The other day Nakazo had been assigned to handle a problem within his own neighborhood in the Sand Dune Slums. He had lived here his whole life, and for that reason alone he was given this mission. The Genin was asked to take a partner with him for this task, in case of extra trouble. He didn't have many friends or allies that he could trust, but he instantly thought of Chiaki when given the opportunity to pick someone. The last time he saw Chiaki they were being carried off to the hospital with a bloody gash over his eye as a result of their sparring match. He hoped he would be forgiven for that, and that Chiaki wouldn't mind being Nakazo's recommendation for this mission. The Ashitaka wanted him along on this mission as a way of apology, and also because he knew he was skilled and would rather have those strange summoning powers on his side than be against them. Nakazo double checked his ninja pouch to ensure his kunai and three shurikens were still there. He tied his forehead protector tight and walked out the door of his house into the cool crisp night of Sunagakure. It was almost midnight, and the ninja hurried to make sure he wasn't late for his rendezvous.

The meeting place was a theater near the outskirts of the Slums. The building had seen better days, but somehow the place was still in operation. Nakazo leaned against the stone wall while he awaited Chiaki's arrival. A Jounin would have delivered the mission details to Chiaki, and he hoped they got them in time. The mission was rather simple. There were a few gangsters causing trouble in the Slums, and their hideout was recently discovered: a ruined hospital in the center of the urban sprawl. The Slums were littered with old ruins and half standing buildings, and they were just as common as normal houses in the rundown neighborhood. The two Genin would need to get into the hospital and then teach them a lesson, rough them up and then bring them to the village jail. If necessary and for their own survival they could kill the gangsters, but it would be considered a last resort. Nakazo didn't take the act of killing another lightly, and resolved to complete this task with as little bloodshed as possible, though he had no idea how Chiaki felt about such things. It's midnight now, he thought, the moon above the only thing illuminating the outside of the theater. He looked around for any sign of Chiaki and remained alert and guarded as he awaited his partner's arrival.

449 WC

(Just for future reference because I'm not sure on Chiaki's gender, how should I refer to your character going forward? I've called Chiaki a he a couple times in my post above and just want to make sure I'm getting it right. It's hard to write not knowing a character's gender lol. I know my character wouldn't know exactly, but just for my own sake what would you prefer I write?)

Chiaki wasn’t one to hold grudges. They never saw the point in such. So, they were entirely indifferent to the message received that Nakazo, the genin who had recently caused Chiaki need to wear an eyepatch for the short term, wanted Chiaki to help with something, they simply shrugged and got ready. They took the paper from the jounin, paying no heed to what was said and instead reading the paper with their remaining eye – the right one covered by an eyepatch. Nakazo was requesting their aid with a mission within the slums; a brief walk for Chiaki. They gave the paper several reads over, the jounin gone by the time they looked up again. With a silent sigh, they shut the door to their cheap apartment, and began getting ready.

So, Chiaki departed, clad in the same jacket they had been wearing when the duo had sparred. Their eyepatch, a similar coloured fabric to the jacket, was basic in design, perhaps simply just leftover fabric that had found a new use. As always, their silver hair was a mess, and their Sunagakure forehead protector found its location wrapped around Chiaki’s left arm, like an armband. Strapped to their waist on the right hand side, the Fukitsuna had their weapon pouch, which contained some shuriken and a kunai, while in their hand they walked with the bo-staff. Yet unlike usual, they were alert. And on course to make it on time. Their left eye, already in the active onigan, a bladed spiral of black among red, with a single, solitary black ring on the outskirts where one would imagine an iris should be. Meanwhile, floating at their side, the eye of the onigan that they had used prior followed alongside them, acting as if a replacement for the currently covered eye.

So, they walked up to the meeting point, just on the outskirts of the slums. The non-binary ninja looked ahead of them, where the familiar face of Nakazo stood, clearly waiting. Eye floating at their side, they bowed slightly in silent greeting, walking up to face him. With a yawn, they stretched out, as if getting themselves ready for exercise, arms flexing behind them, then to their side casually again. A second yawn, and then a rather casual wave. Pausing for a moment to let the arrival sink in, Chiaki simply put some writing in the sand ahead of Nakazo, as they had done before.



