Kai had murmured his stream of consciousness as they traveled. It had been a bit on the quiet side so she could tune him out, but he occasionally followed a train of thought that had him reacting more animatedly. He would have seemed crazy to a stranger, but his eccentricities fell in line with his chatterbox personality and his hyperactive habits. Since The Poisoner event, he had begun thinking aloud more often, as if thinking internally would give the guy an opportunity to take over Kai's mind again and hold him hostage in his own body.
"Seen that log before, it grows more moss every time, there's a snail on there, the breed with yellow stripes on the shell that live in this area in large numbers, so the facility must be rather close, it was built a few decades ago because the mushrooms that grow a few meters from the river under the canopy are very dangerous and croak in containers meaning they must be carried in open-air but they don't survive the trip to Konoha so it's important to treat them and use them close to where they're found..." The two of them were soon standing before a small one-story building with moss over it. It looked unused, except for the door and window facing them, which both seemed worn, used, but squeaky clean. Kai put his hands on his hips as they stood before it and just took it in. "Doctor Li is always here working on something or other. She's an expert on pain relieving medicine and homeopathy, so it's her product we'll be testing."
He knocked three times, pausing significantly longer after the second knock. After, he entered without waiting for a response, and Doctor Li was inside and looking to him pleasantly. "Long time, no see, Kai." There were dozens of shelves on every wall which were filled with prescription bottles. In the center of the room were four tables, all with organizing and counting and labelling equipment. In the back corner was a hatch to the basement where actual pharmaceutical creation occurred.
"Hey, Doc. We're here to inspect your pills with an opioid base. We have a lot of dummy pills in the village, but no idea where the source is."
Doctor Li's kind demeanor immediately twisted into a scowl. "My product is good, Kai. How could you say such a thing?"
"I- hey, I'm just doing my job here. We've got a lot of pills that break open easy with loose powder instead of being the solid, authentic pills they should be. I just need to test some pills in some bottles to see if they're breaking open into loose dust or sticking together better. I can't keep letting sugar pills into the village."
"You think I'm shorting the village after working decades as a pharmacist and chemist? I worked for Konoha before it was abandoned the last time, and I'll be here making good medicine 'til longer after. You are not welcome here. How dare you, Kai," she insisted with genuine hurt in her voice.
Kai kept his palms up and lifted, feeling terrible as he tried to do some damage control. "Hey, Li, I know you're great at what you do! You helped me learn the craft. I just, y'know, I have to check here. I have to know if its happening here or if they're being traded out mid-transit. C'mon Li."
"Absolutely not, young man. You are not going to ruin my hard work. I am not going to be put behind schedule on production because you're unable to check transit or the hospital. Your shortcomings are not my responsibility..." The two devolved into a back and forth. Kai managed to pointedly look at his partner and then the shelves of pills around him, hoping she would go through some of them while he dealt with Li unless she had some other plan.
Rocket Punches
Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2022 4:48 pm
“Are they all like this? The last one I was with found his share of fools to galavant around with, he was one of them even, but you find yourself in their company at an alarming rate.” Coda’s eyes shifted between the two bickering parties as Gyuki spoke its piece. “No, but the Leaf symbol seems to attract them like a magnet.”
Her steps were little whispers of sound as she plucked a bottle off the nearest shelf, her fingers rolling it over as she listened to the sound of the pills inside. “Destroy her.”
"But your shortcomings are mine." Coda growled, the voice cascading off the interior of the mask dripping with venom as she interrupted the woman's incessant protest. "You want talk, fine, I'll talk."
“A colleague of mine lived in the Land of Tea as a child. She’s never specified, but I think she’d have been around fourteen when the war with the UHV reached its climax and Konohagakure fell.” A gloved hand slowly unscrewed the top as Coda mused. Twisting away with thoughtless consistency as the hollow voice continued. “Most of the seats of power in the shinobi world were left vacant, and in her case that meant petty territorial squabbles.” The hand tucked the top between a couple fingers of its parallel holding the bottle, poking at the seal underneath aimlessly.
