Scouting Assignment:

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The smell of blood and smoke filled the air around her. The world seemed to be spinning around Ayame, it was changing right before her, as the sounds of screams, battle, and fire surrounded her. She was searching. Trying to find something amongst the chaos. Amongst the screaming mothers holding their lifeless children, amongst the cloud of smoke and dust that hung over the air. Amongst the bodies and the fire and the glass. People where running everywhere, as if unsure where to run. The walls of the village serving to herd the people of Suna in like lambs for a slaughter instead of keep them safe. Still Ayame searched, her legs not moving how she wanted them too, and aside from the screaming pain on her forehead, and the ringing in her ears, she was numb. Numb with adrenaline. The only thought being "I have to find her." She wasn't worried about the fireball that had torn through her home, sending her flying in a mass of debris. She wasn't worried about the aftermath of this all, or even what was going on. She just wanted to find her mother. Ayame would push her way through the sand. The blood trickling down her head making it difficult to see as she cried out "Mom!" A woman who'd been crying in the street next to her, looked up, hopeful, but it wasn't her child.

Ayame would continue to trudge through the street, her legs weak struggling to carry her. Another fireball rained from the sky and crashed into the building next to her, sending debris everywhere. Ayame continued to march forwards, the debris flying around her, but not hitting her. At least not big enough chunks to slow her down any. She could feel blood running down her shoulder and arm now, but that didn't matter to her. Just before she'd call out again, she'd hear a voice call out to her. "AYAME!" Ayame would look up from the ground relief filling her body, but suddenly filled with her as a blade stabbed straight through her mother, the look of horror and pain on her mother's face, as eye reached out, tears flooding her face screaming "MOM!"

---

Ayame gasped awake. cold sweat drenched her body. She had been having these nightmares about the attack on Suna for a few days, as she was told that she and most of Iwagakure would be heading there for help rebuild and gather some of the refugees from some of the village. She knew that wasn't how the attack had gone down exactly. Some details were there, like she had been hit by debris, but her mother had carried her out and not been cut down in front of her. But that's what she feared had happened, and she knew it was entirely too like that her mom had died protecting her village. She just hoped it hadn't been the case. Regardless, Iwagakure's plane to help rebuild Sunagakure and help some of the refugees was a noble goal, and one that made her glad she had decided to flee to Iwagakure instead of any other village. She was even glad to be a part of the rescue operation, it was just that she dreaded returning. there was a large part of her that didn't want to return to Sunagakure. She didn't want to see what had become of her childhood home. What destruction had been wrought in it, and the faces of the horrified and lost, the people she used to see everyday. Better yet, she was scared of what she would find. Dead Bodies and Destroyed homes. But she desperately didn't want to find one body in particular. The last memory she had of her mother, was her telling her to run. She had brought Ayame outside the walls, and told her to run, to run as fast as she could to the land of Iwagakure. Her mother stating she had an obligation to protect the Village hidden in the sand, but that Ayame had no such obligation and should get to safety. That was the last time she had ever seen her. She was hoping that maybe one day she'd turn up in Iwagakure and she'd be reunited with her mother, but that day hasn't come yet, and Ayame fears the worst. Still, the girl is still rather hopefully. Their's a possibility that maybe her mother stayed back to help the refugees that still needed assistance, and that maybe this expedition into the land of wind would be where she would be reunited, or at the very least, she'd get to help more people who had suffered exactly what she had gone too, and showed them the great land of Iwagakure. A place she was more than proud of to call home, even if it hadn't been her original one.

