"My bad, I'm used to being around the main section of the village. I still need to adapt to the vibe down here."

Ryu would glance up and raise an eyebrow at that. The man wasn't wrong. He didn't carry himself like he was intimidating those who might come after him for his things. Even though he had introduced himself as a special Jounin Ryu had his suspicions on just how he had managed that rank. He had seen a list of requirements for rank ups in the last couple of years and some were fairly intense. None of which he was fully prepared for yet. If anything Kenshin stuck out a bit with the clothes he was wearing and lack of tattoo's. Still Ryu found him useful and intelligent which was more than he could say for virtually anyone else. His mismatched eyes would follow the green string as it shot out and retrieved the arrow with higher accuracy then he had with it. His own limitations clear as Kenshin caught it so non chalant like while he would of had to dodge it at those speeds with far less chances of catching it. Perhaps his doubts were unfounded. The man was clearly more powerful then himself. Still his ears twitched as the man spoke again.

"I know it's a big task, but with the two of us as enforcers, we might be able to do this section some good. Cleaning up the streets would be a start, but I bet you know more about that than anyone."

Ryu actually scoffed at that causing the electricity to arc a little and spark before fading as he winced and wiggled his hand as if making the numb pain fade away faster. He would suck on his finger a moment as he sat back in the chair and glanced at the window. Maintaining chakra was going to be a pain but it wasn't nearly as daunting as his other plans. There was a warzone out there that people just didn't notice. A great deal of powerful and desperate people. Sometimes someone had both qualities and were incredibly dangerous. He had seen his fair share of them while he did his time in prison. Lifers in for murder that didn't mind doing it again to get what they wanted. They had been avoided by the intelligent and used by the unwise. Those who paid them were eventually the contract he or she was given by a competitor. Often moving in circles until most the crime bosses were dead. Still Ryu would speak up as he returned his gaze to studying the tiny red mark left over from the raiton on his finger.

"There have been tourists who thought they could do good here. Offering medical attention or food. Clothes and a hot shower. Every time they were mugged or assaulted for something petty. We can't approach this with kindness. The harsh truth is we will have to eliminate the worst of them and you may have to imprison those who might reform. To be clear I am stating we may have to kill some gang captains and leaders. However even with homicide on the table I doubt the main village will notice until the death count gets up there. We need to establish your boundaries and what rules on who we bury. I say no one who surrenders and no women or kids....you feel me on that?" Ryu said as his eyes fell back onto Kenshin with the last bit. Watching him for his response. He liked Kenshin but he wouldn't work with someone who just wanted to end everyone.

619

The last statement Kenshin made caused Ryu to scoff. Raiton crackled as he lost focus, causing the chakra to arc and touch him with a wince. Kenshin knew that pain, as he had done the same many times before. Apparently, the idea of them cleaning up the steets legally was not a viable one. Sad, but Kenshin knew that it was named The Slums for a reason. If crime was so easy to correct, it would have been done long ago. Ryu then spoke, adding in his thoughts on the subject.

"There have been tourists who thought they could do good here. Offering medical attention or food. Clothes and a hot shower. Every time they were mugged or assaulted for something petty. We can't approach this with kindness. The harsh truth is we will have to eliminate the worst of them and you may have to imprison those who might reform. To be clear I am stating we may have to kill some gang captains and leaders. However even with homicide on the table I doubt the main village will notice until the death count gets up there. We need to establish your boundaries and what rules on who we bury. I say no one who surrenders and no women or kids....you feel me on that?"

As Ryu spoke, Kenshin stood there with a relaxed face. He had expected a similar story after a reaction like that. He spoke of killing, which Kenshin had no problem with. He also mentioned having boundaries, followed by laying them out for the archer. "I agree. I will say this though, if a female comes after my blood, I won't hesitate to put her down. However, I do not believe in senseless violence, so your terms are fine with me. As for the village noticing, I doubt it will. Even if they start to catch wind of the events taking place, I can intervene and throw them off our trail."
He spoke looking up as he thought of various ways he could do this. The double agent thing suited him and his very relaxed personality. it made him the last person they would suspect, as they would figure he was out avoiding work like usual.

