Deep underground beneath the city streets of the Capital City, there is a thick labyrinth of machinery and sewer lines known as the Underbelly. From numerous guarded access points on the surface, and risky manholes located throughout the city, fleeing ninja seek out the underbelly when they are on the run, and need a quick, quiet path to Arcadia. While encounters with commuters or vagrants are somewhat common here, the Underbelly only exists as a part of the village’s infrastructure; and is an endless menagerie of sturdy machines, like reactors. Many of the villagers who dare to come here meet their fate in some gruesome fashion, whether it’s being ground up between giant gears, drowning in the sewage line after falling in, or a victim beaten to mush by a local urban legend; the Nightman.
On a warm summer afternoon, Jomei wandered street-side through Aventurine, the road paved in Basilisk Ivory through the spine of the city. Within the metropolis of Maruishi, Aventurine was the hotbed of commerce; market shops The city streets were buzzing with irritated citizens, complaining with their neighbors about the sudden power outage, which spread district wide. Sent from the SRD Lab to investigate and solve the outage, Jomei commuted through the streets with a canvas tool kit strapped over his shoulder, and map of the Underbelly subsystem unrolled between his hands. “This is the spot” he said to himself beneath the symphony of the busy street life. He was eyeing a polygon-shaped sewer lid; one of countless access points to the Underbelly, and the hidden district of Arcadia, below it.
Before prying at the steel disc, Jomei placed a peculiar object known as an unsealing jutsu pendant onto the reaction was incited. A barrier jutsu emerged in a puff of smoke, in the form thick chains and a rusting lock painted black as tar. Just as planned, the badge fizzled with bluish steam; the visible remnants of the chakra placed into the jutsu prepared in advance for Jomei to have access for his task. Although the Underbelly was known for it’s vagrant inhabitants, surface dwellers were strictly prohibited from entering the underground territories without proper authority. It was considered a safety ordinance.
In order to lift the steel disc, Jomei spawned all four of his additional appendages to pry the heavy steel plate out of the ground. The moment he got the lid ajar, an excess of steam rushed out from below, and the air became rich with warmth, wetness, and the scents of smoking motor oil and rich sulfur. He was sure it was toxic and backed away, and the sewer lid fell aside, exiting from his moment. The stifling air seized his lungs, but he was a ninja and returned to hover over the black pit, and persevere. A few faceless bystanders gathered in the moment, bothering to notice as Jomei began his descent down into the Underbelly, but paid him little mind. A nearby shopkeeper even came along to close the lid behind him, though it was mostly due to paranoia that one of his customers would accidentally fall in.
And as the lid slid over the surface opening, the light formed a crescent shape and thinned out until nothing but a black spot lay above Jomei. Filling his technician role fullest, Jomei lowered himself into a steamy tunnel setting, covered with large insulated tubes leaking out piping hot steam, cranking gears, and a steady buzzing sound that echoed through the corridor. By following that awful buzz, Jomei also followed the path to reactor 12F, where he expected to find several blown fuses, and a self-triggered emergency shutdown valve. Following the given path, Jomei traversed the underground path to make his way towards chamber twelve; but he paused cautiously when the sound of slurred male speech echoed out from the one of the chambers not too far away, along with another raspy, deep voice, as if the second speaker survived a crushed wind-pipe. The young ninja he was; Jomei used his uncanny agility to lunge upwards, and grabbed a hold of the rafters running more cables overhead. He vanished into the shadows above the guarded fluorescent light panels which ran in a track, and lit the underground path. And moved in silence, and stalked the approaching travelers with a hunter’s sense. Two rapscallions emerged from around one corner, and crossed the path around another, headed towards the same destination as Jomei: Chamber 12. From above, Jomei pursued the rogues, and followed them into the chamber via an access hatch to the ventilation system located above the body of the reactor. Though he rarely ventured down to these winding corridors, Jomei still knew the layout of the reactor chamber well enough after the countless hours he spent assisting the more-experienced SRD researchers in developing upgrades for the central reactor prototype, located at the laboratory. And in the past few months, smaller versions of the central reactor have been constructed throughout the underbelly, gradually replacing the steam-powered furnaces that powered the Capital City for the last the last century or so. The new reactors were a spectacle to behold when compared to the old steam units, and held a somewhat mystic appeal to the untrained eye. The new units large, sleekly-designed units painted starch-white, and fit with a complex keyboard panel interface with several monitors protruding from the console, and numerous levers made to trigger god knows what. Besides it’s sleekness, the unit was dull, with the exception of a large window that revealed the large fragment of Arcadianite powering the district from within. The gem was much larger than the unique specimens Jomei often sought in his adventures, yet it was this grade of Arcadianite that served perfectly as a power conducting resource. Though the mountain’s own excess of natural energies, the gemstone offered a force of energy which seemed endless through a miraculous process comparable to the energy created when an atom is split: they called it fission.