As Ayame sat up from her nightmare, she took a few breathes to calm herself down for the moment. taking the time to re-familiarize herself with her surroundings as she remembered where she was. The sound of the small tent city they had set up for the night was quiet, but it appeared that a few people were already up, and beginning to pack up their camp, as well as some were beginning to make morning meals for the small caravan that Ayame was traveling with. Though she supposed 'small' was relative here. They had about 50 or so people in this group, and by most accounts that'd be a rather large group of travelers, however Ayame knew that there were much larger groups that had traveled before them, and some that would be traveling after them. Like the one in which the Tsuchikage was travelling was sure to number up to a few hundred, or at the very least three times her current party. Still she couldn't complain, she had been paired with a good number of people, and she felt safe with them, despite her being one of about 15 or so ninja in the actual group. Most of the other people were the supporting type, Cooks, Medical Staff, Clothiers and Blacksmiths, those types. Specifically the cooks. Ayame wasn't sure this was a testament to the cooks that resided within the village hidden in the stone, or whether she'd just gotten lucky with her group placements and managed to get stuck with some great cooks. Either way, she didn't care, it made every morning and evening a treat. So much so, that Ayame in't mind getting up this early in the morning, if it meant she'd get some of the first pick at some the grub. With that in mind, and her stomach growling, Ayame fully got up out of her tent and began to pack up her stuff, before heading over to the mess tent that they had set up. She'd greet some of the cooks and people she'd gotten acquainted with over the travel before sitting down and getting herself a bite to eat.

"So any clue how much longer?" Ayame would ask the special jounin who sat a crossed from her. he had been the one directing most of their group as he was the highest rank in the traveling group. Well, him and another special jounin, but the other one appeared to prefer differing to the one she was talking too, and silently taking orders. It appeared he was more of the silent type, not too fond of people. He'd probably make a decent ANBU, as Ayame had a hard time keeping track of him through-out the day, until he showed up to make reports, and even then he'd catch Ayame by surprise most of the time. The words "Yeah, Probably about another day or so. We're going to take today's travel rather careful, as we're passing right through the area it's suspected the Tsuchikage Karumo and his squad disappeared." He'd say before pausing a bit. It was clear the subject troubled him some. "We uhh... aren't too sure what's capable of taking on Karumo, and his squad with him, but we do know he never made it to Sunagakure, so we're just taking extra caution today." he'd say, before returning to his stew. Ayame would add an "mmm" as she finished swallowing the food in her mouth "Is it possible he got caught up in the destruction of Suna? not even our kage and anbu combined could handle that." She'd say. He would finish off the bite he had taken before replying "our?..." he'd say confused, pausing in thought before it seemed the lights kicked on. "Oh right, forgot you were one of the Suna Refugees... You sure you're alright with heading back?" Ayame would simply give him a nod, as she stuffed a biscuit into her mouth. She almost melted under it's taste, it was so good. So buttery and flaky, and perfectly cooked to not be over or under cooked. She'd swear that she'd travel for the rest of her life every day if it meant she just got to eat these biscuits every morning and night. "If you're sure, I won't question it." He'd reply before continuing on with the previous conversation. "Anyways, to answer your question, It's not likely no." Ayame would cock an eyebrow at this, waiting for him to further extrapolate. "You see, Karumo and his squad left a few months or so before the attack on Sunagakure, but what's odd about it is that the Kage had requested ANBU not follow him and his squad while they were travelling into Sunagakure. An odd request, and one that the council warned him about, but something that wasn't unusual for him. They had ANBU waiting for him once he got to Sunagakure to meet up with him and make sure he made it there safe." He'd say before taking a bite of a biscuit for himself. "And even if he and his squad of Genin somehow managed to slip past the keen eye of ANBU, he was supposed to send a carrier pigeon back to Iwa saying he'd made it." Ayame would nod. It seemed Karumo wasn't the brightest Kage to grace the land, though she wouldn't say that in front of a ninja who had clearly served under him, and held a lot of respect for him. "The story after, is pretty simple. Once the ANBU realized Karumo hadn't made it, they sent one of their own back to Iwa to report him missing, and then the ANBU and several search parties were sent out to find him, but never did. They found the scene where he might have been captured, a huge explosion crater in the ground, a lot of blood, but never the tsuchikage himself." Ayame would nod. It would make sense that someone as strong as a Kage had been ambushed or caught off guard in some way. Had to have been, otherwise he likely would have wiped the floor with them. Which means the large explosion was either the Kage himself, or had been used to catch him off guard, something like a landmine, or a tripwire lined with paper bombs. And if they were capable of not only setting up the ambush but knowing the tsuchikage would be travelling, which she was sure had been kept for the most part under wraps, whatever had fought him would be no joke. They'd need to set up their trap just before he arrived, as to make sure not to catch any other civilians in it, as well as during a time the ANBU would be away, which meant intimate details of his travel schedule. That or they had been very very lucky. Whichever the case, Ayame could understand why they'd be take extra precautions today.

