Ryo smiled widely as he walked through the sections of the village. He was having a wonderful day, he had spent the better part of the day before finishing his newest child. Giving birth to this new form of life was wonderful, spectacular, and just what he had always dreamed of. Now, his beloved first born Kuro had a twin, Shiro. This was a dream come true, he had worked long and hard on the design, long and hard on the components, and now it was all put together ready, moving, and waiting to be tested.

He was walking with his puppet, using his chakra threads to move the puppet with him every step of the way. Smiling and humming his favorite tune he walked through all the parts of the village completely unaware of where he was heading, but of course, none of that really mattered to him. He was lost in his thoughts. As he happened upon a great clear spot he stood in the center of it getting himself ready. With his strings, fully intact he started to move his arms and fingers a bit more “Alright Shiro my son, let’s see how well you walk on your first real day of life.” He mused to his creation before he started to move his arms and fingers in elaborate patterns causing his wolf puppet to dance around on its four legs almost as if it was alive.

His focused strings allowed him to move Shiro with a skill in motion that it almost looked completely natural. Only a very keen eye would be able to tell that the wolf was only a puppet made of wood, but the chakra strings would give it away to someone who knew what they were looking for. Ryo was having so much fun, he was so focused on what he was doing he had no idea if he was being watched, or if anyone was coming around to see him work.

WC: 330

Kei would yawn loudly as he got up for the day, stretching all the while. Scratching the back of his neck, he would look for some clothes to put on. He realized he had just slept for the better part of the day when he originally planned for some work to get done. Normally, he would shrug and just let it go, deciding to do it later instead, but today would be different as he was beginning to run out of money, money which he needed if he were to actually get some food on the table. Stepping out into the main room, the Genin would hear a voice call out weakly. "Kei, is that you?" The feminine voice would ask. He recognized this immediately to be none other than his own mother, whom of which was seemingly awake today, making him rush over to her side, immediately concerned. "Yeah mom, what is it?" He would ask before taking notice of the empty cup. Immediately grabbing it, he would head over to the faucet with haste, filling the cup with water before coming back to his mother, handing her the cup. "Thank you. Please, be safe." She would say, receiving only a nod in response as the Genin would turn around, grabbing his short-sleeved coat and fuuma shuriken, which he kept within a small sheathe on his back, before heading out.

It seemed to be a relatively peaceful moment in the slums at the moment, one of which the patchwork male would yawn at. Sunlight was never something he cared much for funnily enough. He'd much rather just head out at night or stay home, but then again all of the good missions would clearly be gone by then, so it's not like he can just willingly waste time like that. It would only cause problems down the road. Traversing through the village, he would take notice of the usual sights he had seen, along with the regular inhabitants of them. Some of them are clearly gang members while others were merely civilians of the village that just wished for idle chatter. Seemingly things were so-so from what he can hear, with nothing out of the ordinary that either has happened or is currently happening at this moment. This was good, it meant no extra work would be had, nor anymore troublesome encounters such as with that damn puppeteer. He still needs to get that man's name and see about paying him a visit, as he hadn't seen the scumbag since that day.

As he walked through the village, he spotted what seemed to be a white-haired male, whom of which was seemingly smiling widely, walking with some sort of wolf with a weird looking tail. 'The hell is that?' He would think to himself as he looked at the two, his blue eyes scanning the two. He didn't have any sort of interests in kids, but this one had some weird creature with him, and only a fool wouldn't take the opportunity to figure out what it is. Looking around, Kei would take notice of his being in the outer edge of the clear area in which the kid stood in the center of, where he can seemingly see the kid say something to the creature. It would be then that he would watch as he begun to move his arms and fingers, the creature dancing alongside it, reminding Kei of how that precious puppet user appeared when he manipulated his creations, as well.

Just great, another puppeteer, and this one looks young too. Considering how the previous one probably stabbed neighborhood pets with senbon for giggles, Kei didn't have much hope for the sanity of this person. He was tempted to walk off, to not even deal with this at the moment, especially considering that wolf wasn't real, but to walk away would be to lose a potential pool of information on puppetry, and a possible chance to face off against a puppet first-hand. The techniques he developed weren't fully usable yet, so it would be a similar enough situation as when he fought that previous puppet user, but still, it would help him gauge how to deal with these people should another decide to fight him. Walking up to the male, whom of which was seemingly five feet and two inches tall, Kei would stop around three meters away, just close enough that he can see the faint strings of chakra attaching his fingers to the beast.

"Hey, you got a minute?" He would ask, waiting a few moments before continuing. "What are you doing with your.." he would look over to the beast for a few seconds before looking back at the stranger. He recalled how easily angered the previous user was, and would rather get some information before he gets dragged into a fight. "..friend here? Are you a puppet user?"

Wc 829

Ryo smiled as he watched continued to work with his newest son. There were a few moments when he was ready to finish up his practice and head back home, but he frowned deeply shaking his head as he brought his lovely little son back to him. He couldn’t help but notice however that something wasn’t quite right so he moved over moving Shiro closer to him and kneeling so he could inspect the workings of Shiro. Moving the tail a little bit helped him find that there was something he didn’t sand down enough, but he pulled out his kunai whittling away at the wood that was causing the little hesitation in the tail joints. Sitting there he did keep his ears working turning his head from side to side as if he was going to keep his ears always moving. The harness he was wearing held both the scrolls for his two sons and he slowly moved his hand lower towards the scroll for Shiro. Deciding that he would have to take his Shiro home to try and work out any other kinds of halting issues. Yet, he decided that he wouldn’t do that right now. Instead, he stood back up and connected the chakra strings once again having Shiro run through the many functions, however, he would not show off everything his puppet could do. He kept the rest of Shiro’s tail away not wanting to slide it to the fullest extension so as not to advertise the reach his puppet had. He also didn’t bother pulling out the scythe blades so they wouldn’t be seen by anyone who he didn’t want to see them.

