Culling the Shrubbery (Mission)

[Kildred]

SPOILER: Click to show

CUTTING BACK THE FOREST
RANK: D
DESCRIPTION: Despite the fact that Kusagakure is widely known as a village that harbours all kinds of plants, not all of them are ones that citizens want to see in the village. Sometimes the plants get out of hand and they need cutting back in order to prevent them from growing over paths and becoming menaces, and because of that the village has requested shinobi to go out and cut back some of the plants that have started to become overgrown- cut them back by any means necessary, but don’t go overboard and destroy the plants!
OBJECTIVE: Prune some trees and bushes!
PAY: 25 EXP and 500 Ryo.

Usio checked his mission slip again for the troubled areas. Being a farmer, he knew the dangers of having other plants creep into areas where they weren't wanted. Encroaching plants could steal the nutrients needed by the crops you were raising, and could ruin an entire harvest. Of course, this particular mission probably had little to do with farming, and more to do with village aesthetics. People didn't like having vines growing all over their buildings, at least when it didn't look nice. He was no exception.

Coming across the first area, he checked over the problem plant. It wasn't anything too big. He'd had to trim it back into place so that it didn't protrude over the windows of the house. Whipping out a kunai, he carefully cut the stems of the shrub shorter. Working bit by bit, Usio trimmed it back to a respectable-looking plant that fit within the house's visage. Checking the surrounding area, no other plants seemed to need any attention.

He started making his way to the next area when he stopped himself. Taking out his mission slip and checking it again, he made sure that this was the house that needed the attention. Seeing that it was, he wondered why there was only the one bush in need of trimming. "What, did they get lazy and want to hire a gardener?" Shaking his head, he continued on his way. He almost wished that the next one would be more challenging, but quickly rescinded it when he realized it'd mean more work.

[Kildred]

Usio cursed his mind when he finally arrived to the next area. the place was covered in vines, creepers, tendrils, and god knows what else. "Son of a...oh, goddammit." It looked like this was one of the houses that was being redone for future family use. Of course, he used the term "redone" loosely. Note to self, inquire about these houses when I get back to the atrium. Checking for the entire amount of plants he'd need to tend to, he circled the house a few times, and checked inside, just in case.

The moment before he started to cut away the vines, he had a thought. All of these plants were a type of creeping vine, and those had a base of some sort. All of these were growing down the side of the house, so he moved to climb to the roof. He chuckled as his suspicion was correct. "A little forethought and I save myself a hour of work." Ripping the plants from their expanses, he shoved them in a bag he had brought and removed himself from the premises.

As he left to go to the next area, Usio got an idea for the bag he held. If he cut up the vines and stems he had accumulated, he could make a nice temporary mulch for the farm. The plants were just right for the root crops he was rearing."Man, I am just full of ideas today!" It was especially pleasing since the plants seemed to be drying out earlier in the day than he was expecting lately. With a wide grin, he continued his gait to remove the next array of plants...and increase his amount of mulch.

[Kildred]

As he turned the corner, Usio let out a whistle as the house he needed to tend to came into view. Now this was a job. The house kept a shrubbery across the entire expansion, but it had grown to nearly half the height of the house. How did the owner even let it get this far? As he approached, a woman left the house. He asked her, and apparently the family was just overwhelmed by their respective jobs. Now that they had some money put away, they sent for someone to help them. Well, he didn't mind. This was quite a job, unlike the first house. He waved as the woman left, and readied his kunai.

Just before starting, he stayed his hand. his last mission, he managed to complete it while training his Doton. Why couldn't he do the same here? That damnable rope dart was still a pain to use, and any experience would help him on using it. Replacing the kunai and removing the weapon, he wrapped it around his arms and started swing it in a circular fashion. "I should probably focus on the swings rather than the thrusts. Wouldn't get much cutting down otherwise." He thought about the book and it's tips.

When he thought about page seventeen, a loud noise brought him out of his reverie. He looked around, but saw nothing that could really make any sort of commotion like he heard. Taking a step to the right, a crunching noise alerted him to something beneath his feet. A few twigs were lying around. Looking up, he saw that his idle swinging had cut a hole clean through the bush. Clean through the bottom of the bush. "...fuck."

[Kildred]

Quickly shoving the dart rope into his satchel, Usio paced and panicked. "Shit, shit! What the hell do I do? Um...uh..." He checked the damage to no avail, since there was no way he could salvage it. "Goddamn it! Why couldn't they just have a small stupid bush like the first house? No, we gotta have a large fucking thing around the entire freaking house just so we look goo-" He stopped himself. Look good? That was it! Yes!

Grabbing his kunai once more, he took a step back and looked at the hole. It was able to be worked as he thought, since the window was still a ways off. Getting to work, he trimmed the area around the hole he had made, smoothing out the edges. He also carved out the top of the shrubbery about a foot away, making it dip down around the window and allowing the light inside. He was a little nervous about how it would stand up once there was little support, but with some clever maneuvering, he helped the branches hold each other up.

Once he managed to finish, the previously overbearing shrubbery now moved in a delightful wave-like pattern across the house. Usio was lucky enough to make it blend around the entirety of the house. Wiping the sweat off his brow, he shoved the last of the twigs into his bag and tied it off. The woman returned as he heaved it over his shoulder, expressing delight at the "design" he had created. Laughing awkwardly, he gave his thanks and left for the atrium.

---Complete

[KEITH]

+34.