01 - 02: fifty-seven steps forward. [open]

[matsumoto-kun]

The temperature tends to drop, in the desert. What would be scalding during the afternoon would otherwise become frozen in the evening. The cool of the night was often represented by the subtle looming of the moon over an endless plain of sand, soil, and death. Whatever life had attempted to survive in this place was often met with disappointment. This was one such night. However, the plains seemed much less endless within the city limits. The warmth of the city was decent, but the occasional fog of breath would escape one's lips. It wasn't uncomfortable, at least to those who had grown familiar with the way the desert worked- it was just different. How trite to have had such a reverent number of meetings under the veil of nightfall, but at the age of young adolescence, and no parents to tell one to set a bed time, souls were often found wandering the streets and alleyways.

Ushinawa's feet carried him down the street in a daze of sound. The street lamps and vendor signs illuminated his pale features as he seemed to hum a tune which had been caught in the trappings of his head for at least the past hour. It was a folk tune, one that he was very much unfamiliar with until earlier that day; something from Hi no Kuni. He had never been outside of this wasteland, so perhaps the sound of this tune gave him the feeling of travel, of escape. He hadn't gotten too much into it, otherwise being a blunt instrument of existential questions such as these. He had never considered the possibility of leaving. He had never considered the possibility of escape. He was trapped here both physically and ethereally. His soul was that of the desert.

It didn't take much time for the senseless wandering to grow full for the genin. Before long his pallet was parched, and his stomach was empty. What resulted wouldn't come as much of a surprise. The name of the establishment was 'The Red Rook,' no doubt related to the game of Shogi that he had been introduced to upon his time in the academy. Fake battle amused him, so perhaps he could sharpen his skills within these walls. What he found instead was a lot of two. Old men who seemed to have nothing more than time to waste on the perfection of their game. Straddling the threshold, he debated entering- but something seemed to be calling him, prodding him, to enter.


King Iizuka 

[デーモン]

The sound of sand - crunching and giving way underneath the weight of steps was audible within the distance. The sounds originator was Daichi. He was heavy footed tonight. Especially since he actually wasn't supposed to get a mission today. He made sure that the ground was punished. Today was supposed to be a special day for him. It was the self proclaimed Daichi holiday of "no work" day. As a ninja it was a very rare occurrence to have zero foreseeable work for a day. But Daichi had been given a promise that nothing urgent was pending, so the much smaller and insignificant missions could wait. Pure lies.

A couple hours earlier he was awoken from his sleep, to the feeling of his Mother, Maiyori, slamming a file onto his head. The file of course said urgent in bold red letters. The paper itself felt thick. The weight of the mission was definitely written within it's conveyed appearance. And so our hero decided to put on his best clothes, and leave his humble abode for the disgusting streets of Sunagakure. He hated the village with as much pride as a foreign enemy. It was a cesspool in some places, and a slum at best in others. The new Kazekage helped the village in his small tenure as much as a butterfly knife to the throat would be an effective way to revive someone.

The village's degradation had a lot to do with the lack of leadership it has seen within the past. Once glorious stone walkways, and sand houses were in disrepair. The poor were forced to concentrate into certain area's while the more wealthy gained larger homes and territory within the village. The entire infrastructure of the village had gone to hell. Daichi had seen it within a six year span of his life. A once glorious village, where even walking around at night gave off a solemn sort of gentleness to the heart. Now the streets were littered with trash, and even some dead bodies. He'd have to clean them up tomorrow he suspected. "ah mou," he would whisper underneath his breath.

That was when a melody struck his ears. It was a tune being hummed right in front of him. Daichi would slow his pace, almost as if he was trying to focus solely on the sound than his own movements. The tune was beautiful. The melody was so strange as it felt foreign to his ears. Daichi was soon drawn to the sound like a moth to a flame. His feet picking up in speed as he came upon and odd establishment known as "The Red Rook". It definitely resembled the village as it had been in shambled. It looked as if all of the stone and regal design and pattern which once adorned it. Had turned into an abysmal painting which showcased the ineptitude of the painter and their inability to convey their message clearly.

Of course Daichi didn't study any of the decorum once he had walked inside. His eyes clearly found a pale figure - seemingly silhouetted in the darkness. Moody. Brooding. Terrible at communicating.  Check. Yeah that sounded like his partner for this mission. "tch, what's up, dude," he would get out almost cursing himself once he spoke.

