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>>3858719
After donning a drab coat you move swiftly from the shrine’s residence hall, hopping from rooftop to rooftop along the familiar way to the academy. Several stories of height advantage give you a different perspective on the world below, its busy walkways and stalls lining the many waterways of Amegakure. It also puts you closer to the top of the village, to the many steel towers which crowd the skyline and give your home its distinctive look.

These serve a dual purpose. Being situated on a large lake the village is short on two often underappreciated commodities: altitude, and dry land. The former means that the towers serve as a place to attach antennae and aerials for a variety of purposes, but their original purpose had more to do with the latter. With little or no dry land to be found here there was nowhere to interr and commemorate Amegakure’s many war dead. And having been the battlefield for the surrounding lands of Wind, Fire, and Earth for two world wars, while also fighting its own internal civil wars, the Land of Storms has plenty of dead to commemorate.

The sight of the academy snaps your attention back to more immediate matters… seven stories high, and much wider than any apartment tower, with the only rooftop features being water storage tanks and carefully-sheltered fans to move the air around inside.

Your entrance is through an open window, and into a large interior space on the fifth floor: the sparring hall. The mats here are all freshly-replaced tatami, and everything is as spotless as interior spaces in Amegakure tend to be. Not a single sign of damp or mold, which were it not for constant vigilance the weather would basically guarantee.

“Sorry to drop in on you like this,” you greet the soon-to-be genin who you presume left the window open for your rather late arrival. “Good to know I can count on you, Ajisai-han.”
>2/3

>>3858720
Ajisai is the second-ranked student in your class, and you beat her out for the top spot mostly due to your affinity for swordsmanship… her own skills in taijutsu are somewhat lacking despite her strength and speed being up to par for a genin. That frown of hers is familiar to you by now, since she nearly always seems to be wearing it. Her clothes are as simple and drab as ever, though she seems to have put a little extra effort today into fixing up her short albeit wonderfully thick hair into a fussier style than usual.

“If our valedictorian were to be late it would be a shame for the whole village,” she stares at you pointedly. “What were you even doing to be cutting it this close?”

You take off your cloak and hang it up using a hook by the door.

>Oh, you know. Picking out the right clothes, doing my hair and my nails. Girl stuff.
>You ever just stop to listen to the rain, Ajisai? I mean, REALLY listen?
>I was lost in thought. Wondering what my parents would think if they were here.
>If you still want the top spot you and your little summoning friends can try and take it.
>Other?

>>3858723
>>You ever just stop to listen to the rain, Ajisai? I mean, REALLY listen?
throw her a sideblow

>>3858723
>I was lost in thought. Wondering what my parents would think if they were here.

>>3858723
>>Oh, you know. Picking out the right clothes, doing my hair and my nails. Girl stuff.

>>3858723
>>Oh, you know. Picking out the right clothes, doing my hair and my nails. Girl stuff.
>>You ever just stop to listen to the rain, Ajisai? I mean, REALLY listen?

>>3858723
Housekeeping:
>twitter handle (main source for announcements): @QMKingofHearts
>discord invite (mostly shitposting and announcements): discord.gg/uSXdYpQ
>archives: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?searchall=Shinobi+Sidestory

System:
>will call for a series of d6 rolls
>first three linked 1d6 rolls will be added and compared to a DC

Shōnen Points:
>when the first three rolls contain doubles, you gain a number of ‘Shōnen Points’ (SP) equal to the value of the third roll
>you will also gain SP occasionally throughout the narrative
>SP can be spent to increase the result of a failed roll on a 1:1 basis
>the current cap for banked SP is 10, this may change if I find that does not work well

>>3858723
>>3858729
>You ever just stop to listen to the rain, Ajisai? I mean, REALLY listen?

The first one is sassy as fuck, with a bonus implied insult, but I don't get the feeling we dislike Ajisai enough to be that insulting

Posting again because I'm an idiot and forgot to link my vote

>>3858723
>>Oh, you know. Picking out the right clothes, doing my hair and my nails. Girl stuff.
>>You ever just stop to listen to the rain, Ajisai? I mean, REALLY listen?

>>3858723
>You ever just stop to listen to the rain, Ajisai? I mean, REALLY listen?

>>3858723
>>>Oh, you know. Picking out the right clothes, doing my hair and my nails. Girl stuff.

>>3858723
>>>You ever just stop to listen to the rain, Ajisai? I mean, REALLY listen?

>>3858723
>You ever just stop to listen to the rain, Ajisai? I mean, REALLY listen?

>>3858723
“Oh, you know,” you sigh, giving your old friend and rival a smirk. “Like my hair, and my nails...”

Ajisai rolls her eyes dramatically. “Really?”

“I was listening to the rain,” you eventually get around to telling her the truth. “When was the last time you just took a moment to take it all in?”

“It’s the same village,” Ajisai replies tersely.

You shake your head in response. “Doesn’t mean you can’t stop to appreciate something beautiful about it every once in a while. Like the sound of the rain on that pond, on the shrine’s grounds.”

The two of you walk down the hallway together, eventually reaching a larger assembly room. Inside you see even more familiar faces: Ukemi and Hitsugi stand out as usual, the former for his dark mohawk and the latter for the spiky blonde mess he wears on his head. Ukemi waves at you when he notices that you finally arrives. Samidare and Suiu are here too, along with their whole clique of students… none of whom particularly stand out of course, though Samidare is technically ranked fifth and Suiu fourth respectively.

You can tell they were talking about you, probably wondering if you were going to pull a no-show… jerks.

“You nearly had me concerned, Raishō-kun.”

The man addressing you is Yao-sensei, a large man with square shoulders and a massive moustache that compensates for the fact that all of his hair was burned off during the last Shinobi World War. You’re fairly sure it was Konoha that was responsible for that one, and you’re equally sure Yao has never forgotten it.

You quickly bow to your teacher, keeping your attitude impeccably polite. “My apologies, Yao-sensei. I hope I haven’t caused a problem?”

Yao-sensei shakes his head. “No, you made it just in time.”

“Awesome!” you smile. “So, remind me… what am I supposed to say again?”

Ajisai gives you a quick nod to which you respond with a little wave, then goes to join the other students of your class.

“Anything you deem appropriate,” Yaoi shrugs, giving you that familiarly gruff tone of disinterest. He generally reserves that tone for questions the student asking him should already know. “You are after all the valedictorian this year.”

“That’s a lot of trust to put in a teenager,” you chuckle.

“Too much if you ask me,” Yao-sensei grumbles. “But that’s how things are done around here. Has been since before you were born.”
>1/2

>>3858760
“I’ve decided,” you eventually nod to your sensei. “Don’t worry about it, I’ve chosen my words very carefully.”

Yao-sensei shakes his bald, badly-scarred head in amusement. “Oh boy, here we go.”

While he goes about the monumental task of getting a room full of academy brats to shut up and listen, you mull over your thoughts one last time. How should you phrase this…

>Optimistically. This is a great day for all of you, a great day for the village. You should be celebrating.
>Honestly. This is an important day for sure, but it’s the start of your adult duties. You shouldn’t make light.
>Bluntly. You’re not here to tell anyone how to think or what to do with their lives. Those answers must come from within.
>Other?

>>3858764
>Optimistically. This is a great day for all of you, a great day for the village. You should be celebrating.

>>3858764
>Honestly. This is an important day for sure, but it’s the start of your adult duties. You shouldn’t make light

>>3858764
>>Honestly. This is an important day for sure, but it’s the start of your adult duties. You shouldn’t make light.

>>3858764
Honest and optimistic, it's the start of adult duties, but it's also a day to celebrate what that means for you all and the village

>>3858764
>Optimistically. This is a great day for all of you, a great day for the village. You should be celebrating.

>>3858764
>Optimistically. This is a great day for all of you, a great day for the village. You should be celebrating.
dance magic dance

>>3858764
>>Bluntly. You’re not here to tell anyone how to think or what to do with their lives. Those answers must come from within.

>>3858764
>>Honestly. This is an important day for sure, but it’s the start of your adult duties. You shouldn’t make light.

>>3858764
>1d6, DC 7 (Easy)
>will add the first three rolls linked to this post

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>3858789

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>3858789
ho boy

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>3858789

>>3858792
4 SP on the first roll. Nice

>>3858789
Doubles
>SP: 4

>>3858789
Once Yao-sensei gets the room quiet, he gestures for you to address your graduating class.

“Today is an important day, for all of us,” you begin, arms resting behind your back. “It’s the day we finally take up the role we’ve been training for, as shinobi of Amegakure. Even though we’ll only be genin it’s the first time we’ll be entrusted with adult responsibilities, the first day of the end of our childhood.”

“It’s an important day for the village as well,” you continue calmly, your tone one of cautious optimism, “which is gaining thirty-three splendid young shinobi. You can expect to be counted on from now on, to be called upon to serve the home we all share. Some of us may even lay down our lives in that service some day, fighting side by side with our brothers and sisters.”

