Guard Mission [C][SOLO]

[Guyviroth]

SPOILER: Click to show

Guard [?/?]
Difficulty: Novice [C]
Task: Guard the gates for a day alongside some of your peers. During an attack defend the gates and call for backup.
Reward: 200 EXP & 1000 RYO.

It was any wonder how long it had been since Helios did any sort of mission. A week? Maybe two? It didn't matter; today was the day where he would stand on his own two feet, walk out that front door, and prepare to show the Hidden Leaf exactly who he was. Who was he? A naked pale shinobi. Before contemplating even setting a single step past the door frame he had to get himself ready for his mission. Hopping from his bed, Helios gave himself a good stretch, arms wide apart as his back arched to the rear. He turned to find his robe, sword and hakama sitting upon the dressing table. Quickly he got his gear together, put on his sandals and stepped out the door.

Outside was definitely one of the more better days Helios had seen in a while. Then again, he was cooped up in his room dying of muscle pains for a while that all he could see on the village was the top half of the Hokage's castle, several trees and one caterpillar on the window sill. The sky was of a bright ice blue, crystalline if it were to take a shape, with passing cotton clouds drifting seamlessly through heaven's gentle breeze. It was certainly a day that Helios could get to grow used to. He only wished that every day was as grand as this. Unfortunately, with so much heat the village tends to get and with the moisture from the trees, it tends to rain as much as it does shine. It's a shame it doesn't snow either.

The pathway to the mission office seemed to be clear today; perhaps because most of the missions had been done while Helios was taking his break. It was a shame really, Helios wished that it would be more busy to show that he could be needed at any given time due to the lack of available workforce. Now it made Helios feel like he was slacking for so long that all of the redundant and petty tasks now lay upon his shoulders. Still, he had to do something; he needed to keep fit, get some training, and more importantly the experience. He looked at the stairway that proceeded to the mission's office, not knowing the last time he'd seen such an incline. His legs began to feel the pain before he even took a single step, but nonetheless he proceeded onwards, ready for his next assignment.

[Guyviroth]

It was rather fortunate that Helios managed to clear the entire stairway in record time, taking note that perhaps he should do so more often; the workout of jumping and, at points, literally climbing the staircases helped get his body loose and fit, plus it was also really good exercise. The boy was lightly out of breath too, which was pretty amazing considering it was only yesterday that he was pretty much having an asthma attack outside the office door.

Speaking of which, Helios found the door open, expelling a gleam of light through the office’s interior into the otherwise rather dark corridor; the corridor didn’t contain many windows and thus was only kept lit through artificial lighting sources. ”What’s going on?” the boy muttered to himself briefly, having a habit of doing so whenever he was caught amidst a maelstrom of doubt and confusion, even though he really shouldn’t be. Nonetheless, the door was normally kept close due to confidentiality between the mission captain and any who are present, especially when discussing mission objectives or any serious or vital matters.

Slight voices could be heard discussing some sort of event of importance. Helios decided to see if he could be used for anything that could pertain to such an event, walking into the room. As he entered he found a Jounin leaning over the desk of the mission captain, and on the other side standing at either side of where the captain would sit were another two. All of them were looking down at the desk as though there were reading or deciphering something. A single voice, mellow and calm, was describing some sort of scenario to them. The two at the back were simply gazing while keeping their ears open to the voice of their superior, while the Jounin with his back to Helios was hunched over, his hands placed firmly upon the desk. As Helios shut the door behind him, the two Jounin at the back of the room looked up and spotted the boy, while the third turned his head, then his waist, to notice the young shinobi. Then Helios spotted the captain and sighed.

"Ah, Helios. Come in, we can use a hand"

[Guyviroth]

The boy did as he was instructed as he walked in casually, taking a look at the captain as he seemed to have a half-smile on his face as though he was happy, if not expecting, Helios to turn up. The desk the captain was sitting at had numerous sheets of paper scattered upon its facia, all different ranked missions though most of them marked as C and B ranks. Taking his position as was normal, Helios stood in front of the captain as he awaited his assignment with determination. "So captain, what can I do for you today?" Helios asked as he looked down at the sheets before him.

"Ah, yes, to the point. I like that," The captain smiled as he was impressed with the young boy's forwardness. Using the edge of his hand to clear a pile of papers out of the way he issued him with one particular sheet, a C rank mission brief, that was part of a pile consisting of more than one copy. "We're in need of a bolstering in our ranks, particularly at the Konoha gates. We've had word from the recon team that bandits and other crazy people and animals have been attacking the guards at all hours of the day. So we need you and some other people to help at the post."

The boy began to skim through the mission briefing which, surprisingly, was short. the only thing that was on this document that hadn't already been explained were the type of attacks; hostile groups include wild, enraged animals, bandits and even shinobi from other villages. It seemed as though these attacks were getting heavier and more frequent in the last few days. It seemed that the villages goals were to inject a large number of troops to the gate for a short span of time in order to intimidate hostile targets.

"That's all good and fun," Helios seemed to state without a hint of duty in his voice, as though this was a trivial game to him. "[/color=iceblue]"Seems like a fun way to kill time. Could I ask of any other shinobi who are also present in this mission?"[/color]

[Guyviroth]

The Jounin seemed to be prepared for this question as he soon pulled out a small, brief document on two shinobi, both of whose profiles fit on the same sheet. It seemed that they must of applied earlier considering that this has been printed not recently. The document contained two names; Hyuuga Jushin, a male genin of the Hyuuga's branch family, and Lili Nara, a female of the Nara clan.

The document lists Jushin as an upcoming Taijutsu expert of the Gentle Fist style who has already mastered some of their more moderate techniques as well as training with his Byakugan. Despite being a martial artist by nature it says he's also skilled in the use of projectile weapons. Helios began to understand a few key points of this guy and already formulated a few strategies that he could use alongside with the guy, specifically with his Doujutsu.

Lili is listed as a "new-blood" into her clan that presumably means that she's only been given basic training in her clan's hiden jutsu, though in Helios' mind it brings up the question as to why she opted for a dangerous C rank mission if she's considered a fresh academy graduate. Nonetheless Helios is aware of the Nara clan's powerful Shadow Bind techniques, which he already knew he could rely on in unison with his own Kenjutsu.

"Oh, helios, before you go," the Jounin captain began as he handed Helios one more item, a blue tag that is made to stick to clothing temporarily. "because of your experience in missions, and the nature of the fact that both those other recruits are rather new to this, I'm assigning you as temporary leader of your "cell". If you've no further questions, feel free to head to the gates."

[Guyviroth]

The boy was certain that this mission was going to be a piece of cake considering he was going to be with two other shinobi who were part of Konoha's prestige clans. He kept looking through their profile sheet as a means of developing more strategies based upon his own skills as well as the skills of his team mates. He was confident that he was capable of doing this on his own but he also knew that team work was what a shinobi was born for. He found this was his chance to learn alongside two other genin.

"Oh, excuse me," A colorful, cheery voice called out to Helios as a rather tall woman with long, flowing hair done up in a high ponytail with two, thin strands of hair framing her face approached him. He recognized her attire as being part of the Nara clan. "I'm sorry to bother you but, if you're on your way to the gates could you deliver this to my daughter Lili? She forgot her shinobi pouch again." The lady handed Helios a small brown pouch that had two straps along the back to tie to the leg.

"Sure thing," Helios responded with a small smile as she placed it within his outstretched hand. "In fact I'm on the same mission as her. I'll deliver it to her as soon as I get there." Helios nodded as he began to turn, unknowingly showing her the blue tag he had placed on the shoulder of his sleeved arm.

"Oh, are you going to be her captain for this mission? You must have a lot of mission experience for someone your age then. I wish you the best of luck!"

[Guyviroth]

Helios proceeded through the gates as he was flanked closely by two Chuunin guards who seemed to be posted here for the mission, although it was actually their usual posts despite the growing attacks here. As he stepped through the gates two other shinobi turned to him who were previously on guard several meters away from the gates. Helios sighed softly for a moment; he was astounded that they would be so far away from the gates that was almost an open invite for a rear attack.

The boy, Jushin Hyuuga, wore a long white robe that was fastened by a large black sash around his midriff, with one end flowing down to his knees. His leaf headband obscured his Hyuuga Curse mark that would have been branded upon him at childbirth. "Well it's about time someone else showed up," It was apparent his disposition was one of elitism. "And you're our captain? I see punctuality isn't a necessary trait for the position."

