Sunagakure, a village hidden within the sand, home to many of its own oddities, from the odd giants of the Jiendo Clan to individuals that can literally wield sand as a weapon in battle. The village, surrounded by great walls and protected by decently strong Shinobi, housing half-decent food and apparently decent place to stay, would be one that Kei Iriye would be leaving. The Genin, whom of which would be inexperienced and knowledgeable of only a handful of techniques, would be standing before the great gates, taking a deep breath before exhaling. the winds were picking up more today, causing the long, torn black and white coat of the patchwork male to move gently in the wind. Over his right shoulder would be a bag filled with cheap rations, generally bread and water. The reason why he's leaving?

Sunagakure is a piece of shit.

Kei didn't particularly hate the village, but considering that this village hidden in the sand was overrun with gangs, drug dealers, corrupt Shinobi, and the like, Kei didn't feel like dealing with any of it, especially the way he is right now. When a village lacks a decent Kage, such a lacking which makes one wonder if they even have a Kage, then there are issues with that village that requires someone from the outside to help mend, as those within have grown too accustomed or are too weak to deal with it themselves, at least for now. Hell, the security is seemingly so relaxed that Genin can even leave if they wished, when before generally it was required that they have a Chuunin or something of the like with them when they leave. It all seemed so pathetic to the patchwork male, so instead of suffering along with everyone else, or pointlessly fighting just like everyone else, Kei instead decided to just pack up some essentials and move on to another village, wishing to travel and learn more about the world abroad, and hopefully improve himself so that he may return with the skills to better aid not only Sunagakure, but other villages as well.

Taking those first steps past the empty gates of the village were some of the most intense moments he felt. Never before had Kei actually felt uncertain about something he was going to do, nor fearful about what to do next, but this day, this would be a huge decision. He had gone over the general plan; Head next-door to Iwagakure and then back, avoid eye contact with people along the way, stay out of trouble, and hopefully find some decent work that goes past being a secretary without getting involved in the gang violence that goes on. He wasn't a coward, but it doesn't take an idiot to know that when someone starts involving themselves with gangs, it usually never ends well.

Stepping into the desert, Kei didn't have a map on him, and decided instead to just go directly towards where the hidden village should be without taking any sort of detours or anything of the sort. He wondered if leaving unannounced like this would make him a Missing-Nin or a Ronin. He hoped that it doesn't at least make him the former, as he didn't abandon the village, he just wishes to progress and become stronger before returning, ready to face the issues with it head-on. If it were the latter then he can begrudgingly accept it, as it doesn't matter in the end anyways, as he'll eventually end up returning to Sunagakure, or at least, he hopes to. All in all, he doesn't know what the future holds for him, but considering the ever so shrinking village behind him, he hopes it will hold something in the vast unknown that won't rip him apart.

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[Exit]
[Leaving without permission. Make me a Missing-Nin if you want, but the way I see it is either we get a decent Kage or I can just walk out without consequence, especially since we don't really even have active ANBU.]

Kikisu was picking through the desert for junk or bodies as he grew nearer to the village of the sand. He spied something odd indeed, it was a traveler of sorts but he knew that something was wrong. The cast of his face was wrong and his expression was of anger, he knew him slightly. He had seen the kid around town a few times and knew him for a lower rank ninja. As a sand chuunin he felt obligated to go and come to him, not right away though waiting until he was a bit further from the village and from prying eyes. He had his puppets with him in scroll form and as well in rolled linen, he didnt bother taking Harataiko out just yet as he wanted to get a read on this ninja boy.
He finally made his approach, sliding down a sand dune in a pretty arid and desert area. What do we have here? a little deserter or a mere traveler of sorts ill take you for the former since ive seen you around He already had his invisible strings active, making sure they were attached to Kawaii and Infant, though not noticeable yet. Kikisu had his headband on at the moment, the same one that this kid had the one he was supposed to respect with his dying breath. Kikisu had no love of traitors and idiots, and leaving your own country as a genin seemed to be a bad choice indeed especially without the aid of a master or group of friends. Kikisu lived a few miles from the village proper yes but with his trainer and friend as well as mentor. He was alone and in danger now, from Kikisu or someone else he didnt even know yet himself.
Kikisus face went into a dead smile, his eyes not smiling with his eyes. It would seem there is a missing ninja in training here His long hair blew in the wind that gusted through the hot arid desert, he had been looking for junk and found a training session, willing or not. As well kikisu knew he was within legal limits here, someone trying to desert the village was considered a criminal due to them using the bloodline traits of their home village and knowing a few secrets of it. Kikisu had killed his fair share of ninja and was no newbie to it, afterall he had placed second in the chuunin exams and was promoted anyway.

'Well, this is going to suck.' Kei thought to himself as he took notice of who it was. He never spoken to this individual before, but he recognized him from seeing him around every once in a while. This person, whom of which wore a white robe and had a slender body with light, tan hair which came down his shoulders. He already recognized this person to be one of Sunagakure's Chuunin. He was easier on the eyes than the Jiendo one he had heard about, but all in all, bad news for the Genin, nonetheless. He would hear what this approaching Chuunin had to say, making it clear from the tone of his voice that he was assuming Kei was a "mere deserter", even stating that he had seen him around.

This made Kei's lip-less mouth smile with amusement in response. He? A deserter? He wished to learn more from other villages, not join them. "If I were a deserter, I'd have waited until I was your rank or higher to desert, so I would actually stand a chance against you people. The plan was to travel and learn from the people in Iwagakure so I can return and be a more efficient Shinobi for here." He would respond. He already assumed he was pretty screwed, especially if this person was the type to not care about the perspectives of others, or just wasn't capable of being able to see that the logical thing a deserter would do is to at least wait until no one else would be around to catch them. Kei wasn't one of those people, he walked out in plain daylight, not even bothering to keep himself hidden.

Seeing the smile the Chuunin had Kei wouldn't move an inch, instead waiting for what he assumed would come next. He heard the Chuunin immediately label him as a "missing ninja in training", clearly already having judged Kei's intentions to be immediately bad. Letting out a deep sigh, Kei's amusement would have already been lost at this moment. "Once more, I'm not deserting the village. I'm merely traveling to Iwagakure to learn more about medical Ninjutsu without winding up in trouble with the gangs here. It's not deserting, it's just going somewhere else to learn for a temporary amount of time. If you want proof, you're more than welcome to join me, and if I try to make a run for it, you can kill me or whatever. But trust me, if I wanted to desert, I wouldn't have left my headband behind as evidence that I left for a while, and I certainly wouldn't just leave in broad daylight, either."

He would be hoping this offer to join him in going to Iwagakure and the clear display of logic would ring through to the Chuunin, at least enough that the guy would see that he's not even a missing-nin, though he got a feeling in the pit of his stomach that this would be someone that either didn't understand the reasoning or didn't care, and if that's so, then at least Kei can say that he was at least the fastest death while traveling outside of the village, but if this person accepted his offer and merely monitored and came with him to Iwagakure, then hey, the more the merrier. Perhaps he could even learn something from this individual, as well. "If you still don't want me to leave, then hell, why don't you train me then? That's all I'm looking to get out of this."

