Mission:

The Kironu Estate. It seems that once again, their emerald necklace had been stolen. I was somewhat surprised, especially with the fact that the necklace was stolen so quickly after it was stolen the first time. From what I could understand, it was taken late last night, though the exact time is unknown. An interesting change from the previous case is that this time, a guard system was active. The guards had been hired to beef up the security, revealed by the previous robbery as being sub-standard. I was very eager to speak to them to see if he saw or heard anything strange. I transformed yet again (they still had no idea what I actually looked like) and knocked on the door.

The lord and lady welcomed me in, and directed me towards the back of the manor, where the chief of security was waiting. I thanked the lord and lady, and they departed to tend to their other affairs.

I turned towards the chief, who introduced himself as Nighttime Security Chief Rakeau.
“So, tell me a little about your security system, if you would be so kind.”
When I was transformed, I felt that a slightly more formal tone was needed when talking to people. It felt unnatural, but it allowed me to feel a bit more secure in my disguise.

“Uh, yeah, sure,” he said as he gave me a strange look. Ok, maybe a bit less formal would still suffice.
He continued. “So, we’ve got two guards patrolling the building at night, while I stay in my office here. We’re all radio connected so that if something happens, I can contact the police immediately. No one radioed in any trouble though, not last night.

“You mentioned that no one radioed in anything last night. Were there any incidents beforehand?

“Actually, the first night we were here, Kurai thought he heard a strange noise coming from the kitchen. But it was just a rat or something. You could ask him about it if you want.”

“How did you find out that the necklace had been stolen?”

“Well, when we went to open the case in the morning, it just wasn’t there.”

“May I see the case?”

“Yeah, sure.”

Activating my Buragan (yet hiding it with the transformation), I followed him to a room with a simple glass case on top of a large black prism. I inspected the case for anything unusual, and…didn’t find anything. It had a simple mechanism for lowering the display into the prism, secured by a lock. There weren’t any discernable signs of tampering (I had researched some crime-related stuff after the last time), and I didn’t know what to make of it. There was only one key, but it was hidden during the night in a rotating list of hiding spots, the others being filled with fake keys that would trip an alarm. I remained silent in thought as we walked backed to his office. I decided to move on to something else that had been bothering me.

“I was wondering, how do you manage to stay alert all night?”

“Each of us has a different method. I just sleep during the day, usually. Kurai and Sekuru each have day jobs though. You’ll have to ask each of them for how they deal with it.”

“Where would I find them?”

Wordcount: 568/1000

Jutsu used:

Transformation Technique:

Buragan:

Chakra: 125/150

Rakeau gave me the other two guards’ work addresses, I thanked him, and I set on my way. Kurai was the one who heard the mysterious sound, so I decided to start with him. He worked at a bar, so I had to maintain my transformation for a bit longer. I went up to the bartender and asked him where I could find Kurai.
“That’d be me,” he responded in a downcast, somewhat gruff way. He had black hair, sunken eyes, and a long face. I sat on a stool and began my questioning.

“So, did you notice anything strange happening last night?”

“No, sorry. It was weird. When we checked in, the necklace was there, but when we were checking on everything at dawn, it simply wasn’t there.  And now I need to find a night job.”

“You were fired?”

“Yeah. The necklace was in the part of the house I was assigned to patrol, so when the Kironus demanded someone be held responsible, the lax security was blamed on me.”

He turned away to serve a customer, and I could see him rubbing his eye as he came back to talk.

“So, how do you manage to stay alert all night?”

“It’s tough, but Sekuru and I usually take 15 minute breaks every three or so hours. Never at the same time though. The other stays in the room with all the valuables.”

“Tell me about the thing in the kitchen that you heard on the first night.”

“Oh, that? It really wasn’t anything. I heard a bit of a shuffling sound, but it was probably just my imagination. I was kinda nervous with it being my first night as a guard and all. Nothing seemed to be outta place.”

I thanked him for his time, and went on my way. I was feeling sorry that he got fired, but I think I was beginning to understand what was going on, weirdly enough.

Wordcount: 329+568=997/1000

Jutsu used:

Transformation Technique:

Chakra: 120/150

I was going to question Sekuru, but I really wanted to check out the kitchen. I suspected something, but I wasn’t exactly sure. I was hoping Sekuru’s answers would lead me in a definitive direction. I looked up. I was at the right place. By day, he worked at a grocery. I walked inside, and saw someone familiar.

And I was so close to figuring it out by myself.

It was the fencer from before being handed a paper bag. Not at all unusual for a grocery store. Except that it had the indentations of a necklace at the bottom of it. No one else was in the store.

When it comes to this fencer, it’s almost like I’m being set up to catch her before she can actually fence the necklace.

This was ridiculously lucky. And it was ridiculously lucky that I didn’t come any later. Maybe the fencer got word that someone was snooping around, and panicked. I sighed.

Well, time to do this again.

Before either of the two could respond, I already had my Arc restraint jutsu around the fencer, causing her to drop the bag. Sekuru stared, wide-eyed, frozen in place. I pointed my kunai at him and said, “Don’t move.”

“Ok, calm down. Most of the money is in the back. Just let me get it.”

This guy thinks I’m robbing him. Oops.

I ended my transformation, hoping that would clear up the confusion. When the smoke cleared, Sekuru was looking even more confused, but the fencer had an expression that could only be described as extreme annoyance.

“He’s not robbing you, you idiot. He’s catching us, or at least you.” She took a kunai out and cut the lightning ropes. I threw my kunai at the bag, and the knife pinned it against a counter.

She apparently decided that it wasn’t worth the risk of getting caught, turned to me, and said, “Next time, then.” She then disappeared into a puff of smoke.

Was she a ninja?

I turned my attention towards Sekuru, still frozen in fear. Before I could do anything, he recovered from his shock and vaulted over the counter. I thought he might be trying to run away, but he tried to punch me. I tried to dodge, but he hit my arm. This guy was fast. He took advantage of the fact that he had been hit, and tried to kick me. Luckily, I was able (half by chance) to catch his foot. I twisted, and he dropped to the ground. I rolled away and stood up, trying to think of my next attack. I threw two shuriken at him just to see how he’d react. He put his arms up, and they struck him.

So apparently he’s not as battle-experienced as our other opponents.

Before I could think of a next move, he rushed me again. I jumped to the left, but again, he caught me. He was able to grab my arm and yank me back towards him.  I Used the momentum to punch him in the face, but he only stumbled back a little. He rubbed his cheek, and if looks could kill, I would’ve lost the battle right then and there.

Physical attacks aren’t really effective against this kind of guy. I’ll need to use my genjutsu again.

I wanted to use my ninjustu and taijutsu so that I could train those for the chunin exams, but it looked like a battle like that wouldn’t work out in my favor.

I needed to get a good positioning for this to work. I also had to figure out which shelf to use. I looked around, and spotted a shelf to my right that seemed a little oddly placed.

That would work.

I looked him in the eyes and used genjutsu to change Sekuru’s perception of the world. I tricked him into believing that the shelf I had pointed out to myself earlier simply wasn’t there. He was looking to rush me yet again, so I jumped to my right, behind the shelf. Like I expected, he came swinging at me, but this time, crashed into the shelf and toppled over with it. I smiled to myself for using such a basic strategy rather effectively, and jumped on his back, restraining him.

"Please, I have a family!"

"Sorry, but don't try get-rich-quick schemes next time. Especially when they involve breaking the law."

Another mission, another instance of barely suceeding with genjutsu.

And another time that woman escapes.

I would need to catch her soon, or the necklace would just keep getting stolen. I just had to track her down, but I didn't have any leads. I suppose I could start at the dock I initially spotted her at, but I doubt she would want to go back there. I could ask another shinobi to track her down, but I wouldn't be able to give them much to go on. I guess the best option would really just be to try to get her the next time she strikes. Hopefully, itwont be whilst I am at the Chunin exams. Then, she might actually be able to get away with it.

Next time, Kaitu, we'll get her, I thought to myself. And next time, I'll figure out the plot BEFORE I stop it.

Jutsu used:

Arc Restraint (Note Added for KKG):

Transformation Technique:

Chakra: 105/150

Wordcount: 911+997=1907

EXIT THREAD

Final Wordcount: 1907
-1000 (Mission)
-400 (Reaction Time D1->D2)
-450 (Reaction Time D2->D3)
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Words left: 57

Ryo Earned: 200
-125 (Reaction Time Training)
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Net Ryo Earned: 75