It had been a while since Nozomi had gone down into the depths of the undersea city with Sero. She hadn't really been all that different of a person, but her skills had progressed an enormous amount. Back then, Nozomi had been at the height of what she considered to be her power as a Special Jounin, but that was nothing compared to where she was at now. Nozomi had since become a Jounin, and following that, was promoted to Hunter-nin Captain. That had all been before the Kiri-Kumo conflict, where Nozomi had succeeded in pushing back Gin, finally passing her final test as a student of hers and impressing her with her skills. That had been before she'd fought against Syn and taken him out with little difficulty despite him having tried to take her by surprise. Nozomi had been through a lot since she was last here. And now, it was likely she wouldn't end up needing any help to take down a couple of squads of the soldiers that dwelled down here. She needed to make sure she didn't need Sero around to be a powerful fighter in her own right, and prove that she was one of the best around.

Wearing her standard Hunter-nin clothing, the girl was a sight to behold. Nozomi was dressed in her full combat regalia, ready to take on any threat that may arise with quick precision. She wore a slightly altered version of Kirigakure's normal uniform, more bunched up at one of the sleeves to allow for quicker movement without any worry of tearing seams, since it was so form fit on her usually, while on the forearm, it lay tight to the skin as normal, her weights attached on her forearm, the uniform laying snug with no creases for comfort-ability. The other side of her was mostly uncovered by the first layer, to allow her easy access to inside pockets which hid some smaller weapons in inside pouches, namely senbon and shuriken.

Interlacing some of her different fabric colors to halve a plain blue kimono to cover up her exposed side, the other half draped down over her leg a bit, Nozomi would use a belt to keep the thing closed. She had sewn on a strip of fabric to the neckline of the Kimono, and fashioned it into a scarf to keep the main bodice of it up, as well as allowing for quick disrobing of just the Kimono by unwrapping the crossover. That way she could use the sleeve to hide weapons from sight, but also remove the Taijutsu inhibitor quickly if necessary. Her pants were like the sleeve, with some seam allowance down to her calves, where it would once again form fit tightly, to allow for her weights to fit snugly without bunching up her pants. Unlike some, who wore their armor on top of their clothes, Nozomi had her ANBU armor on under, hidden by the clothing, her weights covering the gauntlets and greaves perfectly.

Her Hunter-nin mask was on, but she'd slid it to the side of her face, covering her left cheek, but exposing her face. It looked rather angelic, with the sides of the mask appearing as feathered wings, and a light blue cross in the middle of the face. Two light blue streaks ran down the cheeks, from the bottom of the eyes, and the eye holes would produce her eye color when slid across her face, which shone through when she wore it in a strangely perfect mixture, as if the mask was made to compliment her own eyes. She still wore her Kiri headband around her neck, as always.

Her best Tanto was strapped behind her shoulder, also exposed and fully uncovered for quick draw time, but otherwise hadn't changed. It was a work of art, for certain. Her favorite katana, the weapon she'd chosen upon her becoming a Hunter-nin Captain, a beautiful work of Kirigakuran black smithery, was securely fastened to her side, over the kimono side. In her hand, she carried her new weapon, a Kirigakuran Yari that was given to her by Sero not that long ago. This would be the mission in which she tested out the weapon, ready to see what sort of damage the thing could do. On her belt hung two Kunai, which were attached to an explosive tag each.

Travelling through the empty streets, Nozomi worried little about anyone being able to sense her. Her ANBU armor tended to hide her from most people's sensory, and from what she'd found out about these Sea Warriors, they didn't really utilize much sensory, and were just amassing numbers rather than covert operations. Besides, her senses were attuned enough that she'd hear them long before they heard her, and if not, they wouldn't be able to get the drop on her anyhow. The advantage they had was that down here, the superior numbers were not on her side. It would make it quite a bit more fun for her to do. Would she win, or would she lose? This was more of a test for her than anything else.

It didn't take her long to find her targets. As before, there was a squad of 10 lesser soldiers and 1 captain, with the same weapon set. It would appear to Nozomi that there squads were comprised of 11 soldiers each, and they were all stationed at random points to do patrols in the city. Bringing her Yari up, Nozomi stared at the group who appeared to be running some sort of a drill. The tridents were like Nozomi's Yari, so a grin was on her face. It would be like fighting against someone using the same type of weapon as she was. That was the perfect test. The main problem was that the captain had a harpoon, and that wasn't really something she wanted to deal with. Taking one of the kunai off her belt, Nozomi took aim at the captain, and let loose her kunai.