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Kikisus face was set in a smile, one that still didnt go to his eyes. He was indeed garbed well for the sand today as he always was, since he indeed lived inside the dunes and riffs. The strings off of Kikisu fingers danced around lightly, they were completly invisible and attached them selves to his puppets. He was skilled in chakra strings, if he wanted to he could even make the strings barbed if he wished. He wondered what his sensei was doing right now, he wondered if she knew that he had found a hunting partner. If she did she would probably tell him to make sure to test himself and make the fight hard on himself, of course if there was one.

Oh i see...you are learning to do better to come back another day. Wheres your papers then? Did you consult the Kage on this or anyone else in that matter or did you decide upon your own whim that you belonged somewhere else. instead of trying to fix the gang problem you run away from it? Kikisu face went down into a frown, a tight lipped and almost pouty face women found it quite attractive, even if it was an angry face. Kikisu began walking towards the genin, currently they were 4m apart from each other. His walk was slow and deliberate, giving off the air of control. And if you dont have those i assume you know what that'd make you...A lilability. Kikisus fingers twitched lightly, both of the hands twitching as they did the common motions that were related to his puppets. His tone dropped from the feigned happy and jolly tone into one of pure anger and coldness. And what have it if you like it there more genin? You'd just stay as any would and become one of them...so no i dont take your word on it by itself scum. I dont believe he word of a deserter, you'd tell me anything not to fight wouldnt you he set both puppets to be ready for an attack, If the genin attempted to rush him or retreat he would Flash out his two puppets. Kawaii flipping her hair for his eyes and the infantile demon aiming for a hamstring. Only if he moved so far, and that was a big if.

Ryu had gone out for a walk to collect certain herbs too often looted near the village. His travels around had taught him that those herbs were less often taken out here and more indigenous to the area. Still he walked calmly as he scanned the sands for signs of leaves popping out of a specific type. This specific one made alcohol highly potent and yet gave it a very apple based flavor. Odd for a leaf to do but still he found them useful. The roots themselves were poisonous but he was always careful not to mess with those. Still he moved in the day because simply put it was easier and as of yet there were no wanted fliers for him. He had readied himself with blue jeans tucked snugly over boots to keep the sand out and a kunai in his belt. A button up shirt missing the buttons had been wrapped over itself so it was closed all the way up to halfway up his chest and tucked in to hold it there. Hanging in the center of his chest was a green pendant, circle in nature with carvings of a foreign language. Something his mother had left him long ago. Over the shirt he was wearing a black suit coat with the front open and the sleeves rolled up. On his hands were fingerless gloves with cloth stuffed into the wrists with the symbol of a black Jackal head on them. A tie hung loose around his neck while a Sash held his long blond hair back. Lastly an eye patch covered his right eye. To anyone looking he was just a tattooed punk with dress clothes messed up on him.

Still something out of the corner of his eye in the distance caught his attention. Two figures were standing out in the sands. Intrigued by the sight of this out here he wondered if they too were looking for his herbs. If so he might have some competition and that he didn't like. Some investigation would of course be in order. So casually he moved with a simple launching jump from dune to dune as the two seemed to stop to converse. As he got closer he began to notice a couple things. First being was the one with the pretty looks was wearing a headband while the kid didn't appear to be. Second was the fact that the one with the headband had two packages with him wrapped in sacks. There didn't appear to be anything attached to them and yet Ryu knew those hand movements. A puppeteer was one the field. That was certainly dangerous. Reason suggested to Ryu that he keep out of it but this kid seemed to be holding nothing weapon wise. Nor did Ryu see any reason for violence. He didn't like making snap judgments like this but truth be told, he had seen shinobi of the village corrupt and bullying or even killing civilians before. Targeting anyone weaker than themselves for fun. Ryu would sigh before deciding to act anyway.

With another launch Ryu would send himself flying off the dune he was standing on overlooking the two and fly through the air silently before landing ten meters to the right of the puppeteer with a thud in a crouch. A surge of raiton chakra ready should the man react negatively to that. If not he would keep the chakra ready within himself and rise. His right hand placing on the back of his neck as he stood his full height and cracked it audibly. His blue eye looking between the two as he spoke up. His voice calm but quiet and something about Ryu spoke of danger.

"I would back up a couple paces kid. Or remain very still. If anything this guy reminds me of a rattlesnake. Coiled and ready to strike. Anyone want to tell a guy whats up or Do I need to separate you two?"

"Tch" Kei would say as his suspicions were confirmed. This person has to be stupid, as they as a village don't have a Kage to go to in order to get papers. Essentially, the Genin are trapped here without teachers and the higher ranked Shinobi are corrupt, picking on the weak, and now Kei can see that he's speaking to one right now. He wondered which meaningless gang had this fool in their pockets, and how many other people he ambushed during his time as a Shinobi. He didn't like bieng accused of running away from the gang problem, especially since he didn't see it in that way at all. Instead, he viewed it more as him training so he can fight against it.

He wanted to ask this Chuunin what exactly he had done to stop the gang violence here, and why he's out here doing nothing at all other than harassing those that wish to leave the village. After all, for someone that's acting holier-than-thou, the patchwork male certainly heard about the actions of people that weren't even apart of Sunagakure far more than he heard a single story about this Chuunin. "What Kage? The one that has been missing for forever or the one stuck in your imagination?" He'd ask, clearly not going to play these taunting little games with this Chuunin. He was a mouse caught in the mouth of a serpent, but he's not a coward, and he's certainly not stupid enough to immediately attack. Instead, he would slowly reach up, plucking a hair from his head and holding it between the fingers as he would stand there, not showing any real signs of aggression.

Seeing the Chuunin's face turn into a frown as he approached him, Kei would silently watch, eyes squinting as the other male slowly walked towards him, currently being four meters apart. The Chuunin just ignored what the Genin said, continuing on to say that if he didn't have these imaginary papers, then he would just have to consider him something akin to a liability. He would ask him if he liked it more there, assuming he would just stay there and become one of them, using that irrational logic as reasoning to not take his word on it, and that he doesn't believe the word of a deserter, one that would tell him anything just to not fight.

This pissed Kei off to no end, and as some black threads began to leak out through the join on his left elbow, the tension would be taken away with a startle as he would see someone had interrupted the interaction between the two, more specifically standing ten meters to the right of the Chuunin. This new arrival wore a pair of blue jeans, which were tucked over a pair of boots. He would wear what looked like a ruined button-up shirt, which wrapped over itself, closing up to halfway up his chest, tucked in. A circular green pendant with odd carvings would being hanging around the center of his chest, and over the shirt would be a black suit coat with the sleeves rolled up.

