[Infernal Prisoner] Gird Her Loins with Strength

[Santaru Rin]

Mission Rank: A-Rank
Team Leader: Tagiushi Moro
Details: Rumor has it that the forge of the gods has been recovered by one of the warring factions. Whether truth or propaganda, this rumor must be punctured before it can grow, and any truth to the matter should revert solely to the hands of Kumogakure no Sato. A briefing will be provided to the mission recipient.

Members Needed: Tagiushi Moro, Kogami Ayumu, Kizoku Shindou
notes: This mission requires IV travel and will occur in Kelmura. Occurs contemporaneously with Masao's mission arc.

Travel to Kelmura was easy, but consumed time. Multiple train stops over nearly a week ate time, but also gave the team a chance to send telegraphs ahead and, when luck struck from the blue, to receive them. The radio equipment Rin supplied was a small, backpack-sized package, but heavy and dense and packed with warnings like "do not tamper with, risk of electrocution" and "do not expose to moisture, risk of electrocution." A few charges of shapeable explosives had found themselves nestled in Moro's supplies, as had a hand of discreet pouches of well-worn coin. A tourist map with certain points marked in blue, with no other notes, was packed away as well.

This is your opportunity to lay out some more plans and make arrangements ICly in advance of your arrival...

 

[Takaki Saeko]

If you don't get this movie reference...​

The duo were exhausted by more than a week of travel to the city, as well as the extensive planning they had engaged in during the ride. Through a series of telegrams back and forth to various deep-cover operatives already stationed in the city, as well as a few to a local travel agency, they had managed to at least secure some lodging in a decent, if somewhat expensive beach-side hotel on the main seaside strip that defined the resort area of Kelmura.

For most citizens of Lightning Country, it was a dream vacation destination that promised pleasantly warm, blue-water beaches with white sand and plenty of exposed skin for every persuasion. Luxury yachts skimmed the waters, hosting 24/7 parties that seemed to never stop, similar to the pulsating, hedonistic heart of the city. But as some already knew, behind all of that glitz and glamour lay a much darker underbelly kept just out of sight of the tourists. From the tangible and ostentatious corruption of the city’s governing body, to the blatant traffic of drugs, contraband, and slaves by organized crime families, to the grinding poverty and constant gang warfare that affected the denizens of the inner city ghettos, the city stank to high heaven once the covers were lifted. Still, they were here not to stop any of this (Kumogakure had learned long ago that shinobi intervention only resulted in the strengthening of the organized crime networks), but to gain a very specific item for the Sennin. One that would determine the success of their future careers.

It was mid-afternoon when Moro and Ayumu now trudged up the stairs leading to the “Grand Hotel Cayman,” a neon-lit edifice that kept its signage illuminated even during the daytime. Just across the nearby road, the beach began, and all signs of the high tourist season were evident. Women zipped by on rollerblades wearing nothing but dental floss to cover themselves, along with (disturbingly) old men doing the same.

Check-in at the lobby was uneventful, and they had gotten their keys, when all of a sudden…

“Yoohoo! Guys!” sounded a female voice from nearby. To their surprise, they were greeted by the tanned and bikini-clad forms of none other than Haruka and Eru! (Eru for some reason was resistant to tanning). “Hey! We thought you’d never show up! Seriously, get changed and let’s hit the damn beach! That's an order!” said Haruka, giggling. The source of her tipsiness was apparent in the large Mai-Tai she held in her hand, complete with goofy straw and umbrellas.

​

“Moro-nii-chan!” yelped Eru, suddenly feeling self-conscious in her two-piece. Her face turned a deep shade of red and she darted behind Haruka, who petted her good-naturedly on the head.

“Anyway, look, we’re actually here as some kind of support for your mission. The Sennin told us all about it. But right now no one in their right mind is gonna look for a certain something, so you might as well enjoy yourselves right now. Seeya out on the water!" said Haruka as she slapped Moro on the back and exited out to the beach.

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

It was a long and tiresome trip, and Ayumu was not feeling like doing a mission by the time they reached Kelmura. Of course, he was still prepared to carry it out, but that didn't mean he was in the mood for it. The trio had met up outside of Kumogakure once all three had left the village, and set out via carriage. A few stops along the way had afforded them opportunities to send telegrams to some operatives within Kelmura and make some arrangements for where they would stay. Considering the trouble they were going through, they at least booked themselves a nice room at a hotel in Kelmura.

Upon reaching Kelmura, Ayumu was having trouble seeing exactly what part of this city was a "shithole" as Rin had described it. It seemed like a tourist hotspot with the warm weather and amazing beaches. Walking through the streets it seemed like at least 30% of the people they passed were inebriated, which equated to a good time for most. It took them a bit of walking, but they soon reached the hotel, towering over them in all its glory. Ayumu looked to his left, across the street to find a sprawling beach and the endless sea, beckoning him to abandon the mission, strip down to his boxers, and run through the sand.

"Wow... So, how important is, er, the target of our mission? Do we really need it? Vacation is sounding real good about now, guys," he muttered, pouting over the fact that they had to work and couldn't truly enjoy the trip. Just then, two women passed on roller blades in bikinis that left little to the imagination. 'Not bad,' Ayumu thought as he turned to head up the steps of the hotel. Unfortunately, he didn't turn fast enough to avoid a glimpse of two elderly men in even more risque outfits than the woman skating by. "I did NOT need to see that," he said, beginning to trudge up the steps while trying to purge the image from his mind.

In the grand lobby, he approached the front desk and went about the process of checking in, giving their names and showing some ID. They each got a key to the room and Ayumu pocketed his before turning to look for the stairs to their floor. Instead, he found himself facing Haruka and Eru in bikinis, which was of course entirely unexpected and took him a moment to get used to. "Whoa..." he uttered quietly as he stared awkwardly for a moment before his brain started working again. "Oh, right, Sei-san said you would be here!" he said, recalling what she had said as he passed through the gates. Of course, this didn't explain why they were in bikinis- not that he minded. He was actually used to Haruka in less than full uniform after she had shown up in class practically in her underwear.

She was suggesting that they head to the beach. Of course he couldn't do it, but every fiber of Ayumu's being wanted to say "HELL YEAH!" He paused for a moment. 'Oh. I said that out loud,' he thought as Eru timidly addressed Moro and hid behind Haruka. Haruka continued on to say their true purpose for being there, but apparently she was quite serious about heading out to the water. Ayumu looked at Shindou and Moro. He knew they had a purpose there, and their mission was important, but perhaps they could relax for the rest of the day and get serious tomorrow.

"Maybe... maybe we could start the search tomorrow? I mean, we're all kinda tired from the trip. And this way, we'll just seem like tourists, you know? Nobody will be suspicious. Besides, how much trouble could we get up to in one night?" he reasoned, trying to get Moro to permit them the time off until the morning. Yes, that all seemed perfectly reasonable in his mind. Assuming Moro agreed, and of course he would, because he was a cool guy, Ayumu would head up to change in to the swimming trunks he brought. Of course, he had only brought them in case he needed them for an aquatic portion of the mission. They were hibiscus print with bright colors, but that was just in case he was caught, so he would be seen as a simple harmless tourist. All changed, he would head out to the beach!

How much trouble could they possibly get up to in one night?

 

[Tagiushi Moro]

The longest portion of their trip had comprised the train ride, and that is when Moro, as squad leader, had done the bulk of his duty. Countless hours, and more than one allnighter: plotting, pouring over maps, meticulous contingency planning, and transmitting back and forth coded missives character by character with the long-range equipment ensured that once the team set foot into Kelmurra, the boulder that was retrieving the forge was already rolling. With the knowledge that two incredibly valuable field agents were already on the ground, and the fact that much more of the legwork than he had first estimated was already taken care of, would hopefully leave the two trainees with quite the pleasant surprise. The squad was insured an entire extra day to relax and prepare for the fury of the plot itself, as things would be happening incredibly quickly when conditions were finally met.

