"Sounds like a plan," Hide affirmed with a smile. "Let's carve up this over-bloated ikayaki."
One of the creature's tentacles darted at him. Narrowly dodging, he sliced it with a tanto. Too shallow. He wished he had a bigger sword.
Throwing his daggers into the air, Hideyoshi darted under the tentacle and with a powerful handplant-kick knocked the limb up into the air. Leaping back to his feet, he wove the handsigns for a water jet jutsu - aiming at the site of the cut, the high pressure water cleanly cut off the tentacle.
Catching the falling weapons, he checked to ensure Erika was doing fine before dashing forward. "Let's hope this takes him out!" he called through the chaos. "I'm running low!"
We ought to finish this soon, he thought to himself. If we can take out his eyes, Erika and I ought to be able to finish it with some water spears. Should have just enough chakra. He just hoped Erika had thought of something similar, and that their attempt went off without a hitch.
Swapping a tanto for a number of senbon needles, he threw them forward in front of him as he jumped and aimed to dig his blade into the creature's right eye.
"Shit..." Hideyoshi whispered under his breath, seeing the rainbow-like reflection from the water. Oil? Oil!? It shouldn't have been any surprise, yet it still pissed him off. Can't expect anything else from these Taiyou bastards.
"No, it doesn't look right. Because it isn't right." Making sure not to get too close, Hide continued. "There's oil in it." What a pain. This was going to cost them time and chakra to deal with.
Shaking his head, he beckoned for the Stone genin to stand back from the well. "Thankfully oil and water don't mix. I can pull all the water out slowly, but we have to be careful we don't blow ourselves up. Any spark from this blaze touches that oil and this well is done for."
Turning to the genin, he instructed him to fetch water repeatedly so that Hideyoshi wouldn't have to be near the potentially explosive well while he worked. Looking up at Izumi, he addressed the cloud shinobi. "You're from Kumogakure, right? I know this is probably grand coming from a Mist shinobi, but do you think you could watch our back? There's still no guarantee we won't be ambushed. There could be a saboteur lying in wait to light our asses up."
Fetching a number of containers to hold the filtered water in from the garden, dumping out potted plants as he went, Hide knelt down and began using Suiton to pull whatever water still remained in the buckets from the well out from underneath the oil.
Suiton [Water Release | Apprentice]「★★☆☆☆☆」 Well-versed enough in the use of Water-based jutsu, Hideyoshi possesses the ability to walk on water and use a wide variety of low-level Suiton techniques. He can make small waist-level waves and water spears of a few feet in length.
→
Suiton [Water Release | Journeyman]「★★★☆☆☆」 Far along in the use of Water-based jutsu, Hideyoshi possesses the ability to use a wide variety of Suiton techniques. He can make tall waves and numerous water spears, among a litany of other jutsu such as water clones and the water prison.
Releasing his jutsu, Hide had barely enough time to bring his arms up to protect his side before the tentacle slammed into him and sent him flying across the surface of the river. Bouncing off the water, he caught himself on all fours just in time to see the creature wrap his sister head to toe. "Eri!" he yelled from further down the waterway. I've got to free her!
Darting forward, he slipped his tantos away and suddenly splashed down underwater as one of the tentacles swung at him. At the bottom of the riverbed underneath the octopus he cast the Hiding in Mist jutsu - mist began to escape from the surface of the water around the octopus, clouding the air. A few more hand signs and Hideyoshi, along with 2 water clones, appeared inside the opaque cloud. One clone charged the octopus with his tantos, while the other went around the opposite side from Erika to distract some of the tentacles.
Using Erika's sounds as a guide, Hideyoshi ran up the octopus' arm and cut her free. The two fell down onto the water. Leaping back with Erika in his arms, he dispelled the mist jutsu and set her down. "Are you alright?" Ahead of them, the clones poofed into water and the octopus stared them down as the fog cleared.
"Pftt," he laughed. "Being a shinobi isn't that big of a deal." And to him, it was true. It was a job, more or less. "I'm sure you'd get better stories out of the teahouse host than me. What's there to tell? Went here, killed this guy, went there, escorted someone. It's all very inane. At least you'd get a laugh out of their's."
The building seemed to be quickly approaching. Some tea on a rainy day like this sounded euphoric. He couldn't wait.
Hideyoshi snorted at her description of the Land of Fire. "Really? You mean you haven't seen our volcanoes and lava-pits? They're so hard to miss."
Pretty well traveled. He looked her over again. "Wind, Earth, Fire, and now Water? Pretty impressive for a lone priestess," he jested. "No need for protection? Guess no one would dare to attack a helpless servant of the heavens." She certainly didn't seem new to dealing with shinobi, or at least, didn't seem nearly as unnerved as most civilian foreigners would.