From his now inverted position over the group of vagrants, Jomei crawled along the heights of the chamber through that access hatch, and discovered the act of foolish thievery those men were attempting. Using a variety of random tools they brought along for the job, approximately several masked men and women had gathered in an effort to steal the Arcadianite gem powering the reactor. And how foolish they were. Jomei listened closely from the darkness as they chatted hurriedly, sure that they were running out of time to steal the gem before ninja like Jomei would come to investigate due to the blackout happening surface-side. However, the thieves were talking as if they expected much more than one measly Chuunin, and came armed with enough strength to fight off a small band of ninja. Rather than facing them directly, Jomei took to the shadows, to create an image much more intimidating than what a chuunin from the hillside could offer. Jomei dropped down upon the group of seven from the above, and took hold of the thug to the rear of the squad, who entered last and kept a lookout by the entrance. Several strands of spider webbing splattered against him, and he was instantly snatched into the darkness of the poorly lit space. He gave out an ear-piercing shriek, which was muted after a silencing blow. A dagger slipped out of the captured thug’s grip. Echoing clangs came from the overhead pipes as the dagger crashed, and fell to the pavement for the other thieves to see. But as that second goon from before stepped towards the blade dropped by his comrade, he failed to notice his comrade, would was bound in a harness of webbing, and coming in like a wrecking balls. The pair of miscreants collided with brutal physics at play. A chuckle couldn’t be contained from the shadows, and escaped as a whisper of laughter that haunted the thieves, and caused them to overreact.
They revealed their clunky guns; things rarely wielded by the likes of ninja, yet growing more popular than ever among common men. Of the five thieves remaining, four of them carried various firearms. They fired weapons into the rafters, causing pipes to rupture as they sought out the terror stalking them. Steam rushed out from over a dozen rips and punctures, and spiraled through the chamber until it became a broiling haze. Only the light of the blue gem shard shining from within the reactor could be seen clearly through the haze; well that and the broad shoulders of the leader of those thieves, which towered over his comrades. The other petty thieves fled the chamber, overcome by the sheer heat until they lost their nerve and abandoned the hulking one. This heat wasn’t the stuff you felt at the sauna; this was a torrent of steam hot enough to braise the ninja, yet this one stood tall. And what became of Jomei? Who knew? Certainly not Big Fella’ here.
He knew the vermin stalking his crew wouldn’t leave the chamber until the heist was a bust, but ole’ Big Fella’ had no intention on calling it quits until someone could put a stop to him, and a pesky spider wouldn’t be enough to stop him once he got started. The intense heat forced him to take on his true form, and his tough hide was revealed, bumpy and gray. Arcadia tends to have some unique inhabitants, but he wasn’t someone you’d see every day in the below-lands. His appearance as a common man before must have been some form of illusion, as Jomei didn’t recall any of the thieves having hardened skin or horns protruding from their forehead. Horns now pointing towards the reactor. Dumb enough to think that he could smash the face of the machine in and steal the gem, the Iron Hide tool a posture getting ready to charge the machine, and felt several webs splatter against his backside. With all his might, Jomei attempt to sling the Iron Hide as he had done twice to the other goon, yet this one was much, much too big to be tossed about. Instead, the Iron Hide was forced into a corrected posture, and his spine popped as Jomei pulled him upright, but without the effect that inspired Jomei to take the shot. The foe then seized a grasp on the webbing, and reeled in Jomei from the safety of the rafters where he lurked for so long.
Clad in his own brand of webbing armor, Jomei crashed to the floor and rolled across the unforgiving pavement. “Ahh, oww, I think I broke something” Jomei admitted to himself as he came to term with the reality of his position, already bordering mangled. However the rush of adrenaline meant a brief stay on the ground, and he was able to spring back into action, right on time for a direct charge from his new friend. The ground shook as the giant charged Jomei; and the fear almost swallowed Jomei as his foe drew nearer. Still seeing stars from his own harsh landing, Jomei failed to escape the oncoming onslaught, and the Iron Hide lifted Jomei into his charged assault. Although he barely avoiding the villian’s goring impale, Jomei was still taken captive in the grasp of deformed man and his mad charge, which quickly drove through a cement wall, and deep into the mysterious paths of the Underbelly. The ongoing attack resembled demoliton as crashing sounds began to resonate through the chambers. Kathoom after another mighty kathoom and kaboom.