WC: 1003/3000

Sero had spent a great deal of time contemplating what Nozomi had brought to him. His thoughts muddled by the choices left to him. In the end it came down to two possibilities. Either he stood against Nozomi for loyalty or stood against Ayakashi for friendship. Neither was something he cared to choose from. What he could do was hope for a peaceful resolution. Neither of those women were to be taken lightly in any sense and he wasn't eager to fight either of them. However both were stubborn and set in their ways. For the time being he had arranged for any public movements of Nozomi to be monitored and reported back to him. He trusted her more than anyone. That much hadn't changed but he was a cautious man. He would keep eyes on her all the same and not ignore details for personal reasons. It wasn't a part of him to be blind to something due to his own emotions towards the situation. He didn't like Kaekio very much due to the difficult position she put the village in. Nozomi however would go to any length for her including mass murder if she had to. Combine that with how recently she returned from a foreign country not being monitored and her own issues with the leader of this country. An embedded terrorist was the red flags popping up. The vision of her burning the village that played out during his trial to become captain flashing in his mind here and there. Perhaps that was Ayakashi was waiting for.

He had already dedicated himself to preventing it though. Precautions were taken and as of late he had spent hours devising strategies against Nozomi's known abilities. If it did come down to a battle he would have to be prepared. Her speed was the alarming part. His pen tapped the pad of paper at his hands blankly as he considered a sixth tactic to use. Busying himself with this kind of work endlessly as of late. However the communication computer to the administration building beeped with life a moment. His attention shifting from the paper in his lap to the computer on his desk. An encrypted report was coming in. Idly he ran the decryption code before reading about a high ranking mission Nozomi had opted to take. Idly the top of his pin now tapped his chin as he studied the location. He was familiar with it. Perhaps he would intercept and monitor. He had taken that mission a couple of times and besides, he needed to clear out some of the area for his student to explore it. Naturally this would allow him to monitor her more up to date tactics and fighting capabilities. Besides that, He could watch her back out there. He doubted she needed it but the mission was S rank for a reason. The enemy being engaged was no simple force. They were potent in nature. Well armed and organized. A veritable army waiting beneath the surface of the ocean for a chance to burn all of Kiri to the ground.

So he would delete the report from his computer running a file wipe on it before closing the lap top and locking his tactics pad into his desk. Keeping the key on a chain around his neck under his clothes. With that done he would shift towards the wall. There were no windows or doors to this office. One ventilation hole was all there was to let air through. Security was an important thing to him. Besides, he didn't really need a preexisting door. Instead his hand would rise to touch the wall. Seemingly it would split apart as a seal formed and he would step through the section of wall he had sealed away before letting the seal fade behind him and the wall returned to normal. No signs that an office was even there. With that done he would shift down the hall and make his way to the armory. Moving within he would quietly shift into his Hunter nin armor and red cloak. As soon as he did his form seemed to fade from sight. A rapier was lifted from the wall and faded away before a quiver of B rank arrows and an A rank long bow was removed as well. Both items of Kiri make and excellent quality. It wasn't as well armed as he used to be but he was capable of unsealing more weapons where ever he was so long as there was no chakra suppression. As far as he could tell the enemy only relied on brute force.

Still Sero would move quickly to the sunken city and down the service tunnel that was rarely flooded. Shifting down the tunnel rapidly as little more than a shadow. Only once he broke free into the light of the sunken city did he slow his pace and rely more on stealth. Shifting about from alley to alley as little more than a blur here and there. For a time he was having difficulty locating and signs of Nozomi having been nearby when he decided to have a better chance of tracking the target she was after. In order to do that best he would need the high ground. Focusing chakra into the bottoms of his feet he would quietly run up the side of the tallest building around. Shifting up it like a shadow in the faded light of day shining through the ceiling holding back the water above. Only once on top would he enter into a crouch and move along the edge of the roof. Knocking back a black arrow as he spotted the would be targets. Grey eyes gazing without the mask at the squadron below by nearly a block away. A good forty meters. They were having a rest by the look of it. Done patrolling for the day and waiting on the next squad to appear. He didn't see Nozomi until a flash of metal flying through the air marked her position. Only she was likely to be attacking the group from close enough to use kunai right off the bat. She was a close range specialist after all. For now he would hold off on loosing his own arrows and simply draw it back a little more and take aim towards the group. He wouldn't interfere until he saw a bit of tactic from her. As soon as he launched an arrows accurately from this distance she would likely know it was him after all.

