Asuchi did not have the advantages of a doujutsu or some other technique to enhance his awareness. However, he was still maintaining his habit of scanning his surroundings, and due to their unfamiliar territory was doing so with even more gusto. As such, when the birds became quiet and the air tensed up, he didn't sense anything in particular, just a general feeling that something was wrong. And if he'd learned anything in his years as a shinobi, it was to trust his gut. Before he could talk to his teammates though, the woman appeared running towards them, chased by some pathetic looking thugs. He once again did not pick up on the fact that her makeup was impeccable for a woman in distress, just that there was something off about her. That was when Sumiko shouted.
Asuchi had grown somewhat weary of their charge over the journey. She was great eye candy, he wasn't denying that, but she just wasn't his cup of tea. He preferred a woman with something solid between her ears, and Sumiko didn't seem to him to possess that.
Before he could react to her screaming, Kosei had acted, drawing his scimitar and suddenly making thousands of needles appear in midair. It made sense that he'd act first; he had the highest Agility stat.
Asuchi was technically supposed to be getting the woman away from here. However, Kosei may have noticed something off about her as well, as he turned some of the needles in her direction. Asuchi mentally updated his job from “Get her away” to “Prevent her from getting away”. As Kosei was making his threat, Asuchi acted. He noticed Ren out of the corner of his eye pushing Sumiko up to the tree with his back and readying himself to do something. Asuchi nodded, good, she would be fine. He considered using an Elemental Clone and Grapple to hold the random woman in place, however Grapple was a C-Rank jutsu, and his clones could only do D-rank, leaving them incapable of grabbing onto something apparently. Alright then, new plan.
Asuchi formed the handseals for his Elemental Clone anyway, creating a non-elemental clone and then using Stunt Double to hide himself in the trees. He then concentrated his chakra to silence himself, using the Concealed Steps jutsu. His clone would move behind the woman, physically blocking her exit route BUT NOT GRABBING HER BECAUSE HE CAN'T DO THAT.
From his new vantage point, Asuchi would survey his surroundings, trying to pick out any additional people that may be laying in wait, as well as getting a better layout of the battlefield. If anything of extreme importance was found, i.e. something that posed immediate danger to any of his teammates or Sumiko, he would let them know, giving away his own position. If the woman were to try to escape, he could easily warp back down to her with Quicksilver Step and then use Grapple himself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Marked For Training]
WC: 492
Actions: