Late Registration (P)(salt,yulo)

[Exar Kun]

The sun was setting on the horizon, but it was still warm enough that Adrianna had no need for a jacket. The bridge she was standing was hundreds of feet above ground, but no wind nipped at her skin. As always, there was nothing but heat and sand-blasted air in Sunagakure.

The bridge she was standing on was called the Byzantine bridge and it was one unremarkable structure out of literally hundreds of such identically unremarkable structures littered throughout the Hidden Village. While the two lower levels in Suna were connected via your average streets, or tunnels, bridges were required to travel from building to building on the sprawling surface level. As Adrianna stood on the Byzantine Bridge with her arms crossed, she gazed over its edge at the twinkling lights and bustling crowd below, trying to kill time while waiting for her soon-to-be teammates to appear. Aside from her, the Byzantine Bridge was utterly vacant; that was something shevconsidered to be a bit of a blessing. Being alone was good for her when the old nerves started getting jumpy, and in that moment they were raw with tension.

Adrianna had never led a team before. This one would be her first, and she couldn't help but wonder if she was up to the task. While Adrianna was more than confident in her own abilities as a warrior, to be a leader required qualities that she wasn't sure she possessed. Tact, patience, focus, charisma. None of those concepts were exactly kosher to her. Not in the slightest, to be perfectly honest.

Of course, that was probably the point. As her master would have said, everyone has to start somewhere. If her Sensei, Onnin, believed that she was ready for such a crucial step in her Shinobi Career, then the least she could do was trust in his judgement and do her very best to not disappoint him.

Despite that, as she watched the plebeians live out their lives below and mused on how she would be one leading their sons and daughters into battle, Adrianna couldn't shake the notion that she was in over her head.

[SALT.]

"Alright, Watson, listen closely."

The path to the designated meeting spot had been long, winding, and packed with civilians. Regardless of how slow the common-folk walked or how dreadfully boring the conversations that I unintentionally eavesdropped on were, my resolved remained strong and I pressed forward through the crowds. Luckily, I was never alone; Watson always had my back - literally. My beloved puppet had it's arms slung over my shoulders with it's head peacefully against my back and it's legs dangling and dragging behind me. Quite lazy, this one was.

"I know that it's always been just the two of us, but today we're being assigned to an actual team. Isn't that exciting, Watson?" I explained and asked. Watson made a clacking noise, but I think that it was because we started moving uphill now rather than an actual response from him. "Well, I am," I continued. "I do hope that the others accept us, but why wouldn't they, right? We're awesome."

It took a bit of time, but eventually I reached the top. The Byzantine bridge was empty save for a woman standing there and gazing over the edge. She seemed noticeably older than I was, but she wasn't ancient. "She's probably our leader, look alive." I whispered to the puppet as I strolled forward.

"Good evening!" I said with a smile and a wave as I neared her. "I'm Honoka."

[Hronica]

The sunset across the horizon of the Wind Country was always beautiful. A peachy glow echoed off the sand to create a very attractive setting. The day was not over though. Many shopkeepers closed up their businesses for the day, but for those who live the life of a ninja; the day had only just begun. Yulo, a Genin from the Kekkai family, was one such shinobi who was out and about as many others started to drift home. He was very close to the rendezvous point.

Earlier that day he had received word that there was to be a formation of a shinobi team. Yulo was ecstatic at the news. He had forever longed to be apart of an actual team rather than performing errands for the Kazekage on his own. His walk was brisk, emitting a feel of eagerness in his pace. The Byzantine Bridge was a place he had never been, yet somewhere he had heard of. After receiving directions from an elderly lady, Yulo headed off to the location.

On arrival to the meeting spot, Yulo was able to check out the people already gathered. An older woman stood on the bridge with a younger girl nearby her. It seemed as if the younger girl also suffered from some deformation, as it looked as if something was growing on her back. At closer inspection, Yulo realised that it was most probably a puppet. He tightened his jacket around his chest area and headed forth to meet the pair.

The two women were already talking, from what Yulo could hear as he edged closer to them. He didn't want to be rude and interrupt the others. So after they had finished with their introductions, Yulo would begin his own. Placing his hands in his jacket pockets, Yulo announced his presence to the pair of them after they had finished speaking. "I'm Kekkai, Yulo." He wondered whether they knew of his family. If they did, he hoped they wouldn't make assumptions.

