo's fiancée, who is one of the Soon's Merchants ... I have heard through my sources has slave fighting matches. Apparently she enjoys watching ... professionally trained men and women of ... impressive physique to more or less murder amateurs."<i></i> He paused for a moment. The event was going to be in a week's time. He turned his head slightly to Kyuji. "Well."<i></i> He began, "It would be a shame if someone were to ... infiltrate such a thing and then to interfere with the event and put an end to it wouldn't?"<i></i> It Kyuji looked hard enough, there would almost be a grin on Sousuke's face as if to suggest he was going to be the one facilitating this. "I'm sure you know how to throw a few punches, maybe a suplex ... and apparently there is this thing that ... professionals of a fighting profession do that is called a super kick."<i></i> He raised an eyebrow at the notion of a super kick. Why was it called a super kick? "I've been told they fight in a thing called a squared circle ... or a ring. I don't understand that either. A square has four sides, and a ring is a circle. Apparently people bounce off of ropes too and do things called ... clotheslines and then people climb up things and jump off. Moonsaults and frog splashes?"<i></i> It was called a moonsault right? Yeah.

Sousuke fell silent for some time. He blinked several times as he looked at the ceiling and then he would look back at Kyuji. "It sounds very silly, but ... we will be in a position to strike out another root ... root? Staple? Place."<i></i> He made another consideration. "People sometimes wear mask, and the women present wear very form fitting clothing ... it's really quite awkward really, but apparently there is an audience for this sort of thing."<i></i> Again he blinked. "Well, the transformation jutsu will be quite useful. Either way ... would you be interested in participating?"<i></i>

 

[Tomomi]

Closing my eyes, as I typically did when listening to people, the simple nod here and there would be given to our former leader of the village as he began to explain the background of one of the Soon's Merchants, the Daimyo's fiancée, along with his plan to go undercover to try to remove another root in their operations through what appeared to be some form of wrestling. Fortunately for the 9th Kazekage of our village, I had some experience throwing punches, kicks, and suplexes as I was trained in the arts of unarmed combat growing up and I continually improved on it with each passing day. Sure, I was more focused on using my sword nowadays to fight people and eliminate the filth that existed in our village, but I still had some knowledge of what went into these matches that Sousuke was explaining. In all honesty, it sounded like a boring task to have to do and far too simple for the descendant of a legendary celestial beast and the Robokage to handle, but if it needed to be done, it needed to be done.

Of course, I would notice the grin on my friend's face, when I opened my eyes midway, as he talked as he seemed to actually sound somewhat thrilled about this mission that he was conjuring up in his mind and presenting to me. Nevertheless, I would return this grin with my own as I would give a quick, innocent giggle before cracking my fingers in front of me and simply say: "I'm in, but we will have to be quick about it because I still need to train for the World Martial Arts Tournament since our village nominated me as one of the participants and I certainly do not want to disappoint them." It was after these words that I would put a finger up in front of me momentarily to gather my thoughts and also to let Sousuke know to hold on one moment as I was trying to formulate our best option to capitalize on this opportunity that he presented to me. Of course, I could honestly let him handle the majority of it as his brain was more than capable of doing it. However, it was not good to overuse the 9th Kazekage's gifted mind which is why I asked without a word for a moment.

After this moment or two passed, I would nod to him and explain exactly how I thought we best handled this. "So this fiancée of the Daimyo likes to watch people fight, huh? Let's enter this little game of hers under some form of the Transformation Jutsu since we need to hide our actual appearances especially since we are abnormal compared to the everyday citizen in the village with my ears and eyes and your robotics. I will do some research in the coming days on what is the typical attire of these female combatants so I don't draw attention to myself and then go shopping for this attire in case this woman has some skills that neutralize our chakra circuits and makes any form of Transformation a moot point. I can handle my own without Transformation or chakra as I grew up focusing on physical combat in the Earth Country" I would explain to him as I would cross my arms during my explanation of what I believed to be the best choice.