409

Chakra: 140/150 (-10 for D rank jutsu)

Jutsu used:

Nakazo leaned against the wall of the theater as he awaited Chiaki's arrival. There was a cool breeze blowing through the city. The full moon above illuminated the surroundings slightly, though otherwise he was in complete darkness. This part of town didn't have any night lights, which Nakazo thought would serve them just as well as their intended targets. Cover of darkness will make this mission a lot easier, hopefully we can attack them unawares, he thought. He heard footsteps approaching as he ended his thought, and he looked around, trying to spot their source. Chiaki came into view then, with a floating eyeball at their side. It's the same one they used against me in our duel, Nakazo recalled, I'm glad to have it's powers on my side tonight. Chiaki got closer and it was then that Nakazo realized that they were wearing an eyepatch over the eye that he wounded during their fight. "Chiaki," he nodded as the ninja approached. "Thanks for coming on such sort notice." Nakazo stared at the eye patch, "sorry about that," he offered as an apology.

After exchanging pleasantries with his partner Nakazo began to get into the details of the mission. "In the center of the slums here is an old ruined hospital. It's been out of commission for as long as I can remember. Anyways, the gangsters causing trouble down here are apparently holed up inside of it. At least that's what the intelligence says. Let's get in and out, and take them down quick, hopefully we can be home before sunrise." With that he would head to the hospital with Chiaki. He made sure to stick to the shadows as best he could, though it was probably an unnecessary precaution. After about a fifteen minute walk the pair would arrive at their destination. The hospital stood before them, all five floors of broken windows and crumbling floors. The entrance way  inside was wide open. The doors had long since disappeared, and now a large hole giving way to complete darkness was all the remained. Some light was visible on the top floor. It flickered and faded in and out constantly, and Nakazo guessed that it was candle lit. "I'm not sure how many are up there, but I guess they're all up on the top floor."

He turned to Chiaki, wanting to get their opinion on how they should approach this. "What do you think our plan of attack should be? He asked, studying the hospital. "We could go in together, or maybe one of us takes the entrance in and the other scales the building? He would wait to see what Chiaki wanted to do before making a decision. Nakazo didn't much care what the strategy was, as long as they successfully subdued the gangsters it was all the same to him.

484 WC
933 Total WC

The individual stared at Nakazo’s lips as he spoke, before nodding at the apology. Then, after the brief, Chiaki allowed Nakazo to explain the mission brief. An abandoned hospital would probably be creepy. Or maybe not. Chiaki didn’t really care. Then the duo left, making their way through the slums towards the destination that is the hospital. The once sandstone white and beige of the outside of the hospital building was now grey and gritty, clearly not tested well from the trials of time. Glass was spread on the ground, hidden and nestled within the sand from the broken windows, sand occasionally shifting down like waterfalls from some of the higher windows as the wind blows it around. The light of the moon, stark from the cloudless skies, gave a blue tinge to the scene; it’d be pretty, if it wasn’t the slums. Light emanated from near the top, shadows stretched across the dim lit walls, flickering wildly, although the shadows themselves were too vague to discern details from.

Of course, as Chiaki looked up, the eye kept looking at Nakazo, in case of speech, which, speak he did. They didn’t catch the start of his speech, as, he was facing away from them, however, as they posed the question, Chiaki’s mind spurred into thought. While splitting up was a good strategy for searching missions, and was good for covering exits, it worked better in larger groups, as in a two person squad, it led to risk of individual ambush, and being taken out one at a time. They hummed quietly, before shrugging, and speaking their mind. “I say we can’t split up. While good for ground coverage and routing, it leads to risk of ambush, especially in such a small squad. We have reason to believe these gangsters aren’t proper ninja, correct? If this is so, it is unlikely they will take a rooftop escape, meaning if we work our way up, we can use gravity as our trap.” Their voice was quiet, likely due to the inability to hear their own voice, and with a sigh, they walked to the opening of the door, eyes a stark red against the dark of the interior. From there, they looked in, eye still facing Nakazo, before adding. “Remember your academy training? We must keep quiet, so, perhaps now is a good time to put that to use.”

And with that, the genin focused chakra into the soles of their feet, yawning slightly as they stepped into the building. The desk, where one can imagine people would be welcomed, was destroyed, a piece of rubble from the floor above having smashed through the desk and splintering it all around. The dark walls, nearly impossible to see through the low visibility, were covered in graffiti of various symbols, swears, and other assorted joys. Chairs were scattered around, some of which broken, but most just left around lazily. Yet other than this, there was no signs of anyone downstairs. The place, on the ground floor, was empty.