“But that begins tomorrow,” you conclude with a bright smile. “Today, we celebrate! Today we revel in the moment as all our years of hard work and training are finally recognized! Remember this day!”

Even as your fellow students applaud, some enthusiastically like Ukemi (who does everything enthusiastically) and others less so, you get the sense that you’ve missed something important. Something that picks up the hairs on the back of your neck.

Yao-sensei notices it too, narrowed eyes darting around the room in search of something. Then, he confirms your suspicions with a shout.

“Attack!”

There’s a small explosion in the building no more than a second later, enough to shake the walls and cause the door frames to creak ominously. Then some kind of smoke begins to pour from the vents high up on the walls.

“Gas!” you shout, reaching into the pouches you were fortunate enough to have brought just in case. You fish out a small strip of paper, and mould a tiny amount of chakra into it. Your own inner power, which you have been cultivating during your years in the Academy, causes the seal markings on that paper to produce a gas mask in a puff of smoke, which you quickly pull on over your head and fit around your mouth and nose.

“Everyone mask up!”
>1/2

>>3858799
Yao-sensei’s orders are followed immediately, with only a few of your peers lacking a mask of their own. His hurried follow-up orders convince you that while this is the sort of surprise test that Yao might spring on you that isn’t the case this time.

“Raishō, lead everyone with a mask downstairs and get them out of the building!” he roars. “I’ll find masks for the others and join you when I can, now go!”

You know better than to argue. Yao-sensei is a real bastard sometimes, but he takes his role as a teacher seriously. If he’s ordered you to lead your fellow students out of the building he must have determined that’s the best way to ensure your safety, and he’s entrusting you to handle the evacuation.

“Come on, follow me!” you shout through your mask as you wave your peers out the exit. “Don’t run, but move quickly!”

“What’s happening?” Ajisai asks as you follow the rest of your evacuated class out into the hallway.

“As if I’d know!” you grumble back.

“Come on, Nakkun!” Ukemi protests. “You’ve gotta be thinking something. You’re always thinking about something!”

>It’s the civil war. It’s finally come knocking on our own doors.
>Mechanical failure in the building, probably. These things happen.
>It COULD still be Yao-sensei giving us one final test.
>I have no idea, honestly. There are too many possibilities.

>>3858803
>>It’s the civil war. It’s finally come knocking on our own doors.

>>3858803
>>It’s the civil war. It’s finally come knocking on our own doors.

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>>3858803
>It’s the civil war. It’s finally come knocking on our own doors.

Murphy's law! Always assume the worst, always prepare for the worst.

>>3858803
I hope I am wrong, but I would guess it's the civil war

>>3858803
>It’s the civil war. It’s finally come knocking on our own doors.

>>3858803
>It’s the civil war. It’s finally come knocking on our own doors.

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>>3858803
“It’s the war,” you declare grimly. “It’s finally come knocking.”

“No way!” Ukemi denies your assertion as you climb down the stairs towards the entry level promenade. “I mean, Lord Hanzō isn’t even here right now!”

Hanzō of the Salamander, the head of your village: rarely-seen these days, in the last war he was rumored to be one of the strongest shinobi alive. But despite his purported strength he couldn’t keep Konohagakure, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure from turning your homeland into a playground for their shinobi forces… not once, but twice.

“The world doesn’t revolve around Hanzō,” Ajisai points out quite fairly. Between the two, you honestly have to agree with her. There’s no reason to believe that Hanzō’s absence would preclude an attack on Amegakure itself, since even if the attackers couldn’t kill him that way there are presumably other objectives that would make such an attack worth it.

Eventually you all stream out into the rainy street in front of the Academy, wide enough to see the top of the building you just evacuated.

“There’s definitely some smoke,” you observe, “so that explosion was a real thing after all.”

“No kidding,” Ukemi whistles in surprise. “That’s quite a lotta smoke!”

Then something catches your attention… is the cloud cover beginning to thin, or are you losing your mind?

“Look!” Ajisai insists, tapping you on your shoulder and pointing.

As a break in the clouds allows a ray of sun to stream down onto the square in front of the Academy building, a figure in a dark coat slowly drifts on a non-existent breeze. A figure framed by what look like giant wings, made from a chaotic jumble of white objects. As the figure descends you realize that these aren’t feathers, but strips of paper like the one you had your gas mask sealed into.

“She’s using them to fly?” you realize aloud. “What on earth is going on here?”
>1/2

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>>3858838
You turn to ask Ajisai if she thinks this newcomer is the one who blew up part of the Academy, but find that your friend is completely enraptured by the spectacle.

“Like… an angel?” she muses in a quiet voice, quiet but full of emotion.

“Hanzō of the Salamander is dead,” the woman declares from on high, illuminated by the rare sunlight. “He was eliminated by Lord Pain… as of now, your new village leader.”

At that very moment, even as the paper angel is addressing the gathered crowd of students and civilians, Yao-sensei emerges from the building with the last of your class in tow, all still wearing their masks.

Your sensei must draw an immediate conclusion that she was the one responsible for the attack on his school, because he instantly draws a trio of shuriken seemingly from out of nowhere and throws them. As they fly he makes a series of hand seals, faster than you could ever hope to match.

“Ninjutsu: Phantom Shuriken!”

Three shuriken become nine, become eighty-one… all of which are aimed at the floating woman.

She effortlessly brushes the impressive attack aside with one wing, paper peeling away from the false limb and falling like a flurry of snow. A flurry which immediately comes to life and forms folded shuriken like origami, seemingly on its own, all spinning lethally.

>Remain where you are, keep your fellow students out of it.
>Move away from your peers and attack the newcomer yourself, draw her attention from your sensei.
>Shout at the woman to stop. There’s no reason for either one of them to be fighting right now.
>Other?

>>3858850
>>Remain where you are, keep your fellow students out of it.
you don't know the motivations, and you can't really hope to be anything but a nuisance in that fight

>>3858850
>>Shout at the woman to stop. There’s no reason for either one of them to be fighting right now.

>>3858850
>Remain where you are, keep your fellow students out of it.

>>3858850
>Shout at the woman to stop. There’s no reason for either one of them to be fighting right now.

>>3858850
>>Remain where you are, keep your fellow students out of it.

>>3858850
>1d6, DC 7 (Easy)
>Taking three linked rolls

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>3858870

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>3858870

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>3858870

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>3858870

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>3858870

>>3858870
>DC Passed
>SP: 4
Writing

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>>3858880
Ukemi is the first to do something stupid, drawing a handful of senbon from your side. But before he can channel Lightning-elemental chakra into them you grab him by the wrist. As Ajisai watches in obvious concern, you shake your head.

“This isn’t a fight we can win,” you observe calmly. “And Yao-sensei wouldn’t want us to get ourselves killed on his behalf.”

Reluctantly, Ukemi lowers his hand. The few other students nearby who seemed ready to leap into action hold themselves back as well… they must realize that if this woman brushed off Yao-sensei’s attack so easily none of you have much of an option.

Then you realize something disturbing: the woman clearly noticed the commotion, and is looking in your direction. In fact, if you didn’t know any better you’d say that your eyes literally meet.

Actually, they really did just meet.

The woman stares at you for several long seconds, the paper shuriken still spinning rapidly in place. Neither she nor Yao-sensei move. Eventually you gesture for Ukemi and Ajisai to both take a step or two away from you as the woman continues to look down at you. Is she contemplating an attack? Is she simply curious? Or is there something else going on behind those cold eyes of hers?

Eventually the shuriken slow, then begin to unweave themselves to rejoin the left wing from which they were produced in the first place.

“The death of Hanzō marks this as a momentous day in our history,” she continues, slowly at first to ensure that the crowd’s attention returns to her words and not to the previous tension. “Hanzō was ambitious, but not in a way that made your lives better or safer. Two wars devastated our homeland, destroyed whole families… including my own. Including that of Lord Pain. And yet Hanzō cared first and foremost for his own power, not for easing the suffering and hardship of his own people.”

“You have been through much. We all have. But know this… that today marks the beginning of a new era! Under Lord Pain’s leadership, we of Amegakure will teach the so-called Great Shinobi Nations of our struggles that the end of our own civil war will be the beginning of the end of all war!”

“This is Lord Pain’s dream, and to achieve this we will need all of you. So be ready… for times are changing.”

Then the woman glances down at Yao-sensei. “Please continue as you would have done, starting tomorrow.”

She departs just as abruptly as she arrived, leaving you to ponder her message.

>Man, that was weird. What do you think, Ukemi? Ajisai?
>Go meet with Yao-sensei, see what he has in mind for you to do.
>Inform everyone that you’re going home. You’ll be told what to do in the morning.
>Other?

>>3858891
>>Go meet with Yao-sensei, see what he has in mind for you to do.

>>3858891
>Inform everyone that you’re going home. You’ll be told what to do in the morning.

>>3858891
>Man, that was weird. What do you think, Ukemi? Ajisai?

>>3858891
>>Go meet with Yao-sensei, see what he has in mind for you to do.