"Oh shush, Jushin," The girl said as she darted her eyes to the Hyuuga before looking back at Helios. "He's our captain for today so be respectful! I'm sorry about Jushin, he's just an impatient person. We're glad to have you here by the way. I'm Lili by the way." The girl was very polite but it could be expected from a fresh genin, first impressions and such. Looking like a spitting image of her mother she also wore the usual Nara attire.

"I'm your temporary captain Helios Marushagan. I apologize for being rather late but I had to go pick this up for you, Lili." Helios chucked the small pouch to the young girl as she flinched to grab it, nearly dropping it. "A shinobi is always prepared. Remember that." The girl was rather embarrassed as she totally forgot her own weapon pouch. "And what are you two doing so far from the gate anyway? Get back a few meters; you're leaving your rear exposed to an ambush."

[Guyviroth]

It seemed that pleasantries would have to wait for the moment. Before Helios could offer any more verbal advice or before Jushin had a chance to retort with some sort of witty, demeaning remark they all could hear rustling in the foliage in front of them. Getting ready, both Jushin and Lili did as they were told and hopped back two meters each in order to form a close-knit group, forming in a semi-circle to keep visuals on the shrubbery in front.

Without warning three wolves pounced from the bushes as they stood growling, teeth baring and drool slobbering from their clenched maws. Slowly they began to prowl sidewards in both direction as they fixated their leers upon the trial. The Chuunin behind them didn't seem to prepare for combat considering they were just wolves.

Helios reached his hand into his weapons pouch and fumbled for a small, cylinder-shaped container that had a small pin fastened to it. He leaned his head slightly in the direction of Jushin. "You think you can handle this, weapon-man?" Helios gave with a smirk as, with his index finger, he pulled out the pin on what was a smoke bomb before tossing it forwards. The smoke inside hindered the wolves' sight as well as their sense of smell.

Jushin gave a small smirk; for someone who was a someone newbie to missions he had a shrewd mind and knew what to do. Quickly he activated his Byakugan, allowing him to pierce through the smoke as he found the wolves through the dense gas. Drawing three kunai he flung each one seemingly was perfect accuracy; each kunai was a fatal head shot to a wolf. "Heh, perfect as always."

"Hey, you two were great," Lili said with a large smile on her face as she turned to her comrades. "But, I didn't do anything..."

"Don't worry Lili. Next fight I'll leave it to you."

[Guyviroth]

Hours seemed to pass without any sign of another attack. By this time the three of them seemed to be relaxing, taking seated positions in a closed semi-circle, still viewing in front of the gates for another attack, but noticeably with their guards down. It seemed that the three of them didn't bother talking during this time as though they were afraid of saying something wrong or just generally having nothing to say.

"So Jushin, what's your story?" Helios decided to be the person to break the ice in their hours-long tension-rising stalemate of conversation. "So I understand you're part of the branch family of the Hyuuga clan, right? Must be pretty awesome having a prestige clan and doujutsu."

"Hmph, for the main house maybe," Jushin gave a scowl as Helios mentioned him being part of the branch family and was inevitably discouraged due to that position. "The branch lives in the shadow of the main house, only to be used as their slaves and walking punching bags. Hell, the only reason we're taught any Ninjutsu is so we can be used as trained fodder for the main house. But I will break my own limits and achieve perfection with or without them!"

"Hm, I can relate somewhat." Helios pondered to himself as his family lived in the shadows of the Uchiha. he only wished for his family to recieve the recognition they deserved in all they did to aid their Uchiha "brothers".

[Guyviroth]

Before anything else could be said another large rustle in the foliage in front of them erupted suddenly, although it could be seen from several meters from the village entrance's path. The three shinobi, in return, quickly stood to their feet as they got ready; Jushin drew another kunai followed by a similar response from Lili, while Helios just kept his hand upon the hilt of his katana, ready to strike with such speed that their attacker would not be able to respond.

"Jushin, use your Byakugan to identify the enemy." Helios suggested to the Hyuuga who, rather that respond with an unneeded question, did as he was told as he formed the seal for it again. The chakra was taxing on him although Helios did not need or expect him to use any jutsu while he was there. As the boy's Byakugan scanned in front he picked up a large, wide mass that was equivilent to a large ursine-like creature.