You see, his family was renown world-wide as the group that is attempting to revive the Hidden Rain Village. Although this stereotype has been followed by most members of the clan, Yulo has diverted against it by affiliating with another hidden village. Although not a rogue member of his clan, Yulo has his own personal agendas to take care of before swearing oath to the rebirth of the Rain. People had different views on the Kekkai, both positive and negative.

[/justify]

[Exar Kun]

Adrianna hadn't been waiting for long before she heard footsteps. She turned to meet the new arrival.

The lighting poles fixed to the bridge had automatically turned on several minutes prior- it was officially dusk then -and the orange glow from the lights cast the Genin in a peculiar half-and-half shadow. Adrianna's experienced eyes quickly and silently drank in her features, scanning her equipment, attire, body type- anything that she could use to gauge her threat level. She did it not out of fear or even caution- merely reflex.

The girl's most striking feature was her size- she was... very tiny. Her face and confident stride implied maturity, but by her stature alone she didn't look to be more than twelve or so years old and on top of that, she wore a pair of thick-rimmed glasses, and a romper suit, both of which served only to make her look even younger.

Adrianna's first thought was that the girl wasn't one of her teammates at all, just some student on her way home, perhaps. However, the sight of the jumbled mass dangling from the girl's back quickly dispelled that notion.

The site of the eerily life-life puppet on the girl's back made Adrianna's heart skip a beat. It had been a long time since she'd seen a puppeteer, mostly due to preference. Puppets, dolls and other imitations of life had a habit of creeping her out, so she avoided them. It seemed almost karmic that one would end up being her squad-mate.

Once the girl was in handshake distance, she spoke.

"Good evening!" She said. "I'm Honoka."

Honoka's speech-pattern was, predictably, more mature than her appearance gave her credit for. Adrianna decided that it would be wise to not underestimate her. She was, after all, a Shinobi.

"Honoka! Pleased to meet you." Adrianna said, beaming. She extended her hand. "It's been a long time since I've seen a puppet user.” She omitted the reason for why that was; it probably wouldn't have been a good idea to explain to the young woman that Adrianna despised her talent utterly. No...

I'm lucky to have such an interesting teammate!" She lied instead, hoping the deception wasn't noticeable.

Adrianna made ready to more formally introduce herself in return, but paused when she noticed the red-headed boy. He was standing just a few meters behind Honoka, his hands in his pockets and an altogether bored disposition influencing his stature. Whereas the soft-orange glow of the streetlamps had made Honoka seem mysterious, on the boy it merely highlighted the contrast between his ginger hair and light complexion. Aside from that and his stylish attire, there seemed to be no remarkable qualities about him.

He introduced himself as Kekkei Yulo, his tone as phlegmatic as his demeanor. Despite that, however, hearing his clan name sent a shiver of amusement through Adrianna's core. She resisted the urge to snicker.

The Kekkei family had gained notoriety within Sunagakure for their well-publicized obsession with restoring the long-since decimated Amegakure to its former glory. They were commonly regarded as conspiracy theorists, and though Adrianna wasn't one to judge an individual by his or her inherited background, all the same she couldn't help but feel a little exasperated by the notion of having one of the little carrot-tops on her team. A puppeteer and a Kekkei. Who could ask for better company?

She nodded at the boy and backed up until she was leaning against the railing again. She took a deep breath, preparing to speak, and that's when it hit her.

It occurred to Adrianna that she was scared shitless and that she wasn't really sure of what to say. It struck her as somewhat ironic that she'd been looking forward to this moment- having a team – for years, but now that that moment had arrived she was speechless.

Trying to hide her discomfort, she smiled toothily at the two kids and reached a hand into the pack on her waist searching the sheet of paper she'd written talking points on in anticipation of losing her focus or running out of things to say.

“Well, um...” She said, smiling nervously. She couldn't find the sheet of paper; she wondered bleakly if she left it at home. “It's really nice to meet you both.” Giving up, she sighed, took her hand out of the pack, closed the zipper, and decided to wing it.

“My name is Hyuuga Adrianna, and I suppose... as you've both probably guessed by now... that I'll be the Chuunin in charge of this little troupe.