>>3858891
>Man, that was weird. What do you think, Ukemi? Ajisai?

>>3858891
>>Man, that was weird. What do you think, Ukemi? Ajisai?

>>3858891
“Man, that was pretty crazy, huh?” you laugh nervously. “So, what do you two think?”

You quickly find that Ukemi has already left to join up with Yao-sensei, while a tear rolls down Ajisai’s face as she stares at the space the angelic messenger previously was.

“Hey, you still with me Ajisai?”

“What?” she asks absently. “Oh, yeah. Sorry.”

She wipes the tear away. “What now?”

“Maybe we should check in with Yao-sensei,” you suggest, “see if anything needs to get done in the wake of all this.”

“Yeah, sure.”

You quickly join Ukemi, who meets you on your way over to Yao. Your sensei has quickly headed off towards the building, presumably to get all of the smoke out of the hallways.

“It wasn’t poisonous apparently,” Ukemi shrugs. “The gas, I mean. Yao-sensei wants us to look after each other tonight, so you okay with Ajisai and Sadaaki tagging along with you for now?”

“Sure, yeah,” you reply with a frown. “So long as they’re okay sleeping on the tatami.”

Ajisai nods quietly, and Hitsugi Sadaaki shrugs.

“I don’t mind. Nice change of pace, actually.”

“Alright then,” you reply.

>You still want to speak with Yao-sensei. Wasn’t there something else you were going to do today?
>Lead Ajisai and Hitsugi back to the shrine where you live, see if the head priest has cooked anything for dinner.
>You’ll need some time to think. Take Ajisai and Hitsugi home and spend some time meditating.
>Other?

>>3858941
>You’ll need some time to think. Take Ajisai and Hitsugi home and spend some time meditating.

>>3858941
>Lead Ajisai and Hitsugi back to the shrine where you live, see if the head priest has cooked anything for dinner.

>>3858941
>Lead Ajisai and Hitsugi back to the shrine where you live, see if the head priest has cooked anything for dinner.

>>3858947
>>3858941
This

>>3858941
>>You’ll need some time to think. Take Ajisai and Hitsugi home and spend some time meditating.
either this or food, though food seems like somethin' Riku would do and so I'm leaning toward meditate

>>3858941
>>You still want to speak with Yao-sensei. Wasn’t there something else you were going to do today?

>>3858941
>You still want to speak with Yao-sensei. Wasn’t there something else you were going to do today?

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>>3858941
You decide not to chase after your sensei, instead leaving him to take care of business here while you lead Ajisai and Hitsugi to the shrine you call home.

There are very few genuine religious buildings here in Amegakure, one large temple and a large shrine are the two most prominent. You live on the grounds of the latter, and often find yourself tending to much smaller shrines under the authority of it. Like many of the other children of Amegakure you’re an orphan, and you’re fortunate to have found such a welcoming niche after you found yourself without the support of your family.

Unlike many others, including Ajisai who lost her parents in one of the many clashes that took place shortly after Konoha’s forces left your home country, you’ve only been an orphan for four years or so. You never knew your father, who died when you were barely more than a year old, but your mother raised you for eight years after that all on her own.

“Here we are,” you sigh, sliding the door open to the guest quarters on the shrine’s rather small grounds. “Home sweet home. Spare futons are in the closet to your left, feel free to set up.”

“Thank you,” Ajisai bows.

“You sure this isn’t gonna be an issue?” Hitsugi asks cautiously.

“Yeah, no,” you shake your head. “I’ve been crashing here for years without the old priest raising a fuss.”

“We’re not Tenran’s daughter,” Hitsugi points out.

‘Tenran’… your mother’s chosen name, the only one she ever told you. When she became a courtesan she gave up her old name, she told you. As the Oiran of this nation, the highest-ranked and most prestigious private entertainer in the land, she was called ‘Tenran of the Storm’ for as long as you can remember. From her you inherited her eyes, her skin tone, her hair color, her way of speaking… and her skill at weaving illusions, from what you can tell.

It’s funny. For having been raised in what basically amounted to a brothel, albeit one which operated with many patrons never actually meeting their hosts face to face thanks to the liberal use of ninjutsu and genjutsu, these accommodations have always struck you as somewhat sparse. You grew up with a little more luxury in your childhood..

“It’s fine,” you insist, gesturing towards the door. “Let’s go see if old Sena’s been cooking, shall we?”
>1/2

>>3858975
You swiftly change into a yukata behind a screen, then grab a parasol on your way out. It doesn’t take long at all for you to find Sena in the old abbots’ quarters, where he lives with his two permanent assistants Kato and Han.

“Sena-tono!” you greet him warmly. “I brought guests from my Academy class!”

“I had heard there was some trouble that way,” Sena replies from behind his bushy gray eyebrows and long goatee. “A real big to-do.”

“It wasn’t that bad,” Ajisai muses.

You shake your head in disbelief. “Ajisai-han, she blew up part of our building.”

“Yeah...” Ajisai quickly frowns. “I suppose you have a point.”

“Well, there’s plenty to go around!” Sena insists warmly. “Kato, fetch some extra bowls.”

Dinner that night is rice, grown from the ‘floating’ variety common in the flooded fields that run between buildings in the village proper, along with the common mushrooms and lotus root that you’d expect. In the temple you might find the monks eating imported tofu, but the priests of this shrine aren’t vegetarians. So instead you have grilled freshwater eel in a slightly peppery sauce.

“It’s good,” Ajisai bows in gratitude.

Hitsugi grins like the goofball he is. “It just so happens that eel’s my favorite, so thanks!”

You raise an eyebrow. “I thought you said last week that perch was your favorite?”

“Can’t they both be my favorite?” he protests.

Sena laughs. “Ah, to be young and full of desires...”

“It wouldn’t be a good look on you, old man,” you chastise him gently.

“Ah, too true unfortunately! Too true.”

“Now, tell me more about this… this ‘incident’, shall we call it.”

>The civil war is over, apparently. Some guy named Pain killed Hanzō.
>There was this woman with paper wings. She almost seemed to recognize me.
>I can’t say much. Just that things are supposedly going to change… and I don’t know how.
>Other?

>>3858995
>>The civil war is over, apparently. Some guy named Pain killed Hanzō.
well, in name it is over

>>3858995
>There was this woman with paper wings. She almost seemed to recognize me.

>>3858995
>>The civil war is over, apparently. Some guy named Pain killed Hanzō.
>>There was this woman with paper wings. She almost seemed to recognize me.

>>3859004
>>3858995
This, both are important

>>3858995
>>There was this woman with paper wings. She almost seemed to recognize me.

>>3858995
>The civil war is over, apparently. Some guy named Pain killed Hanzō.
>There was this woman with paper wings. She almost seemed to recognize me.

>>3858995
>The civil war is over, apparently. Some guy named Pain killed Hanzō.
>There was this woman with paper wings. She almost seemed to recognize me.

>>3858995
>>The civil war is over, apparently. Some guy named Pain killed Hanzō.
>>There was this woman with paper wings. She almost seemed to recognize me.

>>3858995
“The war is over and Hanzō is dead,” you briefly summarize, sipping at your after-dinner tea. “Or so said this woman with paper wings.”

Sena frowns, looking you over carefully. “Paper, you say? Held together by ninjutsu I’d imagine?”

“That’s right, why?”

Sena appears to lose himself in thought for several minutes, before offering an unusually cryptic reply. “I believe you’ll learn soon enough whether what I suspect is true. For now I shall speak nothing more of it.”

“She almost seemed to recognize me,” you try to continue, though you find yourself quickly shushed.

“No more,” Sena insists. “I would not wish to embark on that path unless I was absolutely sure of it.”

It’s unusual for old Sena to be this obstinate in refusing to answer a question… usually you can’t get him to stop talking. So in this case, you feel obliged to let him keep his peace for the time being. After all he hasn’t told you that he’ll never tell you: just that he wants you to be able to confirm his suspicions before he says anything that he can’t later un-say.

Just as he taught you when you first learned to sign shuin for the shrine’s visitors, there are some things that cannot be taken back: the stroke of a brush, the stroke of a sword, and the sharing of a secret.

>Head to bed early. You may or may not have a big day ahead of you tomorrow.
>Speak some more with Ajisai. She seems particularly taken with your ‘angel’.
>Take some time to meditate, clear your mind, practice your calligraphy, etc.
>Other?

>>3859041
>Speak some more with Ajisai. She seems particularly taken with your ‘angel’.

>>3859041
>Take some time to meditate, clear your mind, practice your calligraphy, etc.

>>3859041
>>Take some time to meditate, clear your mind, practice your calligraphy, etc.

>>3859041
>>Take some time to meditate, clear your mind, practice your calligraphy, etc.

>>3859041
>stepping out to grab a snack
>will return shortly

>>3859041
>>Speak some more with Ajisai. She seems particularly taken with your ‘angel’.