With her morning discussion cleared out of the way, as well as she'd get her assignment for the day, Ayame would finish up her breakfast, before returning to the rest of the camp. She'd set about, waking up those who hadn't woken themselves yet, and begin helping pack up the rest of the camp. With most of everyone helping out in some way, it didn't take long for the stragglers to finish their breakfast, everyone to get into formation, and the caravan continuing. Despite what it seemed like the special jounin thought, they actually made really good time that day. As they made there way fully into the land of wind, and managed to reach the Iwagakure camp by nightfall. Granted they had to do a bit of travelling during the night, something that wasn't entirely recommended, but they felt worth it because they were already so close to the camp, it didn't quite make sense to set up camp, just to pack everything up in the morning, and be there before it reached noon. Though it did mean that when Ayame got to the camp, she was tired and hungry. Thankfully there hadn't been many threats to the caravan during the day, which was partially why the caravan had moved as quickly as it did. In fact, there hadn't been any threats at all. The only hold ups had been when a horse had been spooked, someone dropped something large enough that the other people behind them couldn't move forwards, or the one instance a cart wheel had come off and needed to be repaired before they could move on. Something that thankfully didn't take more than a few minutes. Even still, a full day on watch had left Ayame exhausted, and she'd want nothing more than to lay down in her tent that she was currently setting up and sleep the night away, if it hadn't been for the mass amount of hunger that laid siege to her stomach at the moment. Thankfully, she finished up her tent quickly, managed to grab a bite to eat, which was also thankfully from the cooks she had been dealing with up until this point, and then crashed.

---

Darkness surrounded the girl. the world around her was black and empty, for as far as the girl could see. Ayame would turn, and look around her, trying to find anything but nothing would show up. That was until she heard the words behind her. "Ayame..." Ayame would spin around, relief and joy filling her "mom!" however that feeling would quickly be cut away, and stripping down as she'd turn around to face the gruesome figure of her mother. Flesh burned, and decaying. Bits of bone sticking out in several places, and a large wound in the center of her chest that was bleeding intensely. "mom...." Ayame would mutter, as she took a step back in terror. Grief and Fear filling her. what had happened? why was her mother like this? who had done this? Almost as if to answer her inner monologue her mother looked up, her face half skeleton, but the sharingan with all three of it's tomoe glared at her, with a cold hard stare and simple "You did..." came out of her mother's lips. "You left me to die Ayame" Her mother would say, as Ayame stepped back. a soft "no...." was all she could mutter. However as she stepped back she ran into something else, she immediately turn around to find her grandmother similarly a mix of decomposed and burned who seemed to then say in the same cold hard tone in unison with her mother "You left me to die Ayame."  Ayame would back up quickly, almost falling over this time, with tears beginning to form in her eyes, "No... No I didn't me-" She was cut off, as another skeletal figure appeared, who seemed to be wearing a sunagakure headband and had the Uchiha Symbol on a sort of flag on his waist. "You left me to die Ayame." Ayame would slowly call backwards, as more and more people showed up, all people she'd recognize from Sunagakure, all horribly disfigured, all chanting the the same line over and over again. "You left me to die Ayame." as Ayame placed her hands over her ears, tears streaming down her face "No.. No please, I didn't want too, I didn't mean too" she'd say as she began to curl herself up, as the skeletal figures slowly began to move forwards, hundreds of thousands of bodies surrounding her, slowly moving in on her until they were basically huddled over her, then they all began to laugh. A chorus cackle that roared do to the sheer number of people around her, they then shouted "SUFFER!" as they lurched forwards.

