TotR III: I wouldn't say hate...

[The Dude]

(Preface in Kiri)

An abysmal day! Rain was common and perhaps even enjoyed by most of the village but lightning and thunder that shook the old flimsy walls of Kiyoshi's run down shack was cutting it close. He slide boards across shutters and doors to keep the powerful winds from blowing them in and flooding his residence. He wasn't going out on a day like this especially for some ridiculously low missions he didn't have time or patience for. No, he would just have to stay shut in for the day and find something to preoccupy his time.

He glanced about the room realizing just how little there was to do, in fact almost nothing! But then he of course realized there was one thing he could do if there was nothing else. Hesitant and slow his eyes slowly made their way to his arm chair and a particularly worn book with a black hard cover. He bit his lip for a moment before walking over and making himself comfortable in the chair. He pulled a small cigarette from his coat pinching the end between his forefinger and thumb to coax a small burning cherry from the rolled tobacco. He set it to his lips flipped open his small book and opened to where head left off.

"Nothing peculiar happens without a reason. If something seems strange I've found it's probably because there's something about it that simply isn't meant to be that way. Believing in the false gods of chance, luck, and coincidence is a fools way of ignoring something he already knows. Remember how I preface this entry, because something about this boys seems strange. Something about him isn't meant to be that way. But I just don't know what it is..."

FLASHBACK

Kiyoshi: Age 25

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[The Dude]

(Flashback Eight Years to Amegakure)

Kiyoshi's heavy boots beat along the rooftops surprisingly quietly as he zipped along the rooftops. He was a ninja who had risen far higher than the average shinobi and after a all his time spent at war in the past years he had earned his ANBU four years ago. With age and experience came caution and patience and Kiyoshi had learned to run silently even in his heavy boots at high speeds. Tiny arms clung to him as his young three year old son clung to his back and he zipped about the city. His wife didn't like him taking him out and running all about the rooftops so Kiyoshi just didn't tell her he did it anymore but whenever he could he would sneak the boy out and take him for a free run.

His son looked up to Kiyoshi and Kiyoshi couldn't help but brag and fuel his drive to become a ninja and travel at high speeds silently like his dad could. He wanted his son to feel the rush and exhilaration and get a taste for being a real ninja even at this young age. Fortunately for him his son loved flying about the city when ever he and his father went anywhere. Kiyoshi came to a stop abruptly though skidding to a halt when he noticed a fellow ninja pursuing him across the rooftops. The boy clung tightly to his father as the sudden stop nearly threw him off.

When he saw that his father had stopped for the masked man tears began to well up in the child's eyes. The ANBU agent gave a silent nod to Kiyoshi whispering silently but with some sarcasm, "Your son's never going to warm up to me is he?" Without anymore words he merely withdrew a scroll and handed it over to Kiyoshi he took it in turn and began to read. As soon as Kiyoshi began reading the ANBU Shunshinned out of sight and away. Orders on the paper from the ANBU. Time to take his son back. He sighed, it was getting a little too late for his son anyway that night...




Back on the same roof four hours later and in the dead of the night Kiyoshi stood in the shadows careful not to be seen. He scaled the side of the building walking down the wall silently as he approached a nearby window from above. Swinging upside down his head hanging upside down hidden behind a porcelain mask in the window looking into one Kekkai Masuyo's room. He spoke quietly knowing full well the boy would hear him and follow, he had to. "You going to sleep all night? Get your ass out of bed Masuyo, Amegakure has plans for you tonight."

Kiyoshi then turned and walked just as quietly back to the roof where he knelt on the ledge waiting. If Masuyo heard him he would follow, if he didn't then he wasn't ready. Even if the boy heard him and chose not to follow a crazy ANBU to the roof just because the ANBU asked, then he wasn't ready either. It was time to see if this Kekkai was ready for the next level.

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[Messatsu!]

