Maikeru held his head up to the significantly taller Jounin. In return for allowing him to continue the endeavor of his current investigation instead of leaving it at a matter of jurisdiction, he had to put in some work for Konoha. The Jounin before him was tall and extremely buff, with a mustache manlier than any other actual man. Maikeru was feeling a bit intimidated, which was a rare occurrence. Though his body seemed relaxed, his mind was very alert. Still standing with this man in front of him for more than three minutes was starting to get to him. “Alright, Mister Iwa Ninja, here is your assignment for today. You and a partner will be going to recover jewelry that was stolen last night. Since you are the investigative type, seeing as how you are on the tail of a forgotten murderer, my superiors have decided you are the best for this situation. It should be pretty simple. Understood?”
“Yeah. I got you.”
“Go to the scene of the crime now. Your partner will meet you there.”
“That’s cool. Who is my partner exactly?”
“I have not the slightest clue. That isn’t decided by me. That’s enough talk, get your ass there already!” The older ninja jumped off into the distance. Maikeru raised his eyes in curiosity. Then he lowered them in annoyance. “Tch. Asshole.”

Maikeru came to the scene of the crime. The family was rich. Filthy rich. Sewer filled with fecal matter and urine filthy. The house was a traditional styled one, a fountain, a little pond for coy fish. The air was serene. He knocked on their door. He was greeted by a young and lavishly dressed woman. “Yo was sup. Name’s Maikeru. I’m here to find your diamonds and stolen goods.”
“Oh it was awful! Someone invaded our home and taken diamonds from me!” Maikeru’s eyes trailed off to see that she had a very large chest. “Goods…I mean, where was your husband when this had happened? Is he here?”
“Luckily for the filthy lowlife thief my husband wasn’t here. He is off on a business trip in the land of Iron. He would have pounded him into oblivion.” Maikeru sat to think for a second. This was a difficult situation. Random crimes of theft are the hardest to solve given that almost everyone has a motive to steal from a wealthy family. From what the scroll said, there has been a string of such theft on the wealthy areas of Konoha. Sloppy ones but each pulled off successfully. “Excuse me ma’am but I must wait for my partner to arrive. Maybe she can help.”


449 WC

The morning started out quite lovely. Sipping on her tea while the sun shone brightly overhead, Tamago's brush lingered over a white canvas with a partially finished landscape painted over the left-hand side. Thumb holding up the brush, she peaked over the side of the canvas to examine the view she was painting. The young girl had managed to capture the shade accurately, having been working on this at the same time of the morning for the past few days. Consistency was key for a good landscape painting, after all, even though she was currently favoring pointillism over a more classic style. It allowed her some artistic license, so to speak.

Shiro - the old man that currently served her as her personal butler - exited the house and joined her side, a cup of Earl Grey tea placed on a silver tray in his hand. Silently, he offered it to the girl who nodded in thanks. Surely, this would turn out to be a wonderful and much needed day o-

Aaand there was a Jounin standing behind her easel, waiting to be paid attention to. The girl huffed soundlessly and stood up to greet the man. Her displeasure was obvious. She knew that this interruption would likely cost her the rest of her day. Tamago looked at him expectantly, hand on her hip and day dress fluttering in the wind. It was clear that she wasn't dressed for a mission or training. She cocked a perfectly sculpted eyebrow.

"Yasuda-san," he began. At least they had the decency to send someone with some manners. "I have an assignment for you from Lord Hokage. He wishes you to investigate a robbery nearby, in the Fujiwara household, I believe. Your partner will be a Shinobi from Iwagakure." With the explanation over, what she now assumed had been a shadow clone poofed into a cloud of smoke, leaving behind a scroll with instructions.

The young heiress sighed. Of course her new sensei wanted her to take on a mission. He probably didn't believe in days off. What was interesting was her partner, a foreigner. Tamago knew that Rippa-sama had intentions of negotiating with Iwagakure. She was involved in the venture, so was this practice? Did he want her to start making connections in the other village to eventually send her there? Intriguing.

However, she did not appreciate the short notice. She needed to change and prepare a couple of scrolls. If that made her late, so be it. It was better to look tardy than underprepared. Quickly, she changed into her combat outfit and drew up two scrolls - the Rat and the Dragon. Anything else, she would have to draw at the scene.

The Fujiwara Mansion was only a few miles away, making them neighbors, technically speaking. She had met the couple on a few occasions and had found them decent enough people, if not a little superficial. The girl arrived at the scene of the crime and was respectfully welcomed inside by the serving staff.

Her partner was already speaking to the victim. "Oh it was awful!" She cried into her hands. Tamago placed a palm on her shoulder both as a greeting and consolation. She turned around to look in surprise and placed a kiss on each of the younger girl's cheeks. "Oh Yasuda-san! It's lovely to see you again. Are you this young man's partner?" She asked, to which Tamago nodded. "Then I know I'm in good hands."

Once again, Tamago nodded politely, not saying a word or making a sound. It was only natural. She was mute, after all.

[623][/b][/b]

Maikeru looked at his apparent partner and then the victim. Oh so they no each other. After making mental note. He stood and pondered.So the perpetrator has been striking out in the rich areas. Apparently his crimes have become more and more frequent. With this bit of information chances are he's going to get cocky and strike out again tonight. He continued to look around. There were some broken things. They appeared to be tripped over.
"You didn't do any of this did you..."
"Of course not-" from there Maikeru got his answer and stopped listening to her rambling. hhe breaking of items happened from the past three break ins as well. When he first started ee was new to this. Careful. bkw he's getting cocky. He has gotten too use to not getting caught.
"Alright ma'am that'll be all. Mark my words we will find the thief and bring him to justice." Too deep in thought, Maikeru ignored her long dribble of a thank you. It's too early to actually search, since the burglar doesn't come out til late at night. All crimes have been after midnight." So here is what we do: we have time to spare, a few hours, so we will just patrol these rich area he's been hitting. All we have to do until then is keep our profile low. From there we hit rooftops, since the entry points have all been on higher elevation or houses. He's getting sloppy. Making mistakes. Any objection?"

267/716 WC

Tamago took one of her scrolls from the belt at her waist. She wasn't in battle, so there was no need to skip the drawing step and go for one of the pre-drawn jutsu. Her brush glided through the page with practiced grace, leaving behind shapes of black ink that would soon come to life. One simple hand sign was all it took. In a cloud of smoke, five little rats scattered from the parchment and throughout the house. The lady of the house looked at them with some apprehension, but said nothing as they scattered around the place. She didn't know how long the other boy had looked for clues or how much time he had spent here before her. Regardless, she trusted her own eyes and ears above his. She would gather her own clues, and if he thought a couple of questions were enough to form a full background, he must be daft.

The young heiress resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the boy. Steady. Be diplomatic. This may very well be a test from Sensei. She reminded herself. The rats returned soon after, carrying with them a small piece of cloth that she took into her own hands. The fabric was certainly cheap and tattered - not something that would belong to anyone in this house. She was no Aburame - she had no innate way of tracking someone's chakra signature - but this was still helpful. Someone in her household would be able to identify the perpetrator's chakra signature. With another hand sign, the small rats disappeared. She now turned to look at her temporary partner.

She couldn't tell what clan he belonged to by looks alone. There were many cases where one could to such a thing - Hyuuga members had their peculiar eyes, Hoshigaki had fish-like features, Akimichi had a tendency to be overweight and so on and so forth. This didn't appear to be the case, however. The boy had white hair, red eyes and dark skin, but none of those traits or the combination of them marked him as a member of one clan in particular, at least not one that she knew of. He may very well have been from a lesser known one. That meant she would have to ask what his abilities were rather than deducing them. What a bother. It was always a pain to communicate with people. Writing took time and signing was an uncommon ability. Less common still were the people who could read her without need for either.

The look on Tamago's face was blank, analyzing. She thought of his plan. It could be worked with. She took her brush once more and began to write in the air. "I agree that the perpetrator is beginning to miscalculate. However, without knowing what his next target is, we may very well spend weeks guessing the wrong location. With this piece of cloth, we can narrow down where he is. If you have your own method of tracking at your disposal, that would be most convenient. If not, we will make do with outside help," she began. Her words were formal, her handwriting practiced. However, it was... difficult to read. One too many embellished strokes, letters slightly tilted to the side. It looked beautiful, certainly, but making out the words was a difficult task. "In either case, it would be best to catch the perpetrator in the act, so as to make the conviction process easier with the added proof," she stated.

The young kunoichi wouldn't wait for his answer before bowing to the lady of the house and bidding her farewell. They could continue this discussion once they left the house. "You may follow me to my estate for further planning. By the way, my name is Yasuda, Tamago. You may call me Yasuda-sama or Yasuda-san, if you must," she wrote once again before setting off and leading the way.

[1288]

Maikeru lifted his eyebrow....Did she just sa to call her Sama? Maikeru decided to dismiss it as a joke. Maikeru noticed it had began to get a little darker. It was almost time. The sky was a radiant color of peach and a bit of purple. As they walked to her home, Maikeru crouched for a moment to pick up a rock. To the average person, they would see him throwing it up and down in the air while periodically stopping to focus on to it. In truth he was practicing the transfer of Chakra like his Sensei, Harichimo, had taught him. He had been walking rather fast, ignoring if Tamago can keep up alright. He was eager to finish this mission, so he could get back to the entire reason for him being in Konohagakure in the first place. He still needed to find out who murdered that girl. It wasn't until now when Maikeru aealized that he had a lot to do on his plate.

