(OOC: This mission is private, as it has reached its maximum number of participants. The participants are as follows: myself, Yuudai, Syekren and Tsuneo. Please post within 36 hours of the post preceding yours, if it is your turn to post. Any amount of time past 36 hours, and your post will be skipped in interest of finishing the mission. Additional details on the mission itself can be found here.)

A gloomy blanket of dark clouds reached over the skies of Kirigakure that evening, obscuring all of the stars but for some reason keeping the moon in plain sight, like an oracle of the heavens. It looked down on the people of the world, casting its eery glow over the shadows. Daraku sat there, atop a level stone. In the middle of this forestland, he found himself looking up at that oracle, the moonlight that caressed his face, that represented so much more than just the large, pale body that it was. Keeping his crystal blue eyes gazing upon the firmament above, he imagined his clansmen back home, looking back and thinking of him. He felt the connection again, despite being so far, when exposed to its silvery slimmer. At in that moment, just for the slightest of seconds, he felt at peace with life itself. Reality came back with a biting vengeance--it didn’t take long for Daraku to remember that he was in the middle of a warground, and he needed to be wary of his surroundings. No time to sit around and stare at the night sky, regardless of how peaceful and oddly comforting it was. He was on a mission, and he’d be damned if he failed to complete it. In fact, he was running out of time, but that was a separate matter than his focus. He had a squad accompanying him on this task, and he wasn’t enough of a fool to go in alone and risk being killed. So, there he waited, impatiently tapping his right foot against the base of the boulder which he was seated upon.

The paranoia began to overtake the Ishido’s mind as he heard a sound nearby. He unsheathed one of his swords, Nisebi, and held it to the origin of the noise. It was a large number of dead leaves in a pile, most likely from the inhospitable weather of this area and the winter season, but the leaves weren’t the problem; it was whatever was hiding in them. Daraku ought not have worried all that much, considering most ninja couldn’t manage fitting in a pile of leaves so effectively, but the possibility of it being a creature sent by the enemy was what made him nervous. His blonde hair fell to the left as he pulled a swift spin and slashed downward, stabbing the creature within the dry plants. Not another sound was made, but he felt the tip of his blade sink into flesh and reach bone, before he removed it and wiped the blood on the wet grass below. The victim of said attack revealed itself to be a mouse, now a corpse atop a bed of fallen foliage. What a wonderful casket for such an innocent creature. Daraku sighed, letting go of his fears as best he could which he waited for the other three. It would be a tedious wait if he jumped up to kill a mouse every few minutes. He let something take his attention away, pulling a note from his armor and unfolding it. They were the mission details, as well as compiled profiles of some of the Seven Bells clansmen that he would be facing soon; a group called the Kuraichi, who were powerful experts of medical ninjutsu that had taken captives from the village in order to do some unsavory experiments on them before turning them into human puppets.

The person who stood out most in these profiles was Shinju, a woman of the Kaguya clan who was schizophrenic and also the supposed leader of the Kuraichi. She was the only one of the them who was to be kept alive and brought back to Kirigakure no Sato for interrogation. Daraku read over her information multiple times to keep it fresh in his mind before slipping the note back into his pocket. Kaguya, Shinju, eh? The mission says not to kill her, which is a disappointment--but she seems like quite the devastating adversary. I want her to myself...I’ll bring her to the brink of death and make her beg for her life before I return her to the village. he thought to himself with a prideful thirst for carnage. From the moment he had arrived in Kirigakure, it was apparent that the war had changed this place. Everyone seemed...unhappy, at best. Corpses lined the streets, skirmishes happened everywhere, it was a full-on war between a village and missing ninja. One would expect a violent, narcissistic criminal like Daraku to be on the side of the missing ninja, but that wasn’t what he was here for. He had come to help the Aoi Bara and thus he was on Kirigakure’s side by default. Part of him also pitied the village, so why not take their side and help out? Either way, he got powerful opponents to kill, both as a test of his mettle and a service to the village, so he was pleased with the situation as is.

Shifting behind Daraku alerted his attention, human footsteps by the sound of it, but he kept completely still. Without bothering to ambush the person or even turn around to face them, he spoke from where he was in a calm tone. "I hear you, over there. My ears are pretty sensitive, so don’t think you could’ve slipped by me anyway. Before you even try to get any closer, just tell me now. Are you one of the people in my squad…" he propped up Nisebi to keep the weapon in clear sight, ready to strike if necessary, "or are you one of the Kuraichi bastards I’m after?"

