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>>5508485
“All dōjutsu come from the same place,” you explain. “I’m told it looks very similar too, so I’d be surprised if it wasn’t directly related to a common ability of Kaguya-hime’s rinnegan.”

Kōshū lets out a low whistle. “Well that’s an implication and a half. So am I gonna get to see this trick of yours in action?”

“Sure,” you nod. “Though I’m afraid it’s not much to look at.”

“You’re invisible when you’re a ghost?”

“That’s right.”

…

You carefully split off a portion of your spiritual energy - not all that dissimilar to creating a shadow clone without a body to go with it, which if you had to guess is how the Second Hokage probably performed a similar technique. He did after all invent many techniques, including the shadow clone and the Edo Tensei, the original reanimation technique which calls spirits from the Pure Land to inhabit a specially-prepared sacrificial shell. But in this case, to keep it stable, you split it off with a little bit of your physical energy as well - essentially, it’s a ‘clone’ without a definite form, rather than a true ‘ghost’. Otherwise it wouldn’t be a useful technique at all.

“... I’m not seeing anything,” Kōshū admits.

>Try to affect the environment using your ‘ghost’, kind of like a poltergeist.
>Use a pretty ninjutsu or genjutsu, show off a little bit.
>Interesting… play around with separating and combining chakra outside your body.
>Other?

>>5508488
>>Use a pretty ninjutsu or genjutsu, show off a little bit.

>5508488
>Use a pretty ninjutsu or genjutsu, show off a little bit.
That in and of itself can be very useful in battle, as a distraction.

>>5508488
>>Interesting… play around with separating and combining chakra outside your body.
That’s a pretty cute Kōshū

>>5508488
>>Try to affect the environment using your ‘ghost’, kind of like a poltergeist.

>>5508488
>>Interesting… play around with separating and combining chakra outside your body.

Anything that says "interesting" with a dot dot dot makes me curious af

>>5508488
>>Interesting… play around with separating and combining chakra outside your body.

>>5508488
>Use a pretty ninjutsu or genjutsu, show off a little bit.

Getting comfortable first is probably the best.

>>5508488
>Interesting… play around with separating and combining chakra outside your body.

>>5508518
Wifi test

>>5509242
Okay, since I can into internet right now give me a roll
>1d6
>best three of four
>higher is better

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5509298

Rolled 1 (1d6)

>>5509298

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5509298
Uh oh, stinky!

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>5509298

>>5509298
It stands to reason that since you lack a physical form when using this technique, you can’t possibly be considered ‘moving’ - satisfying one of the necessary conditions to collect natural energy from your surroundings. That’s actually quite an advantage, and one you’re keen to try and leverage.

“I’m going to try something dangerous,” you admit. “I’m going to collect natural energy with my ‘ghost’ to create senjutsu chakra with its spiritual and physical energy, them merge the ‘ghost’ back into my body, giving me a small amount of senjutsu chakra.”

There’s a long pause. “Okay,” Kōshū admits with a slight frown, “I caught about half of that. So let me see if I understand you. You’ve used your Ryūmei to create a ‘ghost’ clone of yourself.”

“Yes,” you nod.

“And you’re going to use it to collect energy from the living world,” she continues.

“Right.”

“And then when it goes back into being a part of your…” she pauses for a moment. “Soul, I guess. That means you’ll… what?”

“If I do it right I’ll go into sage mode for a fixed amount of time.”

“And if you do it wrong?” she asks you with a worried expression.

“You’re asking what will happen to me?” you ask.

“That,” she nods, “and what should I say to your family if you like… I dunno, explode, or whatever it is that happens when someone screws up sage mode?”

“I’ll probably turn into a statue of a bird.”

“Okay,” she nods. “You’re sure about doing this?”

You quickly bite the tip of your thumb and weave a few seals. “Kuchiyose: Kiburi!”

The familiar little shrike appears in a puff of smoke, perched on your wrist. “I see you have company, Shiki.”

“Kiburi, I need to ask you a favor,” you explain.

“I’m listening, of course.”
>1/2

>>5510373
You quickly explain your plan to Kiburi, who seems to accept the basic premise. However, she cautions you as well.

“Please keep in mind that I am not certain how I will perform when called upon to help manage a sudden increase in senjutsu chakra,” she tells you. “Even with me here to watch over you, this is still a risk.”

“I’m aware,” you nod, “but thank you for making that point clearer. Are you ready?”

She dips her head. “Whenever you are.”

“Alright then… let’s begin.”

…

The sensation is strange, and due to the limited manner in which you mixed in natural energy it only lasted for a little while. The ‘ghost’ didn’t account for much of your chakra. But for ten seconds, you can feel what it’s like to be a sage.

“That was quite good,” Kiburi informs you. “Keep this up and it should become a mainstay technique.”

A visibly-stunned Kōshū offers a nervous laugh. “Man, if that’s just a tiny little bit of what a sage is like… damn.”

>Not quite. But if I had my ‘ghost’ stay in my own body and gather natural energy…
>That’s enough for now. I should practice the basic technique to the point of mastery.
>It’s a very useful ability. I should really polish some of its more ‘mundane’ uses.
>Other?

>>5510505
>>Not quite. But if I had my ‘ghost’ stay in my own body and gather natural energy…

>>5510505
>Not quite. But if I had my ‘ghost’ stay in my own body and gather natural energy…

>>5510505
>Not quite. But if I had my ‘ghost’ stay in my own body and gather natural energy…

>>5510505
>>Not quite. But if I had my ‘ghost’ stay in my own body and gather natural energy…

>>5510505
>1d6, best three of four

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5511330

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5511330
Alright don't fuck this up.

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5511330

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5511330

>>5510505
“... that didn’t quite do it,” you admit. “But if I had my ‘ghost’ possess my own body, that could be a solution to the main problem with senjutsu.”

“Because the ‘ghost’ can’t be ‘moving’ because it has no physical form,” Kōshū intuits.

“Right.”

“That’s insane,” she sighs. “You’re insane. But I’m here for it, so let’s see it.”

…

Only trouble is, it’s not that simple in practice.

You feel like it’s possible, but for some reason you just can’t quite get the hang of ‘possessing’ your own body like that. You can ‘possess’ Kiburi. You can also ‘possess’ Kōshū. Hell, you even ‘possess’ a nearby tree for good measure. But using it on yourself only results in slowing how quickly the fragment of your soul reincorporates itself into your body and mixes with the rest of your chakra.

“Should’ve known it wouldn’t be a shortcut,” you sigh wearily.

“Well, any other ideas?” Kōshū wonders.

>Yeah, I think so. My mom uses a sword, Umekiri-maru, to draw in fresh natural energy.
>Just hiraishin. If you can do it targeting a shadow clone I bet you can do it to a chakra ghost.
>Nah, let’s do something you wanna do. Name it.
>Other?

>>5511539
>>Nah, let’s do something you wanna do. Name it.

>>5511539
>>Nah, let’s do something you wanna do. Name it.

inb4 handholding

>>5511539
>Nah, let’s do something you wanna do. Name it.
but we could totally just inhabit our own knife

>>5511539
>>Nah, let’s do something you wanna do. Name it.

>>5511539
After a moment in which you consider possessing your own knife, you shake your head. “Nah, I’m out. It’s your turn to come up with something to do.”

Kōshū-kun seems to consider the question for a few moments of her own. “Actually, I’m curious about something.”

“What’s up?”

“I’m still thinking about the whole theme for the day,” she admits. “And I have just the thing.”
>1d6, third roll only

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5512404

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>5512404

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>5512404

>>5512404
“Is that so?” you muse. “So what were you thinking?”

“Oh, nothing too serious,” Kōshū smirks. “I was thinking we could walk around town holding hands for the rest of the evening. Could be nice.”

“... you’re messing with me.”

“I am,” she admits. “But I wouldn’t mind it.”

You allow yourself a little snort. “I bet you wouldn’t. So what’re you thinking, for real?”

“Well, I’ve seen where you live,” Kōshū muses with a smile as she counts on her fingers. “And I’ve seen how you train, and I’ve met some of your cohort. You’ve seen one of my hobbies, and a bit about how I train.”

“So I’m down by one?” you reason.

“Something like that,” she agrees. “The problem is that we’re in Konohagakure - you’re actually from Amegakure, while I’m from Kirigakure but I live in Sunagakure.”

“And none of those places are here.”

“By definition.”

“And you think you have a solution?”

She nods. “I think I do.”

…

“So what’s this?” you wonder aloud.

“You’ll see,” Kōshū smirks, before knocking at a door off one of the village’s shopping streets. “I’m coming in!”

“Welcome - ah, Lady Kōshū!” a woman with long brown hair who’s maybe a few years younger than your parents greets you, immediately coming over to Kōshū and clasping hands with her excitedly. “I had no idea you were in Konoha! Who’s your friend?”

