Kasai is a large town-city located at the southwestern sea border of the Fire Country in the Taika Province. It is the second most populous town after Teichaku, not counting Konohagakure. Kasai’s economy is currently suffering a recession due to a lack of ability to export their goods via boat as a result of an increase in piracy. Their poor economy has left them unable to afford the same protection that the vastly more successful Teichaku manages.

The architecture of Kasai is modern, typically employing the usage of wood, stone, and plaster. The majority of the population are general labourers and seafarers such as fishermen or naval tradesmen.

Demographics
Population: 240,000
Population Density: 2,666/km²
Land Area: 90/km²

Economy: Recession, stagnated
Relationship with Konohagakure: Poor
Relationship with Akagahara: Poor

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Mission name: Cleaning the deck
Mission rank: D
Objective: Ships don't wash themselves D:<
Location: Any port
Reward: 150 ryo
Mission Description: It's a dirty work and someone's got to do this. Your tools: a bucket of water and a mop. Your duty: scrub that ship's deck like you mean it.
Mission Details: 750 wc
The first steps to becoming a true sea dog. Hope you got sturdy legs.

Stepping out of the quiet labyrinth of streets that formed the town-city of Kasai and walking into the busy pleasantries of the docks, one sashaying wanna-be pirate walked down the stairs, sniffing the salty waft of the nearby seas. The stink of fish, both fresh and old, would assail her nostrils. The scream of seagulls greeting her in mockery as her feet hit the wooden jetty once more. It had only been a couple of days but the wait for the schooner's return had felt like an eternity. Time had trickled by in boredom and drunken stupor. A situation not all too dissimilar of her current situation since the girl was already drowning the day with a bottle of the good stuff.

Arriving at the the jetty where "The Nayad" was docked, a couple of sailors were busy checking the boxes left on the side, assuring themselves all was in line with the list pressed into their hands. Alexa snickered. A couple of days ago she had been at that same position, counting hundreds of items just to be sure they were all there. Now it was their turn to lose their heads over that same tedious task. This time, there would be no sailor watching them, revealing the trust the captain put into his crew compared to that of a young shinobi such as hers. Oh well. Walking up the plank, the furious screech of a monkey resonated through the air, the source of origin coming into sight as she progressed upon the rising plank. Peanut, her rival, was drumming upon the captain's hat and pointing at her direction as if to express clearly how urgent it was her 'infiltration' upon his ship was to be dealt with. The captain would turn his head, raise his hand and greet her.

"Yar, matey." ;D, she'd return the greeting, the man rubbing the thick ticket of hair that formed his black beard. Next to him, the guy that had been watching her during the previous mission. His First Mate, maybe? Well, that man would tap his hat as he nodded as a way of greeting, then the two continue their conversation on the course of action. Halting near the two of them, looking about the ship as it was the first time she had been on its deck, she picked up the talk concerning the passengers that would be sailing along and the preparations in need of finishing before all would be done. The brief review on tasks to do quickly came to an end. As the First Mate moved away to delegate further duties, the captain slapped his hand on Alexa's shoulder and grinned.

"I got yer the finest job.", he'd share, the genin buying none of it. He'd flick his fingers at a passing sailor holding a bucket and broom and point at Alexa, signalling he was to pass on the tools to the lass next to him. "Ship needs to be squeaky clean, so you'll be scrubbing the deck back and forth until I can see meself in it."
"Sounds like a job that'll make me thirsty, captain. You better have something to quench me thirst, mate." =/
"Sure can do. Getting your bum drunk might grow you some sea legs while you're at it. I'll get you yer drink while you start scrubbing. Don't dally now."

Without another word he'd move below deck and left her alone to drag the empty bucket and the mop around, her first spot being close to the ship's wheel. Putting down the bucket and the mop, Alexa would eye the wheel with dreamy eyes and a wry smile. She could see herself standing there, wheel in hand, wind playing with the sails and her hair as she steered the schooner to unknown origins to meet adventures worth boasting about. Before she knew it, her hands would be resting on the wheel, touching the well-crafted wood that was used to form its shape. Splinter-free, smooth and solidly attached. She'd take a deep breath and -

A thwap against her head would snap her out of her dreams and make her pull back her hands as she rubbed her head, a scowl on her face as she looked at the culprit who had the audacity to touch her, the Scourge of the Seas, the Most Dreaded Pirate known as Alexa. Her red eyes would stare into the cold gaze of the captain himself, bottle of drink in his hands.

