Mission Briefing:

A ghost flew by carrying a heavy-looking bag full of letters, its weight slowly crushing the back of the moaning apparition whose pale face was drowned in sweat from the immense effort that was currently being exerted upon its poor shoulders. Knees being weak, and arms being heavy, although no sweater was worn at the moment – it wasn't really a sight to behold. In fact, it was not a vision of the underworld either, for it was just Yuki Eishi – the frosty genin of Kirigakure no Sato – who had spent the worst days of his entire life in Kumo's public hospital and was now strolling around the streets doing manual labour. Ever since the boy ate the (forbidden) bittersweet fruit from the gnarled branches of the Durian tree, he had undergone a drastic physical change, losing kilos in the process of... struggle. He had seen the Devil and not only that he got to know him personally – he even dreamed of hell while crawling towards the bathroom at night.

Not long before the medical treatment did its job and completely healed the shinobi's stomach, those of the personnel who were familiar with Eishi's previous attempts of cheap chilling demanded preliminary payment as per the "newly established trickster rules". There was something odd about that phrasing but since the Yuki did cause a lot of trouble recently, he had no choice and agreed to sign a couple of documents that were actually forcing him to run an errand for the village. It was a simple task – carry around info fliers for the upcoming battles. As a reward... well, as a reward he got to cover his expenses, and that was more than he could ask for.

"Drats, I need to speed up the process", groaned Eishi during another short pause of delivery. "It's taking me forever to distribute those pieces of garbage. Who's participating in this lame tournament anyway? Probably a bunch of hard-working top-tier ambitious losers! Ha-ha! Let's see now. Nope, I don't know you, I don't know you, I... Kahou? THAT Kahou? No way!"
The boy almost shouted in excitement, making the nearby pedestrians quicken their step.


It was already a late evening and the people of the village were hurrying back towards their homes, tourists still looking for the hostels they rented a room in. With that many drunks around, rich kids spending their parents' money as a way of life, it was no wonder that people were feeling a bit nervous as of late. Despite the local guards' diligent service, there were still reports of trouble (especially at night), so regulars were doing their best to avoid ugly situations.
"Go, girl! Show 'em how it's done! Woohoo!" Eishi was still cheering. "I'll come and watch your battle! And then... oh snap! Is that the moon? How much time have I been yelling? Damn it! Need to finish my job quick before I lose the money..."


The next morning was... unusual for the Village Hidden in the Clouds. There was a great commotion in its center for tons of flyers were pouring down from the sky. Apparently somebody had taken the liberty to climb up all the way to the Skyforge and just... get rid of his or hers job. That particular somebody did all of this without a hint of the wind or its rotating movement, so he or she were either a genius or a complete idiot. Either way – the forces of nature were spreading word of the finals in a rather messy (although effective) way. Eishi wasn't sure if that was a good thing – he could've worried about it if they hadn't paid him last night. But they did so he was just whistling innocently, hands in pockets, as the people around him were eagerly beginning to discuss the final stage of the chuunin exams, marking names on parchment and asking for directions.
"Wow! They are going to use the Bridge Arena! I can't believe my luck! Always wanted to see a battle there."
"Oh yeah? Wait until my champ crushes yours to pieces. That would be a nice battle. I can even bet you a fine 10 ryo on it."
Bring it on then! Hey, catch me another flyer, I need to give one to my dad."
"What's the point? They are all around the village! He would..."
"Just do it already. Jeez. Must you always be like that, man?"

Everybody was arguing or laughing. And the parchment kept falling.

"Wherever you are, Kahou, I wish you luck", thought Eishi and smiled pass the crowd. "I know you can do it."
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WC: 787

[Exit]

D-rank mission completed = 787 words - 750 words = 37 words left