O being sent to potentially encounter a mythical beast per her family's request, she's arrived in hopes of mostly playing support, rather than winning the prize.
-- with anotsu uchiha - koma uzumaki - hoshiko hyuga - daichi konishi - mai aburame
O it seems bandits are a global challenge, but at least it isn't her teammate she's saving this time, and it looks like she has a pro to help her out this time.
Ah, so he wasn’t local. Aiko nodded at the answer, considering leaving it there, until he motioned for her to sit. The invitation was met with hesitation at first, but she moved closer as he spoke. His joke baffling her, his demeanor leaving her with more questions to ask as she came to a stop beside the empty chair across from him. [break][break]
“I see, that makes more sense” she softly noted, the map of the world passing through her mind. When it became clear he was truly inviting her to sit with him, she gave a proper grateful bow of her head and sat. “Sorry if I’m interrupting your meal, by the way. I can leave you be, it’s just I haven't had a chance to meet Hyūga members not from Ame, before” she explained, seated upright, proper posture and all.[break][break]
“My name is Aiko, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Voice soft, as if to not disrupt the atmosphere, gaze direct to show he had her attention, and all signs of a young lady raised to be poised at all times. It wasn’t hard to miss he was right in her upbringing, trained to be just as they all once were. Representatives of the Hyuga family, a clan now scattered across the world as many of them were.
Well, the rules of the game made enough sense, at least. Certainly nothing as complicated as shogi, much to her relief. Unfortunately for Mai, the fun aspect seemed a little lost on Aiko as her expression remained unchanging as her superior spoke. Even after the Chunin almost snickered to herself at a dumb joke in her mind. The only thing that broke her eye contact with the jonin was the permission to use ninja gear. A fact that had Aiko promptly check the crossbolt on her arm, then the arrows at her hip. In that moment of checking though, she slid a line of string from her pouch - hiding it in her sleeve for the moment. Ideas were already forming in her mind, though her attention settled on Daichi as she noticed his demeanor growing more anxious. [break][break]
Though he was trying to hide it, Aiko found Daichi was always a terrible liar. However, it was once more not the time to tackle that matter. He was seeking assurance in his words, to which she replied in kind. She nodded with a confident look of her own, gently elbowing him back. [break][break]
As the suspicious ball was produced, Aiko’s gaze fell to it. Her hand moved to make the necessary sign for activating her Byakugan as it seemed things were about to get into motion. A fact that became apparent with the second manifestation of Mai, formed from insects. A thought that made Aiko twitch her nose in vague discomfort. This was really an unfortunate foe to be facing, huh? Not only for her skill level, but her particular skill set. Aiko simply couldn’t stand bugs. [break][break]
“Ready?” [break][break]
Aiko nodded as she was addressed by both parties. It started not a beat too soon, and Aiko’s face stayed facing the Mai’s in front of her as the ball was promptly being thrown at Daichi. The throw was so straight forward, she wondered if there was more mischief at play, honestly. Daichi handed the ball off to her, and Aiko reluctantly took it from him, her brow furrowing a tick more with distrust. However, while it appeared that she was merely trying to make sure the ball wasn’t a trick, her fingers were making quick work of sliding the discrete wire around it. [break][break]
“Seems straightforward enough” she agreed to Daichi, before suddenly chucking the ball without further warning right at the Mai clone. A copy of Mai’s own straightforward toss from moments before. [break][break]
However, when the ball got close enough to be caught or hit it’s mark, it would suddenly be ripped back with the tug of Aiko’s hand and the wire. Now the ball was sent in reverse, flying back towards Daichi as Aiko ran at the clone. Intending to take advantage of the abrupt change of attacker - from ball to person - and pressing her hand to the center of the bug’s chest. Chakra pulsed from her hand, not doing anything at first, before bursting with the intent to cause the equivalent of internal damage it may have caused a person. A burst of energy to disturb the bug’s form, perhaps?