(954/4,000)

It was one of the few times he had left the village walls in the past few days, the only other time he had ventured out had been for one sole purpose, clashing heads with the Seven Bells himself. That encounter was one of a kind, one that certainly wouldn’t want to be revisited as far as the Aisu clan head was concerned. The scenery around the village was deteriorating on a daily basis, the continuous attacks certainly chipping away at the foundations of Kirigakure no Sato. Few buildings, areas, had been left untouched from the disastrous situation that struck the Village Hidden in the Mist in the heart. The rare chance to see something preserved certainly was something to soak in, as another rebuild of the city would need to be accomplished, though as it currently stood, it wouldn’t need to be as major as the last one. However, given time, who knew how much damage Yuudai’s home village would be struck with before he would have to experience even worse damage not only to his person, but to the village as well. His own injuries were minor, just irritating at the moment, though his bandages were still on underneath his clothing, having changed them earlier in the day when he had woken up. Failing was no longer an option as far as the Aisu was concerned, given the state of Kirigakure no Sato at the moment. If anybody, anybody, tried to pose any kind of thread against the Village Hidden in the Mist, he would no longer hesitate to attempt the elimination of their being.

With the night sky looming over the village, it was certainly obvious that this threat needed to be attended to, especially with the amount of casualties continuing to slowly pile up even more. Once the working for the village and now against it, the Seven Bells clan had to be disposed of as soon as possible. Yuudai had assumed he’d be done for the day just mere minutes ago, but a message from the twins alerted him otherwise, he was required to assist a squad in order to save some residents of Kirigakure no Sato, a task that was accepted without hesitation. While knowing he would be chided mildly due to his recklessness, but such was his life. A life of being a protector in an essence. His own nature dictated that he’d risk himself in order to make sure the people he severely cared about, the people who lived in his home village, would remain secure and being able to live a life that they wished to continue. So, such was his duty as a shinobi, a Sannin, an Aisu, and as Yuudai to perform the required steps in order to ensure such things would be preserved.

As he made his way to the designated location to group up with the squad, his curiosity surely was piqued when the twins stated they weren’t shinobi of the village, thus he’d remain more cautious than he normally would. With outsiders came the sense of being in an unknown element, not knowing their true allegiances, thus a wary guard was best kept. The moonlight gleamed down, hitting the hilts of both his katanas kept in their sheaths on his right side, as Serpent’s Tongue resided by itself on the opposing end. The Seventh Sword of the Mist had helped him thus far, but he knew he was far from being a perfectionist with the weapon, however much a perfectionist could be with such an illusive weapon. His feet carried him to the given area, as he was already mentally aware of it’s location from years of residing in the Land of Water, thus being accustomed to the area. As a Sannin, he felt it best to be aware of his surroundings, one strike and it could be over, and who knew who’d be lurking in the shadows of the night with all this carnage going on around the village. Side stepping trees as he continued on forward, Yuudai knew he had approached the location where he would meet up with the others whom would be aiding in this attempt to saving the civilians, saving them from a fate of becoming a puppet of the Seven Bells.

It hadn’t even taken moments for the person to be aware of his presence, one he was aware of, and not hiding his own at all. If he wanted to approach these people whom had no direct ties to the Village Hidden in the Mist, best to take the direct approach, not bothering to sneak up on there beings. He was surely capable of it, though the lone figure there may have the potential to detect him regardless of the situation in place. His ears perked, different sound waves entering his ear drums, sound waves not related to that of nature or anything that was produced in the far off distance. No, this was from the one person in the area in which he arrived. "I hear you, over there. My ears are pretty sensitive, so don’t think you could’ve slipped by me anyway. Before you even try to get any closer, just tell me now. Are you one of the people in my squad…or are you one of the Kuraichi bastards I’m after?" Well, that certainly was a colourful way to meet one's supposed allies. Entering the others line of sight, Yuudai's eyes scanned over the person, calculating on how he should handle this. Surely the man was on his side, but the address had certainly turned Yuudai's disposition of the person foul at the moment. "Best to know your place before you make wild assumptions. If I had wanted you dead, we wouldn't be speaking right now, would we?" Rhetorical, void, and empty. Those were how the words came out at the moment. Surely if this person had thought he was an enemy, he would've hidden his presence and attacked without a second thought instead of calmly walking in to the vicinity.

---

Daraku finally turned to hear the person's reply. It was a tall man with long, violet hair, and a cold aura about him. "Best to know your place before you make wild assumptions. If I had wanted you dead, we wouldn't be speaking right now, would we?" Daraku held back a laugh. He supposed that was true, but still wouldn't admit it to anyone. In his mind, he was near-invincible until forced into submission, simple as that. "Riiiight, of course, I'll get to 'knowing my place' at some point. I like you, you seem to think you're pretty powerful and that means we have something in common. Call me Daraku." he didn't bother to ask the man's name, figuring he would instead give the guy a nickname to irritate him in the meantime. "So, creepyman, if you're speaking to me, you are on my squad. Thanks for the answer." He stood up, fixing his hair for a moment before slipping his hand into his pocket. More footsteps were coming, so there must've been someone else. He didn't make his way to leave just yet.