1104

The satisfying thud of the kunai came back to Nozomi's ears as her marks hit true. A strangled yelp came out from the group as the surprise from her attack hit them. Obviously, the kunai she utilized weren't enough to kill the two outright, but that wasn't particularly the purpose of using them. As the Hoshigaki warriors spun around to face the direction the kunai had come from, their time had finally run out. The Kunai attached to the backs of the captain and one of the others exploded with intense force, blasting the group on two sides. The charred corpse of the Hoshigaki captain sailed through the air, landing on the ground, groaning through the pain of his wounds, unable to move. The two soldiers near him who had been caught closest to the explosion didn't survive, the explosion having blasted off the limbs closest to it, and snapped their necks. On the other end of the group, similar results had occurred, 3 of them being killed, although the one tagged by the explosive kunai died outright.

Spinning her Yari and bringing it down, Nozomi's spear stabbed through the spine of the captain, silencing his groaning. The 5 surviving members of the group were starting to regain their footing, having been far enough away from the explosions to only have received minor wounds and knockback. All of the soldiers started to weave signs for a C rank jutsu, and launched the suiton jutsu Rising Slice towards Nozomi, 5 water blades slicing towards the Hunter-nin. As soon as the hand signs started to be weaved, Nozomi made her move. Kicking up the corpse of the Hoshigaki captain with one foot, spear still in his back, Nozomi held him in front of her, letting his body take the force from the water jutsu as they slammed into him. Letting her grip loosen on the Yari, her hands slid up the Yari to the very top of it as the force of them pushed the captain towards Nozomi.

Leaping up onto the shoulders of the corpse, Nozomi used him as a springboard, pulling her Yari out of him as she did so, and the jutsu continued to push the corpse back as she leapt over it to safety, slightly closer to the group. While still in the air, Nozomi activated her Petal propulsion to launch her forward and down, placing her back on the ground in a flash of petals, now right among the middle of the group, surprising them. To their eyes, she had simply disappeared as she went from going upward, to accelerating to a speed around 26 m/s with no warning into their midst. Small petals trailed behind where she'd disappeared from, and where she ended up, but there was little time for them to react.

The spear twirling around, an artery on one of the necks of the soldiers would end him soon, and the butt end of the spear would send two of them flying backward. The two who remained in melee range of her had now enough time to engage, the one directly facing her moving his trident to pierce her. The trident was a good weapon, but against her, it would prove to be a bad choice, as the ability to trap weapons was only good if you could overpower the opponent. To Nozomi, it presented more surface area to block with the shaft of her spear. Her back exposed to the other presented it the opportunity for him to stab her, but Nozomi's reflexes and battle prowess wouldn't let him take advantage of it. Her body shifted to the side, the trident missing the vital stab, and her right leg shot to the side towards his chest, a satisfying crack as her boot connected, smashing his rib cage, knocking him back a few meters.

WC: 641
TWC: 1644

Born Ill: 1/8
-15 Petal Propulsion
Chakra: 375/390

For a moment he would simply observe her movements. She was difficult to locate but not impossible. She didn't seem to have any interest in remaining hidden after the initial attack. His attention though was far more upon the attack she had just utilized. He knew a simple kunai attack was a small thing. Instead he studied the small light on the end of each kunai. He was familiar with the use of that particular light. She had utilized explosive tags with a surprise attack. If she were to hunt him his awareness of the initial blow needed to be peaked. She likely would try and use the explosives in a manner that would cause the most damage. As she had done with this attack. He admired the positioning of each explosion as the force was distributed among all the enemy combatants. Killing a few and disrupting the rest. With a single combined explosion she had taken down their commander and with a stab finished him. It was obvious with him down if fish had genders that the remaining forces would be no match for her. They were destined to die horrible deaths as any who opposed Kiri so violently did.

He watched win renewed interest though as they created a fairly dangerous combined jutsu among themselves. It was low ranking but getting caught in it meant getting rendered into a bleeding mess. Had she developed some defense against multiple jutsu of moderate rank? Most had but he had never seen many of her jutsu. His mind once again flashing to her petal defense trying to stop his onslaught of arrows and failing bit by bit. Perhaps she had something more effective. Something Ayakashi hadn't known to use. She was after all his rival. She was far to close to his own power to be ignored like that. However her using the body of an enemy as a shield was certainly a new take. Less humane than he had expected her to be. The launch off of it was interesting but being air born was... Ah! So she had a rapid air movement jutsu after all. He had a moment of near trouble following her for a moment with just his gaze. A sort of petal burst. Interesting for her to have developed mid air movement. He would keep that in mind for modifying tactics involving any jumping. She was certainly talented.

