Mission name: Encourage Independence.
Mission rank: C-rank.
Objective: Talk refugees into joining various independent groups instead of leaving.
Location: Suna Excavation Site.
Reward: 300 ryo + 2 EP
Mission Description: Recruit for local independent factions.
Development References: What Lies Beneath Event.
Mission Details: The turmoil in the sand has created opportunities to recruit for tribes and bandit groups who have hired ambitious or unaffiliated shinobi to recruit on their behalf. Ninja should travel to the ruins and do whatever they can to convince refugees they are better off staying than leaving. If this mission is done with another Player Character in opposition who is taking the Path to a New Life village mission, both participants may claim rewards for both missions as if they had completed them when handing in the reward for this mission.

Verdandi had done this mission before, but for a different fraction. Encouraging people to leave suna and instead, join Kirigakure or Konoha. Her indifference towards Iwagakure seemed more of political nature. She didn't really dislike them. In contrary she adores them somewhat despite their weird past. She had only heard good things about those guys so far and was hoping that they kept a sweet relationship with Kiri, maybe even strengthening their bonds during this conflict. Verdandi was once again covered in her black armor and black mask. Moving around the excavation sites of suna. Slowly making her way towards one of the yet still undecided locations and villages. As she arrived there. A bunch of Kumo priests was already in the city. Verdandi sighed. She wouldn't be able to do this mission the way she originally intended. However, she totally knew that this place was supposed to be converted by Kumo. It was the very premise why she accepted the mercenary jobs. Aside from the fact that Kiri enjoyed the idea of messing with Kumo's progress in the sand. It was about them being already here that irked here. Verd watched from the shadows. Spying into town from afar. She couldn't really make out any ninja in this place. Which of course would ultimately lead to her advantage. Watching how the priests annoyed the locals. Seeing them move from house to house. Knocking on doors. Asking people if they wanted to talk with them. To gain a new spiritual insight.

"Hello Sir, would you like to talk with us about our one true, Lord and Saviour, Hastur Miyamoto?" they would ask casually. Verd would facepalm past her mask. The whole premise on how this religion was actually becoming a thing. It sickened her. It made her knack her neck and drive her crazy. She wanted to make sure that the priests weren't joking. But she had met them before. This wasn't her first contact with the mentally insane of Kumo. She was sad for the actual village-nin she liked and adored from there. Verd however needed to get down there and into the whole situation somehow. After spying into their behaviour for a while. She would notice that one of the priests in particular seemed to be a bit of a nasty maniac. Threatening people with sadistic deaths and implying to them that they will regret the day they denied the ultimate love and warmth of their saviour and god. Even the other priests stayed away from him. He probably was too radical even for their taste. A perfect victim for Verdandi's cause. As it dawned. Verd would follow the bastard in his very own shadow under the use of the silhouette technique. She could even casually walk into his house behind him unnoticed before he closed the door behind her. However, what she did see inside the shack would sicken her. A multitude of chained up men and women. Stuffed mouths to make sure they kept shut and silent. A various number of corpses. The bodies giving away that they had been tortured before he had ended them.

Verdandi had to hold her breath. She almost puked herself into existence from her shadow technique. The stench of death was driving her crazy. The insane priest was casually going to throw some more bodies into the large furnace he had. A multitude of bones were already visible within. The still caged, chained and gagged prisoners staring at him in fear. They weren't going to make a noise. Every time he would catch one staring at him or making a noise, she or he would be selected to get in line next. Verdandi didn't understand what it all was about. But she allowed him to at least burn the corpses and get rid of the primary stench within the house. Once he moved downstairs. Verd slowly opened cage by cage. Undid the shackles and made sure that the keys would drop to the ground right next to the first person she freed. Verd retreated into the shadows. Watching the man free himself first, then slowly his companions one after the other. The young and the women quickly leaving the house. But the men, despite being obviously weak from starvation and torture. Grabbing on various tools and metal poles. Moving downstairs. Verd never left the shadows even once. She didn't have to go downstairs to see what was going to happen. The priest's screams were unbearable. But they didn't kill him.

They broke his arms and legs and shoved a gag into his mouth. Dragging him down after hitting his face so many times he went unconscious. The escaped women and younglings already having alarmed half the village. Torches would be lit. A wooden pole would be raised. The priest was rapidly tugged to the village square. The screams and noises of the angry mob growing louder. By the time he had been brought to the pole the other priests were wide awakened. Dandi casually slipped into their rooms. Checking for any similar evil activities but had to realize they were honestly just poor sods and fanatics of sorts. By the time Verd arrived at the village square, still neatly disguised, the other priests had already been turned into shackles. Verd was curious as towards what was going to happen. She walked into a nearby house and found a beautiful young lady sleeping still, probably drank herself into a fun induced coma. She would borrow her appearance. Using the basic transformation technique. Sealing her armor into her fuin scrolls and moving from the house. Ignoring the people that were trying to talk with her. Disappearing into the mass of men whenever she was threatened with personal contact. Her only goal to come closer to the centre until she was. The priests all on their knees. Staring up at them. The knocked-out fanatic with broken arms and legs was waking. His pained screams would echo into the night. Having all your limbs taken from you must be an extremely painful experience.

One of the victims, stepping up to explain the situation to the villagers. To explain how he abducted one of each family in order to try and force them all to comply and convert and if they didn't. Only gruesome torture would befall their loved ones. None of the villagers had known that all the hate speeches he gave about how he was going to torture them were true. Who would believe a madman shouting such nonsense next to the divine decrees about their God of Lightning. Verd was still a bit ill to her stomach. She had triggered an event with a simple single action. She could step in now and free the other priests. But as the executioner stepped forth. She didn't. She watched how each of the priests would be tugged by the hair and the executioner, basically a farmer with a large scythe, would chop off their heads one by one. Piling them up next to the evil priest and mass murderer. They left him alive for a long time. Stabbing him. Whipping him for hours. Trying to make sense of his actions. But he already started begging for mercy at the very first hit. It was a cruelty to watch how they blew all their anger out on him. It was heavy on Verdandi. Despite how much she despised this man he certainly didn't deserve that. No human being did. It was wrong after all.

By dawn, the priests were all dead. They had brought wood towards the large pole and burned him alive together with the bodies of his decapitated comrades. It was a clear symbol for Kumo that they would never be welcome again in this town. Verdandi had not interacted even once with the villagers other than freeing them. Seemingly accepting the fact that it had not been necessary. Verd shrugged. This was insane. All of it. But her mission was accomplished in an odd but certainly very effective fashion. Sliding out of town she'd lose her disguise after placing her armor and mask back on. Her report about what happened here would be different of course. The full report would go to Kiri ANBU HQ. While she would pretend to have staged all of this towards the mercenary group. It'd give the masked skull merc a ruthless, nasty reputation among the merc's. Conning a village into brutally decapitating and murdering their supposed village saviours. Today was a successful day for Verdandi. Her smart exploitation of the idea would lead to a large surplus in trust from the merc administration. She would soon get into an actual important task. A direct assault against the Kumo forces. Verd still wasn't sure if she was ready for that kind of job. But time would show if she could do it. For now, she would reap the benefits. Getting her pay from both the merc admins and the ANBU task force. She would consider this quite a fine deal…

[EXIT]

1520

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