She folded her arms across her chest and stared at the two of them silently for a moment, contemplating what to say next. What had her Sensei talked about when he'd first met her and the rest of their squad? She recalled that he had been nearly ten minutes late, and that upon arriving had proceeded to spend five minutes explaining why he was late- it had had something to do with his neighbor being noisy and keeping him up all night with loud rap music- at which point he'd spent another five minutes droning on about how rap music wasn't real music. Adrianna didn't have any particularly strong opinions on music, so she'd try a different tact. The eerily artificial smile plastered on her face never left.

“Sorry if I seem a bit scattered,” she said. “this is my first time leading my own squad, so I'm kind of just winging this..” She stopped mid-sentence, realizing that her lack of experience probably wasn't what the two Genin wanted to hear about. “W-well, that's not to say that I have no idea what I'm doing... or something. I mean I know how to fight and stuff and, and, and I scored really high on my tactics and strategy exam during the Chuunin Exams!” She grinned triumphantly. Surely, that would impress them.

And then she wasn't sure what to say next. She blinked, thinking of a way to avoid an awkward silence.

“Like I said before, I'm a Hyuuga- um, main house- and I became a Chuunin about through years ago. I scored really high on my tactics and strategy exam during the Chuunin Exams which is why I was promoted, but I'm also a decent fighter. Juuken allows me to hold my ground while I can also use my bow from a distance,” she twisted a little so that they could see the bow and quiver attached to the rear-plate of her armor.” - so I guess you could say that I'm both an offensive and support oriented fighter.”

“Um, why don't you guys tell me a bit about yourself? You first, Honoka.”

[/justify]

[SALT.]

She seemed nice, I thought as I beamed back at her, and her comment about the scarcity of puppet-users made my face flush red. Admittedly, I had only encountered three puppeteers aside from myself in my entire life. Not that I ever did much travelling, but you'd think that there would be a few more in Sunagakure at the very least. This fact, however, made me feel special, like I was part of something rare. I happily shook her hand and said "Likewise!" as she, too, seemed interesting. She was incredibly athletic.

Before I could study her physique more, I noticed that the woman's attention had been drawn elsewhere. I turned in the direction in which she was looking and spotted him. Like the woman, and pretty much everyone else for that matter, this newcomer was noticeably taller than I was, so I had to look up. I adjusted my glasses and stepped to the side a bit so that I could face the both of them. Kekkei Yulo was his name, according to him. Though, with his hair red like the dying sunset and his snazzy way of dressing, I didn't think the name fit him. He seemed to me more like a Johnny, to be honest.

The surname Kekkei sounded familiar. Nana must have mentioned something about some Kekkei recently, not directly to me, of course, but perhaps I'd overheard something about this familiy. I couldn't put my finger on it, however. I turned back to the woman and gave a brief smile because she was smiling. She seemed like a pleasant person. That, or she was uncomfortable.

Her name was Adrianna and she was a Hyuuga. Fascinating, I thought, and then my thoughts began to drown out much of what she said. I'd heard tales of the Hyuuga Clan and their prestigious abilities. Supposedly they could see three-hundred-and-sixty degrees at once and even see through walls! That was an ability that would be very useful for a Puppeteer. Controlling multiple puppets at once was one thing, but being able to give all of them your attention at once no matter where they were in relation to you? Now that would be kosher.

I snapped back to the here-and-now when Adrianna turned a little, revealing a bow and quiver. I nodded at this. It made sense; combining amazing ocular abilities with something as long-range and deadly as sharpshooting with a bow. I smiled when she said my name, excited to get the spotlight.

"Well," I said pleasantly glancing between both of them. "My name is Etsuko Honoka. I know you're probably thinking 'ermegerd, Etsuko like the Sherdaime and Nerdaime?' and, yeah, I guess you could say that I come from a good family." I said and I began to laugh a little, hoping that they would laugh as well.


I cleared my throat and shifted my body a little, causing Watson to make jumbled clicking and clacking noises.

"As you've probably guessed by now, my main focus is Kugutsu. Say hi, Watson." I said, subtly moving one of my fingers up and down which caused the wooden hand that was hanging over my shoulder to wave. "But I also dabble with Suiton on the side." I added. I then smiled lightly at Yulo, since I hadn't anything else to divulge. I was curious to hear about this Kekkei boy.

