The air back in the Land of Lightning brought back old memories. The place of his old stomping grounds. He hadn’t stood on this country’s soil in years. He remembered his former service to the daimyo of this land. His service was abruptly ended when he became a prisoner of war. He never bothered to return to the service of the lord. It was surely pointless at this point. The memory of his imprisonment and the fact that his nation didn’t do anything to rescue him caused him to spit on the ground. The body he spent years training had wasted away. Some of the muscle tone had been returned, but it was nothing like it was before. It was a shadow of what it was and he came to accept that. There seemed to be nothing that could get in his way of returning his body to its former glory. Though, it was a struggle. It was like his body was rejecting going back to its former state. The strength he had previously attained also seemed to a far cry from what it was. Jerrick just shook his head and continued to move forward up the road. He made his way toward Kumogakure no Sato. It was a village that he had yet to visit since his official release from the Daimyo’s service.

The mission he was tasked with a simple one. The Tsuchikage had sent him and a number of others out to recruit mercenaries for Iwa’s cause. He took pride that the Tsuchikage would choose him. Jerrick wasn’t sure if Lord Tsuchikage knew about his family ties. It may have been simpler for Jerrick to send a letter to his father asking for troops. Why not recruit his own clan to help fight for Iwagakure? The thought crossed his mind a few times, but his father may have said otherwise. His father still had control of the clan and he didn’t want to try and invade on whatever his father had planned. A while back he was given a letter that a Kumo nin had visited one of the fortresses and asked the Shinkai for assistance with the former Lord Hastur. The Shinkai didn’t have to lift a finger as the Raikage died without their assistance. Jerrick wondered how he was going to accomplish this. He knew of other mercenary groups that were probably begging for work. At least he had a back up plan if this one didn’t work out. Jerrick was trying to establish a base of operations on the northern shore of Tsuchi no Kuni. That hadn’t been working out as well as he had planned, but he figured that he could ask the Lord Tsuchikage for permission. Next time he saw his leader, he would definitely ask.

Jerrick started to see the gate of Kumogakure appear in the distance. The gate had no improvements since the last time he crossed it. He had almost forgotten how beautiful the village was. There wasn’t much time to gander around at the gate and get all up in his nostalgia. The mission was to be his primary focused. Anything that deviated from that would have to wait. Jerrick would have to muster up where in the village he would go first. He wanted to go the bar. Bars were pretty good places for mercenary recruitment, but it was a bit too early in the day for that. Jerrick decided that he would need to find a place where he would find recruitment fairly simplistically. The thoughts that he had started to travel to the underground fight clubs. Him and a few soldiers had some fun back in the day. A few spots like that were spread out in certain locations. Some mercenary groups recruited from the fight clubs and it was probably his best bet. So, it was going to be his first stop. It was time for him to make his way to a fight club. Funny thing is the closing one just so happened to be a bar. For some reason, he didn’t think about it before.

It took a short walk as there was a seemingly large store front bar. The sign at the front said “open” and he stopped short of the double doors. The doors caused him to sigh. He loved to fight, but he didn’t have a plan if he was beaten to a pulp. Without thinking about it twice, he opened the door on the left while adjusting his travel bag. Looking around the bar, there seem to be a good number of people here. It wasn’t something he was used to seeing during the middle of the day. That was unless he ended up in the wrong bars within Iwagakure. The bar was awfully well kept than what he last remembered. The place normally had broken chairs and tables from fighting, but he wondered what had changed within the last eight years. Well, he figured that he would sit down and see what he could hear. He didn’t care for drinking when he had a mission, but Lord Tsuchikage didn’t necessarily give him a time frame. There was a brief sigh as he made his way to a stool and placed his bag onto the closest one next to him.

