Having arrived at the camp after having been chased by a crazy ninken, Kiyoshi had dropped off the tools and checked them with the team that was planted here. From here on, his second mission would begin - the charting of the dunes. Since this was a new base, the environment had remained mostly uncharted, but word had it that there were a few burial mounds hidden under the sea of sand.

It was that idea, to discover such burial mounds of a lost era that Kiyoshi hoped to find. How awesome would it not be if he'd be able to spot one, mark it on a map and give it his name as the original discoverer of a buried mound? He'd become famous. Remembered throughout time. A legend, rivalling the Sannin in popularity. A smug smile crossed over his face as he saw that dream become reality before his eyes. This was it.

Making sure everything was finished for his previous mission, Kiyoshi took a good swig of his water skin and left the camp to wander the desert. Wherever he looked, sand grains was all he saw, the sea occasionally broken by a vast tower of stones throwing long shadows over the area like bony, greedy fingers. They brought no solace against the heat that battered down or the wind that boredly swept over the land. The occasional scarab and scorpion braved the desert, its short legs carrying it over the ever shifting golden grains in search of something to feed on, but there was little else of life that scurried around at this hour of the day.

Kiyoshi imprinted as many of these stony giants's positions as he could, sketching most of them on a scroll with coal so he could bring in some imagery to the camp. Having a recognisable landmarks was always useful. The higher ranked ninja would then have to figure out the tactical value of these landmarks, but that wasn't exactly Kiyoshi's concern. He did his job, they did theirs.

Hill after hill of heaped up sand passed him by as Kiyoshi wandered the sand, the tracks he left behind quickly swept away by the devilish tease that the wind was around these parts. He barely kept up with the hills, not interested in paying attention to something that would be gone the moment he had shown his back to them. There were precious few rock formations to take note of, it seemed, leaving whole wide areas open to the tricks of fata morgana - the natural genjutsu of the land, or so his father had called it. It didn't look like there would be anything akin to buried mounds of ancient secrecy today either.

Arriving at a rather peculiar looking thin bridge between two stony towers, Kiyoshi decided that this would be the end point for today. A brief pause would be an acceptable thing to do as he took another swig of his water skin, arranged his sketches and took a breather from the travelling. Then after that, a short exploration of the stone bridge so he could accurately tell what he had seen would follow.

While taking a look at the stone formation, Kiyoshi noted a small cavern of sorts that harboured a much cooler temperature than outside. Sure, it was still warm, but compared to the heat outside this little shelter was a welcome change. He wasn't the only one to think so. Various skeletons of small creatures had been picked clean, betraying the presence of an animal that had made its house in here. While the creature wasn't around at the moment, Kiyoshi knew he couldn't stay here. Sooner or later, the inhabitant would return and fiercely defend its home against the intruder. Still, while Kiyoshi left the place undisturbed by all but his lingering scent, this little discovery might change the interest in the landmark considerably. He'd be able to return, a job well done.

As he finished the last bit of his exploration, Kiyoshi made his way back to the camp to report. Considering there was something soothing about such desert wanders, he was inclined to pick up another of these missions some day. They paid rather well.

[exit]

wc 710