“Yukata-san, this is Uzumaki Shiki-kun,” Kōshū introduces you. “Shikkun, this is Yukata-san, she fought in my mom’s unit during the war.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Shiki-kun,” Yukata-san replies cheerfully. “Say, you wouldn’t happen to be related to the current Lord Hokage, would you?”
>1/2

>>5514009
“Not closely, no,” you admit, “though we’re descended from the same clan.”

“Oh, how fascinating!” this new woman exclaims. “Please, take any table in the house!”

“A restaurant run by an expat from the Land of Wind?” you muse.

Kōshū-kun nods with a slight smile. “Even the interior decor is pretty accurate.”

The inside of the restaurant - for a restaurant this is - does look a lot like how you recall the Land of Wind appearing, both the few buildings you saw on this last mission and the distant memories of a childhood visit when you were far too young to attach any importance to them. The walls are a light shade of plaster, like a very fine-grained sand both to your eye and to the touch, and dark wooden beams cross the ceiling as though supporting it, though in the back of your mind you know that’s not the case.

The owner, Yukata-san, quickly brings you chilled (though not iced) water with cucumber, which you think you recall being a traditional show of hospitality for the Land of Wind. Dinner consists of a dish made from coarse-milled wheat, pistachio, and dried cherries, a small pastry made from thin layers of light and flaky dough filled with spiced ground meat, and a stew in a clay pot made from sliced lamb, root vegetables, nuts, chickpeas, and a heady mix of spices that blend together so thoroughly it’s hard to pick out individual flavors. If you had to guess you’d say mint leaf and chili paste are among them, and the color suggests maybe a few strands of saffron.

“So?” Kōshū asks curiously as an employee clears the dishes. “What do you think of my homeland’s cuisine?”

“The spices are amazing,” you reply with a contented smile. “Very warm and rich, but not heavy. It’s a nice change of pace.”

“I’m glad to hear it, Uzumaki-kun,” Yukata-san replies, pouring you some hot mint tea.

“I prefer it to the Land of Water, honestly,” Kōshū-kun admits. “Too much of what they do there is along the lines of sashimi, or lightly steamed fish dishes… I like fish just fine, but I also like spices.”

>Have you… ever considered where you’ll end up once you’re an adult?
>I think the art museum also has some stuff from the Land of Wind if you’re game?
>Other?

>>5514147
>>I think the art museum also has some stuff from the Land of Wind if you’re game?

I'm fine with keeping things light.

>>5514147
>>Have you… ever considered where you’ll end up once you’re an adult?

>>5514147
>>I think the art museum also has some stuff from the Land of Wind if you’re game?

>>5514147
>Have you… ever considered where you’ll end up once you’re an adult?

I think this is basically the core of what she's worried about right now
She probably doesn't feel like she really belongs where she is, and she also probably don't feel like she has much control over her life at all.

She might end up saying to hell with it and trying to run off.

>>5514147
>Have you… ever considered where you’ll end up once you’re an adult?

>>5514147
“... Kōshū-kun,” you sigh, setting aside your glass, “sorry, but I’ve got one serious question.”

She raises an eyebrow. “Just one?”

“For now,” you nod. “May I?”

After a moment she gestures silently for you to continue. “So, with all of this in mind… do you have a plan for what comes next? When you’re an adult?”

“Well I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t considered going rogue,” Kōshū-kun shrugs. “But that’s not an option these days.”

“How so?” you ask. “I mean I think I can guess, but I’d like to hear your thoughts.”

“Well it’s a time of peace,” she observes, “and we have fewer shinobi these days with really outstanding potential.”

“One of which leaving becomes a bigger deal if there are fewer to go around,” you complete the thought.

She nods. “And unlike back when the five nations were at war, the hidden villages can afford to spare the muscle to deal with traitors without fear of an opportunistic attack. It’d be no kinda life.”

“So that’s off the table,” you agree. “So what options does that leave?”

“Well,” she muses, “I guess I could absolutely insist on working for the Shinobi Union itself… that’d get people off my back.”

“It would,” you nod. “It might not convince them to let you marry who you want though.”

“Fair,” she agrees, “but at worst it’d let me avoid my still-purely-hypothetical husband.”

“And killing the village elders is similarly off the table,” you sigh.

“It was never really on the table,” Kōshū shrugs. “Why, do you think it should’ve been?”

“If it were Naori-ue it would’ve been,” you explain. “That’s just part of her decisionmaking process I think - the ‘can I just kill this problem’ question always has to get answered at some point.”
>1/2

>>5516077
“Anyway, there are three other solutions I could think of,” Kōshū muses. “One is to become a kage myself, but doing that for such a selfish reason would bug the hell out of me. I could also maybe get one of the Seven, which’d make me too much of an asset to Kirigakure.”

“Which one would you go for?” you ask curiously. “I mean if you had a choice?”

“Can’t count on Samehada taking a liking to me,” she admits with a chuckle, “and Kiba and Hiramekarei are spoken for. Kubikiribōchō’d be interesting… imagine coating it like an ice-mirror.”

“That…” you frown, considering what sort of tactics Kōshū could pull off with a pair of ice mirrors that she could wield like a sword. “That’s slightly terrifying.”

“I know, right?” she grins. “Nuibari’s the only other one I’d even think about using. Good piercing ability, with some tricks to play using the wire.”

“And the third solution?” you ask.

“Marry someone who’s a big enough deal nobody can argue about it,” she shrugs, “and who has no need for a ‘prize’ like me.”

“Small pool,” you mutter.

“At least one guy fits the bill,” Kōshū observes. “But I’m sure there are others out there.”

>Honestly, I think you’d make a good wielder for any of the Seven. I think you should go for it.
>Well, I can’t say we WON’T end up dating, so I think you should pursue all avenues, you know?
>When was the last time you actually spoke with everyone involved?
>Other?

>>5516588
>>When was the last time you actually spoke with everyone involved?
maybe it's as easy as saying "no"

>>5516588
>>When was the last time you actually spoke with everyone involved?

>>5516588
>>Honestly, I think you’d make a good wielder for any of the Seven.
but
>>When was the last time you actually spoke with everyone involved?

>>5516588
>When was the last time you actually spoke with everyone involved?
>We'll call the marriage a solid plan B, though.

>>5516588
“I’m curious,” you admit. “When was the last time you talked with everyone concerned?”

“Before the chūnin exams,” Kōshū informs you with a sigh, not especially heavy but definitely weary. Without saying as much, that reaction tells you that she’s discussed this topic with her parents and uncles many times before. “It’s always the same ‘be patient and see’ sorta garbage - it bugs them too, but they’re still hoping it all works out anyway.”

“Have you considered asking them about it again after the exams?” you ask.

She shakes her head. “Probably soon. But I haven’t exactly got a reason to think they’ll change their tune.”

“Well then it sounds like it’s a good thing you have two solid backup plans,” you tell her. "Things you can move forward on while pretending to be 'patient'."

>I could arrange a meeting with Naori-ue about the Seven, if you’d like.
>How much do you know about kendō, and how willing are you to learn?
>Try talking to them again when you can - then we’ll plan something based on what they say.
>Other?

>>5517965
>>I could arrange a meeting with Naori-ue about the Seven, if you’d like.
the kubikipinocho is basically a polearm so she's got the training for it

>>5517965
>How much do you know about kendō, and how willing are you to learn?

This seems like a good way to get closer with her, by training together.

>>5517965
>>I could arrange a meeting with Naori-ue about the Seven, if you’d like.

>>5517965
>I could arrange a meeting with Naori-ue about the Seven, if you’d like.

>>5517965
“I can mention this to Naori-ue,” you tell Kōshū. “Maybe get you a meeting, if you can think about how to make some inroads with her.”

“Guess it’d be on me from there,” she shrugs. “But that would be great… thanks.”

“Sure.”

“No, really,” she smiles, almost as if to herself. “I know this is weird and all, but even if we never end up as a thing down the road I’ll still be grateful, you know?”

“Of course,” you nod calmly. “But for real, I’m just doing and saying what feels right. So don’t give me too much credit.”

“Shikkun,” Kōshū muses, “that attitude’s exactly why you get credit.”

“Hey,” you smirk. “I said too much credit. I’ll still take it where it’s due so long as you’re offering.”

…

“It’s getting late,” Kōshū observes after dinner. It’s now fully dark, and the whole village is now illuminated entirely by artificial light - from street lamps, from the highrise buildings, from the insides of the shops that line the streets. “So, what now?”

“I have one more thing to show you,” you insist. “Come on.”

You lead your guest across rooftops through the old village center, toward one of the few clusters of highrise buildings that sit within the crater where the shinobi who called himself ‘Pain’ destroyed almost all of Konohagakure in a single blast many years ago. This cluster doesn’t sit within the arc of the hospital that your mother protected that day, so it’s entirely new and stands out rather sorely.