The team was dirty, and more than a little stinky, a stark contrast to the more than a few lovely, scantily clad ladies tauntingly rolling by them on their wheelshoes. The fact that older gentlemen were inclined to do the same only showed the full hedonistic range of the pleasure-city that was Kelmurra. They proceeded up the wide, white staircase into the hotel lobby, the air conditioning washing over Moro was almost as welcome as one of those fruity, 'lava flow' type drinks would have been. Securing the keys to their safe house without a hitch, even making a few bits of polite conversation with the employee at the front desk.

"Wow... So, how important is, er, the target of our mission? Do we really need it? Vacation is sounding real good about now, guys,"

Moro glanced at the trainee sidelong, fixing him with a harsh glare, which over the course of a few seconds slowly spread into his characteristic wolfish grin, but remained silent.

“Hey! We thought you’d never show up! Seriously, get changed and let’s hit the damn beach! That's an order!”

"Ah man, I was half expecting you two would ambush us in the streets on the way here, but I see you went directly for the prize, I'd expect nothing less from a Buntaicho." The two exchanged knowing glances, Rin wouldn't have neglected the fact that this mission doubled as a promotion exam not only for the two trainees, but for him as well. Haruka only grinned and slapped him on the back, nearly sloshing some of the contents of her drank on the pristine marble tiles. "Eru-chan, I hope you won't write me up for saying so, but you look fantastic!" He added with a wave as the supplemental agents made their way out the grand double doors.

"Maybe... maybe we could start the search tomorrow? I mean, we're all kinda tired from the trip. And this way, we'll just seem like tourists, you know? Nobody will be suspicious. Besides, how much trouble could we get up to in one night?"

His tone turned all business as he turned back to the trainees, grabbing Ayumu's shoulders, "You heard our 'orders', double time up to the room, lets get this shit set up, get changed and cleaned up, and be out on the water in 15!"

Did Moro have what it took to lead? Could he inspire his team with a set of questionable orders and expect them to follow him? Would they trust that dicking around the second they arrived wouldn't endanger the mission? If they didn't trust him, this plan would not, no, could not work. This was simply the last set of circumstances that would ensure they were ready to work as a unit. From what he knew of the two stiff-laced men before him, it was a pretty big 'if'.

 

[Takaki Saeko]

Shindou has withdrawn from this exam by his own wishes. He will be retconned as never having participated since it is early-on. Moro and Ayumu, you are free to continue.

Grand Hotel Cayman
Port of Kelmura, Kaminari no Kuni
…18 hours later

His head felt a sodden mess, and his face not only ached and throbbed, but also managed to stab as well. Annoyingly, a ray of sunlight had settled on his face, and ANBU operative Tagiushi Moro was in no godrotting mood to tolerate the interruption in his sleep. Trying to move his head only seemed to exacerbate the problem, and finally, grunting in defeat, he conceded and opened his crusty eyes.

The world span around him as he sat up, and a wave of nausea hit him like a ton of bricks. He clumsily scrambled to his feet and made his way to where he thought the hotel room bathroom was, sliding a hand across the wall for support. Collapsing in front of the toilet, he proceeded to retch long and hard, bringing up unimaginable foulness into the porcelain bowl before his stomach said “no more” and shut down.

Spitting miserably, he pulled himself to his feet and blearily twisted the sink knobs nearby to attempt to wash himself up. After splashing some water on his face, he grudgingly looked at his own reflection in the mirror and promptly panicked.

One of his front teeth was missing, and had apparently been replaced with a horrid, fake-gold-with-a-diamond-looking-heart false tooth. That and he was apparently covered in red swirls of what looked like ritualistic war-paint. Just as he wondered what the hell he had done to himself the other night, and of course, why he couldn’t really remember anything at all, he heard Eru screaming.

Immediately, Moro dashed into the hotel’s bedroom, and to his shock found Eru sitting bolt-upright in bed right next to Ayumu, who was seemingly staring off into space in shock. On the other side of the clueless and shirtless Ayumu, Haruka also lay passed out, only now stirring into consciousness.

“Eru-chan, what’s the problem now?” she said, sleepily, only to realize that she was next to Ayumu as well. Unlike Eru, however, her first reaction was much more reasonable by comparison. “Oh, hey, morning trainee-kun… Uh… Shit, I think you might have married us both last night… I’m not sure, I’m too hung over…” she said, chuckling nervously.

“Moro-niiiiii-chaaaaaaaaaaaannn!!” sobbed Eru as she leapt out of bed and flew into Moro’s arms, sobbing. Of course, it didn’t take long for her to realize she, like Haruka, was actually buck-naked. Her face instantly turned scarlet red and she let out an instinctive slap which sent Moro to the floor. “Hentai nii-chan!!!” she squeaked, diving back into the bed underneath the covers.

“Ah crap, we are married,” said Haruka, examining the cheapy fake-gold rings that she, Ayumu, and Eru now wore on their fingers. “Kelmura is one of those places where you can do that, I remember. And the bakufuu has to recognize it, as well. Ah, dammit, my head hurts,” she said, rising unsteadily out of bed and making her way to the bathroom, from which the sound of retching soon issued. Coming out of the bathroom a few minutes later, she shuffled into a pair of sea-green panties and cast a sidelong glance at Ayumu. “Yo, you’d better have used protection. I really don’t want to get knocked up, and neither does Eru-chan. I’m not sure what we did, though. It’s all a fuzz. And Moro-kun, what the hell happened to you? What’s with the tribal getup and the bling tooth?”

“I wanted to get married to Moro-nii-chan!” sobbed Eru under the covers. “Haruka-chan, get us an annulment!”

“If you’ve consummated the marriage, it’s technically a divorce, not an annulment” responded the buntaichou, sighing, to which Eru let out a long, muffled squeal of denial and started thrashing around. “Hey! Is that what I think it is?!” Haruka said excitedly, walking over to and crouching in front of a cylindrical, obsidian-colored object that was propped up in a corner of the room.

About the side of a man’s torso, and covered in crimson runic script, it radiated power and was quite warm to the touch. And it also happened to exactly match the descriptions of the furnace they had been sent to retrieve from the clutches of the Cabal.

 

[Tagiushi Moro]

From the bowels of his alcohol induced coma, Moro struggled, as languidly would be a misnomer, to brush something off of his face. Realizing that it was nothing more than an errant gossamer strand of light peeking between the rumpled, now misaligned curtains, he begrudgingly cracked a peeper, which was all it took to signal to the rest of his body and unfortunately by association his consciousness; that he was fully recapitulated. His elite ANBU binge drinking training manned the reigns now, as he rolled out of bed and slammed his shoulder against the most proximal solid object in one fluid motion. By the Twin Gods intertwining testicular torsion, what in Raiden's name happened last night? Smacking his palm against his forehead in a futile attempt to stymy the overwhelming sinus pressure. Leaning his opposite shoulder against the wall like a cholo, he gingerly tip-toed towards the bathroom, cheap wallpaper crackling as he slowly slid to his objective.

And there it lay, the ejection capsule for all unsavory bodily functions, gleaming in the sudden light like some sort of guardian angel...that happened to be bolted to the floor. Wasting almost no time to admire the simple yet elegant, almost apple-product-esque beauty of the object, a rumination entered his mind for a brief second: that an object so timeless, so pristine was about to receive the contents of his stomach so unjustly, struck Moro as just, supremely unfair. It was with this reverence, this desperation and need, that he knelt, prayed even, before the proverbial porcelain god, ever-so-fitting gold leaf Bakunin 4000 flashing in his peripherals, he lowered his head into the bowl and proceeded to yarf his everliving brains out.

Wiping the residue from the corners of his mouth with the back of his hand, Moro sashayed over to the sink, flooding his mouth with much needed water, gargling and spitting chunks and bits of rather unnameable debris down the drain. It was only after he vigorously scrubbed his face with sodden hands that he finally looked at the almost unrecognizable figure staring lackadaisically back at him. Intricate, almost henna-like tattoos dotted his entirely naked form. someone had even outlined his scars and incorporated them into the overall design. While this could be chalked up to simple inter-squad shenanigans, the horrifying missing tooth could not. Fresh sweat burst from every pore as the reality of what happened sunk in. Taigiushi Moro, heir apparent to the Santaru clan of Kumogakure, had somehow misplaced a piece of genetic material.

A thumbnail or chunk or flesh would be one thing, but for his antagonists to be in possession of such a lasting piece of his genome could only mean one of two hings: the situation laid about before them had been highly planned to Rube Goldberg levels of intricacy...Or this was one of Raiden's supreme jokes.

He then heard female screams from the other room, and what awaited him was even more inconceivable than Moro's current predicament. Both Captain Haruka and Eru-chan laid completely naked on either side of Kogami Ayumu. His first train of though was that as of a quintessential bro: Way to go trainee, you've certainly crossed the 3way/2chicks off the bucket list before me. That, however, was when all hell broke loose.

Captain Haruka nonchalantly began to explain in rather matter of fact terms that the three of them: that is, the trainee, Eru, and Haruka were all married, the smoking gun, judge, jury, badge and executioner laid bare for all to see upon the three of their digits.

Moro, unable to help himself; "Now look what you've done Haruka! (purposefully leaving off her honorific in the first time in memory, You've soiled poor, sweet, chaste Ayumykins. How is he ever going try and a legitimate bride now? If you could've kept your grubby little paws off him for this one right....ACTUALLY...IT DOESN'T MATTER!" he yelled in response to Eru's incredibly alarmed scream and subsequent Full Monty Glomping. There was a brief moment of tenderness and the Operative felt all of her warmth against him in a bug hear so tight that it left absolutely nothing to the imagination, and would quite not for some time, (S-S-S-S-SPANK BANK $_$)

Eru slapped him, sprawling him to the floor, her previous and later exclamations forgotten, to which he weakly wormed his way to a to robe to have some semblance of his most private parts covered. Eruka, having no sense of shame to being with, started off her morning with all eyes following her rear into the bathroom, where moments later the senior operative relieved herself of her stomach contents. Ayumu looked okay, if you could consider 'okay' starting mindlessly into shock.

There was utter silence in the room until captain Morishima returned, now pantily clad for the sanity of the group, before she pointed out a rather peculiar and astounding object lying in the corner of the room. Moro for once had absolutely no idea what had transpired, although as a hopeful guesstimate he could only surmise what had ended up being the decoy of the object itself that was stolen.

He Crouched near Morishima, her breasts pressed against his bicep as the two of them examined the Forge."Captain...Is there the slightest doubt in your mind that this is what we are for? I would immediately question the validity of it being here as some sort of trap, but if that were the case we would already be covered in our own blood by now...

All chatter in the room silenced itself as Tagiushi's leader cadence came into full effect: IIKAGEN DAMMATTERO!...We're going to assume this is the legitimate Forge. The real OBJECTIVE of our mission. Eru, I want you build the strongest, most durable container that is capable of being carried by one of the other operatives. It will be for up for y'all to squabble amongst yourselves who is going to be the one to carry it, but by Raiden they better be able to handle themselves in melee combat, on top of being the quickest--I MEAN FUCKING SPEED. Grab what armaments you can, equipment is tertiary as you don't want a kunai being jabbed in your carotid when when you're scrambling for your panties. IS THAT CLEAR?"

I don't even want to THINK what would happen if I can't retrieve my tooth..Dishonorable Discharge would be the best I could hope for, with Body Destruction being the fare more likely option. Even if this is something I might not make it back with the rest of the team for, taking for granted they make it out safely with the Forge. Finding this tooth is something I have to do completely on my own.

A split second of silence during which all Moro had wished to hear was a chorus of affirmatives...

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

How much trouble could they possibly get up to in one night? That was the last thing Ayumu could remember thinking, let alone doing. His eyes fluttered open to the sight of an unfamiliar ceiling. It took him a moment to realize why he was not staring at the ceiling of his room in the Sileo. They had left the village several days ago and reached Kelmura recently. For the life of him, he could not figure out if it was the same day or if not how many days had passed. He also couldn't be sure why he had a raging headache, but he had a hunch. 'Right... Morishima-taichou wanted to go enjoy the city before we got down to business- she and Eru-sempai were in those bikinis when we got here,' he thought, briefly remembering a pleasant picture. 'But... what the hell happened?' he thought, blinking as he continued to stare blankly at the ceiling.

He thought to look around but quickly realized this was futile. His glasses were missing. Of course, he never slept in them but he had no idea where they were. The most likely candidate was the bedside table he could vaguely make out. Sitting up slowly to try to avoid the ache it would cause his head (again, futile), he squinted his eyes trying to bring a dark object on the nightstand in to focus. He had no luck, so he planted a hand on the bed and leaned over a strange lump in the sheets, grabbing the object which was... not his glasses. It was soft, silky, and definitely had no lenses. "The hell?" he said aloud as he brought the object closer and found that it was, in fact, the lower half of a woman's two piece bikini.

"Huh," he uttered, staring at the clothing article bewilderedly, failing to grasp the situation. The lump in the sheets below him suddenly stirred as if in response to the confused noises he was making. Two sets of fingers emerged from the top of the sheets and pulled them away revealing Eru's slowly awakening face... and a lot more. Though his glasses were missing, his proximity to Eru made up for his eyesight. He watched in horror, frozen, as her eyes slowly opened and stared up at him. Predictably, they immediately widened in shock before she let out an ear piercing scream that sent him onto his back in the middle of the bed once more. He also managed to give himself a nice knock in the back of the head from the headboard.

"Ooww...." he groaned, his eyes glazing over as he tried to collect his thoughts about what was going on through the pain. The sheets next to him began to move before Haruka also sat up, similarly naked. 'Am I having a dream?' Ayumu thought as he stared listlessly into space, dazed. The pain responded "no" to that question. Haruka began speaking as Moro entered the scene. "Ugh, that is so not funny," he said in response, assuming that she was joking. He thought this until he noticed the ring on Eru's finger (trying to focus on something other than the obvious) as she bounded from the bed to Moro then subsequently back, leaving Moro on the ground. 'Ouch,' he thought, though Moro recovered admirably from the attack.

"Oh no no no, these things are clearly fake, we couldn't have really!" he said in response to Moro and Haruka's comments as Haruka went off to the bathroom to clear her palette. Ayumu moved to the side of the bed furthest from Eru and located his swimming trunks, pulling them under the sheets and slipping into them quickly. He then rested against the headboard, holding his head and groaning. Haruka returned and made a comment about protection which was not helping at all. She also mentioned Moro's interesting new getup.

"That's some bold fashion," he said, scratching the back of his head where he'd hit it. The gold tooth was really a great touch, though it didn't fit the tribal tattoos in his opinion. Meanwhile, Eru was confessing her desire to marry Moro which apparently went unnoticed by the males as usual, though her demand for an annulment did reach Ayumu. "Do our rings mean nothing to you?!" he said, despite the fact that they meant nothing to him. If he couldn't make light of the situation he might cry too. He ignored Haruka's further comments until the most important discovery came as she noticed what the rest of them had failed to. In the corner of the room, randomly, sat an ominous looking construction. They had all read the descriptions- that was definitely it or a very good replica.