[matsumoto-kun]

As the lengthy leg of the young man would take a decisive step forward, the banners which bore the name of the restaurant shifting to the side as he would ensure his entrance without much obstruction. However, almost as soon as he would enter, it would become evident that he would not be the only person of youth to enter. Almost stepping on his heels, a new entity would emerge behind him. Taking another step into the building, Ushinawa would turn with a grace to rival a runway model. The short black cape which covered his torso would billow upon his twirl, accompanied by his lengthy dark hair and a flash of his effeminate eyes. A bit flustered by the sound of this boy having been unheard until his announcement, it took a moment for him to fully comprehend what was going on.

He had been assigned a mission from the Kazekage. Part of that mission indicated that he would be accompanied with the components for a squadron. Whether that meant one or many people, it was unclear, but for this person to have arrived in such a direct manner, it would only make sense that he was the one to be looking for. The two would no doubt take a quick second to size each other up. His partner was tall, much taller than him, and carried a certain smell to him that didn't really cast him apart from the wilderness that surrounded them. His hair was course, and clearly uncared for- a stark contrast for Ushinawa's own hair. The boy, indicated by his clearly youthful face, was not of particular beauty, but that was something that Matsumoto could admire. Combat was not about beauty, it was not about grace, it was about winning. From what he could tell from this boy's physique, it was clear that he was of the kind that won.

Taking a step backwards, and further into the establishment, he would be less intimidated by the boy's size. He seemed to have a relaxed demeanor to him, which was yet another contrast to Ushinawa's constantly stern expression. This would prove to be an interesting match up.

"You must be my partner for today's mission. I'm Matsumoto Ushinawa, but you can call me Matsumoto," He expressed curtly with a bow. It had been a line that was rehearsed several dozen times. It was the kind of line that one says to their classmates when first being introduced to the school. It held no personality, and even less real information as to how this newcomer should proceed, however, without much hesitation he would continue. "Let's discuss the particulars."

Turning around, he would raise his right hand to a table closer to the door where the two might be able to have a seat. This place was of considerable age. In the traditional sense, the place was absent of any sort of seating aside form old, dusty pillows arranged messily by the warped and decrepit tables. Clearly not having to remove their footwear, Ushinawa would take the lead by taking the first few steps towards the seating, raising his same right hand to gather the attention of what appeared to be the only staff present.

[デーモン]

Robotic. This Matsumoto-san(?) chan(?) was definitely, a different type of individual. There gender was as mysterious as there monotonous voice. Daichi would raise his eyebrow with a puzzled look on his face. His 'partner' didn't seem like the battling type. That was until with closer inspection a faint scar on the neck of Matsumoto was found. Yes, it was faint, but from how it looked. The wound must have been terrible. This intrigued Daichi - for all of ten seconds before reality kicked back in.

" Kurushima Daichi. " He replied. His answer was simple, but it betrayed his true emotions. His tone was exhausted. He had decidedly chose to have today be his day of rest. Especially with all of the missions that he had completed the days prior. " Before we get to the details. Could you handle this mission alone if given the chance? " Daichi was straightforward and upfront with his intentions. He wanted his partner to do all of the heavy lifting. He was tired and definitely annoyed at the situation that he had landed himself in.

This would definitely make him seem like a disgraceful ninja. But this was just another sizing up little exercise. If the - 'it' decided to respond in a surprising way then Daichi could respond accordingly. The singular employee of the establishment -thankfully fully washed- decided to come to their table as beckoned and jot down some orders from Daichi. A simple soda pop drink. In his mind there was no way they could screw up that one item. But then again, he has been thoroughly disappointed before. The small seats were definitely uncomfortable. The chairs were so old, and obviously not taken care of. The wobble alone when Daichi sat down had made it apparent this place needed to disappear - for good.

[matsumoto-kun]

It didn't take much time for the duo to have moved to their table, and take their respective seats. The dreaded man was quick to introduce himself as 'Kurushima Daishi,' a name which was clearly denoted for it's strength. However, having already introduced himself, Matusmoto had hoped that they would be able to move past the formalities of conversation and move directly into the objective. It was selfish, of course, but that was something that Ushinawa was still attempting to work on. Still relatively new to the village, he was still very unsure of the customs that were associated with city living. The clothing, the mannerisms, the jokes- they all seemed to fall flat to him. Perhaps that was the boy was attempting to do when asking his question.

'So he wants me to do all of the work...'