[Hronica]

His introduction was met with an awkward silence from the Chūnin woman. It had seemed as if she had run out of things to say. Like as if she was trying to get something out, but no words would flow. Yulo twitched his left eye slightly at the woman, wondering if he could do anything to crack this awkward moment between the trio. His prayers were answered soon after however, with the Chūnin finally breaking the ice with her own introductions.

So she was of the main family of Hyūga Clan. It was a pity Yulo had little idea as to what that meant. Nevertheless, he was well aware of her secret eye technique and what powers it possessed. She would be a mighty asset to the younger pair of genin, in both good times and bad. Yulo began to phase out of reality, slightly marvelling at her Byakugan as she continued to speak. It was only until she mentioned the Chūnin Exams to which he snapped back into focus.

An archer as well as a hand-to-hand fighter. Well, she had a vast array of skills that was for sure. It was good that she could utilise both long and short-ranged fighting, a deadly advantage when used in the right hands. But soon the conversation continued to flow to the next person; the little girl with the wooden doll. Judging from her bodily expressions alone, she seemed to be quite enthusiastic about this whole situation.

Etsuko eh? What a little gift indeed. The family was renown for its legendary status amongst the people of the Hidden Sand, producing two very fine past Kazekage. But would the legacy travel on to this little one? She seemed to be rather... too cute to be compared to her family of ninja prodigies. But she was still young and had a lot of time to grow. Perhaps she would prove herself and her ability throughout the many missions to come for the team.

Thus finally, it was his turn to speak. He was a little wary as to how to describe himself. "Uhh... I'm able to produce a mighty flame with the Fire Release. As for what else I'm capable of... I can also leech chakra off friend or foe, as well as give it away if needed." He too had the ability for both long and short-ranged combat. Perhaps Yulo could learn a few tips and tricks from his new team leader. He finished off with a question to Adrianna. "So what now?"

[/justify]

[Exar Kun]

As the duo gave a run-down of their powers, Adrianna listened silently and politely, mentally filing each new tidbit away for later use. Listening to the two Genin talk soothed her nerves somewhat, allowing her to think from a more rational, strategic perspective.

Combined with her latent Hyuuga talents and archery skills, Adrianna was already beginning to see how the dynamic would probably unfold for their trio in combat. She hadn't seen very many puppeteers in live combat scenarios, but she'd learned enough about their abilities from her shinobi courses and simulations to know that they were predominantly mid-ranged fighters. With the proper training, a puppeteer could be useful for running interference, or creating a distraction. Of course, that required not just excellent puppet-coordination, but also seamless teamwork. Adrianna made a mental note to analyze Etsuko in a combat scenario as soon as possible, to gauge how well she could control her creepy little mannequins.

Yulo's powerset seemed to be a bit more complicated. Much like herself, he had both long and short-range capabilities. The question was, which talent he work on cultivating as his specialty, the katon or the Akadou? From a team synergy perspective, she preferred katon, but ultimately it was his decision. She added a private discussion with him about the subject to her mental list of to-do tasks.

When the carrot-topped Genin was done talking, Adrianna said nothing for a few moments, thinking of where to take the discussion next. She could feel the day's heat beginning to sap away in the evening darkness- it was probably time to start wrapping things up.

"Well, alright. I think I can definitely see a way to work with you guys." She said, winking. "I think we're about done for tonight- there's just one more thing I want to bring up."

She paused, partially for dramatic effect, mostly to think of how best to articulate her thoughts.

"As Genin you guys have made it this far, and for that, I'm already proud of you both." She grinned, albeit more sheepishly than intended, to show her sincerity. "And so far, even though I haven't known either of you long enough to judge, I get the feeling that you're both pretty alright people.

But all the same, I want you guys to understand that this is a team. Tomorrow I'm going to fill out the paperwork and get all the legality stuff done, and from that moment we're going to be, for all intents an purposes, a family. So, if you're some kind of lone wolf who doesn't care about anybody but yourself, then there's no place for you here. If you've got a chip on your shoulder for whatever reason, or some kind of death wish, then you've got the wrong Team Leader."

Her smile was gone. For the first time since she'd introduced herself to them, Adrianna's expression was nothing less than solemn. She stared at each of the Genin in turn, looking them in the eye.