He was enjoying himself, but he soon was stopped by the sound of someone calling out to him. Stopping dead in his tracks he turned and looked to see a very interesting looking person. This guy was very interesting a bit pale, but his skin seemed to be two different colors. Having two different colors of skin was impressive and Ryo wondered what he would have to do to give his skin two different colors. Was this man part puppet like Midori, or was it something more intricate than wood or puppet parts. He smiled moving closer to the stranger his puppet walking next to him as Ryo’s fingers slowly worked to keep the strings moving Shiro’s legs. Standing about two meters away he stopped looking the man over “Sure, I’ve got a minute.” He said cheerfully. Looking the man over he couldn’t help his eyes noticing that it wasn’t skin, but more like stitches, or a skin substitute. Seeing this was very interesting and he was ready to ask questions, but some part of him didn’t think that would be appropriate.

Hearing the question, he looked down at Shiro smiling widely “OH, yes this is indeed a puppet. However, he’s more than my friend. He’s my baby. His name is Shiro, and he is my newest child. He’s got a twin brother Kuro. I am Ryo Knetegawa, of the Knetegawa clan. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m out here running Shiro through his paces. He was only born yesterday so I had to come out to see what he was capable of doing. I didn’t want to go out on a mission and find out he couldn’t do what I needed him to.” He bit down on his bottom lip and leaned a little bit closer “Um…you know…I’m sorry if this is rude but…um…sooo what’s the dark skin there? It doesn’t look like skin, but it looks like something. What is it? Did it hurt? It’s so cool looking!” He seemed to realize what he was doing and stopped looking down shaking his head as he now looked completely embarrassed “Oh my, i-I’m so sorry. I-I uh that was rude of me, wasn’t it? Sorry, I’m not uh, very good with people.” He said nervously before the white wolf next to him seemed to slowly move between the two boys.

Wc: 671
Total: 671 + 330= 1,001

Kei would see that this peculiar person looked back at him after he addressed him, though suddenly would smile, moving closer to him with his puppet doing the same. Kei didn't trust what was happening at the moment, not at all. He would make his right hand form into a fist, knowing that in this close of a range he could possibly get a surprise uppercut in, probably jump on that hound... dog... thing next and try to restrain it. Knowing his luck, it wouldn't be as easy as he considered, but if it was he could get about going about his day once more, probably even having time to get something done before he would inevitably complain about being out for too long and just returning home. Sure, it was still two meters away, but he measured his range, nine could be closed, easily. Thankfully though, the kid didn't seem like a deranged psycho at all, just.. off, as he would cheerfully respond, granting Kei the time to socialize for a little bit, though will looking him over.

'Here it comes. Just get it over with, bucko, you can't say anything I already heard.' He would think to himself as he waited for it, the comment that came in multiple ways, with multiple names, though could always be resorted down to the same horseshit. Freak, it was that word that he hated so much, and he knew that it was coming in some way or another just from how he was being looked over. His threads itched as he tensed himself, resisting to grimace as his own threads hungered to leave his body and lash out at whoever was the owner of that name. He wasn't exactly meaning to just fight anyone willy nilly, but it was something about that word, the false arrogance it provided for the user of it, that just made him want to bloody a nose or two.

Instead however, the younger appearing male would respond to Kei's question, much to his surprise, stating that it's indeed a puppet, though it is more than his friend, but instead his baby. It was named Shiro and, as he would mention, he was his newest child, one that has a twin "brother" named Kuro, and that this odd one is named Ryo Knetegawa of the Knetegawa Clan, further going on to greet Kei and explain his reasoning for being out here. Apparently it is to give the thing a test run, to see what it was capable of doing as it was born yesterday, essentially figuring out the kinks it had before risking it in a mission. This was.. well, it certainly made Kei feel more normal than he would expect, and he was conflicted on whether it was a good thing or a bad thing, but seemingly it must be a running gimmick among puppet users to be in love with their stuff, and in Ryo's case, he was talking about them like a mother would about their kids, sage for a piece of what he said or two.

What the hell though, as long as the puppet isn't being used to try to attack Kei out of nowhere, he didn't really mind. It was weird, sure, but he wasn't exactly the most normal person, himself. He would see that Ryo had still taken notice of that too, as he had bit his bottom lip, leaning a bit closer, apologizing about what he would ask next is rude. Once more, he would prepare for an insult, ready to take it directly from the puppet user, and preparing to respond with just as much venom, though as Ryo asked, stating that Kei's dark skin didn't look like skin, but something else, and further asking about it it hurt, he would actually be complimented on it, being told it looks cool. His face would go blank as he had heard these words. 'Cool...?' He would think as he looked at the darkened, wrinkled skin, examining it for a few moments, almost as if he is seeing it for the first time ever once more.

Looking back up at the male, he would be seemingly looking down, shaking his head, almost as though he figured that what he asked was extremely rude, but while it generally could have been, Kei couldn't feel the negative feelings he felt when similar versions of it were asked. This wasn't out of spite, or rude, but instead a question made out of curiosity, almost as if he was seeing something he didn't know existed before and was liking it. He would wave off the apology, almost feeling himself actually end up appreciating the fact that he talked to a kid, when before he generalized them into the "strongly dislike" category on his list. He couldn't help but offer a small smile in return as he looked back at his arms, and then feeling his lower jaw, the wrinkled texture of the skin and the rough feeling of the stitches that attached them to his actual skin making him realize once more that this wasn't his own.