The Shinkai placed both his elbows on the counter as he locked his fingers together. His nose slightly rested on his knuckles as he started to get lost in thought. It was as while before the female bartender addressed him. He quickly snapped out of it as he looked at her. The woman was a lot shorter than he was and she was just the way he like his woman. Jerrick smiled slightly at the dark haired woman that stood across from him. The lady had to only be a couple of years younger than of him. It had been awhile since he had spent time to talk with a mature woman. His mind had been caught with training that he didn’t even think about possibly finding an equal. Though he loved the company of woman, he needed to stay focused. Jerrick would also need to stay attempt to not draw too much attention to himself. He found it a good thing that he never got around to getting a shinobi headband. Jerrick also made sure to wear a long sleeve shirt to cover his tattoos. The one thing he couldn’t hide was his body size. Though, he didn’t really hold a candle to the size of the Tsuchikage. The Shinkai was probably one of the biggest people in here outside of the bodyguard that sat in the corner. He remembered the hulking man from his past. It brought him some closure that somethings here didn’t change.

“Sir, may I help you?” the woman asked.

“Ah yes. I would like to get some whiskey. Anything dark.” Jerrick responded. A thirst started to develop as he started to feel a need for a drink.

“Oh you seem like a top shelf kind of guy.”

“You have quite an eye. I don’t need anything that exquisite. I’ll take the basic amenities.”

“Thanks, how about one drink on the house. Jerrick?”

“How do you know my name?”

“You wouldn’t forget a familiar face of a fellow clansmen would you?”

Jerrick’s face looked like he saw a spectur. The woman did look quite familiar and he, at first, couldn’t put his finger on it. Then he remembered her face back within his former unit as well as a young girl that he occasionally spent time with in his younger days. He couldn’t believe that he would see this woman again.

“Freida, how have you been? It’s been ages.”

“I’ve been doing quite well. I’ll get you a drink and then we can talk more privately. There’s something that you maybe able to help us with.”

“I’ll see what I can do.”

Freida placed a mug onto the bar and poured warm whiskey out for him. Jerrick put the mug to his lips and slowly sipped the brandy. It was excellent. Freida definitely knew how to settle a Shinkai’s soul. The whiskey was one of his favorites. When he saw the bottle being poured, his heart had prematurely jumped in his chest. This was something good that he took in. Jerrick felt a little better with whiskey in his belly. It was definitely a prize. The idea of him completing his mission seemed to give him inner strength. Though, he was concerned about what was requested of him. He found it strange that he was asked after not seeing a woman who he had spent significant time just asked him for help. Whatever it was, he would need to see what was up. Freida was a strong and passionate woman. Now that he thought about it, she was probably one of the bravest in his unit. He also had some questions to ask her, but he figured that he could wait.

After finishing his drink, he nodded to her and another bartender took her place as they left the main area of the bar and went into the basement. The basement was quite packed. It was a lot deeper than it was the last time he remembered. He wondered if they made it deeper on purpose. Freida led him through the basement that had quite a few individuals that loomed around the poorly lit area. Jerrick new none of them. There faces were cold and yet calculated. Jerrick made sure to make eye contact with them. It was to give them the impression that he wasn’t to be toyed with. Plus, he wasn’t sure of the company they kept down here. As he walked, he could barely make a sizeable octagon fighting ring. It definitely wasn’t the same one he fought those many years ago. The place had changed and it seemed like it was for the better.

The dark haired woman led him to a large office space. A few individuals stood talking to each other quite aggressively. The door behind them closed as he looked back and noticed the man’s clothes. It was similar to his current tunic. Looking forward, he noticed another man he hadn’t seen in awhile. The man stood about 6’9 with dark skin. He wore heavy armor and wielded a great sword. The man’s hair color matched his own only thicker. The man’s hair was locked and hung down over his shoulders…Lord Ulgon. The man was just as scary as he was back when he saw him a few years back. He really questioned what was going on. Questions started to flood his mind about what was truly going on. What was he doing here. He hadn’t spoken to the man in what seemed like forever.