Ushinawa would heave a slight sigh before answering. Before he could utter a word, the water had arrived.. Having taken the initiative, his taller partner would request that the server bring him some sort of carbonated beverage. It was a risky move in an establishment like this, especially considering the conditions of the desert, but perhaps it was better than any sort of water that the old man would have brought out. If it was anything to read in to, it would mean that the boy had some sort of sweet tooth, or rather, based on what he had said earlier, a level of immaturity which was often found in people of their age. If he was a genin, like Ushinawa, that meant that he should have been around the age of thirteen to fifteen. If that were the case, there was a considerable amount of development that had yet to have been done. Either way, whether it was immaturity, childishness, or simply a bad joke, Matsumoto was clear to express his detest for all three. His eyelids sliding over his eyes as he began to look down at the table, considering how to word what he had to say to the boy.

"I assume you're joking. I'm going to say this, and get it out of the way. I detest jokes." He said with a sudden flash of his eyes, centering directly into Daichi's gaze to show his sincerity. "So now that we have that out of the way- I'll take the northern and eastern points, and you can take the others. We can rendezvous at the Kazekage building and discuss our debriefing before meeting with the Kage." It came off as more of an order than a request, or suggestion- and that's because it was. It was evident that the ebony clad ninja considered the mission beneath him, and was far from afraid of making that clear to his partner, who seemed to share the sentiment.

Having nearly forgotten the waiter, who had been standing above them in anticipation of Matsumoto's order, the young man would turn his head and offer a very polite, shallow, bow. His collar covering most of his neck, it would appear as though a slight shift in his clothing. 

"A bottle of green tea, please." He said before turning back to the eye contact between he and Daichi, not wanting to lose the sight of his point having been understood. 

[デーモン]

Hoh, he's one of those bureaucrat types, huh, Daichi would think.

" sure, " he would halfheartedly respond, shrugging even. He had learned all he needed to know within those answers. His partner was going to be an annoying one. Daichi knew every single minute detail about himself was being carefully analyzed. Matsumoto's eyes were very delicate. When their eyes locked again after Matsumoto had ordered a drink for himself. An awkward feeling of uneasiness arose within Daichi. He didn't like the fact that someone who looked so fragile could be so stern with him.

It definitely caused him to think twice about how he responded to this person in the future. He would need to be on his toes. Still it wasn't enough to get Daichi out of his stick in the mud feelings. He was still bored, and still didn't care for this mission. Just before he could say something else - Daichi was interrupted by the arrival of his drink. The glass itself seemed fairly old. Almost as if it waited for a decade just so they could have taken it out of the cupboard just now for this. The drink inside although being carbonated in nature, didn't look like any soda Daichi had ever drank before.

It was a mysterious green color, and smelled of sour apples. A simple sigh escaped his lips. He would grab the glass and press it to his lips, almost cautiously like the liquid was caustic in nature. He would slowly drink a little bit of it before turning green himself. The glass was lightly placed on the table, and Daichi refused to drink anymore of it. He rose from his seat, and turned to Matsumoto. " You've got the tab right? see-ya. " Before another word could be uttered Daichi left the establishment. The southern sector would be the first place of his trials.

The mission was simple, but that was what kinda annoyed him. Such a simple mission needed to be completed immediately. It was just the planting of seeds around the village, but it seemed to have specific instructions as to where and when. This whole thing started to seem kinda weird to him, but then again Daichi just left all of his thinking out of it. It was becoming a pain for him to think so hard. And when something becomes like hard work it becomes annoying to him.

[matsumoto-kun]

Just like that, he was alone again. Whatever drink had been accompanied by Ushinawa's drink apparently seemed to be revolting following Daichi's clear distaste and immediate departure from the establishment. Almost as if he had been talking to a brick wall, the conversation departed along with the man whom he still knew so little about. A name was better than nothing though. Daichi seemed like the type that Matsumoto would have trouble with. If he had been in the battlefield, the badlands that had brought Matsumoto up, he would likely not be one of the ones to make it. It wasn't because of any sort of battle experience, having never seen him fight, but more so because he seemed to lack initiative. Initiative to follow orders was one thing, but initiative to follow those orders well sometimes meant the difference between life and death. Clearly this wasn't one of those situations, but making good habits was always a better idea than not.

Raising from his cross-legged position, he would raise to a position above the table before dropping a few Ryo onto the countertop to join the unopened bottle of green tea and unfinished soda. The Red Rook would likely be the last place Matsumoto would find himself again, and while he turned to catch the final glimpse of the old men, still locked into their world of Shogi. Their pieces didn't seem to have made much transition within the time that the ninja's meeting took place, and yet the two had never once looked away.