In a moment she landed among them and he tilted his head. Allowing herself to be flanked was an odd move. Flanking the had been an opportunity but now she was surrounded. If not for her massively superior speed in the event this would of turned the tables on her. For just a moment it appeared to be the case. She had already assaulted the group but one looked to get a clean hit off from behind. Before he could knock back an arrow though she had disarmed him and kicked him hard enough to scoot back a couple of meters and spit out some sort of blue liquid....he assumed blood. She was occupied with the others when Sero read the body language of the injured fish soldier. He was going to flee. He was going to flee and obtain some help. Numbers to take down the threat eliminating them in mass. Sero had already brought the bow string and arrow up next to his eye when the thing turned to run. He wasn't eager to announce himself but this would be fine he supposed. He released the arrow as the midnight shaft sailed through the air. Flying true as it slammed down at an angle. Piercing through the back of the fish mans knee and out the front. He screamed in pain but still managed to hobble into a nearby building. With a sigh Sero would shift and remove his hood. Moving from the roof top to land nearby and in a step seem to appear about ten meters from Nozomi. The target was hiding out in a building now. So he had to be hunted room by room. He supposed Nozomi would have something to say though. Once she was finished with her current objective.

1807

Nozomi's attention snapped back to the one she'd kicked away as she heard his pain, which didn't seem to come from her own attack. An arrow slammed into the ground, through his leg. Her eyes narrowed as she recognized the design. Shoving against the trident, she forced the man in front of her back, planting the butt of her spear into the ground as she formed a quick flurry of hand seals. Before he could right himself and catch his footing, Nozomi's hands started to issue out a cloud of petals that quickly formed into 4 glowing swords. Each of them were of excellent quality and craft that matched even some of the strongest blades. They seemed to follow her command just like the petal blades. She had reserved this technique as one of her secret ones, but she didn't particularly mind if he saw it, she was more interested in what he was doing here, and figured now was a good time to pull it out and end her fight.

Each of the blades shot out towards a different target, piercing through their hearts. The two who had been knocked down earlier hadn't even recovered yet, and didn't even have a chance to react to the blades. Their bodies became connected with the ground as the blades pierced through them to the ground below. The soldier that had been in front of her gasped in surprise as his world's orientation went from vertical to horizontal. It hadn't even registered to him what had happened. There was little pain, and his body simply collapsed to the ground. The final blade had moved towards the injured Hoshigaki who tried to escape from the area, but he had broken her line of sight before she was able to get him. She was a little bit annoyed that he'd managed to evade her, but with his rib's broken and the arrow wound, he wasn't getting very far with any amount of speed. In honesty, with his injuries, she wouldn't expect him to be doing anything for long anyhow, and they could hunt him down at leisure.

The enemies taken care of, Nozomi's attention turned back towards Sero, who by now had made his way close to her. Her brows furrowed slightly. "How'd you miss? It should have been a clean shot for someone like you." she asked, slightly irritated, but with a hint of excitement for the hunt. "More to the point, what are you doing down here? I thought I was the only one down here, nobody else was scheduled to come down here for at least a few more days." Her eyes scanned over to the building that the soldier had run into. That was the first time someone had escaped from her in a while, and Sero's arrow had thrown her off just enough to allow him to escape. She was well equipped to fight these men, and perhaps could have taken them on without any sort of issues had she not been toying around as much. "Or are you just scouting ahead for your own venture down here? I know you have those students and this is a good way to test them and to help the village out in the process."

WC: 546
TWC: 2190

Born Ill: 2/8

-30 Hasu no Bukijutsu
Chakra: 245/290

Spoiler:

Sero approached casually and with a sense of utter calm about him as she dispatched the remaining couple that had stood against her. He observed the rising petal blades and considered the sheer threat those might pose. Contemplating creating his own version of it with mist blades. Though versatility was his ally of choice. He would likely recreate a similar jutsu with four different types. A mist acid one for his personal preference with a weakness to futon, a Liquid acid one with a weakness to Suiton but with the strengths of suiton, A Katon one with the same weakness but a strength against Futon and a suiton one for lacking a weakness to itself and having its own strengths. Versatility in combat always suited him far more than not. Still his attention was turned to those petal swords. Highly accurate and if he had to guess were of a neutral chakra design. They were neither strong nor weak to any element. Perhaps he should invest some of his time and knowledge into neutral type jutsu as well as his elemental variety. However important this all was to him he wasn't about to let it alter his thoughts from the task at hand. One had escaped into the building.