In the midst of her thinking, it hadn’t really dawned on her at first the sort of eyes she had made contact with. A pair much like her own, lost briefly in her thoughts as she looked for maybe a seat, or a host? However, those eyes caught her attention again when he began to move. He pointed, and Aiko turned slightly to look in the way he was motioning towards. [break][break]
However, there was no one there and it confused her a step further. Was there supposed to be something there? She swept some of her hair back from her face, turning just as he began to chuckle and confess to a joke. A joke that left her a tick embarrassed, judging by the faint pink to her cheeks as she turned around. However, she was also relieved by the fact she wasn’t going to have to interact with someone else after standing there like a fool.[break][break]
Finally, it would seem her predicament took a back seat, and she could really get a good look at the person who had helped her. Eyes like her own, making her brow quirk in brief recognition. Her face had maintained a sense of neutrality - despite her previous ‘help me’ gaze, so the quirk clearly broke a normally unmoving expression. It seemed the moment she made proper eye contact with him, a little switch of recognition flicked on in her head.[break][break]
“Oh, uh, thank you” she replied, moving from the entryway a step as if to go claim her own table. A sense of curiosity had her stop again though, lingering beside the young man’s table. “. . . My apologies, I wasn’t aware of a Hyuga family being in Otogakure, or are you from another country?” she inquired, staying standing so as to move along promptly if he clearly had no interest in talking to her. [break][break]
Normally she was one to not bother a stranger, but this was a matter she couldn’t ignore.
A brief intermission in her schedule left her wandering Otogakure once more, with little to do. Never was she one for tourism, as it was always a matter of getting to a place, doing her job, and getting home. So, this free time of waiting for something to happen was strange to say the least. Especially with the drastically different environment - underground and dry - she was having quite the time adjusting…[break][break]
And to this day, picking a place to eat was still definitely not her strong suit. She’d been waffling over the decision for far too long, considering radioing Daichi about it, before the embarrassment over the idea had her simply enter the first place she saw that smelt of warm food.[break][break]
Was this the kind of place you just sat yourself? Did she need to wait for a host to guide her to a seat? The confusion left her awkwardly standing there for a moment, unaware of her presence close to a boy slightly older than herself picking at his food. Should she ask him?[break][break]
The shame of this whole debacle left her silent, though. Despite her silence, the Hyuga boy may find it hard to miss a pair of familiar white eyes desperately glancing his way, as well as literally anyone else’s way, in search of an answer to this rather embarrassing conundrum.
It was to be a simple little teasing poke. A gentle friendly notion he clearly saw coming before it landed. However, it seemed to hit a button that brought forth a frightening - familiar- reaction. A recoil, a brace for pain and punishment. Though at a glance, it may have seemed he was simply spooked by the silly gesture, her gaze was locked on him. Long enough to see the panic in his eyes, the instinctual recoil of a victim. [break][break]
Her hand snapped back immediately, both of her hands intertwining behind her back in either’s painful grasp. [break][break]
As he answered her, Aiko was the one to fall quiet then. Her gaze left him to look ahead, thinking over the discomfort of the interaction just then. Her offer was rejected, and the mention of a master made her anxiety grow. A million questions danced in her mind, all of them felt out of place to pry, wrong to assume, but important in every single way. She wanted to say a lot of things, but it felt too fast for a situation like this. [break][break]
Swallowing back a bundle of nerves, she nodded at his words. [break][break]
“Okay, well, we can still at the least enjoy an ice cream together” she decided, offering a reassuring smile once more. “I’m sorry about that poke just now. It’s something I do to my sister to tease her, but you didn’t seem to like it. I promise if I touch you, there’s no intent to hurt you or something like that... I’ll keep my hands to myself going forward though” she assured, then tried to push past the awkward subject to something a little lighter. [break][break]
Though she wanted to say something like I promise I’ll never hurt you, it felt like such words were too sudden to say right then. It felt like a promise she couldn’t keep, anyways. [break][break]
“What kind of flavors do you like, Koma? Vanilla, chocolate… I think this place also has plenty of fruitier flavors as well. Maybe we could mix something together.”