But you can’t argue with one aspect.

At the top of one building, which is round like many of the older buildings in nearby neighborhoods, there’s a public viewing platform. That’s where you take Kōshū.

“This is the tallest building with a direct view of the Hokage rock and the entire old city center,” you explain. “You can’t quite see the whole village, but all the important bits.”
>1/2

>>5519147
“It’s a great view,” she admits with a smile. “I’m glad you brought me - I wouldn’t’ve guessed there’d be something like this up here. It’s surprisingly not that busy… you’d expect with a view like this there’d be a cheap restaurant or something to capitalize on it.”

“That’s downstairs,” you grimace… how true.

But after a moment, you realize that something is bothering you.

“What is it?” Kōshū asks you quietly, the mood suddenly having taken a turn. She realizes that you’re bothered, and she probably assumes that if something’s suddenly bothering you it’s worth knowing about.

>1d6, taking the best three of four

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>5519152
Motherfucker interrupted our date, time to tear out someone's throat

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>5519152

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>5519152

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>5519152

>>5519152
“How many people are here with us?” you ask quietly.

Kōshū’s answer is immediate, her tone carefully controlled and the volume of her voice low enough not to be overheard. “Eleven, why?”

“That’s the number of bodies,” you counter, “yes. Did you know that as a sage in training I can sense living things?”

“No,” she replies. “Why?”

“If there are eleven people here aside from us,” you ask, “then why can I only sense ten?”

Her expression darkens. “Puppet?”

“Maybe,” you admit, “but if it has a master I can't tell.”

“Which one?”

“Standing by the railing,” you tell her. “In the middle. Describe it.”

“Wearing a dark hooded jacket,” Kōshū informs you, her voice still low. “Tall, fairly large. Back turned towards us.”

>We need to get people to leave voluntarily. Do me a favor and set off a fire alarm.
>This should be handled quietly. We’ll observe until we know what we’re looking at.
>We should call in reinforcements from the Konoha police force.
>Other?

>>5520560
>>This should be handled quietly. We’ll observe until we know what we’re looking at.

>>5520560
>>This should be handled quietly. We’ll observe until we know what we’re looking at.

>>5520560
>This should be handled quietly. We’ll observe until we know what we’re looking at.

>>5520560
>>This should be handled quietly. We’ll observe until we know what we’re looking at.

>>5520560
>This should be handled quietly. We’ll observe until we know what we’re looking at.

>>5520560
>1d6 best three of four

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5521517

Rolled 1 (1d6)

>>5521517

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5521517
Not a great start

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>5521517

>>5521517
You decide to take things slowly, and prepare quietly. To that end, the first thing you do is use the ryūmei to split off two portions of your soul into ‘ghosts’, one of which finds its way to the ground floor so that it can summon and then ‘possesses’ Isoka outdoors, who takes to the air to give you a literal bird’s eye view outside the building. The second ghost heads straight for the machinery room for one of the two sets of twin elevator shafts serving the various floors, including the rooftop viewing platform. That will be a fine place to set off a fire alarm in case you have a sudden need to evacuate the building.

“Alright, I’m ready,” you inform Kōshū.

“It hasn’t moved,” she observes.

A few people come and go, essentially minding their own business. None suspect that an unliving thing is standing there, observing the village from on high, for what purpose you can only guess. But you do start to gather a little information of your own.

If it’s a puppet, then it’s like those used by the Ōtsutsuki - you can see no strings even with your enhanced vision, and so this thing is either autonomous, or it’s being controlled through some form of electromagnetic waves (most likely radio) carrying its instructions. Unlike your mother and other members of Akatsuki, who used a form of genjutsu to communicate over improbable distances in real time, it does not feel that chakra is involved in this.

>Move in to apprehend the target quickly.
>Clear the building, then go on the offense.
>Call for backup and stay near the puppet.
>Other?

>>5521915
>Call for backup and stay near the puppet.
Is this kankuro testing us?

>>5521915
>>Call for backup and stay near the puppet.
Don’t be a hero.

>>5521915
>>Call for backup and stay near the puppet.

>>5521915
>1d6 high roll first three

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5522934

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5522934

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>5522934

>>5522934
You give Kōshū-kun a subtle gesture telling her to watch over your shoulder as you turn your back to the puppet, and take out your phone. The first number you dial is Hanabi-sensei’s, and after three rings she answers.

“Shiki-kun?” she grumbles. “I’m at a clan meeting with my father, can this wait?”

“Yeah,” you reply, “my parents have a mission for you. This one is near and dear to their hearts.”

There’s a pause. “Are you in trouble?”

Your tone is measured and calm. “That’s right.”

“Where are you?”

“I’ll text you the location,” you answer. “There’s a squatter at the property and they need you to serve an eviction notice.”

“A dangerous person… from outside the village?”

“That’s right.”

“How many?”

“Just the single occupant,” you reply.

“Are there any bystanders?”

“Yeah,” you muse, trying hard to keep up the act, “it’d be better not to disturb the neighbors if you can avoid it.”

“I can have a jōnin there in about five minutes. Is it safe for you to stay there?”

“For now,” you reply. “But I’d prefer that this get done sooner rather than later.”

“Okay,” Hanabi-sensei replies. “I’ll hang up now, so text me the address and I’ll get someone there as quickly as possible.”

“Thanks, Okada-san,” you reply. “I’m sure my parents will be grateful.”

Then you hang up and text the address of the building and the floor to Hanabi-sensei.
>1/2

>>5523927
>ninja phone can send texts
>doesn't have a function specifically for sending emergency texts that shouldn't be ignored

>>5523927
“It’s gonna get taken care of,” you tell Kōshū cryptically. “All we need to do is wait.”

“Well, however the powers that be wanna handle it,” she replies. “Just be ready for it to get messy.”

“Oh yeah,” you agree. “Don’t worry about that, I’ve seen my parents have to take care of squatters before, so I know it can get ugly.”

“When will we know?”

“A few minutes.”

“Wow, you get such excellent service,” she muses, seemingly genuinely impressed at the promised response time. “How will we know?”

“I think we just need to be ready,” you admit. You have no idea who will end up getting sent here, but broadly speaking very few jōnin are at your sensei’s level of skill and power - many of them are, in one way or another, much closer to to chūnin than many in the general public would be comfortable knowing. After all it’s rare to get people who are exceptional at one of the three ‘pillars’ of the shinobi arts, let alone at all three.

…

Several minutes pass, and people come and go in the mean time. Then you notice a figure darting through the darkness in an alley near the base of the building, courtesy of your Kiburi’s-eye view. He weaves a few hand seals and activates a technique you recognize as being in the same family as the meisaigakure technique - bending light around his body to reduce his visibility. Then he climbs up the outer wall of the building with the same technique genin train in to climb up trees, never missing a stride.

He positions himself atop a roof-mounted air conditioning unit and observes for a few moments - you can tell he’s there only by the feeling you get from his life force, and even at that it’s only a general direction and distance. You couldn’t pinpoint him with any reasonable accuracy.

Then he moves.
>2/3

>>5524536
The camouflage flickers and partly fails as he takes up a good position to attack from without putting any bystanders in his line of fire - which is good, because you recognize those hand seals.

“Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!”

Instead of being incinerated by the blast hower, the cloaked figure turns and presents its right palm to the incoming fireball, and slurps it down like Boruto would slurp down a milkshake all in one gulp. At the last second when the flames disappear completely, you spy a small device seemingly embedded in the figure’s palm.

It turns and throws a kunai, forcing the Konoha jōnin to evade, while the figure seemingly cuts its thumb with its own nails and weaves more seals you recognize.

“Kuchiyose no Jutsu.”

The voice is raspy, like the man to whom it belongs had smoked six packs of cheap cigarettes a day since he was in diapers, and washed down the butts with turpentine. From the smoke emerge two more similarly-cloaked figures, both lacking any sense of vitality that you can discern, and both lacking any chakra threads controlling them.

“That’s not right,” Kōshū. “Are those… corpses?”

She’s right - that’s the only explanation that fits the blood, the summoning technique, and the fact that they’re clearly not alive. These aren’t ‘puppets’ in the conventional sense at all - these are animated corpses that have been fitted with scientific ninja tools.

>The best way to do this is to get in close. That suits you and Kōshū just fine.
>You do have a fūinjutsu-based attack that can work against chakra absorption.
>Set off the fire alarms, get people evacuated and maybe do something with the water.
>Other?

>>5524539
>>Set off the fire alarms, get people evacuated and maybe do something with the water.
Civilians need to be protected.

>>5524539
>>Set off the fire alarms, get people evacuated and maybe do something with the water.