On a warm summer afternoon, Jomei wandered street-side through Aventurine, the road paved in Basilisk Ivory through the spine of the city. Within the metropolis of Maruishi, Aventurine was the hotbed of commerce; market shops The city streets were buzzing with irritated citizens, complaining with their neighbors about the sudden power outage, which spread district wide. Sent from the SRD Lab to investigate and solve the outage, Jomei commuted through the streets with a canvas tool kit strapped over his shoulder, and map of the Underbelly subsystem unrolled between his hands. “This is the spot” he said to himself beneath the symphony of the busy street life. He was eyeing a polygon-shaped sewer lid; one of countless access points to the Underbelly, and the hidden district of Arcadia, below it.
Before prying at the steel disc, Jomei placed a peculiar object known as an unsealing jutsu pendant onto the reaction was incited. A barrier jutsu emerged in a puff of smoke, in the form thick chains and a rusting lock painted black as tar. Just as planned, the badge fizzled with bluish steam; the visible remnants of the chakra placed into the jutsu prepared in advance for Jomei to have access for his task. Although the Underbelly was known for it’s vagrant inhabitants, surface dwellers were strictly prohibited from entering the underground territories without proper authority. It was considered a safety ordinance.
In order to lift the steel disc, Jomei spawned all four of his additional appendages to pry the heavy steel plate out of the ground. The moment he got the lid ajar, an excess of steam rushed out from below, and the air became rich with warmth, wetness, and the scents of smoking motor oil and rich sulfur. He was sure it was toxic and backed away, and the sewer lid fell aside, exiting from his moment. The stifling air seized his lungs, but he was a ninja and returned to hover over the black pit, and persevere. A few faceless bystanders gathered in the moment, bothering to notice as Jomei began his descent down into the Underbelly, but paid him little mind. A nearby shopkeeper even came along to close the lid behind him, though it was mostly due to paranoia that one of his customers would accidentally fall in.
And as the lid slid over the surface opening, the light formed a crescent shape and thinned out until nothing but a black spot lay above Jomei. Filling his technician role fullest, Jomei lowered himself into a steamy tunnel setting, covered with large insulated tubes leaking out piping hot steam, cranking gears, and a steady buzzing sound that echoed through the corridor. By following that awful buzz, Jomei also followed the path to reactor 12F, where he expected to find several blown fuses, and a self-triggered emergency shutdown valve. Following the given path, Jomei traversed the underground path to make his way towards chamber twelve; but he paused cautiously when the sound of slurred male speech echoed out from the one of the chambers not too far away, along with another raspy, deep voice, as if the second speaker survived a crushed wind-pipe. The young ninja he was; Jomei used his uncanny agility to lunge upwards, and grabbed a hold of the rafters running more cables overhead. He vanished into the shadows above the guarded fluorescent light panels which ran in a track, and lit the underground path. And moved in silence, and stalked the approaching travelers with a hunter’s sense. Two rapscallions emerged from around one corner, and crossed the path around another, headed towards the same destination as Jomei: Chamber 12. From above, Jomei pursued the rogues, and followed them into the chamber via an access hatch to the ventilation system located above the body of the reactor. Though he rarely ventured down to these winding corridors, Jomei still knew the layout of the reactor chamber well enough after the countless hours he spent assisting the more-experienced SRD researchers in developing upgrades for the central reactor prototype, located at the laboratory. And in the past few months, smaller versions of the central reactor have been constructed throughout the underbelly, gradually replacing the steam-powered furnaces that powered the Capital City for the last the last century or so. The new reactors were a spectacle to behold when compared to the old steam units, and held a somewhat mystic appeal to the untrained eye. The new units large, sleekly-designed units painted starch-white, and fit with a complex keyboard panel interface with several monitors protruding from the console, and numerous levers made to trigger god knows what. Besides it’s sleekness, the unit was dull, with the exception of a large window that revealed the large fragment of Arcadianite powering the district from within. The gem was much larger than the unique specimens Jomei often sought in his adventures, yet it was this grade of Arcadianite that served perfectly as a power conducting resource. Though the mountain’s own excess of natural energies, the gemstone offered a force of energy which seemed endless through a miraculous process comparable to the energy created when an atom is split: they called it fission.