The new person was someone Daraku recognized on-sight, the kid from Konoha who had joined the Aoi Bara back when Tame was recruited. The Ishido took a moment to imagine Tame's butt and how nice it was before trying to remember the kid's name. Did he ever get the kid's name at all? He supposed not, nothing was coming to mind but "kid". He came into clear sight and spoke loudly. "Whoa! It's Blondie!" What?! Did he really just call him blondie again? Daraku remembered that nickname from back when they recruited him, but hearing it again only made him despise it more. He didn't usually mind being blonde, as it set him akin to his mother and was one of the only ways he looked like her, but when people commented on it, he wanted to gut them. Fast and hard. He stared at the boy with resentment. "Don't call me that. My name is Daraku. Nice to see you too, kid." The boy went on, giving another "Whoa! You're that Sannin, what's your name!?" He seemed to have an uncanny way of knowing things before Daraku. So creepyguy was a Sannin, eh? Good to know.

The kid went on talking about strength and the crazy bitch (whom Daraku assumed was Shinju) and introduced himself as Izuna. Izuna was...eccentric, to say the least. Daraku gave him a smile, as requested, before turning back to the forest. "Their camp is planned to be at the lake shore, we need to intercept them when they arrive. Let's go." He didn't bother to give them a moment to catch up, just directly took off sprinting towards the lake. Hopefully they weren't too late, the whole mission would go to shit if they were. The citizens held captive, they were fragile and vulnerable. It wouldn't take more than a few minutes for the group to kill every single one of them. Daraku arrived at the lake shore, and luckily it was silent and empty, with not a soul around. He held a newly aflame Nisebi in his left hand and Hikō in his right, both weapons ready for action. Shifting on the trees to the west hinted that they would be here soon, and both Izuna and the Sannin were approaching from the eastern end. The lake was directly behind Daraku, shining a pure blue color despite the misty pale of the sky above. The shifting stopped suddenly, and Daraku's breathing slowed. They know we're here, shit.

Two men and one woman emerged from the brush, sprinting at Daraku with their hands raised. Chakra enveloped the appendages, a technique that Daraku recognized as the Chakra Scalpel. If he let himself get hit with those, he would lose control of his muscles, giving him a major disadvantage. He dodged the two men and slashed forward to cut the woman's throat, leaving her to bleed out as he sprinted ahead. There were seven other medical ninja on the team, including Shinju who was more towards the back, her pink-white hair blowing slowly in the wind. A whip comprised of vertebrae occupied her left hand, and she spawned a glare toward Daraku. He figured he'd save her for last, instead dashing towards the other medics and slashing away relentlessly.

(1,711/4,000)

265/275:

The tones and tilts to combat would continually change, but his ire towards certain things would always remain a constant. His provocations would be steady, never changing. Already, this person was on the side of annoying Yuudai, though he had just met the individual. If anything, this Daraku individual would remain there, as his own preferences tended to avoid people of his nature, but they were currently allies, thus he needed to tolerate the blonde-haired shinobi, more than it pleased the Aisu to do so. The intellect of certain people could also be brought in to question, especially regarding his specific choice of words. Childish insults, names, even an idiot could come up with those, so maybe some credit was due to this Daraku character for proving to have some semblance of intellect. Deciding not to humour the random shinobi before himself, Yuudai chose to wait, as footsteps could be heard in the distance. The fact that they weren’t attempting to hide meant one of two things, either an ally or an overconfident opponent.

Not bothering to shift his eyes towards the third member of their brigade, Yuudai instead allowed his ears to take in whatever the third person would have to say. Immediately, Yuudai knew he was a male by the sound of his voice. Though his experiences with Kirigakure no Sato shinobi indicated this person was anything but a citizen of the Hidden Mist. The second random individual had seemingly known who he was, a Sannin of the Hidden Mist, though he clearly hadn’t expected an outsider to know about the inner workings of his home village. Also, he was seemingly familiar with Daraku, as he had addressed the blonde by the colouring of his hair. Then to completely spin it around, as if the kid truly didn’t know the Sannin, which he didn’t, he went on to ask for his name. Instead of idle chat, they could move out, though addressing a simple question was easy enough. “Yuudai.” Nothing more would be needed, as he had given him the answer he was seeking, nothing more. So it seemed that the new fellow ‘Uzumaki Izuna’ had formulated his own plan, though he was questioning the abilities of the ‘strategist’ as he clearly stated he was far weaker than the two of them. If that was the case, what purpose did he truly serve for the mission ahead?