>>3859041
You spend the rest of your evening practicing your calligraphy, specifically for writing ‘shuin’ seals for shrine visitors. Typically these are limited to the name of the shrine (Kyōka-Taisha, or roughly ‘Great Flower-Reflecting Shrine’), and the date, intended to commemorate the donation of money or a copied sutra. The most popular time to visit is when something is in bloom: first the plum, then the cherry, then later the hydragea, and nowadays many people ask for your work by name.

After what feels like an hour or two Ajisai glances over your shoulder. “Beautiful, as usual.”

You shake your head. “Illegible, as usual.”

“It’s a strong style,” she assures you.

“Amazing how much you’re sounding like that old priest,” you chuckle. “The strong vertical line to it is a stylistic approach, coiling the other strokes around that single central line or returning to it whenever I have cause to leave a gap.”

“Why the same two characters? Over and over again?”

You glance down at your work. “I forgot you have trouble reading cursive… it’s the word ‘Tenshi’.”

“Angel?”

You nod. “Yeah. Angel...”
>1/2

>>3859123
The next morning you return with your friends to the Academy building, which still smells like smoke, and go your separate ways to begin the next year’s worth of effort.

As the top-ranking students in the class, six of you will receive specialized training for the next twelve months: a legacy of Hanzō’s rule during the World Wars. This way Amegakure can put most of its genin to work while allowing the most promising handful of students in every class some extra time to mature in a controlled manner. Instead of choosing between quality and quantity, Hanzō at least had the strategic insight to choose both.

Each of you is led to your own room on the sixth floor, starting with Ukemi and working your way up through Ajisai. Then, finally, Yao-sensei ushers you into the room which will be yours to use as you see fit for the next year.

Inside you find that the instructors have prepared for you already with suggestions, all based on what your perceived strengths are. Scrolls and more modern bound books line one wall, practically overflowing from the shelves: you note first that here there are volumes on ancient kenjutsu techniques, instructions left by previous masters of the sword. Next you find books on genjutsu, another of your particular specialities… though one where unfortunately most authors tend to focus on helping struggling shinobi to advance their skills with what many people find an unusually difficult form of combat.

Last, taking up an entire shelf from floor to ceiling, you find texts on fūinjutsu, the art of scribing special seals using chakra. Theoretical works, practical manuals, notes on arcane jutsu-formulae and specific seal keys that at first glance look like pure gibberish. You’ll be right at home here.

Then, there’s the desktop by the window. On that desktop is a single book, titled ‘Nature Transformations and You!’, along with a scrap of what looks deceptively like ordinary paper. It’s chakra-sensitive… you’ve been avoiding this, but Yao-sensei probably intends for you to learn your chakra affinity. The problem with that is that… well… there’s no way around it, you suck at using elemental chakra. So whatever your affinity is, all it’ll get you is at best what normal people would consider ‘average’ for your level in that element.

Other elements? Hah! As if.

Finally, there’s a curved sword in a scabbard on a small table in the center of the room. This comes with what appears to be a note on a folded piece of paper.

>Books first. Pick out a few to start with.
>Investigate the sword.
>Best to get this out of the way… chakra nature time.

>>3859144
>>Investigate the sword.

>>3859144
Sword, we are not stalling the nature transformation
No
Nope

>>3859144
>>Investigate the sword.
While you were studying jutsus, we were studying the way of the blade.

>>3859144
>Books first. Pick out a few to start with.
>Fūinjutsu

>>3859144
>>Investigate the sword.

>>3859144
>>Investigate the sword.

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>>3859144
You find yourself drawn to the sword, and to the note resting in front of it. The handwriting definitely isn’t Yao’s… far too pretty for that.

“This blade was your father’s, I have held it since he passed. I believe he would want you to have it.”

There’s no signature.

Next you examine the weapon itself. Its handle is wrapped in fine white silk with fairly plain fittings, over black rayskin. The guard is finely-made as well, with an openwork design including plants in relief and fine silver-alloy inlay. The scabbard is an oddity: in form it’s restrained, but the material is extremely fine white lacquered wood with gold-dusted rayskin over the last third or so. It’s a style you’ve heard of, but only for old blades or those intended for rich daimyō and their relatives.

But usually those are married with tacky fittings and nearly worthless blades.

The blade, you can tell is far from worthless when you draw it.

The grain is beautifully patterned, with a lively and almost flamboyant temper line. Carved into one side is a finely-done image of a serpentine dragon coiling around a blossoming plum tree, an ume, with two parallel grooves on the opposite side. It’s absolutely not what you’d call a ‘normal’ sword.

So this supposedly belonged to your dad? Just who was he, and how much about him did your mom never have the heart to tell you about him?

>Books
>Chakra Nature

>>3859182
>>Books
save the worst for last

>>3859182
>Chakra Nature
Might as well rip the bandaid off.

>>3859182
>Books
Naori, what is best in life?

>>3859182
Oh these books are sooo interesting!

>>3859182
You start working through the textbooks. There's not much useful in the genjutsu texts, but the ones on kenjutsu offer some new insights into something you thought you already understood...
>1d6, taking the first three
>As a 'Progress Roll' there is no set DC: but higher is better

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>3859211

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>3859211
could or should we even improve it with the SP we have?

>>3859215
Nope, and this doesn't earn you more SP.
>>3859216
1d6 my dude.

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>3859211
wait i can't read

>>3859216
thats not the right system we use anon, try again with just 1d6

>>3859211
>8 (Easy)
You pick up a few new tricks, mostly new ways to do what you already know. There’s an older technique for freeing the sword inside the scabbard with no obvious movements, which only requires that you squeeze your hand around the throat of the scabbard so that the sides of your thumb and palm push against the guard enough to release the blade, normally held in place by the habaki or ‘collar’.

There’s also a lot of mention of old ‘Sōkō-ryū’ or ‘armor styles’, forms of combat which revolved around identifying and exploiting gaps in an opponent’s defenses including in their armor. Hard enough to believe, but at one point shinobi dressed a lot like samurai did in battle, wearing heavier metal armor. The Sōkō-ryū schools got around this by focusing heavily on the thrust, and by concentrating their efforts on common seams in most armor designs as well as the eyes and neck or throat. Even though shinobi wear softer body armor these days, those old styles still have some relevance in circumventing armor. This is especially true for villages where heavier armor is still fairly common, like Sunagakure or Kirigakure.

Another common feature, and one which you’re not entirely sure you can utilize properly, is the use of chakra-metal weapons. These interact with a shinobi’s techniques and empower them, as well as improving the lethal performance of a blade. A good next step might be to consult the styles still in use by the Samurai of the Land of Iron, who like you tend to eschew elemental transformations.

There’s certainly a lot more for you to learn, and it’s going to take a lot more than one year.
>1d6, taking the first three
>Another progress roll for Sealing

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>3859229

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>3859229

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>3859229

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>>3859229
>11 (Hard)
Your studies into sealing techniques is much more fruitful. After about six months or so you actually begin to be able to tease some meaning out of a sealing key when it’s presented to you. You also learn how to ‘scribe’ a marking with a touch, at least on a pre-prepared paper surface, and begin to study examples of the more common sealing formulae you’ve learned of.

Your first subject? The humble exploding tag.

These are usually something a shinobi purchases en masse between missions, and affixes to tools, objects, or even people to make those things explode. But someone has to actually produce those tags, and with some concentrated study you manage to figure out what has to go into one to make it go boom.

By the eleventh month of dedicated practice you’re able to scribe a sealing formula onto a paper slip by touching it, sealing a little chakra into it, then making it explode later using the one-handed sign of confrontation.

It’s actually quite simple once you know the principles behind it, and your own version is quite striking, using your own personal style of seal-script that you already employ on shuin.

But you did learn something else during your year of study. In-between drilling with your newly-presented kodachi, as you come to realize that sword is properly termed, and learning fūinjutsu, you finally got around to picking up that little stupid slip of paper.

>1d100
>Taking the third roll only

Rolled 76 (1d100)

>>3859247

Rolled 8 (1d100)

>>3859247

Rolled 72 (1d100)

>>3859247

>>3859247
The results when you finally got the dumb thing to work both surprised and infuriated you, more than you had thought possible.

Ranton.

The fact that your chakra paper crumpled and got wet at the same time means you have the 'Storm Release' Kekkei Genkai at your disposal, probably courtesy of your dad's blood, literally on paper. But you're so completely hopeless at using elemental transformations that you doubt you'll ever be able to use it properly.

What it does mean is that there's some hope for you in Suiton, Water release, and Raiton, Lightning release. Which is better than nothing of course, since that's only three elements that are practically out of your reach unless something really drastic changes for you.

At some point you may want to learn some basic ninjutsu in those areas, like Hiding in Rain or maybe basic chakra flow, but it's not your priority and it would probably take longer than a year to make useful progress. So for now, that goes on the proverbial back burner.
>1/2

>>3859271
jesus how did naori manage to be top of the class without something like basic chakra flow?