"Wha? No way!" he said, jumping up from the bed and nearly tripping over his sheathed swords. He picked them up before rushing over to get a better look, staring at it over Moro and Haruka, clearly desensitized to Haruka's current state of attire. Moro had a point- if this had been a trap, the group all being sound asleep moments ago would have been a sorely missed opportunity for whomever had laid it. Moro quickly began running through instructions for the rest of them, fitting well into the leader mold. Meanwhile, Ayumu stepped up to the forge himself and reached out to hover his hand near it. It was warm, even without touching directly, but maybe they could wrap it in some sheets for safety. That would probably be enough to keep the demonic energy from doing any harm.

"Yessir. Hmm, I'm pretty sure I could carry this thing on my left shoulder and still hold Ayumu Jr. in my right hand," he said in response to Moro's instructions. Clearly by talking about someone who was fast, strong, and good at melee combat, he was talking directly to Ayumu. "I guess we'll just carry this right on home. Easiest mission ever!" he said, waiting for everything to go horribly wrong.

 

[Takaki Saeko]

​

“Legitimate?!” growled Haruka in response to Moro’s quip about Ayumu trying to become someone’s legitimate bride. “You may be a dense harem main character, Moro-kun, but Ayumu-kun here gets around. You should walk by that doctor Aksuko’s place when he visits - it sounds like a nonstop honeymoon from a kilometer away! Anyway, trainee, you need to eat more fruit or something – you’re way too salty…”

However, the group’s attention quickly shifted from who had nailed who in the what, to the fact that for some impossible, incomprehensible reason, the Forge Itself was literally sitting in the corner of their room. If machines could be nonchalantly bemused by what was going on around them, then that piece of demonic manufacturing equipment definitely fit the bill. Even Eru, whimpering under the covers as she was, could not help but sneak a peek at the illogically-placed mission objective.

True to form, however, and indicative of the fact that Rin’s trust in his decisiveness had not been misplaced, Moro quickly attempted to take control of the situation. Haruka rose and saluted instinctively, her breasts bobbing quite distractingly.

“Eru-chan, you heard your onii-san. Start making the thing easier for the trainee to carry. I’ll get our equipment ready in the meantime…that is, if we didn’t lose all of it, heh…” Haruka nervously giggled, as she slipped into an armored place carrier. Reaching into a nearby suitcase, she tossed Eru a tactical combat bikini (to tactically operate in while also bringing all the boys to the yard) and started to rummage through the rest of the suitcase for whatever small arms were left. Still whimpering a bit, Eru started to quickly attach some metal loops to the outside of the Forge, through which was run some strips of leather, allowing Ayumu to tote it around like a backpack. As Ayumu came to heft the thing onto his shoulder, she hissed at him.

​

“I’m NOT your waifu, Kogami-san, and I can’t believe you tried to do it in the butt! That’s reserved solely for Moro-nii-chan!” she said, racking the slide back on her Gateru Delta Elite before jamming it into the bikini’s holster (it was a combat bikini after all).

“I agree that our new husband is a gigantic pervert and should be kept under lock and key, but let’s get the fuck out of here first, hai?” asked Haruka, jamming a magazine into her ST-15 and charging a round. As a good waifu, she made sure her raifu was at full readiness before slinging it around her shoulder.

"Noon" from the Leon the Professional OST​

Hurriedly, the group exited the room (making sure to sweep the hallways with their brimming weaponry first) and sent more than a few terrified tourists scurrying back to their rooms. Boarding the elevator down, they waited in silence. All that was left was to get the hell out of the hotel lobby, and then from there on, straight to Kumogakure, even if they had to leg it on foot. The sight of two scantily-clad women toting military-grade bolters, a teenager toting a demonic whatchamacallit, and a grizzled man missing a tooth and covered in bizarre warpaint would be enough to dissuade anyone from getting close or asking questions, at least not until they were a few klicks away.

“Your tooth…what the hell are you going to do about it?!” whispered Haruka to Moro as an afterthought, as the door opened. The group piled out and made their way casually toward the door, with Ayumu guiltily leaving the room keys in their designated dropbox. Their weaponry and bizarre appearance made sure heads stayed buried in newspapers and convinced several others that they had other places to be all of a sudden. Twenty meters to the door, however…

The front doors of the Hotel Cayman swung open, and within a few seconds, the path to freedom was blocked with a human wall of what could only be gangsters and other heavies, all of them toting bolters and the occasional chainsword. In front of them, a suited man with a pock-marked face, eyepatch, slicked-back hair, and a pinstriped suit sauntered forward casually holding a pistol bolter.

[Gangster]​

“Mama mia, the religious freaks were right. Anyway, look here, Warpaint. We don’t really give a shit that youse the second coming of the Hiterkage or whatever they pegged youse as, but eh, we really want some more of that shy-noobi material youse already donated. We ain’t askin’ for much, just some blood and maybe the other front tooth, so give it up and we’se be lettin’ you go real nice and friendly-like, capiche?”

Before Moro could (hopefully) tell the mobsters to go and stuff themselves, the screeching of brakes and the blare of sirens from the street outside suddenly turned everyone’s head, including that of the gangsters.

“This is the Bakufuu Security Agency! Drop your weapons! You are surrounded!” boomed a voice over a loudspeaker outside. From what the shinobi could see, the street outside was now packed with Kelmuran Police crouching behind armored war wagons, all aiming their bolters at the mobsters.

“Jesus Freakin’ Saito, the Feds!” swore the pock-marked man, his attention diverted from Moro. “Fuck ‘em!” he roared, as his men swung their weapons around and pulled their triggers.

The entire hotel lobby instantly turned to a warzone.

 

[Tagiushi Moro]

"You know nothing, Haruka-taicho. Trainee Ayumu and I are the broest of bros and I know for a fact he only goes there for the puppies." Moro sputtered in poor comeback. He actually knew nothing of the sort, but hopefully the senior ANBU wouldn't call his bluff as Moro regarded her, flat eyed. It was no small secret around the Sileo that there was a bit of a contest to see who would be the one to deflower Ayumu, partially because he was regarded as a somewhat unattainable goal, and snapping up the opportunity from younger female trainees was more than likely an object of no small satisfaction to Haruka. Moro would be there with her sally for sally, more than a little annoyed that Ayumu had gotten to both Eru and Haruka before him, and also trying to deflate Haruka's accomplishment in reprisal, Even if he couldn't keep from ogling her in salute.

"I think we've all seen enough of Ayumu Jr. for one day, trainee." Quipped Moro, unable to keep a hint of jealousy out of his voice between the bits of venomous sarcasm. Nodding his head in assent as Ayumu moved to pick up the Forgepack. Moro knew he didn't have to add that what the trainee was carrying was more important than his life. The hotel room became a tempest of bolter loading and inadequate combat attire. Moro was left with no armor at all, only the fluffy complimentary robe which did a poor job of concealing the red markings dotting his entire form. Customary Garando lost, Moro was only able to locate his sword belt from his original equipment, strapping it on around the robe, puffing out the material on his chest awkwardly, along with the shaped charges which he stuffed into the robe's pockets.

Moro took one last look in the mirror at what served as the placeholder for his missing genetic material, hissing softly as he sucked his teeth in disappointment. "We're all gonna get it in the butt if we don't skedaddle. Lets move." The squad flew through the door and into the elevator to the lobby, covering each other point to point, bolterless Moro had his hands locked in chakra-molding position, ready to fly into hand seals in an instant. Squad performing like the well oiled machine it was, civilians in brightly colored Hawaiian shirts not even earning a moment's hesitation.