From Kei's short analysis, he also caught that this stranger wore fingerless gloves with cloth stuffed into the wrists, with the symbol of a black jackal on them, and a tie would hang loose from his neck. To complete this overall look of a delinquent, a sash would keep the stranger's long blonde hair back, and an eye patch would cover the male's right eye. On any other sort of say Kei would've been wary of people that looked like him. Sure, they looked cool, but generally, at least from what he saw, they ended up being from gangs and the like, so as a whole he would try to avoid them, but today is not just any day, and from the fact the guy warned him to either stay still or back up a few paces, as this Chuunin appeared to be a rattlesnake. "This Chuunin is itching to kill people that want to find a place to train. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if this kind of thing is a hobby of his, where he attacks people purely out of jealousy that they have the balls to travel. He called me a deserter when he doesn't even realize we don't even have a Kage that does anything." Kei would respond to the stranger, nearly not caring if this Chuunin lashes out. Honestly, if he does, all it will do is confirm what the Genin said.

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Kikisu slowed himself down, his frown grew even more annoyed looking. The look on his face downcast as a single scroll opened inside his robe, his strings propelling it to do so. The hidden scroll now opened inside his robe was that of his main puppet of the time, Harataiko. He had two people to deal with now it seemed, he wasn't even in the wrong. Afternoon, Who may you be stranger. Im Kikisu Dune puppeteer His fingers kept on their normal nervous twitch as he scanned the area around him causally, activating a small amount of chakra on a particular clump of sand around his size.

You call me a rattlesnake...even though i do my job cordially. What is a chuunin to do but hunt nuke nin. And if there is no Kage then how is there genin and chuunin dear genin. Id like to call you an idiot but im too polite. His fingers twitched again, releasing the seal of the scroll in his robe. As if from the Sands the 8ft puppet appeared, it was round of belly and draped in a huge black flowing robe. The Puppet contained Kikisu himself, going in through a one way trap hole as fast as he could, now controlling the puppet with his strings, the other 2 now draped on the back of the fat one. The voice that came from him now sounded baritone instead of the regular suaveness, it was a bi product of the puppets deep construction.  I have no want to attack you stranger, only the boy. and not if he comes willingly he is attempting to leave the village and that cant be aloud Kikisu viewed through the puppets face and was able to spin himself around and look out two hole in the back of its head if he wished. Kikisu was no thug, but he wouldnt be pushed around by the likes of that man, whatever rank he may be Kikisu had his own pride. He mentally made sure that he had complete control over this puppet, now using the single puppet style instead of his regular multiple style.

Kikisu now stood in the huge puppet, the puppet itself was armed in its own right. It had a huge water tanker and a set of large fists, as well as a good way to keep Kikisu from harms way. He now faced towards the stranger, not completely  leaving the genin without attention but making sure to watch his biggest threat. This day was growing far more interesting then he had anticipated, who would have thought a man out looking for scrap puppet parts would end up in a fight with a chuunin and genin of his village. What a show you'll be His voice rumbled from the puppets husk as he stood ever ready.
*Prepared a Substitution *
Chakra- 185 (chuunin)

Jutsu:

What an interesting day it had been so far. Ryuto had been enjoying a fairly relaxing day, as he had been doing since he and Misaki had started dating a little while back fairly regularly. There had been quite the fascinating power vacuum in Sunagakure that Ryuto had been watching with great interest. There was a lot of crime and turmoil in the village, gangs rising to power to try to fill in the gap and a lot of infighting between the younger generation of shinobi. Ryuto was loving pulling strings from the outside, watching situations and getting involved in order to make useful pawns that he could use to enact his future plan to become the Kazekage, and bring Suna under his rule. He had been particularly interested in the gang warfare, and was curious to see how he could use that to his advantage.

As was often the case when a village got to a point like this, the more interesting places to watch happened to be around the border, to see if anyone was trying to escape. The young Uchiha would frequently go to the border to see who he could coax into staying and working for him, or if there were people he could help leave and have them feed him information from the other villages. People were leaving Suna at an alarming rate, but it was fantastic when you were looking for information, or looking to make friends. As the desert storm raged around him, Ryuto fixed the Eldrich Knot that had been tied into his purple and blue paisley tie, the effect giving it a fascinating colour fade that he was really enjoying. The white shirt he wore was crisp, and the navy cufflinks that wore held the french cuffs together. He wore a navy blue three piece suit with a double breasted vest, and he had his father's pocket watch tucked into one of the pockets. Everything was capped off with a pair of burgundy oxford shoes with a burgundy belt to match.

His blonde hair whipped back and forth in the wind as walked towards what appeared to be an altercation of sorts between two people. He activated his Sharingan, curious to see what was going on and to watch the reactions. Clearly one of them was leaving the village, and the other was trying to kill him for it. Fascinating. He wondered which one would be more useful? Generally those with the will to leave were either extremely strong, or extremely stupid, and the people who stopped them were generally looking for power through reputation. He would then see another man make his way into the frey, one who Ryuto was very interested in. He had been on a list of people to watch in the village, and was a bit of a high priority target. His informants on the streets had described the man to him, a gang leader of some repute. That was the kind of thing that made someone like Ryuto salivate. There was one of two things that would come out of this; the reputation of killing a gang leader, or the support of the gang. He noticed that the gang leader engaged the attacker, which set Ryuto into action.

He listened as they bantered, making his way towards the young wannabe escapee and setting himself behind him. He would put his hands on the boy's shoulders, if he were able to (which with the sand he was hoping there was a chance of that happening) and pull him back from the two. "You know kid, you really didn't pick a good time to try to leave the village. There are a lot of people out for blood right now. Maybe you should come back with me while we let these two fight it out?" He smiled and kept his eyes ahead on the other two, he was fairly sure that he could defeat the defector if he decided to attack him, but he wanted to see how this battle would come out. Who would be the more useful ally in the long run?

Chakra 195/200 (apparently I need to get my chakra bar fixed to Chuunin chakra):

Ryu would watch with a silent eye as the one before him spoke. He seemed awfully full of himself but that was typical of the villages shinobi. He let his head fall back a little as he listened patiently. So this was just a typical situation to him. Some chunnin running their mouth and being cruel to someone who simply wished to expand their horizons. There was no murder claim about the boy just a desire to leave. Hell Ryu had considered leaving himself a few times but there was  too much work to be done in the slums. He couldn't just abandon people that needed him. So it was with this kid standing nearby in the sands. He would inquire of the kids story later if he could but for now he needed to save his life. He needed to be there for the kid and that meant standing up to this murderous puppeteer. Ryu could practically feel the murderous intent falling off the man. However the thing that concerned him had yet to be revealed. Each puppeteer was a specialist in their own right. So it was that the man shifted and from behind him a behemoth rose from the sands. A monstrous thing looking almost human but made of wood.

As the man climbed into his suit of protection Ryu would calmly take off his coat. Focusing a tiny amount of chakra into it before tossing it. Allowing it to catch the breeze and carry off another fifteen meters to the right. He cracked his knuckles calmly while his eye focused on the thing looming in the sands before him. The other two puppets attached to it from behind the man and he would speak about how Ryu not needing to become involved. A silly idea and yet not one Ryu could accept. A stranger in a nice set of digs suddenly showed up and behind the boy no less. He didn't sense anything hostile coming from him as of yet. Hell the man could of been his brother. Younger and more responsible sure. However his eyes didn't miss the sharingan activated there. An Uchiha... Shit he thought as he looked away. He knew the lore and knew better than to look at those eyes. It didn't seem like the man had any intentions other than pulling the kid back from the battle site and yet Ryu was uneasy now. However as long as the man would keep to himself Ryu would focus on the fight in front of him.