Making his way out of the building shortly after his teammate, Ushinawa would turn back to look at the quadrants he had designated for himself. Removing the scroll from his pocket, he would give it a quick glance over. At their position, he was further from both of his points than Daichi was from his, which meant that if he wanted to finish this mission today, he would need to get moving. The northern position was situated not far from his apartment, and closer to the Kage Building, while the eastern was in a position that he was not very familiar with just yet. It would likely be on that part of the city that he would arrive first.

eastern location -- Sunagakure East seemed to be a bit more desolate than what Ushinawa was used to. The position for the seed was quick easy to find, as there were many open lots which seemed to have been waiting the arrival of either gardens, livestock, or building construction. Surrounded by various factory buildings, the number of street lights were few and far between, making it no doubt appear a bit more dangerous in the dark. Luckily, there was plenty of sunlight to spare given the time of season they were in. Approaching an empty lot, Ushinawa would move to the center of it before  removing a few of the many seeds he had been given. Raising his hand above his cape to get a look at them, he would take note of their composition.

'I wonder what these are really for...'

Raising his fist above his head, it would come down in a furious and rapid motion. Having imported a significant portion of chakra to his hand, the majority of the boy's arm would punch through the sand, and the earth beneath it¹. A stark contrast to the blazing heat of the sand surrounding him, he could feel the cool, living soil surrounding his skin. It was pleasant, and despite being somewhat unfamiliar, it seemed welcoming. Releasing his grip on the seeds within his grasp, his hand pulled back with a jerk. Dusting his arm off, he would cover the hole with his feet shuffling the surrounding sand into the vacant portion. One down.

northern location -- Northern Sunagakure was a very different location than the eastern quadrant. Being well within Ushinawa's familiarity, he would recognize many of the people and places that he would frequently see within his neighborhood. With the occasional wave, or steadfast nod, he would brush past the citizens with an air of duty behind him. The number of apartment buildings in this portion of the city would make the task at hand a bit more difficult. While it was unclear as to what the purpose of the seeds were, it was made clear that the position would need to be away from other buildings in the city. In this case, the only vacant lot was a space that was often used as a residential park for non-ninja around his age. 

Approaching the lot, a number of kids could be seen kicking a ball around. Of various ages and sizes, they would enjoy the cobblestone surface providing them speed and predictability. Of course, however, Matsumoto was here to put an end to that.

"This space is now being used for official Ninja business, orders of the Kazekage. Please vacate the premises." He would bellow to the surrounding boys and girls who would stop their game to listen. "Please do not return to this park for the next couple of days. A follow up message will likely be sent to the residents of the Eastern Quadrant via mail." He finished in a matter-of-fact tone.

As he awaited for the kids, wrought with disappointment, to leave, he would have already have begun forming a string of handseals. Placing his left foot in front of his right, his left hand would raise to his mouth with a curved couple of fingers before a massive ember would shoot from his gullet and envelop a large portion of the land to his front². While no where near covering the entire park, it would be more than enough to have opened the stone to reveal a portion of charred earth beneath it. As the flames cleared, and the heat would begin to spread, the genin approached the pit casually. Hopping into the hole which couldn't have been more than half a meter deep, he would kneel down to place the remainder of his seeds into the soil beneath the charred portion. 

'This should do the trick...'

As he finished his portion of the work, he would take his time standing and exiting the hole. As he lifted himself from it, he would catch a glimpse of the Kazekage Castle in the distance.

'I wonder how Daichi is fairing?'

-- 1. goken used. 
-- 2. goukakyuu no Jutsu

[デーモン]

daichi had finally reached the southern sector. the bag of seeds that he was carrying hadn't weighed anything. it was kinda weird to him the work he had to do. the area was full of affluent people in the sand village. the thing that made this even worse was that the place to plant was behind someone's domicile.

instead of alerting the person to his presence. daichi would jump square across their sand gate. he deduced that it would be more effort expended and time wasted if he told the owners he was going to need the space far beyond their house. and needed to cut through their backyard.

there was a funny coincidence almost like that of karma for daichi. their was a man -engaging in activities- with a woman in his backyard. daichi stopped in his tracks. he stared at them. they noticed him and stared back. they must have seen his headband upon his head as they didn't panic. " uhh, what... might you.. need, " the woman would say. daichi would turn looking towards his direction. " i needed to cut through, sorry for the intrusion. "

daichi ran at full speed. with the seeds in his hands. that was the most awkward moment of his life. his face completely red from ear to ear. he was completely nauseous. this was terrible for him as he almost threw up. why would people do that. it looks so painful! he would think. the sand that he slid over was shallow. it was weird almost like the ground had specifically been culled or modified. there was enough land to plant the seeds. a simple slice upon the land to create plots for the seed was made with his kukri set.