"Seems like a large bear," Jushin released the seal as he relayed the identification of the beast to his other team mates. "Nothing we can't handle." The boy quickly threw two kunai into the shrubbery where the Ursine was, but instead of landing a kill like he hoped he ended up grazing the bear's head, making it bellow a loud roar as it started to charge through the bushes.

"Nice going idiot," Helios scalded his team mate as his reckless attack drove the bear into a frenzy. "Lili, when it appears I need you to bind it." The girl nodded in acknowledgement of her captain's orders and, forming a hand seal, extended her shadow outwards in line of the bear. When it appeared it was immediately caught in the technique.

Helios quickly dashed forwards as the bear was held in place and, with a quick double cut horizontally and vertically, the bear was cut down mortally and fatally as it clumped down with a small, dying roar, eventually motionless. "Congrats Lili, your first kill. Kinda." The girl was evidently happy with a small smile on her face as she displayed her usefulness.

[Guyviroth]

With the immediate threat eliminated and Jushin confirming no other attackers in a 100 meter radius of the area. For the time being the three of them would relax seeing as there could possibly be no attacks for another few minutes. The group decided, for the time being, to leave the corpses of the wild animals on the ground in front of them in order to display their dominance as a deterrent to other wild animals who would attempt to attack; with bears being the biggest thing that Helios knew existed out in these areas it would surely serve to discourage any other hostile creatures.

Helios would swing his sword to one side in order to fling the blood from his blade away; the fatty tissue and blood of creatures would corrode and dull the iron of the blade, making it more dull over time. He proceeded to the corpses of the three wolves and one by one pulled the kunai that had struck them earlier from their craniums, with the wounds gushing a bit of blood as he did so. Passing them back to Jushin he then took a turn to face Lili. "So Lili, what's your story?" he asked as she turned to give him her attention, although she was rather shy about the question. "Your report says you're a newbie to missions, so why did you pick this one of all missions instead of a D rank mission?"

"I'm not really sure," Lili said with a nervous blush on her face; she didn't want to make herself look like more of a dunce that she had already done. "When I graduated it was the first mission the captain gave me; I didn't think it would be so ... difficult." The girl gave a small sigh as she looked back to Helios. "But I thought that, having working in a group, I would be okay and perhaps I could help in small ways..."

"Oh great," Jushin huffed as he folded his arms, giving a small scowl at Lili, showing some signs of displeasure with her words. "So the girl expects us to carry her through the mission? How weak is she, exactly?"

"That's enough, Jushin," Helios again scalded the brash and demeaning Hyuuga as he slowly turned back to him, but as he did he noticed Lili was visually distraught over his words. "Everyone starts off somewhere, and she just happened to get thrown into the deep end. We're here to work together, not to slander each other's skills."

"Whatever."

[Guyviroth]

The time seemed to past rather quickly today; it was already starting to hit sundown though it felt like the group had only been here for what felt like a few hours. The sun began to descend over the eastern horizon, already casting shadows from over the gates and into the forest before them, dark red and orange hues veiling the sky in a wash of tropical colours over the world's canvas. It was a glorious sight to behind, one that you could only see in the Land of Fire. It was one of the reasons Helios enjoyed the place.

As the group kept watch, Lili gave a small smile before turning to Helios whom was still facing out towards the forests as he anticipated any attacks at this time. "So Helios, what about you?" Lili asked Helios, seeing as he had already asked about Jushin and Lili she felt it was time for him to spill his guts. "How did you get to become so... strong, and... cool."

"Heh, I don't know about cool," Helios smirked as he gave a modest reply initially, taking out a small, oil-filled lighter and a cigarette from his pocket, pursing his lips upon the butt of it and igniting it. A single drag is all he took before expelling a grey smoke outwards. "But I've got this far through hard work and hard work alone. Having no parents of my own my only ambition in life was to display the true power of our family. To cast aside the shadow that is the Uchiha."

"Uchiha's shadow? I don't understand."