Daraku suggested heading out, something he non-verbally agreed to in a moment. The sooner they were done here, the more time that they would have for whatever else they would need to accomplish for the Village’s survival. As the blonde finished speaking, he had already taken off in a sprint towards their destination. It seemed it would only be the three of them, as waiting for anyone else; if there was anyone remaining, would be detrimental to their purpose. Taking a brief moment to glance at the third member of this makeshift squad, Yuudai took off in a sprint as well, his speed seemingly closing the distance between himself and the man that took the lead, though not enough for Yuudai to overtake the individual.  

The mission had would definitely involve the ‘crazy bitch’ in the mission dossier, a brief description and the prowess that she could potentially unleash were vaguely mentioned. It wouldn’t be the first time he would be dealing with an unknown element, thus it not being the immediate concern. All the individual pieces would play out by themselves, giving the shinobi wanting to save Kirigakure no Sato a fighting chance. As they were getting closer towards their designation, Yuudai cut off to the east, wanting to take point in different area. They could potentially launch an attack from different angles and then begin wrapping up the effort in close-quarters. Yuudai’s left hand gripped Setsura, ready to draw the weapon at any moment, while his right hand was placed upon the branch he situated himself on, to react accordingly if anything out of the ordinary would occur. Then, movement. It seemed their approach had already been scouted out.

While Daraku would be preoccupied with three individuals, he scouted the area for the Kaguya. It would be stupidity at its finest if he were to charge head on for her with the amount of opposing shinobi in the vicinity. Without hesitation, he launched himself out of the trees, aiming to take out one of the remaining seven persons in the area. Drawing out Setsura during his flight, the blade would be powerful enough to cleave the person if Yuudai were to strike the person head on. The first opponent would be the easiest, then it would just be cutting down their numbers slowly, however one could possibly eliminate the numbers advantage. As his katana plunged right through the first individual, it wasn’t long until he was surrounded by another three shinobi. Shinju would need to wait.

---

Daraku came upon the next Kuraichi ninja and attacked him head on, but the man wasn't that simple. He kicked Daraku's knee, causing a loss in balance and an opportunity to strike. Using Daraku's weight against him, the Kuraichi let him fall part of the way to the ground before slicing him with a chakra scalpel and punching him square in the chest, pushing him to impact hard and fast. His legs were immobilized by the wound from the chakra scalpel, but he wasn't about to give up just yet. The Kuraichi jumped on top of him, preparing a fist to obliterate him with, but he shoved Nisebi's blazing blade into the man's chest. The victim let out a low cry and fell over, breathing short bursts of hair until his heart gave out and he lay there, dead. Daraku struggled back to his feet, holding the bleeding cut on his leg and infusing his hand with chakra. The wound began to heal slowly, until it closed enough for the bleeding to stop. He stood firmly on his feet and looked ahead to Shinju, whose angelic figure almost masked the fact that she was a schizophrenic murderer. Her sheer pink eyes looked back at him with amusement, and she spoke quietly although they were a fair distance apart. "That dead look in your eyes...I'm sorry that you're hurting. No one in this world deserves the pain they undergo."

Daraku gave her a cocky grin, pointing the still-burning Nisebi level to his line of sight and aiming it at her chest. "Wise words from someone so quick to inflict pain on innocents. Tell me, what makes you so eager to kill if you believe that philosophy...that the world's pain is...unwarranted?" A rush of blood ran through his veins. He craved her death like an addiction, the feeling of dominance knowing that she would soon die by his hands. How was he any better than she was? He held the same desire for carnage. Simply put, he wasn't any better. Under different circumstances, he could've easily been in her position. Knowing this, however, didn't make him want to rip her to shreds any less. Her soft tone escaped again, just barely audible amidst the commotion of battle. Izuna and Yuudai were both fighting the other Kuraichi ninja, but they seemed to be holding up pretty well, so Daraku wasn't worried. He focused on her words. "Killing is not the same inflicting pain, it is releasing the poor souls from their incarceration on this dreaded world. It is one less voice plaguing my mind, begging for me to free them, to be their savior. The more I kill, the more the pain subsides, and the closer I come to being at peace with existence. I am doing this for the greater good of myself and humanity."

The two were at a stalemate, glaring at one another. One who killed for ideals and one who killed because it was all he knew. Whose will was stronger? Daraku let his eyes avert, looking over to Yuudai. He was holding an icy blue katana and he plunged it through the torso of one of the opponents, although multiple others surrounded him. Daraku then took a moment to survey Izuna as well. He was in a crowd as well, so it wasn't clear whether or not he was winning his fight. Just in the few seconds that Daraku's gaze was directed elsewhere, Shinju's expression grew intense. Her eyebrows bent downwards, her eyes flashed with anger, and her teeth were clenched. With a sleight of hand, she sent her spinal column whip screeching through the air until it reached Daraku's face, shredding through his skin. His cheek drained, his blood drenching the weapon as she pulled it back and brought it close to her.

"You do not see that this is serious. My words are nothing to you, although I am only trying to help you understand that this is a gift. It is beyond the time for idle words, though. You will thank me in the afterlife." Daraku touched his cheek with a finger and felt the warm blood across his face. This bitch was going to die. He sprinted to her with a pivot of his foot and swung his weapon, but in the blink of an eye, she was gone. He felt her presence shift and appear behind him, but he didn't have sufficient time or speed to react. A sickly cracking noise like that of breaking bones resonated as she rearranged the bones in her hand to create a blunt surface before smashing it into his spine. Daraku was thrown forward, slamming against the ground a few times and tumbling before impact with a tree. He coughed up blood and managed to move his left arm to cover his right, which was throbbing in pain. It was probably broken, but he didn't have time to give it proper medical attention; Shinju was already approaching again. Her hand snapped back to a relatively normal form, allowing her to carry her whip again.

"Just let death's embrace overtake you, do not struggle against the your fate." The Kaguya said, swinging her whip. It caught Daraku around the neck and constricted, coiling around his windpipe and choking him. He gasped for air, but the whip was only getting tighter by the second. He screamed one word, as that was all he could muster under the pain and pressure. "H-Help!"

(2,648)

Blood tainted the weapon that was held in his grasp. The normally pale blue tint of the blade had been soiled by the blood that continually spread across the blade’s length. It wouldn’t be anything new to his person, as it certainly wasn’t the first time a weapon of his would be covered in a layer of blood. There was no need for him to utilize Setsura’s ability to finish off his opponent; the target was already dead, as a stab through the most vital organ would provide with a quick and painless death, the ability itself was made for freezing blood, thus causing the blood flow to be clogged up, a more sluggish death than the one he had just delivered. As much as they deserved to suffer for the harm they bestowed upon Kirigakure no Sato, the battlefield wasn’t the place to exhibit such torturous behaviours, they needed to wrap business up here as quickly as they could, thus being able to dedicate time elsewhere. Pushing the lifeless body of the dead shinobi off his personally forged weapon, Yuudai turned his attention to the four shinobi whom were surrounding him, each clearly wanting to end his life, one that held a symbol of power in the Hidden Mist. He was surrounded by four, one behind, one in front, and one person on each side of him. There was a twinge of fear in their eyes, likely from seeing one of their comrades being picked off so easily, as if he hadn’t seen it coming at all.

Another quick strike could lead him to a three on one situation, but that also did provide his opponents to strike. With the opportunity available to Yuudai, he decided to choice a glance at his allies in the mission that they were assigned. This… Izuna… was doing fine, considering if he was alive at this particular moment with him not having a direct view of the person. His attention shifted over to Daraku whom was having a conversation and a stare down with the main target, Shinju. With his attention shifting back over to his four opponents, Yuudai was contemplating the various approaches he could take to this battle, though it could all be decided in a split second, which in essence it would be. And there it was a spike in their chakra. Glancing at the three whom would be easier to see, he noticed that each had chakra glowing around their hands; chakra scalpels. Assuming that the last would be following the same procedure, it wouldn’t do to get hit once in this situation, numbers against him. With a quick intake of breath, Yuudai launched himself in to the air, Setsura quickly resheathed in its binding, while simultaneously his right hand reached around to draw out Serpent’s Tongue. This would be the first time it would take the Aisu Sannin’s blood in the midst of combat, but certainly having the weapon on his side would be beneficial, even if he would be hindered for a few short seconds. With a bit of force, though ultimately miniscule in the big picture, the sharpened blade easily breaking a small fraction of the skin to access the fluid that kept a person running. In just a fraction of a moment, the link between the weapon and the wielder was formed, the blade seemingly come to life curling away from its owners arm as not to seek more blood.

The Kuraichi shinobi had been quick to follow up with the chase. Allowing his grasp on Serpent’s Tongue to become loose, Yuudai would will the blade for it to take on its offensive role; picking them off one by one, while the swordsman would deal with the opposition in close quarters. As the shinobi that was positioned in front of him appeared within view just moments later, Yuudai would once again draw out Setsura, slashing in the general vicinity of the first opponent. The slash would essential deter any attacks on his person from the front, Serpent’s Tongue would essentially attack anyone who would attempt to attack him from behind. While he wouldn’t be able to kill the first of the four with his first slash, it would significantly damage him enough to lower the numbers game. It would essentially be easy pickings unless he or someone else would be healing him.