At the very least, his previous aggressive attitude from their previous meeting was all but gone. The man was intelligent, and Kenshin had seen no red flags that would tell him to run. He would lean the chair back, relaxing even further as he decided on whether to ask for more beer or not. He didn't want to get drunk, but he was enjoying the chill time.

Word Count: 442

"I agree. I will say this though, if a female comes after my blood, I won't hesitate to put her down. However, I do not believe in senseless violence, so your terms are fine with me. As for the village noticing, I doubt it will. Even if they start to catch wind of the events taking place, I can intervene and throw them off our trail."

Ryu would nod slowly at that as he understood that point of view. He himself would take down anyone who challenged him but he wasn't interested in ending a life that wouldn't become a problem later. It wasn't like women were weaker when it came to the shinobi world an he didn't care one way or the other for punching one in the face if she had it coming. However murder wasn't something he looked forward to. Even if it was self defense it left a hell of a scar on the soul. A part of him felt that scar would be smaller if he reserved that to mostly men and only others as absolutely needed. Still he would shift to his feet in a forward rolling motion by thrusting his arms forward to almost propel himself out of his seat. Moving to the kitchen as he spoke as he had noticed both he and his guest had empty beers.

"Recycling bin is to your left against the wall. Try not to break the bottle as I reuse those for my business. As for putting down people coming after you, that is your business and I won't question it unless it was far from necessary. I can work with you so long as you do not kill them needlessly. I myself will be knocking them out with minor injuries. However knock outs create oppertunity. If you intend to intervene and throw them off my scent...making arrests of criminals will be the background of that. Claim you are bringing in the suspects of the murders and imprisoning them. You get recognition and respect while it covers our ass. Might even work your way up to a promotion. "

Ryo reached out with his right hand and popped open the fridge again before removing two more cold brews and tossing one like a kunai to Kenshin knowing he had the ability to catch it. With his thumb he popped off the lid to his own and sipped it. Enjoying the cold sensation before moving over to lean over a counter nearby his mentor. His hand reaching out over a plant there and hovering above the pot....The dirt shifting and slowly spinning on the surface with very little in the way of momentum. It was weak but his focus was increasing while they spoke. Already his ability to maintain jutsu had increased to another two seconds. He felt a bead of sweat run down from his temple to his jaw before dripping down but ignored it. Practice was exhausting but it was just as important to train doton as it was to train raiton. Much the same feeling of energy though one was hot and energetic while the other was solid and heavy. Still he spoke up again this time glancing at Kenshin as he did so.

"Tomorrow we can hit one of the smaller gangs nearby. It will draw the attention of the individuals yet to select a group. If they haven't already been inducted they can hold their own or they would of joined one for saftey. We need them to join up because once one piece of the board begins to move the others shift. The bigger the move the bigger the shift. If we have others under me in the group they won't have to know about you but they will be needed for eyes and ears. You can't strategize if you can't see and follow the board. A small gang is a small shift but big enough to get the ball rolling. And claim some resources and territory in the process."

1300

Kenshin relaxed as Ryu got up and walked to the kitchen. He grabbed a bear, tossing it to Kenshin at a brisk pace. He would move his hand to catch it, nodding in thanks to his new comrade. He popped his cool beverage open and took a gulp, sighing as he brought it down from his lips. Ryu then spoke, Grabbing the special jounin's attention. Kenshin fixed his focus on the man.

"Recycling bin is to your left against the wall. Try not to break the bottle as I reuse those for my business. As for putting down people coming after you, that is your business and I won't question it unless it was far from necessary. I can work with you so long as you do not kill them needlessly. I myself will be knocking them out with minor injuries. However knock outs create oppertunity. If you intend to intervene and throw them off my scent...making arrests of criminals will be the background of that. Claim you are bringing in the suspects of the murders and imprisoning them. You get recognition and respect while it covers our ass. Might even work your way up to a promotion. "

Kenshin nodded to his request, dispensing it the recycling bin carefully. The former genin then brought up a intriguing idea. Knock outs seemed to be the best way to go, at least in this scenario. It was hard to do that with an arrow, but he was more than capable of it. He would smile at the last part, looking over to the direction of the administration building. "I'm not sure I want a promotion. Power is good, but I don't want more responsibility. I'm a bit to lazy to take on more." He would note this for Ryu, as he never intended to hide his lazy nature. "However, I agree that knock outs could lead to a very convince cover. It is decided then. Killing only when necessary, but knock outs are the goal." He would then allow Ryu to continue his train of thought by be quiet once again. His friend then started to practice and spoke.

"Tomorrow we can hit one of the smaller gangs nearby. It will draw the attention of the individuals yet to select a group. If they haven't already been inducted they can hold their own or they would of joined one for saftey. We need them to join up because once one piece of the board begins to move the others shift. The bigger the move the bigger the shift. If we have others under me in the group they won't have to know about you but they will be needed for eyes and ears. You can't strategize if you can't see and follow the board. A small gang is a small shift but big enough to get the ball rolling. And claim some resources and territory in the process."

Kenshin listened as the man explained the next course of action. Kenshin was here to assist, and where this went was totally up to Ryu. It's what kept the thing interesting for the special genin. "Sounds good, I'll be sure to bring some new toys for knock out purposes. Should be fun getting creative with it." He would note out loud before returning his focus back on the the next day's plans. "I follow your lead here, so I'm backing your play." He would add before returning to taking a gulp of his beer. This was his first schirmish in quite some time, so he didn't mind the idea of fighting.

Word Count: 612 + 442 = 1054

"I'm not sure I want a promotion. Power is good, but I don't want more responsibility. I'm a bit to lazy to take on more." That part was inconvenient but managable for now. He could deny his promotions for his own reasons for a time but anyone of higher status then him would have authority to watch him a little closer. The idea of getting him to Jounin was to limit the amount of people that might be and increase his own access. After all a special Jounin on his side was fantastic but He needed the best case scenario all the time. A jounin would have access to basically every file and report he wanted. Ryu could investigate anyone looking into him and use the intel the village had on its slums. Not to mention erase records of himself. If he could move without a criminal record that would be ideal but to get away with that...he would need a Jounin at least. For now though he could wait until Kenshin realized his own reasons for desiring a promotion. Instead he listened as Kenshin spoke again. "However, I agree that knock outs could lead to a very convince cover. It is decided then. Killing only when necessary, but knock outs are the goal."

That itself created its own dillema though. Ryu was obviously not an archer and if they did start catching onto evidence an archer was involved they might start looking into the known archers that could make those shots. Ryu was sure there were a few but he only knew of two. Kenshin and Sieryu were both potent archers he would keep eyes on but Kenshin was on his side. For now he would need to avoid escelation to those they took down having witnessed arrows flying around. There was a way around that though. His knowledge of jutsu was limited but Kenshin was likely capable of more then himself. Still he would listen as Kenshin spoke a final time with a raised eye brow. "Sounds good, I'll be sure to bring some new toys for knock out purposes. Should be fun getting creative with it.I follow your lead here, so I'm backing your play." An interesting thing for someone who out ranked him by a considerable amount and was more powerful and experienced then himself was not controlling from the shadows but rather assissting Ryu and letting him run free. It was ideal but he wasn't above believing there was something about the whole situation that somehow benifited Kenshin beyond entertainment.

He could only wait and see how that unfolded if he wanted to utilize the mans strength. Instead he set down his own beer on the counter and shifted to the fridge to pull down a tightly folded but thick sheet of paper before unfolding it and setting it on the table between Kenshin and himself. It was a map of the area that had marks on it...either stickers or drawings of gang symbols with circles marking their current territory. Ryu would point to the one nearest their position which was only a few blocks in diameter. A gang called the Sun dusters. Not too strong and mostly no name thugs but one that had territory. Still he would rest his left index finger on a building at the edge of their territory. "That is where I want you to post up. We will prepare and in one week we will assault them during their meeting on the street twenty meters from there. It is kept under a lamp so when we attack at night you will have a clear view of them while the difference in light will conceal you. In that time I want you to focus on one thing. You need to be able to take down anyone coming at me in groups without any evidence of you being there. Rapidly retracting your arrows might work but it would be prefered if it seemed like i was doing it. So either Raiton that doesn't appear until that point or invisible arrows. Is that something you can accomplish in one week?" Ryu would glance up to make eye contact with the man. He had to appear not to be there which limited him considerably. He wasn't sure someone of that lazy nature could be influenced into designing a new method of attack in under a week and perfecting it. Even if he didn't these punks were basically academy students. It would be rough but Ryu could try and handle the brunt of it if he had to with Kenshin making very tiny moves to sabotage them.