“Suzerain Ulgon and Commander Anzu, I present Lord Jerrick of Kaminari...excuse me...Tsuchi no Kuni.”

“Thanks you, Freida. It’s been a long time since I last saw you, my son,” the large man stated

“Father. Commander. It’s good to see the both of you. It’s kind of early for the joint clan meeting isn’t it?”

The commander smiled slightly before she started speaking, “We’re not here for that cousin. There is a different matter we need to bring up. It’s about the things happening in recent events. Each Hidden Village seems to be conquering land. We’ve pretty much stayed out of the fight so far. You know we’ve had a hand in the black market for awhile. Though, it seems like it may be time for a change. Years have kept our two halves of the clan apart, but we’re thinking about having an amnesty and joining the two together.”

“Join the sects? I was originally going to ask Father when about setting up a base in Tsuchi no Kuni, but this seems like it may interfere with that.”

The commander and the suzerain looked at each other. It was rare that the two of them were in the same room. The fact that they brought up joining the sects even temporarily must have meant that things were a lot worse than he knew. Jerrick hadn’t been keeping up with the world’s events. He only told one person about him traveling to Kumogakure. That individual must have relayed the message to his father, but that didn’t explain the presence of the commander. Jerrick wasn’t sure on what he should ask next. It was definitely interesting to see both of them here. It also made him wonder about the whereabouts of his sister. He hadn’t seen Ragna or heard from her since Sunagakure was wiped off the map.

“Jerrick, we understand that you were looking for mercenaries to join your cause. I have actually offered men from one of the mercenary units I control. They’re not from my unit. I will need them to help protect our assets. We’re not too sure of any of the village leaders and how they will act in the future. There is no way that we are openly saying that we can solely support each other. Though we’re talking about joining the sects, we can’t leave our respective locations...unoccupied.”

“I see. I appreciate it, father."

“Also, I approve of your request to put a base in Tsuchi no Kuni. Just let me know the details later on."

“Sure thing, sir.”

“Jerrick, I will also send mercenaries that I have stationed in Mizu no Kuni. Like the suzerain said, we can’t openly fly our flags. The mercenaries we’re sending will have a few are from our blood. The others are merely canon fodder and only seek ryo. We’ll give you a letter of approval from both sects to your Tsuchikage with our alternative seals. Building a base in Tsuchi no Kuni will provide us with more movement in the world. You do have a sharp mind. Oh yes, you will also be taking my half-sister Freida with you as well. She’s going to help keep the mercenaries in line.”

“I appreciate the assistance, commander. What else did you need from me?”

“We need to you help with the extermination of a gang. It was said that there are some jashinist that are still around that are causing trouble for our convoys. It would be easy enough to request a mission to oust them, but it could take months for it to get approved since Hastur is dead. We already have the details about their camp. It’s deep within the mountains. We’re sending in our clansmen to help, so don’t get discouraged. Destroy their camp and take no treasure. Purge everything. Do well and I may even make you a jarl within the clan. Though, I would like to see you make jonin before I do this. Show me your true power.”

“A...jarl?! Father...I’m not sure what to say.”

“Say nothing. We’ll convene with you later. Get some rest and take a load off. We plan to strike tomorrow.”

Jerrick looked to Freida as they both placed their fist against their chest in a salute exited the room. Jerrick continued to converse with Freida. They both exited the bar and started to take a stroll around the village. As they walked, Freida informed him of what happened to her after both of them became prisoners of war. What happened to her was gruesome. The thought of it ticked Jerrick off a bit caused him to crush his canteen in his hand. It just reminded him of the torment and the pain he himself went through. Jerrick and to tell himself that it was over and he didn’t have to deal with that ever again. He also needed to take a break. As he walked, he noticed a shinobi with a leather kasa while carrying two katana on his side. A long ponytail could be seen from underneath the kasa. Walking with the shinobi was...a tiger cub?!

2724

Jerrick rubbed his eyes as he sat up in his bed. He quickly looked around his room at the inn as he would scan it for anything potentially being out of place. It was early morning. The sun hadn’t yet peaked over the horizon. Jerrick picked up his watch and checked the time. It was 0245. It was way too early for him to awake. Though, it didn’t hit him until he realized that there was a persistent knocking at his door. He wasn’t sure how long it had been going on, but he figured it was what was waking him up. The experienced warrior stood up and shook himself a bit. His feet shuffled their way to the door as slapped himself a couple of times in the face. The door was slowly unlocked as he did open it. Freida stood within the door and sort of forced her way in. Jerrick knew it wasn’t worth the energy to keep her from getting in. That was something that he slightly remembered. There was a saying that there was no wrath like a woman scorned. Well, Shinkai women could easily double that. Jerrick had been generally stayed calm, but neither one of them needed to get into a fight. He didn’t want to have to pay his host damages. Though, he wasn’t sure of why his clansman had visited so early.

“Jerrick, it’s time.You need to get ready. The mission is going to start soon.”

“Fine fine. I’ll get ready.”

There wasn’t much he could do, but get himself ready. He quickly bathed himself and put on and put on his clothes. The last things that he put on were his boots and his axe. He stared at the woman that sat on his bed with his chain in her hand. She asked if she could use it on the mission. Jerrick agreed to her request. He would mostly would be using his own bare hands. The lord had moved away from using weapons in favor of trying to use his hands more. Jerrick had discovered that he had an innate ability in hand to hand combat. There had been no shortage of proof of his skill. Growing up on the coast of Kaminari no Kuni, one of the first things that he was taught was to use his hands. Rather by weapon or barehanded he was taught how to defend himself. Even in the military, they were taught the basics of hand to hand if their weapon had been destroyed or if they were disarmed. The chain was in much better quality than his axe, but he considered himself competent.

“Alright, lead the way Freida. Let’s show them the power of the Shinkai.”

The two left his room at the inn and began traveling toward the wilderness outside of Kumo’s borders. They discussed different things going on in the world and even brought Jerrick up to speed on things happening in the clan. He had purposely distanced himself from the things going on. Jerrick wasn’t sure on what he was going to do when he originally thought he removed himself from his father’s watchful eye. There had been rumors, after he was rescued, that the mercenary band he ran with was being sponsored by his father. The fact that his father had been spying on him was enraging. At the same time, it did make him appreciative of the training his father had provided. He would have never made it through the years of torture he endured without it. What real father wouldn’t be worried for his own child? Jerrick did feel like he was too old to be under the watchful eye of his father. What he thought or believed didn’t truly matter. As long as his father didn’t truly interfere with his current affairs in a way that he would consider negatively. It truly wasn’t that much of a problem.

They arrived at approximately 0350 as they did attempt to make as much progress as possible. Shinkai were not truly well known for their speed. The arrived in the dark with barely any light to lead them. There was an old abandoned fortress that stood on the border of the country. It was lit up like a lamp in a cave. There was no way it could be hidden. Though, it was miles off of the beaten path. They met up with a group of Shinkai that stood on the north side of the fortress. The fortress had an old dilapidated temple that sat on the western edge. Jerrick could see that there was already a plan in motion as he listened to the others talk about how the op would be easy. He knew better than to engage in that type of talk. To underestimate the enemy would be the downfall of many men. Striking a tree in his anger, he left an impression of his fist. Before whispering loudly.

“You idiots. Don’t judge the enemy based on your own perceived basis of your strength. Get your heads in order,” he commanded aggressively.

The group instantly became quiet. They looked back toward the man who just spoke and fear fled into their hearts. The men and women became stiff. A mixture of mercenaries and Shinkai alike. He heard a whisper from among them. One question the man in front of him, “Lord Jerrick?” The Iwagakure shinobi didn’t respond. He was over the talk of underestimating their opponent. The reason he acted the way he did wasn’t because he was an officer in the military. It was to make sure that they took their future actions seriously. He wasn’t sure if part of these individuals were the men that his father had promised him or were from a different group altogether. Whomever these men belonged to, he didn’t want to take any chances. Jerrick didn’t want to have any dead men or clansmen on his conscious. He known enough death in his life.