Only 7 years of age, Masuyo -who'd been considered a prodigy much like his sister- managed to obtain the rank of Chuunin. With outstanding and remarkable field performance, most notably during the Chuunin exams, his skills and reservoir of chakra easily exceeded any and all expectations. Nevertheless, after having returned home after a long day of leading his own team of genin who were, ironically, older than himself, he opted to get a little shut-eye before commencing his other activities. Sleep -lightly- for only an hour or so, a voice outside of his window called out to him, one that he easily recognized and respected despite is side of the family. Beneath the covers of his bed, they whipped up, over, and off Masuyo as he sprung up with child like energy & enthusiasm.

"Yup yup! Hero's are ready for anything Kiyoshi Sensei!"

With a toothy grin, Masuyo moved towards his window and opened it all the way up before flipping in an arcing manner onto the side of his home just above the window itself. Chakra laced to the bottomside of his ninja sandals, he turned and followed Kiyoshi up to the roof, anxious to see just what he had in store for the young lad this time.

[The Dude]

The veteran stepped into the shadows of overhanging pipes that entwined around the building itself. He closed his eyes for a moment turning his head to the side in response to the rain as he focused and revealed the world around him in chakra for a moment. When his student Masuyo had joined him and Kiyoshi was content that no one else was nearby that would compromise them he removed his mask grumbling, "I must apologize Masuyo but I came to tell you that I'm being called to serve tonight on an assignment for ANBU. I requested that another ANBU take over even recommending your sister for a replacement sensei just for the night. Your sister, as I'm sure must know is on a classified mission far out of the country and most other ANBU are busy it seems with matters most pressing.

Kiyoshi's crimson eye fell upon the lad who fancied himself a hero. Masuyo Kekkai, a protege of the kekkai clan and against the odds he was being mentored by a Tenzo ANBU. Strange days were upon Amegakure and while the man didn't understand the will of his superiors neither did he question it. However just because he was training Masuyo didn't mean he liked the boy all that much. Curiously Kiyoshi somehow was suspicious and wary of the young boy. He was young now as many ninja and like younger ninja he had an optimism to him about the world that veiled something form Kiyoshi but he wasn't sure what it was for sure. The way the boy accepted training and work almost ravenously was something that disgusted the man on some level.

"That being said," Kiyoshi continued reaching into his large baggy coat and retrieving scare package wrapped in cloth delicately, "I've made plans for your training this evening rather at the last minute and you'll simply have to follow my instructions to the letter. Got it?" He held out the box to Masuyo, "And one more thing. We're not exactly doing something that's been approved of by all of the ANBU, so don't tell anyone what you do tonight. Especially your sister. I don't need her breathing down my neck anymore than she already does with me training you and all." Inside the box Masuyo would find a porcelain mask.

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[Messatsu!]

Confused, yet also excited for whatever training regimen that Kiyoshi had in store for him on that night. While Kekkai and Tenzo were incessantly breathing down each others neck, Masuyo cared very little for any of the hostility. Instead, he went around and always attempted to make peace which only got him into fights, one after another.

Masuyo, even as nothing more than a naive prodigy, Masuyo refused to dwell upon the past and allow it to shape and dictate who he likes and dislikes. At just the mere age of seven, he cemented in his mind that he'd determine who he liked, disliked, trusted and distrusted through with his own judgement.

Nevertheless, he processed and heeded each word that fell from Kiyoshi's parted lips, responding with another toothy grin and nod. He reached for the box hesitantly before realizing its inner contents had been nothing more than a harmless mask. Seizing it with his right hand, he clamped it onto his face and pulled the elastic band over his head so that it remained secure. With two simple words, his enthusiasm only increased.

"I'm Ready!"

[The Dude]

Kiyoshi replaced his own mask before taking off his cost and hanging it up on a loose screw under the pipes. He now wore loose baggy fitting black linen pants, a black sleeveless vest with his signature high rising collar, and of course his Anbu mask a simple white mask with a beak on the front. He reached into to rolls of the coat grabbing the handle of a favored kunai. No special abilities at all but the kunai had been something he held onto since his graduation from the academy. A good luck charm.

