Ah, what a beautiful day it was! Grey clouds choking the light and dulling the senses, heavy drops of rain bringing news of lurgy to the soaked figures below, and а damp smell of moisture that envelops the brittle bone of the weary traveler... all part of the wasted weekend package. And all dear to Eishi who has spent his entire life in this very village, getting used to its every corner, falling in love with its cold grace.

The boy was sitting on a nearby rooftop, thoughtfully observing the thinned motion on the streets. Large umbrellas marched by, elegant and expensive, above the common commotion of the working mailmen who were desperately trying to run from one point to another without getting completely drenched. The light scent of perfume was completely mixed with the fresh smell of fish, giving way to exotic dreams of bourgeois prosperity towards the blocked sky. "And it never cares enough to rest", yawned the boy, gripping his silver schirm more tightly. "No, sir. It easily managed its existence into a perfect harmony within the boundaries of a country that was utterly devastated not so long ago. Like a black phoenix it rose, like a mythical creature it thrives. Life in all of its forms."

A pleasant sigh escaped Eishi's lips before they parted into a content smile. The poetic notion of shared peace was what warmed his vision of the future, and so he gazed into the distance, enjoying the sight and the calm philosophy it provided.
---

WC: 253

"Get out!" a door slammed shut after Kahou as she was thrown back on the wet street. She shrugged under the wooden lean-to in order to keep herself dry for as long as possible.

The door creaked open again and a furious man's face covered in red floated about. "I said get the hell out of here!" he yelled at the blonde girl and started pushing her away from his shop.

She was mad but she could understand that a shinobi in his store would definitely have a negative impact on his day job and even though he was a complete and utter prat for doing this, she decided not to make a scene about it. Kahou stepped on the street under the light rain. "I hate this weather... I always did..." she grimaced while walking down the wet road. She was used to being scolded, yelled at and shooed but she had hoped things would be different after escaping the noble's manor.

As she was passing by strangers without paying too much attention to them for she was focused on the awful weather, she could still feel the men's stares that followed her but at this very moment she despised anyone who saw her this way.

Her first thoughts were to try and run back home but every raindrop that splashed on her was a reminder how useless that would be. She was already beginning to look like a soaked sponge and there was nothing that could be done about it. Kahou could have prevented this when she did her day planning earlier today but she did not. You want to know why? Because!

She was always overthinking things and usually that would lead to her forgetting something important. Like an umbrella on a rainy day.
---

WC: 301

"I need to get a good weapon. One that swings well in my hands. A beautiful katana, or maybe a Zanbato. I could also get a miaodao. Oh, I can't wait. The first thing I will do is paint it red!" These were the wandering thoughts of the young shinobi. The rain – a problem for some (not for those with a numb body) – was pouring on top of Kiri's majestic communist-block-looking buildings.Everything around was a little Soviet, gray and dull due to the sun, hidden behind the clouds. The leftover smell of a glorious battle fought not long ago on these lands could easily be felt by one's senses. Mura, of course, was not at all bothered by his surroundings. He was carelessly walking straight to the weapon shop, when suddenly an unknown girl had stepped right in front of him. He didn't have enough time to slow down and incidentally bumped into her.
She was a cute girl, nobody could argue against this. Shame on Mura, his body numb of sensation and respectively pleasure, plus his sociopatic character would never allow him to appreciate such a random encounter. Neverthe less, he could not just walk away.. mainly because she was standing right in front of him. Mura scanned the kunoichi with a quick look, trying to get as much information as possible about her. One could obtain a decent overview of another's occupation just from observing closely. At first glance, looking at the clothes she was wearing, he immediately noticed the headband of Kirigakure. "Soo.. she is a shinobi? I ought to apologize then." Mura didn't trust or like people, however, he respected shinobis. So much that he was always eager to swallow his apathetic notions, open his mouth and mumble a few barely understandable words.
"Excuse me. I did not see you coming."

WC:305

Observed from a respectful distance, one could consider Eishi to be in a state of deep meditation - lotus position in check, umbrella leisurely held in hand, eyes calmly shut on an adamant face. There was also this very specific aura of serenity prescribed to the wisest of sages to the East. Two minutes of surveillance later, the observer would have found his own misguiding claims to be completely unjust for the Kiri genin had simply fallen asleep on the rooftop. The rain wasn't showing even a remote intention of stopping, but clearly that didn't bother the "well armed" ninja from taking his daily dose of weird dreams. "Get out!", a shout woke him. Somewhere nearby a door has been slammed. "Wha-?!", Eishi almost dropped his umbrella, startled by the sudden outburst. "I said get the hell out of here!". The ninja jumped back on his feet, scanning the local streets with tired eyes. He knew quite well that drunkards weren't to be tolerated when breaking the village's daily routine, so he intended to put an end to whatever indecency was going on once he was done gathering information about the current case. "No sign of you, huh? Then I will hound..."