"Forget about it, I suck with people too." He would say as the small smile became a regular one. The stitches along the edge of his mouth already made his lipless mouth look it it was smiling in general, but now, he was actually smiling. Not wildly, and not showing any teeth really, but still. "Honestly, I don't know what the skin is made of myself, my dad replaced a lot of my old skin with it before he left. Guess you can say I'm similar to a puppet, but a mix in between." He would say as he would raise a hand up, revealing the black threads that had begun to appear from under his fingernails, stretching downwards until they can be seen by the naked eye, only to pull themselves back into his body once more. Then, he would grab his right hand with his left, pulling on it and essentially seemingly tearing it off, though it would still be attached to the rest of his arm by a thick bundle of black threads, allowing him to essentially bring his left hand at arm's length outwards, with his right arm remaining where it was. Then, he would release his right hand, allowing it to return to where it was before on his right arm, almost as if it was never removed in the first place.

"All in all, I guess it is pretty awesome, but I don't know what it is yet that made me like this. What about Shiro over there? I never saw a puppet with fur before. At first thought I didn't even notice I-he, was a puppet until I took another look at him, and even then, that's just from my watching a puppet user fight recently." He would respond. He wasn't as curious about the hound as the other male was with him, but still, it wasn't exactly a normal, everyday thing that a puppet has fur, and honestly, considering Shiro moved slowly in between them both, he wanted to make sure he didn't offend out of nowhere. After the other male would respond, Kei would continue by introducing himself. "I'm Kei Iriye. I'm not of a clan or anything."

Wc 1250

Twc 2079

Ryo did notice the subtle hints that this other shinobi was getting ready for a fight, the clenching of a fist, the tightening of his body. It wasn’t an unusual sign and certainly one that Ryo himself would happily excuse because he was also ready for a fight. Being a puppet master meant that he could achieve powerful results with the minimum of movement. Shiro was meant to be a combat puppet, and he had the reach even at two meters to attack with his tail. He didn’t know how fast this other shinobi was, but it was unlikely that he would land a blow before Ryo not only had Shiro’s tail out and striking, but they would both suffer a blow of some sort that he was almost positive of. Yet, he continued to seem relaxed even knowing that the one he was looking at was ready to fight. He didn’t want a fight really, as he was just here to test out his beloved Shiro, but if he had to he would.

Thankfully, it didn’t seem that this shinobi was gearing up for a fight, and when he saw the blank look that came from his compliment of that cool looking skin he was sure he had done something unexpected. Looking the other guy over closely Ryo couldn’t help but notice that even with the darker skin; that wasn’t really skin if what Ryo saw was any indication, this guy was good looking. Ryo admired that look on his face almost always smiling ever so slightly without effort, the eyes were striking and drew you to them considering the skin around them were made of this same material they really brought out the eyes as a whole and Ryo couldn’t stop himself from giving plenty of eye contact to the older boy.

He did ask a rather rude series of questions, but didn’t get shouted down, or yelled at. In fact, he had even been forgiven and the other guy had even shared that he wasn’t good with people either. Only now did it occur to Ryo, that much like his own art this boy would likely be considered odd. Knowing fully well how people reacted to things they considered ‘odd’ ‘different’ ‘strange’ or ‘wrong’ he couldn’t help but feel a bit of kinship. He watched with enthralled attention as the other male explained about the skin substitute and made mention of his father. The thought of this made Ryo’s heart sink and he looked down at Shiro again with a soft sad smile “Well, I don’t think you’re that similar to a puppet. You’re much more special, and unlike a puppet, you don’t need someone to pull your strings. Still, I wish my father had left me something before he died.” He said a bit sadly before he shook his head regaining his smile. At this distance, the purple tear drops under each of Ryo’s eyes would be perfectly visible, as well as the details around his mouth that showed his mouth was used to a smiling expression. Even still, if the boy was really looking the smile didn’t touch Ryo’s eyes and it seemed to just be almost a mask while Ryo’s mind went through the suffering of knowing he didn’t have a father to teach him anything or leave anything behind for him as a gift or even as a curse.

Yet, Kei had the full attention as he showed off the little demonstrations of his abilities and this could only make Ryo tilt his head as he thought about the practical applications of these strings. “I wonder if you could control a puppet with those threads.” He mused to himself looking down at his hands where his chakra threads gently pulsed every now and again as he fed them the energy they needed to stay around.

Kei’s questions and inquires however made Ryo’s eyes light up and he knelt down next to Shiro petting his head “Oh my, thank you so much! Well Shiro here is made of white oak as the model. You see in the Knetegawa clan you pick an animal and you make puppets that look like that animal. The key here is to make a puppet look so life like that your opponents and foes aren’t sure if you are using a summon, or have for instance a Ninken by your side. So, this pelt is an artic wolf’s pelt from the mountains in the land of water. You see the Knetegawa clan is scattered in three separate countries. We are all insanely loyal to our villages and our countries, but in times of peace we trade with each other. It is all very, very, efficient. So, we trade off supplies to make our puppets as we need them. Finding the organic parts to make beast puppets is the hardest part about making them. Still, we manage to pull through wouldn’t you agree?” he asked as he gently kissed the top of Shiro’s head “you can pet him. He doesn’t mind.” He said before slowly rising to his feet “Oh, right, how rude of me to go on and on like that. It’s a pleasure to meet you Kei Iriye. Don’t feel bad about not having a clan. My friends are always welcome around my clan’s compound. If you would like of course. Though I must warn you, my younger siblings would give you no end of questions and hang around you, asking about your new skin.”

He said smiling before looking Kei up and down again a bit slower this time looking him over with a professional eye his smile slowly growing as a small drop of blood fell from his nose to the sand at their feet “Hmmm, you know, you’re very handsome. Like really handsome. The contrast between your skins is very hypnotic and alluring.” The tone in which he said it was a very interested one, but also the same tone as someone who was enjoying a work of art or thing of beauty. Presently he blushed brightly shaking his head “Oh, I’m sorry about that. I-I uh…got lost in my thoughts for a minute…. Please forgive me. Anyway, what brings you out here today? This is a bit removed from the traditional locals.”