He wasn't surprised she hadn't found any shrines, though he was starting to doubt she was simply on a pilgrimage to see different shrines. "You shouldn't be surprised to hear many of us aren't very religious. Bloody mist and all that. I'm sure our reputation precedes us. And I'd bet the fishermen out here only really pray that they'll catch more fish."
They had finally arrived. Hideyoshi stepped under the patio beside the woman. Before they entered, she asked him about whether him talking about his job was alright. "Who exactly do you take me for? I'm no Kage, and so long as you don't start asking about troop movements and village weaknesses, who really cares?" He certainly didn't anyway. Even if shinobi activities were supposed to be secret, they were his whole life. He didn't have much else to talk about anyway.
"I never caught your name."
Watching her wring out the water from herself, he used his neck scarf to wipe the moisture from his own face.
"Let's dispense with the formalities," he said with a twisted smile. "I, at least, don't give a shit. I'm Hideyoshi. Satō. No need for fake identities." Despite the snake-like blue eyes that were staring at her, there was no hostility in his body language. "Call me Hide."
Glad that Erika was showing Jun how instead of him, Hide watched with an inscrutable expression as she demonstrated how to perform the water-walking technique. He did well-enough at explaining things to most people, something he had to quite regularly as a Chuunin. But his own father? Dealing with him was always something Erika far outstripped him at. All her help was gladly appreciated.
A light smile passed over him as he saw her explain it in much better terms than he had. It was hard for him not to be proud: to see his younger sister progress so much from the mewling infant he'd first met so long ago to a shinobi in her own right. It didn't hurt that she too, could do something their father failed so miserably at. The end of his lip turned up at the thought.
Turning his attention to Jun as he begun to ready himself for his own attempt, Hide watched as he hung from the railing of the ship and tested the water with his toe. He'd long known that his father possessed a strong weakness for nearly anything chakra-related. From the absence of most ninjutsu in his arsenal, to the long nights of archery and taijutsu training that Hide could still feel in his wrists and bones, it was obvious. Hide had about as much confidence in him as Jun probably did the first time Hideyoshi picked up a bow and failed miserably to hit a target.
Jun stepped out and for a moment, the water held his weight.
He's doing it. The faintest twist appeared on his lips. He had a devilish little idea. Can't let it be too easy for him. In a split second, he changed the flow of his chakra into the technique, subtly causing the water directly under his father's foot to become choppy.
Jun dropped down into the river with a splash.
Stifling a laugh, his eyes portrayed a mean look. Thankfully his father was under the water to miss it. Glancing up at Erika, his expression faded away and he hoped she too had missed it. Suddenly he felt awful. She was probably rooting for him. Releasing the technique, the waves from Jun's fall passed under his feet. Hide stood up and walked towards the boat, grabbing the railing and lifting himself up to kneel beside his sister.
"Let's help him out, Erika." Hide's face was looking away, but he extended his hand towards his father.
Dropping the two kids and leaving them to run up the stairs themselves, Hide turned around just in time to see Erika usher the other two children away. With any potential bystanders out of the way, they were free to carry out their mission.
Returning her sly smile, he turned to face the creature as well. "Just doing my job." He intimated sarcastically. "Be careful, Eri."
Slipping his hand into his shirt, he retrieved his two tantos. "Let's see what exactly it is." Together with his sister, he ran towards the riverbank to meet it. But as he came to a stop, he was shocked to see Erika leap into the air, probably aiming to land atop the giant octopus's head. "Eri?" He exclaimed suddenly.
"Now's not the time for food jokes!" he noted, with concern in his voice. Part of him knew, that even for a genin, she could take care of herself. But he didn't want anything bad to happen to her. He also didn't want to seem like their father however. "Hope you know what you're doing!"
Pulling a number of senbon needles from his pouch, he quickly threw them towards the emerging shape before Erika could land. Most would miss, but it gave him enough time to sprint onto the surface of the water a bit away from the octopus. Weaving handsigns, he began to cast a jutsu that would raise the creature from the water a bit and stabilize it momentarily, giving Erika a better shot of landing atop it.
Hide really, honestly, truly, hadn't even wanted to be here. But just like with nearly everything he had to do, he'd been drug along by his father. What was even worse was that instead of joining the second recon team alongside Jun, he'd been left behind in the garrison. And now look at the place.