Walking past Masuyo back out from under the pipes he gave him a supportive pat on the shoulder. It was true Kiyoshi didn't like the idea of training a Kekkai even one so skilled. But something about the upbeat and naive boy warmed Kiyoshi's heart even if just a little bit. It was unfortunate but it was Kiyoshi's job to try and slap this eagerness out of the boy and make him a more realistic ninja. Optimists were of little value to the ANBU.

"No questions after we leave this rooftop. You'll follow me across town, we'll be slipping quietly into a building and once we're inside we'll be doing two things. Delivering some parcels to various rooms and working as a messenger. Both of which we have to do discreetly. As of tonight under my supervision you will be assisting on ANBU Operation: Violet Paint. That all being said do you have any further questions?" Kiyoshi turned back to look at Masuyo.

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[Messatsu!]

Hearing Kiyoshi's words and the severity that trailed behind, even as naive and Masuyo was, he just knew that what Kiyoshi expected and demanded of him had been no laughing matter. Still someone loose and goofy, the young lad managed to get a little more serious as he nodded in tandem with Kiyoshi's words, waiting for him to take the lead and dish out any orders that needed to be fulfilled. During that time,Masuyo followed suit and retrieved his own kunai, one of which had been previously marked with an explosive addition.

"No questions, a hero is ready for everything!"

[The Dude]

Kiyoshi gave his make shift ANBU partner a cursory glance making sure his mask concealed his face properly. He was short of stature by any ANBU standards Kiyoshi had ever heard of but apart from that the young ninja certainly looked like a proper agent. He gave a small nod of approval before turning and leaping down to the wall of the building across the road.

He would run along the smooth metallic surfaces of the buildings staying well in the shadows to avoid unwanted attention. Rain soon began to fall upon the metal towers releasing gentle notes of discordance that muffled silent movements even further. His hair became matted down in the rain as he turned back to make sure Masuyo was following and sticking to the shadows. Soon they found themselves approaching the Tenzo district before coming to a stop on window ledges of an alley. Just a block or so down however was their objective. Kiyoshi turned his head, his eyes closed as he felt for the far chakras and their positioning.

He turned to face Masuyo after a moment and began whispering, "In the building just north of here there's a small fence with an ornate gate. We can't simply hop the fence because there's likely a strong chance of some detection system. Two guards work together at the gates though. I suggest we each approach quietly from either side so that we can disable them. When you're in position and ready carefully shine your kunai in the moonlight and we'll mark our move." Kiyoshi leaped to the other side of the street before turning back and adding, "Oh and Masuyo, we are not to kill these men." He then let himself slide down the wall silently in the rain before making his way quietly towards the gate keeping to the shadows still. What kiyoshi refrained from telling Masuyo was that these guards and perhaps more inside were official ANBU as well.

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[Messatsu!]

It hadn't taken an overly long time for Kiyoshi to take the lead in the operation, and once he had Masuyo followed suit with out standing result. Quick, muted, burst of his legs carried him across the landscape, effortlessly keeping up with Kiyoshi's pace. Either Masuyo had just been young and overly energetic, or Kiyoshi's age attempted to get the better him. Regardless, as the the rain pattered against the ground, Masuyo gave Kiyoshi a simple nod when he looked back to confirm his position. Thereafter, Kiyoshi divulged not only their initial objective, but the plan to take control of said objective as well. Listening intently, the young lad nodded as the elder of the two went on.

"Roger"

Spoken in a whisper, a serious tone dressed Masuyo's voice as he turned in the direction opposite of Kiyoshi and headed around to flank one of the two guards out for patrol. Moving in position beneath the clatter of rainfall, Masuyo found himself crouched deep within a bush roughly 10 meters north east of the guard

. Carefully and subtly waving his kunai so that Kiyoshi's aforementioned signal signaled Masuyo's readiness, their plan had already been set in motion.