Having promised that out loud, the genin jumped off the roof in search of answers.


"Excuse me. I did not see you coming." The suspicious looking boy seemed...numb, as he was high on opium or some other illegal drug. His lengthy face, distinctive and slack, was unnaturally apathetic, while his swag only complemented that impression on a subliminal level. There was also a beautiful girl, her gorgeously stunning eyes widened by shock, messy hair and soaked clothes dripping of neglect. "Could it be...yes, no doubt about it...", Eishi cheered. "Hold it right there! Just who do you think you are, causing all that ruckus?! You need to have a word with me right now!" The white-haired hero pointed at Mura, legs spread firmly on the ground, umbrella thrown in the air for more effect. Unfortunately, an unforeseen gust of wind grabbed the item and carried it away with unprecedented speed...
"Ack! My umbrella!!!", Eishi screamed. And nothing else mattered...
---

WC: 367
TWC: 620

Kahou was really mad because for so far it was unfortunate for her. She was yelled at and shooed away from a store, the rain was literally drowning her and she knew this would bring about men's attention. She was ALWAYS bringing about men's attention. So as she was making her way through the crowd she was only praying nothing would trigger her emotions as they were not the kind-hearted ones she always tried to maintain. *Bump* an oddly looking young boy had ran into her. She felt she knew him from the academy halls but at this moment her fury was overtaking her body, especially when she noticed him "inspecting" her from head to toes. It made her feel the same way she had felt that night. Like a piece of meat.

Without much hesitation and only hearing his words halfway through, Kahou lifted her first and landed it on the boy's face. After just a second of realization what she had done, including seeing the result, she immediately put her hands on her face in shock. It was not her to hit random people, especially when they are apologizing, on top of not doing that much. She had no time to return the apologies because an odd funny looking boy appeared from nowhere pointing at... well the other odd kind of creepy looking boy. Before she could start doubting this whole situation, because it could easily be described as a set-up, the white-haired shinobi lost his umbrella to the wind and started chasing it. Kahou had no idea how to react to the whole "event" but she knew one thing, she could not leave the poor dark-haired boy in front of her to bleed out to death as he for some reason did not show any signs of pain or even consideration of his face.

"Let me take you to the hospital... at this rate you might die from nose bleeding" she was so frustrated to even speak these words out. What the hell was going on this day for her? Had she lost her fortune? Or was it just a slow-hand being played out.
---------
WC: 365
TWC: 301 + 365 = 666 (THE DEVIL)

Mura hoped the awkward situation would go the following way: apologise, get a "no worries" reply, and that would be it... but just when he thought he is 'free' to continue on his little quest to the weapon shop the pretty girl turned out to be quite feisty. Or maybe she was angry, Mura could not really determine people's emotions. Fortunately, he could not 'determine' the punch on his nose too. Numb for feelings and touch, the boy only blinked while his head bounced off the girl's fist. Warm blood started dripping from his nose. He could barely feel the iron-y taste of it, which put a little unrecognisable smile on his face.

At the same time another boy appeared on scene – one that also seemed energetic and flamboyant. His umbrella was of particular interest to Mura. "Why the hell would one use such a thing?" Thinking this is definitely not a surprise in the numb boy's way of thinking– he could not possibly understand the meaning of truly being soaked. There was no second opinion that three of them are now under a thorough shower, but it was only Mura that seemed not to mind being all wet, covered in his own blood.

Just when the new guy urged Mura to "hold it right there", the shinobi turned so quickly to face him that the girl could easily believe there would be a fight in a couple of moments. And then Mura noticed something about the boy. He also had a bandana. "So both of them are shinobis. Am I getting robbed? Are they planning something deceitful and cunning? I ought to find out a bit more before I act."

Mura completely ignored the girl's proposition to go to the hospital with her. She could get a man's attention easily, but Mura was a special case. Somehow the white-haired boy got his full commitment at this point. Just in time to notice the umbrella letting itself go from the boy's grip.
"If you hold your weapon the same way you hold your umbrella, you would not go far."