"I can't promise that I'm going to make you some kind of all-powerful Shinobi-God if you stick with me. But what I will promise is that I will absolutely do everything within my power to protect you, nurture you, and create a bond between the three of us that will enable us to overcome any obstacle we face, as a team. That's what I promote. That's what I'm about. Teamwork.

If that isn't something you're interested in, then tell me now, so I can find someone else. Or, if that's something you might want, then say so."

Her speech over, Adrianna silently awaited their replies. Outwardly she tried to look impassive, neutral. On the inside she fought to keep herself from snickering at just how melodramatic her monologue was.

[/justify]

SPOILER: Click to show

Ayyyyyye. Sorry that took so long guys! After your next posts, we're pretty much done in this thread and we can move on to some missions.

[Hronica]

Yulo watched the woman as she studied the pair of them for a few members. She was most probably analysing what they had both said, thinking about possible strategies the team could use together in the future. Yulo was interested as to what she had thought up. He was yet to really consider how well a Hyuuga, puppeteer and a long-ranged fire elementalist would synergise together. He decided to leave that all up to the leader of the team, for now.

Yulo listened carefully as to what the woman went on to speak of. She spoke of the three of them coming together to form a family. He wouldn't stand against the idea of that. More allies meant a greater chance of survival in the world. If the three of them could work together, they would be able to accomplish most things. He wasn't the lone-wolf type character anyway, so this would work out well for him personally. He wasn't sure about the Etsuko girl.

Suddenly something would interrupt the response from the pair of them. A large siren sounded throughout the village. It seemed as if it came from the Kazekage Tower. What did that mean? Invasion? Yulo peered around him suspiciously, looking to see the people of the village rushing for cover within their homes. What the hell was going on? He looked back to the front toward Adrianna. Did she have an idea? This better not have been a drill. His heart pounded.

[/justify]

[Exar Kun]

[/i]

The veins around her eyes visibly bulged against her skin and her irises turned bone white. Immediately, every single thing- every object, every person, every walkway, pathway, bridge, and item- within a kilometer radius Inside homes people were jumping up from their dinner table or television or bed, alarmed. Many were peering out of windows or cracked doors, looking for the source of the commotion. The smartest ones were locking up their homes and ducking under furniture, and tables, retreating to cellars.

In the streets, people were panicking. Mobs of startled civilians surged to and fro through the streets like rushing water- trying to find shelter, trying to get to their homes. Shops were hastily closed up, barristers and horse-carriages abandoned altogether. People fell and were trampled by stampeding hordes. The Village was instantly enthroned by chaos.

Adrianna's special eyes saw all of these things and more simultaneously- and yet, none of it garnered her attention more than the giant, obviously unnatural birds descending upon their city. Held aloft on the bird's backsides were pairs of men and women- armed men and women. The sight sent a chill of horror through Adrianna's body. They were raiding parties.

"We're under attack!" She said suddenly, mere moments after activating her Byakugan. "This isn't a drill- we're seriously under attack!"

Adrenalin flooded through her body as she determined what she should do next. The village was awash with screams, and everywhere her kekke genkai spotted ensuing violence. It made it hard for her to focus. It was only after noticing the two Genin standing before her- she had nearly forgotten they were there - that the maelstrom of anxiety within her mind cooled. Their next action was obvious- they needed to coordinate with the other Shinobi within the village and form a defense.

"Here, guys." She said, fishing through her hip-pack. "I was going to give these to you tomorrow as a gift, but I think now's as good as ever." Finding what she desired, Adrianna pulled her hand out, clutching two jet-black radios, each roughly as long as her wrist. She handed them to the Genin.

"These are special radios- multiple channels, far longer range than your average sets. Our team channel is 3- remember that. " She reached down to her hip-mounted radio and flicked it on.

"This is serious, guys. I need you to do exactly as I say at all times. Okay? We're a team now, and if you want to survive tonight than we'll have to act one." With that dire warning said, she turned and began to stride away. "Let's go. We've got a village to defend."

[exit]
[/blockquote][/ul]

[Hronica]

Exit with Adrianna.

[Naitome]

Exar: +45
Hronica: +26
Salt: +21

[SALT.]

( exit )