On his descent downward, Yuudai willed Serpent’s Tongue to strike the individual behind him. Instantaneously, the blade would respond to the bond that formed between the human and the weapon through the usage of one’s blood. There was the sound of bones being broken, blood gushing out, and a slight scream of pain before it went silent. One of the four had fallen completely. Landing on the ground silently, Yuudai noticed the first individual whom he had struck with a non-fatal blow was on his knees, attempting to catch his breath and regain the opportunity to re-enter the fray, something which Yuudai clearly hoped to avoid. Before he could try and finish off the other two that flanked each side of him, a plea for help reached his ears. It was Daraku. Sparing a glance over in the direction of the blonde-haired shinobi, Yuudai noticed that there was a whip wrapped around his neck, clearly trying to block off his airways. With a command to Serpent’s Tongue and a bit of chakra, the blade broke off into twenty fragments of itself while the hilt would move out of the way so that it wouldn’t interfere with the battle Yuudai was currently in. Shinju would feel the wrath of the twenty fragments of the blade if she should not see it coming, as they were approaching her from all sides. Daraku would remain safe from his weapon’s attack. Drawing out Setsura once more, Yuudai focused upon the two that were left standing, both coming in for a simultaneous strike. One high, one low. Sliding his torso backwards as to avoid the high incoming blow, Yuudai pushed off with his feet at the same moment in order to do a backflip, hoping to get away from both blows at once, and that he did. It was unfortunate for his opponents that they both managed to strike one another, not fatally, but they had clearly set up their own ending just like that. Landing back on his feet, he didn’t even allow himself a moment as he took an intake of air while doing a complete 360 degree spin. When the spin was coming to face the opposition, he would begin to release the compressed chakra-filled air at his targets. If these individual didn’t escape in time, they’d be severed in half.

---

Chakra: 325/350:

Daraku felt the whip close ever tighter around his neck, when suddenly a figure burst onto scene. It was Izuna, eyes ablaze with rage. Daraku gave a smirk and rolled his eyes as per usual for a man like him, despite the circumstances. He hated the fact that someone had to come in and rescue him, but it was inevitable. Yuudai remained nearby, using some sort of projectile weapons to keep the rest of the Kuraichi at bay. Izuna jumped high into the air, using another one of the Kuraichi as a platform to launch himself. From the apex of that jump, he spouted flames down at Shinju while remaining airborne. It wasn't quite enough to phase the woman, to weaken her defenses and leave her injured, but it was just enough to release her spinal whip's grasp on Daraku's throat. Izuna had successfully used himself as a diversion. As soon as the bones loosened and Daraku had room to breathe again, he sped forward, turning his body to the left and bringing his arm down to his side with Nisebi in-hand. The weapon cut into Shinju's skin, but she managed to escape the brunt of the blow by spinning off to the left and dashing to Izuna.

Shinju assaulted Izuna with full force, using chakra scalpel as a weapon while she pursued him. He managed to reverse the technique against her somehow, but it left her relatively undamaged, and if anything angrier than before. She punched him square in the chest, using the force to throw Izuna back. The loud snapping signaled multiple broken ribs, and he crashed to the ground, thrashing in pain. She began another rant about how they would thank her for giving them death. Funny how she was convinced such a transcendent thing was so easily under her control despite her opponents outnumbering her. The rest of Kuraichi, or most of them at least, were incapacitated or worse, leaving her as the single target in the tides of battle. Daraku kept his eyes set on her as stood, prepared to attack. She was the focal point of the mission, now, with the rest of the Kuraichi terminated...but that only made the task all the more difficult. The village wanted her, but they wanted her alive, and that was that. So, Daraku reluctantly accepted the fate of the mission and pointed Nisebi to her once more. She may be lucky enough to get out of this alive, but I damn sure won't give her the chance to escape.

Blood continued to drip from the blade in the Ishido's hand, still fresh from the wound he had snuck in on her. Suddenly, Izuna interrupted Shinju's tangent with a few comments of his own. "Shut up bitch....You make me sick, set me free? my suffering? my misery? Stop fucking with me...YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT MY MISERY OR SUFFERING, SO YOU EXPERIENCED PAIN, AND YOU THINK DEATH IS THE ONLY SOLUTION? IT WAS...IT WAS PEOPLE LIKE YOU WHO SEVERED MY LOVED ONES HEADS BEFORE MY EYES, IF I HAD THE POWER, I'D TAKE MY SWEET TIME TORTURING YOU, YOU PATHETIC BITCH WHO DO YOU THINK YOU FUCKING ARE." Daraku was taken aback, less by the words but more by the sincerity in his tone. Izuna was being pretty serious, which made the situation that much more tense. Shinju's eyes flashed with a shade of hatred and resentment worse than Daraku had seen in a long time. Ready to end the battle, she raised a hand to the sky. "I'm finished. Bracken Dance!"