“Your tooth…what the hell are you going to do about it?!”

"Fuck if I know Haruka-san, damned if I do, and damned if I don't. We've got our hands full with the forge. Once we're in the clear I'll probably loop back around and look for it. Its my problem and I'm not going to force anyone else to deal with it...

The group made as low a profile as possible as the elevator pinged open and granted them access to the lobby, which still meant all eyes were on them. Just as soon as Moro allowed himself to believe they might actually make it outside without being accosted, a host of scruffy ruffians blocked their way. Lightning chakra crackled around his hands as he stepped forward and prepared to blow the gangsters out of the way, when the Kelmuran Police conveniently fenced them in and made things a whole lot more complicated.

"Solid clones" Moro said softly to his team, before summoning his own Shadow Servants. In the resulting confusion, clones punching gangsters, gangsters punching clones, gangsters punching gangsters, Eyepatch-san heard a voice in his ear, "I don't know what you know, but I'm very curious to hear about this 'Hiterkage' and what you know about my missing tooth...So, I'm not sure what your plans were this evening but I'd appreciate it if you'd come with me." Placing a palm against the man's side as crawling ink symbols radiated out from his hand, reverse summoning jutsu taking effect as Moro and he Combined. When he had a moment, Moro would use the full extent of his background in Human Resources Exploitation to extract what he could from Eyepatch.

The front was no good, and the back was probably just as covered. "Back upstairs, we're taking the rooftops." The police had probably already shut down the elevators, and so Moro sprinted up the stairs, taking a shaped charge from his robes, placing it against the stairs once the rest of the squad was clear, signaling to everyone to get into cover. Moro knew that this would be the kind of thing he would hear about later, but getting them, and primarily the forge, away from both the gangsters and the police would hopefully make the risk worth the reward.

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

As Eru began transforming the forge into a backpack, Ayumu scavenged the room for some equipment. He managed to locate his suitcase half under the bed and pulled out an armor vest which he donned. There was really no time to change into anything else, so the vest and his swimming trunks would have to do. It looked a bit silly, but it would do. Once the vest was on he zipped up his suitcase he unrolled a scroll and placed the suitcase on top, then performed a few handseals which caused the suitcase to disappear into the storage scroll. The scroll itself was nestled in a pouch on his vest. All packed, Ayumu headed over to where Eru was finishing up the backpack forge prompting a hiss from her along with a wild accusation. Ayumu responded with a sigh.

"Tck. Good luck with that as long as Gin-sempai's in the picture," he muttered to himself, hoisting the forge on to his back. It was ridiculously heavy, enough that a normal human being would have no business trying to lift it. Fortunately, Ayumu was obnoxiously strong which made up for his lacking Ninjutsu repertoire. It would still slow him down, but he was a good candidate to carry it. It made sense, so he wouldn't complain... too much. "Ugh, damn this thing is heavy. Can I get the compact version?" he complained, shifting it around on his back to get as comfortable as possible. There wasn't much he could do, so he followed the others to the door preparing to head out.

At Moro's urging, they headed out. The others went first, checking the hall before moving out, Ayumu exiting behind them. Normally he liked to be out in front, but with the target of the mission strapped to his back and weighing him down it didn't seem like the best idea, so he held back. They continued on to the elevator where they waited in silence as the cheerful music played in the background. Somehow this situation seemed very familiar. They entered the lobby, everybody they encountered doing their damned best to get out of the way, which was convenient. As they moved through the lobby, Ayumu remembered the room keys, which were by some miracle still in his pocket. He pulled them out and threw them into the drop off box from across the room. One tourist nearby applauded the skillful feat.

Before they could quite reach the exit, the doors of the hotel burst open and some unsavory looking individuals poured in obstructing the exit. They were clearly trying to be obstacles, though Ayumu wasn't sure why. "The hell? Get out of the way!" Ayumu shouted, his hand coming to rest on the hilt of Ayumu Jr. He was ready to carve a path as their creepy looking leader began making demands of Moro. "The fuck is he talking about? Your tooth?" Ayumu questioned, glancing at Moro's golden tooth before realization set in. 'Oh.' There was little time to say more before the Bakufu Security Agency showed up outside, beginning a giant shootout of bolters between the two parties.

The ANBU were not getting involved in that, of course. At Moro's prompting, Ayumu slammed his hands together to form some handseals summoning forth a few Shadow Servants which engaged the group in his stead. He used them to help clear a path to the leader for Moro, who snuck up behind the man and whispered what Ayumu was sure was some chilling threat before kidnapping him with style. Apparently they were headed up the stairs this time. Ayumu reached into a pouch in his vest and withdrew a smokebomb. He pushed a button on the bomb to activate it with his thumb and then tossed it underhand to skid across the ground, coming to a stop underneath the group of gangsters and filling the area with smoke to add to the chaos and confusion.

The group of ANBU plus one gangster headed up the stairs, Moro stopping as the rest continued. Ayumu spied the shaped charge in his hands and kept going, finding a spot near the top well shielded to protect the forge (and himself). He waited a few moments and then braced himself against the wall as an explosion rocked the floor. "Hell yeah! NOW it's a party!" he said, removing his hands from his ears. He grouped up with the rest of the squad before continuing up the stairs towards the rooftop. "So now what? Should we try to get in contact with Kumo or just keep running for it?" he asked, looking to Moro to make the call.

 

[Takaki Saeko]

“Puppies. Right,” eyerolled Haruka in response. What was up with Ayumu’s pathological need to preserve his virginity at all costs? The females of the ANBU had done collectively everything possible to try to get the boy to cast aside the most unneeded quality in the world: male virginity. Everything from allowing him to peep in the showers (he respectfully declined) to giving him cards for “free BJ’s” (he took it to mean free blade-jobs and thus his swords were always in the best condition) to outright trying to drug him (he seemed immune to the effects of sodium pentothal and trying to paralyze him with curare was counterproductive for obvious reasons) to buntaichou Morishima’s special attack of tying him to his bunk and stripping them both (she wasn’t called “The Predator” for nothing, but Ayumu was also a damned good escape artist in a pinch, as everyone had found out). And actually, it couldn’t be guaranteed that he really was boning Dr. Aksuko Katzumi, as by all accounts she had been recently heard wailing at a bar about how when she had asked him to sleep with her, his response had been: “But I’m not tired!”

After last night, however, the great quest that had eluded so many females in Kumogakure might have been ended! All of the physical evidence was there – the nakedness, the stains on the bed, the wedding rings…the only issue was that no one could remember it. Also, it was more likely that Eru would have gone to Moro while blitzed out of her mind, so why would she have allowed Ayumu to get anywhere near her “exit only” area? The inconsistencies and holes in the story were adding up. Well, reasoned all of the ANBU subconsciously, finding out about what happened last night would hopefully reveal the truth of the matter, and if Ayumu was indeed still the most undesirable thing on the planet: a male virgin.

But right now, they had something else to deal with entirely: a god-damned bolter-fight in the middle of a crowded hotel lobby, and they weren’t sure who was actually gunning for them – the gangsters, the BSA, or both!

Flower vases shattered and sections of faux-marble wall blew away in chunks as bolts smashed into them amidst a hail of wood splinters and dust. The fake chandeliers above exploded into fireworks of shattered fake crystal illuminated by dying incandescent bulbs and rained debris on those below.

“Eru-chan! Cover the forge!” shouted Haruka as she leveled her ST-15 and fired a burst into a charging gangster, dropping him where he stood. Several others had broken through the line of clones and confusion and rushed the group, only to be met with 5.56mm hollowpoints that tore exit holes the size of fists. Eru put up a hand and stopped a cluster of stray bolts in mid-air as they were about to hit Moro and Ayumu, before pulling out her Delta Elite and sending rounds into their attackers with the methodical thump only ten-millimeter auto caliber could produce.

With some quick thinking, Moro decided to take advantage of the situation, abducting the slimeball with the eyepatch and laying down some shaped charges to cover their retreat! The group rushed the stairs, thankfully masked by the thick gray cloud of Ayumu’s smokebomb. As a few coughing gangsters tried to stumble after them, the men’s hands brushed against something stuck to the walls. Peering closer at the items, they could make out the following text: “Front Toward Enemy”

A few minutes later​

Up on the roof, Moro and his group peered down at the chaos below. Flashers and sirens from the Kelmuran police wagons below cut through a layer of thick smoke and dust that continued to flow from the front and back doors of the building, and from the gestures of the police on the ground, it was likely that they had bought themselves at least a few minutes of peace. With a disgusting glorping sound, Moro ejected the eyepatched gangster from his body. The man sputtered in disgust, wiping snot and tears from his face. He attempted to sit up, only to have Moro’s foot planted on his chest, forcing him down. Haruka and Eru both leveled their weapons at the man’s face, which went white.

Gangster​

“Whoa! Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa!!!!” sputtered the gangster in a weird mix of disbelief, fear, and delighted confusion at having two camel-toes within easy viewing distance. Unfortunately for him, he also happened to catch a glimpse of the swinging horror under Moro’s bathrobe, and that instantly undid any resolve he might have fostered. “Okay! No need to shoot! Jeeezus Saito! Fer Raiden’s sake man please put some underwear on! I’ll talk! Just no more!” he blubbered. Moro edged off slowly, making sure to keep his bathrobe ready for a grand reveal if the man tried anything. “Okay, okay. Look, I’m Vito the Stump, a made man for Don Corneo. The Don controls this entire city, don’t youse forget!”

“ Wouldn’t ‘Vito the Patch’ be better?” asked Haruka, tipping her head quizzically.

“We got a ‘Vinny the Patch,’ ya damn indecent broad. As I was saying, Don Corneo wanted me to track youse all down because you know, youse is shinobi and youse body parts can make a man a lotta money in the right places. We’se got shinobi from that Leaf village wantin’ teeth and bones n’ shit all the time! So we figure, hey, this tattooed freak over here, he’s already given a tooth to us, so why not sweeten the deal, eh? Oh yeah, buddy, you don’t remember? Youse was fuckin’ blasted in the casino and carryin’ yer tooth around and that fuckin’ backpack thing and wanted our dentist shop to bling youse up! So we said ‘eh, no problem, hey, just give us the tooth and we’se all good!’ And that guy there,” he said, pointing at Ayumu, “Shit, buddy! Youse a damn fine player! You was all strutting around the casino floor with youse arms around these two broads and swiggin’ two Long Islands, and tattoo freak over here tells you to ‘get married for the lulz’ whatever da fuck dat means, and you went and did it! Right in Don Corneo’s private chapel. Hell, the Don was so tickled that he married you two fer free! He’s got the damn certificate, too!”

​

“And what happened after that?!” asked Eru, crossing her arms in rage.

“Youse all left afterwards! Anyways, a few minutes later we got these hooded religious freak bastards callin’ demselves ‘Da Cabal’ and demanding to know where youse went, and we was like ‘get da fuck out’ and dey was all jabberin’ about how tattoo freak is the second coming of the Hiterkage and how youse went into their most sacred place or someshit and destroyed their ‘ethereal champion’ or someshit and stole that fuckin’ thing,” he said, pointing to the backpack forge. “Hey tattoo freak, maybe youse lost yer tooth in a fight or something, I dunno. Sounds like fuckin’ pro wrestlin’ to me. Anyway, we beat them up real good and threw them outta the place but dey was all like ‘We’se gonna unleash Ragnarok on youse all unless da Hitokage’s Avatar gives us da fuckin’ Moon or something on top of da Needle of Conjunction’ or something stupid. Look, dat’s all I gotta say to youse fucks. Let me go, I gotta get outta town. Don Corneo’s gonna be pissed!”

Haruka’s face was lined with worry as she whispered in Moro’s ear.

“Moro-kun, this is bad. I think you might have stirred the Cabal up last night. And if I remember correctly, the ‘Ragnarok’ event they’re talking about is basically the forceful opening of a Hellgate. If we don’t do something to stop these guys, the city will become the new epicenter of a demon invasion,” she said, shaking her head. Eru, in the meantime, still trained her pistol bolter on Vito the Stump.

“Hey, Stump-kun. Where is Don Corneo going to be today?” she asked, with uncharacteristic menace in her voice.

“How da fuck do I know?!” asked Vito, shrugging. Eru stomped forward and with a fluid motion brutally pistol-whipped him, opening a gash across the man’s face.

“I repeat, where is Don Corneo going to be today with those marriage papers?!” she asked, grabbing him by the lapels. “Because if I can’t get an annulment and marry Moro-nii-chan instead, I will track you down and kill you. You will see what’s under my patch,” she purred with pure malice.

“Eru-chan?!” asked Haruka, worried by the fact that Eru’s expression had gone full yandere. The color again drained from Vito’s face.

“Whoa, look, missy, uh, Don Corneo’s gonna be at the Kelmuran Space Needle today. Top floor. He’s meeting with some asshole from Leaf. He’s got everything…da tooth, da papers…just don’t hurt me…” he whimpered. The scary look washed off of Eru’s face instantly. “Thank you for your help, ojii-san!” she smiled to him, flashing a characteristically pretty smile. At this moment, Vito wet himself and passed out.

“Well, that wasn’t scary at all,” shuddered Haruka, before facing Moro again. “Look, about what you said earlier... We’re the last remaining members of the Sword of Damocles. After Masao-sama left...I...I feel like we're falling apart, and I'm scared of what's going to happen to us. I feel like I'm losing family,' she said, wiping a tear away. "So we’re in this together. Whatever you choose to do, Moro-kun, we’re behind you every step of the way, no matter what happens,” she said, gently touching his cheek with her hand.

 

[Kogami Ayumu]

Emerging on the roof, Ayumu immediately noticed the smoke rising from the ground below- more specifically from the doors of the hotel. That wasn't surprising considering the explosion that had just rocked the building. "Shit, they're gonna send a complaint about that one," he commented, stepping over to the edge of the roof and looking down at the chaos below as the police ran around like chickens with their heads cut off. Onlookers were held back behind barriers trying to catch a glimpse of the fight inside the building. "Looks like we're the center of attention again," he whispered, shaking his head. To be fair, he kinda preferred it that way.

A sound behind him made Ayumu cringe and turn to see the gangster from before sprawled out on the ground spitting as if he was trying to get a taste out of his mouth. "On one hand that seems like a useful jutsu, on the other hand... gross," Ayumu said as he walked over to the group and placed a hand on his hip. Moro introduced the man to his boot when he tried to get up. Haruka and Eru pointed their bolters at the gangster's face to squash any hope he had of escaping. They seemed to have it under control so Ayumu decided to simply cross his arms and look mean. He stifled a laugh as the man requested Moro put on some pants. He kinda had to agree.