The men finally got themselves together and updated Jerrick and Freida on how they were set up. They even let him know that Jerrick’s close cousin was leading the assault. Like Jerrick, his cousin was also quite formidable in his taijutsu. They were about the same age. His cousin had about a couple of years on him. When they fought as kids, his cousin would always get the better of him. Unlike Jerrick, his cousin was probably on the level of those of A-rank based on his accomplishments. His cousin hadn’t experienced the feeling of degenerating muscles day after day. When Jerrick asked about how the strike would commence, they pointed down to the old bridge and saw his cousin standing in the middle. There was a lot of questions he wanted to ask, but he was quickly told that the group he was with were going to scale the wall of the fortress. The temple would be the last place they would clear. The group started moving as he continued to watch his cousin on the bridge. The older man was always showy with the way he did things. It was no surprise that he would in what seeming was alone through the front door.

A man that was adorned in steel plated greaves approached the fortress on the stone bridge. The man was shirtless having exposed his multiple body tattoos. The Shinkai clan mark showed proudly on the man’s left pectoral. He slowly walked up to the front gate as two guards with spears approached him. They warned him to halt. The man continued to walk with absolute authority. It was like the very air around him was commanded to bring the pressure of defeat. They pointed their spears toward him and moved forward. The man was an immovable force. The spears broke on the man’s dark skin. The man seemed to laugh as the two guards in front of him dropped what was left of their spears and froze. The Shinkai clansmen had lifted the two guards into the air. One hand had been on each one of their throats. The guards became limp as a quick snap incapacitated the both of them. The man then continued to walk up to the iron gate that blocked his view. The bandits on the other side just stared at each other. They were lost on what to do. One of the bandits asked another if they should sound the alarm. The other didn’t responded.

The leader of the Shinkai strike force paused as he began as he started to take controlled breaths. The man circled one foot from in front of him to his rear having taken on a low posture. His front foot came down hard followed by another foot forward. The next stomp that followed his rear fist moving forward as a massive green storm of flames covered the entire gate. A loud explosion rung out across the entirety of the fortress. Jerrick almost stopped in his place as his squad was scaling the wall. He almost couldn’t believe the difference in abilities that existed between the two of them. Jerrick wanted to see what was going on, but he could only figure from the sound what was going on. They could hear the sound of a gong being thrashed violently. The strike had officially begun.

As he reached the top of the wall, there was a man that was standing near the edge that didn’t even recognize their presence. Though, it was now too late for him. The time the man noticed and was about to say something, Jerrick grabbed him by the collar and pulled him off the side of the wall. The man screamed until his voice could no longer be heard. The made their way on the top of the wall as about ten opponents, all with weapons, stood among them. There were about six of them in total. Jerrick told them to make sure they attacked swiftly. Freida didn’t even wait for him to get his words out. She was already taking on two guys at once. Jerrick chuckled as he move into fight a man on his own. The fight lasted awhile as they weren’t truly a heavy hitter like his cousin was or even like some of the other mercenaries. The squad was able to take out the men out without too much of a problem. The men he fought side by side with were more than capable of handling themselves than he thought. This was good. He needed good men who were able to handle themselves in battle. One of the men spoke out and stated that they needed to start heading to the temple. Jerrick nodded as he was only taking a sort of a backseat to all of this or so he thought. The group ended up fighting their way to the temple. Though, they didn't stop moving. They continued to push their way forward.