"A show eh? Well I ain't your mother on stage but feel free to come at me."

Ryu taunted but shifted back rapidly. Moving up the sand dune but keeping close to the ground in case this puppet had any tricks. It had started ten meters from him but now Ryu was increasing the distance uphill to twenty. He would see how it moved first and if it had any tricks he need be wary of. If it attacked in some way he was prepared to either launch himself in any direction or put up a defense depending. It was large and sturdy but that was a simple thing to overcome. With any luck it would give pursuit. After all that was Ryu's reason for going up the dune.

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195/200

Jutsu used:

"You're an actual idiot if you don't understand how there are Chuunin and Genin with the lazy, probably non-existent Kage we have. If anything your saying that pretty much confirmed that you're the same kind of-" Kei would respond harshly to the Chuunin, though would be interrupted mid-sentence by the appearance of an eight foot tall puppet, one that was round and had a large black flowing robe. Soon enough, the Chuunin would disappear, leaving the puppet behind. As Kei would hear the now-baritone voice ring out, he would have a fully angry look upon his face. "A chance to come willingly? Would that have been before or after your getting ready to attack, idiot?" He would snap, nearly beginning to speak without thinking.

As the Genin examined the puppet he would notice a set of large fists and a water tanker. Still observing, he would take notice that the puppet was now facing the stranger that originally arrived, appearing to have more focus on him rather than Kei, which suited him just fine. He wanted to stay and fight, but with the puppet master within there, he wouldn't even be able to get close enough to use his Piercing Fist technique in order to do damage, so instead, he would stand there, glaring as the threads were now exiting his arm, wriggling rapidly while his right hand kept a hold of the hair, ready to use his technique in defense. It was no substitution technique, though he know that the one he had in mind could help him last at least a second longer than before.

Suddenly, however, before things would begin, Kei would feel two hands on his shoulders, pulling him away from the two stronger individuals. He would hear a different voice from the others telling him the obvious, about how he really didn't pick a good time to try to leave the village, especially considering there are a lot of people out for blood right now. Instead, the stranger would suggest coming back with him while they let the other two fight. Looking at the stranger, Kei would be suspicious of his intentions at the moment. Granted, he was certainly well dressed and had a smile on his face, but whose to say he won't try to kill him later? Then again, between having a chance to die later and a certainty to die now, only an idiot would choose to stay.

"Fine. I owe you one later." Kei would respond, allowing his black threads to return to his arm, though he still kept a hold onto the hair, still keeping it just in case he and the stranger would be attacked by the psychopath puppet-user. Turning towards the village, he would begin walking towards it, glancing one look back towards the original stranger, whom of which took off his coat at this moment, obviously preparing to fight. Turning away, Kei would begrudgingly continue on his way back to the village, getting 2 meters at this point away from the original fighting location. He despised the idea of leaving, especially in a way that can be assumed as running away, but there's a day for fighting, and there's a day for not getting involved in situations that include clearly stronger Shinobi going at it.

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He was ready to call back at the kid, the words were on his tongue and everything but then there was a single comment that made him forget about the kid. His eyes narrowed and his fingers tensed, strings coursing through the puppet. The words burned into his head and he was near headache levels of anger already, the calm demeanor that he generally kept was gone.

A show eh?Well i aint your mother but feel free to come at me His mother had died when he was a young boy, as with his father. They were ninjas who tried to bring peace and were killed for it. He knew them only in faint memories at this point. A criminal had killed them in front of him and sliced up kikisu himself as well. The scars from their knives ran up his fingers and forearms and burned at the thought. You son of a whore. Youre going to regret saying that Kikisus fingers started going wild.

First he clung strings to the puppets on his back. Lauching them full force to the flanks of his enemy and into the hot sand. One of them 10m to his right and the other 10m to his left. Sticking in the ground like totems of linen that were only 10m from the enemy ninja and ready to use whenever he needed, the puppets were indeed Kawaii and Infantile. Ill kill you for saying that you son of a bitch He tried to use his training to calm himself but the mention of such a soft topic drove him wild. he stood still where he was, the large puppets hands being held right to each side of its large round body, Kikisu was itching for him to come closer, wanting the criminal to come and get him. The puppets would be waiting to slaughter him, then and only then would he be able to calm down.
Chakra 153
*Maintained Invisible strings, normal strings*

Oh combat, such a barbaric waste of time. Ryuto simply didn't understand why people found it so insanely important to get into such fights at all. He wasn't one to get his hands dirty, as it absolutely appalled him to have to resort to such violence, preferring to allow other people to fight it out in his stead. He watched as the gang leader said something to anger the attacker before backing up, the attacker using a rather large puppet. Ryuto made sure that he was standing in an area that was in a spot where he wouldn't be able to be hit by any of the jutsus from the large puppet, standing more off to the side now of the two ninja. He didn't want to get involved and watched as the defector made his way back to the village. He had told Ryuto he owed him, and that was important to Ryuto as he would cash that favor in later. He had made at least one pawn today, wether they knew it or not, and that made this excursion well worth it.

His sharingan continued to track the movements of the battle, watching as the massive puppet began to attempt to attack the gang leader. Ryuto pulled out a Kunai and created a seal out of chakra, placing it on the kunai and holding it in his hand. He was prepared to use this if he had to, trapping either opponent if one of them tried to come to attack him. He had no intention of being caught off guard, his stance ensuring that he was at least thirty meters away from the two at all times, moving to wherever he had to to ensure that he wasn't going to be attacked by either of them. He smiled as he watched the conflict begin, the fascination of who was going to win this confrontation already beginning to overtake him. He supposed it wasn't always that barbaric if you were watching it.

As he continued tracking the battle, he continued to contemplate the potential of having either man as an ally. He watched as the puppet user hauled his giant construct armour around, something that in itself was impressive. Puppet users were always useful for keeping a wall in front of someone like Ryuto, and he could always appreciate such a thing. He looked back towards the gang leader as well, knowing that he would be a powerful ally if he could make a friend of him. He had a puppet user who he could call on, but the higher ranking gang members would be much better than some of the low ranked people that Ryuto had managed to convince to listen to him. He knew that either of them could be useful, but he would have to make a decision, and potentially very quickly if things began to seem pretty hairy. If either of the men seemed like they were going to kill the other, it would create a problem that would force Ryuto to act. He didn't want to have to, but he knew he was prepared if it came down to that...

1223

Chakra 180/200:

OoC:

Ryu would back peddle as he noted the newcomer and the boy moving to safety. It was good that the kid was going to manage to stay out of it for now. Still this wasn't a joke of a battle. His eye shifted back to his opponent as once more the thing shifted. It was huge and made of wood which meant it wasn't conductive. That meant his raiton couldn't travel through it. What a pain it was for a puppeteer to utilize wood. A huge part of him wished he had katon instead of raiton right that moment. Not that it mattered. He would have ample time to strategize. What lay beneath that hood was of interest to him but not until he could design whether to get close or not. Puppeteers were a tricky bunch and a pain in the ass. Typically they hid themselves but this was the first time he had seen one armor himself and still function. That water tank on his arm was interesting too and likely a weapon of some sort. He would have to keep an eye on that. Other than the water tank it had obvious spikes on its hands. If either of those hit him he would be bleeding. He needed a winning strategy. Not to mention his other puppets....Which he had yet to see.

As if on cue the puppet would launch two figures from its back. Ryu was now twenty meters away from the thing and so he stopped as he watched them fly twenty meters to land on either side of him with an impact into the sand. They had to be nearing the extent of the large puppets range which meant he would need to move to pursue. Another good thing since Ryu wanted to see how fast it moved. Or rather how fast all of these moved. He was calculating his enraged opponent and just to stir the pot Ryu would smirk at the man in the puppet below. Obviously he could see him since he placed his other puppets perfectly. It was time to make a ballsy move. For the moment Ryu contemplated his arsenal before something in his recent studies came to mind. He would need to use it if he wanted to make an impression but for now....for now he needed to make a move of some sort. The other two were thirty meters away from either party roughly. A good place to be.

With that in mind Ryu drew his kunai in a reverse grip defensively before he shifted his stance and darted left. Moving further away from the two men he made his way closer to one puppet rapidly and further from the other. As he did so he began to charge raiton chakra into his mouth and held it there. Letting it build as his eye crackled with electricity and he sped across the sands. Keeping low and moving slightly further away from the main puppet. Arcing in his run so he would be no more than five meters in front of the puppet to his left and 20 meters from the puppet on his right. With this he would be twenty five meters from the main puppet and almost in melee range of the one in front of him. He was baiting him to come at him with whatever this puppet was capable of. Ready to retreat the extra few meters if he had to. In the academy they had taught them a lot about how to fight puppeteers and their limits on range. This man was no simpleton but Ryu would need to test to see if those ranges still applied. If the big puppet moved closer he would have an answer.

Charging up a raiton jutsu
1855

Kei would continue walking his way back, but something in him just wouldn't let him leave. Was it his overconfidence in his own medical abilities, or something far more foolish? He wouldn't know for sure, but something in him wanted to watch and see how this fight turns out. He certainly despised the puppet-user based on their short interaction, especially considering how he not only ambushed Kei, whom of which was only planning to travel, but also lied about immediately intending to kill him to the arriving stranger. It made the stranger's assumption correct in his eyes, where this Chuunin was a rattlesnake, waiting for those weaker than him to slip up, even slightly so, and use that as an excuse to attack and kill them.

Kei had no intentions to heal or aid this Chuunin. but should the strangers that came to his aid end up injured, he would instead look towards helping them after the fight is over. He owed both of them today, and while cheap medical aid isn't much in paying them back, it can at least go a foot or two in the right direction. Climbing to the top of a sand dune around ten meters away from his original spot, the patchwork male would watch the battle continue on. It seemed his would-be savior was getting assaulted by multiple puppets, though he couldn't see much, as he was around forty meters in total away from him.

He had never seen two Chuunin fight before. Genin, sure, civilians that were drunk, drugged up, or part of two different gangs, sure, but never two Chuunin. Shinobi generally didn't hang around the slums all that much save for the occasional drug or gang raid. There were some that lived within them, of course, but certainly not enough for two Chuunin to just hash it out in the middle of the street, so seeing something like this made him deeply interested in what would happen next. At face value, the puppet-user was the one with a clear advantage, but honestly now, if his opponent wasn't confident in having some sort of trick up his sleeve, then why would he have even stepped in? It made Kei curious as to what would happen, as not only can he learn from this experience but, if he had a nasty encounter with the puppet-user later, he could use it to his advantage.

wc 412

twc 3011

Skip me for the rest of the fight <3

Kikisu smirked maddeningly at himself as he saw his opponent run at his puppet. He was running right at Infant, since he knew what puppet was going to be attack he switched to balanced control, keeping their speeds but losing some reaction time. He now charged to flank his opponent with Harataiko and infant. Running straight forwards to be right in between his puppets and roughly 15 meters away from the enemy. As the man drew near his infant puppet the wrappings flew off towards him, attempting to get the bindings in his face as the mouth section of Infant unclicked rapidly and shot the 12 teeth. The teeth could each cause an inch of puncture, which on its own wasnt lethal but in large amounts could do some serious damage, if only great pain.  The teeth were aimed for center of mass just as the bindings would catching him in the face.
At the same time he activated one of his signature abilities, it required no hand signs but instead he edited the chakra that made up his strings, sticking the chakra out at odd angles and making the very strings that ran his puppets barbed and sharpened. This created a maze of invisible spiked strings between kikisu and his puppets, which in turn was between Kikisu and the enemy. So if the ninja tried to move away from the line that was between him and his puppet they would catch the sharp end of his strings, adding onto the fact that they were completely invisible to the naked eyes.
He brought Harataiko and himself between the puppet and his enemy, ready to defend himself as he may. Come on are you scared? At this point Infantile puppet was out and standing ready, the blood red rubber dyed skin stark against the black steel claws and large horned shoulder spike. The puppet was incredibly short but packed a whollop, not the same type of power that harataiko had but comparable. If the man attacked infantile he would not bother dodging with the puppet, knowing he wouldn't make it in time. Instead he would have the 10 claws extend at max speed to meet the attack head on, aiming for his chest and neck, and taking the blow if it would mean a blow back.
Tremble, be afraid....this art here will be the death of you if you take me lightly. And a chuckle would now break from his lips, coming out as a low baritone sound from his puppets creation, he was ready for this man to attack.

Used this turn:

Chakra 137 *Maintained Strings*

Things were starting to look a little bit more interesting. The stalemate had pushed forward into another gear, the puppeteer clearly the slower of the two in this encounter, which made sense as he had to deal with the puppets, and the other man seeming to be biding his time perhaps? Ryuto smiled and chuckled. He pulled out his pocket watch once more, checking the time to see...well essentially just to see the time. It was something that he did quite often, like a form of nervous tick except that he wasn't nervous at all. He slid the watch back into his vest pocket and watched as the man with the puppets brought forth another one. He was attempting to put that puppet on the other side of the crime boss, but Ryuto didn't see that being overly likely as the crime boss was still moving quite a bit quicker than him. Ryuto imagined that were he able to do this, however, it could cause some issue.