However, there was so much more that I wanted to know and a favor that I wanted to ask of him as well before we continued any further so after another pause, I would begin again: "So what should my name be if they do announcing at this event and do you have any preference to what I wear as I am sure that this attracts many individuals with their hormones out of balance especially since you said that the women wear very well form fitting clothing. Lastly, I have a favor or request if you may...if this goes well for us, which I am 95% sure it will. Will you put in a good name for me with the 10th Kazekage if I don't get the chance to talk to him before I head off to the tournament? Don't get me wrong, Sousuke, I love being one of the medical chiefs of the village, but I think we may want to consider re-assessing me for another role depending on various factors like my performance with you on this mission and the World Martial Arts Tournament. But first and foremost, let us take care of this problem that we have and then we can discuss and negotiate things from there." After I finished, I would nod at him and await his response.

---

OOC:

• MFT: 792 Words

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke would attempt to turn on his side. He felt pain doing so. He tried to do it one more time. There was the appearance of discomfort on his face, but it did not last long. He would not try to get on his side a third time. He would exhale and he would listen to Kyuji's instructions about his/her own schedule. "It'll be sometime after the World Martial Arts Tournament."<i></i> Sousuke knew that Kyuji would need some down time in order to heal up, which is what he already planned ahead of. With a little bit of effort he did manage to sit up in the bed. He closed one eye for the moment and rubbed his chest with the one had he had left. "I still need to get my own attire set up. It's always been weird when one uses the transform jutsu and becomes something bigger or smaller than one's own natural size. I know it bothers my grandmother when she has access to her hand and arm which she is usually missing. No. Not missing. Lost."<i></i> He corrected himself.

Sousuke went silent for a while as Kyuji asked him the final series question. With his own hand his fingers seemed to run through a series of seals. The metal in the room seemed to twist and transform quite a bit into instruments, which began to play on their own a very strange tune. The music played and played for several minutes. Kyuji could see Sousuke's fingers make strange gestures as he controlled the instruments at will to play this particular strange music. It seemed mechanical in certain parts, but it was catchy. A melody of sounds were produced, but sometimes a horn could be heard. The music would die down and he would look over to Kyuji as if he was looking for some sort of response.

The last of the questions would come, about a good word being put in for him/her. "I'll try to put in a good word for you. Lord Katuso is sometimes hard to ... locate at times. He dislikes paperwork, and he isn't technical with most things like I would be. That being said ... I will try."<i></i> Really, Kyuji was one of the few medical chiefs in the village. He/She had shown the aptitude to do it, and was very consistent about it. Given one of his old medical chiefs ... well, Sousuke was not going to remind himself of her. That woman didn't last long, she evidently got pregnant, and then decided to retire or something of the like. Rumor had it she got herself captured abroad, but he had not heard anything on the matter than it. "Speaking of the Tournament. Do you think I'll be in shape to go to it? Metallic limbs require some time to create as they do not grow on trees."<i></i>

MFT 300+

 

[Tomomi]

Once more, it was my time to be silent as the 9th Kazekage of our glorious village would speak once more after struggling to get on his side and wincing in pain during his attempts. My friend, Sousuke, would mention that this mission that we would be going on would be after the World Martial Arts Tournament which was actually the smart decision. While we could have attempted the mission almost immediately after Sousuke recovered and we had everything to put together for it, the primary focus for many people in the village right now was preparing their voyage to Tea Country to see the three representatives of their village square off against the other representatives from other areas of the world in the hopes that one of them would be crowned the champion of the tournament. Of course, I was going to do my hardest to win the entire tournament, but I also had a secondary reason for going to this foreign lands of Tea which was having the medical meeting with the other medical representatives of Leaf and Cloud in the hopes of trying to strike a deal to prepare ourselves if the world decided to go south quickly in the future. Only time would tell though what the results of the tournament and this meeting would be however, we just would have to wait and see. It also appeared from my friend's words that he was not prepared to do this mission right now so we were both on the same page of waiting and just likely hoping that nothing bad occurred to our country or ourselves before the tournament was over.

Our quality time would continue a few short moments later as the 9th Kazekage would go through some seals causing what appeared to be the metals in the room to be twisted and bent into various forms of instruments that would begin to play a tune for a few minutes. This music was definitely not the worse quality that I ever heard in my life and it truly was catchy in numerous parts. In all honesty, it seemed like a good tune for me to use when entering the stadium grounds at the World Martial Arts Tournament as long as Sousuke was able to conduct it and travel. In his current condition, that seemed a 50-50 chance, but with my prior knowledge of how he operated in this world, he would definitely be making his way to the tournament even if he had to crawl through the hot sands of desert. If he was more human, many of his feats never would happen but he continually gained more and more metal parts which made him actually better suited for more vigorous trying situations. As soon as his conducting finished, he would look over at me and I would give him a simple smile and nod as I approved of his creation.