>>5524539
>Set off the fire alarms, get people evacuated and maybe do something with the water.

>>5524539
>Set off the fire alarms, get people evacuated and maybe do something with the water.

>>5524539
>>Set off the fire alarms, get people evacuated and maybe do something with the water.

>>5524539
>>Set off the fire alarms, get people evacuated and maybe do something with the water.

>>5524539
>1d6, best three of four

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5525338
Uh oh, stinky!

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5525338

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5525338

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>5525338
watch this roll chief

>>5524539
You decide that now is a good time to show what you’re holding in terms of a ‘hand’ right now, and so you use your ‘ghost’ to trigger the building’s fire alarms. The shrill sound alerts people throughout the building, and the sprinklers go offup here on the viewing level. Not quite like a steady rain, but there’s something there to work with at very least.

The cloaked intruders remain still even as the civilians on the viewing deck flee towards the stairs. You don’t move either at first, nor do Kōshū or the jōnin who was sent here to help resolve the situation.

“So, it’s three on three,” you muse, flicking your knife out from your pocket and twirling it with a little flourish that ends with the frame clasped firmly in your hand. The chakra running through it extends out past the clipped point, like a ghostly short sword.

Kōshū produces a spear from a sealing mark under her sleeve. “Looks that way. I like those odds.”

The engagement escalates quickly. You know that using any flashy ninjutsu will be difficult without feeding your enemy your chakra by mistake, and you suspect that if one lays a palm on you that would also be a bad development. So when the corpse-puppet you target draws out a tantō you resolve to deal with this cautiously, at least at first. Your weapons clash, taking small chips out of your enemy’s blade where they meet. But given the strength of the chakra running through your own blade it’s a wonder his isn’t sliced clean through.

His limbs move with a clumsy speed that seems just sufficient to keep pace, wrenching themselves into various positions required to parry. For a moment you sidestep as he reaches out with his left palm, trying to grab at your face, but by the time you sweep your blade for his wrist he’s raised that arm, and you’re forced to parry yourself.

“Damn,” you grumble. “You move pretty well for a dead man.”

Meanwhile Kōshū is squaring off with a corpse doll with a heavy crescent-shaped polearm, whose continuous movement is forcing her to approach the fight cautiously as well, while the jōnin is keeping one short step ahead of his own opponent in a knife fight with kunai.

Turning your attention back to your own opponent, you consider how best to eliminate an opponent like this.

>Use the water from the fire suppression system to hide in, and do your best imitation of the “silent killing” technique.
>Genjutsu may or may not work on then - but whether it does or not it will tell you more about how they were made.
>The problem is their hands, so far as you can tell, so use your chakra binding chains to remove that problem from the equation.
>Other?

>>5525731
>use the water from the sprinklers to kick up a cloud of steam to hide in
>then set a trap using explosive tags
>lure the puppets into the tags using sacrificial clones

>>5525731
>>The problem is their hands, so far as you can tell, so use your chakra binding chains to remove that problem from the equation.

with a bit of luck the chains can disrupt parts of the reanimation keeping them active

>>5525731
>>The problem is their hands, so far as you can tell, so use your chakra binding chains to remove that problem from the equation.

>>5525731
>The problem is their hands, so far as you can tell, so use your chakra binding chains to remove that problem from the equation.

>>5525731
>>The problem is their hands, so far as you can tell, so use your chakra binding chains to remove that problem from the equation.
Silent killing doesn’t work as don’t you have to spread your chakra into the water/mist to hind into?

>>5525731
>>The problem is their hands, so far as you can tell, so use your chakra binding chains to remove that problem from the equation.

>>5526026
So long as there's existing mist/rain/drizzle to use it wouldn't extend far. It's using nearby water to bend light or otherwise obscure vision. If you had to knead chakra to create the water in the first place that chakra could be absorbed.

>>5525731
>1d6 taking the first three
DC: 10
SP: 4/4

Rolled 1 (1d6)

>>5526716

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>5526716

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>5526716

>>5525731
This is a problem, you realize, since most of all shinobi techniques involve the controlled release of chakra. There are a few answers to this - commiting to taijutsu, or else a form of purely internal nintaijutsu, is one of them. But the other is to deal with the enemies hands, which appear to be the location of the scientific ninja tools embedded there which allow them to absorb chakra. You have one counter that may actually be ideal, you realize - the regular kongō fūsa might not reach its peak potential.

The tenrō fūsa however is a different story. To pursue the strategy you produce one chain from your left wrist.

Your opponent turns to face you, his eyes dead and vacant, and rushes forward with an inhuman burst of speed. The tenrō fūsa misses as the corpse doll vaults over it, though with a twist of your arm you’re able to manipulate the chain to sweep upward abruptly. It hits the doll in the chest, launching it into the air for a moment.

With no way to pursue it you wait for it to right itself and land on its feet. It charges again, though this time it uses a different approach. This time it creates a pair of shadow clones. One you dispel by twisting your tenrō fūsa, and the ‘real’ one you parry with your knife - his tantō slides off the edge of your chakra blade at the same time as your chain embeds itself in the floor to your side. You pull taut and pull yourself out of the way of both the second shadow clone and the real corpse, which tries to grab you again using its chakra absorbing trick.

The second clone takes a cluster of razor-sharp feathers to its back, courtesy of Kiburi who is still orbiting the building and had a clear line of sight. Then several of the feathers explode, albeit at what you’d consider a ‘low’ power, which sends the corpse tumbling.

As it rolls back to its feet it finds its ‘free’ arm entangled - it tries to loop the chain around it’s own shoulder and arm so that it can grab the chain with its hand, but when it does it starts to burn on that side.

“So that trick of yours is chakra-activated,” you grin maliciously as you and the corpse doll exchange a series of strikes with your blades, several of which you can twist the glowing flaming chakra chain in your left hand to parry. “Lucky me!”

>6d6 for the other two fights

Rolled 3, 5, 6, 5, 3, 1 = 23 (6d6)

>>5527055
Like this?

Rolled 1, 1, 3, 3, 2, 3 = 13 (6d6)

>>5527055

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5527055
Or this

>>5527062
Jesus that was bad

>>5527062
Jeez not great. Seen some horrible rolls lately.

>>5527058
Like this. Sorry about that, it's already been a long week.

Rolled 1, 2, 6, 5, 6, 2 = 22 (6d6)

>>5527055

>>5527055
At the same time as this is unfolding, you’re able to watch from above through the eyes of your partner. From Kiburi’s perspective you watch as Kōshū engages her opponent with her spear, keeping the corpse doll at a distance. Spear versus staff keeps them separated just enough so that the latter can’t easily grab Kōshū to siphon off her chakra, but at the same time its alacrity is shocking. Her haft cracks loudly against the staff, and she can’t seem to generate enough force to sweep the edge of the elongated spear-head through her opponent. Meanwhile, her ability to position herself seems to be greater.

The jōnin whose name you’ve never managed to catch is more or less holding his own, until his opponent strikes with his fist. The flak jacket seems to take most of the blow, but it does open up enough of a gap for the enemy to weave two quick hand seals after dropping his kunai.

“Katon: Ryūka no Jutsu!”

The corpse-doll uses a pretty decently-sized fire release technique, though when the flames clear the immediate result is that there’s a smouldering flak jacket lying on the floor. The corpse-doll draws another kunai to parry what would have been a fine sneak attack by the jōnin, who took just a little too long to reposition, and their battle continues.

Meanwhile Kōshū seizes an opening and sweeps low, carving a deep gash into her opponent’s right thigh, checking the movement so that her point stops aimed straight at his torso, and thrusts. The point of the spear emerges from the corpse’s back, but that doesnt stop him. In fact, he uses the moment to drop his staff and weave hand seals.

“Raiton…”

Too slow.

Kōshū sees the corpse-doll’s hands rise to weave seals instead of reaching to steal chakra, and so she sees a second opening in as many seconds. “Hyōton: Hissatsu Hyōsō.”

Ice rapidly encases the head of her spear before blooming into many cruel points where it’s been lodged inside her opponent, and those ice spears that emerge elsewhere from the animated corpse do tremendous damage. They rip off his jaw, sever his right arm, and open up his chest cavity all in an instant.
>1/2

>>5528261
Your own fight hangs in a precarious balance for a few moments, as your opponent first tries to physically pull you in closer by your own chakra chain, which you manage to counter by whipping its length and dashing to the side, which gets the chain behind him and makes it too awkward for him to continue applying pressure. He responds with a complicated maneuver, jumping and turning in the air to unwind himself, and in gaining a little slack he opens up an opportunity to weave hand seals…

… which causes him to promptly burst into white flames as his own chakra ignites.

In a single leap you close the distance, flames igniting well past the point of your knife and forming a bright-white brand. “Hijutsu: Tenrō Kaken!”