He shot a stray look over towards the child whom he had sent back to the village, nodding to himself as he noticed he was watching the fight from afar, still standing there and not leaving. He wasn't sure if he would have ended up going back to the village or leaving, but at this moment in time it seemed he would be going with the former. Ryuto's attention turned back to the fight as quickly as it left it, his feet beginning to move him forward. He wouldn't get too close, no closer than fifteen meters from the puppeteer, preferring to stay on his side due to the fact that his puppets were attacking, but ideally a little further than that, and he began to whistle. It was a simple little tune, one that he remembered hearing one day when he and his mother were out at the market from a performing artist on the street. As he whistled he would continue to keep a close eye on the situation in front of him, using his Sharingan to his advantage in that way. He wasn't going to be caught off guard, not by these two, and he had no intention of fighting either of them. He was simply prepared in the event that it happened. He continued to clutch the kunai in his hand with the seal on it, hiding it inside one of the inner pockets of his suit as he did so. As a tactition and a genjutsu user, he knew it never hurt to be prepared.

1657

Chakra 175/200:

Ryu was running at full speed without pushing himself just yet. He needed to keep it moderate for the time being and study his opponent. The man was talented while he moved between single puppet use and multiple puppet use but was keeping a moderate distance. Ryu was used to these puppet users using stealth and even the sands to hide themselves but as far as he knew he had only ever seen one puppet clan with hidden strings. The Chikimatsu were famous for it. If that was the case than he was truly in for a fight. The longer this guy had access to his puppets the longer he could press after Ryu and keep him on the move. That clan was no joke but it also meant this couldn't end with him killing the guy unless he had to. Someone from one of the more honored clans of the village might be noticed when he went missing. It was a pain but if he worked this out like he was planning then and only then would he see if he could get the guy to lay off. For now though he kept low to the ground and observed. He wasn't sure if this guy was really even using chakra in the amounts he hoped he was but he would press him and see if he would use more.

First though was the two puppets he had obviously sent out to deal with him. He was running towards what appeared to be the smaller one and he suspected it was just a bundle of traps. Any puppet sent out with that kind of killing intent was likely worth its salt. That said he was aware of the one behind him and the big one moving now too. The one behind him was moving closer to the caster and the caster was moving closer to him. Ryu would smile a bit as all of it grew just a little closer each passing moment. His lure to draw the man to the base of the dune was working wonderfully. After all he had never used a technique this powerful and was as of yet unsure how potent it was. A glance to the side for just a moment told him the boy and the other individual were both moving up the dune and well away from the battle. If he was going to cut loose now would be a good time. Still his focus was more on the puppet coming up. Something was up his sleeve and Ryu was going to be ready for it.

As if in response to the thought the bandages suddenly snapped off at Ryu and created a blinding blanket in front of him. Obviously meant to cover him or at least his eyes and hide a hidden attack. That was more like the puppeteers he had trained with. Always with some hidden tool or attack. Still Ryu had been expecting it and his next step the moment the bandages launched at him suddenly shifted the earth and rapidly rose him upwards. If it blanketed his vision he would need to avoid it. Being blind for a moment was a poor move. A rampart of earth shoved him upwards and carried him three meters up as a series of thunks smacked into the rock and dirt and sand mixed together beneath him. A large amount of projectiles likely meant to cut him down. From above he could see the little devil puppet and all its sharp edges and truly it was intimidating if he hadn't all this raiton energy built up.

The moment he could see the darn thing as the rampart rose it launched another attack towards him and Ryu met it with his own technique. He opened his mouth and from within it a roar erupted with a solid beam of electricity and light smashing down almost point blank on the little puppet. As the beam powered down into the puppet if it didn't somehow manage to block or evade the thirty meters per second beam from three meters away it would pierce right through the puppet and annihilate it and turn the sand around it to glass. However Ryu wasn't done yet. He shifted his head so the beam moved with him and cut through the sand. He was well above the man below and his beam moved from the puppet on the far left and cut through the sand at them a mere eighteen meters away at thirty meters per second. A slice from right to left leaving a trench of glass in the sand and carefully designed to cut through the strings that had been placed anywhere between himself and the man below. Annihilating any strings in that space. If he couldn't see them he would raise to high ground and cover the entire space between them with one jutsu. The blade arc aimed to end at his other puppet. If he didn't pull something out of his hat he was going to lose two puppets in a single second. Ryu was careful not to pass him with the beam though. He wasn't oblivious to the other man moving closer. If anything he hoped this man didn't intend to fight him as well. Perhaps the boy would take the opportunity and begin to run? Or maybe the boy wished to see how this worked out too.

2768

160/200 chakra

Jutsu used:

Kikisu stopped and raised up his hands, laughing heartily as his puppet was sent burnt to a piece of metal and rubber. Yelling out in a jovial tone he hoped to get the ninjas attention. Well you win friend i shall be off. for i have no real reason to fight you and anything else would be meaninless, hopefully you recruit the lad and make some use to him. I was just trying to do my duty Kikisu was still on guard in case he attacked him still. He didnt need to quarrel with him for any reason and had best been getting to his sensei anyway, she wasnt prone to waiting much.
He began a slow march into the sands, using his strings to try and gather up the other puppets, one of them quite damaged and destroyed. He noted his face however, knowing he was in complete concordance with the Suna law and he had the right to try and capture these two, it bothered him not. Not much point really, the kid isnt worth my puppets, they took me years, have your victory stranger. He was once again making sure he wasnt going to be attacked and if he was he would rolled out the way to the best of his ability, in all honesty he was just tired, he wasnt wrong here and everyone near him acted as such, a rougue ninja and a criminal, there was something funny about it. Normally he wasnt a good doer, normally he wouldve have smiled and let him pass, but today not so much. We can call it even if you wish. Here a parting gift of peace

At great pain to his heart he threw him Spink, in a scroll. Knowing he was quite valube though a D rank puppet, he had 5 weapons on him and assumed the man would try and sell them. Its worth quite a bit. Its yours


OOC- I failed an exam and have 2 more tests so im unable to finish this thread, i hope the whole puppet is enough to call it off.

The young Uchiha was ready to ensnare the man in a genjutsu, preparing to flip his entire world on its head, but just as he was prepared to do so, he watched the man whom he was preparing to target have one of his puppets destroyed. He would laugh and surrender, something that Ryuto could respect. There was no honor in defeat, but it took a wise man to know when to give up. This man very easily could have ended up dead, and Ryuto understood how important it was to know when not to cross that line. Self preservation was an extremely important trait in the world of the shinobi, or honestly in the world in general, so Ryuto was glad to see that it wasn't something this person didn't seem to lack. He watched as the man threw the scroll to the ground to the other man, allowing him to walk past him towards the village again. He made sure that he wouldn't harm the young boy who was trying to leave, and when he was satisfied that this would be the case, he would walk up to the other man and nod to him.

"Good showing friend, it's always nice to see people who are willing to defend the defenseless in this time and age. I know that our village is going through a lot, and people think that murder is okay, but ending a life of someone who could prove to be useful later on isn't something that should be done." He would watch the man's face, seeing if he could get a read on the crime boss as he spoke his piece, keeping his Sharingan activated as he did so. Most Uchiha were scared of what would happen if they kept their eyes activated for long periods of time, or if people saw them and decided they wanted them, but from what Ryuto had seen he should be able to lock this man down fairly easily if he had too. "Besides, even a fresh genin who is leaving can be useful for gathering information from other places, or even in the village if they stay. Information is power, my good Jackal." He nodded towards the man as he held a hand out for him to shake, curious to see if he would take it and leaving it for a moment unless the other man shook it or made it clear he didn't want too, before putting it back in his pocket.