A single hand signature from Masuyo birthed a single perfect copy of himself which, in a plume of smoke, emerged from behind his targeted guard, armed with a single kunai. Immediately, the clone's hand reached forward and connected its flat palm against his back. Feeling the sensation, surely the man wanted to react, however, he couldn't. Displaying the fruits of one of his many family techniques, the guard's muscles were forfeit, every single one paralyzed.

Aligned at the mask, the clones arc flung up with a lateral arc in tandem with turning the paralyzed guards front 'towards' the other with his new free hand. Certain that the kunai would've hit the others mask, all he could've down was look over at his 'ally' who just stood there in the darkness of night.

That was Kiyoshi's cue.

[The Dude]

The glimmer of a knife waved briefly in the dark and it was time for the duo to make their move. For a seven year old the young shinobi did impress his sensei with surprising maturity and secrecy for the mission at his age. He made use of his clan's strengths and quickly paralyzed the guard in silence. There was the slightest muffled struggle prefaced with a small plume of smoke. But before the other guard could react he found himself busy reaching for his neck attempting to grab hold of the wires that suddenly hauled him off his feet and dragged him back into the bushes where Kiyoshi lay in wait. He cinched the wires and reached a hand under the man's mask covering his mouth and nose muffling any noises he tried to utter as he slipped into an unconscious state.

Stepping out of the bushes Kiyoshi stepped onto the path with his young student. His mask was an emotionless bird but beneath it he smiled warmly at the boy and how well he was doing with this assignment. He glanced at the man and gave a brief nod of approval to the boy before muttering darkly, "Get rid of him." Turning towards the door now Kiyoshi gave it a quick examination. He had seen this door before many times and crossed it many times on friendlier terms, a shame he was here on such dark business.

Without turning around and assuming his partner had not only incapacitated but also hidden the ANBU agent he began muttering darkly again. "Once we're inside, I'll be trusting you to act independently on your own," he paused removing one of his gloves and handing a used and resealed scroll to his apprentice. "There will be a staircase on the left once we're inside," He closed his eye and tilted his head slightly before continuing, "You'll be taking this up to the second floor while I deliver another parcel down here on the first. There are three more ANBU patrolling the upstairs, try and avoid them if you can but if it's unavoidable... same thing we did with this pair. Disable. Do not Kill."

Kiyoshi's bare and empty hand seemed to radiate heat as Kiyoshi reached forward grabbing hold of the metal handles on the thick wooden doors. Heat radiated throughout the metal of the door's handle and locks before the sizzle of burning would could be heard. "Once you've managed to place the parcel... continue down the hallway til you reach the next flight of stairs. I will meet you there and together we'll be going to the third for one last part of the job." With a jerk and the not so subtle crack burnt through wood and ash, Kiyoshi merely pulled the entire door knob and lock out of the door itself.

He pushed open the door's that swung ajar apathetically to reveal to ANBU standing silently inside staring back at Kiyoshi and Masuyo not five meters away. They were dumbstruck about what was going on, but Kiyoshi had been expecting them. With a sweep of his arm his hurtled the metal door knob glowing red straight into the face of the nearest ANBU.

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[Messatsu!]

Paralyzed and helpless, the only thing that the ANBU guard could've done other than look around knowing that his life had been forfeit and seized by the hands of a mere child. Nevertheless, at Kiyoshi's own behest, the clone maintained the guard as Masuyo himself emerged from the bushes, moved around to his side within hands reach and drove the hilt his blade into his head. Muffled by the rainfall, the sound of hilt against hand had been produced with minimal sound, leaving those inside unaware of nightmare outside.