"Be ready for a story then. Centuries ago when the war between the Uchiha and Senju erupted as the first shinobi world war the Uchiha enlisted my family, the Marushagan, as its allies. Needless to say we helped them on any occasion when we could and, at the founding of Konoha, we were given residence by the side of the Uchiha compound. Though despite the help we gave to the Uchiha and even aiding to the peace treaty we were cast aside with not even so much as a "Thank You". Eventually we were scratched from the history books altogether as just another clan caught up in the war, much like the other Konoha clans. The only difference is that we have no Bloodline Limit or Hidden Jutsu to call our own and so we eventually were just forgotten as just another normal family household."

"That sounds horrible. To think that you'd be forgotten so easily."

"Every day I've dealt the best hand that the cards had given me, taking on mission after mission with no rest or relaxation. I tend to do my family proud and to make us once again recognized."

[Guyviroth]

It seemed as though their conversation would have to wait for the time being. As the group were talking several voices could be heard from within the distance in the bushes, though their words could not be made out it was obvious to say that they sounded like bandits. Again, Jushin used the Byakugan to confirm the existence of five humanoid shaped around 30 meters in front of them located behind several trees.

Helios held his arm up slightly and waved towards himself, signalling both Lili and Jushin to get close to him. "Right, here's the plan," Helios muttered to the two as they both neared their heads closer to him. "Lili, I need you to use your Shadow Bind on the targets when they appear to hold them in place. Jushin, use your throwing weapons to attack them from range. If any of them break the hold I'll deal with them, so just focus on the ones held down."

The two nodded in acknowledgement, with Lili switching with Helios and kneeling down low to perform her seal, while Jushin stood above her with three kunai gripped between his fingers ready for attack. Helios, however, jumped up high into one of the trees nearby to get a good vantage point for a surprise attack should the need arise. Helios could actually see the bandit troop make their way to them but he didn't want to attack just yet. With only a few second until the troop reached the gate, Helios sure as hell hoped the two others were prepared.

The bandit troop sprung from the bushed and, as planned, Lili had used Shadow Bind successfully. However, what wasn't planned was that she only snared one as opposed to all of them, much to Helios' and Jushin's surprise. As the plan went pear-shaped Jushin flung the three kunai which struck the one snared in the skull, as did a second that charged towards them, but the third missed its target. The other three bandits made their way to their two attackers but before they could reach their targets Helios had bolted from the branch and carved through the one attacking Lili. Without stopping momentum he sprung forwards towards the two heading for Jushin and, with swift movement, carved through them with a quick one-two of an Rising Cut and Two-handed Cut.

"Well, that could have gone better..."

[Guyviroth]

It seemed that with the immediate threat over the group could take a small breather, which would be appreciated immensely by both Helios and Jushin considering the botched plan. The two of them sighed as they gathered themselves to prepare for the next attack; Helios again swung the blood from his katana before sheathing it, while Jushin went to gather the two kunai that had killed the bandits before heading to grab the third, which was embedded in the trunk of a nearby tree.

"Damnit, Lili," Helios exclaimed as he turned to face his team mate, a sour look on his face but not one of anger, but of disappointment. "When I said "Them" I meant all of them at the same time." He tried not to sound completely overbearing on her but as he spoke he realised that his words would be overbearing, not the tone in which he spoke.

"I'm sorry," The girl tried to speak loudly but her voice felt strained as though she was trying to force her words loud, a sign that she was emotionally upset. "I tried to bind them all but I've only been taught to bind one target at a time. I tried, I really did..."

"How are we supposed to work as a team when Lili can't even do basic Shadow Bind jutsu? She should go home." Jushin was starting to get more irrate with the girl and his tone and facial expression clearly showed it, pointing at her before swinging his arm to the side violently as he suggested she left.

"Sorry Lili but, Jushin is right," Helios didn't want to say anything but he had known from the start that she was not dependable due to her lack of training. He wanted to say it as nicely as he could but he didn't know how. "This mission isn't for you. Perhaps it would be best if--"

"SHUT UP!" Lili yelled at Helios, he was taken aback by her response. As she looked up, her eyes began to well up with tears as she sniffed once, her lip shaking as she tried to speak. "I-I'm trying my best! But you guys keep treating me like I'm a dead weight! I HATE YOU!" The girl turned and quickly ran into the bushes as she sobbed uncontrollably.