"I find it is always beneficial to have good people like you as contacts." He pulled a card out of his coat pocket with a seal drawn on it and his name and how to reach him. "I am Ryuto Uchiha, and if you need anything in the future, no matter the nature, please feel free to call on me." He would intently look at the man, waiting to see his reaction, before he would turn around and prepare to leave, still keeping all of the genjutsu he had access too in his back pocket. He knew turning his back on anyone was dangerous, and he had seen what this man could do, but he was hoping he wouldn't have to use any of his little dirty tricks on him...

2211

Chakra 170/200:

OoC:

Ryu would wipe out the puppet before him before his eyes shifted ahead of his mouth. He would be rather surprised for a moment as the man had raised the hands of the puppet he was in. At first he wondered if it was a trick or some sort of attack but he just held it there as the beam arced towards him. Ryu himself was having difficulties remaining standing on the surface of the platform he had raised and when he saw his opponent had surrendered he wasn't eager to dishonor such a thing. He wasn't a murderer. So his face snapped away and arced up another dune away from all of them forcing him to crouch down and grab the edge of the platform to keep from being blown backwards by the force and shift in weight. The platform cracking as he held on and the dune began to glass over. This being his first time with this jutsu he was surprised to see it lasting so long...he had cut off chakra too it but still...With a snarl he would grit his teeth slowly lessening the beam until his mouth closed and he swallowed. The jutsu finally ending as it was forced closed.

Feeling the energy fade Ryu would open his mouth and stick out his tongue in disgust as a small amount of electricity crackled out. His teeth felt numb from that but his own jutsu didn't harm him without any outside influence. Still it tasted bad to him. Like ashes filling your mouth. If anything he really wanted a drink of water in that moment. Still he would hop off his perch as it finally toppled and collapsed into a pile of stones in the sand. His eye following the man as he tossed a scroll at his feet. Buying his way home by the look of it. Ryu sighed and rubbed the back of his head before looking at him annoyed. He wasn't about bribes but he didn't care to see if this guy sticking around was going to become an issue. He simply kept an eye on him until he was over the next dune with his puppet before he would bend down and pick up the scroll. Dusting it off and looking it over. He had exactly zero use for a puppet. Still he let his eye snap to the approach of the other stranger. Well dressed and self assured. He hadn't intervened before nor did he feel hostile. Still Ryu would keep an eye on him.

The man would approach and nod to him but those eyes. The Sharingan remained active so Ryu remained tense. His grip on the scroll tight like he might utilize it as a throwing weapon should he be attacked. He knew nothing besides the fact that this man had the sharingan. Still he seemed to be complimenting Ryu for the time being. It all didn't add up perfectly but that was fine. For now he would take one less enemy. Still the man spoke and called him Jackal. For a moment Ryu wondered how well informed the man was before he recalled he was covered in Jackal symbols. Anyone could of dropped that nickname on him. A hand was out stretched and after a moment Ryu shifted and slapped the scroll into the hand before fist bumping it with sarcastic awkwardness. Waiting until a card was handed to him with an offer of possible support should he call on it. He tucked the card into his pants pocket because he was no fool before speaking.

"Kids a genin? No kidding huh? Small world. Well Ryuto, you don't mind if I use your first name do you? Ryuto bud, you do me a solid and see that gets back to Mr. lotsasharpbits back there and I figure we all good. I got no use for whatever that is and I ain't about to extort someone for their life. If you ain't gonna come at me imma grab my coat and head out in case he just wanted to call for some friends." As he finished speaking he would watch the guy walk away. Not really interested in kicking anyone in the back of the head. Wondering idly how he and the kid would handle their return. Unlikely the other wouldn't of gotten there before them.

3508

It was a great watch while it lasted, but soon enough, almost just as quickly as the fight began, which included the bombardment of puppets upon the stranger, and the stranger's destroying one of them, the puppet-user would suddenly cease what he would be doing, holding what Kei could only expect to be his hands up in what he could assume to be a sign of surrender. Sliding down to the bottom of the smaller sand dune, the Genin would begin quickly walking back towards where the other stranger, whom of which suggested returning to the village, would be at. As the Genin walked towards the other stranger he would also see that his original assaulter would walk away into the sands, seemingly having given up entirely on the battle.

As he continued walking up to the two, whom of which at the moment the one he was approaching would have gone towards the other, Kei couldn't help but glare at the Chuunin puppet-user as he continue heading away from them, clearly done for now. 'I know what to focus more on, now that I know what your puppets look like.' He'd think to himself, making himself almost smile at the thought that this user of puppets just so happened to have wooden puppets, and Kei himself specialized in the Katon element. He had a feeling that, if there were ever another time in the future in which their paths cross again, Kei would make sure he is better prepared with the information he gained from this.

He would reach the two right as he heard the name of "Ryuto Uchiha", with a continuation of offering for the original savior of Kei's to call him up if he ever needed anything in the future. The Genin didn't expect for there to be an Uchiha that he would encounter today, let alone one in the village. He was tempted to look the male in the eyes, felt the desire, even, to just get a peek of what they truly look like, but before he would even begin to decide to look, he stopped himself. He heard the horror stories about those eyes, and what they can do, and so instead of looking at the stranger in the eyes, he would instead look towards the other one, the one that had finished fighting.

"Thank you both for coming to my aid. I didn't realize that I'd encounter psychopaths within the first few moments of leaving. I'd have gotten better prepared if I did." He would say as he stood there, not even wishing to directly look at the Uchiha out of pure caution. He was grateful for the male's help, of course, but he still didn't wish to get caught up in some odd technique that messes with his mind. "Thanks again, for saving me. You could've just as easily looked the other way, so I owe you one." The Genin would say as he held out his right fist, similar to what he witnessed the stranger doing to the other one, as a sign to bump it. He didn't know anything about either one of these people, but he did know that they could've easily let him die and moved on, and so in his eyes, that was something he can respect both for, not looking the other way. He would watch as the other stranger began to turn his back on the two, making Kei nearly breathe a sigh of relief.

wc 596

twc 3607

Ryuto allowed his Sharingan to deactivate. He knew that they could be a little bit distracting when he was trying to talk to people, and therefore he figured he wouldn't keep potentially freak people out. The fist bump wasn't something he was particularly expecting, and it was a little bit off putting. He was a man who had an extremely formal upbringing and could tell a lot about a man from a hand shake. He would stare at the man's fist for a few seconds as his hand felt as though it had been violated, the sacred art of shaking a hand being shattered in an instant. He would simply nod and move to pick up the scroll, sealing it away so that he could draw it to return to the puppeteer later. This gave him an intriguing opportunity to make another contact out of all of the people he had encountered today. Three contacts for only an hour of his time or less? Absolutely worth coming out here today.