Beautiful was certainly not the word Aiko would consider for herself on days like these. It was a strange compliment she didn’t want to linger on, nor deny her sister. The discomfort was better bottled up, then brought forward and disturbing the honest affection in Hoshiko’s eyes. It was about the closest Aiko had to someone ever looking at her like that these days. [break][break]
How she hated it at this moment, though. It felt wrong to be loved by the very person she had just…[break][break]
Letting out a small silent breath through her nose, Aiko’s gaze trailed over bruises and pain inflicted on her sister’s arm. Now that she was braced for the sight, her expression didn’t change this time. No paling or cringing, but simply taking it in, so she could fix it. It was one of the main reasons she’d begun trying to learn medical ninjutsu, after all. As Hoshiko pulled her sleeves back, Aiko tenderly took to the task of tying the sleeves up for her with small strips of fabric. That would keep them out of the way as Aiko worked.[break][break]
It would be as she started her first knot that Hoshiko once more answered in the worst way possible. Aiko couldn’t meet Hoshiko’s gaze then, but stayed focused on the task of tying back her sister’s sleeves. It took effort to not let her exhaustion show, as she simply smiled at her sister’s determination - excitement?[break][break]
“... Why is it that you want to be strong like me? Or that you enjoy this kind of training?” she asked softly, avoiding any negative tone. It was simple curiosity, as she grabbed the minty scented salve from the kit. It’d be the key to easing a lot of the aches and pains to come from the battering to her sister’s body, for sure… She reached over to gently pull one of Hoshiko’s arms towards herself, and began to gently rub the salve into place. [break][break]
The memory of her meeting with Anotsu drifted across the surface of her thoughts, pushing her to try and understand many things at once. Though Anotsu’s questions weren’t the same as Aiko’s own, she pondered if the goal was similar. “Do you have something you want to achieve, Hoshi?”
His leg was up and over, settling into her lap with little resistance. Honestly, she had expected him to be more vocal in response, saying something about how he didn’t need that or that he was really fine. Something of that degree, but it seemed he had meant it when he caved to the idea of treating his wounds more seriously. Even if he seemed a little awkward about the whole thing. [break][break]
If he was going to be so willing, a part of her wished she had suggested an even higher level of elevation. Her lap was merely the level she thought he might be more willing to agree to, but if she thought she could have her way, she probably would’ve told him to lay on the ground and put his foot up on the log or something. The higher, the better. However, there was no point lamenting on that, now.[break][break]
Aiko adjusted to the new weight in her lap, fluffing the jacket to ensure his leg was comfortably supported in their moment of rest. Now was a good time to help herself to one of the snacks as Daichi considered her offer of bringing these more often. It would be nice if he agreed to it. Definitely would be a good excuse to be in the kitchen more often, which she would certainly prefer. Plus, it seemed like a good idea to balance Daichi’s try-hard efforts with a proper snack break to reel him in every now and then.[break][break]
However, as Daichi answered her, it was definitely not the answer she was expecting. There was no hiding the little hint of confusion in her expression. Hanging out? Wait, why was he getting nervous as he spoke? Grabbing a bite to eat together? Why was she suddenly feeling anxious? Aiko blinked owlishly at the response, eyes slowly rolling over the scenery around them in search of some answer that wasn’t there. A hand drifted up to her hair, coiling some of the long loose locks around her fingers, as she found herself both confused, but not put off by his answer. Hanging out and eating together - outside of training…?[break][break]
A beat of quiet followed Daichi’s words, before she cleared her throat.[break][break]
“I’ll… I’ll keep that in mind, then” she managed, sliding her hand from her hair to tend to his foot. Once more, the warm brush of her chakra would greet his injured ankle as her hands delicately massaged the injury. The numbing salve should be helping reduce the pain by this point. “... There’s a couple of places I’ve been wanting to eat at, actually.” It felt so awkward to go to any of them alone, when she saw her peers frequently going to them together. [break][break]
“Or, well, I should ask what sort of places you like to eat at? I don’t eat out often, actually” she admitted with an almost timid chuckle.