The blade of flame easily penetrates the corpse-doll’s chest, straight through his heart. The intensity of their heat incinerates a hole through his torso, which doesn’t stop him from trying to grab hold of the blade and draw out its chakra. But you notice that the temperature of your flames has not only burned flesh and rendered fat, it’s also started to melt the openings through which these dolls absorb chakra.

“... what a mockery,” you grumble as the corpse hits the floor. You point your knife at the doll and extend the flame, piercing through and incinerating its head. “On more than one level.”

>Back the jōnin up, take that third target down as quickly as possible.
>Seal away the remains of the two already taken down for later study.
>Destroy the remains completely, remove chances of them ‘reviving’.
>Other?

>>5529400
>>Back the jōnin up, take that third target down as quickly as possible.

>>5529400
>>Back the jōnin up, take that third target down as quickly as possible.

Keep the jonin alive, they might amount to something. They might even get a name!

>>5529400
>Back the jōnin up, take that third target down as quickly as possible.

>>5529400
>Back the jōnin up, take that third target down as quickly as possible.
We can't let her die

>>5529400
>>Back the jōnin up, take that third target down as quickly as possible.
This >>5529710 anon has the right idea!

>>5529710
>>5529866
>The jōnin whose name you’ve never managed to catch is more or less holding his own, until his opponent strikes with his fist.
Reading comprehension anons, it's important

>>5529400
>Seal away the remains
Evidence!

>>5529875
Just because shiki assumes they're a man, doesn't mean they are.
They're a ninja after all, so their clothes may be covering them up.

>>5529875
>>5529879
Cute tomboy jōnin! Everything is possible!

>>5529996
That's literally Koshu, Wasabi, or Sumire if you give them time to rank up. Every girl in Shiki's orbit is, to some extent, a tomboy.

>>5530591
And?
As if there can be enough tomboy ninjas?

>>5530613
Yeah, when I'm tired of introducing more.

Dude is a thirtysomething mook with a beard.

>>5530625
He is our brother in arms and we love him more than life itself

>>5530625
Hey he's a mook that survived the 4th Ninja war, show this veteran some respect please.

>>5530631
And i don't mean shiki, i mean all of us.
Because we're all 30 something mooks, quite possibly with beards.

>>5530625
Mooks deserve love too

>>5530625
Joninbro deserves our praise!

>>5529400
1d6, taking the first three
DC: 11
SP: 4/4

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>5531219

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5531219

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5531219
Yeeehaw!

>>5531219
>Do you want to spend 1 SP?
>Yes

>Yes, of course!

Spend it!
Protect joninbro with our lives!

>>5531286
Absolutely

>>5531286
>Yes

>>5531286
>Yes

>>5531286
I mean that wasn't me, but it's what I was going to ask anyway had I been awake.

>>5532026
the quest practically plays itself

>>5531286
Only one of the targets is still standing, putting up a fight against the jōnin who came to help you, so it only makes sense that you’d return the favor. It seems his style is heavily based around elemental ninjutsu, which makes an enemy that can absorb chakra pretty much the worst possible match for him. So you watch carefully for a critical moment, aware through Kiburi that Kōshū is doing the same, an icy mist already rolling along the floor.

It doesn’t take long - you notice that the corpse doll extends its arm a little too far to the side, and so you wrap one of your chains around its wrist from behind, giving the jōnin a perfect opening to slice off its arm at the elbow.

With one arm gone it’s not much of a fight. The jōnin knows well enough how to take advantage of an opponent’s crippled side without you telling him or stepping in again, and after a few more moments he plants his kunai into the doll’s temple, then swings a follow-up kick at it, driving the blade in almost up to its ring-pommel.

“Well,” the jōnin muses after taking a moment to catch his breath, walking away from the downed corpse and closer to you so you can talk. “That wasn’t what I expected to be doing tonight.”

“Same,” Kōshū grumbles. “Whatever just happened, it managed to interrupt a perfectly good…”

You can feel the buildup of chakra even before it becomes audible. “Kōshū! Mirror here!”

Even as you shout to her you whip up several more strands of your Tenrō Fūsa, creating a barrier that forms an angry red sphere of chakra. Had it been anyone else you can think of save for your mother Naori-ue they would probably have been stuck outside the protective barrier, and that would’ve been an end of it. But Kōshū, quick to understand your urgent words, manages to create two of her ice mirrors just in the nick of time, stepping out of the one she raised next to you inside your barrier as the world outside is reduced to chaos.

You keep the barrier up even when you hit the ground, and while great weighty chunks of debris collide with it and slide off. It’s not until a few seconds after things have gone quiet that you withdraw your chains. The debris around you settles for a moment.

“Everyone okay?”

“Fine,” Kōshū assures you. “Just bumped my butt when we fell. You?”

“... tired,” you grumble.
>1/2

>>5534018
“How far did we fall?” you wonder aloud.

“Looks like two floors,” the jōnin replies. “What the hell was that?”

“Bombs inside the dolls,” Kōshū states the obvious. “Or did you mean whose were they?”

“The second one,” the jōnin clarifies.

“I’m as in the dark as anyone,” she admits. “It didn’t seem like the Ōtsutsuki puppets in Gaara-san’s report.”

“Could either of you tell whether they had a heartbeat?” you ask.

Both shake their heads.

“Why?” the jōnin asks curiously. “I know Hanabi-sama thinks pretty highly of you, but surely you can’t have a theory already?”

“Not anymore,” you admit. “It was some kind of reanimation technique, but it wasn’t the Edo Tensei or the Shishi Dojō. So that leaves the Shikon technique as the basis, it’s just without hearing the heartbeat we can’t confirm it.”

“The Edo Tensei?” the jōnin wonders aloud with a frown. “The Second Hokage’s kinjutsu? How do you even know the difference between multiple reanimation jutsu?”

“I’m related to an expert,” you reply vaguely, glancing around the ruined room you’ve fallen into. “That’s enough talk for now, don’t you think?”

“Agreed,” Kōshū nods, before reaching out to offer you a hand getting up out of the rubble.

…

The nearest stairway is blocked with debris from the floors above, but at the far end of the building there’s one that’s neither choked with dust nor blocked by pieces of ceiling or wall. It seems like there’s damage to the floor beneath the one where you ended up, and that there’s been some flooding damage from the fire suppression system, but you also note that nobody was in the building by the time of the explosion.
>2/3

>>5534806
When you’re on the ground floor, shortly after one of the local police officers who have swarmed to the site puts a blanket over your shoulders, Kiburi joins you, perching on the back of your hand.

“I apologize,” she offers in a low, melodious tone. “I was not able to offer much help this time.”

“That’s okay,” you assure her. “If it’s innocent bystanders on the line sometimes the best plan is to hold off.”

“Thank you for understanding, and I am glad that I at least provided a better view for you,” she tells you. “It was quite a fight to see.”

“It was,” you agree. “Thank you. And I have to ask…”

“About the ghost possession technique of the Ryūmei bloodline?” Kiburi chirps. “It felt rather odd, but I would not say I found the experience offensive.”

“That’s good to hear,” you nod. “Thank you again Kiburi, please give my regards to the clan.”

“Of course, Shiki.”

Then the shrike disappears.

The jōnin seems confused for a moment. “Was that a…”

“Shiki-kun!”

Hanabi-sensei arrives on the scene, pushing her way through the crowd of civilians and officers to reach you. “Shiki-kun, are you okay? What happened?”

“A lot,” you admit. “Do the police… you know, wanna talk to us or something?”

“No, I arranged to debrief you,” she insists. “Good work getting here quickly… Matsuda-san, wasn’t it?”

The jōnin nods. “Yes, ma’am, though it’s not like I was gonna blow off Lord Seventh himself. I just wish someone’d told me who I was coming out here to help.”

“In any event, thanks,” Hanabi-sensei insists. “I know Shiki-kun can be a handful.”
>3/4

>>5535331
“Far from it!” Matsuda-san insists with a laugh. “I’ll make sure you get a copy of my report to Lord Seventh, it should make some interesting reading.”

“Yeah, I’m sure of that,” Hanabi-sensei sighs, before turning her attention (if not her head) back to you and Kōshū-kun try to slink off. “Now, for you two…”

You deflate. “Byakugan… huh?”

…

“So, what happened?” Hanabi-sensei asks you. She’s brought you and Kōshū-kun to the Archival Library, which by your quick reckoning (and probably hers) is the closest location with a truly “secured” room.

You go over the details with her patiently, with Kōshū filling in a few spots when you were either otherwise occupied or couldn’t directly see everything that was happening. All along Hanabi-sensei remains silent, brow slightly furrowed in concentration.
>1d6, high roll, best three of four

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5535381

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>5535381

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>5535381

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>5535381

>>5535381
Once you’ve finished your explanation, your sensei responds with a curt nod. “I need to make a call, hang on for a moment Shiki-kun, Kōshū-kun.”