---

Ayame shoot upwards, grabbing her sheets. More cold sweats. More Nightmares.The girl would breathe heavily, her hands shaking as she went over what happened. She had to tell her over and over again. "It's not real." She's say on repeat, gripping her sheets, until managed to find her breathe and calm down a little bit. The girl would proceed to get dressed, changing out of her night clothes and into something a bit more fitting. She wouldn't wear her usual outfit today, but instead she'd put on her white tank top, and then a black zip-up vest over it. She'd then put on black shorts, with a sort of skirt front, and a long black coat tail. Her Hitai-ate would go around her neck, as per usual, but she'd do something likely to confuse the officials of Iwagakure, not that she really cared, but she'd tie a red ribbon around left bicep, marking her as one of the Sunagakure Refugees. Granted she wasn't one that needed to be tended to at the moment, and had long been a member of Iwagakure, but she still wanted to stand with her fellow people, and let those that would see her, know Iwagakure was a safe place for her kind. She'd then put on black gloves, and black boots, as well as her usual kunai pouch which would be placed on her left and right thigh. The girl would then make her way out of the tent. It was still relatively early morning. The sun hadn't even gotten up yet, but thankfully there were some who had, and those some were making food. Ayame immediately walked along the line of tents, taking note of all the people peacefully sleeping, and wishing she was as fortune as them. She envied them, and almost envied herself not but a few days ago when she had been given the chance to peacefully rest, but now all she dream about was the horrors of what had happened. Still, she had work to do, and couldn't think about that at the moment. Ayame would sit down and get her food, taking her time to eat most of it, listening in and even joining in on some of the conversation, mostly hanging around the squad of people she'd met on her travels, as they discussed things they might be doing for the day, and how surprisingly good the food was. It wasn't long however before Ayame was called away. It seemed that she'd be assigned a mission almost immediately.

Ayame would trot over to a tent where she would receive her debriefing. It was a relatively large tent, near the entrance to the compound, and not too far off from the large mess tent. Ayame would enter into the tent to find two desk, with people busily working through paper work, and a few people coming in the back side of the tent to grab reports, as well as deliver some. There was a single man going over documents at the a table in the center of the tent however, who looked up to Ayame as she wandered in. He looked puzzled at first and said "The refugee admittance tent is-" he'd cut himself off, as he'd notice the Iwagakure headband around her neck. "Ah... You must be Uchiha, Ayame. Please be patient for a moment, the other two will be here in a moment." Ayame would look at the man, partially confused "The other two?" she'd ask, as she heard the tent rustle behind her, and another figure stepped through.

---

WC: 3452
Total WC: 3542

His shoes slipped on comfortably around his feet that felt like lead weights. His body sat at the side of the cot he'd been sleeping on while helping out in the Land of Wind, everyone else already gone. His fingers slid around the laces and began to pull them back and forth as he brought them overlapping and finished tying his shoes together. His body felt even more stiff as he pushed himself off of his knees to stand up in the tent, his few belongings kept in a bag not far from his bed. His hands reached down and tightened his pouch around his waist before reaching down to tie his kunai holster around his leg and depositing in the knives to prepare himself.

He felt almost out of place in the midst of it all, as he pushed himself out from the flap and let the harsh sun burn down onto his dazed eye lids. The area wasn't buzzing but slowly coming to life with a rising sun, his stomach growled briefly as he pushed himself forward and stretched himself backwards while feeling his muscles stretch and some small bones in his back crack. The shirt he was wearing began to cling to him in the heat, almost as if he were already sweating and worn out from the temperature here. A slight breeze blew by and pushed his jacket across his body, the dark cloth shifting out of place to which Katsumi quickly grabbed and straightened out his black jacket.

His feet continued on forward towards a nearby tent, the only real one that he knew was coming along this early in the morning the smell of some breads and other foods cooked out from the outside of the tent and within filled the air. As Katsumi approached, the air filled with it and began to crawl through his body with enticing. His approach towards the old man and woman that ran the tent, refugees from the Sunagakure, where making a sort of breakfast of meat stuffed into a baked bread. The smell of various spices and flavors filled the air as he approached the tent with a handful of ryo and a lingering hunger in his stomach. He walked up to a hesitant look from the shop owners, simple words that carried out as they hesitantly handed him two of the breakfast pockets they made and Katsumi reached out to drop some ryo in their hands.

The conversation that carried between them was almost non-existent as they'd probably heard about his habits around the camp. During his free time he'd often hold various card games and small scale gambling events. Definitely fun but his knack for betting on various hands and reading people left him most nights flush with whatever money that would come out despite taking most of it from the refugees looking for just a few minutes of fun and distraction from their predicament. It didn't matter though, never great amounts but so consistently that he almost began to gain a name for himself among some of the longer standing members and his knack for playing people out of their money got him a lot of side glances.

Still, for all the negativity carried around him, he never truly cheated anyone out of their money, in fact his bravado was mostly a challenge to others that would show up when he needed it. Some saving grace but led to only the most stubborn and skilled repeatedly showing up or agreeing to play against him. For the older and more honest generation, such as these old people, they couldn't care less about how he passed the time when he wasn't on missions or working.

Nodding and turning around with a quiet thanks, Katsumi would begin to drag his feet towards the tent where his missions were handed out. So often and so full of boring tasks that carried a mundane and sweat filled labors or tasks. His mind dreaded it as he pulled the bread towards his mouth and bit deeply into it, chewing it quickly while he lazily walked through the village. His walk wasn't long or arduous in any shape but it felt taxing in the heat that seemed to grow more and more by the moment. Every footstep dragging on as he scarfed down his food with as many quick and yet large bites as he could manage. Arriving near the canvas tent, he pulled it aside with his free hand and pushed his way within to be met with a myriad of organized chaos.

People were shuffling about within as Katsumi let the tent flap fall behind him while looking around, papers and small conversations passing around in front of him in various directions. His eyes too apathetic to try and follow it and instead, scanning around the room to find the normal gatekeeper to his tasks for the day, finding the man in a conversation with a refugee girl in front of him. The man at the center of the room would have definitely noticed Katsumi walking in as he would push his way forwards and just a couple feet to the girls' left side as he would finish swallowing the remains of his last bite before chiming in to interrupt the quiet conversation in front of him as soon as he would find a break in the action to do so.

"Hey, what have you got for me today?" he would make his presence absolutely known in the off chance that it wasn't. His black jacket would rest calmly as he would reach to take another chunk out of the food in his left hand and watch blankly ahead towards the ninja at the desk giving out various tasks. Katsumi's Iwagakure headband would be located plainly on his forehead, pushing his hair a bit out of the way on the black cloth that matched his jacket plainly. His stance wasn't trying to be rude to the refugee girl as he almost paid no mind to her for a moment and his focus entirely on the guy in front of him.


