The mission:

Sero had only just returned to Kirigakure after the exams. Even though he had left in the final two rounds and given up his shot at winning instead of putting a kunai into the skull hole of that man he had still managed to be promoted to chunnin. It didn't matter to him much though what his rank was. His job was slaying and that was what he was good at. With these silly exams over the very least they could do is allow him to take on more violent missions. Still when he had gone to retrieve a mission it turned out they wanted to see how he worked with others. It was a bit of a surprise for him but at the very least they gave him an eradication mission. It was simple orders to seek and destroy. He doubted he would need the help but he was not about to question orders. He was a soldier and so he saluted his commanding officer and turned to head home to prepare for nightfall. For the remainder of the afternoon he took a whetstone to his blades. Bringing forth that sharp edge under the light flickering in and out of life in the library of his fathers home.

Still as the sun was failing he looked out the window. The sound of thunder cracking as rain began beating against the window registered little more to him then to be more careful with his footing. He didn't care for omens and found people who saw a storm as such were fools. If nothing else the storm would be excellent cover. Still Sero slipped into grey pants with his whip sword as his belt. A black shirt he tucked into those before slipping into a purple cloak. He had grown some and apparently this was a cloak his mother had purchased for his father once upon a time. It smelled like it had never been worn. With that he strapped an eye patch over his right eye. He would put that there to preserve his eye sight should be be caught in a blinding technique. It also made for superb night vision if there was a drastic change in lighting. Still for the moment he only slipped his cutlass and his Katana into his belt and his Odachi over his shoulder with one smoke bomb into his coat pocket. He strapped one head set around his neck and set the frequency to the other radio before pocketing the spare radio. Grabbing a Gasa hat and placing it on his head so it hid most of his face. And with that he set out into the rain.

It took him an hour to travel from the forgotten manor to the docks but he made descent time to travel before leaving. The rain wasn't doing much to effect the thick mist and the flashes of light from the thunder barely illuminated anything. Still he stood there on a bridge over looking the docks a good block from the targets rumored location. From there he was surveying the scene as he waited for his would be partner. He was taller now then last time. But something still felt off about him. It was like there was something stalking the harbor. Everyone felt uneasy and kept peering into the mist. The targets however were a distance away as he had intended so he wouldn't spoil the mission just for being there before his team mate even arrived. This was where they were to meet after all. He wondered if they were just sending someone to keep him in line and make sure he doesn't go over board.

617

Nozomi loved it. Even having lost her fight, a promotion had come her way. That little bit of good news was enough to keep her together after the rest of the bad news had come her way. Although, the fight in question had actually left her severely injured, and she wasn't completely back to full capacity just yet, having nearly died. However, there was no reason she couldn't go on a simple mission, especially considering who it was she was doing this mission with. Her teammate Sero could perhaps do this mission on his own, and certainly seemed like the type of person that would have more than willingly done so. She'd heard that herself, Sero, and Kusono had all been promoted to Chuunin status following the exams, and smiled to herself. To be honest, it was a good feeling, knowing that out of the top four, three of them had been from Kirigakure. As Kaekio was the personal student of the Raikage, it made sense that she'd have had more training than anyone else would in a squad, and indeed, Nozomi's own training had only really began shortly before the exams even started. To have gotten as far as she did was amazing to her.

Unfortunately, she'd been banished from her clan, so Nozomi was only supporting herself right now, which was a major reason she was so willing to take on missions at the moment. Once she got the funds, she'd properly equip herself and then after getting some training and such, perhaps leave the village. There wasn't much left for her here, but she wouldn't let anybody else know that. If someone else caught wind of that, she'd have a difficult time ever leaving, so it was good that she didn't have any real links or trusting bonds that would make her confide such a thing to someone else. So with those thoughts out of the way Nozomi found herself walking on her way to the meet up place to catch up with Sero, who would no doubt be there before her.

It actually took her quite some time to get there, but she wasn't exactly in much of a rush to get there. After about an hour and a half of walking, she also made it to the docks, heading towards the bridge that overlooked the harbor. Even though visibility was slightly obscured by the rain and mist, it would still present the best view of the surroundings. It certainly wasn't the most optimal time for a mission, but at the same time, at least they should have the best vantage point that they could.

Making her way over to her squad member, Nozomi approached rather silently. She looked at him silently for a few moments before quietly asking the question she needed answered. “What's the plan of action?” Before they could do the mission, of course, a small plan must be discussed. Despite knowing that she'd be in with Sero, she hadn't had a chance to discuss the mission plans with him before the undertaking of it, so most of this would have to be improvised on the spot. Although the specifics were quite general and all they had to do was take out the smugglers.

WC: 560

Sero paused in his observations as someone attempted to silently approach. His grey eyes turned as his head shifted slightly. The rain that had gathered on it running off in a small current in several different spots. He had barely heard her approaching with the storm around. She wasn't an amateur so the mission had a good chance of remaining a stealth mission. Still when she spoke he turns to look at her. He was as tall as her now. Perhaps even slightly taller. But he could spot his squad mate easily enough. His silver eyes took her in before he looked back over the port. He noted the port Authorities were not around. If anything the majority of the populace had left the area. It was likely why the smugglers chose now to land. It was convenient for them to slip in mostly unnoticed. Still they weren't from Kirigakure so he could see a couple of lamps highlighting the shadow of the ship through the mist and rain. Foreigners were not used to the thick mist and feared stepping wrong in it. Still that meant they were unloading the evidence. The timing was perfect. Still he would try to work as a team on this. Quietly he dug into his pocket and pulled out the other head set radio. Holding it out to her in one pale hand he turned and looked at her under the shadow of the hat once more. His eyes colder then the wet, winter night they stood within. Yet being close to him felt warm. As if his body was radiating heat. Still his voice was as emotionless as ever. So when he spoke it might as well have been freezing around them.

"Take this headset. Its already tuned to the one I am wearing. One of us will take the high ground and disable but not sink the ship. Our mission is to claim the Merchandise and eliminate the threat. This can be done by destroying the rudder. The other will be taking the low ground and eliminating the hostiles. This is a stealth mission which means sticking to the mist and the shadows. All kills need to remain silent unless it becomes unavoidable. We will also remain radio silence. However upon the party taking down the rudder doing so successfully there is a button under the ear piece. If you press it both ear pieces beep quietly. That will be the signal to begin handling the targets with extreme prejudice as their escape route has been disabled. At which point the individual that took the high ground will also proceed to the secondary objective and take down all hostiles. Which role do you prefer? I myself am more suited for the low ground but I can handle either role."

He was leaving it up to her. They were the same rank and he had more experience killing people. But he wanted to give her some sense of control over it. The books he read stated that when people were put into unfamiliar and harsh situations hesitation was a common flaw. By letting them make some of the decisions for themselves it gives the individual a stronger sense of control which eliminates a percentage of the chance for hesitation. Typically he would of eliminated the rudder quietly before proceeding to kill the sentries and lower them into the water one at a time. However with a team and the thick mist and the rain he was confident they could get through the entire mission undetected. So he waited for her call letting her take lead.

1221

Nozomi took the headset that Sero handed her and equipped it rather quickly, listening to what he had to say silently. As she did, her eyes lingered on the boy, taking in his appearance and noting the changes from the last time they'd met. Perhaps he'd gone through quite the growth spurt. She wasn't certain. It was always possible that he was using some sort of transformation jutsu. After a few minutes, she decided that it wasn't that important. As long as she knew what he looked like now, she wouldn't have to worry about what sort of changes he'd gone through and how they'd come about either.

Back to the mission at hand, there were some different options as to what they could do. Both of them were rather straightforward. High ground and low ground. Low ground would be tasked with eliminating the targets, while high ground made it impossible for them to retreat back to sea by sabotaging the vessel's rudder. After which, they could end the stealthiness and eliminate the targets indiscriminately. To be honest, Nozomi preferred the high ground, as she wasn't much of a killer, and didn't really want to hurt people all that much. She had done so in the exams, but that was under special circumstances. So for now, she'd leave the heavy blood shed to Sero.

After a few moments of pondering, Nozomi nodded. "I agree that you're more suited to the low ground. I'm not much on blood shed and violence unless absolutely necessary. The more I remain focused on just disabling their escape route, the better you can do your job, and both of our productivity remains optimal. That isn't to say I won't be any help to you, but if you're more comfortable doing the stealth kills from the start, that's what you should do. My methods are slightly more flashy and showy than your blades are anyways. So I'll take the ship's rudder out." she replied somewhat quietly. "Although, you'll know I've reached the rudders when you can see them anymore. It's already misty, so I'll probably just use the Hidden Mist Jutsu once I get there so I can use my petals without anyone seeing them. If I time my hits just right with the creaking of the boat, it won't make as much noise as it could until its too late for them to do anything. Sound like a plan?"

Leaning on the edge of the bridge, Nozomi waited for his reply. This was the first real mission she'd been assigned, and her nerves were certainly getting the better of her. Up until that point, the only missions she'd undertaken were some simple ones, not even all that dangerous. They weren't really of any note. Whether it was a simple patrol mission, or just talking to somebody, Nozomi's missions had always been rather peaceful. This was a change of pace that seemed to come with being a chuunin. Taking on much more dangerous ones. If something went wrong on this assignment, it was possible that she could die. So it was only natural that she was nervous.

1081

Sero watched Nozomi as she hastily put on the headset. If anything he sensed she was tense. His grey eyes took her in for a moment as he observed everything he could about her. He was her junior but they were the same rank for the moment. Both of them had made it moderately far in the exams. But they stood a world apart. He watched her move over to the railing as she waited for him to respond. But those grey eyes seemed to stare at her. Void of life or soul. The dull grey orbs only moved in short bursts and otherwise remained utterly still. If not for the thick mist that was his breath each time he breathed he might as well be dead. Most shinobi hated working with him because he only looked at things tactically. Each move had only the mission behind it. Humanity did not motivate him to alter his course even slightly. If anything he was only meant for missions like these. Missions where the whole point of the mission was utter annihilation. He was colder and sharper then the swords he was wearing but he was just as dead inside. Just as stained with rust from the blood left on them

Still those empty grey eyes could tell she was on the verge of what Sero called the shivers. He couldn't remember having them himself. However based on his research every individual he had ever seen got the shivers before their first kill. It was as if it scared them in some way. But they slowed reaction times and dulled the senses. If anything he found the whole emotion involved was a barrier that cost successful missions a life or two. He wondered if he might be forced to place his continued operating capabilities in her hands. If she froze up and hesitated it could cost him an injury. For a moment his lips twitched for just a moment. A slight shift from his usual frown as if a smirk for just a second. As if any of these thugs were on his level. He would cleave through them until all the dock had was bodies and blood. A moment of fluctuation happened there as he was offered the low ground. His aura shifted and stirred. That monstrous feeling of just being near him turned even darker. It was as if there were claws reaching over the docks. Something ominous looming over the entire thing as the rain poured and the thunder boomed. Before the sun rose that dock would be a graveyard.

Still he needed to say something or do something that would challenge her to remain in control for the mission. He couldn't have the shivers getting involved. There were too many targets for that. He wondered what a commanding officer would say. How would he rile up the troops fresh on the ground? Sero cleared his throat before he spoke up. His voice was cold but his eyes stared right into hers. "Your choice suits us both. I will wait until the rudder is entirely hidden before making a move. I...am aware bloodshed comes more naturally to me then most. However you are to be my partner on this mission. I have never failed a mission before and I do not intend to now either. All objectives are handled with the utmost importance. You returning alive is...one of my objectives. I am relying on you to make my survival one of yours." It was as close as he could manage. Either way he nodded and placed one hand on the railing and the other on his hat before launching himself over the edge. With barely a flutter he descended into the mist below. Barely the sound of him landing on the docks below could be heard. Over the radio his voice entered through. "Moving into position. Confirm and then maintain radio silence."

1878

Nozomi struggled to calm her nerves. She knew that it wouldn't be too difficult if they worked together and stuck to the plan. In fact, there wasn't much likelihood that it would be difficult in the least. Taking a deep breath, Nozomi tried to steady herself. If Sero and her had made it equally as far as each other in the exams, then they were equals. So why was this so much harder for her than it was for him? Pulling up the half cowl that existed under her dark clothing, Nozomi hid the lower half of her face and breathed deeply to calm her nerves. Looking over to Sero, she listened to him and nodded to herself as he reaffirmed her choice. And then, there was something more. Was that a moment of caring? The attempt to even calm her down showed Nozomi enough that even if it was purely for the mission at hand, Sero cared enough to do his best to make sure they both survived and completed the mission. And he was right. She also had to do her best to complete the mission and assure Sero's safety.

Nozomi looked at Sero. Despite the ominous aura that seemed to cling to him, she couldn't help but feel warmed by him. He was affirming that she was important, and now more than ever, that mattered to her. He didn't care that she hadn't won the exams. Life went on, and she was still a Kunoichi of the Hidden Mist. Perhaps one day they could even be more than simply acquaintances. She would like to call him a friend. Anyhow, Nozomi also had to get this mission going. As Sero leapt over, Nozomi wasn't far behind him, landing on the docks lightly and sprinting onto the water, balancing the chakra flow on her feet to allow for her to walk on water. She was rather good at using the Supernatural Walking jutsu, because she couldn't swim. In order to avoid drowning in water, she simply walked on it. Although if she was ever unable to utilize the technique, it would be possible that she'd flounder and sink. So these moments always gave her a pump of adrenaline. The farther she got from the solid docks, the more her heart fluttered. Luckily though, Nozomi didn't have to go far until she ran onto the boat. "Confirmed, moving into position as well. Going to work on the rudder." she whispered into the receiver, and then remained silent as ordered.

She quickly and easily transferred from the surface of the water to the side of the hull. From there, she moved slowly, so as not to make too much noise. As she approached the rudder, Nozomi shifted her weight to get more comfortable and then climbed to the top of the rudder and peered over the edge of the boat. Nobody would be able to see her for now. Smiling under her half cowl, Nozomi formed some new hand signs. With the amount of water around them, this was simple. She easily brought about the unnaturally thick mist that existed from the hidden mist jutsu. It would certainly cover her while she worked on destroying the rudder.

WC: 1627

Chakra: 185/200
-5 for Supernatural Walking
-10 for Hidden Mist (look them up in my list, or I'll post them later if you want.)

Sero had descended into his realm of power. The place he was most natural in. The shadows were his home and the cold mists was his bed. It was foolish of an enemy to willingly step into his sight and climb into bed with him. Even if they did not know it, they had forfeited the beating hearts....the right to breath as they did so. As he walked along the shadows of the dock it was like watching a prowling beast unlike any creature. A predator that hunted other hunters. The occasional flashes From the thunder seemed to reveal his shadow in the mist. It wasn't natural. Darkness seemed to seep in and once the flash of light was gone he was too. As if he only existed in the light. He was moving upon the enemy ranks and as he approached they could feel it. Hands rested on weapons as one by one they began to stop the work they were doing. Each of them felt it coming. The night was off. Something was out there and it wasn't human. Unease filled the ranks for a moment. They knew death was there. But they had never felt his presence before. Weathered men felt sweat dipping down their brow. As cold as the night was they hadn't felt it enough to shiver before now. But now they felt themselves shaking. A couple of them took a couple of steps back towards the boat. Hoping for safety there.

Sero on the other hand let his dead grey eyes drift from the shadows that hid him...more like they clung to him and were a part of him. He waited for the moment they had agreed on. For a moment he watched as she arrived on the ship walking in complete stealth along the hull. He had attracted attention away from her. Soon enough she made her way towards her destination. Upon reaching a part of the rudder she created a hand sign and the mist around the boat seemed to rise up and she was gone from his vision. She had done her part and made the signal. She would have the rudder done soon. His cold gaze returned to the men. One of them had a set on him. Drawing his sword he stepped forward and spoke "Cmon boys...ain't nothin out there we can't handle. Get back ta work" And with that he stepped out holding his sword tentatively in front of him. He would work as an excellent demoralization tool. As he approached Sero's position he could feel the monster out there. Its fangs on his neck. He was still within sight of the others but barely. He turned left and then right before turning back around. He was preparing to reassure the others when suddenly as he opened his mouth there was a wet sound. And from his mouth emerged the rusty blade of a katana plunged through the back of his neck. His eyes widened as he looked down at the katana sticking out of his mouth before gargling on blood.

With a shout the men were shocked for the sight of it. But as they watched Sero activated a jutsu. They watched as the man screamed and gargled as he tried to grab at the now dripping Katana. His face seemed to peel away from it as did the bones as the acid edge ate away everything around the blade. The men looked on in horror as their comrades head detached from the upper jaw up and the lower jaw remained. With a kick Sero sent the upper half of the head rolling at the enemy. Its eyes rolled up as the man had died of shock well before his head detached. The horrific sight sending them into a panic as they began flinging Katon jutsu down the dock. Sero quietly used the dead mans body as a meat shield as the men carelessly and in a panic sent fireball after fireball igniting the docks. Once they were done parts of the docks burned. They looked on hopefully thinking they had dispatched of this monster. Only to have the burnt body of their comrade shift to the side as two of the throwing knives he had taken from his dead target flew through the night and plunged into the throats of two more men. Letting them bleed out. It was obvious if they intended to kill this monster..they had to come to him. However two of the men retreated to the boat. Intending to retreat. Sero hoped the display that had taken about a minute was enough time for his team mate to disable the ship effectively.

2668

Nozomi had gotten to work on the rudder almost immediately after the mist started. She knew that Sero wouldn't be wasting any time, so they could be alerted almost at any point in time. Nozomi's focus intensified as she ran chakra through her palms, and activated the Dance of the Misty Petals. Both of her hands now becoming extremely dangerous, she proceeded to unleash a barrage of punches onto the wooden structure. There wasn't any way that it would be able to withstand the numerous petal blades splintering into the rudder with each slam of the hand into it. As she continued her work, she noticed there was a large commotion on the docks. So it would appear that Sero had finally revealed himself. So be it, that would just cause them to be more distracted with a fight. As she finished her last strike on the wooden surface, watching the heavy rudder splinter off and sink into the water, Nozomi's eyes turned towards the docks. Although she was obscured in mist and couldn't see anything clearly from this distance, she did notice a large amount of light emanating from them. Fire jutsu were being cast, it appeared. She smiled slightly to herself. She'd completed her objective without so much as being noticed. That meant that she was going to be a surprise, and that nobody would expect the ship to be disabled. Without the rudder, it would be impossible to turn the boat. Time for her to move onto the next objective. Taking down the smugglers. Shivering slightly, Nozomi reached up and pressed the button that Sero had told her to press that would let him know that her objective had been completed.

Around the same time that she did so, Nozomi could hear more commotion coming from the docks as the two men who had attempted to flee back up to the ship made their way up the loading ramp. That was a bad idea. Still obscured in the mist, Nozomi was completely undetected. Even as she could not see them, they could not see her. The difference was, they made so much commotion, she could pinpoint exactly where they were. Leaping forward, out of the mist, Nozomi appeared, landing on her feet and tucking and rolling in front of the two men, who both stopped in surprise at the young girl who appeared in front of them. Neither had been expecting to see someone else. Taking advantage of their hesitation, Nozomi sturck out to the one immediately on her left, striking his shoulders with her palms, which still were under use of the Dance of the Misty Petals, leaving the petals stuck in his shoulder as more petals issued out around her, falling slowly and harmlessly. Leaping up into the air, she pivoted and launched out with her foot, connecting with the man's chest, and used him as a platform to push off of, launching herself away the other smuggler, who had still been recovering from the shock of her attack. The kick and push off had sent the man crashing back down the ramp. As she landed and came to a roll back on the deck of the ship, it seemed that the other smuggler had been urged into action. For whatever reason, he thought that his size would give him an advantage over the smaller girl, and so drew his sword and advanced on her, swinging at her neck. Nozomi ducked and lunged forward, tackling him down the ramp, using his body as a slide. Both of her hands had gripped his wrists, petals piercing the wrists, disabling his hands.

WC: 2239

Born Ill effect: 1/8
Chakra: 170/200
-15 for Dance of the Misty Petals

Sero was beginning to lose himself into the glory of battle. The sky was split with light as his grey eyes stared into the eyes of the five who stood against him. The eyes of the grave, cold and without mercy, no soul resided there. As he dropped the burnt meat shield of their former comrade it fell with a splash. They could feel it. They were going to die. There was no running away, no hiding from him, He was the embodiment of the mist itself. They had been fools to ever think they could make coin smuggling goods in Kirigakure. But the regret was too late. They watched as they trembled with sweaty palms gripping swords as the sack of burnt meat that was their crew mate and friend fell into the cold murky depths of the water. So beyond death he was unrecognizable. The sound of the splash seemed to echo their fate. The blood pouring from the wound on the corpse and dying the water red as the fire lit the docks well enough for them to see it in full detail. The mist peeled away as the fires roared and the dock burned. And yet they had done nothing to stop the monster before them.