504 + 409 = 913

Chakra: 130/150 (-5 maintain, -5 E rank jutsu)

Jutsu used:

Nakazo listened intently as Chiaki gave their opinion on the strategy they should take for tackling these thugs. His partner was of the opinion that they should stick together and approach the top floor together from the inside. It made a lot of sense to Nakazo. Chiaki is right, he thought, we have no idea how many are inside, we could be ambushed ourselves. They also brought up the point that these thugs aren't ninjas themselves, and so would be unable to take a rooftop escape. If we take the stairs up and cover their own exit they have no where to go, it's smart. He nodded back after hearing the explanation. "I agree with your assessment of the situation." Chiaki then made reference to keeping quiet and using their training from the academy. Nakazo understood what he meant, and concentrated his chakra into the soles of his feet. He hoped this would keep their approach as silent as possible. The floor was littered with garbage and shards of glass, the place was a mess. Nakazo then followed Chiaki into the darkness of the ruined hospital.

The pair stepped around the ruined contents of the building. It was hard to see more than a few feet in front of them, but luckily their was some moonlight sneaking in through the broken windows to guide them. They found the stairway eventually and began to make their way up it. The top floor was their ultimate goal, as that was where they believed the thugs were. It was the only place lit in the building, a dead giveaway in the night. They slowly climbed upwards, letting the railing on the side of the stairs guide them instead of their eyesight. This stairwell seemed to be the only way up or down the building, which was a good thing for the two ninja. hey have no escape now, Nakazo thought, as he moved up step by step with Chiaki. Hopefully they just surrender instead of giving us a fight. He knew that it was probably unlikely that they would just give up however, thugs tended to fight back when cornered. They wouldn't go to jail without a fight.

They made it up all five floors without any trouble. As they stood on the final step they could see a faint amount of light flickering from around the corner. Nakazo stood with his back to the wall and peered around it. A long corridor was visible, at the end of which was a single room with light pouring out of it. That's where they are, we're so close! Nakazo was just about to step out and walk towards the room when a figure emerged from the light and began to walk down the corridor. He turned away from the wall to remain hidden and relayed the situation to Chiaki as quietly as possible. The person was walking slowly and without purpose, to the ninja it seemed as if he was just leaving the building, not that he had any idea that there were intruders. He made sure Chiaki was facing him when he spoke next. "He's coming this way to leave the building, it doesn't appear he knows we are here. Let's knock him out and continue on our way as quietly as possible." When the man rounded the corner Nakazo would grab him first by the neck with one arm and cover his mouth with the second. He hoped Chiaki would take the queue to knock the bandit out while he had him restrained. He hoped that they would remain undetected here, but Nakazo was on guard in case they heard the scuffle that was about to happen.

Chakra 145/150:

623 WC
1556 Total WC

The duo made their way up the stairs of the building, feet muffled by their chakra. It was relatively quiet, although to Chiaki this was no different to the rest of the world. Nakazo was clearly alerted, sensing something Chiaki could not. A figure down the corridor appeared, and Chiaki followed Nakazo’s motion of hiding. Chiaki observed the man, picking out details as he approached, unaware of the two sand ninja. Nakazo quickly caught the bandit, holding him in a hold and covering his mouth to avoid him alerting the rest of those inside. At this, Chiaki nodded, deciding not to waste any time and spinning their staff around, aiming it to precisely smack the stranger on the head with force enough to knock them out, likely giving them concussion as well.

Allowing Nakazo to let the body drop to the floor first, Chiaki stood still, sending the summoned eye ahead of them once more, scanning the surroundings. As one could expect, the corridor was ruined, wallpaper peeling and the ground covered in various lots of rubbish and rubble. The eye turned a corner, entering one of the patient rooms slowly, as if a bug. As if alive. Through the eye, Chiaki could tell that within the room was a total of two people currently sat at table that was clearly a makeshift from an upside down hospital bed, while a third person was stood at the window, a makeshift club at her waist. With a sigh, Chiaki left the eye there to keep watching, not moving it to avoid taking their attention as they spoke to Nakazo quietly, voice barely above a whisper. “I have spotted three of them. One of the targets is armed. Proceed with caution.” They stated, now moving their eye to investigate different rooms, in case of extra bandits. As the eye moved further down the corridor, Chiaki began stepping towards the room, slowly walking onto the wall and along that to avoid knocking into anything on the ground, sighing quietly. Their steps were slow, methodical, done with the intent of silence and stealth in mind. Tightening their grip on the staff, they now waited on the wall, outside of the room in which the trio were found while the summon explored the hallway further. The mission had officially started with one member of the gang down on the ground, Chiaki was prepared to get the rest of it done with.

406 + 913 = 1319

Chakra: 125/150 (-5 for maintain eye, 1 out of 3 posts for need to maintain supernatural walk)

(OOC: I know it’s not the longest reply, just couldn’t think of what to write, sorry~)