WC: 346
TWC: 305 + 346 = 651

"Ay, ay, ay, ay!!!", Eishi was chasing after his umbrella which was mockingly being carried in circles by the wind. It was a grand display of fatalistic irony, of that there was no doubt. So when the boy finally managed to reach the wooden grip of his large brolly, he gave in a cheering shout to mark the moment of mankind's victory over the forces of nature. "Yataaa!", he went, just before hearing Mura's condescending words. "If you hold your weapon the same way you hold your umbrella, you would not go far."
"What's that?", Eishi turned to face the apathetic boy, rivers of rain dripping from their faces. "Are you underestimating me?". Yes, he was doing just that. While bleeding. Why was he bleeding in the first place and how could the Yuki representative miss that when he first arrived at the crime scene? "Tell me something. Were you by chance the one who has been bothering this here damsel?". Wait a second. She was wearing a Kirigakure no Sato's bandana, so...she was also a shinobi. Apparently, Eishi had missed that out as well. "Err, come to think of it", the boy stuttered, "I may have got something wrong here. But that's just an unlikely probability. I rarely...well, probably more often than...hm..."
Awkward silence. For what seemed like decades only the downpour had the decency to remain audible. "So...erm...want to come under my umbrella?", Eishi finally offered. "There's always room for more. I love to view it as a tent for it sure keeps me home when outside."
The young genin was smiling, his face bearing the warm and comforting expression of amicability.
---

WC: 285
TWC: 905

"I better get home" Kahou thought to herself acknowledging the change of scenery. There were two boys she knew only by face from the academy, one of which was ready to defend her and one who had totally ignored her. Which was odd, nobody had ignored her before. The Karisuma felt in a very strange kind of unpleasant way she had never felt before. And to come to think of it, the black haired boy was inspecting her just a second ago... did he not like her? Kahou felt a little uncomfortable but it was not only due to her woman senses that were all tangled up due to the lack of interest, confusing her to extents unknown but for the still bleeding nose of the creeper she had landed her fist upon earlier.

"I wouldn't like to interrupt your special moment" she stepped in with a feigned confidence. "But your nose is still bleeding and if you do not mind, I would like to use my medical knowledge to fix what I have broken" she claimed as she formed a few seals. Her hands started glowing green and she put them near the boys nose. She was cautious as probably he would be too for the last time her hands got near his face he started bleeding and... smiling? Something about this boy was really bothering her but she could not determine what exactly. As she was healing the battle-ready creeper, the new white-hair boy was "fighting" to bring down his flying umbrella. The way he dealt with the problem was... special and Kahou could not help herself and let out a quiet girly giggle.

"All ready!" she cleared her throat and she crossed her hands before her bosom, leaving a long annoyed sigh as she was already soaked to the bones. "Thanks, but I would rather go home alone." she declined Eishi's kind but inappropriate proposal. She felt she had enough socializing for a day. The Karisuma was not one to let new people so easily in and the circumstances in this case were... more than not conducive.
-------
WC: 354
TWC: 666 + 354 = 1020

135/150 Chakra

Basic Recovery Method:

"It seems they do not know each other. Unless they are really good actors and they are plotting something." It was in Mura's nature to doubt everybody. Even when Kahou reached for his bleeding nose to heal it, he felt the urge to jump back and prepare for battle. The cautious movements of the girl were on point, as she had felt that Mura might not feel comfortable with jutsu enhanced hands over his face. He saw that she is also worried about what could happen, but he decided to trust her. Not because he trusted her like a person. Although he did not know her, Mura knew that she is a shinobi; and from her jutsu it was more than obvious she practices the art of healing. In his own belief system there was one important pragma – always respect other shinobis from Kirigakure no Sato.
"If you want to practice your healing on me, then be it."
Mura waited for some time while she was fixing his bleeding nose. Truly a shame that he couldn't feel any improvement, besides the fact that the taste of the blood eventually disappeared because the rain washed it off as she stopped the hemorrhage.
After Kahou was done with all the medical stuff on Mura's face, he thanked her with a nod and said:
"Your healing skills are serving the village well. Continue on this path, because fighters like me need people like you on the battlefield."
Mura was talking like he was some kind of great warrior, when he was just a boy that recently finished the academy, who liked to think of himself as something more. In reality, he also had to prepare for "the battlefield" since his skills were far from satisfying. As a matter of fact, he was on the look out for people who could assist him in his training. It was obvious that Kahou is a useful asset, however, Mura could not imagine her grabbing a weapon and sparring with him. Therefore, he turned his attention to Eishi again.
"Is this your weapon?" He asked, referring to the boy's umbrella.