[1033 words]

The young Uzumaki was not sure what he hated most about his current situation. It would have been the heat. That would have been the most obvious answer. The sun in this place was ridiculous; it always had been. Heck, it was a desert after all. The way that the sun of the Land of Wind had been beating down on himself and the rest of the group from Iwagakure no Sato was no small annoyance. Even though he had only been away from the desert that he had once called home for a little while, he had already become accustomed to the much more…reasonable climate of the Village Hidden in the Stones. The surrounding mountains meant that there was a but of a micro-climate that they all lived in, but it was temperate enough that he found most of his days spent outside training enjoyable. Even the few days that it had rained were only necessary if they wanted the plant life to live and thrive. Nothing seemed to happen without a reason, which was the exact opposite of what he was experiencing now. No plant life other than cacti could survive the deadly heat of the scorching hot sun that floated over the Land of Wind, ever vigilant in its watch over the caravan of Iwagakure no Sato shinobi. The torturous sun was unbearable in relation to the way he was now used to living, and he was sure to mention it to the few people who listened to him on the trip.

Perhaps he hated the fact that this was a return to a lost home the most. The idea that he had once lived in this place weighed on him constantly, and the knowledge that there was literally nothing he could have done to prevent the fall of his home felt disgusting. It did not help him move on. If anything, it drove him into more and more guilt. If he had just listened to his father for more than a few knife tricks and hand seals and instead actually became a shinobi of the Village Hidden in the Sands, maybe his old man would still be alive. Maybe he could have at least saved his mother’s legs. He knew that the village would have been destroyed regardless. The sand would have turned to glass before his very eyes once again and his friends would have been slaughtered. But maybe his father would have run away with them. Maybe his mother would have been able to walk, or even smile one last time. But instead, it was the guilt of turning away from his potential as a ninja that rang true with each passing moment. Takashi furrowed his brow and lifted a rag in his left hand to wipe away the sweat that was dripped down from his hair.

Or perhaps It was the waiting that Takashi Uzumaki waited the most. Here he was, back in the land that he had called home what felt like forever ago, and yet all he had done so far had been walking. He, along with many other shinobi and kunoichi from the Village Hidden in the Stones had made the long journey into the Land of Wind so that they could try to make a difference. They were there to help people just like himself; those that had been displaced by the destruction of their home. They were there to stand against the tyrants that had marched over the innocent people of Sunagakure no Sato because they felt that they were strong enough to make choice for the whole world. They were there to avenge the murdered hundreds whose blood would permanently soak the sand on which he now walked. But all he was doing was waiting. He hated waiting, and as he made his way through the camp that had bene set up near the excavation site, he became more and more sure of the fact that it was the waiting he hated most.

Fortunately for him, the waiting was finally coming to and end. The genin found himself sitting in a large crate, leaning against another crate that had been stacked behind him while eagerly hoping that something would come up. Now that the group had finally reached far enough into the desert, he knew that action was coming. That action could take any form for the young Uzumaki, whether it was killing bandits or building a house; he just needed to do something before he went completely stir crazy. It was as he was pondering these thoughts that another shinobi from his new village, a chuunin from what Takashi could tell, approached him with a small note. “I was told to give this to you by the folks in the main tent. I would get over there as soon as possible.” The Uzumaki opened his mouth to respond, but instead found himself speaking to nobody as the chuunin used the Body Flicker Technique to make his away, presumably off to deliver more messages or to take care of some other business that he had to attend to. Regardless, it seemed that things were picking up, and with a renewed energy behind his eyes, Takashi hopped off of the crate and made his way toward the main tent where mission were being distributed.

As the Uzumaki pulled back the tent flap to make his way in, he could already see that the place was hopping with activity. People shuffled about from different tables carrying scrolls and papers and even weapons in some cases. It was a strange sight to see after the days of walking that had filled his recent past. He was happy to see that people were beginning to see things the way he was. Glancing down at the note he had been given, he seemed to be directed to one particular table, apparently used for lower rank missions. Nodding to himself, Takashi waded through the crowd before emerging next to a table that already had three occupants. One was a special jounin that looked like he was about to brief the other two on what was supposed to happen. Of the other two, one of the presumed genin was familiar. It was his friend and squad mate, Ayame Uchiha. She, like Takashi, was a refugee of Sunagakure no Sato, and he could only imagine the excitement she was feeling to get back out in the field and help her former home. The other boy was unfamiliar to him, but the Iwagakure forehead protector on his head seemed to indicate that he was an ally. Takashi subconsciously adjusted his own on his left arm before making himself known to the group.