She steps out and into the next room over, then a few minutes later she returns with a rather cross-looking Naori-ue. Not even a clone, but the real thing you recognize.

“Hi Shiki, Kōshū-kun,” she greets you, suddenly much more cheerful for a moment. “I hear you’ve had an interesting evening?”

“Very,” you confirm.

“Fantastic to see you both doing well,” she replies. When Uzumaki Naruto-san arrives a few minutes later her expression sours. “Cousin.”

“Naori-san,” he replies curtly. Unlike your mother, Naruto-san is represented by a shadow clone. “Hanabi-san, this was about the incident tonight, right?”

“Shiki-kun,” your sensei spares you a glance, “please just repeat everything you told me before.”

…

Your mother’s arms have been crossed for a while, and her eyes are watching her cousin warily. Eventually, once your explanation is finished, Naruto-san speaks up. “So, what do you think?”

“Yeah no,” Naori-ue grumbles, “the bodies were definitely reanimated by the Shikon no Jutsu. The rest sounds like scientific ninja tools… so it’s almost certainly their work. I thought you were already investigating?”

“Sasuke’s been trying for two years,” Naruto-san insists. “Not much luck. They’re good at covering their tracks.”

“Who are you talking about?” Kōshū asks.

“An organization that’s apparently called ‘Kara’,” Naruto-san declares. “There have been rumors among the underworld for some time, but until now they’ve made few definite moves that we could attribute to them.”

>And we just happened to stumble across them the day after an Ōtsutsuki appears… what, by accident?
>How much more do you know about this organization? Is it something like what Akatsuki once was?
>Hey mom… why are we having this discussion in front of me and Kōshū so casually? Isn’t this kinda sensitive?
>Other?

>>5536398
>And we just happened to stumble across them the day after an Ōtsutsuki appears… what, by accident?
Maybe, but i don't believe in coincidences.

>>5536398
>>Hey mom… why are we having this discussion in front of me and Kōshū so casually? Isn’t this kinda sensitive?

>>5536398
>And we just happened to stumble across them the day after an Ōtsutsuki appears… what, by accident?

>>5536398
>>Hey mom… why are we having this discussion in front of me and Kōshū so casually? Isn’t this kinda sensitive?

>>5536398
>Hey mom… why are we having this discussion in front of me and Kōshū so casually? Isn’t this kinda sensitive?

>>5536398
>>Hey mom… why are we having this discussion in front of me and Kōshū so casually? Isn’t this kinda sensitive?
Is Mom trying to ship us? Ohno, is she expecting grandchildren soon?

Also our Joninbro survived, what a relieve.

>>5536398
“I have a question,” you admit, addressing Naori-ue directly. “Why are you having this conversation in front of two chūnin? Alongside a jōnin-sensei, a village head, and a kage, we seem somewhat out of place.”

“Kinda feeling the same,” Kōshū-kun admits. “Isn’t this getting pretty far into S-rank shenanigans territory?”

“Yeah, it is,” Naori admits with a shrug. “That said you’ve already gotten involved, so you may as well hear the rest of it.”

Then she glances at Naruto-san. “Any objections?”

“No,” Naruto-san shakes his head.

“Then could you fill us in on what Sasuke’s been up to?” she presses.

“Trying to pin down this organization any way he can,” Naruto-san explains. “It’s like every lead he has goes cold at the last possible second - sometimes sites were abandoned just hours before he got there.”

“Didn’t he get into a couple of fights?” Naori-ue interrupts.

Naruto-san nods in agreement. “Yeah, and they all ended the same way - the guy Kara left behind to defend the place explodes.”

“Gee, that sounds familiar,” Kōshū grumbles.

“Speaking of which, your quick thinking probably saved the building,” Naori-ue muses, “and the lives of hundreds of bystanders inside it. Good work.”

“It was Shikkun’s idea,” Kōshū shrugs.

“I had help,” you offer.

“So now you know,” Naori-ue shrugs. “Naruto, do you want my help or not?”

“Yeah,” he sighs. “I think it’s past time to start cooperating on this… but quietly though.”

Something bothers you… Sasuke-san has amazing skills, right? Like, exceeding those of an ‘average’ kage across the board, even before considering his dōjutsu. So how is it that his targets seem to continually evade him, sometimes by ‘hours’?

“Something on your mind?” Hanabi-sensei asks you.

>It’s nothing.
>Who did Sasuke end up fighting, and where?
>Konoha has a leak. It's the only explanation.
>Other?

>>5537680
>>Who did Sasuke end up fighting, and where?

>>5537680
>Who did Sasuke end up fighting, and where?
>Is it possible that there's a leak?

>>5537683
>>5537680
This, sounds like what a young chuunin would say to his superiors

>>5537713
I mean, it's kind of rude to be so blunt about it.
Even if it's totally true.

>>5537680
>Konoha has a leak. It's the only explanation.

>>5537680
“Where and when was Sasuke-san doing his missions?” you ask with a frown, “and who were the people he fought?”

“Yeah no, I’d like to know too,” Naori-ue agrees. “He hasn’t told me much.”

“I can share the details with you later,” Naruto-san insists calmly. “There are quite a few reports to compile. As for who he fought, no single opponent has been clearly identified before, well, exploding - but all appeared to be former shinobi of the various hidden villages who were implanted with ninja tools.”

“And those advanced tools explode when they’re beaten,” Kōshū observes. “Gotcha.”

“Yeah that follows,” Naori-ue agrees. “Keeps the technology out of our hands, obscures the users’ identities, and causes plenty of collateral damage as a bonus. Very efficient.”

You forget sometimes that your mother spent several years of her childhood as a terrorist.

“And how many of these missions ended with the enemy escaping at the last second?” you press.

There’s a pause before Naruto answers. “Too many.”

“Then… are you certain that there isn’t a mole in Konohagakure anywhere?” you ask warily, laying your thinning on the matter bare. “Because that would account for it.”

“It’s what I would consider first,” Naori-ue agrees. “Not because I have any reason to think it likely, but because it’s the worst possible scenario.”

“I find it hard to believe,” he admits.

“Because you’re too trusting,” Naori-ue replies curtly.

Hanabi-sensei crosses her arms. “I can start making some discreet inquiries.”

“That would be helpful,” Naruto-san admits.

>So… are we excused?
>Hanabi-sensei, about our next mission…
>Naruto-san, may I take some time off to train?
>Other?

>>5538729
>>So… are we excused?

>>5538729
>So then, why did they come after Koshu and i? We were targeted directly.

>>5538729
>So… are we excused?

>>5538729
>>So… are we excused?

>>5538729
“Are we excused, then?” you ask warily.

Naori-ue glances at you. “Yeah no, what brought you to that building?”

“Good view,” you reply calmly.

“We were on a date-ish type thing,” Kōshū tries to explain. “The rooftop was a last-second kinda call.”

“So it wasn’t like you planned to be there?”

You shake your head. “I figure the corpse doll was there for the same reason we were - the view.”

After a moment, Naruto-san nods. “... then you can go home now. Good job, both of you.”

“I’ll escort them home,” Hanabi-sensei offers.

“Thank you, Hanabi-kun,” Naori-ue agrees. “Shiki, I’ll be along in a few moments.”

…

You are Uzumaki Naori, and a few moments after your son, his teacher, and his friend leave the room, Naruto finally speaks his mind.

“Naori,” he sighs, glancing out the glass doors of the secure room. “Have you been feeling alright these last few months?”

“Never better,” you reply with a dismissive shrug. “No for sure, I feel like I’m just as sharp as I always was, only my chakra reserves have kept growing and my skills are more refined than when we were kids.”

“Why?”

“I’m sure it’s nothing,” he replies, not even really trying to convince you.

“Don’t give me that.”

“It’s just it feels harder sometimes,” he admits. “To use my full power I mean. Like I said, I’m sure it’s nothing ya know.”

>It’s called being rusty, Naruto. Comes with the territory.
>We’re both unique cases. Experts are few and far between.
>... who else knows about this, aside from Sasuke?
>Other?

>>5539940
>We’re both unique cases. Experts are few and far between.
>Should we be worried? We can try to look into it if it's a problem.

>>5539940
>>We’re both unique cases. Experts are few and far between.
>Have you talked with him about it? Knocked the ring rust off? Seen Sakura, Tsunade or anyone else to make sure you're not catching something, or got dosed with a sufficiently subtle poison?

>>5539940
>>It’s called being rusty, Naruto. Comes with the territory.

>>5539940
>>It’s called being rusty, Naruto. Comes with the territory.

>>5539940
supporting:
>>5539952

Paranoia, ho!