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>>3859271
At the end of the year, you find a note on your desk when you return to your training room. The scrolls and books have already been put away, returned to whatever dusty library they were taken from for your use.

That note sends you to a different room, where you meet Ukemi Ken and Hitsugi Sadaaki.

“Amazingly enough your mohawk has grown even longer, Ukemi-han,” you greet your classmate. “Hitsugi-han, good to see you well.”

“Same to you, Nakkun!” Ukemi greets you jovially. “You make good use of your year off?”

“As if I’d just let you catch up,” you shrug, a smug look spread across your face. “So we’re on a team then?”

“Looks that way,” Hitsugi nods. “Wonder who our sensei’s gonna be?”

“I’m pulling for Yao-sensei!” Ukemi declares.

You pinch the bridge of your nose. “He’s a full-time teacher, idiot.”

“Well then who?”

“Me,” a vaguely familiar newcomer declares as she steps into the room from the hallway. “Good to see you have all been assembled in a timely fashion.”

>You? From before?
>You were the one who sent me this?
>I’ve been wondering who you were.
>Other?

>>3859275
How was Sakura near the top of her class without being able to handle an obvious genjutsu? How did Sasuke manage to be top of his class without having enough chakra control for basic tree-climbing exercises?

Ukemi's lightning release makes him a bit of a freak, and Naori is equally freakish in other areas.

>>3859283
>>You? From before?

>>3859283
To clarify, the progress rolls were setting up the character a bit more in more of an organic way. So yes, we timeskiped, but in a point where Naori was expected to be doing nothing but study intensively.

>>3859283
>>I’ve been wondering who you were.

>>3859283
>>You? From before?
>I’ve been wondering who you were

>>3859283
>>I’ve been wondering who you were.

>>3859283
>>You were the one who sent me this?

>>3859283
“I was wondering who you were,” you admit while your new teammates struggle to come up with a response. “The villagers are calling you ‘Tenshi’ now, aren’t they?”

Tenshi nods gently, her face fairly impassive. “They are. It’s the wings.”

“So, this would make you ‘Tenshi-sensei’,” you muse. “Is that right?”

She nods again. “Yes. Just ‘Sensei’ is also fine.”

“So you’ll be going on missions with us and stuff?” Ukemi asks in disbelief.

This time Ukemi shakes his head. “Not often, at least. But I will be overseeing your training, and arranging your missions.”

“You have other duties here?” you guess. “Then why become sensei to a team of genin?”

“Correct,” Tenshi-sensei informs you. “I agreed to this because I took a personal interest in you.”

“You’re the one behind this sword,” you realize.

She nods. “You are the daughter of Tenran of the Storm, making your father one of my former comrades. He often spoke of Tenran in private.”

So that’s why… whoever this person really is she knew your dad before he was killed at the end of the Third Shinobi World War. You have tons of questions for her…

“Before you ask no,” she interrupts your thought process. “I will not be answering any personal questions. At least, not yet. You have yet to earn the right to ask about my past. But I would like to learn more about the three of you.”

“May I ask your names, and for each of you to share a ‘surprising fact’ about yourselves? I would also like to hear about your dreams.”

After a few awkward moments, Ukemi makes a bold declaration. “I’m Ukemi Ken! My dream is to become so strong nobody ever attacks our village again, and a surprising thing about me is… well… I have a good singing voice.”

“He does,” you confirm with a nod. “It’s not a secret.”

“Nobody’s supposed to know about that!” Ukemi protests.

“Then stop singing in the shower in the mornings before class,” you reply with a smirk.
>1/2

>>3859322
and by >Ukemi shakes his head
I mean >Tenshi shakes her head
It's half past midnight and I'm running out of gas. So I'll be wrapping up soon.

>>3859322
Hitsugi is the next to speak. “My name is Hitsugi Sadaaki, and my dream is to learn everything there is to know about shurikenjutsu. That way I can become an instructor here, and teach future genin a lot more about how to use weapons like that, maybe help them survive.”

“And something surprising about you?” Tenshi asks.

“I’m actually colorblind,” he admits. “Red-green.”

Then Tenshi unexpectedly offers something about herself, perhaps to gain your trust?

“My dream is to see Pain’s dream of peace realized,” she admits, “and something surprising about me is that I have a soft spot for froggie merchandise.”

“Froggie merchandise?” you repeat.

She nods. “Froggies. I find them cute.”

Pick one of the following for your ‘Dream’, at this point:
>To protect Amegakure
>To prove Amegakure’s worth
>To be the best version of yourself

Also pick one of the following for a surprising fact:
>Your last name is arbitrary, your mom just made it up
>Your cursive is actually illegible
>You can’t do Nature releases for shit

>>3859341
>To be the best version of yourself
>You can’t do Nature releases for shit

>>3859341
>>To be the best version of yourself
>>You can’t do Nature releases for shit

>>3859341
>>To be the best version of yourself
>You can’t do Nature releases for shit

>>3859341
>>To be the best version of yourself
>>You can’t do Nature releases for shit

>>3859341
“Mine seriously isn’t that dramatic or anything,” you admit. “I just want to keep improving myself. It’s not like I can make people respect me by force or anything, so I just have to be the sort of person people tend to respect.”

“As for something surprising about me?” you eventually come to the uncomfortable admission. “People may call be a genius, but I can’t do nature releases. At all. I just have zero talent for it.”

“Is that so?” Tenshi-sensei muses. “I see. I’ll keep that in mind.”

“I always thought it was fishy that someone as good as you never used any elemental techniques,” Hitsugi nods sagely.

“Yeah, so that’s the reason why.”

“So what now?” you ask your new sensei.

Ukemi is grinning from ear to ear. “Do we get to go on a mission?”

Tenshi-sensei nods, before handing you a set of small scrolls. “Your first mission will not involve any combat. I am sending you to the Land of Iron on business...”
>Will continue tomorrow, starting at the same time

>>3859390
Thanks for running!

>>3859390
Thanks for running

>Shinigami Savant
>Second Swods
>Shinobi Sidestory
Is there a reason behind all that /ss/, Queen?

>>3860316
You forgot the Q in all of them

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>>3859390
The explanation of your mission is fairly simple: to give you some time to get used to working with each other you’ll start with simple, albeit important missions that other genin might not be trusted with. This time you’ll be heading for the Land of Iron, the last samurai nation in the world, in order to make use of one of their more extraordinary services.

The samurai are typically neutral in all the affairs of the shinobi world, but they aren’t so aloof that they no longer need money. One of the things you can do there is have a sword appraised by true experts, who preserve the knowledge of old-fashioned craftsmanship. You’ve even heard from Sena that they do a style of divination there based on the properties of the temper line of a sword, like a style of fortune-telling for swordsmen.

You have to figure this isn’t just about the swords Tenshi-sensei showed you sealed within the scrolls she handed you earlier. You too have a sword that you know nothing about, and that is logically one of the blades to be appraised.

Another scroll contains other weapons, less of a fancy nature and more of a practical one, which require sharpening and polishing. Among these are a set of folding fūma shuriken, large spinning blades of exceptional lethality, and two blades that completely defy explanation. Some type of mechanical monstrosities made up of folding segments which seem to have taken some damage, the very edges having rolled over on themselves in places.

“You are to take these weapons to be sharpened and polished,” Tenshi explains, handing you one last scroll. “The funds are sealed in this scroll. The five swords should also be appraised, as their former owner seemed to think they were valuable kotō blades.”

“So we’ll be able to find someone who does all of that?” Ukemi asks.

Tenshi-sensei nods placidly. “In the Land of Iron, yes. That should not be difficult.”

To get there, you’ll need to travel one of three ways: through the nation that is home to Ishigakure, a small village not exactly on friendly terms with Amegakure, through the unforgiving deserts of Sunagakure’s Land of Wind, or through the mountains of Iwagakure’s Land of Earth. Sunagakure is the least likely to attack you on sight, but the deserts are a danger in and of themselves. While the mountains are somewhat less harsh the shinobi of Iwagakure tend to be rather stubborn, if not outright belligerent.

>Travel through the Land of Wind.
>Travel through the Land of Earth.
>Just chance it with Ishigakure, it’s the shortest and easiest road.
>Other?

>>3860322
>Travel through the Land of Earth.

>>3860322
>Just chance it with Ishigakure, it’s the shortest and easiest road.
sending kids from a rain village to a desert's a bad idea. Stubborn people can be reasoned with, at the cost of some sanity. The less than friendly people seem like a fair enough bet

>>3860322
>>Travel through the Land of Wind.

>>3860322
>>Travel through the Land of Earth.

>>3860322
>>Travel through the Land of Earth.

>>3860322
>Just chance it with Ishigakure, it’s the shortest and easiest road.

>>3860322
>Travel through the Land of Earth.

>>3860322
>1d100
>Taking the second roll

Rolled 100 (1d100)

>>3860349

Rolled 80 (1d100)

>>3860349

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>>3860353

>>3860360
Story of my life, really. Hopefully the 80 helps

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>>3860353

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>>3860353

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>>3860353

>>3860349
“So remind me why we’re hiking through the mountains again?” Ukemi demands around noon the next day.

