Mission name: Refugee Extraction.
Mission rank: B-rank.
Objective: Secure passage for refugees to be taken in by villages.
Location: Village Camps.
Reward: 500 ryo + 3 EP
Mission Description: Those who wish to vacate the Sand must be safely led to any of the evacuation and processing facilities set up by the villages. Pick up civilians at marked locations and help them get to a new home.
Development References: What Lies Beneath Event.
Mission Details: Ninjas will encounter a sizable group of civilian NPC refugees (30-50) and be instructed with escorting them safely to any of the four village camps where they will be processed and given refugee status. Whether is is a pack of wild beasts or roaming bandits, a group of 10 C-ranked NPC non-ninja threats lead by a single B-ranked shinobi (Nin/Wind/Earth, all library techniques B-rank and lower) will attack the convoy. The priority should be ensuring the safety of the refugees though there may be competent fighters among them.

Verdandi just recently worked on a convoy transport. It reminded her about the losses her squad had taken during the conflict, so as she was commissioned for this second job alike the first, Verd wasn't sure how to feel about it. Moving through the sand dunes with her trusty pet at her side, Verd would make her way towards the extraction point. The village she would encounter was small and poor. Most of the people seemed to have nothing to count for their own possessions. The village ninja organizing their departure were feeding them as many were in dire need of resources. Verd would move around camp and try her best to help with the preparations. Tearing down buildings to create makeshift carts. Binding cattle to ropes and setting them straight for moving. As the caravan formed just a little outside of the village. Verd would slowly see how the already shabby village quickly turned into an empty shelter, barely leaving any worth of recognition. The sand would soon claim its very remains and wash it away beneath its dunes. The well in its centre had been dry since months. Without water they were unable to sustain themselves and had been living under the torture of the draught. The village aid had brought a lot of water to hydrate the many people. But it was almost used up and the people were in deep need for a more sustainable source to fend for themselves.

Organizing more than fifty people turned out to be quite the ordeal. But with the help of the village nin the convoy soon started moving trying to bundle their people into a rather short line opposed to making it long and hard to secure. Keeping the refugees sphered together in the centre alongside the carts and cattle. The security provided seemed suffice for a start. But once again, something or rather someone would dare to stand in the way of all things. In the hills, a grim looking man with a skull mask. Was tending to his lovely bunch of pet wolves. The feeding had turned grim and he could hear his own tribe complaining about the lack of fresh meat. The growls and howls would soon echo into the night and show distinctive signs of danger. As if it was certain that, if he couldn't properly provide them in time, he might end up as a sufficient sacrifice instead. The grim reaper would however not judge his lovely bunch of monsters for their aggressive behaviour. After all, they were hungry predators and he even raised them as such. To judge them based on what they felt was instinctively the flow of nature would be an odd thing to do. Hence, he once more moved his already somewhat elder bones to sharpen his blade and prepare his mask. Covering himself in a large coat to fend against the nasty weather within the sand dunes. Before he whistled for a good dozen of wolves to come and join him as they moved out.

Verdandi was busy taking care of the men inside the caravan. Moving through them to bring water from the supply cart to the weak and elderly. Helping with the distribution of field rations and making sure that the cattle would properly stay in their place. Helping roping them together and providing further means to secure them properly. Verdandi gasped at the continuously rising strange behaviour of the cattle. The closer the night was to approach the more disturbed they would act. But she had spent enough time with animals to know well that they weren't irritated for no reason. Verd moved to the front of the caravan and tried to find a proper answer by conversing with her pet. Avalanche sniffed into the air and growled angrily. Verd knew that he didn't do so without reason and instantly commanded the caravan to stop. The civilians were quickly centred in the middle again. The carts aligned around them as means of protection. The cattle's safety was optional but they still tried to secure the beasts nearby. The soldiers surrounded their caravan. Spears would be erected outwards. Shields raised. Eyes would keenly search for the horizon. Verdandi requested the archers to dunk their arrows in oil, lit them afire and shoot them in a very specific perimeter around them into the night. Giving light and better view into their surroundings. Verdandi jumped on the back of her beloved bear and slowly left the camp south.