“Hey, I think I’m supposed to be here too for a mission? I'm Takashi Uzumaki” His eyes flickered toward the Uchiha and he smiled slightly. “Hey Ayame, glad to see we’ll be working together again.”

WC:1157

The flap opened behind Ayame, as she turned to look to see who else would step through the camp.  A boy about her age with blonde hair, one that she didn't particularly recognize answered that. She threw him a said glance as she watched his crimson eyes scan over her, taking in immediate details, before deciding to turn to the man at the table and ask "Hey, what have you got for me today?". "Is this what he meant by the other two?" Ayame thought to herself. She begun to look towards the man a the table to see how he would respond, but was halted as yet another flap at the tent would be heard, and Ayame would glance back over to see yet another face that was about her age, though this one she immediately recognized. Ayame would turn to greet him with a sort of smirk on her face. “Hey, I think I’m supposed to be here too for a mission? I'm Takashi Uzumaki” He'd say before turning to Ayame and saying. “Hey Ayame, glad to see we’ll be working together again.” Ayame would give him and eye-smile before replying with a short "Always glad to see your face around, Takashi." Which she meant. If she was intended to work with two others in this mission she was at least glad that she knew one of them, and that that one was Takashi. He was a Man she trusted, especially after their recent run in with the Red Banner. He was a squad member, and someone Ayame considered a friend, if not her closest friend at the moment. The other boy however, well, honestly Ayame couldn't get a good read on him. Maybe it was just because of how little he had done up until this point, as he'd really only spoken a sentence, and analyzed Ayame as he entered the room. As most people would do when encountering a stranger. He seemed a bit cautious, but what ninja wasn't? Furthermore, because of her lack of interactions with him, and sort of read she might have on him was likely to be filled with false information. She hadn't truly gotten a first impression from him yet. She'd need to wait to see how he further handled the situations and the conversation ahead.

Still, before Ayame could introduce herself to him, or continue talking to Takashi, she was cut off as the man at the table began to speak. "Good! I'm glad you're all here." He'd say standing straight up to address them all properly. "You three, have been assigned by the higher ups to scout out of the wastes of Sunagakure, and search for refugees that may need aid or assistance." He'd say as he began to thumb through some of the reports. "You'll be expected to deliver a report back on the locations of these refugees, as well as any other things of interest you may find in the wastes of Sunagakure." He'd say shuffling some papers looking over them as he went along, searching for details he felt may help the trio of genin on their assignments. "You're given pretty free reign as to how you all want to approach this, but be careful. This is a D-rank mission, you aren't expected to put yourself in harms way for any sort of Intel, and your more useful to us for other missions than whatever Intel might put your life in danger, and there have not only been reports of Kumogakure Squad tearing down monuments to the old Sunagakure, but also several bands of rogue shinobi, and even some wildlife in the mix." He'd say looking up at the group with a rather serious glance. "Be careful, and don't let your emotions get in the way" He'd say looking at the two Suna Refugees in his tent to make sure the message set in. Ayame understood it for the most part. While these people were her people, and while Kumo may be tearing down monuments to her old home, she wasn't to do anything rash that might jeopardize her or her squads safety, and while she might want to immediately help out some of the Refugees or sway the opinion of some of the rogues, or maybe even spare them. She should consider the safety of her squad, the mission at hand, and the safety of the village to which she now belonged first and foremost, then she could consider all the other variables. It was a hard pill to swallow, but one that she'd need to remind herself of. She didn't want any harm to come to her people, both the refugees and Iwa, but her obligations to the village which took her in came first. "Now You've all been assigned to this mission for a reason." The man would continue on. "Ayame and Takashi, as Natives to Sunagakure you should have a decent grasp of it's layout and infrastructure. Katsumi, you've been assigned mostly because you were free and we felt the need to give the refugee's wallets a break." He said giving a slight smirk to the boy. "But also because we felt it important to have a Native Iwa-Nin on this mission, and we expect you to ensure the mission is accomplish to Iwagakure's standards." He'd say looking away from Katsumi to address the group as a whole once more. "With that, we wish you the best of luck on this missions, and expect great things from the three of you." With that he would usher the three of them out of the tent.