Wc: 1048
Total: 1,048 + 1,001 = 2,049

Kei could feel for the other male's pain as he had looked down towards his puppet with a smile, speaking about how he wished his own father had left him something before he died. He didn't care much about the previous compliments, as acknowledging them at this point would make him feel as though he's taking focus off of the more depressing statement that came directly afterwards. He eyed the purple tear drops that were under both of his eyes. 'Mandatory clan tattoos?' He would muse to himself as he would pause for a few moments, observing the other male's shaking his head. He didn't have anything to say on the other male's dead father, nor did he have any way to spin that around, either. Frankly, that made things pretty bothersome. His own father left him with a curse, but the man was more than alive. He was missing, of course, but there's a feeling in his gut that the man was alive, and wherever he was, he didn't have much a good feeling that he was in a good state of mind at the moment, especially considering he was more than willing to make his own son into a living ragdoll. He shared no love for the man, but should he return, he wouldn't share any hate as long as he still treated his mother well.

He was internally glad that whatever was spell had washed over the boy had changed with a tilting of his head when he went about his demonstrations, seeing him look down to his own hands, probably thinking up some kind of puppet-ty thing to do with a similar concept of what Kei was showing him or something else of the sort. If that may be, then god help whoever gets in his way. While he may not care for puppets and puppeteers all that much thanks to his encounter with Kikisu, Kei had the sense to known that a puppet user with his special abilities would make for a pretty scary individual, one of which could very well create a whole new field of the things. Being made out of threads has been useful medically as well, but a puppet user... if it weren't for the fact that he had heard making puppets could prove expensive, Kei would've most likely have become one already.

After his demonstration, Ryo seeming begun to pet Shito, kneeling down as he thanked the patchwork male for his inquiries before going off on an explanation of how the puppet is made of white oak, and how in his clan one could pick and animal and make puppets that look like that animal. The key of it all is to make it appear to look alive enough that the enemy is confused about it it is a summon of a Ninken, and in Shiro's case, the pelt is an attic wolf's pelt from the mountains in the Land of Water. 'Fancy..' He would think to himself as he listened on, hearing about how Ryo's clan is scattered in three separate countries, and while they're extremely loyal to their villages and countries, they trade with one another during times of peace, creating an efficient trade network consisting of supplies to make their puppets as they need them, with finding organic parts to make beast puppets being the hardest part of making them.

He would nod in response. All in all, he would agree with this, though there was untapped potential with the clan one could use, where they can utilize it into something more than a trade network, should they begin placing their loyalties towards the clan itself instead of their respective villages. The members could easily establish connections, give reports on their villages, and the like, essentially creating their own underground power-base. A large clan tends to fall apart into essentially nothing, with blood so diverse it could barely even be called a clan, but a singular large clan that is this spread out, yet still retains connections with one another? It certainly can prove to be something terrifying should someone step on their shoes. What would interrupt his thoughts though about Ryo's clan would be he telling the patchwork male that he could pet Shiro if he wanted before going on to say that it is a pleasure to meet him, attempting to tell him to not feel bad that he doesn't have a clan.

He would further tell him that his friends are always welcome around his clan's compound, but he should be warned that his younger siblings would give him an endless amount of questions and hang around him, asking about his new skin. Shrugging in response as the other male began looking him up and down, Kei himself would retain eye contact. "To be honest I feel it's liberating to not be apart of a clan, means I don't have to deal with clan rules or a hierarchy or anything like that. It's cool that your clan is that big but still very connected, but all in all, like my dad, if it's not apart of my life in the first place then that means I can easily live without it." Wait, is that blood coming from this guy's nose? He would suddenly be compliment about how handsome he was, being told that the contrast between his skins are hypnotic and alluring, with the tone of which he said being one of extreme interest. As this person spoke, however, he begun blushing brightly, shaking his head while apologizing and asking for forgiveness before asking what brings he himself out here, as this is a bit removed from the traditional locals.

'Did he just... hit, on me?' He would think to himself as he was extremely confused for a few moments before looking away. "You're pretty good looking yourself, but one step at a time." He would say in response to what had happened, neither approving of nor denying the verbal advancement and hiding the light blushing that appeared on his cheeks, instead wishing to wait until they better know one another and are a bit older before deciding. After all, guy looked like he couldn't be any older than fourteen, definitely a bit too young for Kei's taste, even if he was only two years older himself. Looking around after he said that, he spotted in a rather shady area at the edge of the open area a small group of people wearing blue-colored clothing, with what seemed to be four total, making him only guess that they're gang members. Looking back towards Ryo, he would offer a small smile.

"Honestly, I was off to find a job or something so I can make some money. Mom's sick and rent is coming up soon, though now that I see something, I think I won't have to do much of a job today. So Ryo, how do you feel about the gangs 'round here?" He would ask, seeing a possible opportunity for the both of them to get some easy cash out of the wallets of these gang members if they had any, though surely, if they're standing around doing nothing right now, they have to have some kind of cash hidden away, right?

Wc 1242

Twc 3321

Watching the other shinobi as he worked Ryo couldn’t help but enjoy himself. He really did love talking and explaining things to those he was around. However, despite all he said none of it was a secret in the village hidden in the sand, or the other two villages that held Knetegawa branches. Still, there was much and more he didn’t say about his family. Like how the greatest of his clan had taken summons from notable shinobi and turned them into beast puppets. Like he was in line to become the head of the Suna branch. A few other in-house secrets of that nature.

Hearing Kei talk about not needed a clan and thinking it was liberating made Ryo smile nodding his head a couple of times “Yes, I could imagine to someone on the outside looking in it seems like a lot of rules and bondage, but really being born in the clan you are just raised with these ideas and systems as part of the everyday so you don’t really notice it until someone else points it out. Still, that’s all irrelevant as of right now. I find it a bit comforting that my clan is still so connected despite our very diverse locals. I would like to see us even more so, but that’s not in my power to change as of right now. Maybe one day it will be but as it sits right now it’s not going to change soon.” He said this with a slightly upset look on his face as if the thought of their current state of affairs made him upset.

All of this was in the future, and he couldn’t really give it his full attention right now. He was much more the kind of guy who focused on the present. Hearing himself called good looking but this older guy was a big deal and Ryo’s smile grew even wider his blush a bit more prevalent against the contrast of his slightly pale skin, and the purple tear drops that were on his face. However, the question about gangs caught him off guard and he crossed his arms thinking hard about this topic his head going down as he did so.

The serious thinking face was ruined by the steady drops of blood that came from his nose. Finally, he pinched his nose shut and leaned his head back holding that pose for a few minutes before he lowered it to even again looking Kei in the eyes and speaking “Gangs serve a function in society. They are usually the first attacking group who chooses to engage an occupying force, and they offer the dregs a place to be safe, secure, and a life beyond begging. They aren’t much better than beggars and every now and then they need to be sorted out. As for my personal view, I don’t care anything about them at all.” He said and then something caught his eye a blue fabric, or something someone was wearing. He frowned and nodded his head as he caught up in understanding “Ah, I see now.” He looked up at Kei with a smirk “I suppose they don’t have any idea of what they are targeting. Still, I am sure that if we get enough of them we can get enough money to help you, and more importantly your mom. I would be happy to lend both of my boys to this if you think we need them both.” He said as he used his peripheral vision to see that a group of four more men took opposite sides. It seemed they were starting to edge the open space clustering around the four directions.

The count made Ryo reach his right hand down to his right hip where a black scroll with a white band running around it, on it in black ink was the word “Kuro” on Ryo’s left hip was a white scroll with a black band and in white paint was the word “Shiro”. With Ryo’s hand, so close to the other scroll he looked up at Kei “If we are going to do this we need to do it soon. My chakra will run out before too long. I’ve been holding the chakra strings the whole time we’ve been talking. It can be quite draining.” He said rather simply before he took a careful step back to give him some space to work with and slowly brought Shiro up to his feet looking so much like a sleeping ninken. He would only get one shot at the surprise attack of Puppetry, after that there was no way in hell he would get away with such a brazen attack and outright falsehood.

Catching another flash of movement, he saw that a few of the thugs directly behind Kei; which he could see due to not allowing Kei to stand perfectly in front of him. Were drawing weapons of some kind, true these would be crude and not up to the metal that Ryo and his puppets held, but it was worth noting all the same. This made him frown and he pulled the tab on his scroll unfolding it enough to reveal the seal that was painted on the inside of the ninja item. With a nod of his head he spoke again “it looks like they have us pretty rounded up. Still, they aren’t expecting a real fight. I’m sure we can take care of them.” He said waiting to see what the older boy would do.

WC: 923
Total: 923 + 2,049 = 2,972

Kei would hear Ryo's response, hearing his claiming that he could imagine that to someone on the outside it seems like a lot of rules, but being born into the clan entails being raised with those ideas and systems as a part of everyday life, making them feel more natural than restrictive on them. It's not something easily noticed unless another points it out, but even as such, it's irrelevant, as Ryo apparently finds it comforting that his clan is still connected despite its diversity, and he only wants it to become even more connected than before. Perhaps not right now, as he lacks the power, but perhaps one day it will be. Until then, it's not going to change at all. He would take notice of the slightly upset look on his face as he spoke as well, making Kei wonder if he offended him in any sort of way. It wasn't his intention to offend, it's just more liberating to him personally to not be apart of a clan. It doesn't make it a bad thing, just that it's not his style, that's all.

Apparently his response made Ryo smile all the more as well when it came up, and he could swear the blushing increased. Yeah, he wouldn't put anything off the table right now, even as the other male was pinching his bleeding nose shut, working on trying to stop the nosebleed. Any sort of serious thinking that was going on with him was seemingly ruined in regards to appearance, as frankly, even as someone that has to deal with such a problem sometimes, it still doesn't stop making it all the more entertaining to see it happen to someone else. Oh, what a curse it is to be perverted. Honestly, if it weren't for some other things going on in his mind, he'd be bleeding too. Finally however, after a few minutes, Ryo was able to respond, telling him how gangs serve a function in society, being generally the first group to engage an occupying force, and the main ones to offer the dregs a place to be safe, secure, and given a life beyond begging. Generally, they're not far off from the beggars and they need to be sorted out every once in a while, but in his own eyes, Ryo doesn't care much about them at all.

Fair point overall, they do serve a purpose, but it's up to them to live up to that purpose, to give the Shinobi a reason to not crack down on them, at least the Shinobi that aren't already bought out. There are gangs like Ryu's that Kei doesn't mind, but then there are gangs that he has seen before that beat on the innocent for even a suspicion of disrespect, the intention of making an example or to gang something from it. While gangs serve a purpose, they also can be a nasty poison to take, and while he doesn't believe every group should be wiped out, the patchwork male certainly believed quite a few of them need to be brought down and dealt with. Despite giving him a frown and acknowledging what he was originally getting at, Ryo looked up at Kei with a smirk, making an observation that they have no idea of what they're targeting, which is exactly his point.

He continued with saying that if they get enough of them they can get enough money to help him and his mother, and that he would be happy to lend both of his kids to this if he thinks they need both. He was about to say that he didn't need both, and that they're both Shinobi, so doing this shouldn't be too difficult even with the currently eight gang members present at the moment. Kei only noticed the original four at first, as he would take notice of Ryo's reaching for a black scroll with a white band on his right hip, telling him that they need to do this soon, as his chakra will run out soon, due to his chakra strings having been activated the entire time they've been talking. "This shouldn't take long, they're not big guys, but I hope they have some kind of cash with them." He would say in response as he would reach for his fuuma shuriken, pulling it out, though leaving it in the original, unrotated form, holding it in his right hand.

