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sunday in savannah ♥

It was so strange. I walked forwards almost unconsciously, as the young boy propelled himself into the being's arms with the aid of a jutsu. How brave must he be? Or how utterly foolhardy... But with his embrace, the dread sky cleared, and the being seemed to find peace. And then, to fade. I felt a strange tugging as it began to leave our world, watching with wide eyes as it gently returned the boy to the ground. The scene before me then disappeared, and my mind was wrenched from this existence. Stars filled my eyes, galaxies my mind, and suddenly, a sense of dread my heart, as the trip paused, peering into the hearts and the motives of men. Of Manji?

But this benevolent creature, truly a god, it seemed, was not quite finished. I was afforded a glimpse of my own, taut being, her fear and apprehension rather out of place, I thought, as the feelings of this otherworldly being usurped my own. Bestowed with its parting words, I learned the name of the boy who had risked himself so - Akuseru. And then it was gone. All that remained was the newly inked memento upon my palm. One? Of course, they would try again, those men we peered deep into. Then, it would return? This god? I feared simple human compassion would no longer suffice to placate it.

Back firmly in reality, I had come close to the raven haired man, close enough to hear his murmured thanks, and his candid confession. The symbol for Sunagakure etched upon his garb, I was aggressively reminded of my vulnerability here, surrounded by unknowns. No such clue of my allegiances displayed, I lapsed into my compulsive habit;
"Mimi, scouting on behalf of Iwagakure. Thank you, Akuseru. That was very brave. I feel you prevented something catastrophic here," though assuming a tone of subordination, I had raised an eyebrow at the sand ninja's presumptuous request for names. I knew not who he was, but I rather assumed I outranked him. Still, it would not do for my status to be known, and there were more pressing concerns.

I could see the symbol of Konohagakure upon the waist of the one who had embraced god, and had given my village in respect for their open display. Yet this was unfamiliar territory - there had not been relations, diplomatic or otherwise, between Iwagakure and the other hidden villages in recent memory, and how I acted here could very well set the stage for any future endeavors.

"What we saw - this Manji - their intentions seem to have been made clear. This will occur again, and when it does, all our villages will be in danger. The Tsuchikage bade me establish contact with any foreign shinobi I encountered, and to entreat their kages to do likewise," naturally, I was quite making it up as I went along, but it was scarcely a lie,
"What say you, Akuseru of the Leaf? Shinobi of the Sand?"

Where on earth had I picked up this style of speaking? Amateur dramatics hour at its very finest.

birth in heaven ♥

Curiouser and curiouser... Still rather far away, it was difficult to make out the exchange, but I heard the being's words clearly, deeply unsettling and almost infantile. I began to close the gap, following the example of the person ahead of me who was also approaching. Then, however, I could feel a change take place, almost as if it were the very atmosphere, altering its structure at a whim. Thanks to my innate sensitivity to chakra, I didn't need magic eyes to inform me of this, and I formed the sensory handseal to confirm my suspicions.

My eyes closed, I could see the mist surrounding us, ethereal and eerie, but so beautiful... Despite not being close enough to the being to read its own energies, it was much brighter in its direction, and I felt it safe to assume its chakras were all but blinding. The other thing I picked up, almost more ominous than the mist, were my own chakra reserves. Intensely familiar with my own chakra, and reading myself, I noticed the Kagura Shingan had required more effort than usual. Furthermore, with my eyes closed, I was no longer blind to the... heaviness I had felt since arriving here, and I knew then that any chakra expenditure would be more costly than usual.

Thoughts of fighting this being had already been daunting, but with our resources cut? Perhaps there really could be another way... Finished with my reading, I dropped the handseal, now closing the gap further, until I was roughly 20 meters behind the long haired person - man, I could call him [genbu] now, upon hearing his voice. He spoke, and not just for himself. But... Was he handling this correctly? This being... It was scared, I realised now.

Had we truly witnessed a birth? It had come into this world alone, surrounded by strangers, and if the chakra in the mist was emanating from itself, perhaps it knew more of us than we though? Could it sense our familiarity with combat, with killing, as shinobi? Sense our weapons, even our intentions?

It had asked us, albeit in fragments, if we intended to hurt it. It had cried. As unnatural as it was, my heart went out to this creature. The power of a god, it meant nothing in the hands of an infant! The sky above mirrored my mounting sense of dread, and as the wind lashed at my hair, I began to nurse a ridiculous idea. As a woman... Could I reassure it? This was no human child, but... Could I prevent it from doing something terrible?

Regardless, I knew instinctively that the man's rational speech would not be sufficient. This being, it didn't know it could destroy all of us, it was acting instinctively, without meditation. When had asking an infant to calm down ever worked? I had to try something, before whatever was building up ruined any chance we had!

"It's okay!" I cried, trying to keep my voice sweet while making sure it carried over the wind, "Darling, it's okay! Don't be afraid sweetie!" How ridiculous must I sound? Trying to baby a monstrous being formed of light and power? I too was acting on instinct, and I was afraid we, as shinobi, were too steeped in blood to appear anything but threatening.