The fortress was filled with old cabins that were mostly destroyed. Jerrick noticed the mercenaries were holding their own ground. A few of the Shinkai he could tell had set ablaze most of the cabins. All sort of weapons were flying around against the enemy alight with various techniques. He could see his cousin barely breaking a sweat. It was good to see a member of the clan fighting so well against so many. Jerrick also noticed that they greatly outnumbered the bandits that were here. It just so happened that they ended up on the side of the fortress with a large portion of them. That was fine with Jerrick. There wasn’t much he was willing to let get in his way. Plus, he needed to let off some steam. It wasn’t everyday you were able to raid a fortress with your fellow clansmen.

The battle went on as it was clear who was going to be victorious. His squad had made it to the temple. The large buildings condition made him question if it was safe to enter or not. The order was to breach it, so he wasn’t going to fight a command. The group started to move toward the front doors as they began opening on their own. A woman appeared dripping with blood from inside the temple. She had a ceremonial dagger in her hand. Jerrick instantly went into a basic wushu stance. The other members of his squad also went into defensive stances. The woman was a tad bit shorter than Jerrick, but she was a lot thinner. She wore a celestial bronze mask and had a talisman that he instantly recognized. Jashin. The Iwa nin wondered how they were supposed to go about this. She was seemingly alone. Jerrick thought they could take her all at once at first, but there was something about her that was off. The men started to move forward on her, but Jerrick called them back. The woman then started to speak with an eerie tone that put shivers down his spine.

“Who willing brings themselves to be another sacrifice to our lord, Jashin!” the Jashinist woman exclaimed.

“You can die by my hand, cultist,” Freida stated as she told the men to back off.

“No, you can die by our hand,” Jerrick stated cockily.

Jerrick and Freida nodded at each other as the men backed off. Jerrick thought that the least they could do was hold the woman off until his cousin had arrived. He didn’t want any of his squadmates to die, though he smiled as another Shinkai armed with a sword and shield appeared. The newcomer was adorned in scaled armor from the neck down. Jerrick nodded to him as they all moved into fighting stances. They would do what they could to slow her down. He felt that they had a fighting chance, but they weren’t aware of any of her abilities. The woman seemed to chuckle like she was unfazed by having to take on three warriors at once. It wasn’t long before they woman began her assault. She was sick and tired of them just standing around.

Freida was the first to be attacked as Jerrick could barely keep up with the woman’s speed at first. This stirred his anger. As the woman was occupied with his fellow clansman, Jerrick took a thrust with his fist aiming for the woman’s lower ribs. The woman flinched a bit, but instantly countered with a kick to his abdomen. Jerrick got pushed backwards a few meters before landing on his chest. The other Shinkai with the silver armor's shield started to glow white. He lunged forward and lifted the woman into the air with a quick charge. She flipped up about thirty meters before she started to fall. The woman started forming hand seals as a gush of water formed from her mouth on the outskirts of her mask. Jerrick stood up as he got knocked back down. His other two clansmen held their ground. The man with the sword and shield tapped his sword on his shield three times as the water from her attack started to absorb into his sword. Freida, using Jerrick’s chain, latched the chain around the woman’s leg as she got close and brought the woman toward the ground. Jerrick stood up and started to rush in his anger toward the falling woman. He leaped into the air as she was falling and unsheathed his axe. Jerrick slashed the woman across the waste as he continued his stride to the side.

They thought they had her. Their effort almost seemed for naught. The woman landed on her two feet regardless of Freida’s efforts. Jerrick’s blade landed a hit and caused her to begin bleeding. Though, it seemed like nothing affected her. Freida started to form hand seals and slammed her hand on the ground. A spike emerged from the ground and impaled the woman from behind. The other clansmen with the sword and shield held his blade to the sky as it became surrounded with water and lightning. He leaped into the air and brought his sword down with a vengeance. The initial impact cracked the woman’s mask. The masked crumble revealing the woman’s face. She was older than Jerrick was by a couple of decades at the very least. Though, she was able to toss them around like rag dolls. Well, toss around Jerrick at least.