“A group of Leaf village refuse thought they’d play warlord. The tea farms were the obvious target: no setup, low overhead, high return on effort invested, a looming harvest. Several of the smaller nations took umbrage, considering the trade value of the region’s staple, and hired the samurai of Zaishin to secure what the fire daimyo no longer could.” A finger found its way through, peeling away the remnants before plucking out one of the pills inside. “The deal was simple: secure the Land of Tea, ensure that the tea trade thrived despite the instability. The samurai sought to buy information with a weighty pouch of ryo and a promise of protection they couldn’t fulfill.”
Thumb and index finger crushed the first pill, working against each other to reduce it to dust on the floor. Coda regarded the result with a little “hmpf” and a shrug as she fished out another capsule. “We found a few of the rogue shinobi that burned her family and their tea farm. The only one who gave up without a fight was right under our nose. Scampered off to Uzushiogakure when they realized what they were up against, saved themselves from the teeth of a well oiled war machine.” The next pill crushed with a similar amount of effort, indicating legitimacy in the so far tiny sample size, although even the Oinin Taicho couldn't hide the slight shift in her voice as the topic of discussion turned her blood to jagged ice.
“You know what she said, the one we caught, when we asked why? ‘I was only doing what it took to survive.’ A real classic, that one.” The hand retrieved the bottle’s lid once more, casually beginning to screw it back on and giving it a shake as Coda finished the task. “You assert propriety from longevity, but Konohagakure’s destruction shook the shinobi world to its core at the time. Disrupted supply lines, dissolution of large contract holders and a half decade of fledgling shinobi hovels. A highly prized and valuable product, devoid of the logistics and customers that previously enabled your business. An operation like this couldn’t have survived the loss without cutting corners, and that’s before you consider the wrath inflicted upon the other villages in short order. More substantial operations than yours were crippled on the other side of the continent, and even more in the open conflict that followed.” She continued, tossing the bottle in Kai’s direction for closer inspection. It didn't matter to Coda whether or not she was welcome, she didn't need welcome. A freely opened door or forcefully opened wall was the same for her. The Yozen's wrath was plentiful and dispensed in abundance, and if the bloodlust of a truly dangerous shinobi could be sensed as some suggested then both Kai and this Dr. Li would be experiencing something that regarded that sensation as prey - especially as Gyuki swam about in the back of her mind, his presence tinging her very being in a manner she still barely contained. Perhaps that alone would be enough, or perhaps things here would get ugly.
“Now, I can shred this place and find those corners, or you can get the <********> out of the way and let the Chief of Police carry out his inquiry. We’re here as a courtesy, and I have the power to reimburse you for anything we take. Trust it’s a power I’ll refrain from exercising if you make me come out here twice.” Coda detested all this talking, and it boiled her blood that she was placed in charge of this process because the kage couldn’t trust their own dogs to fetch her more concise tasks. She would need to have a talk with the cop boy when they were elsewhere though. Scatterbrained or no, he would not survive long if he allowed himself to be bull-rushed like this constantly.
◁ Non-Activation Techs Used ▷ ıllıllı None ıllıllı
◁ Summon Techs Used ▷ ıllıllı None ıllıllı
◁ Active Modifiers ▷
[ Flowing Arts Training | Available | Cooldown 0/2 ] Any attack that follows a dodge or evasive technique is treated as a counterattack, and the user's total bonus to agility can be attributed to the strength of the next attack. When this ability is performed it cannot be used the following post.
[ Flowing Arts Training | Available | Cooldown 0/3 ] Once every [3] posts, the user may utilize an offensive technique that targets a specific part of the target's body that would disrupt their attack. This offensive attack deals damage regularly but allows the user to use their remaining activations as offensive as well.
[ Kyotoryuu Training | Available | Duration 0/2 | Cooldown 0/3 ] The Kyotouryuu practitioner can now react to an opponent by converting their speed into an agility boost for [2] posts with a [3] post cooldown. This requires no activation or resource cost.
◁ Passive Modifiers ▷
[ Yozen ] Fuuinjutsu techniques require [10] less chakra per body rank of the Yozen clansman (maximum of 60 at S+) without losing their potency.
[ Mach Style Training ] Make taijutsu complex, and "punch" ninjutsu orbs as projectiles. When in the shooter stance, the strength and speed of strikes is increased by [2] points instead of [1] point per rank.
[ Channeling Martial Skill Training ] Ability for techniques to carry two elemental properties. Ability to add bloodline elements.
[ Kaiser Fist Training ] The armor now emits a crackling, bright, white hot chakra that appears like a thin aura around the user. The chakra causes mild burns on contact. In addition, the user gains a [1] point increase to strength and speed per rank of the armor. ------- Kaiser Armor allows the user to regenerate 10 stamina per rank of chakra applied to each technique while the armor is active. The user may not generate more stamina than their reserves may hold. ------- The Kaiser Armor now causes searing burns upon contact that blister due to the crackling chakra. The user's strength and speed are increased by [1] point per rank of the armor. Taijutsu and bukijutsu techniques used while the armor is active create shock waves [5] feet in the direction of the attack per rank of the technique.
[ Mirror Image Arts Training ] The user may cast the Shadow Clone technique in conjunction with techniques from this style to replace mirror images with the clones. Casting Shadow Clones in this manner does not consume an activation. ------- The user has learned to control their chakra in a fine manner which allows them to create an additional mirror image per rank of the technique it is executed with. These additional images do not increase the strength of the parent technique.
His partner in crime - er, law - took the spotlight seamlessly, talking the two of them through a tale about a colleague who lived in the Land of Tea. Kai was stuck in place as she spoke, following the story she was weaving with interest. He didn't even initially notice that she was working away at a pill body. When he did notice, his eyebrows lifted and he turned behind himself to do the same while Li was listening.
He crushed them and found them to be solid. He should have felt elated that Li wasn't corrupt, but his heart sank instead. Without a doubt, his officers must be in on it as they were the armed transport for these goods due to the desirable nature of opioid medication. His shoulders dropped as he went through a couple of bottles just to find the same. He turned to her to shake his head in confirmation of the bad news, but saw her tossing a bottle instead. He caught it, and found the pills inside were equally legitimate.
Dr. Li was uncomfortably stiff under the gaze and attention of the oinin taicho, and Kai felt just a twinge of sympathy for her. She clearly wanted to say a lot on the topic of the implication that her business was illegitimate for its survival through so many tough times, but she held her peace. "Satisfied?" Though she was looking down her nose at the oinin taicho, trying to gain some sort of power in the situation, her question seemed to be addressed to Kai.
He cleared his throat, putting the bottle on the shelf. Inspired by the direction of the conversation, he did grab one of her folders that he knew held some delivery details. "I've found what I need. Thanks for the cooperation, Dr. Li." He felt bad for their bit of ransacking, but he knew he had to get to the bottom of the investigation. He took another look around the room before gesturing at the door. "We can move on back to the village."I need to get in contact with some officers. They have so much explaining to do. He would walk outside and, if she'd follow, he would sigh with relief. "I appreciate the back-up back there. I, um, I'm sorry for your colleague, by the way. When you see stuff like that, it's really easy to think about how horrible everyone and everything is." He took a breath, looking at the folder between his fingers. "But Dr. Li is most likely clean. I think she's independently wealthy anyways, but I've never actually looked at her books. But if the pills are clean, and the hospital's clean, then transport is guilty. And that means it's my officers behind this." He looked towards Konohagakure, knowing they'd need to head back to find the officers in question, but he wasn't just ready to accept that yet. He needed another moment to lament not having the trustworthy officers he thought he had.
Rocket Punches
Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2022 4:46 pm
Under her mask Coda let loose a silent sigh. This was a waste of her effort. It was clear the woman desired a retort of some sort. The Konin couldn’t blame her, really. The Oinin, and particularly Coda as Oinin Taicho, were like senbon. Deadly efficient and precise when applied carefully. She needed the situation brought under control, and she did what was required.
“Hardly.” The woman muttered in response to the retort as Kai took the lead again. “For what it’s worth, I don’t fault you for using whatever leverage you had.” Coda said as she began following him out. “I’m just using mine too, Doctor.” She honestly didn’t care what the Doctor had done to keep this place afloat. Legitimacy was a faulty premise to begin with - irrational and easy to undermine both from within and without. It’d backed her into a corner, likely because she knew that the village didn’t even need to find anything of substance to scatter it to the wind. She doubted the woman acted out of the type of desperate self-absorption that brought the shinobi to the tea farm all those years ago - and she was significantly less harsh a judge of those in the world that did not leverage the horrific power hoarded by the hidden villages.
She listened to Kai draw the conclusion she’d been operating under since she returned from Arashigakure. That was good, it meant they could move on to the bigger fish, starting with his gaggle of jackboots. Though she could have done without his sympathies for her “colleague”. The last thing Coda needed as a salve for the wounds inflicted upon her was doe-eyed mea culpas from a bunch of shinobi that had scurried like roaches back to the festering legacy of the Leaf Village at the first sign of hardship.
“What is Konohagakure to you?” Coda asked as the dispensary disappeared from sight behind them. “What’s your opinion of the village and the things that it does?” She was more than certain that her own deeply seeded beliefs were well founded; however, Kai offered an opportunity to pry into the mind of someone whose idealism was potentially still intact. It wouldn’t change her plans, that would take a type of force she’d encountered none of in the shinobi world so far, but it might change their scale.
◁ Non-Activation Techs Used ▷ ıllıllı None ıllıllı
◁ Summon Techs Used ▷ ıllıllı None ıllıllı
◁ Active Modifiers ▷
[ Flowing Arts Training | Available | Cooldown 0/2 ] Any attack that follows a dodge or evasive technique is treated as a counterattack, and the user's total bonus to agility can be attributed to the strength of the next attack. When this ability is performed it cannot be used the following post.
[ Flowing Arts Training | Available | Cooldown 0/3 ] Once every [3] posts, the user may utilize an offensive technique that targets a specific part of the target's body that would disrupt their attack. This offensive attack deals damage regularly but allows the user to use their remaining activations as offensive as well.
[ Kyotoryuu Training | Available | Duration 0/2 | Cooldown 0/3 ] The Kyotouryuu practitioner can now react to an opponent by converting their speed into an agility boost for [2] posts with a [3] post cooldown. This requires no activation or resource cost.
◁ Passive Modifiers ▷
[ Yozen ] Fuuinjutsu techniques require [10] less chakra per body rank of the Yozen clansman (maximum of 60 at S+) without losing their potency.
[ Mach Style Training ] Make taijutsu complex, and "punch" ninjutsu orbs as projectiles. When in the shooter stance, the strength and speed of strikes is increased by [2] points instead of [1] point per rank.
[ Channeling Martial Skill Training ] Ability for techniques to carry two elemental properties. Ability to add bloodline elements.
[ Kaiser Fist Training ] The armor now emits a crackling, bright, white hot chakra that appears like a thin aura around the user. The chakra causes mild burns on contact. In addition, the user gains a [1] point increase to strength and speed per rank of the armor. ------- Kaiser Armor allows the user to regenerate 10 stamina per rank of chakra applied to each technique while the armor is active. The user may not generate more stamina than their reserves may hold. ------- The Kaiser Armor now causes searing burns upon contact that blister due to the crackling chakra. The user's strength and speed are increased by [1] point per rank of the armor. Taijutsu and bukijutsu techniques used while the armor is active create shock waves [5] feet in the direction of the attack per rank of the technique.
[ Mirror Image Arts Training ] The user may cast the Shadow Clone technique in conjunction with techniques from this style to replace mirror images with the clones. Casting Shadow Clones in this manner does not consume an activation. ------- The user has learned to control their chakra in a fine manner which allows them to create an additional mirror image per rank of the technique it is executed with. These additional images do not increase the strength of the parent technique.
Kai managed his breathing as they left the lab, trying to keep himself positive despite the grim news looming on the horizon. He needed to n** the problem in the bud as quickly as possible before it blew up on him as the Chief. Having backup kept him focused and out of his head mostly, but he couldn't help but feel like, strangely, he was running on borrowed time.