Bones rapidly began to rise from the ground. They were sharp and lethal, appearing in dozens over a wide radius. Daraku didn't hesitate, jumping back to Izuna to pick him up before jumping higher and landing in a tree. He hoped Yuudai could manage to escape the attack alone, because Daraku figured that Izuna's condition was a more critical issue at hand. As a way of assisting with the fight from afar, Daraku used Phoenix Fire Jutsu to send a cluster of fireballs towards Shinju inbetween the field of bones. Just after executing said jutsu, Daraku turned his attention back to Izuna and began slowly healing his ribs with an advanced medical ninjutsu, keeping somewhat hidden by the tree's leaves.

(3,379)

225/275:

The most opportune moments for an individual usually came from a moment where one simply counterattacks, directly after dodging a blow. It was a difficult task for a person to do so, especially with the management of time needing to be accorded for. Thus, when Yuudai was given the perfect moment, it was hard not to pass it up. With the Vacuum Wave technique he had just used, it was clear at least one would be going down, there was just no way around it given the tangled mess they had placed themselves within, as they had attempted to avoid striking one another. With the blade growing as it covered more distance, the sound of a scream echoed throughout the vicinity before it was cut off by complete and utter silence of that source of noise. Only one was left standing, though a cut across his chest dictated that it would not be long until another of the Kuraichi nin would fall. There in total were two left standing that Yuudai had been dealing with. The one whom he injured previously with a cut across his chest and the one whom he had injured just mere seconds ago with the Vacuum Wave, would both be the only one of the three to remain standing.

After Serpent’s Tongue had completed its task of distracting Shinju momentarily, Yuudai commanded the blade to make an outward arc on its return. There was a reason why he chose for the blade to take a slightly longer route to return, as time was something that always needed to be managed, but in this situation, the Aisu clearly would hold the upper hand. Now he just needed to take care of these two individuals before he could set his eyes on Shinju, the person whom they needed to apprehend, as the Village Hidden in the Mist preferred her alive over being dead due to the information she could potentially handover to them… through a bit of interrogation. Cutting the air in front of himself with Setsura, the katana in the grasp of his left hand, Yuudai aimed his sights on the two individual who were the only ones left breathing of the Kuraichi. Taking slow, calm steps towards them, letting them savour their last few breaths before they would be disposed of, and likely signs of fear shining brightly in their eyes, Yuudai planned on ending this quickly, taking his time here would be detrimental to the ultimate goal. As he approached them, the two men remaining on their hands and knees, staring at the ground likely in defeat, Yuudai would make this quick and painless for them, killing wasn’t truly within his blood, but it was something he needed to do here. Only his squad and their target would be the ones to walk out of here alive. Taking Setsura and lining her up with one of the shinobi, Serpent’s Tongue had arrived just then to strike straight through the other individual, ending him in a fraction of a second. The Seventh Sword of the Mist would then pull itself out of the individual, escaping the heart that stopped bleeding. Now, there was just one more blow to deal.

But, he needed to escape for the time being, as he had just overheard the conversation between Daraku and the Kaguya; it was easy to hear due to their overly loud voices reaching his ears. The finality in Shinju’s voice was the one thing to make Yuudai wary. Quickly reseathing Setsura, as it was likely this unknown ninja before him would likely be caught in the crossfire should a devastating jutsu be launched. Serpent’s Tongue after withdrawing from the new corpse flew gently towards its owner, curling the twenty fragments away from Yuudai’s person so it’d be a simple retrieval. With the hilt of the Seventh Blade of the Seven Swords in his grasp, it was in an instant that Yuudai had fled the battlefield, shooting in to the tree-line. As anticipated, something was clearly happening as countless numbers of bones exploded from the ground, as rippling pond, with everything starting at the center and then moving on outward. With the speed the bones were moving at, Yuudai doubted he would have been able to escape had he left any later than he did. He hadn’t hidden himself from view, their task at hand was to make sure she lived, and if that meant she could potentially still be alive, he would be there to see, once the field of bones had settled down. He noticed a rain of fireballs aimed down towards the center, where the origin of the technique was located, which meant the Kaguya was there. It was just time for him to wait and see what would happen in this instance.