From his now inverted position over the group of vagrants, Jomei crawled along the heights of the chamber through that access hatch, and discovered the act of foolish thievery those men were attempting. Using a variety of random tools they brought along for the job, approximately several masked men and women had gathered in an effort to steal the Arcadianite gem powering the reactor. And how foolish they were. Jomei listened closely from the darkness as they chatted hurriedly, sure that they were running out of time to steal the gem before ninja like Jomei would come to investigate due to the blackout happening surface-side. However, the thieves were talking as if they expected much more than one measly Chuunin, and came armed with enough strength to fight off a small band of ninja. Rather than facing them directly, Jomei took to the shadows, to create an image much more intimidating than what a chuunin from the hillside could offer. Jomei dropped down upon the group of seven from the above, and took hold of the thug to the rear of the squad, who entered last and kept a lookout by the entrance. Several strands of spider webbing splattered against him, and he was instantly snatched into the darkness of the poorly lit space. He gave out an ear-piercing shriek, which was muted after a silencing blow. A dagger slipped out of the captured thug’s grip. Echoing clangs came from the overhead pipes as the dagger crashed, and fell to the pavement for the other thieves to see. But as that second goon from before stepped towards the blade dropped by his comrade, he failed to notice his comrade, would was bound in a harness of webbing, and coming in like a wrecking balls. The pair of miscreants collided with brutal physics at play. A chuckle couldn’t be contained from the shadows, and escaped as a whisper of laughter that haunted the thieves, and caused them to overreact.
They revealed their clunky guns; things rarely wielded by the likes of ninja, yet growing more popular than ever among common men. Of the five thieves remaining, four of them carried various firearms. They fired weapons into the rafters, causing pipes to rupture as they sought out the terror stalking them. Steam rushed out from over a dozen rips and punctures, and spiraled through the chamber until it became a broiling haze. Only the light of the blue gem shard shining from within the reactor could be seen clearly through the haze; well that and the broad shoulders of the leader of those thieves, which towered over his comrades. The other petty thieves fled the chamber, overcome by the sheer heat until they lost their nerve and abandoned the hulking one. This heat wasn’t the stuff you felt at the sauna; this was a torrent of steam hot enough to braise the ninja, yet this one stood tall. And what became of Jomei? Who knew? Certainly not Big Fella’ here. He knew the vermin stalking his crew wouldn’t leave the chamber until the heist was a bust, but ole’ Big Fella’ had no intention on calling it quits until someone could put a stop to him, and a pesky spider wouldn’t be enough to stop him once he got started. The intense heat forced him to take on his true form, and his tough hide was revealed, bumpy and gray. Arcadia tends to have some unique inhabitants, but he wasn’t someone you’d see every day in the below-lands. His appearance as a common man before must have been some form of illusion, as Jomei didn’t recall any of the thieves having hardened skin or horns protruding from their forehead. Horns now pointing towards the reactor. Dumb enough to think that he could smash the face of the machine in and steal the gem, the Iron Hide tool a posture getting ready to charge the machine, and felt several webs splatter against his backside. With all his might, Jomei attempt to sling the Iron Hide as he had done twice to the other goon, yet this one was much, much too big to be tossed about. Instead, the Iron Hide was forced into a corrected posture, and his spine popped as Jomei pulled him upright, but without the effect that inspired Jomei to take the shot. The foe then seized a grasp on the webbing, and reeled in Jomei from the safety of the rafters where he lurked for so long.
Clad in his own brand of webbing armor, Jomei crashed to the floor and rolled across the unforgiving pavement. “Ahh, oww, I think I broke something” Jomei admitted to himself as he came to term with the reality of his position, already bordering mangled. However the rush of adrenaline meant a brief stay on the ground, and he was able to spring back into action, right on time for a direct charge from his new friend. The ground shook as the giant charged Jomei; and the fear almost swallowed Jomei as his foe drew nearer. Still seeing stars from his own harsh landing, Jomei failed to escape the oncoming onslaught, and the Iron Hide lifted Jomei into his charged assault. Although he barely avoiding the villian’s goring impale, Jomei was still taken captive in the grasp of deformed man and his mad charge, which quickly drove through a cement wall, and deep into the mysterious paths of the Underbelly. The ongoing attack resembled demoliton as crashing sounds began to resonate through the chambers. Kathoom after another mighty kathoom and kaboom.