Something must've caused his companion to frown, however, as he would suddenly begin unfolding the scroll, telling Kei that they have them pretty rounded up, but they aren't expecting a real fight, so he's sure they can take them. "I'm positive we can take them." He would say in response, offering a smirk in return as he looked behind him to see what Ryo was talking about, taking note of four more, whom of which already readied their weapons. Looking back, he would see that the original group was inching towards the two as well, seemingly ready to join in. "We can't kill them or leave them hurt enough to visit a hospital by the way. It only means we'll have to fill out reports on what happened, and that's a headache." He would say, almost as if stating terms for this, but he knew that it was little more than a suggestion. He can't control what his friend does, but he personally was going to work his hardest in following this.

Slowly walking towards the original group, Kei would keep his weapon pulled out, taking notice how one of the four had a katana, while two had a kunai, and the last seemingly had a pair of serrated knives. As he got within two meters of the group, he would stop there. "We have the two of you freaks surrounded. If you give us what you have we'll let you walk away from this. Don't be stupid, boys." He would say out loud as Kei raised his left arm towards the one with the katana, palm facing towards him. "I was actually about to say the same thing." As he would speak, three different black threads would slide out from within the stitches on his hand, shooting out at the man suddenly, taking him by surprise as one would enter his right shoulder, the second would enter his left thigh, and the final would reach his right side. While the one that entered his right arm would travel down it, essentially creating a faded black line going down his bicep, the other would travel down his thigh, reaching the knee. The one in his side wouldn't travel at all.

Small trickles of blood can be seen from the entry points, not to mention the gang member seemingly became panicked by the sudden attack, letting out light whines and yells as he would swing his katana, seeming cutting through the thread that pierced into his side. Kei would make his fuuma shuriken rotate open, revealing the four one-foot blades it had while his left hands' fingers shot out next, wrapping themselves around the man's throats and arms. When the two with kunai came at the Genin, he would use the shuriken as a means of keeping the one on the right to back away slightly, while with the one on the left, he would bring his left leg upwards, kicking the man in the gut. "Handle the other four, Ryo!" He would yell over at his friend, though wouldn't dare look at him, as his attention had to remain on the enemies at hand.

Wc 1305

Twc 4626

135/150

Spoiler:

Ryo smirked as he listened and waited, watching the others. His scroll was unlocked and now it hung open showing the seal of his puppet Kuro. He listened the rules of engagement and part of him was saddened by this. He wasn’t a terribly blood thirsty being by nature, but if there were those who wanted to try and take his life or his possessions he saw no reason why he could not do the same. Still, this was for Kei, and seeing as he wanted Kei as a friend at the very least of course his mind working much faster and seeing much father ahead wanted more. Now, he pulled his hand up to his mouth biting down hard on his hand “Still, I would be happier if I had both of my children out for this one. I don’t have much practice controlling both at the same time so this would be a good time to get the practice in. They aren’t really worth the time, but who knows the very least they shall prove to be good test subjects.” He said as one who was contemplating a series of experiments that he wanted to get done. “Once they are down we can search them for any valuables. We are sure to find someone who could or rather would buy all of the goods we may find on them. At the very least the weapons they are wielding are steel, we could sell them to a few smiths as scrap if nothing more. Your standing instructions are valid. I shall not kill or harm enough to send them to the hospital to be a further burden upon our society or resources.”

He heard the voice and what it had to say. His body went rigid his eyes glazing over in his anger. He looked up at Kei “We break that one.” He said in a terrible tone of voice that sounded sharp as steel “I can get rid of the body.” He said before placing his hand to the summoning seal in a puff of white smoke Ryo pulled Kuro out of the scroll attaching his right hand’s chakra strings to his oldest son with a soft snarl in his throat. “I’ve got your back you get mine. Still, kill the one who called us freaks or I will when I am done with my half of the foes.” He waited for Kei to move and then he snapped his arms forward both Kuro and Shiro rushing in the same direction in order to charge a pair of foes who decided that they would charge him. One was holding a knife that was the size of a tanto, the other held a staff, or club of some kind made of wood and banded with metal. Ryo weaved his arms through the complex motions of controlling two puppets. They moved almost as if they were living wolves, which served his purposes. The two gangsters considered the wolves a bigger threat being that they were closer.

The one with a knife rushed himself forward towards Kuro looking to pierce Kuro’s side with his blade. This of course, wasn’t going to happen instead Ryo twitched his pinky and from Kuro’s tail a short sword shot out to slap the blade out of the thug’s hand. The thug wasn’t holding it properly not that he likely knew how to do so in any event. Flicking his arm and wrist forward Kuro rushed in the same direction slamming his bulk into the gangster sending him sprawling in the sand. Ryo lifted his arm before swinging it down making Kuro jump into the air and slam down upon his target as well knocking the man unconscious with the sheer force of the blow combined with the weight of the puppet itself.

The one with the club lashed out trying to strike Shiro. Ryo’s eyes and reactions were much quicker than this however, with a drop in his thumb Shiro’s mouth opened snatching up the club in its mouth keeping it firmly in place. With his left pinky Shiro’s tail shot out to its full length slapping the man along the right side of his body. The force of the blow was astounding, but Ryo hadn’t allowed the full force of the blow to transfer to the gangster. Whatever force was behind the blow was enough to knock the Gangster off of his feet sending him to sprawl into the sand next to his comrade. Two more of them were still coming and this would not allow him to have the best options of attack or escape. Instead, he would have to rely on working with his puppets. Weaving the two of them using his arms and hands as guiding lines he was able to weave the two puppets around zigzagging towards the two remaining thugs. These two it seemed were at least a c-hair above the average dumb thug. One was without a weapon of any kind suggesting that he had some skill in Taijutsu, the other held a pair of blades one was a short sword, the other a long knife. Ryo sighed heavily shaking his head “Weapon masters…They are always a hassle.” He said as he pulled his hands and arms back with one motion bringing both of his children closer to him.

With a wicked smirk, he knelt down and began to speak to them in a hushed tone as if they were actually real ninken. This stopped both of the thugs in their tracks as they had started to think Ryo was controlling them. It was the correct assumption, but he laughed silently to himself as he was able to bring his enemies in closer. Seeing that he was in conference with his wolves the two thugs had started to slowly move towards him hoping to get the drop on him with him being distracted like he was. Of course, Ryo was only using this as a ruse instead he was having a muffled conversation to puppets who would couldn’t hear him, nor act independently of his will. Once they were where he deemed close enough he heard Kei call out to deal with the other four. He had already dealt with two foes, and he wondered if there were two more that he couldn’t or didn’t see hiding somewhere.

The sudden words made his current opponents nervous and they charged Ryo as fast as they were able to. Flicking his arms and wrists he shot out his twin sons. The two wolves lashed out as one with a flick of Ryo’s left middle finger Shiro’s blades shot out from his sides looking rather terrifying being they were thick scythe blades. Kuro on the other hand was not firing his other weapon. There was no need also on the fact that Ryo was not supposed to kill or seriously injure these fools he would not need the Senbon launcher in Kuro’s throat. The two wolves closed in on the thug with no weapons. Kuro leapt up sinking his fangs and claws into the thug’s arm which he had held up to try and fend off the large black lupine puppet. Shiro on the other hand went low at Ryo’s manipulations slapping the thug’s legs out from under him with that powerful half organic, half puppetry tail. The blow was serious knocking down the thug crushing him under the weight of Kuro’s bulky frame.

Of course, now the other thug rushed forward stabbing his blades into Kuro’s body. It was clear that he was expecting flesh and blood from the fact he held perfectly still after stabbing Kuro’s body. Sadly, he was wrong and the blades stuck. Shiro slammed into him knocking the blades from his grip sinking his lupine fangs into the Thug’s leg holding him in place while Kuro’s sword tail shot out slapping the thug upside the head with the flat. The blow was enough to knock the thug unconscious while dropping him to the ground as well. All was said and done on Ryo’s end but he was finding it very hard to stop at this point, he wanted to kill these cretins, he wanted to destroy every last one of them, but he had no choice but to stand there his puppets at the ready looking around slowly to keep foes from sneaking up on him.

Wc: 1,400
Total: 1,400 + 2,972= 4,372

Chakra 130/150:

Now the puppeteering male was speaking Kei's language, telling him about how when they're down they can search them for valuables, since they are sure they can find someone who would buy all of the goods they can find on them. It seemed that Ryo took greater offense to this than Kei did, telling him that they'll "break" that one, that he can get ride of the body. "Dude, are you for real right now?" He'd respond out of confusion. As he would ask as his threads began beating up, causing the one with the katana to drop his weapon in pain, attempting to try to pull the threads out as the black lines underneath his skin would begin glowing brightly underneath him, though soon enough, they would turn to ash, leaving the gang member with major first degree burns and causing him to stand there for a few moments in pain. They're only supposed to mug the muggers, not kill them. That raises questions and leaves yet another missing person, or yet another corpse. All in all, it wasn't exactly something beneficial to the slums, especially considering how he already told Ryu he wanted to change them for the better. He couldn't bring himself to kill this man, so Ryo will have to be the one to do it instead.

Now that he was free, he could already feel his body attempting to re-produce more black threads to replace the ones he had lost, and he could already feel the weakness in his body set in as it began dividing what it needed to focus on among more duties. Still, he didn't care much for the feeling anyways, he had a weapon, he didn't need all of his strength for that purpose. Immediately, he would bring his fuuma shuriken towards the one he had kicked before, cutting him on the left side of his chest. Using the motions of his bringing his weapon downwards as a means to spin around, kicking the man in the chest. He would then undo his fuuma quickly, bringing the blades back together as a means to form a blunt tool, which he would use to strike the other one that had a kunai right in the right cheek when he went in for an attempted stab.

As he had begun to turn around so he deal the finishing blow, the third would come into the fray, bringing one knife towards Kei's gut. When he would use his left hand to grab the man's forearm, he would hear the sound of the blade dropping and another coming from above, causing the Genin to bring his shuriken upwards, having it backed up by his forearm as a means to block and swat at he attempted stab, and it had succeeded. When that knife fell behind him, and the thug himself had suddenly moved forwards, bringing his right arm behind the male, he knew he was in trouble. The thug had seemingly caught the other knife, and wasted no time in attempted to bring the blade up into the Genin's armpit. Kei would in response bring his fuuma downwards, striking the man's forearm as he would begin taking a few steps away.

It seemed the one he had cut previously had run off, while the one that had been burnt, the one he had struck in the cheek, and this one that held two knives once more had remained. One of them was apparently supposed to die, while the other two had to be knocked out. This was definitely a headache, but a manageable one. Using his threads, Kei would bring his left hand outwards, grabbing the right ankle of the burned one and pulling him off balance, causing him to fall backwards as the Genin would immediately retract the hand, charging towards the one with two knives. He would bring his fuuma backwards, almost as if he was going to attempt to strike him, but the weapon wasn't meant for him, as instead the now blunt object would be used to strike the one he had struck previously, hitting the man in the side of his head as he would bring his left leg up to waist level, driving it forwards in an attempt to kick the man.

As the one he had struck finally fell to the ground, knocked out, the one with two knives would grab Kei's left leg by the calf, holding it within both arms as the backs of both knives rested against it. Then, he would seemingly twist, knocking the Genin off balance and causing him to fall to the ground. As he would take advantage of Kei's being knocked off balance as an attempt to stab the Genin in the gut, Kei in response would immediately bring his weapon to the left, swinging it and striking the final gang member on the side of his head, knocking him off of him for a few moments until he felt a handle struggling to restrain his right arm, causing him to look up and see the burned one from before attempting to hold him down.

He would immediately bring both feet in as he brought his pelvis up and backwards, seemingly ending up placing his weight on the top of his back and the back of his neck as he would plant both feet against the burned man, kicking him away and essentially forcing himself to roll backwards, landing on his hands and knees. He would scramble up, seeing that the one with the knives was attempting to get up himself, and would quickly charge forwards, planting his foot against the man's face, knocking him out cold. Allowing his fuuma to undo itself, he would turn and move towards the burned one, the one that called he and Ryo freaks, where he would kick away the attempted kick the man tried to do as he scrambled backwards, immediately going in, straddling him, and placing his left hand firmly around the man's neck, one of the blades of the fuuma poised to enter it.

It would be there that he would remain, glaring at the burned man while Ryo himself would finish up. It seemed the guy was skilled with his kids as he seemingly had an easier time with these thugs than Kei himself did. Then again, he wasn't the type that liked to face groups at a time, at least not in the open like this. If it was inside a building or something of the sort he'd have an easier time, a place where he can fight dirty and separate them. Out in the open though... a one on one is definitely more preferable. He would keep staring into this guys' eyes, but he couldn't go for the kill, not now. This guy probably had a family, a life he could create outside of being part of a gang, and that was what stayed the Genin's hand. He couldn't go home and look his family in the eye if he did this, not to someone that's little more than a civilian. His hand would shake for a few moments until he would close up the shuriken, instead getting off of the guy, though still keeping his left foot planted against his gut, pressing down with his heel if he tried moving.

"You can kill him if you want, I won't hold it against you. Me, I got my payback by beating the hell out of him. While you're doing the deed I'm going to start collecting whatever they had on them." He would tell Ryo as he would start with his own group, reaching into the man's pockets and pulling out a wallet, where he would take the meager amount of cash that's there.

Wc 1335

Twc 5961

Ryo nodded his head as he looked the other older boy in his eyes “I am dead serious. Someone who dares to insult me, or my friends is as good as a walking corpse. I will soon stop the walking part of it.” He said his voice cold as steel showing that he did have a darker crueler streak in his heart. Yet, he focused that aggression and that hatred on his foes.

When the battle was finally done, Ryo was careful to keep his puppets at the ready and only decided that he would approach the thugs once he lay Shiro’s bulk on their chests. Kuro lay in the sand staying down and done without the strings that had attached him and given him life. Ryo went through the pockets of several of the men pulling out wallets and taking all the money from them before he took the weapons that were made of metal figuring he could melt it down and forge some teeth and claws for his next set of children. Which he was already thinking of perhaps a set of children much like Kuro and Shiro, but with a much stronger and more specialized weapon he could use. He finished the picking over of the bodies and found a good amount of Ryo among the whole of their group and some good enough steel to melt down later. He watched Kei as he struggled with the decision to kill or spare the man that had insulted them. Taking this point in time he was quick to pull Ryo out of his own wallet and add it to the amount he had in his hand. Hoping the other wouldn’t notice his little act of charity, he seemed the proud type, the type to not ask for help, but the one who gave it needing it the most in return.

Ryo could respect this type of character and so he wouldn’t dare go against any of the designs that Kei had for himself. Stuffing the money into his pocket he moved with Shiro back to his oldest son and looked his two puppets over. Kuro had two blades sticking out of his body and Ryo could feel the tears welling up in his eyes as he pulled the blades from Kuro’s body. The quality was shoddy at best and he slowly stood the blades in hand letting his children rest. Instead, he walked over to the unconscious thug who had stabbed his beloved son and knelt next to him one of his blades in his hand. He leaned down speaking softly “You have hurt my child. My beloved son, my first born. You, in turn, are going to hurt for that.” He used the blade and carved the symbol of ‘Kuro’ in the man’s arms, legs, and his right cheek the strokes as if he was using a brush. The man groaned out with the pain of it, but he couldn’t wake properly nor would he be able to stop Ryo even if he had. In fact, the simple fact that he stayed out like a light was the only thing that had saved his life.

Snapping back to reality from his haze of hatred from the words that Kei had spoken. He slowly rose to his feet nodding and moving to the fallen man the blade still in hand. Once more he knelt next to the man and shook his head “No. I have had my fill of blood for today. My Kuro is hurt and I am drained from it.” He said as silent tears slowly traveled down his cheeks before he leaned down next to the man’s ear “It is through the generosity of the one you called a freak that you live on. Never forget that, and should you ever seek to do something so vile like this again I will not allow you to live to regret your actions.”

Standing up Ryo moved over to his sons this time and hummed a soft lullaby to his children as he pulled the scrolls out of their holsters and then sealed away Shiro first. With a puff the puppet was gone and the formula was now inscribed on the scroll. He rolled it up sliding it into the holster on his left hip before moving to Kuro kissing his head gently “I will take good care of you my son and you will be good as new. I promise.” He insisted as he slowly sealed away Kuro in the same way that he had sealed up Shiro.

Then and only then did he stand up moving to Kei taking the money from his pocket and then holding it out to Kei with his smile much returned but the tear streaks had given clear marks down his face “Here you go. I hope this helps you and your mother. If you need any other help with this kind of chore or anything else then please don’t hesitate to ask me. I’d be happy to give you whatever help I can. After all, this was a great test of Shiro’s abilities and I must say it was nice to have my two boys work in unison. They were just wonderful, weren’t they?” he asked beaming as he looked around at the foes that Kei had taken care of “You are most impressive as well. I must say I was a bit worried, but it looks like you could surpass me in no time at all.” That was the end of the words he had to say as he tossed him the money smiling widely to him looking quite pleased with himself and with the outcome of the whole fight before he left.

[exit]
WC: 955
Total: 952 + 4,372 = 5,327