A little bit earlier that day. The grim reaper had tried his luck to scavenge through the lands. The village that had been evacuated often was a last means of him either buying or stealing some cattle. To his surprise, as he arrived on this last point that could potentially sustain him and his tribe of monsters, he would find the village empty and broken down to pieces. Angerly he would search every hut and break down every container but the amount of food he found wouldn't even remotely feed himself, put aside the dozen wolves that were still angerly growling at him. The old, former shinobi of the sands, sighed and yet would find banners of Iwa-nin left behind. His desperation would raise into the heavens as he started to realize that the devils whom where recently stomping through these lands had now claimed his own life source as well. He wept in tears for a short period. Missing the good old times when the wind country was a supposedly respectable country full of life and meaning. He had seen all of it falling to the corruption of the administration. Falling to the inability of their leaders and eventually falling to the ignorance of its own people that yet cared ever so more for themselves than their own kin. The caravan had left a very distinctive trail behind. Even with the movement of the sand, a seasoned warrior alike himself would not be dumbfounded by the motion of the elements and his wolves would smell on the Iwagakure banner and growl in hunger and greed.

By the time the tribe did catch up with the caravan. They would realize that their enemy, their target had already been awaiting them. The formation of the troops gave it away clearly. Their spears lifted. Their archers ready to strike. But it was night time and he knew if he didn't act now he would not see another day anyhow. Starvation would turn him into the last meal of his tribe before they would either turn mad or eat themselves until the lack of nutrition might finally claim their souls and eradicate their name from existence. The grim reaper felt a sting in his heart. The new age would become the downfall of his tribe. The end to his reign over these lands. It was ok. So many years had he been father to this desert. His whole life he watched over his people. Traded with them. Gave them the protection they needed. Fended off enemies just never alike this. If he had been in his prime he would have slaughtered these men daring to betray him. The wolves were hypnotized by the noises of the cattle hearing their fresh meal announce itself. It was only natural that they could no longer keep themselves contained. With a sudden roar the beasts would launch forward. Descending on the dunes beneath them. The reaper sighed to himself one last time. Before I gripped his sword and squeezed his loyal wolf mount with his thighs. Riding it to its final battle.

For a moment, he could see how the arrows would pierce the flesh of his dear wolves. But they would storm on. Jump the guards and violently kill even the most guarded, armoured and well protected kind. For a moment. He could see his tribe rush through the masses of enemy soldiers and rip them to pieces. For a moment, he doubted his end. For a moment, he had hope that his tribe would make more food than ever. Return home safely. Bathe in the sweet surrender of revenge to the intruders. It was that very moment. When Verdandi's bear crashed head on into his side. Avalanche's head crushing his right arm. Tossing the reaper off his mount as Verdandi spun like a tornado around her own axis and slices a dozen times into the stunned mount before she ran towards the masked reaper. Avalanche made sure that the mount was dead before he ran off towards the caravan with a Verdandi clone neatly sitting on his back now. Tackling the first wolf as he used the impact to launch the clone into the air and make her slowly descend down to pierce her blade straight from above into the very head of one of these monsters. Avalanches claws teared away at his victim. His teeth would bite into the wolf's neck and bite off just enough flesh for it to instantly bleed out. Three monsters gone. Nine left to deal with.

The old warrior was sure that he could reason with his opponent. Maybe plead for his life. Give up on his assault and call his monster back. Ask for a proper punishment in return of the safety of his beasts. But he had long since accepted his fate now. He pulled a second blade from his belt and instantly met Verdandi's incoming Wyrm's Fang. He could hear the blades crunch and metal screaming between them. His main hand tried to contain the block while his offhand reached out to strike. But Verdandi's body armour, hidden beneath her fabrics, would swallow the damage and reveal itself to the grim reapers eyes. Verd would use the moment of surprise to slice aside and break his block. Kicking his belly and hitting him on the mask with the backside of her blade. Threatening to slice her way down vertically to end his life once and for all. But he wasn't going to make it that easy for her. He laughed in her face and formed the signs for the earth technique "Earth Flow Spears". Making the pillars rise as Verdandi was forced to quickly activate her ice armour. Letting it move over her skin and allowing the rising earth spike to quickly crash against them. Once the damage was swallowed. Verdandi inhaled once deeply and exhaled a large freezing wave of frost onto her opponent. The "Powder Snow Breath" technique hitting him straight and turning the seasoned enemy into a hypothermic state.

Verdandi could feel her throat aching as well. But she was ready for this. Attacking the man head on with her blade. Meanwhile Avalanche had crushed another two wolves to the floor with his sheer might. The clone neatly sliced its blade through the third, downing the numbers of wolves to six. They quickly gathered together in a supposed joint assault on bear and clone. Unfortunate for them, this just allowed the clone to make her move quick and easy. Icy pillars would erect themselves into view under the summon of "Certain-Kill Ice Spears" impaling the lot of them on by one. The last of them that could break through would clash with the bear. Crawling his paw at Avalanche's leg and wounding him softly before he got bit in his neck and the sound of his spine twisting would call a sudden end to the threat of them. The clone slowly moved through the wounded corpses. Giving the last of them a mercy killing befitting their courage. No need to let them suffer for acting towards their very natural survival instinct. The clone moved the wounded bear back into the midst of the caravan. A healer would be easily found among the lot of them. Finding ointments to treat the wound in question and moving a bandage around it. The wounded bear lapped seemingly untainted at his wounded paw and sat down to relax and recover. Leaving the clone to disappear and send the memory of their success to Verdandi's main body.

The grim reaper was breathing hard. His body was freezing. He was shaking and he could obviously not bear well with the sudden freeze on his skin. A fighter whom was used and adjusted to the very heat of the battlefield in suna. Now facing a cold even the worst nights in the sand could not produce. Under a last attempt to secure his victory. He would throw a combination of gale palm technique and mud wolves. The gale palm's hand signs were known well to Verdandi and she instinctively started to copy them and let her own wind blow of gale palm clash into his, nullifying both of them into nothingness. Her sword pulled she would charge and slice her way through either of the wolves. She could hear them slowly raise from the dead behind her and chase her but by the time they arrived. Verd had already coated her blade in the potential freezing powers of cold-stream cut. Slicing through her opponent's chest before she would kick him and then send the freezing tech forward to hit him again. Completely covering his skin in frost bite and giving Verd the final opportunity to stab her blade into his chest.

The grim reaper's mask would slowly drop from his face. The skull pattern had turned his expression into that of a mean, heartless monster for the duration of their fight. But now that it fell off. Verdandi could see the face of the seasoned shinobi. The old man would cough up some blood. His last moments arrived. Verd would give him the chance to exhale his last words. Moving forth to cup the young shinobi's alabaster skin and gaze at her. "Freedom to the sand…" he whispered before his eyes turned grey and his life finally ended.

Verdandi pulled her sword from his chest. This was not the way she had expected this to end. Once more soldiers had fallen in this conflict. The wolves had claimed many men before their fall. But at least, this time she could engage the major threat herself. She didn't know the mans name nor would she ever find out. But Verdandi would pick up his mask. Eventually, someday it'd be useful to her. But until that day. She'd have to accept that some things come to an end without explanation or reason. That sometimes even if she had defeated her enemy, she would still doubt that her cause was as just as she could hope for.

The caravan moved out soon afterwards. A few more hours and they were to arrive at the Iwa camp. Moving into the distribution setup Verdandi had improved herself in an earlier mission. She would stare at the mask the man had dropped. Putting it to her belt. It'd serve as a reminder to her and force her into contemplation, to wonder if the bandits really were the bad guys in this conflict were. Or if by any chance she had not realized that her own party was becoming the very monster that haunts these lands.

[EXIT]


2540 wc

WC Usage: