Mission details.:

Taeru would perch on the edge of her bunk with her upper frame lent down, pressing the flat of her tightly bound chest against her thighs as she lent to tighten off the straps that wrapped around her baggy black trousers. She would absent mindedly tug the leather through the buckles as she re-read through the mission details before allowing her miss matched hues to flicker over her tessen. 'Am I ready?' She would repeatedly question herself as she looked at the tessen before her only to flicker her gaze back to the mission scroll allowing a heavy sign to leave her chest. The house seemed deafeningly quiet the only noise of that which she created. Everyone had gone out for the day after she had left to pick up the mission and her custom weapons. Her legs would part slightly allowing her to lean down further squeezing between them as she reached out lifting the lids from both of the weapon boxed closing her eyes. She would bite down on the soft pastel pink flesh of her bottom lip, causing it to discolour as she inhaled deeply through her nose, slowly filling her lungs only to peel her bottom lip from the grasp of her teeth letting a shaky breath leave her. She would shift form the bed to her knees placing the lids of the boxes off to one side before placing her hands lightly against her thighs taking a moment to center herself before allowing her miss matched hues to open resting her gaze on the weapons before her 'I must always be ready... always.' She would draw the boxes closer slowly drawing her fingertips along both of the weapons hearing the sound of her rough palms graze the fabric before withdrawing her hands only to dip them back in. Prizing the weapons from their packaging she would stand adjusting her grip before rolling both of the weapons inwards closing their arch spread only to roll them out almost immediately gageing there balance and weight.  She would step away from the bed closing her eyes as she took her stance twisting as the flicked out each side keeping her movements fluid, reflecting back on lessons her father had given her only to pause drawing them closed again. A soft smile would tug the corners of her lips up as she turned around placing the weapons on her bed. She would step around the bed once more before dropping down into a low couch, somewhat low enough for her rump to graze the ground as she pressed the flat of her bound chest against her knees. She would take a small step closer before drawing the holders from the box with a smile, everything were down to her specifications. She would raise from her odd crouch to her full height of five foot five dropping one of the holsters onto the bed as she paced back and forth attaching and securing the holster at an angle against her lower back; its access point indicated for her right hand to retrieve. Turning on her heel's sharply she would take the other holster from the bed as she paused her pacing about to attach the straps of the holster around her hip then thigh adjusting its position so that the holster itself could tilt freely on her left side. Taking a few steps adjusting to the feel making sure they sat right she would let a soft almost fulfilled sigh before placing the weapons into their correct holsters. She would step back to the bed placing her hand down against it as she lent down to take the mission scroll from the ground, before turning on her heels heading down the stairs again gazing at the scroll before tucking it into her backside pouch. ' A kill order... not even able to relocate the creature... ' She would lightly shake her head removing the thought with a sigh before tugging into her boots on her way out of the house.  

Slipping her hands into her pockets she would head through the crowded streets of Iwagakure heading off to the location of this 'beast' finding it had taken less time to get there than she had planned. Pausing she would look around, her gaze in search of any member of the public to make sure she were in the right place before spotting a woman in her window her face creased with worry and what could only be sorrow. 'the mother of the child …?' Her thoughts would slowly trail through her mind as she watched the woman's face twist in terror not hearing the woman's calls of warning. Taeru's instinct would cause her to dip down into a crouch dropping her head down just in time to feel the underbelly of the snake glide over her head before thudding to the ground a few meters away. She had the time to draw her weapon and wound the creature but first needed to make sure she were about to take the correct life. Hear head would flick up raising her miss matched hues gaze back to the snake only to have to arch backwards as the snake attacked again. Taeru's left hand would rest against the ground flat as her frame formed a crab allowing her right hand to release the latch holding her weapon strapped to the small of her back using her pinky finger to slip the weapon out flicking her index finger against its edge as she spread her fingers along it's base using her thumb to guide it open to its full extent. She would twist landing from the crab positioning to her knees immediately shifting into a crouch placing her left hand against her kuni pouch, raising her tessen to cover the left side of her face with her right hand covering the lower section of her face as she studied the great beast. Her head would tilt a touch downwards causing her pastel lilac hair to graze against her cheek keeping her piercing yellow orb watching the snakes striking yellow orbs watch back as it curled slowly raising its body as it shifted ready to strike again opening its mouth to hiss. Slowly mimicking the snakes stance  she would lean down before slowly drawing her upper frame back up slightly even returning the hiss, only for it to launch at her. She would drop to her knees tilting off to the right as she curled her right hands fingers feeling the snake clip her shoulder only giving her shift more momentum as her tessen fanned out allowing her to spin it  over cutting a lengthy gash into the snake, such action only angering the beast more as it whipped out of the way. Taeru would push up from the ground immediately before sprinting forwards knowing she wouldn't outrun the beast her left hand would shift to her other tessen pouch strapped to her left thigh quickly retrieving it before flicking her wrist down opening it fully "Amai...Tetsu..." She would drop down to her knees immediately before closing her eyes waiting to feel the beast launch  leaning back, arching her body enough for her bun to graze against ground. Her hands would change positions on the tessen, Amai and Tetsu opting to grasp them as a geisha would her dancing fans twisting them around as the snake passed allowing her tessen to make two swift brief incisions at either side of the creatures head just deep enough for the creature to slump down to the ground bleeding out but not yet dead. She would shift to kneel over the dying creature placing one leg either side of its long strong body close to its head. Watching the beast shudder would only send a shiver along her spine placing her tessen down beside the snake. She would take out her kuni using her left hand as she softly almost tenderly stroked its head leaning closer to whisper "It's over now" the snakes mouth would open allowing a hiss to leave it as she slide the kuni through its head freezing in place as the creatures last hiss played through her mind sounding like 'My babies.' She would pause there for a moment waiting for the creature to stop squirming before removing her kuni and cleaning it before placing it away once more. She would inturn do the same with the tessen placing them away into their pouches safely as she thought on what she couldn't of heard.  

She would turn leaning down into a crouch in the process as she heard something coming up behind her only to feel someone's arms wrap around her sending Taeru to her rump and the person to their knees. It would take a moment to realize the person were the women from the window. Sobbing against Taeru's shoulder in a muffled 'thank you.' Taeru would freeze in place for a moment unable to get the hiss out of her mind even as the woman who had lost her child to the creature cried. Regaining her composure she would softly pat the woman's back using her left hand as her right moved to the woman's left elbow as she spoke, her dull voice warping with a hint of her light accent "come on, let's get you inside."  

Taeru would guide the woman back inside before stepping out to where the woman said the child had been playing at the very edge of the garden. She would crouch down searching, for what she didn’t know until feeling something odd under the hedge. Broken shells... moist.. She would recoil her hand brushing her thumb over her slimy fingertips realizing then that there had been eggs there. Taeru would shift placing her arm under the bush before raising the branches out of the way seeing a few dozen broken eggs and a child's toy resting in the middle. 'was the snake .. protecting the eggs..?' Her mind would swim with a range of thoughts only caught out as she noticed one egg seemingly undamaged. She would bite down on the soft pale flesh of her bottom lip immediately discolouring it. Her free hand would shift carefully plucking the egg from the mess of its siblings. She would take a moment to stare at it before carefully wrapping it and placing it in her backside pouch safely. She would let the bush go before standing. She would raise a hand to the woman as she left as a means to say goodbye. She would approach the snake leaning down to lift it carefully  over her shoulders closing her eyes for a moment before returning to the village with the intent to hand in the signed scroll and snake before heading to the library. She wanted... answers.



(Word count: 1800)
(Mission: 1000/1000)
(Word count left over: 800)

[Exit thread.]