This being deserved life as much as any of us, didn't it? My heart pounded.

SPOILER: Click to show

{jutsu}Kagura Shingan (Kagura Mind’s Eye)
Rank: A
Range: Close (0m ~ 5m), Mid (5m ~ 10), Far (10m+)
Type: Supplementary
Handseals: 1
Chakra Consumption: Low per 15 meters: Miniscule sustain
Kagura Shingan is an advanced Sensory Ninjutsu technique used by all sensors, and serves as the root to the entire sensory tree. After performing the necessary handseal, the sensor closes their eyes and uses their innate ability to detect Chakra in order to determine the location of their opponent by the faintest of Chakra trails, as well as discerning the size of an approaching unseen force, and even their Chakra capacity.

This sensory technique can also discern whether or not a person is under the effects of a Genjutsu; which elements they have at their command (even advanced releases), and likewise mask their own Chakra signature (user’s) from other sensory ninja. The focus required to do the latter (masking their signature) prohibits their other sensing abilities, however.

Note: It should be noted that no other jutsu can be used while this technique is active. This jutsu requires Admin Approval. Restricted to Ninjutsu/Genjutsu Masters and Jack-of-all-trades. Consumes one release slot from Ninjutsu/Genjutsu Masters and either a release or fighting style slot from Jack-of-all-trades.


Low x2

herp ♥

Having finished the wine, I made the executive decision to disregard all sensibility and leave Iwagakure immediately. Was I young enough to be having my mid life crisis? Keep it together darling, it simply wouldn't do to break down in hysteria on the way.

/exit to earth (really this time)

sunshine girl ♥

I covered my mouth, unable to suppress a laugh at her reaction to my appearance. How at odds her skill and her personality seemed! Though, I had to confess, encountering somebody who still had a degree of respect for me was rather refreshing after all my recent social outings.
"Correct! Mitzy Valentine, nice to meet you. You must be a shinobi then, yes? A genin, perhaps?" It was an assumption based both on her apparent age, and the fact that I was unaware of her, having at least made an effort to learn the names and faces of those higher ranked shinobi. 

Still, what a curious little girl. I knew it was bad form to make assumptions about her so soon, but I truly couldn't imagine her in combat. Could she still be an academy student? It was difficult to tell how old she was, beyond her being very young. In a strange way, it was quite a relief, meeting her. One forms a rather generic image of shinobi, spending all day filling out paperwork on their behalf, and talking to them only solidified it. I had quite forgotten Iwagakure wasn't populated only by angry, disgruntled young men. And she was so cute! 

"Puppetry's quite the specialist art, I'm told. I'm glad it's not entirely forgotten here." Truthfully, I was interested in her skill level. A puppeteer would be invaluable in many situations, both covert and in more open combat. But could I really send someone like her on a dangerous mission? It was her duty, I supposed, and mine too, but it didn't sit quite comfortably with me...

♥

mission complete.

I smiled sweetly at the dour staff member, as I teetered in to collect my payment. I knew it would be quite the sour situation, the council being forced to pay me for something I had insisted be done.

"Thanks awfully, darling,"

/exit

for especially in the month of june ♥

They looked fabulous. It was quite poetic, really, how one small plant, with its few blooms, could cast such beauty on the barren earth. And the council thought it entirely a waste of time! I smiled, and set to work on turning over more soil, refurbishing my darlings new homes. It truly, deeply concerned me, this lack of appreciation for beauty. I was quite aware of our status and purpose as a hidden shinobi village, but it was not all there was to life! This fighting and plotting, who, truly, did it benefit?

We must keep our village safe. From what? I stabbed the earth. We must complete our missions. For whom? I dug up the soil. We must grow stronger. And why? I pulled out a stone. Mantra like these were impressed upon the shinobi from such a young age, and it bothered me. Was it pride? For wealth? Was it simply power for power's sake? I chose another dahlia, in a lighter shade, to accompany the first, delicately extricating it from its temporary home, before bedding it down in its fresh, new abode. I paused, sighing. Planting flowers wasn't exactly noble work, but if I could find more value in this than in all my work as the Tsuchikage... well, it didn't bear thinking about. 

Their beauty was doubled, now, a valiant ally against the servants of the mundane. Setting to work on another patch of earth, I considered. Was it simply the equilibrium between the five villages? Did each strive endlessly in search of power only so they would not fall behind? And what should happen to a weak village? A people who lived in peace? Were shinobi no better than the bandits and raiders we claimed to protect our citizens from? Would the Leaf, or the Mist, would they not hesitate to sack a village that shunned this archaic conviction? I rather feared I knew what answer the council would give. 

The earth gave way easily beneath my sharp, golden instrument, dry solidity yielding fresh soil beneath. Was it truly us or them? And, would it be that way forever?

What could I hope to do?

so, i was just wondering if there was an official process to this? there have been random 'search for ten good posts' kind of things before, and there's the obvious, take a location recorder from somebody with the location, but do you have a system? ta x