WC: 353
TWC: 651 + 353 = 1004

"My weapon?", Eishi blinked. The boy was rather confused. Not because the kunoichi decided to go home - that, in his eyes, was perfectly normal. After all, she was just a beautiful girl who wouldn't (in her right mind) prefer to hang out with two suspicious looking dudes. Boys who she seemed to vaguely recognize only from her memories of the local Academy life. But the black-haired creep? He was something different; acting so weird, unpredictable. Eishi had to admit to himself - the boy was truly unorthodox in his behavior. And that made him a person of interest in the genin's curious eyes.
"No, I am not a legendary ninja from the Hidden Rain Village. Although...", Eishi prepared to crack a lame joke, "...one can say that we currently find ourselves...in a Hidden Village...of Rain. Because it's raining. Heh-heh-heh..."
Awkward silence. Again. But the white-haired comedian had already gotten used to it. He knew that he was either a genius in the making or...nah, he was a genius in the making. Please.
"Well then...err...I guess I should head home now. It was a pleasure meeting you and...well, I didn't really found out what was going on, but I guess you would like to keep it personal; between the two of you, that is."
Somebody did something then got his nose punched and healed. Why not. Worse things used to happen in the streets back when Eishi was a kid. Once he was chased by dogs all the way to the nearby canal system where he jumped into the water and remained beneath the surface for a minute. He nearly drowned. And the dogs...the dogs seemed to laugh at his powerlessness. "Bears would never have done that", learned the boy in time. And he got wise.
"So...catch ya around, yeah?"

Eishi smiled and turned his back, walking (with a leisured step) and humming a cheerful tune in the opposite direction, umbrella still in hand. It was a...short, peculiar and spontaneous meeting, but something was telling him that it was only the beginning.

Little did he know how right he was...
---

WC: 365
TWC: 1270

[Exit]

Training:

1. Reaction Time from D-1 to D-3 for 850 words and 125  ryo
1270 words - 850 words = 420 words left

2. Speed from E-1 to E-3 for 375 words and 0 ryo.
420 words - 375 words = 45 words left

Kahou had no idea what she was still doing on the streets under the rain. Curiosity killed the cat or in this case it had soaked wet the Karisuma. "To keep personal? I wouldn't like to keep anything with this creep" she thought to herself hearing Eishi's words that followed a joke so bad, she felt it numbing her brain. It probably did not have the same effect on the black haired shinobi who seemed constantly numb. "I just hope I don't get tagged on a mission with those two..." she was thinking on her way home. Kahou left the scene without saying a word, just the way everything had started for her. Instantly and without warning. She did not feel in any way obliged to show affection of any sort to either of them, even though the white-haired boy was nice. In a way this was her medical-self acting, for it was the doctor's duty to treat equally without judgement all in his way.

"Maybe tomorrow I can visit the Hospital again to help with the work, roaming the streets and the shops isn't really my thing..." the Karisuma concluded as she was stepping inside the dormitory. The blank damp room she called home for the past two years. And even though one could find it hard to believe, she was happy to return there - in her palace, in her own kingdom where she ruled. She got herself a towel and went to the common bathroom on the floor to take a shower as she pondered the events from today. What were those two boys thinking? Why had this event occurred to her... and especially why was the "Joker" acting so familiar with her and even the other boy... Shaking her head she tried to dismiss the questions leaving a solitary answer - hospital, tomorrow.
---------
WC: 312
TWC: 1020 + 312 = 1332

[Exit Thread]

Strength: D0 -> D3 1332/1175
-150 ryo
Reaction: E2 -> E3 157/150

"I have nothing to do with this girl, neither do I want to come under an umbrella, which could be used as a Futton weapon." said Mura while looking at Eishi. "It seems like we are all, to some extent, suspicious of each other. I respect that, it is perfectly normal." At this point Mura was talking to both of them, however, because his face was retreating behind his zipped up jacket the speech came out as a mutter. In order for the others to hear him, they had to heighten their hearring.
"I would understand if you thought I am a weirdo, and I assure you, this is the very truth. There is one thing though. I really do hope you are not some kind of rogues, or ones that betray their village in any kind of way. Even though I do not know what your aspirations are, I hope to find out at some point, because if they go against Kirigakure no Sato's interests... " An awkwardly long silence was just left to hang in there. Just before the others had left the scene, Mura managed to add one last thing:
"Oh, my name is Mura, by the way." It was time for him to also get the hella out of this place. Not because he might had just made two fine shinobis his enemies, but because he was actually in a real hurry to buy himself a weapon.

It was an interesting encounter, this one. Mura rarely spoke so much.. mainly because other shinobis never stayed around him for long. If you were one, you must be prepared for the boy's weird lecturing on the pride that comes when graduation from the academy. Hell, he could lecture anyone on these things. Nevertheless, as previously mentioned, he didn't really speak so often.. maybe Eishi and Kahou should feel lucky to have unleashed his more 'involved' side. His only involved side.

Who knew what was going to come after the meeting of these three. If one was looking at the situation objectively, they all had finished the academy in the same batch - this of course meant their paths would cross again sooner or later. Either on a chuunin exam, or on a mission – it was as much for them to decide as for the higher ranking officials in Kirigakure. Rather, if the former decides that they had to work together in some way, there would be no other choice for any of them. In some weird way, Mura actually hoped to see them again.


TWC: 1004 + 426 = 1430

[Exit Thread]

STR: E-0 -> D-0 1430/750
END: E-0 -> E-3 680/450
REA: E-0 -> E-2 230/225