The stress of his growing paranoia was gnawing at him. He turned to her sharply at her sudden line of questioning, unsure where it came from. He forced himself to be less tense, offering a half-hearted shrug at her question. "Konohagakure is my home. We had lived outside of the village completely until Konohagakure returned, and... I don't know. I've always attached my identity to it. Mama is so proud of being from Konoha and representing the Uchiha clan... I've always just felt it was in my blood to be here, like I've always belonged. Call it Will of Fire or the Uchiha lineage, but I feel like I'm myself with I'm there."
The second question was definitely charged or loaded or otherwise dangerous, but he didn't know what to make of it yet. "I'm not sure what kind of things you're talking about. It keeps my mom safe when I'm not there, and that's pretty great in my opinion. I'm... I'm not super good with the global politics stuff; they tell me who I need to be wary of, and I'm wary. Without the village cooperating with all the others, I'm not sure the Jashinist threat would be easy to remove." He stuffed his hands in his pockets as they approached the Leaf again. "But I guess that's a bit of a cop-out, huh? They tell me who the enemy is, and I don't have to think too hard about anything else. They tell me who my friend is, and I can relax. I'm sure it's got dirty laundry to spare, but wouldn't all villages? I don't know. I don't see any government secrets as Chief; my jurisdiction is fairly limited. Domestic. Domesticated." He laughed uneasily. There wasn't much comfort to be taken in feeling like a trained guard dog, but he couldn't even handle the stress of his personal life if recent events were any indication, so he felt disinclined to bring global or even authentic domestic politics into his life.
"I don't know who I am if I don't trust the village. Is that stupid to say? That's probably stupid to say." He was talking too much. Again. "What do you think about the village? What does it mean to you? It must be something important if you're willing to protect it while sacrificing your identity. Or rather, hiding your identity. Committing to being the shadow underneath the Leaf. That sounds hard. Like, impersonal."
Rocket Punches
I'll put us back in the village next post cycle. I'll throw some action in here as we encounter some of the guilty officers. I'll try not to drag my feet on posting, but I'm bummed 'cause I'm getting a lot of bad news lately, so it may still be a little slow until later this month for me.
Posted: Fri Jan 07, 2022 5:20 pm
“Perhaps, but I suspect with time you’ll find I’m quite uniquely suited to this job.” Coda said, regarding Kai’s ponderings about the difficulties of the position. In reality there were few who would find it as simple a task, both in terms of duty and sacrifice; something not in the slightest bit coincidental. The Konin had already lost a family, 5 years, and a truly astonishing amount of blood to the village’s legacy - she intended to take as much back as she could.
“I find the Will of Fire odd, perhaps because my path started in Uzushiogakure; or maybe it’s just that I see more of our unfiltered interactions with the rest of the world. You claim the burning passion as an indescribable force of propulsion, and the village itself as a haven, but to me the walls have always been the edge of a looming inferno.” The woman said as she held out her hand and a small flame appeared in its palm, the light flickering subtly off the edges of her mask. “It’s a curious thing, flame, almost alive, like it has a mind of its own. Even when it seems like it’s out…” She said as the flame in her hand shrank to near nothingness, “one simply needs to feed it to see it grow again into a raging conflagration. It’s never entirely in our control though. Sure, raiton is also difficult to master and capable of biting back, but it doesn’t need to be endured in the same way. You’re not fuel for the electric charge, just the shortest path.”
As she continued down the road and through the conversation the fire grew, until it spat sparks and embers that cascaded off her mask and cloak. Beneath the ornate visage she spoke of the fire’s resurrection with a wry smirk. Coda never intended to reward Uzushiogakure with her undying loyalty. She’d expected to play along well enough to extract knowledge and power, and turn those tools on the people who had orchestrated the mess that led her to its gates in the first place. She was dragged to this Neo Konohagakure against her will. Shuffled out of the Whirlpool’s hospital and onto a cart with as little knowledge of what was going on as any other civilian. Left languishing in the tents, and makeshift shelters as the copy was erected around her. There was no real choice between attempting to brave the world with atrophied muscles and skills in equal quantity or staying where she might recover. Not with her task incomplete. The village was a phantom haunting the edge of her mind’s eye, and only her current path had spared her O’Inari’s wrath for choosing to wear the Leaf instead of dying in a ditch with her honor intact.