there is no one more important in the world to her than her precious younger sister. hoshiko is the main reason aiko became a kunoichi in the first place, and is the main motivation for aiko to continue her pursuit in the ninja life style. aiko's main goal is to create a future where her sister isn't trapped under the same burdens and expectations as herself. [break][break]
aside from that, aiko would consider herself very close to her sister. the two relax in ways around each other that they simply cannot allow when in the presence of other people. there is no animosity here, outside of aiko's ever growing guilt for the abuse her sister is subjected to - whether it be by their family's hands, or aiko's own.
attacking bandits: concentrated closed chakra points in bandit's head and shoulder, then used the next strike to knock him out with an unfocused chakra blast and kick from her foot.
protecting koma uzumaki from bandits: stopped a man's attack and knock weapon from his hand - used knowledge of anatomy to hit his shoulder to prevent usage of his arm
tending to hoshiko's injuries: numbing salve to dull pain - anatomy comprehension, gentle fist skill - reverse engineering effect of gentle fist to dull pain, instead of cause it
tending to diachi's sprained ankle: numbing salve to dull pain - knowledge of antaomy and gentle fist skill - reverse engineering effect of gentle fist to dull pain, instead of cause it
A no was about what she anticipated, given this man’s approach to the situation, so there was no surprise there. In neither his answer, nor his addition to it. It was all simply confirming what she suspected. It was better to ask, than to assume though. So, it would be up to her and the genin to handle whatever Anotsu threw their way. The young Hyuga heiress nodded at his retort, slowly relaxing as things moved in a way she could better anticipate. [break][break]
Though, it would seem this was the end of their discussion thanks to a knock at the door. As the woman spoke, Aiko didn’t look away from Anotsu, but nodded in response to the message that was delivered. This mess of an encounter was over, and she could only hope the impression she made was mostly a good one. It didn’t feel like it was though, even if her mistakes were minor. Simply put, she was sure it wasn’t good enough.[break][break]
A thought that was disrupted by a hand suddenly atop her head, her hair being ruffled. It made her stiffen at first, as if anticipating something dreadful. The gesture clearly startled her, leaving her appearing a little baffled when she looked up at him. She opened her mouth, wanting to ask what he was doing, but the words caught in her throat as his own overshadowed any response she may have had. Her mouth slid shut, cheeks feeling warm with pink embarrassment.[break][break]
“Ah, I… Ye-Yes sir” she stammered, before clearing her throat. A brief flicker of perhaps a person behind that shell seemed to stumble out in her shock. As his hand slid from her hair, she rose to her feet promptly. Eager hands went to work fixing her messed hair as she stepped from him towards the door. Though when she reached the door, she stopped to turn towards him with a proper bow once more. “Thank you for your time, I’ll be sure to meet with the others ahead of our training.” Her words were spoken quickly, a nervous attempt to reclaim her prior mannerism. Without waiting for a response, Aiko swiftly made her way down the hall.[break][break]
There was at least one thing to take from this... [break][break]
Adjusting from the humidity of Amegakure to the dryness of Otogakure had been a rather jarring journey. From the fear of constant rain, to a need to make sure she was drinking far more water than she was used to, the new landscape was a journey in and of itself. However, it wasn’t a long journey, at least. She was already finding it easier to navigate the town and it’s bustling crowds. Smoothly navigating out of the way of busy patrons was simple when she herself wasn’t in any rush herself.[break][break]
Though, it seemed the moment she considered the relief of not needing to be somewhere, that something suddenly demanded her attention. A scream that made her jump, as those around her merely spared a glance and kept walking. It seemed the world was too busy to help, or perhaps those around her were too scared to do it themselves. With the influx of shinobi here, maybe they found it easier to pretend to not see and hope someone else did notice.[break][break]