“Because it beats the desert,” you sigh, “and it beats being jumped by a bunch of pissed-off Ishigakure shinobi.”

“She has a point,” Hitsugi admits. “But can we at least take a break?”

“You’re tired again?” you ask. “Jeez, are all the boys in our class this lazy?”

“We’ve been going nonstop since breakfast!” Ukemi whines. “Nakkun, how the hell are you doing it?”

“Language, Ukemi-han,” you chide him teasingly. “Let’s find someplace out of the way.”

The Land of Earth is an insane place. It’s got as much verticality to it as Amegakure does, but entirely natural instead of built. You’re not sure if some titanic force raised the stones up or if the rivers wore highlands that were already present down, but either way there’s no end to the narrow, steep valleys and rushing waters.

“This place is wild,” you decide as you take a seat and fish out a piece of paper. Inside it is sealed a small meal, still hot as it was when you put it in here, which appears in a puff of smoke.

Hitsugi and Ukemi retrieve some rations, and the three of you split your meal of smoked fish and steamed vegetables with the intention of stretching it with trail rations. You also produce three cups of hot tea to wash it all down with.

“Man, what would we do without you, Nakkun?” Ukemi grins.

“You’d have to learn something, obviously,” you snort. “You’re no Ajisai, but you have the skills to build on you know.”

“Are you my teammate or my mom?” he grumbles.

You roll your eyes. “Sometimes I wonder...”

All of a sudden you hear a loud, feminine voice. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll just be right back!”

There’s a quieter voice, you can’t make out what it says.

“You know why, dumbass! So stop askin’ about it!”

>Take a peek
>Try to sneak away
>Other?

>>3860385
>>Other?
>Keep listening

>>3860385
>Take a peek

>>3860385
>>Take a peek

>>3860392
>>3860385
this, maybe they are gonna move in another direction so we can better avoid them

>>3860385
>Take a peek

>>3860385
>>3860392
Supporting this.

>>3860385
>Take a peek

>>3860385
>1d6, DC 9
>taking first three

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>3860430

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>3860430

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>3860430
I apologize preemptively

>>3860430
>SP: 10 (Cap)
>Writing

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>>3860430
“I’m gonna get closer,” you whisper. “You two stay here.”

You creep silently towards the source of the noise, then abruptly stop when you hear footsteps. Then the footsteps stop as well. There’s about two full minutes of silence, where all you can hear is the sound of water running through a distant valley somewhere.

“You done Kurotsuchi!?” comes a distant call of a boy’s voice.

“One minute!” the girl shouts back again, her tone annoyed. “Just gotta take care of this, you know?”

In a flash of movement, you draw your sword. A kunai stops just short of clashing with its edge, its wielder having halted her movement at the same instant you did.

“Ah!” she realizes aloud. “You’re not Ishigakure, are you?”

“Definitely not,” you agree. “That’s… a good thing, right?”

The black-haired girl, who can’t be more than a year or so older than you, nods. “Seeing how they’ve been raiding our border recently yes, that’s a good thing. Ame, huh?”

“Yeah,” you nod. “The headband tip you off?”

“Something like that!” the girl grins. “But still, Ame or not, you’re kinda in our territory. So… yeah, I guess that’s still a problem.”

“How else am I supposed to get to the Land of Iron?” you quiz her, still not lowering your sword. “I’ve gotta go through someone’s land, and the desert is just… no. Same with putting up with the Ishigakure-nin, so that leaves chancing it with you guys.”

Her eyebrow rises slightly. “My team’s heading to the same place on a mission, so I get it.”

“Can’t say I disagree with your reasoning,” the Iwagakure-girl eventually admits with a sigh and a slight frown. “But the problem stays the same. You’re not supposed to be here.”

>Then escort us to the border with the Land of Iron. Everyone wins.
>Hey, it’s not like your village has never invaded ours, and I’m not holding THAT against you.
>Neither one of us is getting paid for a mission that involves fighting other shinobi, so why bother?
>Other?

>>3860451
>Then escort us to the border with the Land of Iron. Everyone wins.
the power of friendship

>>3860451
>Neither one of us is getting paid for a mission that involves fighting other shinobi, so why bother?

>>3860451
>>Then escort us to the border with the Land of Iron. Everyone wins.

>>3860451
>Then escort us to the border with the Land of Iron. Everyone wins.

>>3860451
>Then escort us to the border with the Land of Iron. Everyone wins.

>>3860451
>Then escort us to the border with the Land of Iron. Everyone wins.

>>3860451
>1d6, DC 11 (Hard)
>taking the first three

Rolled 1 (1d6)

>>3860483
hard, huh

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>3860483

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>3860483

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>3860483
>>3860486
Apparently so

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>3860483

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>>3860486
>>3860487
>>3860488

>>3860483
The girl, whose name you gathered is Kurotsuchi, considers your suggestion for a moment. Eventually, she just chuckles to herself. “Normally this is where I’d argue with you, but you just seem so damn sincere about it. So what the hell, let’s do it.”

She flips her kunai through the air and catches it, before slipping it swiftly back into its holder on her thigh. Then she holds out her hand. “Kurotsuchi.”

You reverse your grip with your right hand, then perform a swift reverse-gripped chiburi, normally used to wipe blood from the blade. It’s something you picked up last year… and precedes a careful noto or sheathing.

Then you take her hand in yours, and offer a smile. “Naori. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Kurotsuchi-han.”

“Han?” she asks you quizzically.

You shrug. “It’s the accent I was raised with.”

“What were you raised in a brothel or something?” she snorts.

“Actually, yes,” you nod. “What of it?”

The laugh dies in her throat immediately. “Oh… sorry.”

“Whatever,” you shrug. “It’s not like it was bad or anything. I had a mom who provided for me, and lots of people around to take care of me when she was busy. There are a lot worse places to grow up than under green eaves.”

“So it was that kind of brothel?” Kurotsuchi asks, somewhat amazed now rather than awkward. “Well, anyway, shouldn’t you call your teammates out?”

>They’re eating just now. Give us a few minutes?
>Sure, I’ll bring them out if you bring your team out as well.
>You can come and meet with them, I’ll explain what’s going on.
>I’ll come and speak with your team first, a show of trust if you will.
>Other?

>>3860506
>>I’ll come and speak with your team first, a show of trust if you will.

>>3860506
>They’re eating just now. Give us a few minutes?
>Go let your team know what's going on, so there's no surprises.

Surprised ninja are stabby ninja

>>3860506
>>Sure, I’ll bring them out if you bring your team out as well.
fair is fair, both sides are equal here

>>3860506
>>I’ll come and speak with your team first, a show of trust if you will.

>>3860506
>>I’ll come and speak with your team first, a show of trust if you will.

>>3860506
>I’ll come and speak with your team first, a show of trust if you will.

>>3860506
>I’ll come and speak with your team first, a show of trust if you will.

>>3860506
>>Sure, I’ll bring them out if you bring your team out as well.

>>3860506
“Here,” you insist, quickly placing a note on a tag and wrapping it around the tang of one of your own kunai. You show it to Kurotsuchi for a moment, then toss it back towards where your team is. “I’ll meet your team first as a show of trust.”

“Sure, whatever you think is best,” Kurotsuchi agrees with a nod. “You know your own team.”

The Iwa-nin leads you back up to what you suppose qualifies as the ‘main road’, little more than a path of heavily-trodden, packed dirt winding through rocks and gravel and shrubs. Her teammates are waiting there, a large young man dressed in the same red as Kurotsuchi is and another girl with mousy brown hair. Both start at your appearance, but quickly calm down when it becomes clear that you’re with their teammate.

“Lookee what I found!” Kurotsuchi tells them cheerfully.

Your left hand finds the mouth of your scabbard, squeezing tightly to free your sword within even as you smile politely. “Your teammate here ran into me on her little bathroom break.”

“We’re escorting them to the border,” Kurotsuchi informs her team.

“Good, no need to...” the girl begins before Kurotsuchi cuts her off.

“Of the Land of Iron.”

“… what?”

“We’re all going the same way,” you shrug, “and we mean you no harm while we’re here. So why not?”

The young man, whose head is shaved clean, simply shrugs. “If Kurotsuchi-dono says so, then that’s what we’re doing. My name is Narasuke.”

After a short pause, Kurotsuchi gestures to her female teammate. The girl seems much more serious, like you’d expect given Iwa’s reputation, and is more heavily dressed as well. She wears full-length red trousers under her half-skirt, where Kurotsuchi simply wears shorts and mesh leggings.

“Fine,” the girl sighs. “I’m Sugata.”

“I’ll go get my team now,” you tell Kurotsuchi. “Meet you here in a few minutes?”

She nods. “That’s the idea.”

When you meet your teammates, they seem unusually tense.

“So when do we turn on them?” Ukemi asks quietly.