Ayame would do as she was instructed, stepping out of the tent into the comforting warmth of the dessert morning. Ayame would stretch her arms a bit, and assuming the other two followed her outside she'd say "Looks like we've got an exciting day ahead of us huh?" She'd say turning to face them both. "So.. Any plans on how we want to go about this?" She'd pose the question to the two of them. Normally she'd be the type to just charge straight in and do things head first, but that didn't seem like that would really work all that well for the mission at hand. In addition, the man who gave them their mission seemed to want Katsumi to sort of take the lead on this one, so she'd at least hear what he had to say before she acted.

---

WC: 1147
Total WC: 4689

Not long after Katsumi pushed his way in, the flap of the tent would open again and another boy entered, similar in style to Katsumi with messy hair but his brown. Taking a quick look around as Katsumi would step to the side and let him enter into the room while taking a full view of it all, he would shift the headband on his arm to signify his allegiance, getting a silent nod in response from Katsumi himself.

He quickly turned himself to the other girl and announced his arrival for a mission while introducing himself as Takashi with the other girl being Ayame. Katsumi would stay quiet and watch the conversation unfold from his spot in the back, not interrupting or choosing to insert himself needlessly. Their conversation ended quickly and soon the special jounin in charge stepped forward to take the lead in the conversation and began dolling out their orders. Simply to go out and scout the area for refugees and other points of interest without jeopardizing themselves or the mission to gather it all. It seemed rather dull but Katsumi watched patiently and kept to himself, standing still and watching the one in charge diligently.

As he thumbed through things and made it clear they had the reigns for their own mission here, he began to process through things, wondering how the others would want to handle things or operate on the mission. His concentration would be broken as he would reveal that both of his mission partners were Suna natives, it brought him internally on his toes as he instantly would have questions about their pasts and who they were but also knew he'd have to quell his tongue a bit around them. Avoiding those particular topics about Sunagakure that many ninjas in the area would spread, conversations wondering why they were involving themselves so heavily in a country that couldn't even stand on its own.

His internal musing would be broken as the mission giver turned towards Katsumi and revealed he was here only to be the face of Iwa and hold the squad to a higher standard. It brought a small weight into the bottom of his stomach as he wondered what that actually meant for their mission. Was he supposed to take the lead and show them how Iwa ninja operated on missions or was he merely to fill the roster and was available while being one of their own? It almost made him grit his teeth but the jounin in charge turned off from him almost immediately to the others to send them about their way and moving them out of the tent.

Katsumi was met by what seemed a blaring sun and great discomfort but at the same time, the girl seemed at home in it before turning to them and asking how they wanted to make their plan. Was this Katsumi's chance to shine and take charge? If that's what he was here for then he better not waste it, and the passiveness in her response led him to think it might be best if he got the first word out in response.

"I think we'd better off setting a perimeter and following around the outskirts of the waste looking in." he would stand plainly and continue on while looking back and forth between his two comrades. "And as he said, I'm Katsumi. Probably best I actually introduce myself too..." he would speak calmly and with a bit of light-heartedness in his tone trying to stay friendly with the two of them. All the while Katsumi would be watching them carefully, knowing the showman in himself would cover up his motives while he gathered his first impressions and understanding of them.


[630 words, 1663 words total]

[Exit Thread]
[1663 words total] (not taking mission)
[7509 words for entire thread] ~ 3 EP

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