The younger individual wouldn't meet his eyes and he chuckled slightly. There was a lot of stigma revolving around the Uchiha Clan, most of it being that they were terrifying monsters whos eyes you should never meet for they would put terrible spells on you. To be fair, they weren't wrong. Ryuto's power with his eyes might not have been quite on par with Uchiha of the past, but they were still impressive themselves. With a simple look he could cause someone to see their desires, he could cause their perception to change, or he could even flip their world on its head. He had long ago decided that there was no real reason for him to fight, but if it came down to it, all he had to do was lock eyes with someone and they would be under his spell.

He thanked the two of them for helping him out and then held up his fist. Ryuto shook his head and put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Learn to shake, boy, it'll get you further in life." He pulled out one of the same cards he had given to the Jackal and put it in the man's hand before walking towards the village, to go seek out the man who had dropped the scroll. "Don't forget that name, get a hold of me if you folks need anything." He made his way quickly back towards the village, ensuring that he wouldn't miss the man on his way back. He wanted to make sure that he would be able to give him the scroll before he had to track him down, which he really didn't want to do. It was unlikely that he would get so lucky, but it was impossible to know until he tried...

2690

Exit Thread

Rea C -> C3 1875
Per c -> C1 575
240 words discarded

Ryu contemplated the meeting of the day. It was a little strange that so many would end up in the desert in the same spot at the same moment by chance. There were possibilities to explain it though. Perhaps this Uchiha was working in cohorts with the puppeteer. If that was the case perhaps he had intended to save the kid himself as part of a scene and gain some influence with him. Wasn't the most attractive kid but something about the Uchiha seemed to pull Ryu towards him. He couldn't help but resist it instinctively. He was too paranoid about the village shinobi. Still he doubted this was to lure him out just to study him. Nor was it to lure out Ryu. No one had enough interest in him as far as he knew to test him like this. To pit him against the village for some kid. It still tugged at his mind though as basic paranoia. For now though he would leave it to the last option he had considered. His eye shifting over to the boy as he looked him over a moment. Fate itself might just be bending around the boy. Perhaps he had a destiny and it had pulled people out to save him from falling from it.

Still he pushed the card up into his bandanna as the kid made it to them and spoke. Kid spoke of thanks and owing him one but Ryu just shrugged and accepted the fist bump with one of his own. Though fist bumping with Ryu would likely leave the kids knuckles a little red unintentionally. Ryu still had a lot of adrenaline pumping through his system so he wasn't thinking about monitoring his strength. Still the man put his hand on the kids shoulder and suggested a hand shake would get him further. Ryu simply smirked as he thought to himself how that depended on where you were. Some places reserved hand shakes and hugs for when someone proved they were family. For when a brother or sister was taken down in an alley in the dark or someone thought lost to you was found. It was a symbol of hope and love for those in the slums that could still care for each other. Many thought of Ryu's gang as just a group of thugs. Not the citizens in the territory he had but others certainly had that view point. Truth was members of his gang were family to him. They were his pride and he was their lion and he would kill for them.

Still as the Uchiha turned and began walking after accepting the scroll. Ryu would lean down and lower his voice after the man was several meters away. He was going to take a chance with this kid and give up some of his paranoid thoughts. He whispered low because he knew of the hearing of a chunnin. His own was exceptional.  His one eye watching the Uchiha for any hint he heard him. "There are a lot of wicked things out this way kid. You want the strength to go out and see the world you find me in the eastern slums. My bar is called A Hounds Heaven. You catch up to that village shinobi though and see if you can enter the village with him. His report of you returning with him can get any charges dropped. If he seems trustworthy to you when you look for me, bring him too. As for me I need to cover my trail. Just in case he has friends that want to track me." With that Ryu turned to collect anything evidence wise of him being there and covered up his tracks a bit before taking a fairly long route around back to the slums.

4147
Exit thread

Lightning Release: False Darkness (雷遁・偽暗 ~ Raiton: Gian) A rank trained 1500/1500
2647
Strength C-C3 1875/1875

727 left over

Reaction time C - C-1 500/500

Kei would receive the fist bump that was requested, leaving his to shake his right hand, as the guy that saved him most likely wasn't able to bring his strength under control fully yet. Still, he wouldn't let his face show the faint stinging that had occurred from his knuckles clashing with the other male's, instead covering it with a more disinterested look in the pain. After shaking it off for a few seconds he would feel a hand on his shoulder, most likely from Ryuto himself. The Uchiha would tell Kei to learn how to shake, telling him that it would get him further in life. He would smirk in response. Of course, for a normal person, a handshake would be more appropriate, but to someone that is more casual or rough around the edges, he knew that they may prefer a different version of a greeting, and considering what he saw in the interaction between those two, Kei automatically considered the possibility that the person that fought the puppeteer preferred a fist-bump over a handshake. Kei himself didn't care which was used with him, personally, but that was him.

Looking at the card he was given, Kei would see Ryuto's name on it, along with a method of reaching him. After that, he would let the Uchiha return to the village as he was told to get a hold of him if they needed anything. Assuming that would be the end of that, Kei himself would consider leaving the place too before anyone comes to investigate what had happened, though would be stopped by his original savior, whom of which leaned down, lowering his voice after Ryuto was several meters away. He listened carefully as he was told about how there are a lot of wicked things out this way, and that if he wants the strength to go out and see the world then he should find him in the eastern slums, in a bar called "A Hounds Heaven", a fitting name for someone that wears a jackal insignia on their body, as the creature is a type of canine in itself.

He would be told after that to catch up with Ryuto and see if he can enter the village with him, as his report of him returning with him could get any charges dropped, and if he seems trustworthy enough when he looks for him, he should bring him too. He himself will be covering his trail just in case he has friends that wish to track him. Kei nodded at this, knowing full well that it wouldn't be good if that puppeteer had anything going his way in regards to the events that happened today. Granted, the guy was a psycho, but he was also clearly a higher rank than Kei, and considering it wouldn't look good for reports to come in of a lone Genin entering and leaving a village on his own, his best bet would be to re-enter with the Uchiha. He would do a light run, beginning to catch up with Ryuto, in which as he trailed a meter to a meter and a half behind him, he wouldn't really say much. He still recalled Ryuto's earlier offer to return to the village together, and as a result would go off of that offer in order to not say anything about it now, instead giving the other male some space as he walked nearby him.

"You're clearly interested in him." Kei would begin as he looked at the back of the Uchiha, still walking at a normal pace, keeping his voice low. "Eastern slums, a bar called "A Hounds Heaven". You don't strike me as the type to get rid of people that look strong, so I think you'd have as much interest in going there as I do." He would continue walking nearby the Uchiha, slowly getting closer to the village itself.

[Exit Thread/Thread Complete]

wc 667

twc 4274

Strength E->D 780 wc
Speed E->D 1,105 wc, 25 ryo
Endurance E->D 780 wc
Perception E->D 780 wc
Reaction Time E->D 780 wc

4274
4225
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0049 wc left, 25 ryo total