Mission name: Target: Shikkan (One-time)
Mission rank: B
Objective: The unification of the Unmei and the Spider Clan is about to happen!
Location: Any
Reward: 500 ryo

Mission Description: Take down Shikkan, leading the Hone faction of white skull spiders

Mission Details: 2500 wc
Shikkan is a cannibal. A ruthless leader with just one thought in mind, devouring. Devouring to the point he can become, if not replace, the 'demi-god' of the Unmei known as Vilemaw. He wants to be heard, reigning over his faction of spiders with a deep sense of terror until his reputation is widespread enough so he can no longer be denied. His reign of terror inspires fear, but the false power also attracts followers among the spider. His death is needed to prove a point.

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Name: Shikkan
Age: 5 (spider age)
General Appearance: [x]
Personality: Ruthless, monstrous, savage, powerful.
Goals: Becoming a god of dread.
Abilities: B rank ninjutsu, genjutsu & Unmei KKG, B rank suiton
Strength: B-2, Endurance: B-2, Speed: C-2, Perception: B-0, Reaction: B-0
Items: -

Running all across Spider Island to map the environment was a greater endeavour than she could have expected. A ten mile radius, give or take a mile, wasn't something to scoff at. That vast land that made up Spider Island was mostly filled with dead trees, murky grass, a couple of flowers somehow surviving the lands and an impossible amount of spiders hiding here and there, their sizes varying between the itsy bitsy tiny one up to the rarer giant wolf spiders with the size of a wagon. Most of the land was unused, left bare to the whims of the natural elements and that of the spiders weaving their webs. Burrows would reveal trap door spiders, giant webs using trees as pillars revealing the lairs of weaver spiders. If there had once been animals running wild here, their tracks and scent had long since died out as the spiders had devoured most, if not all of them by now. There was a reason why humans had renamed Osada Island to 'Spider Island', and why it made their skin crawl.

That reputation played to Haka's advantage now as few humans wandered the island, afraid to fall prey to the giant spiders. With them out of the way, there was no need to watch the 'guests' that would come to visit Sero. If they did... it would be up to them to survive the skirmish should they get between the cross-fire. Haka was not their guardian in the slightest, her dislike for humans not having wavered despite the years she spend in the Ahoban. There were a few that had come to be considered 'accepted' in their existence but even these humans would not be given a helping hand when it came to the brutal politics that were currently being played out on Spider Island - an all out war between more than a handful of different factions, lead by stronger spiders or Unmei vying to claim power, overthrow the manor or some other reason that pushed them to believe they had any rights to claim supremacy.

Unlike human warfare this one didn't involve mechanics and crafty tools. It was far more primitive and direct. Risen leaders held brute power, others had chakra techniques, some had vast amounts of spiders running along with them. Every opponent different, Haka would need everything she had in the sense of skill and experience to deal with the factions that scattered the Spider Clan from one single purpose. Her purpose, of course. One that would bring the entire clan under the influence of Sero as the Creator and Lord of this island, while providing new masses and power to herself to make sure her iron will and fist would not be broken. Knowing humans, she would already be considered a tyrant just for instating and allowing but a single direction to the clan but the ever-meddling creature were not the ones that held the right to dictate the Spider Clan, nor the right to speak based on their flawed and failed history where such libertine approach had only created cause for friction among themselves. Not to mention the vast amount of weakness present that forced the stronger ones to sacrifice their lives in favour of preserving them, thus crippling the general growth and potential to evolution of the human species. No, the Spider Clan would not befall such an ill faith under Haka's command. Strength had always prevailed in the clan, and it would remain as such.

But achieving that goal was a difficult road where she'd have to risk her life several times. The movement of spider swarms she had seen before from atop the manor was just the beginning. The first skirmishes had come to pass, whole swarms of spiders eating each other alive under the command of powerful arachnids of the Clan and Unmei alike. Haka, too, had suffered one such encounter. A small group of spiders easily scattered with some fire and a ruthless display of power, guided by stronger Unmei. The first of their leaders had been a joke, but the second one had still succeeded at bruising her flank despite his lack of experience. Though he didn't have the shinobi training or the mission experience she held, his personal power had not been one to be disregarded. Haka respected that. But it also gave her reason for concern. If even one of the faction leaders was an Unmei with experience and insight like her, getting away with little more than a bruising would be one lucky day.

Idling about was no option. Haka had to move. Find the nests, find the leaders. The easiest one to spot would be those who dropped subtlety in favour for blatant display of power. Admittedly, despite being an assassin, Haka was one of those. The manor where she resided was hardly something one could call subtle, the reputation of Sero stretching far and wide. Being recognised by him as one of his daughters partially imposed that same reputation on her. Expectations were set. Rumours ran rampant. It weren't just humans who gossiped. The Spider Clan did too. And they knew about the Osada Unmei. They knew she would be hunting, since Spider Island as a whole was the web she used to catch her prey with.

Her first prey would be the one who disturbed her web the most - Shikkan and his white skull spiders.

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910

Target, the First - Shikkan.

Monster. Hungerer. Cannibal. Shikkan believed his power came from devouring the brains of his prey. Take their intellect for himself so he'd grow smarter. Eat their sinews so he'd gain their hand-eye coordination. Suck their eyeballs like succulent appetisers. Because he loved it. Brutal force was his part, preferring to fight in closer quarters with the help of the 'Arms of the Mighty'. Ripping through his enemies, pulling of their limbs one by one. Many believe that Shikkan's signature combat style came from the Unmei KKG but the truth is different.

His ability to wreck the mind of his opponent, unravel their courage and weave it into a permanent state of fear is what formed the base of his unholy reputation. What his claws can't reach, his words certainly will. Whispers containing dark secrets so horrifying they drive his opponents mad and force them to peel off their own skin in hopes to be delivered by his eldritch grasp. The taste of fear hung heavy in his vicinity, thick to such a point one could breathe it in and feel their own courage drown in the bitter taste it left in their mouth. It took guts to wander in his lair, which was littered with the bones of the humans and animals of whom he had stolen their strength and memories as he sucked them dry. It took even more guts to face him.

All he wanted was to consume Vilemaw and take its place as the new dread god of the Spider Clan. He was well on his way to succeeding, his word already enough to sow dread among the weaklings that surrounded him. But those petty snacks meant nothing. Shikkan wanted to devour a god...



The bleached white webbing spun between the dark poles that were Spider Island's dead trees which held bones and skulls as a sort of rattle forced Haka to a halt. From what she had heard, this had to be Shikkan's lair. The bones that softly clattered against each other as the wind teased the spider strands that kept them together made for an eerie yet beautiful sort of music. To be fair, facing an Unmei who intended to replace Vilemaw was a terrifying idea driving Haka to actually take a deep breath and muster her courage for a change. She had no particular information on his power but the dreaded reputation sounded like he'd very much be closer to Sero in his acts of terror than that of her own. She might be very well facing someone out of her league here. Preparations were in order, starting with the jutsu that were slowly becoming her signature abilities - Arms of the Mighty and Supoidazu. Chakra bulging out and forming the six clawed limbs, she would eventually cloak her own presence completely with a new technique she had been working on just for such occasions. It was a step up from the 'Mist Phantom' technique and a good start as the Hunter-nin she'd become but far from being a go-to ability. Much like Sero often left behind a mist in his wake, Haka's presence would completely delude into a nigh-invisible mist as well.

The wraith would move on, fully prepared to deliver one swift blow and end the wannabe-god's reign. In complete silence she would move through twigs, thin trees and webbing alike, the mist form not hampered by anything of such small sizes. Here and there, the humidity of the mist would cling to the webs, briefly attract the eyes of minor siblings, but leaving nothing to for them to catch on as the technique was no match for her eyesight. Mist was nothing unusual in Kirigakure. Moving about at a careful pace despite, Haka realised she'd eventually need to work on a technique that allowed her to spot chakra residue just in case others would be applying sensory techniques not visible to the naked eyes. Stealth was a good approach but a well-placed sensory technique still posed a dangerous threat.

Her target would reveal itself in an alcove of webs, decorated by a sickening amount of skulls, too thick for her mist form to pass through. He sat cross-legged on a ragged bundle of clothing once pertaining to human victims he taken down, seemingly meditating as he mumbled the strangest words. Before him a bone chalice rested on a piece of rock, the red liquid fuming slightly. Fresh blood. Its source limply hanging in another web, still moaning. Spiders skittering around and on his body like it was a play ground. Not caring for the demise of the human, the spider-nin watched the Vodun chanter. Moved closer. Until she was within a fifteen meters of her target. Close enough for a swift kill, far enough for her aura not to affect him should she somehow be revealed. Two pairs of chakra arms shot forward, killer claws sinking deeply in various places. Throat, heart, shoulder, leg. Every spot would be hit at once, Shikkan suddenly opening his eyes and coughing up blood. He'd look down at his own body to see four gaping wounds. He'd follow the barely visible chakra arms to their origins, the mist form suddenly taking on the appearance of an Unmei he was not familiar with.

"Yo- You'd slay a god...?"
"Human, Spider, God. Titles matter little when they oppose the Clan."
"H-Heh... I know you... You'r-... You're..."

He would not finish his words, dying from his wounds before he found the chance to utter her name. Ripping the remains of his now dead body to shreds to assure he'd stay dead, Haka stepped into the alcove to pick up his head, ripped off a branch from a nearby tree, slammed it into the ground and displayed Shikkan's head for all of his spider-followers to see. Their 'god', or whatever they believed him to be, was no more.

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Total: 1920

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It was unusual for arachnids to remain so loyal but these spiders kept on following Shikkan even after his death. Why this was the case remained unknown by the spider-nin, who believed they'd have scattered once their leader was gone. Instead, her claws were shredding through the storming bleak spiders that made up his gang. Four chakra arms at once would lash out, claws digging deep into soft arachnid flesh. Was that terror she saw in their eyes? Yes, it was. But by the screeches they threw and the massive clutter of chittering it wasn't terror for her power. It was a deep-found fear for the cursing whispers of Shikkan who, despite his death, somehow kept haunting the minds of the spider siblings before her. As the swarm kept up, two new ones taking the place for every one she tore through, Haka started to understand why this Unmei's reputation was so wide spread. Even now, body destroyed, his spirit lived on within the spiders. Piercing through one of his followers, Haka had to admit Shikkan deserved her respects. To rile up the spiders even after his death, the man had truly taken command of the faction he once held under his influence.

Unfortunately, the spider god's brief afterlife would be extinguished as the last of the white skull spiders' life would be snuffed out in violence. Colourless blood covered the ground, spider heads, bodies and limbs scattered all over the place. Dozens of Shikkan's followers laid slain in front of the alcove where he had once been sitting in meditation. A gruesome display. Panting from the physical labour, Haka was glad she had moved into the alcove as it had kept her back safe against the charging swarm. Having to deal with a 360° all-around assault would not have allowed her to deal with them the way she had now as the white skull spiders had proven to be faster and more dangerous than her other arachnid siblings. Haka wondered where he found them or how Shikkan had been able to get them this dangerous. Chakra feeding? Training? None of them seemed to be the case at first sight. Shikkan's secrets would perish with him, kept with him forever within his grave.

Haka ran her hand through her hair, brushing it aside. The first of the threats had been eliminated. Seven more to go. She could already feel the weight of this ordeal pressing on her shoulders. When she had come to the conclusion this would not be an easy task, she might have underestimated her own calculations. Then again, such a challenge would only provide her with more lessons to learn from and more opportunities to rise in power. Shikkan's silent puzzle would not be forgotten. Stepping over the decaying corpses of her siblings, Haka walked away out of the region, leaving the snow white webbing contrasting with the dark wood of the trees behind her. As if on cue, a soft breeze would pick up, the bone rattles still hanging in random places now eerily clattering against each other. Those that had died here, the impaled head of Shikkan... They would serve as a warning not to claim this lair anytime soon for greater dangers than them lurked around, Death being the only currency they dealt in. The name of that power might not be known, but the names of those opposing the Clan meant little to Haka...

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[EXIT]

581
Total: 2501
-2500 Mission (Reward: B-rank Kage Bunshin)

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