Buildings were drenched in oil and on fire, crisping up to the last shreds of wood. Bats filled the sky, shrieking and attacking anyone they could. It seemed his meager attempts to put out some of the blaze were doing next to nothing: he couldn't generate a substantial enough amount with his Suiton to extinguish them without a water source nearby.
The little black creatures had been swarming the area, and more than a few came at him specifically. A flailing of legs and swords would be useless against the tiny, hard to hit creatures. Forming a handseal, he gathered water in his mouth and spat it out in a violent explosion of tiny shrapnel-like droplets of water. It wasn't terribly powerful, but it was enough to unsummon most of the bats that surrounded him. The remainder of them he cut down with his tanto.
Sato had heard Anotsu call out to those with water release, but was then nearly deafened by a loud explosion: the concussive grenade had gone off near him. Reeling for a moment, he proceeded to break rank with the rest of the team futilely attempting to extinguish the firestorm.
Following the lead of the Rain Jonin, Hideyoshi burst through the break in the swarm and made his way to the garden that surrounded the shrine. He marveled at the giant sakura blossom tree, lit up by the glow of the fires that consumed Onomichi. Turning to those who had come with him, he prepared to speak but was suddenly interrupted by an ominous bell's toll.
Cautiously watching the building where the sound had come from, he split from the main group that had entered. "I'll head towards the well," he said without taking his eyes off the shrine. With careful steps and his tantos in his hands, he proceeded towards it while making sure there was nothing and no-one laying in wait. "Well, this isn't terrifying at all." He muttered under his breath.
A thin smile adorned Hide's face as he pulled his sister up to the surface of the water. "It's not so bad," he said. "A little bit of the Kirigakure culture. Wouldn't be the same without the gross pond scum." He faked pain and rubbed his arm in response to her punch, with a teasing look. At her call out to their father, he looked over to the boat with an ambiguous expression, not meeting Jun's eyes.
There was a separation between the father and son, more than just physically. It would've pained Hideyoshi, had he not pushed all those feelings deep away a long time ago. Nowadays he didn't think about it, preferring to spend his time doing anything else with anyone else when he could. Anything to occupy the time, anything to keep his mind busy. If he didn't, part of him was afraid he'd feel a little guilty.
An unfamiliar look crossed his father's face, one Hideyoshi couldn't say he'd seen in a long time, if ever. It looked pained to him, hurt. Hide's heart twinged with a strange feeling, but he didn't know the meaning.
"Will you teach me?"
Hideyoshi stared at him with the same blank expression for a number of seconds, taken aback. His father was asking him for help? What? He wasn't sure of what to say, or what to do. Turning to his sister, he studied her face. Her reassuring expression, loving smile, and tightened grip on his hand told him what he ought to do.
With an unsure tone, he stammered out a response. "Y-yeah... Fine." That's rich. How am I even supposed to teach him anything?
"Look," he sighed. "I'll still the water. You just put your feet out onto the surface while holding yourself from the boat."
Pulling his hand from Erika, he folded his index finger under his thumb to form the necessary handseal. As he did, the surface of the water underneath Jun became perfectly smooth and mirror-like. "Eri, go over there and demonstrate for him. Thanks." A one-sided smile showed her he was thankful for any help she could give.
"It's harder if the water is choppy. Like this, you'll just need to output a steady and smooth supply of chakra to your feet. We can move onto waves and moving around and stuff once you can stand still. Just imagine you're pushing against the surface of the water with your chakra."
Hideyoshi stood against a wall, surveying his surroundings. A little unnerved, he felt out of his element. A Kirigakure shinobi in Otogakure. It didn't seem right to him, like he was doing something wrong, like he was infiltrating the village. Yet he was here on 'official' business, accompanying Jun to the Land of Fire, or rather, had been drug along by him.
He hadn't been one of those selected to go Onomichi, nor did he really feel like his sticking his neck out for foreigners. So here he was, waiting for Jun to come back from whatever it was he doing. Hide side-eyed a couple of women who were staring at the headband dangling from his waist.
"Otogakure," he sighed under his breath.
A few other shinobi passed by in the street: sound ninja, a few from Land of Wind, people with dogs. The streets were full, but not packed. Regardless, the tight buildings and heavy foliage made Hideyoshi feel boxed in.
He decided to go for a walk.
Weaving through unfamiliar streets and alleyways, followed by inquisitive eyes, he ended up in the center of the village. There were a number of other people around him. Taking a seat on a bench, something caught his attention.
Another shinobi, about his age, approached with his hands in his jacket pockets. He had a head of dirty blond hair, bright eyes, and a smile on his face. Hide decided to have some fun.
"Something good happen?" He remarked with a mischievous smile.
Jun Satō - Father & Platoon Leader Jun is Hideyoshi's father, though the two don't get along well. Hide would always find some excuse to not spend time with him, if it wasn't for his sister Erika.
Erika Sato - Sister & Squadmate Erika is Hideyoshi's sister and favorite person. He would be a much different, much more bitter person without her in his life.
A handful of change fell into the young shinobi's hand. It was the remainder of his pay from his most recent mission, eaten up in its majority by his most recent purchase. Exiting the store, he entered the bright midday street and crinkled through his paper bag and retrieved the object of his affection for the rest of the day: a book he'd heard a good deal about, but wasn't even sure if he'd actually read. He hadn't read for fun in a few years, ever since becoming a genin.
Flipping open the pages and walking down the street, he began to read with one hand over his brow to block out the sun. He was quickly absorbed into the fantasy story as he continued on.
Minutes later, he lurched backwards as he realized he'd already reached the river-aqueduct faster than he'd expected and had nearly walked into it. Pulled from his trance, he looked around himself. From his vantage point at the bridge, he could see a number of children down playing by the water. He watched the scene for a moment, saw nothing else.
He had come to complete another mission, earn some more pocket money. It was a simple C-rank: a contract had been put out on some underwater creature that was seen lurking down the river, a bit out of town. Hideyoshi decided to wait and finish the chapter of his book before heading down the riverside to the spot where it had been seen. He flipped to the second-to-last page.
In the background, the water began to churn, though Hide was too absorbed to notice. A familiar voice's distant yell pulled him back to reality.
"Hey kids! Get away from there!"
Instantly, he knew who it belonged to. Erika? Pocketing his book, he turned and placed his hands on the railings to look out below. Maybe 50 feet away were the kids from before, his sister about 100 away. Between them, the surface of the water bulged as some large creature swam underneath towards the children. It's here? This close to the village?
Quickly thinking, Hideyoshi used the Tiger seal to perform Shunshin, disappearing in a puff of smoke. A moment later, he materialized next to the children. They jumped in fright, mumbling among themselves. Stumbling from disorientation, he grabbed two of them under his arms as they shrieked and began to run towards the nearby wooden stairs.
"Erika, move the other two!" He yelled as the creature swam closer and closer to the riverbank.
Hide watched with a tinge of sadness as Erika responded to their father. Part of him was glad she could still be close to Jun in a way he felt that he couldn't. The thought quickly left him - it wasn't something he wanted to dwell on. Thankfully Erika grabbed his arm and snapped him out of it. She whispered to him, but before she could yank him and pull them into the water, Jun approached.
His comment might have sounded sincere, but hardly anything anyone said truly sounded real to Hideyoshi. Besides, what was more fun than openly defying his father? The moment he had tried to stop them was the moment he'd decided to do it. He bent over to whisper to Eri. "You're right, it does." Looking back at Jun, he tipped backwards over the gunwale of the ship and brought Erika with him. They splashed into the water below.
Hide's eyes burned as he opened them, seeing a blurry image of the dirty and muddy river filled with teeth-like seaweed. The cold morning water shivered him to the core, but at least it woke him up. Placing a hand upon the surface of the water, he pulled himself up. Standing atop the surface of the water, he extended a hand down to help Erika out.
Her surprise at his reveal of the headband likewise surprised him. He didn't wear it openly, while he was off anyway. Sometimes he didn't bother wearing it even during missions with Genin, but if a Jonin or if the Mizukage himself was around he would slap it on haphazardly. Hide didn't consider himself to be much of a patriot, but the Land of Water wasn't so bad in his eyes. So her reaction made him wonder. Impressions didn't paint her as a fellow shinobi, but he wasn't interested in paying nearly that much attention to anything today.
More about the journey than the destination... Part of him wished he had that kind of time on his hands, to wander with no one waiting for him. "Land of Wind, eh? From the big city, I'd guess?" He'd never been that far and not much into history or geography, so the idea a priest like her could be from Amegakure didn't seem so absurd to him.
"Sure, I'll come with you. Again, nothing much to do today anyway." Taking off down the path to the teahouse, he continued. "Go ahead. I'm sure you've got some good stories from the road. It'd take a lot more than those to bore me."
In truth, he was interested at least a bit in hearing what she had to say. At the very least, he didn't mind spending his time in the company of a foreigner. Better than the fisherman hicks this far out, he thought.
"Where all've you been?"
Sumire Kabeya | WC: 254 | Not on Discord? Reminds me of the old days: I wish people still used plotters and OOC threads, old man moment I guess - I'll leave getting to the teahouse to you, could be a good spot to pick up another person for the thread too