Still as he approached and she finished off the last of those remaining she turned to him. The first statement out of her mouth was a question of how he could miss. For a moment he paused in his steps. His eyes as grey as the grave glancing back at the roof top he had just came from. A considerable distance for anyone. To do a shot at a moving target with a long bow would usually be considered a feat. Perhaps this was simply what was expected of him now. If he were considered the best swordsman in the country such a shot shouldn't cause him any difficulty. Nor had it really for that matter. He idly returned his gaze to her as he approached a little closer for simpler talking distances. Speaking in a cold tone without any expression on his features. "I did not miss. It was your prey, I simply hampered it so you could hunt it easier. It appeared that you were a little preoccupied. Testing out your abilities?" With that he seemed to brush off her inquiries as to why he was there. Almost ignoring the question as if it meant little. To question where he went was an odd thing to him. He went were he pleased.

Still he would turn his head to look over the building of the escaped soldier. Light was dimming in the underwater city as day faded to night outside. In the distance the faintest sound of a waterfall crashing to a pool of water could be heard now. High tide had rolled in. Still he could not only smell the blood on the ground all around them but still see the blood trail leading into the building. The prey had suffered a serious wound and was bleeding profusely. Likely to die on its own if left alone but for now was simply weakening by the moment. A lack of a confirmed kill though was not professional. Quietly he closed his eyes and when he opened them he had done a partial sage mode transformation. Both his eyes were blood red through out and a third blood red eye opened in the center of his forehead. When he spoke he glanced up towards the window in question. He could see the life energy plain as day.

"Your targets vitals are fading but he has taken shelter on the second floor. Third window from the left. His back is to us and he is watching the doorway leading in. Care to finish the job? Or shall I?"

2446

Nozomi's face twitched slightly into what could be seen as a smirk as Sero spoke. "Oh, you left him for me, eh? Then I guess I should finish what I started." As he was in the middle of talking, Nozomi began readying herself by removing the weights on her wrists and ankles, going to finish the job on her own terms, rather than going through the entire building. Slowly lowering them to the ground rather than letting them crash into it and making too much noise, the girl would hold out her hand, the blade that had missed its mark speeding towards it and halting. The other three blades exited the bodies they were attached to and floated back to her, staying behind her in an orderly fashion. "But yeah, testing my abilities, trying to make sure that I didn't get rusty in my time away. I only really got to test myself against Syn, and I dealt with him in a far quicker amount of time than I really am pleased with. Sure, I managed to fight Gin before that, even broke one of her arms with a sneak attack, but I'm stronger than I was then, and now I don't have someone of her caliber to actually fight against until I can track down Sanosuke."

While she'd been speaking, she'd sized up the distance between her and the second floor, and had been backing up just enough to give her space to reach the speed she needed to generate the force that would get her there quickest. Her 3 floating swords had moved ahead, planting into the wall beneath where she needed, giving her a footrest she could land on as she plunged the fourth blade into the wall, feeling it give way and hearing the sharp inhale that only came from someone being impaled. Sero's approximation of his location had been correct, and the wall was just thin enough that her blade could cleanly stick through him and it. Releasing the jutsu, Nozomi let herself drop to the ground, having pushed off the wall a bit to land close to Sero.

"Sorry if I was a little touchy, I was in the zone and kinda got distracted by the outside help. Totally my fault, I need to keep my awareness up in case of ambushes while I'm fighting. I mean, if you'd been hunting me, this conversation wouldn't be happening, and I'd be dead on the ground instead of.... well, alive on the ground." A small grin left her face. It faded rather quickly though, into a more somber appearance. "I mean, it was a quick fight, but I had removed the largest threat before I even engaged. It was hardly an approximation of my actual skill in close combat if I take out 6 of my opponents before I even get close." she shrugged. "I guess it just left me feeling emptier than I thought it would. I thought proving my strength would be enough, but that was... too easy."