---

Chakra: 320/350:

Daraku stood over the still-healing Izuna with a curious glance. The boy looked so tormented and sad, but distant; as if Daraku wasn't even there, helping him. His wounds remained grievous, but were no longer lethal, and the bones were nearly back in place. Daraku took a moment to turn around, keeping his hands slightly above the guy's figure so that the healing would continue unhindered as he searched for Shinju. The bones caused by her deadly "Bracken Dance" obscured his view for the most part, but there was but a trace of pink hair flowing between the protrusions rising from the ground. Fire lingered around the scene here and there from his Phoenix Fire jutsu, and she had suffered a few burns here and there but was mostly unharmed, likely having used the bones as a cover. With her standing there and the white gleam of the bones and the red flare of the flames, it would've been a majestic sight, had Daraku been unaware of its grim circumstances. Shinju's eyes settled on his, and a grin flashed across her face as she formed multiple hand seals. She was far from exhausted, and ready to end the fight.

"Forbidden Jutsu: Skeletal Apocalypse Rush!" she chanted as she prepared the jutsu, her eyes still set on Daraku. He had to get out of the tree, he couldn't risk Izuna getting injured further and dying. He jumped off of the branch, abandoning the healing process for now and instead sprinting directly at Shinju. He dodged the bones on his left and right, crisscrossing between them at breakneck speed. They only grew denser as he came closer to the woman, as she had concentrated them to act as a shield in her direct vicinity. Suddenly, an explosion echoed through the area, reducing every single bone surrounding him to pure shrapnel. Her jutsu was now complete, and as the shrapnel shredding his skin on its passing, he caught a glimpse of what it was. Bones were erupting from her body and rocketing towards him, but they were engulfed in chakra, similar to that of Chakra Scalpel. He could already guess that if one touched him, he wouldn't be able to move and would thus be skewered. He put a hand over his eyes to shield them from shrapnel as he began dodging the approaching bones. They were all shaped as blades, ready to pierce him without hesitation. There were dozens, so he couldn't clearly see Shinju, but he heard her cries of pain. This jutsu was a forbidden technique, and thus could result in her death if not ended soon. He proceeded forward, slashing through bones with his wind blade to keep them at bay.

The bones began to outpace Daraku and they surrounded him and were poised at him from different angles. He was caught, and with almost no way out; but before they could converge and kill him in one fell sweep, it donned on him that he could substitute himself with some of the bones' broken remnants. He did so, disappearing in a blast of smoke and reappearing a few feet away as the bone blades struck his substitute. He activated his kekkei genkai as soon as he was back on his feet so that Shinju couldn't see him, and he sprinted around the radius, until he reached her back. She was breathing hard and coughing up blood, but when she realized Daraku had disappeared, she was furious. She was about to make the next hand seal to continue the carnage, but Daraku released his kekkei genkai and gripped her face, suffocating her slowly. She struggled against him for a moment, but after a minute or two, was unconscious and ready to take back to the village. All of her bone jutsu fell to pieces, leaving only fragmented cartilage behind. He hoisted her up onto his shoulder and put away his swords, breathing hard.

With the mission's objective completed, Daraku turned to Yuudai, who wasn't too far away. "Good work, creepyman. Shinju's out cold, for now. I'm going to take her and lead the rest of the captives back to the village, but could you get Izuna and make sure he's alright? He's up in the tree over there," he explained to the Sannin, pointing to the spot in question, "He should be able to walk, I healed him as much as I could while we were hidden up there. I'll see you two back in Kirigakure." And with that, the Ishido went off into the trees to retrieve the frightened civilians, bearing the happy news that the Kuraichi were defeated. The cold chill in the air hardly bothered him, now; he was too arrogant and prideful about his success to care or even notice it.

(4,191, Mission Completed)

-Exit Thread-

190/275:

He continued to watch from his perched point upon the trees. As far as he was concerned at the current moment, Yuudai wouldn't interfere in the fight unless it was certain that Daraku would fail. The reasoning behind it was fairly simple, as an ally he did not know, he doubted the individual would want someone to interfere in the battle unless they would surely lose otherwise. It was the same with the Aisu Sannin and his standing upon it all. The only instance to date where he welcomely allowed the interference of another would happen to have been the third day of the attacks, when he been dealing with Mizuru of the Seven Bells Clan, as it was a losing effort at that time.

He continued to watch the battle between Daraku and Shinju, watching his ally take down their opponent and ultimately knocking her out and carrying her upon his shoulder. Once the bones had cleared the battlefield, Yuudai had hopped down from the trees he was on to watch, and waited until Daraku was done. When he had turned to him, telling him that he would take Shinju to the village, along with the captives, he had given Yuudai the simple instruction of taking Izuna back to the village for treatment. It would be simple. Take him back to the village, drop him off at the hospital, and move along his way to deal with the next task he would have before himself. After Daraku had fled, Yuudai turned to the area that Izuna was located, and simply instructed him what was going to occur. "I'll be taking you back to the village. Get treatment if you wish. Otherwise... good job." Should Izuna let him, Yuudai would carry the shinobi back to the village, otherwise leave him to fend for himself.

---