“The passion of the Will of Fire needs tending and solid stones to keep from becoming fanaticism. Stones that, I think, have not existed for quite some time.” The flame in her hand died down again to a more reasonable level, her hand turning it around slightly as she gazed into it for a moment. Who did Sadayo have to keep things in check? The faithless Yozen she’d sent to poke about in Amegakure? Her fickle, violent husband? The swollen mountain hermit? A gaggle of children, greenhorns, and malcontents whose faces and deeds she struggled to keep straight? Fickle creatures bending like dry reeds in the convection of the encroaching flames.
“I quench the stray blazes with blood, and I must admit difficulty in finding the animus you speak of from my perspective.” Behind her mask Coda’s eyes drooped thoughtfully as she closed her hand and snuffed the fire out. She’d probably strayed too close to truly speaking her mind, but she’d not conversed this candidly in years and it was easy to get drawn in by the allure of expression, knowing how fleeting the present moment was. She wasn’t stupid enough to say she’d dismantle all the villages if given the chance, but there was catharsis in dancing deftly around her true sentiments. Perhaps it was the demon’s influence, or simply getting to interact with more than just uptight vassals and foreign dignitaries for a change. “I suppose that uncertainty is part of what allows me to do my job at all. I suspect it would be much more difficult if I had your sense of propriety. I make due with my duty though, because someone has to attempt to tame the inferno, and I’m pretty hard to burn.”
[ You know I'm super out of the loop since I'm basically blind to anyone doing any planning or talking about anything, so I probably wouldn't have noticed anyways. Do what you need to do, take the time you need to take, post when you feel like it. Don't put keeping me entertained with this silly roleplay ahead of taking the space you need or doing something that's more important. Thanks for the heads up. ]
◁ Non-Activation Techs Used ▷ ıllıllı None ıllıllı
◁ Summon Techs Used ▷ ıllıllı None ıllıllı
◁ Active Modifiers ▷
[ Flowing Arts Training | Available | Cooldown 0/2 ] Any attack that follows a dodge or evasive technique is treated as a counterattack, and the user's total bonus to agility can be attributed to the strength of the next attack. When this ability is performed it cannot be used the following post.
[ Flowing Arts Training | Available | Cooldown 0/3 ] Once every [3] posts, the user may utilize an offensive technique that targets a specific part of the target's body that would disrupt their attack. This offensive attack deals damage regularly but allows the user to use their remaining activations as offensive as well.
[ Kyotoryuu Training | Available | Duration 0/2 | Cooldown 0/3 ] The Kyotouryuu practitioner can now react to an opponent by converting their speed into an agility boost for [2] posts with a [3] post cooldown. This requires no activation or resource cost.
◁ Passive Modifiers ▷
[ Yozen ] Fuuinjutsu techniques require [10] less chakra per body rank of the Yozen clansman (maximum of 60 at S+) without losing their potency.
[ Mach Style Training ] Make taijutsu complex, and "punch" ninjutsu orbs as projectiles. When in the shooter stance, the strength and speed of strikes is increased by [2] points instead of [1] point per rank.
[ Channeling Martial Skill Training ] Ability for techniques to carry two elemental properties. Ability to add bloodline elements.
[ Kaiser Fist Training ] The armor now emits a crackling, bright, white hot chakra that appears like a thin aura around the user. The chakra causes mild burns on contact. In addition, the user gains a [1] point increase to strength and speed per rank of the armor. ------- Kaiser Armor allows the user to regenerate 10 stamina per rank of chakra applied to each technique while the armor is active. The user may not generate more stamina than their reserves may hold. ------- The Kaiser Armor now causes searing burns upon contact that blister due to the crackling chakra. The user's strength and speed are increased by [1] point per rank of the armor. Taijutsu and bukijutsu techniques used while the armor is active create shock waves [5] feet in the direction of the attack per rank of the technique.
[ Mirror Image Arts Training ] The user may cast the Shadow Clone technique in conjunction with techniques from this style to replace mirror images with the clones. Casting Shadow Clones in this manner does not consume an activation. ------- The user has learned to control their chakra in a fine manner which allows them to create an additional mirror image per rank of the technique it is executed with. These additional images do not increase the strength of the parent technique.