WC: 509
TWC: 2699

Born Ill:3/8
Weights Removed: 1/5

-10 chakra Hasu no Bukijutsu maintenance
235/290

+2 Speed, +2 Speed [Ankle Weights x2 removed]
+2 RT, +2 RT [Ankle Weights x2 removed]

Stats:
Strength : A-3 -> A-2 [Himitsu clan Drawback]
Speed : A-3 -> S-1 [Taijutsu buff] -> SS-1 [A. Weights x2 removed]
Endurance : A-3
Perception : A-3 -> S rank [Ace Eye]
Reaction Time : A-3 -> S Rank [Reflexes] -> SS rank [W. Weights x2 removed]

Sero would listen as she spoke for a moment. Her chakra blades moving at her whim and returning to her side floating there with grace and magnificence. It appeared the jutsu was far more dangerous than he had originally believed. It wasn't as simple as creating blades of chakra and launching them. It was far more grand then that. She had control over them as much as one might have should they hold a sword in their hand. His grey eyes took it in as he considered making his notes on it at a later time. Perhaps even attempting to replicate it. It was certainly a useful jutsu to have. In close quarters even he would have difficult dealing with an attack with so much finesse. Still her words dropped more information than he had expected. She was testing her skills after being away so long in Kumo. Having not found anything truly challenging there. However at a glance he could tell she had improved drastically. So much so in fact that she had achieved a goal he had yet to manage. She had injured his would be aunt. A woman he had sworn to land a blow on since he was a genin when they first met and Nozomi had stopped him. The idea that she had managed what he had not sent a small ping of irritation through him.

Still as soon as she was finished mentioning her intention to hunt down a certain man he himself had thoughts about challenging she was on the move. Perhaps if Sanosuke heard of his promotion the man would track him down to try and prove his might. Sero having not gone to war as someone had to remain behind and maintain the village. A part of him fully aware that it had also been to avoid the sheer destruction he would have wrought with him. Still her blades would fly forth once more as she climbed them. Was there a limit to their range or was she just exemplifying her speed? After she had removed the weights Sero was fully aware of the difference in speed between them. Nozomi had always been faster as a taijutsu user but this was a new level. The weight training she utilized was immense no doubt. Still the sound of someone finding death at the end of her blade was clearly audible. His sensory of the situation watching the life force disperse from the target confirming the elimination. Soldiers as they were, they were little match against her. A wiser opponent would of left behind a distraction clone and fled or covered his escape with a jutsu of some sort. He knew them capable of them. Still she deftly landed in front of him once more and spoke. Feeling the force she had just eliminated was still not pressing her limits nearly enough. Her disappointment ringing out as if she wished a whole army would challenge her. It was good to wish to be tested but one must always be careful what they wish for. One thing did stick out though. She admitted a weakness to him openly. If he were to ever have to target her, he would need some sacrificial pawns to distract her while he did the deed. Still he spoke as he nodded towards a tall and worn down building similar to the administration building some four blocks away.

"You will have your chance again soon enough. The tide has rolled in sealing us in here for the night. We should make camp up there and rest ourselves and prepare for the next force. That location should buy us a good four hours. After which we can eliminate the next patrol and either move out of here or continue the hunt. If your coming, I am heading that way now."

3087/3000 Mission complete
Exit thread

She took a moment to consider Sero's words. The tide was coming in, that much was true, so they wouldn't be able to leave until the next day, but still, that wasn't what bothered her. The patrols were too easy. It wasn't a matter of having another chance, she'd be able to take out more patrols without much bother. Still, Sero was right. There wasn't much that could be done about it, and new forces would still need to be taken out the next day anyhow. Nodding her head, she picked up her weights, reattaching them to her ankles and wrists.

"Sure, I mean I don't have much choice, really. At least it will make it easier to keep watch with two of us, and I don't see any reason not to join up. More of them need to die, and hitting multiple squads will force them to retreat for a while, buying more time before the inevitable invasion." she paused for a moment before following Sero. This time, she wouldn't let herself take out the opponent too quickly. She didn't like feeling this empty when it came to a victory. If anything, it should have been a testament to her skills that she was able to wipe out a force that quickly, but it left her wanting more.

The next force the two of them would come up against wouldn't be so quick to be taken down. She wasn't looking for quick and easy fights, she was looking for something that would fulfill her. It was a weird thing, as the stronger she got, the less thrilling fighting was to her. She'd actively been giving herself detriments in fights, and it was starting to grow boring, because at any moment, she could kick it up a notch and beat someone she was holding back on. That moment, she resolved to start training people up that were strong enough to give her an actual challenge, so whenever she was back, she'd more than likely spend her time at the Training Grounds scouting out new talented Kiri-nin.

WC: 347
TWC: 3046

MISSON Complete
Exit thread