785/2085

Ryu brought out a map, setting it on the table between them as he started to point at a location. Markings and stickers littered the map as boundaries were drawn for various gangs. It seemed like Ryu had done his research and probably already had a plan in mind. Kenshin looked at the various sizes of territories on the map, noting the few names he recognized. This was a pretty large scale task, and usually that would be enough for Kenshin to bow out. However, this time was different. There was something about this place he liked, and Ryu was a nice enough guy. He didn't see anything better to do, so he was going to stick with it. The former genin began to speak, explaining the plan before them.

"That is where I want you to post up. We will prepare and in one week we will assault them during their meeting on the street twenty meters from there. It is kept under a lamp so when we attack at night you will have a clear view of them while the difference in light will conceal you. In that time I want you to focus on one thing. You need to be able to take down anyone coming at me in groups without any evidence of you being there. Rapidly retracting your arrows might work but it would be prefered if it seemed like i was doing it. So either Raiton that doesn't appear until that point or invisible arrows. Is that something you can accomplish in one week?"

The plan was well enough and Ryu was obviously strong enough to take quite a few people at once. He just hoped he could contribute enough to be worth the trouble. He had ideas for stuff like this, but nothing concrete yet. After thinking about it for a few minutes, he would respond. "Wind arrows wouldn't be hard to do. I'll work on it in the next couple of days and see what comes of it. Regardless, I will figure out something to fit those guidelines." He spoke honestly as he looked to his bow and back to Ryu. If he had to, he would use Ninjutsu to contribute to this, but he would have preferred to use his bow. Something about it instilled confidence in him. He quickly decided on training for most of the day tomorrow, as he was a man of his word despite his lazy nature. Now he had to train, and that was fine with him. He probably needed to be stronger anyway.

Word Count: 432 + 1,054 = 1,486

Ryu would let the silence set in for a few minutes after his speech. He wasn't a great talker but he had put some thought into this. Still his odd eyes shifted to look over the bow across the room. It was a danger to him that he had been aware of for some time. Snipers were not something a taijutsu specialist had much appreciation for. Anyone who was focused in up in your face type fights didn't like those who could take them down from a hidden spot far away. So far both the powerful people he had met in Suna were archers. He could only hope the other one ignored him while this one continued to aid him. A mentor of sorts that could lead him to victory and new heights. He was picking a fight with a lot of people and he needed to grow more. Always needing to strive to be the best so that he could hold on to what he sought after. Still he lifted his hands and focused on running chakra between his fingers. At first it was normal chakra but after it broke a couple of times, gradually it began to hold and gain structure. It was an odd balance but it managed to do the trick. Still he would be cautious as he added raiton into the chakra and let electricity zap between his fingers before focusing more control over it. Soon the rapid zaps slowed down to simply an orb of raiton floating between his hands. The circle surging out the side at times and being forced back into itself as if it wanted to be unleashed but control was being gained. Still he lost it when Kenshin began to speak finally.

"Wind arrows wouldn't be hard to do. I'll work on it in the next couple of days and see what comes of it. Regardless, I will figure out something to fit those guidelines."

The orb would spark out with a small bang and send out a small surge making his lights flicker as he blinked from the sudden change of light before regaining his focus. It took him a couple of moments to gain his barings and remember what had been said. Wind arrows? That was a terrifying idea. He had been sure if he could spot an arrow heading his way from a distance he could avoid it. A wind arrow was something that could be considerably harder to detect. If it was ever used against him he wasn't sure he had any defense against it. Nor did he think wind resistance would be as much of a thing against someone who controlled the air. The archer standing next to him in this fight was much better as an ally then an enemy. He would have to recall not to anger the man. Still as the lights stopped flickering and the music picked back up he spoke again. Ignoring the raiton discharge that had frazzled his systems.

"I know I am asking a lot of you. Especially since we just met. However without your help...and any allies I can obtain I don't think this is something a single person can do. The people are too beaten to rise up by one example so if I want change...if I want a better life, I am going to have to earn it myself. Hopefully you can gain something other than just entertainment as well."

2668

Exit thread
2000/2000 raiton C-B