>We don’t, Ukemi-han.
>If they turn on us, and only then.
>We’ll see. Kurotsuchi I trust, sort of. Less so the others. Be ready.
>Other?

>>3860567
>We don’t, Ukemi-han

>>3860567
>>If they turn on us, and only then.

>>3860567
>>If they turn on us, and only then.

>>3860567
>We’ll see. Kurotsuchi I trust, sort of. Less so the others. Be ready.

>>3860567
>If they turn on us, and only then.

>>3860567
>>If they turn on us, and only then.

>>3860567
>If they turn on us, and only then.

>>3860567
>>If they turn on us, and only then.

>>3860567
>We don’t, Ukemi-han.

>>3860567
>If they turn on us, and only then.

>>3860567
“Yeah… no...” you muse. “No turning on them, at least not until they try to pull something first.”

“You sure about this?” Ukemi presses urgently. “We could just slip away, even..”

“Seriously, Ukemi-bee,” you insist sternly. “I mean it. This arrangement could end up saving us a lot of trouble, so let’s all just play nice for now. Got it?”

He sighs dramatically, throwing his hands up in defeat. “Fine, I don’t like it but you’re clearly the boss here.”

“She’s always been the brains of the outfit,” Hitsugi shrugs.

“She doesn’t need your help!” Ukemi protests.

You nod to Hitsugi. “Thank you, Sadaaki-han.”

“Sadaaki!?” Ukemi repeats in surprise. “First names all of a sudden!? Why do you know just how to hurt me, Nakkun?”

When you meet with Kurotsuchi, you immediately address her teammates. “So, are we cool?”

The young man nods, and eventually the girl does too. “Yeah. Kurotsuchi-dono chewed my ear off about it… but I guess we’re ‘cool’ now.”

“Awesome!” you reply cheerfully, making it a point to obviously nudge your sword back into its sheath with a slight tik of iron on iron. “Go on, introduce yourselves!”

“Ukemi,” Ukemi grunts.

“Hitsugi Sadaaki,” Hitsugi bows slightly.

“I think you and Ukemi have a lot in common, Sugata-han,” you smirk.

“Right?” Kurotsuchi muses playfully. “She’s too serious, even for Iwa.”

>1d100
>Taking the highest of three rolls

Rolled 53 (1d100)

>>3860605

Rolled 29 (1d100)

>>3860605

Rolled 71 (1d100)

>>3860605

Rolled 72 (1d100)

>>3860605

>>3860605
It’s another few hours before sundown, and you make good progress. However, something feels… off. Distinctly out of place, almost like when you first noticed that Kurotsuchi was coming closer.

“You feel that too?” Kurotsuchi muses.

“Yeah,” you frown. “How long have they been following us?”

“Not long,” Kurotsuchi replies calmly. “You game for a fight?”

“Will we have a choice?” you smirk. “Eyes up, Hitsugi. Ukemi. We have company.”

>Wait for the Ishigakure ninja tailing you to make a move.
>Prepare some explosive tags and flush the other ninja out.
>Pretend to run away, split the Ishigakure ninja up.
>Other?

>>3860656
>Prepare some explosive tags and flush the other ninja out.

>>3860656
>>Pretend to run away, split the Ishigakure ninja up.
we're not used to fighting with the other team, so divide and conquer seems the play

>>3860656
>meet up with them and ask what's up
They're probably just suspicious of us. If they're friendly, there's no reason not to be friendly in return. If they're not, then we were going to end up fighting anyways.

>>3860656
>Prepare some explosive tags and flush the other ninja out.

>>3860656
>Prepare some explosive tags and flush the other ninja out.

>>3860656
>Prepare some explosive tags and flush the other ninja out.
if they haven't approached first, they're up to something

>>3860656
>>Prepare some explosive tags and flush the other ninja out.

>>3860656
>Prepare some explosive tags and flush the other ninja out.

>>3860656
>>Prepare some explosive tags and flush the other ninja out.

>>3860656
Well, seems pretty conclusive already.
>1d6, DC 9 (Moderate)
>taking the first three linked

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>3860693

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>3860693

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>3860693

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>3860693

>>3860693
>10: Pass
>SP: 10 (Cap)
Writing

>>3860715
“You ready?” you muse, taking out a trio of kunai and applying your unique exploding seal directly to the wrappings around each one’s tang.

Kurotsuchi nods. “So what’s your signal gonna..”

You hurl each kunai on a slightly different trajectory, to slip between some of the upright boulders and stony pillars which seem to characterize much of this part of the Land of Earth, and set them off using the usual one-handed seal.

The three explosions flush out several Ishigakure shinobi, and the battle begins in earnest.

A trio of lightning -enhanced senbon penetrate through one man’s sword and lodge in his shoulder, the shock causing him to drop his weapon as he loses control of his hand for a moment. It’s a moment that your other teammate takes complete advantage of with a fūma shuriken that nearly takes the target’s head off.

Narasuke draws a tantō to defend Sugata from a volley of kunai and shuriken, while the girl weaves a series of hand seals.

“Earth Release: Doryūsō!”

A series of earthen spears erupt from the ground as stone seems to momentarily liquify, catching several of the Ishi-nin entirely off their guard.

Kurotsuchi has been busy too, weaving her own signs. “Earth Release: Chidōkaku!”

A large area around the feet of three Ishigakure ninja immediately drops out from below them, taking all three down into the earth like they’re riding an open-air elevator.

“Going down!”

You glance up, having been momentarily distracted by the need to keep track of everyone else’s attacks for the sake of ensuring your inter-team cooperation is held up… and find that a veritable cloud of kunai is coming your way from the last couple of unwounded Ishi-nin.

>1d6 roll, high roll
>taking the first three

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>3860749

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>3860749

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>3860749

>>3860757
>13 (Very Hard)
Writing.

>>3860749
With only an instant to respond, you do what comes instinctively: you catch the first kunai right out of the air. Barely conscious of the many eyes watching you, you use that borrowed weapon to deflect a second kunai into the path of which you’ve stepped. That gives you a gap to slide through with another step forwards, dodging two more kunai in the process but forcing you to parry a second. Another step forwards, another parry, and you’re past the kunai volley.

Spinning the blade in your hand you prepare it with a seal as a return gift, then throw it straight through the air… not at the two shinobi who threw it at you, but at the one trying to climb out of the hole Kurotsuchi dropped them into.

It sinks into the ground at the lip of the pit, then explodes on your command to shower both him and his teammates with rocks and debris. He falls back into the pit with a shout.

The two Ishigakure shinobi are forced to withdraw under a hail of projectiles, leaving their wounded to stagger into cover or be buried under the weight of the onslaught… many of those projectiles seem to be shaped stones, courtesy of Kurotsuchi and her team.

“And don’t come back!” Kurotsuchi shouts at the retreating enemy. Then she turns to you. “You okay?”

“Fine,” you insist, backing slowly away from the scene of the battle to get closer to your allies. “Everyone else?”

“We’re good,” Ukemi nods. “No injuries.”

“Then let’s keep moving,” Kurotsuchi suggests. “While those numbskulls are still trying to figure out what happened.”

“Good idea,” you agree.

As the moon rises your group of six unlikely and uneasy allies makes even more progress, and the air begins to take a turn for the distinctly cold.

“That kunai you chucked back at them,” Kurotsuchi observes quietly when you take a brief pause before making your last push to the border of the Land of Iron. “It didn’t have an explosive tag on it when that guy threw it, and I didn’t see you take one out.”

>Our little secret.
>Yeah, pretty cool, huh?
>Nobody has any idea what you’re talking about.
>Other?

>>3860788
>Our little secret.

>>3860788
>Our little secret.

>>3860662
i was very confused as to what was happening here, i'm very tired and i'll be going to bed now

>>3860788
>Nobody has any idea what you’re talking about.
No offense, but we've only just met. Let's not give away our capabilities while we've still only have just a few.

>>3860802
try again buddy

>>3860796
>>3860800
she's also a ninja, and not stupid. Feels sorta assholish that one choice
since she didn't tell the others first, we can involve her in yet not tell what it is specifically.
lying by ommision, let her reach her own conclusions

>>3860788
>>3860809
as long as we don't tell her anything specific, i agree with
>our little secret

>>3860788
>Our little secret.

>>3860788
>Our little secret.

>>3860788
>>Our little secret.

>>3860788
You quietly tap your fingertip to your lips. “Our little secret, okay?”

“Man, that’s so cool!” she strains to keep an excited, almost childish squeal quiet. “I’ve never met someone as young as us who was any good at that sorta stuff!”
>1d6, High Roll
>taking three linked rolls

Rolled 3 (1d6)

>>3860828

Rolled 2 (1d6)

>>3860828

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>3860828

>>3860828
>11 (Hard)
Writing.

File: 1293101757847.png (250 KB, 937x1023)

250 KB PNG

>>3860828
“Hardly seems fair like this, so tell you what...” Kurotsuchi muses, flipping through a series of hand seals.