>>5539940
Supporting. >>5539952
We aren't a doctor

>>5539940
“Naruto,” you insist in a low voice, “you and I are both rare - maybe even unique - cases. No one has taken senjutsu as far as I have, and no one has taken bijū mode as far as you. So experts are few and far between.”

“You have a point,” Naruto agrees calmly. “Well, since I’ve got you what do you think?”

“Yeah no, gonna need more than that.”

“It hurts when I force myself,” he admits. “In my chest.”

“Describe it.”

“Dull, heavy, crushing. It lingers a while afterward.”

“How far do you have to push yourself for that to happen?”

“Eighty percent,” he tells you.

“So yeah, I’ve never noticed anything like that,” you tell him, “nor do I know of any previous sage, human or otherwise, who did.”

“So you believe it’s because I’m a jinchūriki?” he asks.

“Fū’s been a jinchūriki almost as long as you,” you point out, “and Yugitō and B haven’t said anything about that either.”

“Would they tell you if they did?”

“Yugitō would for sure,” you insist curtly. “Has Kurama-han been any help?”

Naruto shakes his head. Then, for a moment his eyes take on a more predatory glint. “I know the old man had a similar condition,” Kurama speaks through Naruto. “I don’t know what caused it exactly, or how he cured it, or whether it was even cured at all. We’d all gone our separate ways by then.”

“Thank you, Kurama-han,” you incline your head politely before continuing the conversation. “Though yeah, even that doesn’t help… he was both a sage and a jinchūriki, so comparing his case won’t really narrow anything down.”

“So it’s probably something he and I shared,” Naruto guesses. “But that only we share.”
>1/2

>>5541311
“Well, I’m not a doctor,” you conclude. “So yeah, best I can do is offer some exercises and herbal remedies to help with chakra flow. But that’s just the symptoms.”

“I’d rather not burden anyone with it,” Naruto admits, “and it’s best that as few people know as possible. If a Kage has a health problem it’s still a good idea to keep that information away from the public.”

“Especially with Kara on the move,” you grumble, “yeah I follow you. But I still think I can do something to help.”

“Yeah?” he muses. “What’re you thinking?”

>I can do some digging into Hagoromo-han’s life and doings. Maybe find what his solution was.
>All tailed beasts came from the Ten-Tails - so MAYBE Kaguya-hime might know something.
>I think the only solution is to loop Tsuna-han, Sakura-kun, and Sasuke into this problem.
>Other?

>>5541323
>I can do some digging into Hagoromo-han’s life and doings. Maybe find what his solution was.
>All tailed beasts came from the Ten-Tails - so MAYBE Kaguya-hime might know something.

>>5541323
>>I can do some digging into Hagoromo-han’s life and doings. Maybe find what his solution was.
>>I think the only solution is to loop Tsuna-han, Sakura-kun, and Sasuke into this problem.

"Paging my stupid cousin, Madara called, he wants his nindo back. Don't try to shoulder everything yourself."

>>5541323
>>I can do some digging into Hagoromo-han’s life and doings. Maybe find what his solution was.

>>5541323
>>All tailed beasts came from the Ten-Tails - so MAYBE Kaguya-hime might know something.
to the moon!

File: Naori_Adult_Nagato.png (2.47 MB, 1119x1400)

2.47 MB PNG

>>5541323
“Hagoromo-tono may have found a solution,” you suggest.

“Yeah, but you can’t reanimate him,” Naruto observes. “Last I checked you didn’t have a piece of him.”

“No, but he absolutely left other traces,” you counter. “The man wasn’t a myth after all, and he’d know more than anyone alive about being a jinchūriki. Maybe he wrote some of it down somewhere.”

“Wouldn’t be as weird as leaving part of his soul around to talk to us after all those centuries,” Naruto shrugs. “But I doubt you’d find anything after all this time, ya know?”

“Kaguya-hime isn’t dead,” you observe.

“No.”

“You don’t even want to hear it?”

“Listen, I appreciate the offer, really,” Naruto insists, “but there’s a whole list of well-connected people in our world who are really nervous about this weird connection you have with Kaguya.”

“Yeah no, I thought you disagreed with them.”


“I do,” Naruto admits. “But I also can’t particularly blame them either - cause even I don’t understand it. So let’s not go freaking people out even more than you already do by wandering off to talk to the moon again.”


“You’re not my dad,” you frown.


There’s a pause.


“... it is a little weird,” you eventually admit.


“It’s super weird,” he corrects you.

>Alright, I'll keep it to a records search if you agree to talk to Sakura and Tsuna-han.
>That said it IS my choice - if I have no alternatives I may go so far as to contact her.
>Nobody involved can be too picky. Do everything you can, and I will do the same.
>Other?

>>5542253
>>That said it IS my choice - if I have no alternatives I may go so far as to contact her.
you are such a killjoy. fine, we'll leave it as our last resort

>>5542253
>Nobody involved can be too picky. Do everything you can, and I will do the same.

>>5542253
>Nobody involved can be too picky. Do everything you can, and I will do the same.
If hagoromo managed to find a solution on his own, i'm sure we can too.

>>5542253
>>Nobody involved can be too picky. Do everything you can, and I will do the same.
Naori, walking WMD and moon whisperer

>>5542253
>>Alright, I'll keep it to a records search if you agree to talk to Sakura and Tsuna-han.

>>5542253
>>Alright, I'll keep it to a records search if you agree to talk to Sakura and Tsuna-han.

>>5542253
“Neither of us can afford to be picky,” you insist curtly. “So yeah, I’ll start with a records search - but if I end up having to talk to Kaguya-hime that’s what I’m gonna do. But in exchange, you can’t do what we both know you’re thinking. You’re going to talk to Sakura and Tsuna-han, not go it alone.”


Naruto sighs. “You’re starting to sound like my wife.”


“Hinata-han’s a smart woman,” you reply. “Smarter than you for sure.”


“Definitely true,” he admits with a wry chuckle. “So I guess if you sound like her I should be listening to you. Okay, I’ll let them know in the morning.”


“Good,” you nod. “And remember…”


“That I shouldn’t shoulder everything on my own?”


“Yeah no, I was gonna say it’s not just your future that’s on the line anymore,” you observe.


>Shiki


“Well, sorry about that whole ‘getting you involved in a terrorist attack’ thing,” you sigh wearily, having started settling in for the night.


“Nah, it was a good time,” Kōshū shrugs. “Thanks, I appreciated you showing me around.”


“No problem,” you insist. “Come back whenever.”


…


After giving you a quick kiss on the cheek the next morning, she gets onto the thunder rail back to Sunagakure. A few minutes after that you meet with Hanabi-sensei at a coffee shop near the station.


“She seems really nice,” your sensei muses idly over a cup of something that smells particularly strong, and not at all sweet. “Anyway, good job yesterday. I have a little free time today, so I’m gonna make you an offer.”


“And what would that be?”


“Well, your team isn’t due to return to duty until tomorrow…”


>Train together with Hanabi-sensei in a private session.
>Go on a short mission together with Hanabi-sensei.
>Other?

>>5543409
>>Go on a short mission together with Hanabi-sensei.

>>5543409
>Sensei, would you say that stopping a terrorist threat with no civilian casualties is worth a hana stamp?

last chance to cash in our hana stamps with hanabi-sensei before we have an actual girlfriend.

>>5543409
>Go on a short mission together with Hanabi-sensei.

>>5543409
>>Train together with Hanabi-sensei in a private session.

>>5543409
The next afternoon, you find yourself on a train together with Hanabi-sensei, sitting in a four-seat booth with a little table separating you.

“Okay, so remind me what this thingy is?”

Hanabi-sensei shrugs. “Some ancient artifact that was discovered recently.”

“Ah, so possibly expensive,” you nod. “I follow. They wanted us to blend in as low-key security.”

The two of you are in plain clothes - you’ve donned your custom-made short-sleeved coat over a plain shirt and pants, and Hanabi-sensei has donned red hakama over a yellow yukata (along with contact lenses). You actually look like something approaching normal with Hanabi-sensei playing herself off as your cousin, which is almost the truth.

You’re on your way back from the coast with the researchers who identified the artifact in question, who are sitting three to a booth in the same train car as you and your sensei. The artifact itself is in a trunk on the rack over their heads.

“At least it’s a nice day,” you muse.

“Only if you grew up in Amegakure,” Hanabi-sensei smirks - it was a bit of a bleak day at the coast, though it’s getting better as you return inland. “Though I’ll admit it’s sometimes a nice change of pace.”

“So, have you seen anything suspicious?” you ask.

Your sensei shakes her head. “No, nothing noteworthy.”

…

About two hours into the four-hour return journey, you sense something off - developing trouble in the car behind yours.

“I feel it too,” Hanabi-sensei assures you in low tones.

A man quickly bursts in through the back door, holding a cocked and loaded crossbow. “Alright, everyone stay where you are and nobody has to die!”

… a robbery?
>Pretend to cooperate for now, see what the would-be robbers reveal about themselves.
>Soon as you get the chance take him out. You SHOULD assume he’s after the artifact.
>Cause a scene. Draw his attention, letting Hanabi-sensei make the first move.
>Other?

>>5544469
>Pretend to cooperate for now, see what the would-be robbers reveal about themselves.
>Only intervene if he acts stupid and tries to kill somebody
Let him cook.

>>5544469
>>Pretend to cooperate for now, see what the would-be robbers reveal about themselves.

>>5544469
>Pretend to cooperate for now, see what the would-be robbers reveal about themselves.

>>5544469
You place your fingertips on the underside of the table and send a brief message to your sensei. [Play the role?]


Hanabi-sensei nods once as the would-be robber goes about his business. “Alright, everyone keep your hands where I can see them!”
>1d6, best three of four

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>5545495

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>5545495

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5545495

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>5545495

>>5545495
You follow the order, raising your hands, and Hanabi-sensei does the same. The robber goes for the luggage first, then grabs a jeweled necklace off a nearby passenger’s neck. Eventually it happens - he notices the luggage above the researchers. He has his back turned for just a second before Hanabi-sensei hits him squarely in the back, and he goes down like a sack of rice.


“That was getting tiresome,” she admits. “So this is really just a robbery attempt, I suppose?”


“Seems so,” you agree. “He took his sweet time getting to the package we’re here to protect. What next?”


…


“This guy just collapsed!” you insist as a second robber enters your car to find the first man unconscious.


“What happened!?” the second man insists as he stoops over his comrade, and with a single blow Hanabi-sensei does the same to him.


“Too easy,” she grumbles. “These guys were definitely amateurs.”


“Thought so,” a new voice muses, tone immediately suggesting a sneer.


Hanabi-sensei blocks a tantō thrust at her from behind with her fist, hitting the side of the blade just above the tsuba, and strikes… only for her fist to ring against an armored chestplate like a gong. Her assailant swings his blade at her a second time, and she rolls back to evade it and create a little breathing room.


“That armor… it stopped the gentle fist?” she realizes, noting that her taijutsu did nothing to affect this new challenger. That’s because he’s clad with…


“Chakra armor,” you realize.


“What, like from Yukigakure?” Hanabi follows along. “Yeah… that makes sense.”


“It’s not the newest model, but it’s still quite rare,” you clarify. “Meaning this guy’s either a jōnin or got his set from one.”


“You’re pretty well-informed, for a runt,” the man smirks. His hair is shaped into a pompadour style, complimented by tinted glasses and a toothpick. His armor has been painted with stylized flames around some of the edges, done with spray paint almost like graffiti you’d see in an alleyway.
>1/2

>>5546770
You know that Hanabi-sensei is going to have a little bit more trouble than usual with this particular opponent, because you’re familiar with the technical aspects of her fighting style. The gentle fist style revolves around the user forcing chakra into their opponent’s tenketsu using the byakugan to aim, often but not always using the fingertips to make the strikes for additional precision. You also know that Hanabi-sensei can actually strike through defensive clothing like typical flak jackets, even without resorting to her tactic of enhancing senbon, which is a technique that could penetrate regular plate armor at close range.

The problem lies in the fact that this armor is enhanced with chakra as well, and it seems like that provides proof against the gentle fist style.

“You shouldn’t look down on my student just because he’s young,” Hanabi-sensei counters. “And you shouldn’t assume that a fancy tool will bring you victory.”

“Nice sentiments!” the armored thug shoots back, throwing a rapid series of punches. “But let’s see you and the brat win before we talk big, yeah?”

Hanabi-sensei is on the defensive, recognizing that until you find a way to land a solid hit any attack would only serve to create an opening he could use against her.

>Join in the close-quarters fight, try to help Hanabi adjust her tactics more quickly.
>Rely on your Tenrō Fūsa, try to create an opening for Hanabi-sensei to strike.
>Time to think big - compressed boiling water might work against plate armor.
>Other?

>>5547851
>Smoke bombs. Lots and lots of smoke bombs. We're in an enclosed space and Hanabi-sensei has the byakugan.
>Time to think big - compressed boiling water might work against plate armor.

>>5547851
>>Join in the close-quarters fight, try to help Hanabi adjust her tactics more quickly.

>>5547851
>>Join in the close-quarters fight, try to help Hanabi adjust her tactics more quickly.

>>5547851
>Time to think big - compressed boiling water might work against plate armor.

>>5547851
>>Join in the close-quarters fight, try to help Hanabi adjust her tactics more quickly.

>>5547851
>1d6, best three of four

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>5548998

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5548998

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>5548998

>>5548998
Testing wifi at new apartment

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5548998

>>5549234
Testing.

>>5549234
You’ve never fought against armor like this, and based on her response to hitting her hand against it you suspect Hanabi-sensei hasn’t either. That being said this is still a two-on-one fight where you have the numerical advantage - so there are two ways to do this that will produce a victory for you and Hanabi-sensei. First, the two of you could work out some of the more specific mechanics behind the armor system and devise a strategy to defeat it. If that fails then you can just try to wear him down, using your numerical advantage.


From his perspective he has only one way to win, and that is to come up with a way to take one of you out of the fight entirely. And for that, he needs to know enough about your respective techniques. So that means you can’t show him any of those if you can avoid it.


Those thoughts take about a full second.


“Let’s go, sensei!” you declare. “Together!”


“Right, I get you,” she agrees. “Follow my lead!”


Your moves will have to compliment hers in every way, and so you throw your opponent off by taking the first move. It might seem counterintuitive to some but it makes sense - by twisting through the air to his left side you can aim a kick at him, which he’s forced to block, and you end up behind him. That move also gives Hanabi-sensei a moment to set up her own attacks.


It never gets old, watching Hanabi-sensei’s taijutsu in action. Her movements are elegant and yet direct, simple at their heart but complex in their execution, at all times poised and dignified yet merciless.


None of her attacks are particularly effective, regardless of whether she tries to go for power blows or precise strikes, with her elbows or fingertips, or even with her feet and knees. Several times they hit hard enough that you can hear a reverberation, and despite aiming for his head and face it seems your opponent is just skilled enough to avoid getting his head knocked off. But the would-be bandit’s own attacks are no more effective, in fact they’re almost meaningless.


Your own attacks feel a little slow in comparison - Hanabi-sensei has taken his right side and you’ve taken his left, and so far he’s performing admirably in fending you both off. Your knife-slashes keep meeting his left gauntlet, which he tends to push to his front or slap away. Were it not for his armor you’d be using chakra flow and the reach of your blade would be enough to kill him, since he’d be wearing a flak jacket instead. But then again, if he were only wearing a flak jacket he’d be curled up on the floor with his chakra flow twisted up like a ball of yarn.
>1/2

>>5551098
Slowly, blow by blow, you start to puzzle out the particulars. It’s clear that despite how some people in Yukigakure (not Koyuki-hime naturally) would insist the chakra armor doesn’t offer a perfect defense. There isn’t such a thing. The chakra armor both dampens incoming ninjutsu-based attacks and amplifies the wearer’s techniques, that much you knew, but physically speaking it’s just reasonably tough armor made from laminated metal. There are obvious gaps that the wearer has to watch for including the face and joints, and it’s clear from your strikes that kinetic energy still transfers to the wearer when the plates are struck. Most importantly, given the structural weaknesses of laminated armor, that kinetic energy transfers first and foremost into the armor plates themselves.

Your eyes meet your sensei’s… it’s clear you’ve both realized it.

>Have her use her ‘rotating palm’ technique as an ‘anvil’ against your ‘hammer’.
>Use your tenrō fūsa as the ‘anvil’, allowing Hanabi-sensei to land consecutive hits.
>You have to wonder how much force a giant salamander’s jaws can generate.
>Other?

>>5551574
>Use your tenrō fūsa as the ‘anvil’, allowing Hanabi-sensei to land consecutive hits.
Time to turn this dude into abstract art

>>5551574
>>Use your tenrō fūsa as the ‘anvil’, allowing Hanabi-sensei to land consecutive hits.

I like taking the supporting role here.

>>5551574
>>Have her use her ‘rotating palm’ technique as an ‘anvil’ against your ‘hammer’.

>>5551574
>You have to wonder how much force a giant salamander’s jaws can generate.

>>5551574
>>You have to wonder how much force a giant salamander’s jaws can generate.
yeeeees, giant salamander weapon!

>>5551574
>>Use your tenrō fūsa as the ‘anvil’, allowing Hanabi-sensei to land consecutive hits.

>>5551574
>1d6, best three of four

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5552851

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>5552851

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>5552851

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>5552851

>>5555611
New thread