Out cold, the clone disposed of the unconscious body, namely back in the same bushes that Masuyo chose to hide within. Dispersing the clone, returning what chakra remained within its being back to its host, Masuyo looked to Kiyoshi and seized his intended parcel with a quick hand before sticking it into his hip pack. Compliant to his demands, Masuyo nodded as Kiyoshi moved to the door, disabled its lock, and finally pushed it open. Immediately a group of alerted ANBU agents stared at Kiyoshi and Masuyo as they stared back.

Without even so much as a glance towards Kiyoshi, Masuyo's hands instinctively weaved through a quick second long set of handseal's (.50 seconds), funneling chakra to his right hand which then caused a green, spinning wad of compact fuuton chakra within said hand. Not even so much as a second later, Masuyo's threw the compact ball of fuuton chakra and caused its arcing trajectory to land right before the nearest leading foot.

"Get to cover!"

Once spoken, a sideward roll (away from Kiyoshi) carried Masuyo past hinges of the door and in front of a solid wall, one that would've protected him against his own masterpiece.The very moment gravity pulled the ball down to floor and it made contact, an explosion rocked the small little area as well as the entrance, evident by the surge of wind that expelled from the inside and then out. While the explosion usually carried enough power as an exploding tag, Masuyo's orders to not kill caused him to mitigate the damage.

Forming another set of quick second long handseal's as the explosion settled and he stepped inside, another swirling green ball molded into his palm as he headed towards the leftward staircase.

SPOILER: Click to show

Kaze Bakudan (Wind Bomb)
Rank: Dx10 [250 Exp]
Type: Offensive.
Range: See special!
Handseals: 2.
Chakra: Mid.
Special: The explosion is more powerful at the site of detonation and becomes weaker the farther the opponent is from it. Distance at which wind bomb can travel depends on the user's Kiroku Gaijuu range, and range of explosion measures 1 meter. Each time retrained, explosion range goes up by 1 for a maximum of ten. However, after every fifth retraining, the consumption will go up by one.
Description: The user holds up a hand after performing a short series of handseals. Their chakra is focused into this point, and a small, swirling green ball is created as wind is tightly compacted. The bomb is then thrown, and upon contacting a solid object will detonate. The explosion has roughly the same power as an Exploding Tag.
Domain: Fuuton. Kiroku Gaijuu 'D'.

[The Dude]

"Get to cover!"

Kiyoshi didn't need to be told twice as he quickly threw himself to the side of the door way still on the outside of the building just before the explosion of wind roared past him. He turned and walked into the building casually looking around at the damage done. It had been loud and perhaps drew some attention but proved immensely effective at disabling both of the men within. Kiyoshi knelt beside them for a moment placing fingers to their necks. They still had pulses, Masuyo had handled this expertly and followed instructions even restraining his strength.

He rose to his feet silently striding with heavy foot steps no longer concerned if people heard after the explosion. On the opposite side of this splendorous entrance hall was a another door he approached. He pulled his glove back on as he placed his hand on the door knob pausing to say, "See you on the other side Masuyo. I have faith that I won't have to come back for you if you get into any trouble. Just keep doing what you're doing and you'll be fine." With that he opened the door and stepped through.

There was a long hallway filled with doors and dimly lit at this time of night by candles on the wall. He walked down casually before stopping at a door far down on the left before again closing his eyes in silent concentration. It took little effort for him to sense inside the room. Inside there were two ninja, one asleep in his bed while the other sat in a chair quiet but not asleep quite yet.

Kiyoshi stomped in the hallway continuing down in a noticeable but not too loud manner about five meters before flickering backwards mutely ten meters crouching low against the wall. The ANBU stepped out turning to the left where the running had gone off to. As he did Kiyoshi ran up from behind him wrapping a wire quickly around the handle of the door as he grabbed the Anbu by the back of his head. With perfect timing he tugged lightly on the wire bringing the door to silently latch shut just before he face planted the guard into the floor hard enough to knock him unconscious but not kill him.

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