After a bit of back and forth with Haruka, they got to the meat of the matter. Apparently a gang leader named Don Corneo wanted some shinobi parts to sell off to the highest bidder. Of course, Ayumu had no such unique shinobi parts, he just had brute strength. Moro, however, had plenty of fancy genetic material that someone might be interested in. Finally a bit of the previous night was revealed to them. Apparently Moro was drunk and at the time they had already obtained the forge somehow or another. The next part explained how Ayumu had ended up married to two women, though the person described didn't sound like him at all. Apparently he had been really drunk. But there was a solution: this Don person had the certificate. They needed to find him.

Suddenly Eru became very interested in the conversation and demanded more information. Ayumu guessed she was also quite interested in that certificate. Apparently afterwards the ANBU crew left, just missing The Cabal who had an undoubtedly unhealthy obsession with Moro. Apparently they thought he was the second coming of the Hitokage. "Wait a minute, the demon lord?! Is there somethin' you're not tellin' us Moro-sempai?" Ayumu asked, looking up at Moro. Of course there was no way Moro was a demon lord. Ayumu was at least 80% sure he'd know if he was. Regardless, The Cabal's threat sounded particularly ominous.

Haruka whispered something to Moro while Eru started demanding more information about the location of the Don. It wasn't hard to guess what she was getting at. She was still focused on that marriage certificate even while there was a threat of some catastrophic event looming. Despite his disapproval of her priorities, Ayumu was still listening closely. Eru was looking particularly menacing at that moment. It became quickly apparent that it wasn't just the look as she violently pistol whipped the gangster when she decided she didn't like his answer. "Ow... I'd get honest fast if I were you," Ayumu suggested feeling some slight phantom pains just from watching.

Eru's subsequent threats seemed quite sincere and out of character, but they were very effective. The gangster gave away his boss's location instantly and some other very useful information. He had the marriage certificate and the tooth. Eru's instant personality change was probably more scary than the threats themselves. The poor gangster passed out, unable to deal with the terrifying being before him. Haruka tried to play it off and transitioned in to a touching speech about the Sword of Damocles and Masao's tragic departure from the team, even going so far as to tear up slightly. Ayumu was truly touched, as evidenced by a slight moistening of his eyes.

"Haruka-sempai..." he whimpered, wiping away some tears himself as he started to collect his thoughts. There were three goals they needed to accomplish before they left the city. Most important was most likely stopping Ragnarok, whatever that was, at the Needle of Conjunction... whatever that was. The other two goals were obtaining the marriage certificate to get an annulment and the tooth so Rin didn't kill Moro. Ayumu dried his eyes. All of their goals seemed to be conveniently convening in a single location. "Needle of Conjunction... Kelmuran Space Needle... anybody else kinda get the feeling those are one in the same? Sounds like we got our next destination," Ayumu said, ready to depart as soon as the rest of the team was ready. He figured they could leave the poor gangster in peace where he lay.

 

[Takaki Saeko]

Since Moro has not posted in a long time and we need to let Koutamon go on with his life, I am ending the exam. You both passed. There is no need to post an exit - you are already considered to be back at Kumogakure. And yes, you f*ckers, this is an Anno ending. Enjoy!

The reason to exist, La raison d’etre.
The reason to be allowed to be here.
Tagiushi Moro. In his case, he wished to die.
Takayama Shimada accepted the wish.
The Vice Commander disappeared.
Yes, Tagiushi Moro is anguished.
Why killed?
Why killed?
Why killed?
Why killed?​

Moro: There was no other choice!

Why killed?​

Moro: Because Takayama-taichou, he needed to die!

Although he is human as well?​

Moro: No! He is a shinobi! ANBU!

Although he is human as well?​

Moro: No! NO! I SAY NO!

Haruka: He was a human as well as me.

Moro: No! A shinobi is he! He was an ANBU!

Haruka: So you let him die?

Moro: That’s right! Otherwise, we’d be killed…Everyone would be killed!

Haruka: So you killed him?

Moro: I did not want this to happen! There was no other choice!

So killed.​

Moro: Help!

So killed.​

Moro: Help!

So killed.​

Moro: Help!

So killed.​

Moro: Somebody help me!

So killed.​

Moro: OH GOD! SOMEONE HELP ME!

Moro: Yes, I should have died. It’s Takayama-taichou that should have survived. He was much better than I am. He should have survived.

Rin: No. A survivor must have the will to survive. He wished to die. He abandoned the will to live, and depended on false hope. You are not wrong.

Moro: Is that really so?

Anxiety​

Moro: Was that what I wished?

Obsession​

Moro: I can’t figure it out! What shall I do? What shall I DO?!

What do you fear?​

Moro: What?

What do you fear?​

Moro: Me.

What do you fear?​

Moro: To be disliked.

What do you fear?​

Moro: By whom?

What do you fear?​

Moro: Who?

What do you fear?​

Moro: Gin deserted me! I was disliked. What shall I do if disliked? What shall I do?!

Moro2: Where am I? Where shall I go? Nothing visible. Nothing intelligible. Haruka-san? Haruka-san! Hey, where are you? Where shall I go from now on? Haruka-san! Gin! Ayumu! Eru! Shindou! Takaki-san! Santaru-sama! Father! Mother! Tell me, what should I do?!

Moro: Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai. ANBU.

Moro2: I have to lead this, after all. Killing the ones I love, obeying the words from Santaru-sama and the others. You say I must fight on? Say something! Answer me!

Why lead the ANBU?​

Moro: Because people asked me to.

So you lead?​

Moro: Isn’t it okay? It’s for the sake of everybody! Isn’t that okay?!

You lead the ANBU for the sake of others?​

Moro: Yes! That is a good thing. That is a very good thing. Everyone praises me, then.

Ayumu: That’s a lie.

Moro: What?

Ayumu: You idiot. After all, it’s for the sake of oneself.

Moro: Eh?

Ayumu: And you excuse yourself as usual.

Moro: Do I?

Ayumu: To think that you are doing your best for the sake of others is itself an easy way to live.

Moro: Is that so?

Ayumu: In other words, you are lonely, Moro.

Moro: Is that so?

Ayumu: That’s nothing but a dependent or symbiotic relationship.

Moro: That might be.

Ayumu: All you wish is that people depend on you.

Moro: That might be.

Ayumu: All you do is wait for someone to give you happiness. A false happiness.

Eru: That’s the very thing you do.

Ayumu: Wow.

Trainee Kogami Ayumu. In his case…​

Ayumu: I’m in the ANBU without any say of my own. I’m forced to be in this. This piece of junk organization! …Actually, it’s me that is junk. I’m useless. No one needs me. No one needs the ANBU that cannot be an ANBU.

Haruka: You are trying to find yourself within others.

Ayumu: Shut up!

Anxiety of Separation​

Haruka: You fear being alone.

Anxiety of Separation​

Eru: You fear because you’d be erased together with others.

Anxiety of Separation​

Ayumu: So ANBU.

Action of attachment​

Ayumu: Shut up!

Action of attachment​

Ayumu: Shut up! Shut up! I don’t wanna be told that by NPC’s like you!

And, so began the quest to regain that which they had lost. A tooth. A marriage. A virginity. The great Moon of the Hitokage’s Rise had arisen.

And now, Moro again.​

Moro: What feeling is this? This is what I feel I experienced before. My body seems to be disappearing. Agreeable. I feel like spreading, and becoming large. To here, there, and everywhere.

Rin: No. It’s not that everything returns to nothingness. It’s nothing but returning everything to the beginning. All minds become one mind, obtaining peace forever. Nothing but that.

Haruka: Is this just our mission moderator trolling us?

Masao: Exactly. You assholes didn’t post for weeks, and now the battle system is upon us.

Haruka: So you’re pulling an Anno ending of your own accord? You are poking your nose into everyone else’s business. That’s nothing but cheap friendship.

Masao: Yet you are the one who’s wished that.

Haruka: Really?