"Lili, wait!" It was no use for the boy, she had already ran so far ahead that she wouldn't of turned back to acknowledge him. Helios felt a deep sense of regret as he sighed softly. "Lili... I didn't..."

"Hmph, let her go," Jushin huffed as he folded his arms again with a smirk on his face as if to say that he was happy at the act. "We'll be better off without that dead weight holding us down.

Helios clenched his fists at his words and, almost without hesitation or resolve he unsheathed the Chokuto he carried on his back and held it to the Hyuuga's throat, causing his to real back slightly and hold his arms up as though for mercy. As Helios suspected, he hid his cowardice, terrified demeanour behind a mask of elitism and arrogance. "If I hear one more word out of you," Helios said in a harsh yet quiet tone, gazing at the Hyuuga's terrified expression. "I'm going to bring you back to your compound as a decapitated corpse. Now I'm ordering you to stay here and defend the gate while I bring Lili back."

The boy hadn't even a chance to respond as Helios dropped his arm away before sprinting off towards where Lili headed to, leaving Jushin behind at the gates.

[Guyviroth]

It seemed that Lili left her footprints in the dirt fairly clearly, so much that Helios was able to use the trail in order to track her direction of movement. However, the tracks suddenly stopped in a clearing, a circle of medium-sized trees and short grass and dirt set the scene. As Helios stopped though he was greeted by three Kumo shinobi, with one of them holding Lili by the neck in a fairly tight choke hold but not enough to kill her. He also had a kunai held to the side of her neck.

"Lili!" Helios let out as he took a step forward, but the Kumo nin lightly pressed the tip of the kunai against her neck, not enough to pierce her though. Helios stopped suddenly, noticing the movement. "Damnit, let her go!"

"Oh no no no, not on your life, boy," The Kumo nin let out softly with a smirk on his lips as he held the girl off her feet with his rather large, imposing physique. "Why don't you drop your weapons and equipment first. Unless you want this lil girl to have a nice hole in her neck."

Helios growled lowly as he did what he was instructed, although at the same time he began to channel his chakra through his body. Slowly he drew his katana from his waist rope and dropped it in front of him. he then did the same with his chokuto, before finally untying his equipment pouch from his waist rope and dropping it as well. "There. Now what do you want?"

"Oh we just need to do a few things in the Leaf. Y'know, kill some shinobi, weaken their defenses, such and such. Oh we also could scrounge a nice little ransom out of the two of you. But we can do that after our other two comrades finish taking out your gate's guards."

[Guyviroth]

Back at the gate Jushin was busy holding his own, on his own. It seemed that the two Kumo shinobi made it past Helios' detection as he traversed down the path, with the two of them using the tree tops as their means of navigation to the gate. It seemed the two Chuunin that were holding the gate at each side were sniped by kunai as they both lay motionless, each with a kunai through the head. As Jushin held his Gentle Fist stance the two Kumo shinobi stood several meters from him, each one holding a sword.

"Just one more to go," one of the Kumo shinobi taunted as he held his sword in front of his dark, slender face, giving a sinister grin as his eyes gazed upon the fairly shaken Hyuuga. "Now die!" Both of the Kumo shinobi sprinted at the young boy, swords drawn and to the side.

Jushin still kept composure though, quickly melding his chakra into his fists, which the Kumo shinobi couldn't see thankfully. Before the opponent swung their weapon Jushin rushed forwards to tackle them, knocking the shinobi off guard and causing his team mate to step back. Thrusting his fists forwards the shinobi attempted to block with his sword, holding his width-ways with the flat edge showing, although the attack of Jushin's Twin Lion Fist shattered the sword and blasted the Kumo ninja away, weakening him.

The second Kumo shinobi tried a similar assault, only to be matched with a swift dash to the side from Jushin, who then retaliated with his Eight Divinations Sign Air Palm, targeting just under his side and blasting him away as well, causing him to collide with the trunk of a nearby tree, knocking him out. Leaving nothing to chance Jushin tossed a kunai at the knocked out shinobi, piercing him through the temple. As the other tried to stand Jushin did the same, tossing a kunai and piercing the shinobi between the eyes.

"That was close," he muttered to himself, accepting the fact that he was not expecting a fight to be taxing. "But I need to find them." Without picking up his weapons the boy sprinted through the woods to find his team.