They turned as they heard a commotion behind them and that was all Sero needed. Nozomi smashing into her two opponents gave him a second to close the distance. His free hand reached into his pocket and pulled out the smoke grenade before using his thumb to pull the pin and tossing it into the center of the five men. He crossed through the flames without hesitation as the smoke burst forth and dulled vision for everyone. The Fires still lit the dock up fairly well, however Sero had already left his position when the men turned back around. They had lost sight of him and that drew forth terror even darker then before. They turned back and forth as if waiting for an attack that wasn't coming. Sero quietly moved behind on of them keeping low as he got close. Making sure to remain behind the man. Able to tell by the feint shadows through the smoke and flickering light from the fires. In complete silence he raised up like a shadow and with his left hand he covered the mans mouth and with his right hand he plunged his Katana into his heart from behind. Making sure his back was to the water he held the man up as he spoke into his radio.

"Nozomi put out the Fires. If this dock burns we lose the goods and the mission is a failure."

As he expected in response to his cold voice Four daggers flew into the torso of the body he was holding. He had their positions now. One by one he would take them. Letting the body drop he waited. They had to confirm he was dead. At first all was silent and then a whisper. "Is he dead?" Followed by a response nearby to it. "Well go check it out if your so curious!" That was two targets. Quiet as a shadow Sero moved towards the voices. He approached low to the ground almost at a crawl and slowly so motion didn't reveal his shadow. As soon as the two shadows of his targets moved close enough he suddenly sprang up and with one slash slit both throats before dropping back down. He crawled away to the side moving quickly as yet another two fireballs cut through the smoke at the sound of the two bodies gurgling and thudding to the ground. Bright red fire smashing against the dock yet again only hitting their own. It was enough. Sero crawled on all fours under the smoke towards the source staying low. Once he was close enough he drew his cutlass and rose up between the two men and jammed his weapons into their throats before slicing to the side. Once it was done the smoke finally cleared to reveal the two men Nozomi had taken down. She hadn't killed them though. He sighed as he wondered if not having tasted the art of killing would claim her life one day. And so he acted.

Walking up to the two men laying down holding their wounds he assessed the one with the wrist wound to be the larger threat. With out a second thought he plunged the cutlass through the mans eye and frowned at the mans dying screams as it was cut off with a twist of Sero's blade in his brain. With that Sero boarded the ship. He waited there for Nozomi to join him as he watched the man with his arms disabled and his shoulders bleeding. He looked to Nozomi with cold and merciless eyes before he took his cutlass and his katana. Hovering over the man while he ignored the terror in his eyes he plunged both weapons down into non vital spots in the gut. The man screamed out as he had hoped unable to defend himself. Sero watched Nozomi as he twisted the blades back and forth letting her watch and hear the man suffering.

"A gut wound will take a long time to die. With so much damage he will slowly bleed out and gradually suffer. This is for you to solve and you alone Nozomi. I will make this mans last moments on this earth worse the the hell we are sending him too. But if you are truly a Kiri shinobi...you know we do not take prisoners. I give you the choice. Take a life and let the fear of killing go, Or walk away knowing this individual will suffer in terror and pain. Show mercy or leave him to me. This is your only choice."

3643

As Nozomi and the man went crashing down the ramp, Nozomi using the guy as a sort of board to slide down so that he was the one hitting every bump on the way down, she heard her companion's orders through the radio. Heading back up the boat, Nozomi used the fire on the docks to her advantage. While the smugglers were obscured by fire, in the dim mist, they wouldn't be able to see anything as their eyes adjusted only to the fire and a short range in front of them. As opposed to Nozomi, who could see it all. All they could see of the boat would be a dark shape. Forming a few quick hand signs, Nozomi aimed at the burning docks. She knew that the fire would be a bit weaker as it wasn't exactly chakra based fire anymore. It should only take the one water trumpet to put them out. And she was correct. As Sero was busy taking out the rest of them, Nozomi redirected her water stream to take out all of the small fires on the deck. They weren't finding it easy to light things on fire with the humidity in the air. When she finished, Nozomi turned around and went down to the dock. She needed to get closer to see if all of the fires had been put out.

After she confirmed that they were, Nozomi went back onto the ship, where she'd seen Sero making his way towards earlier. She'd heard one of the men she'd attacked die, as it was apparantly painful, but he didn't scream for long. But not the second one. As she walked up the ramp, Nozomi stopped. She saw that Sero had the other, final person there, and as she watched him, her eyes widened in fear for what was about to happen. She was correct. Plunging the blades into the man, Sero then left him alive, in pain, and forced Nozomi to make a choice. Kill him herself, or let Sero have his way with the man. Gulping slightly, Nozomi said nothing as she took out a kunai shakily. She slashed it at the man's throat, but had closed her eyes at the last second, missing the weak spots of the throat and instead dragging the kunai across his collarbone. Which again, only elicited more screaming. Finally having enough, Nozomi's hands once again had an aura of a liquid like substance around it, and she held her hand in front of the man's heart. "I'm sorry." she said, and then a stream of petals issued out into his chest, not piercing through the other side, but embedding into his ribcage, and piercing his heart easily from this range while he couldn't fight back.

She turned away and grimaced.

WC: 2717
-20 Chakra, Petal Storm of the Mist
Chakra: 150/200
Born Ill - 2/8

Sero watched Nozomi approach with a cold gaze. He didn't mind waiting. He felt no pity for the man as well as not being threatened by him. His arms were useless and Sero was already inches away from the mans vitals. All it would take was a twist and a yank upwards and he could finish the mans last desperate effort at rescuing himself. As such most of his attention was pulled away from the man. That grey eye watching Nozomi without any hint of emotion behind them. He thought he was doing her a favor. By forcing her to take a life now it wouldn't cost her everything later. Still he pulled out his swords and stepped back. A flick of each blade sent blood splattering across the deck. His blades weren't clean and would only rust further but he hadn't found them in good condition anyway. Still as he first attempt failed he sheathed his weapons. He didn't really even hear the screaming individual anymore. It was just another sound, like a panicked animal before it was killed. They were nothing more then that to him, animals, mere prey. Still his grey gaze looked over the smoldering dock as his smoke bomb finally faded away. Other dock workers were coming out to look now. The blackened spots on the docks still sturdy by the look of it. Nozomi had done well in following his orders and putting out the flames. He heard her mumble and apology then which caused him to look back. He watched as she shoved a jutsu into the mans chest and his heart. Even how she looked away. She seemed to be unwilling to look at her work. Regardless Sero walked over as silent as the grave and in a quick movement reclaimed his headset in an almost gentle manner from her. Not as if yanking it off her head but pulling it off like it was meant to be. Pocketing it he looked around at the bodies littering the place as blood poured into the bay. When he spoke it was as cold as ever.

"Now you have taken a life. But not of a person, of an enemy, Predators do not pity trespassers in their territory. In time you will forget the sick feeling of ending a man. You will feel nothing during the final breaths of your foes. When you are ready inform the collection unit to clean up after us." And then he stepped passed her and onto the railing of the ship before stepping away into the mist. Without a sound he seemed to fade into it. As if he was never there.

Exit thread
4092
1500/1500 mission complete
2592 remaining
1500/1500 twin tails trained
1000/1000 rising slice trained
92 words remaining

Nozomi's body was slightly numb, and she felt like she had been out in freezing cold for a long time. However, there was a gentleness with which Sero reclaimed the headset that belayed some sort of empathy. He knew that killing had shaken her up a little bit, and instead of his usual crass actions, he had been almost nice to her. And even his words, unfeeling as they may be, conveyed some sort of feeling, as if he actually cared about her emotional state of being. As he stepped away, Nozomi couldn't see him anymore, but knew he was still there. All she had left to say was two simple words. "Thank you." With that, she too departed, to go finish the mission by turning it in to the collection unit.

WC: 2851
Mission completed: 1500/1500
Exiting thread.

Remaining WC: 1351

[1351/1000] Trained "Water Release: Water Clone"