that was mission complete for the first set. now he had to travel to the western district. when thinking about what he just witnessed another one of his thoughts landed on matsumoto. daichi had analyzed the mannerisms that 'they' -as he still couldn't figure out their gender- had. the strictness and almost devoid of emotion at all. they seemed to be what the perfect ninja looked like, but something was wrong. it was like looking at the mona lisa, but when you truly scan it you realize that something was missing.

the smile that made it so famous in the first place. that was what it was like for him to see matsumoto. as he sped up his efforts pushing all of his strength into incredible leaps and bounds. his power allowed him to move along the roof tops with speed and efficiency. that was when a kunai flew through the air. daichi would spin in the air in the middle of his jump to kick the kunai away. as he looked around to scan the area. nothing was visible.

no presence was felt. it was strange almost like the wind blew the kunai itself. daichi was on high alert. the western sector and the northern sectors were considered the slums and gang territories respectively. both of his kukri were unsheathed as he continued into the sector. the area that he needed to plan in was directly behind an old sand monument of a boulder. they thought it was a funny statement to the stagnation of the village.

it didn't impress the kaguya boy at all. the funniest part of his entire journey through the sector was that nothing other than the kunai event happened. daichi literally found the spot in the open. slashed down plots with his kukri, and planted the seeds with no resistance. he literally got lucky. in his travels to return to the meeting place to be debriefed a nagging feeling of him being followed seemed to stay with him on his way back.

[matsumoto-kun]

The heat had gotten to an obnoxious degree by the time Matsumoto arrived outside of the Kage castle. Having situated himself at a bench beneath an awning looking directly at the rendezvous point, he would sit beneath the shade with a small metallic packet of what appeared to be a common brand of tea. Set apart from his previous order, this variety appeared to be some strand of black, instead of green. The wind had not picked up much today, which was a relief. The stagnant stare of the sun might have been intense, but at least it would prevent the constant threat of blindness that seemed to be associated with the village. Having removed his cape, he set it beside him as he awaited the arrival of his teammate.

Both hands grasped the packet with a gentle grip. The fluid, cold and caffeinated, seeped through the dull yellow straw which was trapped between his soft pale lips. His thought seemed be under the stress of wandering. As he stared down at the feet of those who would make their way past him, he seemed to have only considered what the debriefing of the mission would entail. Of course, having to inform the residents of the eastern side of the village of the eventual relocation of their park would be an obnoxious task, but necessary. The mission they had been assigned was just vague enough to foreshadow its importance, without letting them know what the outcome would actually be. What was the point, and who exactly was this Kazekage who had assigned it?

Covered in a loose black t shirt, Ushinawa's gender would likely remain a mystery to Daichi upon his arrival. However moreso, he would witness the extent of the genin's slender frame. His arms, covered in faded scars would likely be evidence to the number of conflicts he had seen. Thoughts of his childhood remained evident, but not much of a conversation piece. He was unafraid of exposing his experience through tissue damage, but when the subject was brought up, it would last as long as any other casual conversation. One can not change one's past- but they can change the way that they view it. What had been years of horrific, blood filled war, would now be nothing more than an interesting coffee table discussion.

After all, he was just a child drinking tea out of a juice bag at the moment.

[デーモン]

absolutely annoyed. that was daichi's temperament. he had just had a hallucination, or at least he believed it to be so, of a kunai randomly assailing him from nowhere. as he arrived he found his 'partner' drinking what appeared to be a fusinami tea packet. from the coloring it was a black one. a loud sigh escaped his lips.

" the mission is finished. it's time for us to go and be debriefed and paid. " all of his earlier enthusiasm was completely rung out of him. daichi was just ready to go to sleep by now. he would look at matsumoto. the scars on 'its' visible body stood out to him. he wanted to know how they go there and why.

they were personal questions. so daichi decided against them. he may have seemed like the idiot type but on the inside he overthought a great many things. this is what left him with his stick in the mud personality. too many gears spinning at the same time until they all decided to screech to a halt. the desk was on the inside of the kage tower.

this was the end of the line for them both for this mission.

[exit]

[matsumoto-kun]

A quiet nod would signify that Matsumoto was in agreement with Daichi. Lowering his right hand to his side, he would claim the collar of his cape before taking a stand to begin to enter the castle. Following not far behind Daichi, they would make their way past the guards, and into the building together. There was little left to say between the two of them, after all, the mission had been completed.

-- exit.

[rib]

+57 Matsumoto
+58 Daichi