You watch in confusion. “What am I supposed to be seeing here?”

Without a word of explanation, Kurotsuchi spits onto the ground nearby… but it’s not spit. Instead she spits a small glob of glowing material: molten stone? So that means she has an advanced chakra nature like your own?

“Yōton,” she explains quietly, wiping away a little bit of glowing stone from her lips and flicking it off her fingers onto the ground where it grows dim and cools. “Lava release.”

“Now that is pretty awesome,” you reply with a smile. “Just who are you, anyway?”

“Oh, I’m not all that important,” she replies playfully. “At least, not yet.”

Then she stands up and addresses her team. “Come on. It’s about time we got moving, you three have cold weather clothes?”

You unseal a carefully-packed cloak from your pouch, and Ukemi and Hitsugi pull matching cloaks from their backpacks.

“We’re ready,” you declare, throwing the cloak around your shoulders.

“Great!” Kurotsuchi declares. “I’ve been looking forward to seeing the Land of Iron!”
>1/2

File: LandofIron.png (1.16 MB, 1283x720)

1.16 MB PNG

>>3860878
By morning your surroundings have changed dramatically. It’s far colder, so you’re grateful for your closed-toe shoes, and the mountainous scenery has grown more dramatic.

“The Mountain of the Three Wolves!” Kurotsuchi declares. “And here I was wondering if we’d be able to find it.”

“You think that’s the place?” Ukemi asks jokingly.

You shrug. “I dunno. But I’d definitely find it strange if that’s not the place.”

Eventually, around midday, you reach a bustling town: old-fashioned streets, thatched roof buildings, and sliding panel doors and windows. Most of the latter are shuttered against the snow, which seems every bit as pervasive here as rain is in Amegakure.

“Well, this is where we part ways!” Kurotsuchi tells you cheerfully. “You have any trouble on the way back, just tell ‘em Kamizuru Kurotsuchi okayed it, alright?”

“Kamizuru?” you muse. “Okay, I’ll do that.”

“Catch ya later!” she waves as she leads her team further into town.

“Well that went better than expected,” Ukemi muses.

“And here you were gonna turn on them!” you snort. “Ukemi, sometimes you’re too stubborn, you know that?”

“Their village invaded us like what, three? Four times?” he snorts. “You’re the one who’s too trusting sometimes.”

“Maybe,” you shrug. “But those three weren’t the ones who did it, are they?”

Ukemi glances away. “Let’s just find a shop to deal with our business.”

>Look for a blacksmith shop and work your way from there.
>Look for a shop that sells expensive-looking swords.
>Ask around for a skilled polisher.
>Other?

>>3860896
>>Look for a blacksmith shop and work your way from there.

>>3860896
>Ask around for a skilled polisher.

>>3860896
>>Look for a blacksmith shop and work your way from there.

>>3860896
>Ask around for a skilled polisher.
more talk

File: myptjwd.jpg (30 KB, 412x304)

30 KB JPG

>>3860896
>Ask around for a skilled polisher.

>>3860896
You spend an hour or so searching through the town for either a swordsmith or a polisher, and you eventually settle on a small shop which seems to offer both services. Behind its humble exterior you find a comfortable, sparesely-decorated tatami room with a hearth in the middle and a low desk, behind which sits an old man with a scar across his forehead almost from temple to temple.

“Oh my,” the old samurai muses as he sees your kodachi in its sheath. “A sword with a Rakuju-made guard? May I?”

After taking a moment to confirm his intentions, you hand the sword over to him carefully, and he swiftly punches out the wooden stay pins to remove its handle. He examines it carefully, holding it so that the light glints off its steel in just the right way that he can see its finer features.

“This is a very famous blade, with quite a history to it,” he declares. “It was once known as the Okuni Ichimonji, forged by the great ko-tō smith Norimune five hundred years ago. You can see his distinctive style in its hamon, as well as his signature on the tang.”

“One-make,” you read as he shows the tang to you. “Ichi-monji. I assume you can recognize his hand in this mark as well?”

The man nods emphatically. “Oh, yes. The smiths of the Ichimonji school signed their greatest works as Ichimonji, crediting only the school out of humility, but each used a distinctive style of filing on their tangs as well. With this one, all of the features match Norimune’s work, the man widely believed to be the founder of the school. And even if that is not true, then he certainly was one of its greatest leaders.”

“This particular blade was named for a historical kabuki actress,” he continues. “It eventually fell into the hands of another great swordsmith, one of what we call the shin-tō or ‘new sword’ period: Nagasone Okisato, otherwise known as Kotetsu.”

“Kotetsu?” Ukemi asks curiously. “I’ve heard of him. I never knew he collected swords.”
>1/?

>>3860957
“Oh, yes!” the old samurai insists. “He was very passionate about it, and this was his favorite. He insisted that no matter how fine and sharp his own work was, the old kotō masters seemed to do it better. He was very critical of his own skills… that’s part of what made him so good. The sight of the Okuni Ichimonji in his own home every night before he slept probably drove him to improve.”

“Sounds obsessive,” you shake your head. “I guess many geniuses are.”

The old man nods. “This blade then passed into his son Okimasa’s hands, who would become known as Nidaime Kotetsu. His skills at forging were also brilliant, though his drive was less than his father’s, but his true talent lay in carving horimono like the one you see here.”

“He added this himself?” you ask, fingertips lightly brushing the elaborate carving on the blade’s surface.

“And in doing so he gave it a new name: the Ume-kiri or ‘Plum-Mist’ Ichimonji. You can see Okimasa’s signature on the opposite side, inlaid with gold wire. Someone else but me must have appraised this sword and found it to be the genuine article.”

“Why would he do that?” Hitsugi asks. “It seems like a serious collector would consider that a defacement.”

“Okimasa was a clever boy,” the old samurai explains, “and no less critical of the shintō tradition than his father. So when the first Mizukage asked the seven most talented smiths of that generation to forge him the finest swords they could produce, Okimasa simply added a horimono of his own design to the finest kotō sword available to him: his father’s personal favorite, the Okuni Ichimonji.”

“Cheeky,” you muse. “How did the Mizukage take it?”
>2/4

>>3860962
“Not well. Okimasa knew of course that the chakra metal used by the Ichimonji school in its height was of peerless quality, and Norimune’s skill at forging it was unmatched,” he explains further. “This blade is strongly attuned to Yin, the chakra of forms and illusions, and so Okimasa used his own ‘peerless talent’ at carving to add a new function to an old masterpiece: Norimune’s works can be fickle, but in the right hands this blade should be able to enhance genjutsu.”

“Then why didn’t the Mizukage like it?” Hitsugi presses. “It’s obviously a masterpiece, as you said.”

“Norimune would no doubt have approved!” the old man chuckles. “But the Mizukage wasn’t looking for masterpieces of artistry, martial or otherwise. He was looking for killing-blades, and so he rejected such conventional efforts. He said of the Umekiri-maru ‘this is not a blade for killing’, and sent it back to Okimasa.”

“And what happened next?” Ukemi asks excitedly.

“Okimasa grew furious!” the old samurai grins, leaning closer and lowering his voice for dramatic effect. “One night, he fired up his forge and melted down several old blades of varying qualities… salvaging steel was one of his father’s many skills… and forged them into a single blade of stupendous size. As that blade cooled from the forge he knelt on the floor, and cut his belly clean through to the spine with it.”

“No way!” Ukemi gasps.

You shake your head. “That’s… a bit of an extreme, isn’t it? Like couldn’t he have come up with something a tad less dramatic?”

The old man grins. “He used his own chakra, through the medium of his blood, to finish the sword. This process also gave it a special property: the blood that it sheds rejuvenates it. That bloodthirsty blade which came into existence bathed in the blood of its own creator will never dull or break so long as it continues to kill. The Mizukage took the criticism, but he also took the sword and gave it the name Kubikiribōchō.”
>3/4

File: kubikiribocho.jpg (47 KB, 1280x720)

47 KB JPG

>>3860969
“The Seversword,” Hitsugi nods along. “One of the seven famous swords of the Mist. But how much truth is there to that story?”

“Three things are for certain,” the old man insists, setting your sword aside on his low wooden working surface. “This is the penultimate work of Nidaime Kotetsu, and his final work was the blood-drinking Seversword. And out of the seven smiths who forged the Seven Swords – Kanemitsu, Awaji-Rai, Sandaime Tadayoshi, Seikan, Motoshige, Soboro, and Nidaime Kotetsu – none of them ever forged another blade afterwards.”

He stares at your sword for a few seconds, brow furrowing into a frown. “The Umekiri Ichimonji was thought lost when Uzushiogakure was destroyed. I wonder what has happened to it in the time since then...”

>Uzushiogakure? What was it doing there?
>I hear some people do sword-based divination in this country?
>How much for your services in treating some weapons for us?
>Other?

>>3860974
>>I hear some people do sword-based divination in this country?
>>How much for your services in treating some weapons for us?

>>3860974
>>Uzushiogakure? What was it doing there?