The fight seemed to continue on as the woman kept taking damage and not truly seeming to be damaged. Jerrick felt like they literally could have filled a bathtub with her blood at this point. Time went on as the three of them had become tired and weakened. The woman laughed in their face as she started to lift the Shinkai with the shield up by his collar. The ceremonial dagger in her hand started to move toward the man’s throat. A giant boom elevated the dust and dirt around the area. The woman had been knocked to her stomach. The ceremonial dagger she had and the man she picked up were gone. Jerrick looked around trying to figure out what was happening. Eventually, the dust had settled as it began to rain. Jerrick had forced himself out of his kneeling position. He slightly coughed up blood. The man in the silver armor was down on both of his knees and breathing heavily next to him. The woman slowly stood up as she was searching for her dagger. A deep voice cut through the rain as other mercenaries and Shinkai started to run toward the temple doors.

“My squad, clear the temple. I’ll deal with this wretched piece of filth. No one dares disrespect my clansmen.”

Freida stood to her feet as she was ready to fight, but the leader of the strike team told her to sit back. Jerrick wasn't sure if he was happy or upset that he had to be saved by his cousin. The man known as the one man army of the Shinkai. Jerrick always dreamed of maintaining that level of power. He smiled as he thought about facing his enemies in a state like that. The man brought great honor to the clan. Though, he hated that he could down the woman they had spent the last twenty minutes or so fighting. He wasn’t trying to spend any more time on his knees. Jerrick even walked over to his associate clansman in the silver armor and helping him to his feet, to attempt to not bring dishonor to any of them.

“Lord Jerrick, it’s nice to see you again after all these years. How long has it been a decade? No matter. I’ll clean this up.”

“Heh heh...Jormungand, you’re sure do live up your name don’t you.”

“Don’t you know it. Before I forget, your sister said she’s gonna kick your ass for not writing her.. Ragna definitely is way too feisty.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

Jormungand completed a series of hand seals as he walked up to the woman’s body. The large man then threw his hand into the woman’s back as a seal appeared all over the woman’s body. The woman’s body reacted from the strike as the ground under her crumbled even more than it had previously. The seal on the woman’s back ceased to continue spreading and she was no longer able to move. Men then came out of the temple and informed Jormungand that there seemed to be some ritual that was being performed and all that was left was a fresh corpse. The large man commanded them to destroy everything and that he wanted the place to be purified with fire. Jerrick didn’t see why they shouldn’t turn the place to ash. The fortress was already falling apart. Maybe it would also keep anyone else from settling it. Anything that was left was worth saving was destroyed due to battle. Jormungand then commanded everyone to prepare for departure. He picked up the Jashinist and threw her seemingly lifeless body over his shoulder. The next thing they did was pick up all of the dead or wounded comrades and clear out the fortress. They attempted to make sure no ally casualty was left behind. The next thing they would do was to have everyone exit the fortress. After everyone cleared out, four mercenaries stood alone as they completed hand seals and exhaled a large flame that seemed to engulf every bit of the fortress. The remaining four then left leaving a large pyre of flames in the middle of the dark forest.

Jerrick help the man with the silver armor back to a forward camp that was set up earlier in the day. It was a time before he even arrived. As they walked, he ended up getting to know the man. The man’s name was Erikson. He happened to be a retired shinobi from Kirigakure that was working under the Shinkai's Commander. The two of them shared a few stories and found themselves to be quite similar. Though, they did have their differences. Jerrick promised to buy the man a drink when they returned back to the village. The mission his father and the Tsuchikage gave him seemed to finally be over. All that was left was wait around to see what would happen next. He hoped to get some training in while he was here. Maybe, he could learn something new from his cousin Jormungand.


[Thread Exit]

3640/6364

Stat Training:

[750(3)=2250] Strength: D-0 -> D-3
[750(2)=1500] Endurance: D-0 -> D-2
[750(2)=1500] Dexterity: D-1 -> D-3
Total Stat WC: 4500

1114 wc remaining