Luckily, Aiko wasn’t one to turn away from these sorts of things.[break][break]
Sliding her way through, without an excuse me to offer at this time, Aiko made quick work towards the source of the noise. The distance meant nothing, as her Byakugan was activated by the time she drew closer to it. As she neared the edge of the crowd, she found a man who was pushing towards the noises as well. Or, she assumed that was the case, by him actively looking around in the direction or it all. Judging by his build, he was clearly a fighter. However, it seemed he wasn’t entirely sure of the direction to go - unlike her. With a split second decision, she shot a hand up as if to flag him down.[break][break]
Whether he could follow her or not became more of his problem than her’s.[break][break]
Being much smaller made it much easier for her to slip through the crowd, breaking off into the alleyway. It was easy to see for her, spotting the small crowd of thieves looming over their victim. With a quick use of the body flicker technique, in a burst of chakra she was in the air, dropping down from the sky above the thief as they were about to swing down on the woman again. [break][break]
Her feet crashed into the man’s face and chest, with all her weight and force, and a burst of chakra from her feet - right into points on his chest and head. This, while taking advantage of his already off balance position from the arch of his classless swing. The men around him jolted back with surprise at her sudden appearance, and wouldn’t have the time to keep her from forcing her target into the hard concrete below. Before he had a chance to react, her feet repositioned - one crashing down with a precise jab on his weapon wielding arm’s wrist, the other swiftly kicking for his temple with another precise burst to knock him out. [break][break]
She twisted the other foot as she stepped off, using quick feet work to kick the weapon from his lost grasp as she stepped away from him. Without craning her head, the next motion was a crossbow bolt firing off at the first of the men to go for her in response to her sudden attack. It was gave her enough time to get out of immediate grabbing range. The shock was wearing off, which mean a sneaky maneuver like that wouldn’t work, again. The men were yelling at her, asking mundane angry questions she didn’t bother minding at the moment. Her attention wasn’t on chatter, but the layout of the alley. While her eyes didn’t move, the scene formulated in her mind.[break][break]
The battered woman was on the ground behind the approaching men, crying, and frantically clutching her things - whatever it was the men were trying to take from her. There was at least five men, one of them now incapacitated from the assault to his skull just now, and his weapon down the alley. The other four of various strengths, sizes, were looming closer. It was just a matter of getting around them to grab the woman and run, yeah?
[break][break]
TLDR: Aiko activated Byakugan. Briefly waved at Seiichi before taking off down the alley. Took down one of the men from a surprise attack from above. Knocked him out via Gentle Fist technique in her feet. Fired off a crossbolt at another one of the men, and put distance between herself and the men to gauge the situation. 4 still standing.
When he spoke like an adult, it fed into her worry for what the young Koma may be going through. There should be something childish about his tone, something with a spark of energy or hint of freedom, but it was missing. It was a bit unnatural, but also made her want to stay there even more. If she could get maybe a smile or something less tense than his formalities from him today, she’d consider it a small victory.[break][break]
While his unnatural tone was concerning, she was at least proud of how aware he was. Her smile easing as he pointed out that she was clearly worried. Though he spoke in such a mature manner, the small pout preceded his assurance of wanting to come hinted at a younger personality. She chuckled softly with relief at that.[break][break]
“Good, good. I’m not a fan of people only doing things because they feel obligated to” she chirped back. “I’ll be sure to treat you to an extra scoop, in that case.” Then without warning, she lightly poked his reddening cheek. “Let me know if you’re not feeling well, though. A lot just happened, after all. I’m sure we can get the ice cream to go, and I’ll walk you home, alright?”