When he finally made it to her home, he couldn't help but have a look of surprise on his face. The mansion was huge. It was definitely a shift from the homes he's used to in Iwagakure. "Wow...nice place...wait a second." Maikeru noticed that someone was sneaking in through the side window. They had a cat mask on, and a tonto in each hand. "The theif!" Maikeru burst forward. He was eager to practice using his new Jutsu. The Detonator Jutsu. But unfortunately, the house was liable for damage. As he hopped in the window, the theif took notice, flinched, and ran around the house. "You're mine!" He was very agile. He bunched off of walls and tables. His Sleight of hand was also impressive, as he did so, he snatched up some items, only til he took a little too much did Maikeru notice. "Stop you coward and FIGHT ME!" Maikeru spat mud on the floor, which followed him, and took the form of 3 mud wolves. He took his Shuriken and threw it at his leg. It landed on the back of his knee. He yelled and grimaced in pain but endured. And continued to endure even after he was bashed by a few mud wolves. Maikeru cursed to himself as the theifs began to escape.
394/1110

The boy didn't bother to introduce himself. How rude. Not only that, but he gave Tamago a look of confusion when she stated her own name, as if she had suddenly grown an extra limb. Being cordial to this ill-mannered boor was growing more difficult by the minute. And the way he had been looking at Lady Fujiwara spoke volumes of the type of superficial, perverted character that he had. If this was a test of her patience, it was definitely well divised.

Was the young heiress making assumptions based on a series of brief interactions? Yes. But in her opinion, that didn't make them any less valid. She considered herself a good judge of character, after all, and she saw little depth in her current partner.

Tamago found it funny that the boy decided to take charge of the situation and lead the way despite not knowing where they were headed to. She rolled her eyes and waited for the point before she would have to take over because he didn't know the right directions to the Yasuda Estate. Purposely bumping past him after a few minutes of aimless wandering, she guided them to the right place. They would soon come upon the ridiculously large estate that Tamago now called a home. The property itself sprawled several miles. The third had probably been working his way up until he reached the Yasuda Mansion.

Before she could say anything, he appeared to have spotted the perpetrator and jumped to action. Good, this saved them time otherwise wasted by sitting around and waiting. Albeit,  the young kunoichi  would have liked to set some traps. No matter.

Her partner srpung into actions, his hands moving swiftly to cast a jutsu. Mud wolves. Ugh. They'd make a mess of her Persian rugs. The boy better not break anything, or else she'd have his head. It didn't matter that almost everything in the house was ensured for nearly twice it's value. Fortunately, both him and the thief made the smart choice and remained outside. Tamago followed, catching up to see a shurikem digging into the man's leg as he ran away.

Useless. The boy couldn't even disable an untrained thief. Tamago took out a sealed scroll. Having gone through the trouble of drawing in it before, she wasted no time. A puff of smoke appeared over the drawing, and in its place, a large dragon made of ink emerged with a deafening roar, its red scales almost blending into the dusk sky. It charged forward. All Tamago had to do now was stand and wait for the beast to do what it did best. While she was weak herself, her creations certainly weren't.

It moved quickly, despite its large size and stocky build. It closed the distance between the thief and itself, swiping at him to launch him into the air and catching him with its tal, which wrapped tightly around the criminal to keep him still. Caught red-handed in the act, there was no further proof needed that this was the man they were after.

The girl held up her hand and wrote in the air. "We are done now. When the dragon lets go, the man will be unconscious. You may make yourself useful by tying him up and turning him in. In the meantime, I will get the sleep I have earned." With those words lingering in the air, Tamago would enter her home and slam the door behind her to make her point clear. She wanted no further interaction with this... this... Miscreant.

[Exit]


[1898]

Maikeru ignored the Tamgo's rather condescending demeanor. When the Dragonet the man go he was unconscious as Tamago had stated he would be. Maikeru pulled out his rope and tied him up. Whistling a meditation tune he had learn from a primitive village, he had tied the knot hard. There was no way he was escaping this. Maikeru lifted the man on his shoulder and began to haul him off to the proper Konoha authorities. It wasn't long before he had woken up. "wait...what are you doing."
"What's it look like I'm doing? I'm turning you in."
"Please! I didn't want this...I just needed to help my family! My kids are poor and starving! Please!"
"Look I'm sorry about your situation, but I have nothing to do with that, this isn't even my jurisdiction. I'm from Iwa. I just came here to solve a murder and nothing more."
"Tch. Should have known. You're like the heartless high and mighty! You don't care what happens to us little people. Sitting on your ivory towe, looking down on us. We struggle! You and the res6 of these folks don't! Never having to work a day in your life, never seeing the outside! I bet you call is scum too!" Maikeru stopped listening and allowed the man to go on a tangent. He felt accomplished, the same way he felt when he and Takehare caught a target back in the old days. He was used to the classic "we are the real victims". Takehare told Maikeru once, after catching a man that had been robbing rich people
Well, Maik, we don't judge who's right and who's wrong. All we know is there's a law, and they broke it. And there is money to be made. Now if it's a law we don't nessicarily agree with, we can simply not do it, but that's rarely the case in this line of work. There is right, there is wrong and sometimes those lines are gray. But in most cases, there is victim and there is victimizer. The best I could tell you is go with your gut, and you are never wrong. Maikeru ignored the man with his thoughts long enough to get him to the authorities. "Here is your serial burglar. I'll come for my payment later."
"Allowing you to do the case is your payment."
"I know. Habit."

417/1527
[EXIT]