"No one but the captain touches the wheel. You better not try this again if you want to keep all of your fingers. Got that, lassie?"
"Aye, captain." D;

He'd shove the bottle in her hands and walk away, adjusting the hat on his head as a last sign that all was said and done. The monkey on his shoulder would turn its body, laughing heartily as it mocked the girl with her shattered dreams. With a swift swig of the bottle, she'd drown the brief sorrow that came with her broken dreams before placing it on a nearby barrel and move to grab rope and hook to let the bucket down into the sea. Filling the bucket with fresh sea water, she pulled it back up and emptied it over deck.

Salt water would wet the deck, pushed back and forth under the forceful guidance of the mop. As the area would turn a tad cleaner from what it used to be, the once clear water would turn into a murky liquid requiring a good rinse. So began the necessity for the tedious job of bucket-filling and emptying. A dreary job if anything but the altering in motion made for a good physical exercise in agility as the ship didn't exactly remain still during scrub duty. Heave-ho.

Alexa would fortunately not be the only one scrubbing the thirty or so meters of deck which stretched across the ship's full length. On the other side of the ship another sailor was appointed the same task and duly executing it as sturdy arms plunged the mop in the bucket, passed it across his side of the deck and repeated those actions. What struck a nerve to the kunoichi was mostly that he was going at it at a faster pace than she did, unintentionally urging her into an unspoken competition.

At increased speed and determination, Alexa would haul in bucket after bucket of salt water, wield the mop like it was a weapon and scrub the deck like her life depended on it. In her mind, this D-rank mission had become a B-rank mission as her whole future depended now on the success of this competition. Failure to finish first would indicate she wasn't worth to be a sailor, a thought that had no room within her mind and only spurred her on even more. With a heart-felt "Yosh! D:<", the Hyuga scrubbed the deck at a pace that made most sailors halt and blink for a moment, wondering what insanity had struck the kid to go so wildly about her scrubbing duty.

The captain would pass by the time Alexa had done one third of the deck, scratching his hair in confusion yet all together snicker at the enthusiasm this girl brought in. He wouldn't mind a crew member this eager to scrub the deck, since most of his men had grown past that desire to prove themselves and now considered it a boring duty at best. Then, just as he was contemplating that motion, Alexa stopped abruptly, grabbed the bottle he had offered her and chucked it down greedily right before wiping the sweat of her face. A content smile would reveal itself briefly before she'd eye the difference in progress between herself and that of her distant rival.

They were at an equal distance.

Her eye twitching slightly as she didn't understand how the other sailor scrubbed as fast she did when she was giving it her all, she sighed deeply and mopingly continued her duties albeit with a sudden decrease in eagerness. The captain would laugh, making her look up only to see him leave ship to continue his own duties.

Eventually, the whole deck ended up scrubbed and the two sailors would meet each other in the middle. Pretty exhausted despite her shinobi training, Alexa would lean on her mop and empty the last of her bottle. Both her and the sailor would allow their eyes to gaze over the squeaky clean deck, the latter never been aware of the competition in which he found himself partaking involuntarily. He'd nod, seeing as how this concluded the scrubbing duty they shared, grabbed the two brooms, making Alexa stumble under loud swearing in the process, and walked off to put the tools away for the day.

When the captain returned and found Alexa sitting on the jitty, looking over the sea with wiggling feet, he took his time to watch the work that had been delivered. The sun had dried the ship and the grit and dirt seemed mostly gone. All in all a sufficiently well done job and one worry less to watch out for before the flood of passengers would crowd the ship for the trip to Kirigakure. Satisfied, he'd walk to the kunoichi and cough.

"Good job. Never saw a sailor scrub a deck that eagerly."

She shot him a glare as she stood up to leave her place on the edge of the jitty.

"I'll let administration know you've done good, so you can expect your payment soon. If I find something else for you to do, I'll request they send you again. Aye?"
"Aye!"
"Good. See you later, Alexa."

The captain would doff his hat cordially and leave to enter his private cabins. Alexa would throw a last glance at the ship, resting her hands in her neck as a faint smile would beautify her face. Her muscles burned but she was happy with her job brought to a good end and the prospect of being offered more tasks in the future. Humming a sea shanty she had picked up but didn't know the text of, the kunoichi started to walk the long road home, leaving the busy cheer of the docks behind her. Since the sun stood still high, she'd have the whole afternoon free to keep herself occupied. An afternoon most likely spent on drinking and sleeping.

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[EXIT]

1768
-750 mission
-1000 C-rank 'Zephyrian Stride'
Discarding rest