CASE 1​

Haruka: Where am I?

The Case of Captain Morishima Haruka​

Moro: This is the me within your mind.

Haruka: At the same time, it’s my mind within you, isn’t it?

Moro: In order for me to find me, I have to feel many kinds of people. I have to gaze inside of me. I have to gaze on the Haruka within me. What do you hope?

You want to be a good child​

Haruka: Must I be a good child?

Why?​

Haruka: Since I don’t have a father, since I have to help mother, I must be a good child? But, I don’t want to be like you, mom. When daddy is absent, mom is always crying. Don’t cry! Don’t depend! So must I be a good child? So I don’t wish to be disliked by daddy.

Haruka2: But I hate my father. So do I dislike a good child? I dislike! I’m tired of keeping myself pure, keeping myself pretending to be pure. I’m tired. I want to get dirty. I wished him to see me dirty.

Masao: So did you let him hold you? Did you let Moro hold you?

Haruka: NO! Because I loved him, I let him do.

Masao: You truly loved him?

Haruka: Obviously! He accepted what I truly was.

Really?​

Haruka2: He was tender.

Haruka: …No! Don’t show this to Ayumu-kun!

Moro: You don’t have to be ashamed of the moment.

Haruka: I am ashamed of myself.

Haruka2: Why shamed? You can show this to the guy you love, moreover, you WISH to show this.

Haruka: No! Stop!

Haruka2: You must be glad to show this to Ayumu.

Haruka: No! No WAY!

Haruka2: I wonder, if it’s to your father that you want to show this.

Haruka: NO!

Haruka2: You tried to find your father in Moro’s arms.

Haruka: Yes. I found the father within Moro back then. So I fled from him. I feared, he was just like my father. But it was because I was happy. It was a joy. A truly enjoyable joy! So did I hate. So did I separate.

Moro: No reason to begin a love, but a reason to end the love.

Haruka: You are kind enough…to I hope, make me dirty.

Moro: Don’t hurt yourself only because you hate yourself now. That’s only cheating yourself by momentarily punishing yourself. Don’t do that.

Haruka: And “you must take care of yourself” say you?

Haruka2: Guys always do this. Leaving me behind. Just like my father.

Moro: Stop, Haruka-san.

Haruka: I hate myself! Impure! Dirty! Mean! Bad looking! I hate sex! I hate it!

Masao: Congratulations on your promotion, Morishima-Haruka Taichou.

CASE 2

The case of Trainee Kogami Ayumu.​

Moro: What do you hope?

Ayumu: I can live alone, be a virgin forever. I don’t need Kahako or Katzumi or Eru or Haruka. I don’t need women, or porno. I won’t cry anymore.

Ayumu2: (crying)

Ayumu: Yet, I am crying. Why am I crying?!

Ayumu2: NO! STOP! Don’t quit pursuing me! I’ll lose my virginity, I swear it! I’ll satisfy you, please! STOP! Don’t KILL ME!

Kahako: Katzumi now hates you. You deserted her. Actually, you never loved her from the beginning. So let’s die together.

Ayumu: Am I disturbing? Am I useless?

Kahako: A male virgin is always useless.

Ayumu: No! I am not your doll! I can think for myself! I can live for myself!

Ayumu2: I don’t wanna die. I don’t wanna let myself disappear. I don’t like girls. I don’t like guys. I don’t like anyone! Nobody protects me. Nobody is by me.

What does he wish?​

Ayumu: So I live alone. But I don’t want that. It’s painful. I don’t wanna be alone. I don’t wanna be alone! I don’t wanna be alone!

Moro: Don’t leave me.

Haruka: Don’t desert me.

Ayumu: Don’t kill me…

In a Lightning Country Suburb​

Gin: Hey! Stupid Moro! Wake up now! Stupid Moro!

Moro: Not you again, Gin.

Gin: Seriously? That’s what you say to me? Every morning I come to wake you up not to be late for school. Is that how you express gratitude to a childhood friend?!

Moro: Ah, thanks, but let me sleep more.

Gin: What a lazy guy! Wake up! Wake up immediately! …The hell? Aiee! You stupid horny guy! Unbelieveable!

Moro: It’s morning. It’s natural.

Rin: Moro is a lazy child. He should be more grateful to Gin who comes to wake him up.

Masao: Hmm.

Rin: You can be a real child sometimes, like Moro.

Masao: Are you ready?

Rin: Yes, since it’s always ME who gets scolded by Teacher Takayama when you are late for the meetings.

Masao: Since you attract others.

Rin: Stop saying stupid things! Change clothes!

Masao: Mmhmm, I see…

Gin: Hurry up, Moro!

Moro: You’re too noisy!

Gin: We’re off!

Rin: Bye! Good luck!

Moro: Hey Gin, I hear today we have a newcomer.

Gin: Well, yes, since this city’s population is increasing.

Moro: Right, but what kind of girl? I hope it’s a cute girl!

Gin: …Oh.

Eru: (toast in mouth) Phew! Late for school! It’s very bad to be late for school on the first day!

(Collides with Moro)

Moro: Ouch! Argh…

Eru: Oh! I’m sorry! I have to run!

Moro: Uh…

Gin: I can’t believe you were staring at her panties!

In class…​

Ayumu: Really? Then you saw them? That girl’s panties?!

Moro: Only for a moment! I didn’t intend to!

Ayumu: What a lucky guy you are! …Yow! Kahako, what are you doing?

Kahako: Kogami,don’t say such stupid things! And also, replace the water in the vases. You’re on duty this week.

Ayumu: What a noisy girl…

Kahako: What was that?!

Moro: He’s so whipped…

Gin: You will be as well.

Moro: Why do you say that?

Gin: I’m telling you nothing but the truth.

Moro: Why?

Gin: You are what you appear to be…

Ayumu: Whoa! Teacher Haruka is coming!

Boys in class: WAHOO!

Ayumu: She’s so sexy…

Kahako/Gin: Those idiots… Truly stupid.

Kahako: Stand up. Bow. Sit.

Haruka: Boys! This is a joyful occasion! Today I will introduce you to the transfer student everyone is talking about!

Eru: I am Natsume Eru. Nice to meet you!

Moro: WOW!

Eru: Hey! You’re that stupid guy who was peeping at my panties this morning!

Gin: No way! It was YOU who was showing YOUR panties to Moro this morning!

Eru: Why are you covering for that pervert?! Oh wait, does it mean…you two are a couple?!

Gin: Childhood friend, bitch!

Kahako: Stop! Not in the classroom!

Haruka: This is great, actually. Much better than actual class. Go ahead!

Students: (Laughter)

And so…​

Moro: I get it now. This is also a world, a possibility inside of me. The me at the moment is not always the me as I am. There are many selves. Yes, there is a me who is not ANBU Sennin.

Haruka: Thinking that, the real world itself is not always so bad.

Moro: It’s true. I hate myself. But…I might be able to love myself. I might be allowed to stay here. Yes. I am nothing but I. I am I. I wish to be I. I wish to stay here as do I. I can stay here as do I!

Shinobi of Kumogakure: Congratulations! (Clapping)

Moro: Thank you!

Thank you, my father.
Good bye, my mother.
And to all the children,
Congratulations!​

On a beach northeast of Kelmura, two bodies were washed up on the shore. Moro woke first, next to Ayumu. Instinctively, his hands found Ayumu's neck, and he started to squeeze. Ayumu seemed to stare blankly into space, but did not resist. Instead, he started to lovingly caress the face of the man who was choking the life out of him. Moro, upon seeing this, began to sob, releasing his hold on the trainee's neck. Ayumu finally drew in a breath and uttered a phrase.

"Kimochi warui..."