Once everything in the room settled down and it was quiet once more, our former Kazekage would speak once more mentioning that he would put in a good word for me even though it could be difficult since our 10th Kazekage, Katsuo, and our 9th Kazekage, Sousuke, were not exactly the most similar individuals in the world. In fact, they were almost polar opposites in their approaches to many things or at least that is what I heard. Nevertheless, I would nod at Sousuke and simply say: "I understand and appreciate it, Sousuke." Before I could say anything else, my friend would then ask me if he'd be in shape to go to it considering the ordeal that he had gone through and his current situation. I could've obviously told him that I didn't think that he was going to be ready to do so, but I also knew that he wasn't going to take no as an answer and would still go in any case. However as I thought before, he was not exactly a normal individual in our world and his body likely would be repaired and prepared to go before the tournament would begin. Thus, I would response to him in the following way: "I do think you will be ready to go when it is time. However, you need to take it easy the next few days and allow your body to recover and adjust to the new limbs that will replace your old ones. Our medical staff here will give you the most up-to-date technology that they can that was developed primarily by the Toraono Clan's head doctor, Dr. Daibatsu Toa. He is the same doctor that made me a prosthetic for my right arm that had limited use before I awoke in this female body of mine after trying to stop Aikayume Azusa from harming herself or anyone else."

---

OOC:

• MFT: 801 Words

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke would give Kyuji an odd look as she/he spoke of him replacing limbs. "Oh. My arm. Yes. It's not so much as a replacement, not in the way you would think it be."<i></i> He had lost the same metallic arm a few times. Sousuke had created the same limb again and again. "I suppose the term calibrate would perhaps be the best term to use."<i></i> Sousuke would need to take some time to recover from this incident. He had pushed himself too hard and as a result his body needed the rest and the time to recover. Sousuke's eyes would look over to the ceiling. "I'm familiar Dr. Toa. We've exchanged notes from time to time. He's a very approachable man given his size as most people tend to be intimidated by him. I know he was working on some prosthetics, but I haven't seen much of his work ... which is really ... well I tend to rely on my own tech. "<i></i> The Steward was already planning in his mind what he needed to do and how to prepare another arm. "I suppose me taking it easy for the next few days isn't going to be something overly difficult. Is it? I would need to figure out how to pass time ... without my lab, or without paperwork to do or..."<i></i> At this point Sousuke's face seemed to be quite displeased with such a notion. At this point he closed his eyes, and decided that it was probably best that he take the time to rest. "I'm going to ... try and get some sleep now. If I'm not present in two days, try not to panic, that'll be trying to get my arm calibrated."<i></i> He would open his eye for a singular moment before shutting it promptly. "For real this time, I am going to try and get some sleep."<i></i>

[Topic to be concluded]

 

[Tomomi]

It appeared from the words of the 9th Kazekage that our little chit-chat with one another was reaching its conclusion as he wanted to get some sleep and actually try to take it easy for the next few days as I have "prescribed" to him. This advice was the best thing for him to do since he typically went overboard whenever he got involved in something pertaining to our village which was understandable as I had done the same all those times when I was still in my male body and cleaning the scum from the Red Light District. Still, our bodies were unnatural and we could recover at a quicker pace than the average human, but that did not mean that we should abuse it like we often did.

As his eyes would shut once more, I would nod at him quietly before making my way out of his room shutting the door behind me in the process. This informal and sudden meeting had been productive as we had discussed many things that certainly needed to be touched upon after the recent incidents that had occurred in the village and the future that was in store for us. My primary focus for now would be to train and prepare myself for the World Martial Arts Tournament so I could make the village and my own clan proud of me for my accomplishments in it. However, I would keep Sousuke's plan in the back of my head and touch upon it at a later date when the tournament subsided or I was eliminated from it at the very least. One had to showcase their skills if they were selected by their village for a competition, but the plan for the future was honestly of the utmost importance as well. Hopefully, everything would fall into place before too long but it was time for Sousuke to sleep and for I to go about the rest of my duties in the Hospital as their medical chief.

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OOC:

• Topic left unless stopped.
• MFT: 334 Words